Finally he came to a level stretch of ground, at the end of which the chasm stopped. Ahead of Steve loomed a large, black hole. He ran to it, then came to an abrupt halt, for even above the wind he could hear the heavy thud of waves pounding upon rock.

His excitement mounting, Steve proceeded into the hole, cautiously at first until his eyes became accustomed to the semi-darkness, then faster, ever faster. As he walked along he noticed that it was becoming much lighter ahead. The tunnel was high and wide, and there was every evidence that it had been made by the sea. The walls on either side were porous, and sea moss hung from the rock.

Steve’s heart beat rapidly as he rushed headlong around a sharp turn, the sound of crashing waves loud in his ears. Then he brought himself up suddenly. Directly ahead of him was a great cavern, about seventy-five feet in length, equally high and fifty-odd feet wide! Through the center of it ran a narrow canal, its waters flooding and ebbing with the waves as they struck the outside walls and found their way into the cavern through a low but wide hole at the base of the walls.

Steve’s startled eyes turned quickly from the sea hole back to the canal. The sides of it were lined with green moss-covered piles that poked their way through the fine white sand that covered the floor of the cavern. This, then, at one time had been the landing place for the boats from the Spanish galleons that had anchored off this island! Through the sea hole the Conquistadores were able to bring their loot and their armies within the natural fortress of Azul Island! And the chances of anyone else’s finding their entrance from the sea were very slight. No enemy would have noticed it, Steve felt certain—any more than he and Pitch had when they had gone around the island looking for a place to scale the walls.

For several minutes Steve stood there, transfixed. Then he suddenly became filled with concern. Where was Flame? Surely he had to be here—this definitely was the end of the chase! Steve’s gaze left the canal and traveled over the walls of the cavern.

The cavern was bathed in the soft glow of light from the sea hole. Slowly Steve walked into the cavern and found that for some reason he was uneasy, even a little frightened. Why he should be, he didn’t know. But the feeling was there and he couldn’t fight it down. He had gone only a few yards when he came upon an adjoining cave to his right. Startled, he drew back, for he had not been able to see it from where he had stood before.