B.A.S.E. Camp (4 page)

‘Can't wait to tell Gramps about this,' Gareth chuckled. ‘Bet he'll want to sneak up here himself when he…'

Gareth froze in mid-sentence. The bare floorboards behind them had creaked and neither he nor Adam dared to look round.

‘Lost, are you, boyos?' warbled a voice in a lilting, Welsh accent. ‘Long time since Old Taffy's had any visitors up here…'

‘Where's
he
off to in such a hurry?' said Tom, seeing Eddie nip out of the library straight after Thursday's evening lecture. ‘He hasn't done his diary yet.'

‘That kid's always in a hurry, man,' said Adam. ‘Except when he's writin' of course. He takes yonks over doin' that.'

‘He's gone out for an extra run,' Gareth told them.

‘What!' gasped Tom. ‘He must be a sucker for punishment. What is it with you people?'

‘How d'yer mean?' Adam muttered, leaning back in his chair.

‘Well, you seem to go looking for trouble. I really thought you two were for the high jump after you got nabbed last night.'

‘That's GG's event, not mine,' Adam said with a grin. ‘But you should've seen Blackbeard's face when he found us with Taffy! He was dead mad.'

Tom shook his head. ‘I still can't believe that Taffy's his father.'

‘Well, it's true. The old man told us himself,' Gareth assured him. ‘That's why Blackbeard couldn't do anything. And he won't dare touch us now we're in Taffy's good books.'

‘Just don't push your luck,' Tom warned. ‘I wouldn't trust either further than I could throw 'em – which ain't very far.'

‘Taffy seems harmless enough,' said Gareth. ‘He was so pleased when I explained I was named after him because of Gramps. I think they were sort of partners-in-crime here as schoolmates – always sneaking off together and getting into scrapes.'

‘Exactly,' Tom muttered.

‘Reckon that's why old Taffy let on about the secret tunnel under his statue,' put in Adam, ignoring Tom's interruption. ‘Y'know, boastin' like, so we'd tell your gramps about it, too.'

‘Hope that's not where Eddie's gone now,' said Gareth, suddenly worried. ‘He wouldn't go down there to explore it by himself, would he?'

‘Nah! Even Wonder Boy's not that daft,' Adam scoffed, but then had second thoughts. ‘Is he…?'
By the time the trio got back to their dormitory, Eddie had changed into his kit and was already running through the trees towards the statue by the lake.

‘Wonder if Taffy was telling the truth about the tunnel,' he mused.

A few minutes later, he halted in front of the statue to have a closer look. It showed the muscular figure in his prime, medals draped around his neck, posing with a discus clutched in one huge hand and a javelin held aloft in the other.

Carved into the base in capital letters was the athlete's name and proud title.

‘Can't be bad, having that on your statue,' Eddie murmured, impressed.

He was tempted to test out what Taffy had said about the statue, but he had another aim in mind tonight. He stared across the water at the island and then continued his run along the edge of the lake past the chapel until he arrived at the derelict boathouse.

To Eddie's relief, its only occupant, a rowing boat, appeared to be in reasonable condition. He dragged it into the water and clambered in. The fact that it was still floating ten metres from the bank boosted his confidence.

‘Not sunk yet, anyway,' he grunted, pulling awkwardly on the single oar.

The boat turned in a clumsy circle before he managed to control it better and he soon bumped into the island.

Eddie scrambled out, getting his shoes full of water in the process, and heaved the boat up onto the grassy bank. Although the island was well screened from the Old Manor, he made sure he kept out of sight in the shelter of the trees. He bent to examine the group of seven white crosses more closely and saw that each had a small brass plate with an engraved code number, starting with T1. ‘Wonder why they don't have names?' he murmured.

After learning that Taffy was still alive, Eddie had thought that this might be a pet cemetery, but now he ruled out that, too. One thing he did discover, however, was that there was a missing number in the sequence. There was no T3.

His curiosity now satisfied, Eddie decided to head back before he was found out. The return trip was not without mishap and he breathed a sigh of relief when he finally got out of the wobbly boat.

‘Pity I lost that,' he murmured, staring at the oar, which was now tangled in a clump of reeds out of reach.

Eddie turned and jogged back towards the house to the accompaniment of his squelching shoes, but his absence had not gone unnoticed.

‘Been paddling, have you, laddie?'

Eddie had been jogging across the courtyard when Blackbeard stepped out from the dark archway of the main entrance. He stopped in his tracks and his heart sank at the prospect of another ducking in the pool.

‘Er… I've just been out for a run, Coach,' he began. ‘I got permission from…'

Blackbeard cut him short. ‘So I've heard, Peters. And I've also been told you could be dyslexic.'

‘Yes, sorry, Coach, I can't help it, like…'

‘Not your fault, laddie,' Blackbeard said before making a startling admission. ‘So is Taffy Jones.'
After a hot shower, Eddie found his roommates in the games room and he had to explain what he'd been up to in rather more detail. He also told them about his encounter with Blackbeard.

‘You were taking a huge risk,' said Tom, who had a glass of green juice in his hand as he watched the others playing table football.

‘Not really. Blondie said I could go.'

‘Yes, go running, not messing about in a boat.'

‘Just wanted to check things out, that's all,' Eddie said with a shrug. ‘Wonder what the letter T on the crosses stands for?'

‘T for Taffy?' Gareth suggested. ‘But then why isn't there a T3, like you said?'

