THE FLAMING CAVERN

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22619, 6 January 1937, Page 17

THE FLAMING CAVERN

By ANGUS MacVICAR

SYNOPSIS On a .sweltering August night in (lie Red Sea John Ralston throws himself over tho Bide of a linjr. With his daughter Kona he had embarked at Mombasa fur London. Diving fo his rescue, Da.'hl MacNeill, u rich young farmer returning to Scotland from Rhodesia, receives from the would-bo suicide B " knock-out" punch. But John Ralston has not such a strong wish for self-destruction ; s it seems, for when David regains his senses lie finds tley have both been picked up by an Arab dhow and that Ralston is conversing familiarly with tho skipper, a magnificentlybuilt negro, whim ho addresses as Peter M'Gomba. David feigns unconsciousness and learns strange facts about a flaming cavern, n mysterious man with a hare-lip. a Sir William Dundonald. and, lastly, nn important date, September the 17th. Handed back to the liner as the only survivor, David confronts Kona Ralston with the facts. She admits there is a mystery but urges that the secret is of national importance. David promises to keep silence, but out of his suspicions frame of mind a quarrel develops. At Marseilles he saw the man known as MacPhedran. the man with tho hare-lip, in company with a Eurasian and heard them speak of Rona. He heard tho Eurasian addressed as Aaron Cudd and a third man as Cailloux. MacPhedran followed Kona and David followed him. CHAPTER 111. —(Continued) He saw the girl stand rather listlessly mid pale at the long counter, behind which busy Customs officials plunged their hands into cases and trunks in search of contraband. He saw MacPhedran, a cigarette dangling from one side of his peculiar mouth, moving from one French loafer to another. These ragged, sandalled men would have been of no particular interest to David in other circumstances; for at almost every large port in the world such poverty-stricken loungers are to be discovered, ready to receive a chance coin from rich voyagers. But now it was obvious that the particular individuals with whom MacPhedran was in rapid conversation were not exactly what they seemed. As yet David had no plan by which to ensure Rona's protection. And he racked .his brains to discover the meaning of the strange circumstances which seemed to surround her, without, however, coming to any satisfactory conclusion. Suddenly Rona signalled to a burly porter and in a few quick sentences of perfect, French ordered him to find a taxi. And as she came out again into the sunlight David boldly stepped to her side. " Miss Ralston," he said very softly. " You are in the gravest danger. Can't I persuade you to return to the Dunaverty Castle T You will be safe in the ship, I think. You are certainly not safe in Marseilles. Please believe in me, Miss Ralston. I would have respected your wishes and kept away from you; but—l" cannot. I beg of you, Rona, to return to the ship, not for my own sake, please understand, but for your own." " She met his anxious expression with one of anger. Her cheeks became painfully warm; her little fingers tightened and her hands rose quickly to her breast. " Yoti fool!" she said. "I tried to protect you. Now you may be in greater danger than I am myself. Oh. you fool! Leave me! Leave me quickly, before anyone notices us talking together." . David turned away, rebuffed for the third, time. And the pain in his heart did not result from his knowledge of MacPhedran's dull eyes upon his, but from the unfriendly jut of Rona's little chin and the cold hard set of her mouth.

< The young farmer, however, came of n (logged line of Highlanders, Even though his love and pride smarted under the renewed scorn of Hona's tongue, he did not deviate in the smallest extent from his purpose. After the Customs men had made a fairly cursory examination of liis pyjamas, shaving set and toothbrush he passed out on to the wide street behind the buildings on the quay. There lie hailed a modern, smooth-running taxi, and climbing in, told the driver to await his signal to follow another vehicle which would presently emerge from the wharf. The dark hatchet-faced French driver grinned and deftly rolled a cigarette. It- appeared that lie was not unused to adventures of this kind. And as lie inhaled the first puff of rancid smoke he was called into action. "Voila!" exclaimed David, summoning to his aid a scanty knowledge of French. "The green automobile! Remain fifty metres behind it until the young lady descends." Puffing happily, the driver let in his clutch and shot off, with a headsplitting rattle of the gears, in pursuit of the green taxi. At first it was David's notion that the vehicle in which Rona was seated would be directed towards one of the big hotels in the centre of the city; but as the minutes passed he was surprised to discover that the driver was making for the poorer district of La Capalette, in the south-east. The imposing squares and ornate buildings whisked past, to be replaced by mean little streets in which children and dogs played games together in the gutter. Women with toiiselled heads and bare breasts stood in the doorways to watch the taxis scream by, while slinking barefooted men eyed the racing cars with suspicion. No gendarme was to bo seen in the vicinitv.

