“No,” said Gwyn, “I—”
His next words were not heard, for his head and shoulders were in the cavity and his voice was swept on before him ere he could say, as he intended, “I shall soon be back.”
But there was no risk of getting himself wedged, for the explosion had swept everything before it; and he crept on and on, till his heart gave a bound, for he realised that he must have passed the spot where the stone had wedged up the orifice, and the way to life and light was open.
“Ahoy!” he shouted with all his might; and “Ahoy!” came from a distance, for the wind, which was whistling by him, drove the answer back. But in another minute, as he extended his hand to feel his way along, he touched something warm in the darkness, and his hand was seized.
That warm grasp, which meant so much to the lad, acted upon him like the discharging rod of the electrician upon a Leyden jar; in an instant his energy seemed to have left him, and he lay prone in the narrow way, only half-conscious of being very slowly dragged over rough stone for some time before the dizzy, helpless sensation passed off, and he struggled slightly.
“Let go!” he cried. “I must go back and tell them.”
“No, my lad, I’ll do that,” said a familiar voice. “There’s room to pass here. Think you can go on crawling up now?”
“Yes—yes, I’m all right. Did I faint?”
“I suppose so, sir. Wait a moment.” There was a moment’s pause, and then Gwyn heard the words bellowed out, “All clear! Got to them! Coming now.”
There was a murmur at a distance, and then Vores spoke again,—