Secrets of the Andes

“We’ll have to take a chance,” Bob panted. “Most likely over here we’ll be out of the danger zone.”

The flat stretch offered the only place of refuge. If the avalanche should change its course, the adventurers and their pack animals would surely be crushed.

There was a moment of fearful waiting, a brief period when the hearts of all stood still, and the huge mass of rocks roared past and on down the mountain slope.

“Thank goodness!” breathed Dr. Rander. “A narrow escape if there ever was one.”

Their eyes followed the plunging stone heap until, with a dull thud, it struck the bottom of the abyss, far below.

“If that had struck us we’d have been smashed to pulp,” muttered Joe with a shudder.

“Think of something more pleasant,” smiled Bob. “The treasure, for instance.”

That afternoon the three were struggling along the narrow path when suddenly Bob caught sight of something up on a high shelf.

“Look,” he said, pointing up to the flat stretch. “Inca ruins as sure as I’m born.”

“You are right,” Dr. Rander assured him. “That building is an ancient temple, where the Incas worshiped the sun god.”

“Sounds interesting,” Joe said eagerly. “Why can’t we go up there and explore the place?”

“Can if you want to,” the old man replied. “I have been up, but I will go again with you. Wait until I tie the mules.”

It was a difficult climb to the shelf. All were gasping for breath when they finally reached the ruins.

Those ruins the youths found interesting. The building was partially intact, being constructed of huge stone blocks cemented together with mud. It was shaped like a pyramid, the sides sloping up to form a point at the top. The entire north end was in ruins, but the other sections looked as if they had been built but recently.

“Let’s go inside,” suggested Bob, looking at the dark opening that once no doubt was closed by a door.

The others agreed, and, led by Bob, entered the building. As the windows were large and there was no covering over them, the adventurers could easily see about.

They were in a large room, over which was an unusually high ceiling. Several stone implements were scattered about; what they were doing in a temple, the boys could not guess.

“Perhaps this was meant for a storehouse or some other kind of building,” thought Bob, but did not say so. He did not wish to conflict with Dr. Rander’s opinion.

But aside from these few stone objects, there was nothing in the building that was of particular interest. Whether the structure had been deserted by the Incas, or whether someone had robbed it of its former contents, the youths did not know. Surely, if Dr. Rander was right in his belief that he alone knew of this trail, no one had been here.

They explored the building eagerly in search of anything else that might have escaped their view before.

“Ouch!” cried Joe, slapping his leg. “What was that that bit me?”

“Oh, I should have told you,” began the old man with a smile. “There are fleas here.”

“What th – ” Joe was perplexed. “Fleas? What do they live on? There isn’t anything in these ruins – ”

“That is out of my knowledge,” Dr. Rander said. “I never have found anything yet that they might eat. Unless it would be other fleas.”

There was a general laugh.

“Whatever it is, it’s enough to keep them alive,” observed Bob, scratching his arm. “At least as long as we stay they’ll be able to secure a good living.”

“Suppose we get out and don’t stay any longer,” was the suggestion made by Joe Lewis. “There isn’t anything here – ”

“What’s that?” cried Bob suddenly, interrupting his friend.

Bob had heard a peculiar noise that caused him to turn about.

Again it came, a hideous hiss that made them jump in alarm.

“Snake!” pronounced Dr. Rander, and an instant later a long slim body unwound itself and made slowly toward the three explorers.

“It’s poisonous, all right,” observed Bob, noting the peculiar shape of the reptile’s head.

“And we haven’t a gun!” moaned Joe ruefully. “What will we do?”

“You mean we haven’t a rifle, but we have a gun.” Bob produced his revolver, which he aimed carefully at the horrible staring eyes.

“I won’t dare miss!” he thought, and then pulled the trigger.

The report of the pistol mingled with a sickening swishing noise as the snake lashed about in its death struggle.

“You got him, all right.” Joe felt a refreshing feeling of relief creep over him.

Bob nodded.

“Let’s get out of here,” he said in a determined voice. “There’s no telling how many more of these creatures we may see if we don’t.”

“I should have brought the movie camera,” laughed Joe, as they descended the hill. “That would have made a peach of a picture.”

