Rowgowskii had seen some wood while he and the coolies had been on the hilltop. Of his own volition he climbed after it and brought down sufficient to make a fire. There was driftwood also in the bed of the creek or gully and Chang sent the coolies to gather it.
As the fire sprang up Lavelle worked the faster where he ripped out the boat's after air tank. With its metal he planned to cover the hole.
No thought of food nor drink had he, though he ordered Chang to serve rations to the rest. Emily carried a cracker and a cup of water to him, but he would not pause.
"Give me plenty of light; that's all," he answered her urging. "Light to work by——"
A racking shudder passed through the island. It flung Emily headlong. The earth on which Lavelle knelt slid from under him. The island's middle, following the base line of the hill, rose like a monster cat arching its spine and hurled him backward, stunned, breathless, helpless.
There was a breath-long silence. It ended with a chorus of wild cries. Then, the great earth mass fell with a thunderous crash, rending the island in twain. The triumphant sea leaped out of the breach it had made and swept the crumbling shore with a mighty wave.
CHAPTER XIII
Awakening to a bewildered consciousness Emily Granville opened her eyes in a glare of light which stung her vision so sharply that the lids shut instantly in intuitive defense. She could feel the soothing warmth of a fire near by. She was prone on her back. An attempt to move her limbs produced a sensation of being bound. Turning her head slightly from the direction of the fire she opened her eyes again timorously upon a sky burgeoning in a new crescent moon and a myriad of stars. The moon and stars seemed so close that she fancied that all she had to do was lift a hand to touch them. Lowering her gaze she saw the sea and heard its wild white horses neighing.
With a cry of fright the castaway started into full consciousness, every part of her racked and a-throb with pain. By a great effort of will she struggled into a sitting posture and then to her knees. The firelight blinded her. All was still within its radius. An apprehension that she alone had survived the riving of the island overwhelmed her.