"Take it easy," said Frank, who began to fear that his cousin's nervousness and impatience would prove their ruin. He spoke calmly enough, but his face was very pale, and the lantern trembled in his grasp. This was the severest test that had been applied to his courage since he stood at that log awaiting the approach of the wounded and enraged grizzly; and yet he could speak in his ordinary tone of voice, without the least impatience, and advise his terrified and excited cousin to "take it easy." It showed what nerve he had. He was getting desperate; and while he kept one eye upon Archie, and the other turned toward the farther end of the pa.s.sage, he was calculating his chances for emptying his six-shooter among the Mexicans, before they could close around him. "There is nothing to be gained by being in such a hurry," he added, as his cousin once more dropped the keys. "The more haste the less speed, you know."

At this moment lights flashed in the pa.s.sage, and dark forms came on at a rapid run. The prospect was certainly disheartening. Their only chance for escape was through that door, which refused to open for them, and there were their enemies, at least half a dozen of them, not more than twenty feet distant. But their good fortune had not yet deserted them. The right key was found, just in the nick of time--not a single instant too soon--the door flew open, and Frank and Archie, uttering a simultaneous cry of joy, slipped through and slammed it behind them. The moment it was closed Frank braced himself against it, and Archie inserted the key into the lock; but, before he could turn the bolt, a strong hand grasped the latch, and a stalwart Mexican threw his weight against the door, which was forced partly open, in spite of all Frank's efforts to prevent it. A moment afterward, a hand holding a murderous looking bowie-knife appeared, followed first by a dark, scowling face, and then by a pair of broad shoulders. One of the Mexicans, who had reached the door a little in advance of his companions, was trying to squeeze himself into the the room; and he seemed in a fair way to accomplish his object.

"Here's fifty thousand dollars," said he, exultingly. "Come here, somebody. He's got a pistol."

The boys jammed the door against the Ranchero, with all their strength, but he was a match for both of them, and besides he had a great advantage. Frank and Archie could find no foothold upon the hard dirt floor. Their feet slipped about in every direction, and the Mexican, having braced himself against the door-post, was slowly but surely pushing them back. He would certainly have succeeded in working his way into the room, had it not been for Frank's revolver. The sight of the c.o.c.ked weapon, thrust full in his face, drove him back, and before the rest of the Mexicans could come to his a.s.sistance, the door was closed and fastened.

"Whew!" whispered Archie, drawing a long breath, and wiping the big drops of perspiration from his forehead, "that was a close shave, wasn't it? It doesn't seem to suit them very well."

If one might judge by the uproar that arose in the pa.s.sage, the Mexicans were certainly very much disappointed. They yelled at the top of their lungs, and some struck the door with their knives, while others threw themselves against it and tried to burst it open. But that door was not a common door. It was made of heavy planks, and was strong enough to successfully resist all their attacks. There was but one way in which they could effect an entrance, and that was by cutting the door down with an ax. Before that could be done, the fugitives would have ample time to hunt up a new hiding-place.

The boys had been so terrified by their recent danger, and so intent on preventing their enemies from following them into the room, that they had not thought of any thing else. They had not had time to look about the apartment in which they had taken refuge; and if there had been a dozen men in there, they would not have known it. As soon as they had somewhat recovered their composure, and satisfied themselves that their enemies in the pa.s.sage-way could not immediately effect an entrance, they began an examination of the room, and found that, like most of the others in the underground portion of the rancho, it was used as a receptacle for various odds and ends, being filled with boxes, bales of goods, and articles of like description. They noticed also that the room communicated with another, and that the door between them stood wide open; and scarcely had they observed these points, before they became aware that there were men on the opposite side of that door. They could not see them, but they could distinctly hear their voices. One was angrily demanding something, and another was answering in an imploring tone. The men, whoever they were, had evidently got into some difficulty; for, with the voices, was occasionally mingled the sounds of a furious struggle.

"There's a fight going on in there," whispered Archie. "I hope they will keep one another employed until we can get out of here. Which way shall we go?"