“I’m glad you didn’t,” came from Dr. Rander. “Because the sight of those ruins might have inspired some scientists to come over this trail. And the secret treasure cave might be known to them – if they could open the hidden door.”

Dr. Rander, however, had not protested to the youths’ taking movies of the region they were passing through, even though there might be danger of someone from the United States coming in search of other ruins and treasure hideouts.

“I could not say anything against your doing that,” he had told them. “Especially since you were engaged by the motion-picture house.”

So they had exposed film whenever they thought it advisable and were well pleased with the results so far. All told, they had already cranked off more than a thousand feet of film, and fully expected to use that much more.

“These scenes ought to be interesting, too,” remarked Bob, untying the foremost mule. “I believe the Neuman Motion Picture Corporation will be well satisfied with them.”

“Let’s hope so,” Joe said. “The money we get from doing this is no small sum.”

The next day they plunged into a region that was wilder and more dangerous to penetrate than any they had been in before. The rugged Andes reached up on all sides of them, often forming narrow valleys that were shut off from the rays of the sun.

“Sure is cold tonight,” remarked Joe with a shiver.

They were camped beside a small spring that was fed by an underground stream. Darkness had fallen, and with it had come the chill of the Andean night.

Joe was resting peacefully beside the warm blaze of the campfire when suddenly he caught sight of two small fiery lights coming slowly at him.

CHAPTER XXIII

Descending Rapidly

JOE’S first impulse was to get to his feet and utter an exclamation of alarm. But he knew that this sudden movement might cause the creature, whatever it was, to rush at him.

His rifle lay at his side for just such an emergency as this. Thankfully Joe raised the gun, took aim, and fired between those two lights, which had now taken the form of eyes.

Bang! The shot broke the stillness of the night and sent Bob and Dr. Rander scurrying over to their friend. They had been on the opposite side of the fire and had not noticed Joe’s movements.

“What is it?” Bob was all excitement.

“Don’t know,” his friend replied. “Let’s see.”

The sound of the gun had not been followed by any other noise. Evidently Joe’s aim had been true, killing the creature instantly.

Bob produced a flashlight, which he turned in the direction in which his friend had fired.

“Why – it’s another snake!” exclaimed Dr. Rander. “A bola. It isn’t poisonous, but it is a good thing you got it. There is no way of knowing what it might have been.”

With the aid of the flashlight they examined the reptile closely. Its head was almost shot off, making it useless as a specimen.

“I’d like to have it for Dad and the other naturalists,” remarked Bob. “But as it is, guess it’s no good for anything.”

“You should have been more careful in shooting it,” teased Dr. Rander. “Now if you had aimed at its body instead of its head – ”

Joe smiled.

“A snake has eyes in only one place,” he said laughingly, “and the eyes are the only part of it you can see at night. Now if this fellow had worn a badge to signify that he was a member of the Royal Order of Andean Reptiles, maybe the fire shining on it would have given me a good place to take aim at.”

“Probably wouldn’t bother with him anyway,” said Bob. “After all, we’re out to find the treasure.”

Nothing happened that night to disturb their slumber. They awoke the next morning eager to continue the journey.

“Today we should come to the big secret,” Dr. Rander told them during breakfast. “If all goes well, we should get there this afternoon.”

Bob was restless.

“Let’s hurry and get going,” he urged, untying the mules.

Farther over the rocky trail the three adventurers trudged, keeping a sharp lookout for anything unusual.

Always in the distance were massive snow-clad peaks, which on this morning were enshrouded in a heavy mist. Usually they were plainly visible, especially through the high-powered binoculars that were carried by Joe.

Gradually the path spiraled down the steep slope until it passed through a narrow valley, which was green with a variety of luxuriant vegetation. So dense were the plants that they almost formed a jungle.

“Look at this,” cried Bob, moving over to a vine that was laden with large red berries. “Wonder if they’re good to eat?”

“Yes.” The old man had broken off a branch and was eagerly partaking of the fruit. “They are wild cherries, or tomatoes, as some call them. There is nothing better for taste.”

“Right you are!” agreed Joe, after he had eaten several of the berries. “They’re fine!”

They picked a sackful of the fruit to have at the noon meal. Then they resumed the journey.

At places the trail was overgrown with weeds and grass, making it difficult to follow it. But Dr. Rander had been through this region before and did not hesitate long in picking out the right branch.

