Johnny knew at once what had happened. One of the anchor cables holding the boat in place had been struck and broken.
“By that submarine!” he burst out savagely. Then as if it were right out there in the water in front of him, he seemed to see the green arrow of light, and to read:
“We will strike—at the earliest possible moment!”
“They have struck!” he thought. “The second cable has been broken by the added strain—and we are drifting out to sea!”
He tried to think what this meant. The hoist was broken, so he could not be pulled up. Out to sea some three or four miles were coral reefs and beneath these, no doubt, a rocky wall. Moving at its present rate and striking that wall, the steel ball might crack!
Only one cheery thought came to him at this moment. If the boat’s small motor was strong enough to counteract the force of wind and current, he could be held in one position until the hoist was repaired.
Even as he thought this, Doris came back on the air: “Awfully sorry, Johnny, but something has severed an anchor cable—and then the other one broke! The hoist won’t work. We’d have the motor going, but that, too, seems to have gone wrong. Keep your chin up, Johnny. We’ll get you up out of there before it’s—too late.” Her voice faltered at the end.
Johnny found it impossible to utter a single word in reply.
* * * * * * * *
In the meantime, Mildred still was following the signs of the green arrow trail.