A sense of impending disaster came to David. He lifted the speaking tube and addressed his driver. " Where the deuce are we going?" he asked. " Do we reach the country by this route!-'" "Oui, monsieur. But indeed I am suspicious of that automobile. For some time the young lady has been trying to speak to the driver. It is clear, howler, that be pays no attention to what she is Saying. Moreover, we are twisting and turning in our tracks." t "Good Lord!" muttered David. "Can von get past, old man, and block the way?" ," 1 can make the attempt, monsieur." "Stout fellow." Kut almost as David spoke an unforeseen event occurred. The taxi in front slowed suddenly at a corner, opposite which there stood a church w 'th a tall spire and a cluster of little a,, t!el:s over the portico. One of the sandalled loungers with whom David seen Macl'hedran speak at the H"ny stepped from the pavement, leapt' d to the running-board of Nona's |- ar and disappeared into the interior, ihe taxi regained its former speed. Mon Dieu!" ejaculated David's driver. " That miserable coehon has Put his hand to the mouth of mademoiselle. She is struggling. l?r°rii his position in the tonneau ■~ av i(l could not see what his driver Khmpsed through the back window of the automobile in front. But the frenchman's words chilled bis heart. "Five hundred francs," he roared through the speaking tube, " if you , ln K that taxi to a stop within a jftiniite! Smash up your car and I'll b "£ you a new one." Ah, monsieur!" replied the driver, ttniming his foot down 011 the accelerator. " ] nm a Inan the most chival,oUS - Mademoiselle is in danger. I ask '"no reward but to save her." gasped as the taxi seemed