“I don’t see how you can remember the way,” Joe told him, when he had pointed out one of three branches, each of which was almost parallel to the others.

The old man laughed.

“I can’t afford to forget,” he said. “All that treasure is something that is worth too much to be forgetting where it is. If it should happen, though, that I should get turned around, I have a rough sketch map of this region that I made at the very start.”

On the other side of the valley was a steep slope that was entirely devoid of vegetation. Look about as the youths did, they could see no path. They were beginning to wonder when Dr. Rander broke the silence.

“From here there is no trail,” he explained. “We’ll have to cut our way through the hard places and climb over large rocks. It won’t be easy, but we will be rewarded.”

“No trail, huh?” thought Bob. “Here’s where the fun begins.”

It was far from fun, in the usual sense of the word. The three labored over short, steep elevations, rocky precipices, narrow ridges, pulling the sure-footed mules behind them. At last, when they finally reached a high ledge, they sat down to get their breath.

“Whew!” gasped Joe, wiping the perspiration from his brow. “I don’t want much of that. Wonder how old Dr. Rander stands up under such a strain?”

“Hardened to it, I suppose,” was Bob’s reply. “Since he left college he’s been nothing else but an explorer.”

The old man had been at the back of the line, attending to the last pack animal. There was a smile on his face as he approached his young friends.

“We’ve made unusually good time,” he said, sitting down beside them, “and we can afford a rest.”

“We earned it, all right,” came from Joe. “How much more of this is there?”

“A long stretch,” Dr. Rander responded. “Several miles, to say the least. Of course,” he added, “it would not be long if we could go in a straight line. But over mountains and around cliffs the going is much different.”

“I’ll say it is!” Joe was still panting from the difficult climb. The high altitude required an unusual amount of wind.

Fifteen minutes later they were ready to continue. The mules had been coaxed ahead over the dangerous ledge.

“Getting darker,” observed Bob Holton. “Wonder if it’s going to rain?”

Dr. Rander looked up anxiously. Sure enough, heavy clouds were forming above the mountain tops, hiding the sun from view.

“It would not be well for us to be caught in a storm here,” the old explorer said. “We must seek shelter somewhere. It certainly looks as if a storm will be upon us before long.”

They looked about for some place of refuge, such as a cave or overhanging rock. But luck was not with them that day. They had searched an hour under a sky that was rapidly becoming darker when suddenly a terrific hailstorm struck them.

“Quick!” gasped Joe, who was almost frantic. “We must find some place!”

“We’re not finding it,” returned his chum, who was taking the danger more lightly. “And I guess there’s nothing we can do but stay out here in the open and endure it.”

But a few minutes later Bob had become as serious as his friend. Hail as large as marbles was falling with a terrible velocity, striking the explorers’ faces dangerously. One lump caught Joe squarely on the nose, causing him to utter a cry of pain.

“This is awful!” he moaned, holding his hand in front of his eyes.

How long the storm would last they had not the faintest idea. Even Dr. Rander could express no opinion.

Doggedly they fought off the hail, which bruised and cut their faces and bodies. They wondered how the mules were standing it. Could the animals endure the terrific onslaught? Or would they become panic-stricken and plunge off the steep cliff?

After what seemed like hours, the hailstorm suddenly subsided and the sky began to lighten. Ten minutes later the surrounding mountains bore no evidence of the disturbance.

With the adventurers, however, it was a different matter. Their faces were cut in many places, and their clothing was torn. A more miserable-looking trio could hardly have been found.

“Get out the ointment,” directed Bob. “We’ll sure need plenty of it.”

“The mules came through all right,” observed Dr. Rander. “Cut and bruised, but nothing more.”

“It’s funny,” began Joe, looking up at the sun, which was now in full view. “That was a very queer storm. It came quickly and ended the same way.”

“Hailstorms are rather common in this part,” explained the old man, getting out a box of antiseptics and first-aid remedies.

Their numerous wounds were treated with a soothing salve. Then, after looking over the mules, they moved on around the mountainside.

At a huge notch in the rocky slope they stopped to examine a curious formation that puzzled them. It was a long sloping slide, running gradually down the mountainside. From all appearances it was as smooth as glass.

