Should he chance it? He must Get movingīond let his whole body slip down the ladder of wire and lunged through and down with all his force.īond, leaving drops of blood behind him, picked his way carefully down the track and along the bottom of the shadowed cliff. It was black, impenetrable, as deep as the rest. He gazed vaguely at the softly heaving sheen of water. Slowly he let himself down to the bottom rung of wire. It would be about six o'clock, the dawn of a beautiful day.īond got to the-rock face. Perhaps even now they were watching the scout groups far out at sea locating the fish. Far above him the cormorants were wheeling round the guanera. Clouds tinged with golden pink were trailing away towards the horizon. Bond reached for the top cable and frantically began to edge along the swaying fence towards the rocky headland twenty yards away.īond looked up at the sky. To build the wire fence the men must have come from the left, from the direction of the jetty. Left was towards the ship, but also towards Doctor No. Then don't wait Get away quick Wildly Bond looked to right and left. Nothing, nothing but the spreading stain of black. He tore it out, got it between his two hands and wrenched the doubled wire almost straight.īut where was the squid? Would it come back? Bond searched the sea. A narrow rocky track, made by the feet of the workers, led down the other side and round the bulge of the cliff.īond thrust his knife between his teeth and his hand dived for the crook of the wire spear. The wounded squid had emptied its ink sac at him. It was covered with black slime, and blackness stained the sea for twenty yards around. He got a hold and reached up his other hand and slowly, agonizingly, pulled himself up so that he was sitting in the fence. So he must be alive Dazedly Bond let go the spear from his trailing hand and reached up and felt for the nearest strand of wire. But he could feel the wire cutting into the tendons behind his knees. His eyes were stinging and there was a horrible fish taste in his mouth. What had happened? Had he gone blind? He could see nothing. On the bridge, the watch was lighting a cigarette.īelow, on the jetty, to the left and to leeward of the drifting smoke of the guano dust, stood the tall, watchful figure of Doctor No. Twenty yards away, Doctor No, also with his back to Bond, stood sentry over the thick rich cataract of whity-yellow dust. The neck above the open khaki shirt was naked, offered, waiting. His guess at the distances had been right. There was one hope, only oneīond stepped up to the rock and inched an eye round. Now the eyes and the great triangular beak were right out of the water and the beak was reaching up for his feet. He could even feel his spine being stretched. Bond was being pulled down, inch by inch.
The eyes were glaring up at him, redly, venomously, and the forest of feeding arms was at his feet and legs, tearing the cotton fabric away and flailing back.
Now the head of the squid had broken the surface and the sea was being thrashed into foam by the great heaving mantle round it. He caught a glimpse of the tip of his spear lancing into the centre of a black eyeball and then the whole sea erupted up at him in a fountain of blackness and he fell and hung upside down by the knees, his head an inch from the surface of the water.īond had not time to worry about them. Then Bond sat down and meticulously went over the photograph that was in his brain. He put it down on the ground away from his feet. As a hunk of metal it might be useful, but it wouldn't light any more and it might scrape against the rock. There it would be handy but protected from bitting against anything. Satisfied, he slipped it behind him and down the waistband of his trousers up against his spine. He lifted his knife close up to his eyes and carefully examined the blade. He leant against the cool face of rock and waited for his breathing to get back to normal. Bond took one long comprehensive look and pulled back.
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