Author of " The Screaming Gull," etc

A STORY OF INTRIGUE, ADVENTURE AND SECRET SERVICE

suddenly to jump to life. It roared de--1 fiance at the scanty traffic in the narrow 0 streets. It overhauled its quarry and, 1 swerving over to the right, forced the , green car to halt in avoiding a collision, ii The young farmer leap out, wrenched 0 open the door of Rona's taxi. * Inside be saw the wharf rat staring at s him while in a corner Rona lay pale 1 and' breathing in a jerky fashion. Her ? eyes rested incredulously on his set face. I A\ith a vicious strength he grasped > Rona's assailant by the jacket and r pulled him forward; and before the t | ruffian could recover from his astonish--5 incut. David struck him a tolling blow on the narrow chin. Grunting, the > criminal slumped down and tumbled I to the street, to remain writhing in ' tho gutter. Out of the corner of his eve David ; saw his driver bring a spanner down [ upon the head of the little man who had boon in charge of the green car. "Fine!" lie roared. Then lie turned to Rona. "Come on!" he commanded. "Out of there. Quick! There's a crowd around us already. And the police may put in an appearance at any moment." She came meekly and allowed him to help her into his own taxi. The hatchetfaced driver, with a prodigious grin and a gesture of nimble fingers in the direction of the discomfited occupants of the green car, sprang to the wheel and in ten seconds had turned into a maze of side streets through which pursuit would be almost hopeless. "Back to the quay!" ordered David. There was a long silence between Rona and the young farmer as the taxi threaded its way back in the direction of the new harbour; but, at last, with a tinge of colour mounting to her cheeks, the girl spoke. "Thank you, Mr. MaeXiell," she said. "Perhaps I was foolish to disregard your advice. 1 asked my driver to take me to the Hotel do la Republique, and when 1 saw him pass it 1 thought everything was finished." "That wharf rat didn't luprt you?" "No." "You're going back aboard the Dunaverty Castle," said David grimly. "Your luggage will still be at the Customs and it can easily be returned to tho liner." She nodded. "Very well. I didn't mean to go ashore at Marseilles until —" I'l'ntil 1 made the ship insufferable for von?" "Ves." "Then please understand that I shall not make another effort to speak to you until such time as you desire. All I am concerned with is your safety." She looked at him with a quick softening of expression. But he was gazing stonily ahead and he did not observe the light which shone suddenly in her blue eyes. The taxi-driver endeavoured to embrace David when he was rewarded for his afternoon's labour. But nimbly the young farmer avoided the friendly effort. CHAPTER IV. A PEKU IN" TROUBLE David kept his promise to Rona. While the Dunavertv Castle ploughed steadily past Gibraltar, while the sunlit, purple-grev shores of Portugal flowed I quietly behind and while a sudden l job hie in the Bay sent several |>asson- j gers to seek tho doubtful comfort of i their cabins he took every opportunity i of avoiding speech with her. Once or twice when they had exchanged casual remarks among a crowd, ho had possessed a vague suspicion that she \ wanted him to talk more intimately: but, as he was now anything but an optimistic young man as far as a lady was concerned, lie dismissed the sus- i picions merely as an indication of his i returning health. David was moderately cheerful, there- j fore, when he went on deck to watch j the slow passage of the Dunavertv I Castle into the big Southampton basin, j He was coining home. And lie was coming home not to loneliness and loaf- | ing, but to a magnificent adventure, j Suddenly, almost below his breath, lie j ] began to hum "Loch Lomond." j Then, in the midst of the bustle and j I the stir of shore-going preparations, he j heard a quiet little voice at his side. i "Mr. MacNeill, 1 have come to wish j you good-bye. i should like to thank you again for your —for your kindness to me in Marseilles." Rona stood beside him. She was wearing a trim dark flannel costume with a black band round one sleeve; but in her hat there was a jaunty pheasant's feather. She was i>nle and there was a hint of fear m her eyes. David took her hand and held it. "Rona," he said very quietly, I m sorry about—about everything. Oh, please believe me. But also -please don't think that I want you to give me friendship unless I prove myself worthy of it And—and the only way I can do that is to help you in this—in this queer affair of the Flaming The words were out before he realised their significance. She started and a slow flush appeared in her pale cheeks. "You know about the blaming Cavern?" . , "Yes. I heard your father and—and M'Gomba speak of it in a dhow qn tho Red Sea. 1 heard them mention, too, a certain Sir William Dundonald and an important date, September 17. I hen in Marseilles 1 discovered that the men who tried to capture you were Aaron Cudd, a Frenchman by the name or Cailloux and MacPhedran of the Harelip. I have, of course, discussed these things with no one—absolutely no one. Nor do I intend to do so with anyone except —except yourself and others whom I mnv discover to bo m the secret. You can rely upon me— ut"Oli'" she gasped. "Oh, David!" He thrilled at her use of his Christian name for the first time for many daws. But, observing this opportunity, he'continued to speak with jerky em"And since I know all these things, Rona, won't you let me help you? I am certain—even although 1 cannot relate such items of knowledge as 1 possess—that you are about to begin some beastlv dangerous job. 1 can t bear to think of you in danger, Rona. Honestly, 1 can't!" . She looked away, her eyes resting unseeinglv on a puffing tender which approached the Dunaverty Castle. He kept looking intently at her profile and after a while he saw in her expression doubt and relief and struggle. He could not understand the various emotions reflected on her face. . . Then she turned and regarded him with quick seriousness. "David," she said, "I can t ask you to help me. Please understand. I cannot! But thank you—oh, thank you ; for tellin< r me about tho mail with tho harelip! f must send a wireless message immediately. If only you had told me about him this afternoon. "But, Rona—" She put her hand on his wrist, and he felt the skin tingle at the light, firm touch. , "David! Don t say any more! Oh, don't say any more just now. We must sav n-ood-bve. I'm sorry, David. Its got to'be. I—don't know, but perhaps—perhaps after September 17 we may meet again." "Oh, mv dear! . "But I said only 'perhaps , David. "I know. And you refuse my help—absolutely?" She drew herself up, httln heels tight together, her slim, straight body taut. "I do," she answered steadily. "Goodbye, David —" . With the faint whirl of perfume which