“I don’t know whether this is natural or man-made,” said Dr. Rander. “I never have been able to find out. But,” he went on, “what concerns us is that we’ll have to slide down to the foot of the mountain.”

“What!” Bob’s surprise was beyond words. “Do you really mean that?”

“Every word of it,” was the old man’s reply. His little eyes twinkled. “Don’t you think much of the idea?”

Bob laughed.

“It was so sudden that I hadn’t given it a thought,” he answered. “But” – gazing far down the smooth slope – “it looks rather inviting. Will you go first?” The youth was not fully convinced that Dr. Rander was in earnest.

“If I go, one of you will have to stay with the pack animals,” the old man said. “I don’t think they had better try it,” he added with a laugh.

Bob and Joe looked puzzled.

“I don’t understand,” said the latter, hesitating. “Do you mean that some of us will slide down this slope and some stay with the mules – leave them here, I mean?”

“Oh, no,” smiled Dr. Rander. “One of us will have to take the mules down the trail. We could all go that way, but as it is very long, this offers a short cut that you fellows can take. That is, if you want to. When you get to the bottom you can wait until I get down the trail with the pack animals.”

“Where is the trail?” Bob secretly wondered if Dr. Rander had suddenly changed his mind about sharing the treasure with them and was using this means to evade them. He did not think the old man treacherous, but he wanted to be on the safe side.

“Over there.” Dr. Rander pointed to a narrow path that circled down the mountainside.

“Suppose,” Bob began, “you and Joe go down the slide while I take the mules down the trail. I don’t like the looks of that glassy slope.”

“All right. I’m no longer young, but I still like sport. Here I go.”

The next moment he was sliding rapidly down the polished incline.

When he was halfway down, Bob and Joe burst out in laughter. The sight of the old man doing such a thing as this with so much enjoyment aroused the youths’ sense of humor.

“If he likes it so much, maybe I will,” chuckled Joe, sitting down at the edge.

“Good luck,” called Bob, as his friend let go his hold and passed swiftly down.

It was an unusual sensation to Joe, as he shot down the curving slide. When younger he had often played on the slides in parks. But this was something entirely different. To shoot down a tall mountain at a rapid pace, on the straightaways and around curves, was indeed novel.

When over halfway down, the youth felt himself gradually lose momentum, and he knew that the slide was flattening out. Too steep a descent, especially near the bottom, would be dangerous.

At last he came to a stop beside Dr. Rander, who had been watching the descent.

“How did you like it?” the old man asked.

“All right. Got rather warm, though. Wonder if it thinned my trousers any? No, I guess not. Too smooth, I suppose.”

Fifteen minutes later Bob came in sight leading the line of mules. He laughed as he caught sight of them.

“Any worse for your experience?” the youth asked with a chuckle.

“Do we look it?” smiled Joe. “We enjoyed it.”

As the sun was almost directly overhead they decided to remain at this spot for the midday meal. All were extremely tired and hungry.

Bob prepared dinner, using water they had brought with them in canteens. As a dessert they feasted on the delicious wild cherries that they had picked that morning.

“Now let’s get going,” urged Joe, when the meal was over. “I’d like to see that treasure.”

Farther into the wilds they plunged, with not the faintest suggestion of a trail to guide them.

“No trace of any vegetation here,” observed Bob. “It’s a good thing we stopped where we did, or the mules probably wouldn’t have had anything to eat. There were a few stunted bushes and other plants back at the foot of the slide.”

An hour of climbing brought them to a place where a tall peak obstructed their view.

They trudged around and then suddenly found themselves at the bank of the roaring Apurimac River.

“On a little farther,” Dr. Rander said, urging the mules to ascend the difficult slope.

At last they came to a place where a high rock protruded far over the river. Here the old explorer called a halt and pointed up the side of a mountain.

“In that little notch up there is the entrance to the treasure,” he said. “As I said before, there is a huge cave that occupies the entire mountain. There we will find the treasure, if there is any.”

The youths’ hearts beat rapidly. They could hardly believe that at last they were nearing the great secret.

“But,” hesitated Bob Holton, “how are we going to get across this roaring river?”

“That,” the old explorer returned, “will be the most difficult part of our entire journey. Come. Let me show you.”