‘C'mon, are you playin' or not, GG?' Adam said impatiently.

‘I'm listening to Eddie.'

‘Huh! Just 'cos you're losin'.'

‘No, I'm not.'

‘Yes, you are. It's 3–2 to me.'

‘Wonder if Taffy actually owns this place,' Eddie said, cutting across their argument.

Adam sighed. ‘Here we go, another theory from Wonder Boy. First you have him dead and buried, and now you've got him down as the big boss man.'

‘Well, what do
you
think, Mr Know-It-All?'

As Gareth sent the next ball onto the table, Adam twisted his handle grip sharply and one of the footballers spun and smacked the metal ball into the goal with a loud clunk.

‘4-2!' he cried.

‘Offside!' claimed Gareth.

‘Rubbish!' Adam scoffed. ‘There's no such thing as offside in this.'

‘It still doesn't count. I wasn't ready.'

‘So what
do
you think, Foxy?' said Tom. ‘C'mon, let's have your great theory.'

‘Ain't got one,' Adam admitted, ‘but if you must know, Old Taffy gives me the creeps, the way he prowls about the place. And 'cos I know he was lyin' last night when I asked him about Jacko. Y'know, that kid I palled up with at Easter – the one I told you got took away.'

‘What did Taffy say?' asked Eddie.

‘He reckoned he knew nothin' about him – but I saw 'em together in the Jeep.'

‘Where do you think they were going?' put in Gareth.

‘No idea,' Adam grunted. ‘But I bet it wasn't a ride home.'

‘Thought this was meant to be a
summer
camp!' moaned Gareth, resting on his bunk after Friday's fitness sessions. ‘It's hardly stopped raining since we got here.'

Due to the bad weather, the boys had endured an extra workout in the gym under the demanding eye and sharp tongue of Petit Pierre. Even when the sun did break through for a short time, it was a frustrating experience for most of the athletes. Runners and jumpers were hampered by the wet conditions, while the throwers had to keep drying the equipment to help their grip on the javelin, shot and discus.

‘Blondie said the forecast is better for the weekend,' Eddie told his roommates. ‘At least it should be fine for the Open Day.'

‘So what about tomorrow, then, guys?' said Adam. ‘That's our best chance.'

‘For what?' said Tom, coming into the room.

‘I'm talkin' about the statue,' said Adam. ‘Y'know, checkin' it out, like.'

‘Sounds a bit dodgy, if you ask me,' said Tom, pulling a face.

‘Nobody's askin' you,' Adam replied and turned back to the others. ‘Look, we've got trainin' in the mornin', then we're free. The coaches have Sat'day afternoon off.'

‘Bet Blackbeard stays here,' Eddie muttered. ‘He's never off duty.'

‘Even so,' Adam went on, ‘I reckon we can still sneak away.'

‘I suppose so,' said Gareth. ‘But after all this rain, we could be up to our necks in water down that tunnel.'

‘
If
it exists,' Eddie added.

‘At least it's worth a look, eh?' said Adam. ‘What d'yer say, guys?'

‘OK,' agreed Gareth, reluctantly.

‘Sure,' Eddie said with a shrug.

‘You must be mad,' muttered Tom. ‘C'mon, let's get to that dining room. It's fish and chips tonight and I'm starving.'

The clock on the tallest tower of the Old Manor struck twice on the Saturday afternoon
as the four boys stood in front of the larger-than-life statue of the young Taffy Jones.

‘Don't look much like he does now,' muttered Adam.

‘I bet Gramps will still recognise him if he shows up tomorrow,' said Gareth.

‘Wonder what they'll say to each other after all those years,' said Eddie.

Tom checked back nervously towards the house, glad that trees were shielding the statue from view. He still didn't really know why he had agreed to join in, apart from not wanting to be left out. ‘Just hope nobody has followed us,' he murmured.

‘Quit witterin', will yer, Tom-Tom,' Adam snapped. ‘Let's do it.'

Taffy had told them how to gain entrance to the tunnel but Adam did not really expect anything to happen. He stamped on the stone discus at the base of the statue, tilting it at an angle. Then, with the grating noise of a rusty mechanism, the front of the plinth began to slide slowly forward.

‘Open, sez me!' Adam whooped in triumph.

‘It's not very big,' said Tom, peering at the black hole beneath the statue.

‘Big enough for a secret passage,' replied Adam, shining a torch down it. ‘Reckon even you can squeeze in there, if you hold your belly in a bit.' He led the way, dropping to the ground and squirming backwards into the hole until he stubbed his toes against something solid. ‘Ladder!' he cried. ‘Just like Taffy said.'

A dim light suddenly shone from the hole.

‘Good, Foxy's found the switch as well,' said Gareth. ‘Taffy told us the tunnel was discovered when his statue was put up. He thinks it must've been dug out centuries ago, but he had it all wired up with electric light.'

One by one, they copied Adam's entry technique and joined him in a small chamber before shuffling off, half-crouched, down a low, narrow channel with damp walls and a wet, sloping floor.

‘We must be going right under the lake,' breathed Eddie.

‘Good job it hasn't flooded,' hissed Tom. ‘I can't swim, remember.'

‘If the roof gets any lower, I'll be doing the
crawl,' panted Gareth, who was already bent double.

Fortunately for all of them, the tunnel became a little higher and also drier as it began to climb upwards, before coming to an abrupt halt.

‘Dead end?' said Eddie, staring at the wall in front of them. ‘It's been bricked up.'