Read Online The Broken Sun by Darrell Pitt - Free Book Online Page B

the man scuttling down
the wall like a spider.
    â€˜My goodness!’ Scarlet said.
    Jack was amazed. He had never seen anyone climb with such ease and he was holding
a piece of the Broken Sun! The gold baton, with its myriad of strange symbols, glittered
in the sunlight.
    The professor lurched into the room. ‘You must retrieve the artefact!’ he shouted.
‘It’s priceless!’
    They raced out of the castle. The thief was sprinting across a field towards a hill.
Jack started after him, but Mr Doyle grabbed his arm and pointed back to the Lion’s
Mane .
    â€˜He must have transportation,’ Mr Doyle said. ‘If he does, we’ll never catch him
on foot.’
    Mr Doyle was right. No sooner had they risen above the field did they see another
small airship taking off.
    But Mr Doyle had them over the water in seconds. The thief’s airship was faster than
the Lion’s Mane . He headed to a tiny island and rapidly descended to the beach. Mr
Doyle landed just as the man disappeared inland on foot.
    â€˜Best have Clarabelle ready,’ the detective said, drawing his gun as they left the
airship. ‘Stay behind me.’
    They made their way over a sandy knoll. The island was a wild, windswept place, covered
in jagged hills and crevices. Flurries of sand danced over rocky dunes. Birds soared
overhead, singing mournful songs. They followed a trail of footsteps until Mr Doyle
grunted and drew to a halt.
    â€˜There’s something wrong here,’ he said, pointing at the prints. ‘They are deeper
at the heel than the toe.’
    â€˜Why is that strange?’ Jack asked.
    â€˜If he is running—which we can assume he is—his toes should be sinking into the ground
first. Unless…’ The detective snapped his fingers. ‘What a fool I am! He has doubled
back behind us.’
    They raced back the way they had come. Another set of prints had already disturbed
their own. Just as they reached the shore, they glimpsed the Lion’s Mane taking off
towards the coast.
    â€˜That scoundrel!’ Mr Doyle snapped. ‘He’s stolen our ship!’
    The thief’s vessel lay moored on the beach, the name on the bow identifying it as
the Pimpernel . They climbed aboard, only to find that the control panel had been
smashed beyond repair.
    Jack watched the Lion’s Mane disappear into the clouds.
    â€˜He’s getting away,’ Mr Doyle said, ‘and we’re stuck on this island with no way to
return.’

CHAPTER NINE
    It was cold and dark on the island. The Pimpernel had blankets, but no pillows or
food supplies. Mr Doyle started a fire while the team turned to their emergency supplies
for sustenance.
    â€˜Beef jerky,’ Jack said, biting down on the hard meat. ‘There’s nothing quite like
it.’
    â€˜There is, actually,’ Mr Doyle said, warming his hands. ‘I once ate my belt. It had
a similar taste.’
    â€˜You ate—’ Scarlet stopped. ‘Mr Doyle, did you say you once ate your belt ?’
    â€˜I did. I was stranded in the Carpathian Mountains without food and water. It was
either eat my clothing or die of starvation.’
    â€˜How horrible.’
    â€˜It tasted far better than my boots,’ Mr Doyle said, shuddering. ‘I still have nightmares
about those boots.’
    The wind came up and they huddled around the fire. Jack’s eyes settled on Scarlet.
She was an incredible girl. There was never a word of complaint from her. It seemed
her spirit could not be quashed.
    And she was so pretty! Even now her tangled hair, cast about by the breeze, perfectly
framed her pixie face. And her eyes were as green as a deep forest. Her lips—
    â€˜What’s wrong?’ Scarlet demanded, staring at him.
    â€˜Huh?’
    â€˜You’re grinning at me oddly. Is there something in my hair?’
    â€˜No!’ Jack blushed. ‘I was just thinking.’
    â€˜Well don’t! It