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13 The Raiders It was dark when Dilo returned to Black Rock. The dolphin was attracted by the sound of two powerful engines. When he arrived a boat was moving slowly towards the rock. The dolphin surfaced just as a powerful beam of light swept across the surface of the sea. It stopped on the orange marker buoy. Two men were standing on the bow. “There it is,” one of them called out huskily. “I dare not go in too close. Have you got a bearing?” came a voice from the wheelhouse. “Yes,” came the whispered reply a moment later. “Turn off the light,” ordered the first voice urgently. When the beam was switched off the boat was in complete darkness. Even the red and green navigation lights were switched off. “Go “ ordered one of the men on the bow. The other man, a fully kitted diver, leapt into the sea. He was a professional. The man didn’t surface, but swam quickly into the depths directly towards the rock. He was wearing a helmet with a torch attached to the top of it. He reached up and felt for the switch. The beam came on. A frightened fish froze in the glow. Then it sped away like a silver arrow. A few moments later the diver was on the seabed. His light swept across the spars. They looked like the half-buried ribs of a monster skeleton. He swam past them quickly into the gulley. A minute later he was hovering over the two cannons. Dilo followed behind. He could see the light in the distance. But the dolphin didn’t need a torch. Dilo could see everything clearly with his magic sound - his sonar. The diver carefully examined the positions of the cannons. He was carrying a heavy metal case. The dolphin surfaced at the same time as the diver who was beside the boat. With his sonar Dilo could see the cord, stretching down to the cannon. An arm reached over the side of the boat and took the reel. The diver removed his fins, switched off his helmet light, and climbed swiftly Up the ladder. “It’s all set.” he said as he expertly removed his aqualung and placed it with a clunk on the deck. The man who was holding the reel handed it to the diver. He unwound a short length of the cord and then cut it with his diving knife. The other man handed him a piece of rigid plastic foam and a reel of sticky tape. The diver expertly fixed the cord to the plastic board. “All set,” he said. “Then light the fuse,” ordered the other man on the bow who was in overall charge of the operation. The diver struck a match and held it to the end of the cord. It started to fizz like a firework. The fizzle moved quickly along the cord. “I reckon we’ve got about two minutes to get clear,” the diver said almost casually as he tossed the float onto the water. The man on the bow watched the fizzing end of the white cord move rapidly towards the float. As if mesrnerised he waited a few seconds. “Right. let’s get clear,’’ he harked. The engines roared. Dilo recognised the boat. He knew it was dangerous to stay near the twin propellors. The dolphin dived and cruised towards the cannons. He was still curious about what the diver had been doing with them. He heard the boat moving away. The dolphin focused his sonar on the cannons. His magic sound gave him a clear sonar picture. He could tell they were made of different metals. Dilo was moving In for a closer Inspection when the fizzing fuse burned to the detonator. An instant later the plastic explosive blew-up. The shock wave hit Dilo like a sledge hammer. The dolphin saw a flash of yellow. His sonar switched off. His heart stopped heating. His world went black and silent. Only a tiny thread of life remained. |
He placed it on the seabed. From it he took what looked like a block of plasticine. Slowly and deliberately he packed it under the end of the top cannon where it was jammed against the rocks. Then he stayed quite still until the water cleared. He examined his work carefully. Then he unwound some cord from a reel. At the end was a small detonator which he pushed into the plastic explosive. Next he wound two loops of the cord round the gun and pulled gently. The detonator stayed in position. The diver then swam slowly backwards letting the cord unwind off the reel. He allowed his buoyancy to carry him gently back to the surface.
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To obtain your very own copy of ‘Dilo and the Treasure Hunters’ by Horace Dobbs, go to the Dolphin Shop or order it from your local bookshop quoting |
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International Dolphin Watch 10 Melton Road, North Ferriby, E.Yorks HU14 3ET. England.
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