“Did you bring the lunch that Joan put up for us?” said Julian to Dick. “I can’t see it anywhere.”

“Jo! You must be lying on it!” said Dick.

“It won’t hurt it,” said Jo. She sat up as soon as they were well out to sea, and offered to take the tiller.

She was very deft with it, and the boys soon saw that they could leave her to guide the boat. Julian unfolded the map he had brought with him.

“I wonder whereabouts this place is where Red lives,” he said. “It’s pretty desolate all the way up to the next place, Port Limmersley. If there is a castle-like building, it must be a very lonely place to live in. There’s not even a little fishing village shown for miles.”

The boat went on and on, scudding at times before a fairly strong wind. Julian took the tiller from Jo. “We’ve come a long way already,” he said. “Where is this place? Are you sure you’ll know it, Jo?”

“Of course,” said Jo, scornfully. “I think it’s round that far-off rocky cliff.”

She was right. As they rounded the high cliff, which jutted fiercely with great slanting rocks, she pointed in triumph.

“There you are! See that place up there? That’s Red’s place.”

The boys looked at it. It was a dour, grey stone building, and was, as Jo had said, a little like a small castle. It brooded over the sea, with one square tower overlooking the waves.

“There’s a cove before you come to the place,” said Jo. “Watch out for it — it’s very well hidden.”

It certainly was. The boat went right past it before they saw it. “There it is!” cried Jo, urgently.

They took the sail down and then rowed back. The cove lay between two high layers of rock that jutted out from the cliff. They rowed right into it. It was very quiet and calm there, and their boat merely rose and fell as the water swelled and subsided under it.

“Can anyone see us from the house above?” asked Dick, as they rowed right to the back of the cove.

“I don’t know,” said Jo. “I shouldn’t think so. Look — pull the boat up behind that big rock. We don’t know who else might come here.”

They dragged the boat up. Dick draped it with great armfuls of seaweed, and soon it looked almost like a rock itself.

“Now, what next?” said Julian. “Where’s this cave you were talking about?”

“Up here,” said Jo, and began to climb up the rocky cliff like a monkey. Both the boys were very good climbers, but soon they found it impossible to get any further.

Jo scrambled down to them. “What’s the matter?” she said. “If my Dad can climb up, surely you can!”

“Your Dad was an acrobat,” said Julian, sliding down a few feet, much too suddenly. “Oooh! I don’t much like this. I wish we had a rope.”