And so, squatting on the floor, among the ancient books, Donald told his friend the story of his strange discovery.
Eric’s eyes grew bright, and his face flushed with excitement as he heard all Donald had to tell. Here, at last, was a real adventure! It had always been knights, or princes in fairy tales, or boys who ran away and went to sea, who had splendid things like that happen to them. But at last the chance had come his way!
. . . . . . . .
The next morning the two boys, white with excitement, stole along the quiet passages of the left wing, hand in hand. They both carried candles. Donald was armed with a stout stick, but his Sixer had insisted on bringing his air-gun and an old dagger out of the armoury. “There’ll be some dirty work if we meet the spy!” said Eric (remembering how he had heard his soldier cousin talk). “I say, have you got the coil of rope all right? We’ll set on him and take him prisoner. Then he’ll be tried, and shot at the Tower of London, I expect. And we shall be the chief witnesses.” He breathed hard through his clenched teeth: the fighting blood of the Stones was up.
At last they came to the gallery where the walls were made of dark oak, carved with a pattern of roses. Together the boys counted the roses in a whisper, till they came to the twenty-seventh. Then Donald worked the hidden spring, and the two Cubs stepped through the opening in the wall, into the secret room. Closing the panel again from the inside, they looked about them. The cans and barrels were piled up to the very ceiling. “It’s petrol, right enough,” said Eric, examining the tins. “And a good many hundred gallons, too. Not much ‘1640’ about this! Oh, the beasts! Fancy using Stone Castle as their base!” He gripped his dagger fiercely, and looked about him. “Come on,” he whispered a moment later, as, having lighted his candle, he stepped through the low, dark archway, and started to walk carefully down the spiral staircase.
It was giddy work, this progress round and round and down, in the flickering yellow light of the candles. The boys’ shadows looked like strange, black monsters on the walls. At last they reached level ground, and a long, dark passage opened before them. It smelt damp and earthy; great drops of mildew stood on the stone walls. With their hearts thumping with excitement the Cubs stepped forward.
They had walked what seemed to them some three or four hundred yards, when Eric suddenly called, “Stop—look out!” The passage had ended abruptly in another spiral staircase. Walking very carefully, the Cubs began to descend. Down, down, down they wound in the darkness, till they began to get giddy. Then, once more, they were on the level.
“Another passage!” said Donald. “Oh, Eric, I’m jolly glad I didn’t go without you!”
“Buck up,” said his Sixer, cheerfully.
“What if we are outnumbered?” suggested Donald.