“No! I will do nothing more. My conscience troubles me already. I may have done too much. And, besides, the things you ask me to do are too hard. The tunnel under the wall was blocked with stones; we had to remove them, and there were many; then hunt for the cave in the darkness. Uti is a terrible place even when the sun shines. What then is it at night? The bats were chirping and fluttering about our heads, and we had to drive them away to keep from being attacked; and one of the men bumped into a wasp’s nest, so that we were all stung. After we finally found the boxes they had to be dragged back to the wall and through the passage, and then there were all the stones to put into place again. The men grumbled at the work, and I, Soncco, old though I am, had to help them.” “I am sorry we had to put you to all that trouble; but remember, we are helping you more than any one else. Do you want to take the lives of your relatives and friends?” “No! You know that. My heart is heavy that this duty has fallen upon me.” “Then do as I say and you will be relieved of that duty.” “But the Inca’s command must be obeyed.” “Of course. We have given you our word before this that his wishes shall be carried out. In other words, you will do exactly as he directs. Go ahead with all the preparations; do as you were told. It is Quizquiz who will change his mind at the proper time. And, remember, you shall be well paid.” “Who will reward me?” “The king. Be patient. You shall see in a few days.” “My head is dizzy. I cannot think clearly. But no matter what happens I can be no worse off than I am. I curse the day that Villac Umu obtained his evil power over Quizquiz,” Soncco murmured. “Come back at nightfall, then,” Stanley continued. “We want you to take these boxes away again. Bring only one man with you this time--some one you can trust absolutely. If he is deaf, dumb, and blind, it will be all the better.” “Yes, yes; I will be here. You have me completely in your power. And may all the devils of Uti torture you if you betray me.” “Do not worry. You will soon find out that we have told you nothing but the truth. Then you will be thankful to us.” “I will keep my word,” Soncco said, “and at the same time I will make provisions against trickery. Do not forget that.” When the old amauta had gone the two opened the boxes and took out the fuse and primers; then they began to prepare the charge. They fastened one of the long, copper caps to one end of the fuse and then inserted it in a stick of dynamite, carefully folding back the paper wrapper over the end and tying it in place with a strip of cloth torn from their clothing. As they worked Stanley explained his scheme to Ted. The latter fell in with it immediately, and to all outward appearances both were cheerful and entirely confident over the outcome of the plan.