angry. We must nevaire
climb on ze trellis. You see? Here I sit and laugh--so much--when he
tumble down!"

She smiled and for a moment seemed all happiness, but Tom Slade heard a
sigh following close upon the smile. He did not know what to say so he
simply said in his blunt way:

"I guess you had good times together."

"Now I will zhow you," she said, stooping to pull away the heavy tangle
of vine.

Tom and Archer helped her and to their surprise there was revealed a
trap-door about six feet in diameter with gigantic rusty hinges.

"Ziss is ze cave--you see?" she said, stooping to lift the door. Tom
bent but she held him back. "Wait, I will tell you. Zen you can open
it." For a moment pleasant recollections seemed to have the upper hand,
and there was about her a touch of that buoyancy which had made her
brother so attractive to sober Tom.

"Wait--zhest till I tell you. When I come back from ze school in England
I have read ze story about 'Kidnap.' You know?"

"It's by Stevenson; I read it," said Archer.

"You know ze cave vere ze Scotch man live? So ziss is our cave. Now you
lift."

The door did not stir at first and Florette, laughing softly, raised the
big L band which bent over the top and lay in a rusted padlock eye.

"Now."

The boys raised the heavy door, to which many strands of the vine clung,
and Florette placed a stick to hold it up at an angle. Peering within
by the light of a match, they saw the interior of what appeared to be a
mammoth hogshead from which emanated a stale, but pungent odor. It was,
perhaps, seven feet in depth and the same in diameter and the bottom was
covered with straw.

"It is ze vat--ze wine vat," whispered Florette, amused at their
surprise. "Here we keep ze wine zat will cost so much.--But no more.--We
make no wine ziss year," she sighed. "Ziss makes ze fine flavor--ze
earth all around. You see?"

"It's a dandy place to hide," said Archer.

"So here you will stay and you will be safe. Tomorrow in ze night I
shall bring you more food and some clothes. I am so sorry----"

"There ain't anything to be sorry about," said Tom. "There's lots of
room in there--more than there is in a bivouac tent. And it'll be
comfortable on that straw, that's one sure thing. If you knew the kind
of place we slept in up there in the prison you'd say this was all
right. We'll stay here and rest all day tomorrow and after you bring us
the things at night we'll sneak out and hike it along.