That was the very question Frank was asking himself, and it was one he could not answer. If they went back into the pa.s.sage, they would run directly into the clutches of their enemies; and if they retreated into the adjoining room, they would be captured by the men who were quarreling there. It would be useless for them to conceal themselves among the boxes and bales of goods, for two men could thoroughly ransack the room in half a minute's time, and their hiding-place would speedily be discovered.

"Oh, we are caught at last," said Archie, after he had thought the matter over. "We can't stir a step, for our enemies are all around us."

Thump! thump! Both boys jumped as if some one had suddenly fired a pistol close to their ears. The Rancheros in the pa.s.sage had secured an ax, and were beginning the work of cutting down the door. The blows fell fast and furiously, and before the cousins had fairly made up their minds what was going on, the door began to shake and tremble violently. Something must be done at once; for in two minutes more the room would be filled with Rancheros. The boys looked at each other, and both seemed to have decided upon the same course of action; for, with one accord, they started toward the opposite side of the room.

They moved swiftly, but noiselessly, and when they reached the door, they stopped and looked in and beheld a scene that filled them with astonishment. By the light of a lantern, which stood on a table in the center of the room, they saw a man lying upon the floor, and another kneeling upon his breast, and holding him by the throat with one hand, while, with the other, he flourished a knife in the air. The prostrate man was the chief of the robber band, and his antagonist was Pierre Costello. They were talking in angry, excited tones, and during the few seconds the cousins stood at the door, undecided how to act, they caught enough of the conversation to understand the cause of the trouble.

Pierre had boasted to Frank, before he left him in the ravine, that he had two strings to his bow this time. In case Don Carlos refused to pay him the reward he had offered for Frank's capture, he would keep his prisoner safe, until his uncle ransomed him. If one failed, the other would not, for Mr. Winters would willingly give every cent he was worth, rather than permit harm to befall his nephew. But something was always happening to upset Pierre's plans. The Rancheros, whom he had tried to cheat out of their share of the money, had followed him to the mountains, and taken charge of the prisoner themselves. Pierre was in the court when Frank was brought in, and although he said nothing, he was highly enraged. He could, of course, have claimed a portion of the reward, but that would not satisfy him--he wanted it all; and he mentally resolved that, before morning, he would smuggle Frank out of the rancho, and carry him back to the mountains.

While thinking the matter over, and trying to decide upon the best plan for accomplishing his object, he came to the conclusion that it would be well to make a change in his programme. He was satisfied that the events of the night had broken up the robber band (the disappearance of Frank and Archie would create a great commotion in the settlement, and the Don's secret would be certain to leak out somewhere), and Pierre determined to secure his own safety by deserting his friends, and leaving the country. He would not, however, go empty handed. The Don had plenty of gold stowed away in some secret cavern; Pierre wanted some of it; and the only way he could get it was to compel the chief to conduct him to its place of concealment. This he had decided to do; and when the Don went below to renew his search for Archie, Pierre accompanied him; and after leading him into a deserted room in a remote corner of the rancho (one of the few which happened to be unlocked), he ordered the Don to show him where the coveted gold was hidden. Frightened by the sight of the knife which Pierre brandished before his eyes, the chief would have gladly complied with the demand, but, for the simple reason, that he could not get into the room where his treasure was concealed. The key was attached to the bunch in Archie's pocket. He had long ago missed the keys from their accustomed nail in his room, but he did not know what had become of them.

"I don't can do it, Meester Bierre," groaned the Don, for the twentieth time. "I don't got de key. It's lost."

"You can't make me believe that story," replied Pierre, tightening his grasp on the Don's throat, and raising his knife as he spoke. "Once more, and for the last time, where is it?"

The Don's answer was cut short by an interruption that was as sudden as it was unexpected. Two figures glided quickly into the room, and while one stopped to close and lock the door, the other ran straight up to Pierre, and presented a c.o.c.ked revolver in his face. The robber, who had been so fully occupied with the Don that he had not heard the sounds of the ax, or the noise occasioned by the struggle at the door, was astonished beyond measure. The hand in which he held the knife fell slowly to his side, his under jaw dropped down, and he shrunk away from the muzzle of the revolver without uttering a word.

