E. J. Craine

“ The motor began to purr gently, like a dozen contented lion cubs, and the plane lifted, spiraling in close circles until it reached a thousand feet, then the nose was turned north and she shot forward at a speed of nearly two hundred miles an hour. Austin was busily examining the paraphernalia on the board before his eyes, while Bob was simply too puzzled to do anything more than sit back and wonder if he was experiencing some sort of fantastic dream. In ten minutes the machine was dropping lightly in the Haurea front yard, where the Flying Buddies saw Zargo and the Don waiting for them. ”

“ To his joy he noted that the little group were standing almost as they had been left, near the boat, with Howard seated before his engine, and the white women and young people nearby, with their native guard.
As they zoomed at top speed, the white men turned their faces upward. The engines were shut off, the two machines glided gracefully to the ground, the native passengers shouting gleefully to the members of their families. Quickly the men who had been so determined on revenge, rushed forward and caught their loved ones in their arms. ”

“ A cowboy, looking for all the world as if he belonged in a wonderful tale of old-time west came racing after the truant, his pinto apparently requiring no guiding, and his hands busy with a long rope which was singing over his head. An instant later the cow-pony cut in front of the plane, the rope flashed out, its loop opened and dropped over the bay’s thrashing hoofs. As if the whole affair were one complete piece of perfect co-operation, the pinto braced its fore feet, the cowboy pulled back, and the runaway bay was secured. ”

“ With seemingly endless piles of mountains mounting to the very heavens all about him, and knowing that perhaps only a few rods away the ledge drops off hundreds of feet, trying to walk forward in the darkness is a nerve-racking undertaking. Another thing that flashed through the boy’s mind was that Gordon was exactly the type of enemy to order that they be taken to the ledge and shoved over out of his way forever. More than once he had been frustrated in his endeavor to rid himself of the Flying Buddies, and with each failure his hatred was growing. ”

“ The other side of the square was the first tier of a wide terrace, its massive walls seamed in even lines as its ancient builders had laid the rocks with infinite care, one above the other, and side by side. There were a few small fruit trees whose branches were gnarled and twisted; several giant olives which might have been imported from Spain hundreds of years ago; tall cactus with thorns sharp as spear points and strong as spikes stuck up like sentinels, while patches of smaller varieties spread over large sections of the sandy soil. ”

“ She deserts not the men on the sea and the men in danger,” she spoke earnestly, and Jim was glad that she could do that. It would make her feel better. He did it himself many times. Not always when he was in danger. As he thought of it he couldn’t recall ever praying when things were going wrong, but when they were flying over some magnificent scene, when he learned some new marvel of the universe, or when Bob got over being sick, then he had a feeling as if God was very close. ”

“ Fly high, wide and handsome,” Jim chuckled.
Bob turned his entire attention to flying, while Jim managed to maneuver out of his heavy clothes and get into the lighter garments. It was pretty close quarters, but it was accomplished at last, and Austin settled himself in his seat, took a look at the parachute, adjusted that and the safety strap, then he had time to observe the vast expanse of ocean rolling in endless white-tipped billows beneath them. The plane was singing along smoothly, there were only a few clouds in the blue dome above, but the wind was strong. ”

“ The Flying Buddies had been discovered by one of the gang, and a tall ugly looking customer who carried a gun in his hand, turned quickly. “Our welcome guests.”
“What are you doing here?” the tall fellow snarled.
“Dropped down very much as you did, I reckon,” answered Jim.
“Bugs drive you out of the sky?” This was probably the pilot who had just been driven out himself.
“Like blazes. That motor hasn’t been running lately. If the bugs forced you down, what you doing over here? Come on, speak out, and reach for the sky, while the reaching is good,” came the sharp command. ”

“ Being a Texas lad, Austin was familiar with fire-arms of various types, so a glance at the one the woman had given him, assured him that he understood its perfect mechanism. About half way up the ledge they reached an irregular section where a number of great stones looked as if they had been swept from the rim above and caught where they fell. All about them grew tough underbrush, some of it out of the crevices themselves, and this offered an excellent vantage point. No one could see them from the sky, get to them from behind, nor attack them from below without great difficulty. ”

“ By this time Her Highness was soaring smoothly above the plain, and in the distance, so far north that he looked like an animated exclamation point as he skied on the surface of the frozen snow, Caldwell recognized the familiar figure of Jim Austin, his Flying Buddy and step-brother. ”

“ The Flying Buddies’ feet hurt with every step, and their tired bodies wavered from side to side as they went on and on. By that time they were going through what appeared to be a grassy section of the forest. The passage wound among huge trees, over piles of fallen timber, then, suddenly from ahead, they heard a wild shriek of terror, followed by a series of shrill earsplitting screams.
“Good Heavens, what they got into?” Lang panted.
“Get on,” Mills urged. He slipped his hand under Bob’s arm and helped him forward, while Jim and Lang stumbled along as quickly as possible. ”

“ As they scrambled up the rock any noise they made was deadened by the roar of the motor of the plane circling over their heads and Jim realized the Gonzalas probably anticipated some difficulty in maintaining their rights to the platinum they had found. He had read enough accounts of valuable discoveries in various parts of the world, and desperate struggles against unscrupulous men grimly determined to have at least a share in the wealth, regardless of whether their claim was justified, to appreciate the great importance of starting their enterprise well armed against attack. ”

“ Almost immediately came the recollection of that day in Vermont when he and Bob had gone to the little island in Lake Champlain211 to find Corso and his young nephew. How they had found the boy garbed in the exquisite robes of royalty, and how they had listened as Yncicea had told them of the ancient race which had preserved itself through the centuries. The youngster looked every inch a prince as he made his explanation simply, the chest of precious jewels at his feet. ”