‘Thought this was meant to be a summer camp!’ moaned Gareth, resting on his bunk after Friday’s fitness sessions. ‘It’s hardly stopped raining since we got here.’
Due to the bad weather, the boys had endured an extra workout in the gym under the demanding eye and sharp tongue of Petit Pierre. Even when the sun did break through for a short time, it was a frustrating experience for most of the athletes. Runners and jumpers were hampered by the wet conditions, while the throwers had to keep drying the equipment to help their grip on the javelin, shot and discus.
‘Blondie said the forecast is better for the weekend,’ Eddie told his roommates. ‘At least it should be fine for the Open Day.’
‘So what about tomorrow, then, guys?’ said Adam. ‘That’s our best chance.’
‘For what?’ said Tom, coming into the room.
‘I’m talkin’ about the statue,’ said Adam. ‘Y’know, checkin’ it out, like.’
‘Sounds a bit dodgy, if you ask me,’ said Tom, pulling a face.
‘Nobody’s askin’ you,’ Adam replied and turned back to the others. ‘Look, we’ve got trainin’ in the mornin’, then we’re free. The coaches have Sat’day afternoon off.’
‘Bet Blackbeard stays here,’ Eddie muttered. ‘He’s never off duty.’
‘Even so,’ Adam went on, ‘I reckon we can still sneak away.’
‘I suppose so,’ said Gareth. ‘But after all this rain, we could be up to our necks in water down that tunnel.’
‘If it exists,’ Eddie added.
‘At least it’s worth a look, eh?’ said Adam. ‘What d’yer say, guys?’
‘OK,’ agreed Gareth, reluctantly.
‘Sure,’ Eddie said with a shrug.
‘You must be mad,’ muttered Tom. ‘C’mon, let’s get to that dining room. It’s fish and chips tonight and I’m starving.’
The clock on the tallest tower of the Old Manor struck twice on the Saturday afternoon as the four boys stood in front of the larger-than-life statue of the young Taffy Jones.
‘Don’t look much like he does now,’ muttered Adam.
‘I bet Gramps will still recognise him if he shows up tomorrow,’ said Gareth.
‘Wonder what they’ll say to each other after all those years,’ said Eddie.
Tom checked back nervously towards the house, glad that trees were shielding the statue from view. He still didn’t really know why he had agreed to join in, apart from not wanting to be left out. ‘Just hope nobody has followed us,’ he murmured.
‘Quit witterin’, will yer, Tom-Tom,’ Adam snapped. ‘Let’s do it.’
Taffy had told them how to gain entrance to the tunnel but Adam did not really expect anything to happen. He stamped on the stone discus at the base of the statue, tilting it at an angle. Then, with the grating noise of a rusty mechanism, the front of the plinth began to slide slowly forward.
‘Open, sez me!’ Adam whooped in triumph.
‘It’s not very big,’ said Tom, peering at the black hole beneath the statue.
‘Big enough for a secret passage,’ replied Adam, shining a torch down it. ‘Reckon even you can squeeze in there, if you hold your belly in a bit.’ He led the way, dropping to the ground and squirming backwards into the hole until he stubbed his toes against something solid. ‘Ladder!’ he cried. ‘Just like Taffy said.’
A dim light suddenly shone from the hole.
‘Good, Foxy’s found the switch as well,’ said Gareth. ‘Taffy told us the tunnel was discovered when his statue was put up. He thinks it must’ve been dug out centuries ago, but he had it all wired up with electric light.’
One by one, they copied Adam’s entry technique and joined him in a small chamber before shuffling off, half-crouched, down a low, narrow channel with damp walls and a wet, sloping floor.
‘We must be going right under the lake,’ breathed Eddie.
‘Good job it hasn’t flooded,’ hissed Tom. ‘I can’t swim, remember.’
‘If the roof gets any lower, I’ll be doing the crawl,’ panted Gareth, who was already bent double.
Fortunately for all of them, the tunnel became a little higher and also drier as it began to climb upwards, before coming to an abrupt halt.
‘Dead end?’ said Eddie, staring at the wall in front of them. ‘It’s been bricked up.’
‘Must be a way out somehow,’ said Adam. ‘Start lookin’, gang.’
They probed the tunnel walls until Tom found a small lever tucked into a recess in the rock. As he gave it a tug, two things happened. First, all the lights went out and the boys were plunged into blackness – then a welcome shaft of daylight appeared as a section of the brick wall began to creak open. The relieved group scrambled through the gap and along a short tunnel, which emerged in a wood.
‘Looks like an old mineshaft,’ observed Gareth, glancing back at the overgrown exit. ‘It’s well camouflaged. You’d be lucky to find it again amongst all these trees.’
‘Belt up, GG!’ said Adam. ‘I can hear voices.’
They all listened.
‘Coming from over there,’ Gareth said, pointing to the right. ‘Let’s go and see.’
‘Think we should?’ Eddie whispered. ‘I mean, we don’t want to get done.’
‘Done?’ Adam repeated. ‘Who’s gonna do us, Wonder Boy?’
Eddie shrugged. ‘Well, we could be trespassing on private property.’
Adam ignored him. ‘Just break off some branches as we go through the wood so we can follow the trail back here,’ he ordered before striding away.
It wasn’t long before their progress was halted again – this time by a high, mesh fence with lengths of barbed wire stretched along the top.
‘Guess they don’t want anybody to get in,’ said Gareth.
‘Or out,’ muttered Adam.
The boys followed the line of the fence as best they could, though they were hampered by the undergrowth, which was full of nettles.
‘Look!’ cried Eddie when they gained their first clear view. ‘Another track!’
They stared through the fence at an athletics track, where a group of young runners were training.
‘You sure we haven’t somehow stumbled back to B.A.S.E. Camp?’ said Tom.
‘Positive. Our track has six lanes,’ Eddie told him. ‘This one’s only got four.’
‘So who are these guys?’ Adam demanded.
In response, Eddie let out a gasp of surprise. ‘Well, for a start, there’s that kid who got me into all that trouble.’
‘Which one is he?’ asked Tom.
‘The one out in front, of course.’
‘Thought you didn’t get a good look at him,’ Adam sneered.
‘Not his face, but I’d know that running style anywhere. That’s definitely him.’
Adam had recognised somebody, too. ‘And I know the one who’s behind him!’ he said, nodding.
‘Who is it?’ asked Gareth.
‘Jacko.’
‘What’s he doing here?’
‘Dunno,’ Adam muttered, ‘but I sure intend to find out.’