Over Sea, Under Stone, Chapter 14

We left off with Barney and Simon are creeping through the passage under the headland, while Jane keeps watch for tides and enemies.  Merry is still off on a wild goose chase; Hastings & co. are somewhere between the Grey House and the headland, in pursuit of the kids.

The first challenge the boys encounter is light: the candle Simon brought got wet, so they're using the still-dry matches one at a time to light the way forward. They realize they've been slowly going uphill when the floor of the passage becomes dry, and are soon in a large cave.  It's a dead end.

Barney find a low continuation, partially blocked by a boulder, and persuades Simon to let him try searching a little farther. Even with the now-lit candle, it's a nerve-wracking journey in the dark, but Barney takes comfort in the thought of Sir Bedwin possibly being buried in the area. He hears a strange noise, and realizes it wind: he's directly under the hole up in the headland. There, on a small outcrop of the rock, he sees a flash of reflected light.

We have a grail!

Barney makes his way back, now without the benefit of the guttering and finally extinguished candle. He has a moment of panic (Did something happen to the others? Is one of their enemies now holding the line that he's following back?), but it turns out Simon's still there. Reunited, the boys discover a small leaden tube tucked inside the grail: it opens to contain an even frailer manuscript, which starts to crumble when touched (why are they doing this in the dark cave?). It's put away, and Simon remembers that they need to get moving: Jane has signaled that the tide's on its way back in.

Now we're back with Jane, literally back to when she's first left alone, holding the manuscript in its telescope case and the fishing line that anchors her brothers. She wonders about their parents finding the house empty (assuming, of course, that Mrs. Palk hasn't returned and lied to them as well about the kids' whereabouts). She wonders about their enemies (not currently in view, so possibly they haven't found the kids yet). She wonders where and why Merry would disappear at such a critical time (finally, someone's thinking about this). She starts to doze in the heat, and suddenly notices that the tide has begun to turn. She signals the boys, gets fearful when the don't respond (they're nearly out of fishing line), but finally gets the three tugs that mean they're coming back.

Once everyone's back on the rocks, they tuck the new manuscript in the case with the old one, and prepare to return.

Then the Lady Mary shows up, along with the incoming tide. Evil on a boat. Trouble.

They scramble back over the rocks at speed: Barney carrying the grail, Simon the manuscripts. The yacht's dinghy is heading towards them, while the kids race between the cliffs and the incoming sea, trying to get back to dry land.

It's delightfully dramatic.

Suddenly, there's more trouble: a second boat just ahead, containing Bill and Mr. Withers. Ack!

[Break to note that I think the build-up of tension works better in this scene than anywhere else in the book: villains and heroes are all acting reasonably to attain their different goals, and are coming into conflict, and it doesn't feel contrived.]

Their opponents have the kids trapped. The tide's still coming in. The villains offer safe passage in exchange for the grail, and the boys try to make a counter offer: take them to safety or the grail goes in the sea.  Unsurprisingly, this threat is not successful. 

Just then, another boat appears. It's Merry and Mr. Penhallow!

[One could call this a deus ex, but it also make sense that Merry, at least, knows the jig is up and that the kids are likely 1) near the headland looking for the grail, 2) in need of help].

Jane dodges around Bill and heads for Merry, Simon grabs the relics from Barney and throws the grail to Merry in his boat.

And it works.

He tries again with the telescope case containing the manuscript, but Mr. Withers hits it with an oar, opening the case and scattering its contents in the water. Hastings howls and dives after it, unsuccessfully, and all of the opponents head back to the yacht. Merry says something in a strange language, and Hastings “seemed to shrink within himself at the sound, so that the menace and power were all at once gone out of him.”

And yet, for all this power, Merry still can't cast detect lies.