"Ach!" exclaimed the Don, who was no less amazed than Pierre, "here ish von of dese leetle poys!"

"Here are both of them," said Archie, who, having succeeded in finding a key to lock the door, now hurried up with a pistol in each hand.

"Well--by--gracious! Pierre Costello!"

Archie was as much astonished at finding himself in the presence of his old enemy, as his cousin had been. He bent down and gazed earnestly into Pierre's face, and then straightened up and leveled both his pistols at the robber's head. "Why, Frank!" he exclaimed, "it's he, sure enough."

"I know it. This is not the first time I have met him to-night. Drop that knife," he added, sternly, addressing himself to Pierre. "Now, stretch yourself out on the floor, face downward, and put your hands behind your back."

The Ranchero, at this moment, did not act much like the reckless, desperate man he had appeared a short time before. The sight of the pistols took all the courage out of him; and he obeyed both Frank's commands without an instant's hesitation. The sash, which the latter wore around his waist, answered all the purposes of a rope, and Pierre speedily found himself as helpless as though he had been in double-irons.

The Don, in the meantime, had regained his feet, and stood watching all that was going on with a smile of great satisfaction on his face.

The astonishment occasioned by the unexpected appearance of the boys, was, for the moment, lost sight of in the delight and thankfulness he felt at finding himself released from the power of his enemy.

"Now, dis ish all right," said he, gleefully. "It's petter you makes dat rope pooty fast, leetle poys. Ach! I fix you, Meester Bierre," he added, shaking his clenched hand at the prostrate robber; "I makes blenty droubles for you, mine friend. Come mit me, leetle poys; I shows you de way out, now."

Frank and Archie were not in the least surprised at this proposition.

It was a part of their plan to compel the Don to guide them out of the rancho, and they knew that he would readily consent. They knew, too, that he was as treacherous as an Indian, and that he would bear watching. It was their intention to keep as close to him as possible.

"Go ahead, Don," said Archie, taking the lantern from the table; "but bear one thing in mind, and that is, at the very first exhibition of treachery on your part, we will shoot you with as little hesitation as we shot Old Davy this morning."

The chief earnestly protested that the boys need have no fears on that score. They had done him a great service in saving him from the knife of Pierre Costello, and he would repay it by showing them the way out of the rancho. Besides, he was not foolish enough to attempt any treachery, while those three loaded pistols were so near him. The boys listened to all he said, but did not believe a word of it. It was not reasonable to suppose that he would permit them to escape, when he knew that, as soon as they reached home, they would tell their friends every thing that had happened at the rancho. They were as well satisfied that he had some plan in his head, as if he had told them so; but they were resolved to watch him so closely that he would have no opportunity to carry it out.

When Archie picked up the lantern, the Don started toward a door at the farther end of the room, which, upon being opened, revealed a narrow stone stairway leading up to the rooms above. As they were about to ascend these stairs, a loud crash in the adjoining room, followed by a chorus of hoa.r.s.e yells, told the boys that the Rancheros had at last succeeded in cutting down the door. The Don would have stopped to inquire into the cause of the disturbance, but his companions pushed him on; and while Frank watched him to see that he did not escape, Archie overhauled his keys until he found one that would lock the door. This done, the Don led the way up the stairs, the boys following close at his heels.

CHAPTER XV.

THE BRIDGE OF CLOUDS.

There seemed to be no end to the stairway. It wound and twisted about in a bewildering fashion, and, before they reached the top, Frank and Archie came to the conclusion that they had either been a long way under the ground, or else that the rancho was a much taller building than they had imagined it to be. At last, however, their guide pushed open a door, and the boys found themselves in the same room to which he had conducted them when they first arrived at the rancho. Still closely followed by his watchful companions, the Don went straight across the room, and stopped in front of a wardrobe.

