They stood watching their spy for nearly a quarter of an hour, and were able to judge from his actions that he had seen them disappear somewhere in this direction; and in profound ignorance in this game of hide and seek that he was having, Carnach scanned the high slope and the ridge, and the bottom where the stones lay so thickly again and again, ending by ensconcing himself behind one of them, after plucking some fern fronds, and putting them on the top of his cap to act as a kind of screen in case those he sought should come into sight somewhere overhead.
The two boys hardly dared stir, but at last, with his eyes fixed upon Carnach to see if he heard their movement, Vince pointed softly back into the dark passage, and Mike crept away without making the slightest sound. Then, as soon as he was satisfied of the coast being clear behind him, Vince began to back away till he felt it safe to turn, and followed his companion some fifty yards into the darkness, which now seemed to be quite a refuge to them.
“Where are you?” whispered Vince.
A low cough told him that he was not yet far enough; and, keeping one hand upon the wall, he followed until he felt himself touched.
“I say,” he whispered, “this is nice: smugglers at one end and that miserable Lobster at the other! What are we to do?”
“I don’t know,” said Mike dolefully. “He must have seen us go out of sight, and feels sure that we shall come back again, and he’ll wait till we do.”
“No, no; he’ll soon get tired.”
“Not he,” said Mike; “he’s just one of those stupid, heavy chaps who will sit or lie down and wait for us for a week.”
“But I want to get home. I’m growing hungry.”
“Let’s go back and fish, and light a fire and cook it.”