David and the Phoenix Read online

  7: _In Which the Phoenix's Plan Is Carried Out, and There Are MoreAlarums and Excursions in the Night_

  "Now, my boy," said the Phoenix, when they got back to the ledge thatafternoon, "are the shops still open?"

  "I think they're open till six," said David, shaking the sand out ofhis shoes. "Are we going to buy something?"

  "Precisely, my boy. A hardware store should have what we need. Now,you will take our gold and purchase the following." And the Phoenixlisted the things it wanted, and told David which to bring to theledge and which to leave below.

  "... and a hatchet," the Phoenix concluded.

  "We have one at home already," said David. "Now, listen, Phoenix,_can't_ you tell me what all this is for? What are we going to do withit?"

  "My boy, the feline's existence was terminated as a direct result ofits inquisitiveness."

  "What did you say?"

  "Curiosity killed the cat," explained the Phoenix.

  "Oh. But--"

  "Now, run along, my boy. A very important Thought has just come to me.I must Meditate a while." The Phoenix glanced at the thicket and hid ayawn behind one wing.

  "Oh, all _right_," said David. "I'll see you in the morning, then."

  It wasn't until he got home that he thought of something. He couldn'tspend pirate gold pieces, or even show them to anyone, without beingasked a lot of embarrassing questions. What to do? Ask Dad or Motheror Aunt Amy to lend him some money? More embarrassing questions....Well, he would have to rob his bank. But wait--why hadn't heremembered? Just before they had moved, Uncle Charles had given him aten-dollar bill as a farewell present. He had been saving it for amodel airplane, but the excitement of the last few days had driven itcompletely out of his mind. Of course the Phoenix's Plan was moreimportant than any model plane could be.

  So he kept the gold pieces tied up in his handkerchief and took histen dollars to a hardware store, where he bought what the Phoenixwanted--a coil of rope, an electric door bell, a pushbutton, and onehundred feet of insulated wire. Then he brought the package home, hidit behind the woodpile in the garage, and sat down to think.Wire--bell--pushbutton. What could the Phoenix possibly want withthem? And what was the rope for? And the hatchet? The more he puzzledover it the more confused he became, and finally he just gave up.There was only one thing he was sure about: whatever the Plan was,they would have to carry it out as soon as possible. Two days hadpassed since the Scientist had shown up. The new gun he had orderedmight arrive at any time now. Perhaps even today, when they had beendigging up the pirate treasure, the Scientist had got his new rifleand had started to hunt through the mountains.

  The thought gave David a creepy feeling on the back of his neck. Theycertainly would have to hurry.

  * * * * *

  Early next morning David climbed up to the ledge, bringing with himthe coil of rope and the hatchet. As an afterthought he had added apaper bag full of cookies.

  "Here's the stuff, Phoenix," he called out as he stepped onto theledge. "Where are you?"

  There was a crash from the thicket as though someone had jumped up init suddenly, and the Phoenix stumbled out, rubbing its eyes.

  "Ah, splendid, my boy! Yes. I was just--ah--Thinking."

  "Phoenix," said David, "I'm not going to ask you again what your Planis, because I know you'll tell me when it's time. But whatever it is,we'd better do it right now. The Scientist may show up any minute."

  "Precisely, my boy. Never put off until tomorrow what can be donetoday. One of my favorite proverbs. We shall begin immediately--" Herethe Phoenix caught sight of the bag in David's hand and added hastily:"But, of course, we must not forget that first things come first."

  "You might have brought more," said the Phoenix, fifteen minuteslater.

  "There weren't any more in the jar," David said. "Phoenix, please tellme what we're going to do. I don't care if curiosity _did_ kill thecat. I've been thinking about the rope and wire and bell all night,and I can't make heads or tails out of it."

  The Phoenix gave a pleased laugh. "Of course you cannot, my boy. ThePlan is far too profound for you to guess what it is. But set yourmind at rest. I shall now explain the rope and hatchet."

  David leaned forward eagerly.

  "Now, scientists, you know, have fixed habits. If you know thosehabits, you can predict just what they will do at any time. Ourparticular Scientist is a daytime creature--that is to say, he comesat dawn and goes at dusk. His invariable habit, my boy!"

  "Well?"

  "There you are, my boy!" said the Phoenix triumphantly. "_We shallsleep during the day and continue your education at night!_"

  "Oh," said David. He thought about this a while, then asked, "Butsuppose the Scientist comes up on the ledge during the day and catchesyou asleep?"

  "Aha! That is where the rope and hatchet come in. Never fear, myboy--I thought of that also. We are going to construct a snare at eachend of the ledge."