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.always accompanied hor swift turning, siio had loft niiti. Ho stood stock still for perhaps a minute. Then, with a bright, eager gleam in his brown eyes, ho darted below to pack his suitcase. For two days the young farmer's chief occupation was in trying to discover if Sir William Dundonald, at the time, had his residence in London. As a preliminary, however, lie wont to the offices of an agent in Bond Street, to secure a photograph of the politician. It caused him considerable surprise to be presented with tbc likeness of a young man, scarcely older than himself, who had the dark good looks of a film star. The face was keen and intelligent and a little moustache did not take from the firmness of a thin-lipped mouth. The nose was patrician, and wide-set eyes looked out from the picture with a glint of humour cleverly caught. Could this be the man, David wondered, spoken of by John Ralston and Peter M'Gomba? And something akin to jealously clutched at his heart when he thought that Dundonald with looks so much more prepossessing than his own, might be an old friend of Rona's. David had no acquaintances in town and, after a few abortive attempts to glean knowledge of Sir Williams' domestic arrangements from casual friends in the Carlton Hotel, the quiet douce bostelry near Piccadilly, which he had made his headquarters, he decided to take courage and brave the terrors of the Colonial Office itself. He invaded Whitehall, therefore, with as important an air as he could muster, and demanded of an eagle-eyed clerk in the vestibule of the building if lie had information regarding the whereabouts of Sir William Dundonald. "Yes, sir. Certainly, sir." To David's great relief the clerk was exceedingly affable; and, in passing, it may be remarked that Government offices, for all their imposing aspect, are peopled, like other offices, with human beings. "Sir William has just returned from a short visit to Paris. He is in his rooms here each day from eleven o'clock until one. You wish to make an appointment, no doubt?" " Er—no! I just wanted to know his private address." The eyebrows of the clerk went up. " There is the Parliamentary Year Book, you know," lie said. " You could have bought one for a few pence and discovered his address immediately.'' David felt inclined to blush. " 1 have been some years," he muttered, " in South Africa." "Ah! Then you will be rather hazy about London and its affairs. I see. Well, Sir William's address is .'57 Crown Street, off Eaton Square. Good afternoon, sir." "Good afternoon. And —thank you!" David emerged into the.sunlight feeling very young and gauche and inexperienced. Gradually, however, under the influence of pleasant heat, his confidence returned. He swung into a newspaper shop to buy some early editions of the evening papers; if Sir William were as popular a man in England as lie appeared to be from the paragraphs in South African papers, there might be found some valuable information concerning him in the London Press. Hack in his hotel, be settled down with a cigarette to his scanning of the newspapers; and, suddenly, as he turned to the gossip page of the second of his purchase, his attention became riveted to one particular paragraph. The ash upon his cigarette grew long as he read; but when he had finished, without warning and under the trembling of his hand, it dropped unheeded to the thick pile of the carpet. The paragraph purported to he written by a peer, and its intimate, insinuating style jarred fiercely upon the young farmer's mind. It was as if he had been brought up against a conspiracy among the people of London to make him feel outside the pale of things. First the clerk in the Colonial Office had mocked his lack of knowledge regarding Parliamentary affairs; and now the noble lord with the mind >f a spinster hurt his pride with a suave reference, to society affairs.

" Last night," ran the information, "(lining in Harpagon's, I was interested to notice at an adjoining table Sir William Dundonald, one of onr most brilliant and most eligible young politicians. With him was a beautiful visitor to tho Metropolis, Miss Kona Ralston, whose father, it may be remembered, lost his life in tragic circumstance a short time ago. Miss Ralston, following the new fashion, did not wear mourning, but she had no doubt chosen Harpagon's for her tete-a-tete with Sir William on account of its privacy. I understand that before Parliament reassemble* Sir William intends to make a Scottish cruise in his smart little yacht. The Silver Gull. The romantic Western Isles will be visited; and a little bird lias just whispered in my ear that Miss Rona Ralston will be his guest. The cruise begins, I believe, at the week-end." David glared at the newspaper. And then with a quick, vicious movement he crushed it in his hands and hurled it into a convenient wastepaper basket. Two mild clergymen seated bv the window glanced at him with apprehension; but David did not observe their looks' of alarm. He was thinking about the gossiper who had headed his paragraph with great simplicity: " SHADOWS BEFORE." CHAPTER V. DAVID MAC.XKII, KKCEIVF.S A MESSAGE There was a period in the late hours of a sleepless night when David was tempted to sever all connection with Rona and with the mystery of the Flaming Cavern. There was a period when ho made up his mind to sot out from London on the following day and bury himself for six mouths among old acquaintances in Argyllshire.

After all. hadn't Bona made it clear enough that she did not wish his interference iu her affairs? Hadn't she shown unwillingness to remain in touch with him —probably because of a fear that he might spoil hor idyll with Sir William Dundonald ? Lying in the darkness, David could see the gallant, youthful face of Sir William smiling down at him; and he knew tho torture of bitter jealousy. He admitted to himself his fierce and con,sinning love of Rona; but then, what could be do against the politician to secure her love in return? His looks were ordinary. Sir William's wore notably lino. His achievements were ordinary. Sir William's were brilliant. Si net? the finding of the diamond lode on his farm, he was certainly wealthy enough, but his prospects, too, were really very ordinary. Sir William's, since he was a coining man in tho Colonial Office, were bright with promise. And, to crown everything, lie had been insufferably rude to Rona on board ship, while he could never imagine v.lie gentlemanly Sir William causing her the slightest hurt. The politician would be kind and considerate on till occasions. He would be sympathetic. He would make her blue eyes joyous, as they wore meant to bo. With a quick jerk the young farmer turned and buried his face in the pillow. Ho was a beast and utterly unworthy of Rona's sweetness and goodness. He would not burden her with his nearness any more. To-morrow he could leave London behind and discover solace in the hills and glens and winding rivers. And then, in the perverse fashion of the Celts. David began to reconsider his decision. Why, he demanded of himself, should he thus fly in a craven spirit from the battleground of bis love? Why should he leave Sir William in full possession? Now that he came to think of it, he had no assurance that there was such a romantic understanding between Rona and Sir William. (To be continued daily)