“I can’t stand this any longer. I’ve got to find some way of escape.�
But a brief survey of the tiny cabin showed that this was a much easier thing to plan than to accomplish. The door was solid, so were the walls and the ceiling. At last there remained only the floor. A shabby worn strip of carpet was nailed on it.
“I might as well be thorough about this,� mused Raynor and he ripped the flimsy fabric from the planks. Something met his eyes that made them shine with delight.
“Eureka!� he cried, “I’ve found it.�
Under the shabby carpet was an iron ring let into what appeared to be a small trap-door.
“Here’s where I fool Terror Carson,� murmured Raynor, as he inserted his fingers in the ring and tugged with all his strength.
CHAPTER XVII: IN THE EYES OF THE SHIP.
The square piece of flooring swung upward. It revealed a dark hole and the top rounds of a ladder.
“Must go down into the hold,� decided Raynor.
He held the lantern into the black rectangle left gaping by the opened trap-door. It did not reveal much, except beams and timbers and the rest of the ladder.