They followed him to the edge of a high rock that protruded far out over the seething rapids.

“Look there,” he said, pointing to something.

Stretching from the rock across the river to another protruding crag was a heavy metal wire, which, strange to say, showed not the slightest trace of rust.

“That cable was put there by the Incas,” Dr. Rander said. “It is hundreds of years old, but still looks as if it had been built but yesterday. It is coated with some secret preservative, which prevents it from rusting through.”

“Interesting,” remarked Joe. “But what about it?”

The old man replied at once.

“We must cross the river by hanging from the cable with our hands,” he said quietly.

Joe’s heart sank. Secretly he felt that if he were to undertake the dangerous venture he would meet with tragedy.

CHAPTER XXIV

The Big Secret

“CAREFUL, now.”

Dr. Rander was slowly and dangerously hanging from the heavy wire with his hands, working his way steadily across the roaring rapids below. If he were to fall, it would probably seal his doom, even though the youths held one end of a stout rope that was tied securely around his waist.

“Think he’ll make it?” Bob looked on anxiously, half expecting to see the old man let go and plunge into the seething water below.

Slowly but surely he swung across, holding on with a grip of steel. It seemed remarkable that a person of his age could withstand the arduous tasks connected with exploration. But no doubt he was hardened to an eventful outdoor life of adventure.

“He’s over,” cried Joe happily. “Made it all right. Didn’t even threaten to let go. Now I wonder if we can do as well?”

The youths had yet to see.

Joe was next to swing across. He walked over to the cable and gazed doubtfully first at the boiling stream below, then at Dr. Rander on the opposite cliff.

“Go ahead,” said Bob. “Might as well get it over.”

“Yeah. But I wish it weren’t necessary to do this. I suppose, though, that I can do it if Dr. Rander can.”

Joe sat down on the edge of the cliff, took hold of the heavy wire, and slowly let himself down.

For a brief moment it seemed as if his arms would be torn from their sockets, for, although he was not heavy, the strain was very great.

“I’ve got to make it!” he told himself, gritting his teeth. He refused to think of what might happen if he were to plunge into the roaring rapids below.

“Don’t let go, whatever you do!” Bob, on the rock, was holding the rope tightly, ready to pull his friend to safety if the latter should be forced to release his grip.

Joe swung across with a certain determination that was luckily with him in every emergency. He did not look below for fear of becoming frightened.

At last, when he felt that he could stand no more of this torture, the youth felt his foot touch rock, and he knew that he was safe.

“Hurrah!” cried Bob Holton, waving his arms in the air. “Now here I come.”

Bob would find the feat more difficult, since he was heavier than either of the two who had crossed. But usually when he set his mind on doing a thing he was able to do it.

But first he walked over to the mules, which had been tethered securely by Dr. Rander, and got out a stronger rope, which he tied around his waist and shoulders. A small weight he fixed at the other end, and then moved back to the edge of the rock.

“Here. Catch this,” he called, and threw the rope over to Joe on the other side of the river.

When everything was in readiness he slowly lowered himself until he could grasp the wire that stretched across the stream. Then, setting his nerves for the trying task, he let his feet drop.

For one awful minute Bob’s heart stood still. Then he got a grip on himself and swung easily across to the other side.

“That was fine!” praised Dr. Rander. “You never flinched. Now let’s hurry up the mountain to the treasure.”

“Do you suppose the mules will be safe over there?” queried Joe anxiously. “We couldn’t take any food with us across the river. If anything should happen to them – ”

“There is no danger,” the old man assured him. “Probably no one has been in this section for years and years.”

Notwithstanding this, the young men were still worried. They realized that they would be in a grave predicament if anything should befall the provisions.

This anxiety gradually wore off, however, as they neared the treasure cave.

“Hard climb, but nothing will stop us now,” smiled Joe happily.

“You will be amazed when you look upon the wonders in the cave,” Dr. Rander told them. “It will exceed your wildest dream.”

“How did they all get there?” inquired Bob.

“I do not know. They were placed there by some wealthy Inca – perhaps a king – for safe keeping. It might have been that this was at the time of the Spanish invasion, and that the owner was later killed by the conquering troops. At any rate, the secret remained as such until I accidentally found it.”