"Now, leetle poys," said he, addressing himself to Archie, "you got the keys. Make dis door open."

Archie quickly found a key that would fit the lock, and when the boys entered the wardrobe, they discovered that, although it was used as a receptacle for clothing, it was intended to conceal a door that led into some secret apartment. When this door had been opened--it was so heavy that it taxed Archie's strength to the utmost to move it--the cousins found themselves in a room, about twenty feet square, which had one peculiarity that they noticed as soon as they crossed the threshold. There was not a single opening in it; and when Archie had shut the door, they found themselves surrounded on all sides by rough stone walls. Even the door itself, which closed behind them with the sharp click of a spring lock, could not be seen.

"I say, Don," exclaimed Frank, "what use do you make of this dungeon?

I don't see any thing stowed away here."

The chief's answer was not given in words. He was standing close by Frank's side, and before the latter could move, he had suddenly jerked the lantern from his hand, and dashed it upon the floor, smashing it into a thousand pieces, and extinguishing the light. As quick as thought Frank bounded forward, and made a blind clutch at the place where he had last seen the Don, but with no other result than to come in violent contact with the wall. A moment afterward, the astonished and bewildered boys heard a grating sound at the other side of the room, and the Don's voice calling to them through the darkness.

"Dis ish all right," said he. "Dere's somethings shtowed away here now, ain't it? It's petter you shtays here awhile."

The truth flashed through the boys' minds at once--they were prisoners again. In spite of all their vigilance, the chief had succeeded in carrying out the plan he had formed while he was watching the operation of binding Pierre Costello. His movements had been so rapid, that, even had his captives been aware of his intention, they could not have prevented him from carrying it into execution. Before they could tell what was the matter, the lantern had been smashed, their treacherous enemy had made his exit from the room in some mysterious manner, and they were alone in the darkness.

"We're in for it now," panted Archie, sinking down upon the floor all in a heap. "We've got out of some tight places to-night, but there is no escape from this predicament. The Don will soon be back with his men."

"And if they once get their hands upon us, we need never expect to see home again," said Frank. "Give me some of your matches, and we will examine the walls of this dungeon. There's a spring to that door, and if we can find it, we can get out."

After the matches had been lighted, the boys found that the first difficulty to be overcome was the finding of the door. They did not know where to look for it, for the walls appeared to be as solid as the ground. They made the circuit of the room several times, lighting new matches as fast as the old ones were consumed, and carefully examining each separate stone in the wall, from the floor up to a level with their heads; but nothing in the shape of a spring or lock rewarded their search. Then they turned their attention to the floor; but, if there was any opening in the solid oak planks, it could not be found. Five minutes--it seemed much longer to the frightened and excited boys--were pa.s.sed in this way, and then, for the first time that night, Frank's courage and fort.i.tude were utterly exhausted.

"It's no use," said he. "The Don got out somewhere, but it is very evident that we can't. We might as well sit down, and wait for him to come in and dispose of us. Do you see any thing encouraging?" he added, noticing that his cousin was holding a match above his head, and closely examining the roof of the dungeon.

"I believe I do," replied Archie. "Isn't that a scuttle?"

"That's just what it is," exclaimed Frank, joyfully; "and it is fastened with hooks."

"Oh, if we could only get up there," cried Archie. "But there isn't a thing here for a fellow to stand upon."

"I've got a pair of shoulders. Come here, and I will hold you up."

After burning another match to determine the exact position of the scuttle, Frank took his stand directly beneath it, and in a moment more, Archie was balanced on his shoulders, and panting loudly, as he strove with nervous haste to unfasten the hooks. Every thing bothers when one is in a hurry, and one's fingers are all thumbs. It was awkward working in that intense darkness, and, besides, the hooks had been driven into the staples so tightly, that it required the outlay of all Archie's strength to start them. But patience and perseverance conquered at last, and in an excited voice he informed his cousin that he had unfastened the scuttle, and asked him if he should open it.

"Of course," replied Frank.