  "How?"

  "Hand me that twig, my boy." The Phoenix took the twig, found a barespot of earth, and sketched a picture. "First we find a sapling andclear the branches from it with the hatchet--like this. Next we get astake, cut a notch in it, and drive it into the ground--so. Thesapling is bent down to it and fitted into the notch, which holds itdown. You see, my boy? Now we make a noose--so--from a piece of rope,tie it to the end of the sapling, and spread the loop out on thepath--this way. The whole snare is hidden under grass and leaves." ThePhoenix beamed and flung out its wings in a dramatic gesture. "Justpicture it, my dear chap! The Scientist, smiling evilly as he skulksalong the path! The unwary footstep! The sapling, jarred out of thenotch, springing upward! The tightened noose! And our archenemydangling by the foot in mid-air, completely at our mercy!Magnificent!"

  "Golly, Phoenix," said David, "that's pretty clever."

  "_Clever_, my boy? Better to say 'a stroke of genius.' Only I,Phoenix, could have thought of it. And consider the poetic justice ofit! This is exactly the sort of trap that the Scientist once set forme! Well, shall we begin?"

  The Phoenix had made the snares sound delightfully simple, but theysoon discovered that the job was harder than it sounded. First theyhad to find the right kind of sapling, springy and strong. The saplinghad to be in the right place--one by the goat trail, the other at thefar end of the ledge. When they had been chosen, David had to shinnyup them to lop off their branches. That was a very awkward business;the saplings swayed and trembled under his weight, and he could onlyuse one hand for the hatchet. Then he had to make two stakes fromstout, hard wood, cut a notch at one end, and drive them into theground with the flat of the hatchet. But the hardest part was tryingto bend the sapling down to the stake and fitting it into the notch.It took the weight of both of them to bring the sapling to the ground.If they got the slightest bit off balance, it would spring up again.Once David fell off; the sapling went _swish!_ back into the air,flinging the astonished Phoenix thirty feet up the mountainside.

  It was not until afternoon, when the sun had turned ruddy and shadowswere beginning to stretch dark fingers across the land, that theyfinished the job. But at last the saplings were set in the notches,the nooses were formed and fastened on. Grass and leaves were strewnover the snares; chips, hewn branches, and other evidences of theirwork were removed. They sat down and looked proudly at each other.

  "My boy," said the Phoenix, "I have had a wide, and sometimes painful,experience with traps; so you may believe me when I say that theseare among the best I have seen. We have done well."

  "They're sure strong enough," David agreed, flexing his fingers totake the stiffness out of them. "But what are we going to do if theScientist does get caught in one?"

  "We shall burn that bridge when we reach it, my boy. Now, do you havethe pliers, wire-cutters, and screw driver below?"

  "Yes, they're down in the cellar. What are we going to do with them,Phoenix?"

  "Patience, patience! You will be told when the time comes. I shallmeet you tonight after dark, as s
oon as it is safe for me to comedown. I trust you will have everything ready?"

  "Are you coming _down_?"

  "Precisely, my boy. A risk, I admit, but a necessary one. There is ahedge at the back of your house, is there not? Splendid. You may awaitme there."

  * * * * *

  David, sitting in the shadow of the hedge, jumped when he heard thePhoenix's quiet "Good evening, my boy."

  "Phoenix," he whispered, "how did you do it? Golly, I didn't see youat all, and it isn't even dark yet."

  "I have been hunted long enough, my boy, to have learned a few tricks.It is merely a matter of gliding close to the ground, selecting thebest shadows, and keeping a sharp lookout. Well, let us get on withthe Plan. Have you the tools here?"

  "Yes, here they are."

  "Splendid! Now, my boy, since we must continue your education duringthe night, it is necessary that we have some way of getting in touchwith each other. If you climb the mountainside in the dark, you mayunwittingly fall into our own snare. It is far easier for me to comedown than it is for you to go up, and under cover of darkness I can doit quite safely. The question now is, how will you know when I havearrived? That, my boy, is the nub, or crux, of the situation. Adifficult problem, you will admit. But I have worked out thesolution."

  The Phoenix lowered its voice impressively.

  "My boy, we are going to install this bell in your room, and thepushbutton on the base of that telephone pole. When I arrive here atnight, I shall press the button to let you know that I am ready to go.A magnificent idea, isn't it?"

  It did not seem very practical to David. "Well, Phoenix, that's a goodidea," he said carefully. "But how are we going to hide the wires?And what about the noise of the bell?"

  "Nothing to it, my boy! The wires? There are wires between your houseand the telephone pole already--one more would not be noticed. Thenoise? You have a pillow on your bed, under which the bell can bemuffled."

  "Yes, that's true." It still sounded impractical.

  "Just imagine it!" the Phoenix continued enthusiastically. "Perhapslater we can install another bell at this end. Then we could learnMorse code and send messages to each other. Exactly like a privatetelephone line!"

  Put in this way, the idea had a certain appeal, and David foundhimself warming to it. But there was another thing to consider.

  "How about electricity, Phoenix?"

  "Look above you, my boy! The telephone pole is simply loaded down withpower lines waiting to be tapped."

  The Phoenix was evidently set on carrying out the Plan, and David didnot want to wear out the bird's patience with more objections.And--well, why not? There should be no harm in trying it out, anyway.

  They gathered up the tools and walked along the hedge to the telephonepole, which was in one corner of the yard. The Phoenix began touncoil the wire, while David gazed up doubtfully at the shadowy mazeof lines and insulators on the cross-arms.

  "Electricity," said the Phoenix thoughtfully, "is a complicated andprofound subject. There are amperes, and there are volts, and thereare kilowatt hours. I might also mention positive and negativeand--ah--all that sort of thing. Most profound. Perhaps I had betterinvestigate up there. Screw driver, please."

  The Phoenix took the screw driver in one claw and flew up to the topof the pole. David could hear the creak of the lines under thePhoenix's weight and the rattling of the screw driver against theporcelain insulators. For some minutes the Phoenix investigated,clicking and scraping about, and muttering "Quite so" and "_There_ weare." Then it fluttered down again and rubbed its wings together.

  "The whole situation up there is a lot simpler than I thought it wouldbe, my boy. The power lines merely come up to the pole on one side,pass through the insulators, and go away from the pole on the otherside. Child's play! The covering on the lines is rather tough,however. We shall have to use the wire-cutters."

  The Phoenix returned to the top of the pole with the cutters, andworked on the wires for five more minutes. Bits of debris began toshower down on the hedge. One of the wires vibrated on a low note likea slack guitar string.

  "We must not forget the difference between alternating and directcurrent, my boy," said the Phoenix as it flew down again. "Animportant problem, that. Where is our wire? Ah, there we are. Thepliers, please."

  "Do you need any help up there?" David asked.

  "No, everything is coming along beautifully, thank you. I shall haveeverything finished in a flash."

  Trailing one end of the wire in its beak, the Phoenix flew up into thedarkness once more. The tinkering sounds began again, and a spurt offalling debris rattled in the leaves of the hedge.

  Suddenly it happened. There was a terrific burst of blue light, asharp squawk from the Phoenix, and a shower of sparks. Another blueflash blazed up. The lights in the house, and down the whole street,flickered and went out. In the blackness which followed, each stage ofthe Phoenix's descent could be heard as clearly as cannon shots: thetwanging and snapping as it tumbled through the wires, a drawn-outsquawk and the flop of wings in the air below, the crash into thehedge, the jarring thud against the ground. Broken wires began tosputter ominously and fire out sparks. A smell of singed feathers andburning rubber filled the air.

  By the light of the sparks David saw the Phoenix staggering to itsfeet. He jumped to the bird's side, but the Phoenix waved him awaywith its wing.

  "Quick, my boy," it gasped. "We must make a strategic retreat! Meet meon the ledge in the morning. Ouch!" The Phoenix beat at the smolderingsparks in its tail and flew off, leaving a trail of acrid smokehanging in the air.

  David had the presence of mind to gather up all the tools, the wire,bell, and pushbutton, and one of the Phoenix's feathers, which hadbeen torn out during the fall. He slipped through a cellar window, hidthe equipment under a stack of old boxes, and ran noisily up thestairs into the kitchen.

  "Hey!" he shouted. "The lights are out!"

  "Is that you, dear?" came Mother's anxious voice from the dining room.

  "The telephone's dead!" Dad shouted from the hall.

  Aunt Amy came bumping down the stairs with a candle. "It's thatburglar!" she cried. "Turning out all the lights so he can murder usin our beds!"

  "Look!" David shouted, "the line's broken in our back yard!"

  They could hear the wailing of sirens now. Fire trucks, repair trucks,and police cars pulled up in front of the house. Everyone in the blockturned out to see what had happened. It took the repair men an hour tountangle the wires and fix them. And all the time policemen weregoing through the crowd, asking questions and writing things down intheir notebooks. They were looking rather haggard, David thought.