CHAPTER XIII JOSE'S STRANGE STORY
A short time later the three girls and Dr. Blackwell went down to thecave, reaching there just as the family were finishing their feast ofbear meat and the other food the girls had given them.
"Let me go in and talk to them first and tell them who you are, Dad,"Florence murmured.
She walked on inside and quickly explained to Jose that her father, whowas a doctor, had come down to see how Pepito was getting along.
Jose stepped forward and politely shook hands with Dr. Blackwell; theneach member of his family timidly followed his example.
"I'm much interested in your son Pepito," Dr. Blackwell told Jose in hisfluent Spanish. "I'd like to see if there's anything I can do to helphim."
Jose hesitated a moment, then began apologetically, "I no have moneyand----"
With a little gesture of his hand Dr. Blackwell dismissed this objection."That's all right. I don't want money."
On hearing this Jose turned and called Pepito to his side.
Knowing the nature of the Indian so well, Dr. Blackwell realized that hemust win Pepito's confidence first before he could make a completeexamination.
While he was busy with Pepito, Maria called the three girls to the backof the cave. She gestured proudly to the baby lying in a rope hammock."See, my Pepito fix this like you say."
Jo Ann smiled approvingly. "That was clever of Pepito to use my idea of acharcoal bag for a hammock, wasn't it, girls?"
"It was clever of him to fasten it to these stalactites, too," addedPeggy. "Aren't they beautiful? They're so white and sparkling back herewhere the smoke hasn't reached them. Stalactites always remind me of bigicicles hanging from the roof."
Noticing Carlitos at her side just then, Jo Ann remarked to Florence,"Before you forget it, you'd better tell Carlitos and the other childrenabout the party."
"All right." As Florence knew that the word party had no meaning for thechildren she began explaining about the cakes and _dulces_ that she andthe girls would have up at the house for them. Immediately their facesbegan to beam.
"Oh, senorita, we'll be most happy to come!" Carlitos explained, actingas spokesman for the younger children.
As soon as Dr. Blackwell had completed the examination of Pepito, he cameover beside the girls. With the keenest interest he eyed Carlitos andtalked to him for a few minutes; then he turned to Florence and said,"I'm going back to your mother now, but you girls may stay as long as youlike."
"We'll be along in a little while," Florence replied. "We're not quiteready to leave."
After he had given the parents a few directions about caring for Pepito,he bade them all "_Adios_" and left.
No sooner had he gone than Jo Ann suggested to Florence that she ask Joseabout the part the big mean boss had played in Carlitos' life. "Ask himwhat made that man so mean to Carlitos' mother and if he has any ideawhat became of his father."
"Well, I'll do my best, but first I want to tell Maria about Daddy's notbeing able to find that Mr. Eldridge."
After Florence had talked to Maria a few minutes, she began questioningJose. Jo Ann listened intently to their conversation, but Jose talked sorapidly that she could catch only a word now and then. Finally,discouraged, she remarked to Peggy, "Why is it that foreigners alwaystalk so much faster than Americans?"
Peggy laughed. "It does sound that way, but I suppose they really don't."
In spite of her failure to understand much, Jo Ann persisted in listeningand watching the expression on their faces. All at once she sawFlorence's eyes widen as if in surprise. "What is it, Florence?" shebroke out impulsively. "What did he tell you then?"
Florence turned quickly. "Oh, he said this mean boss was plotting to getrid of Carlitos! That's why he took his family away from that mine andhas been hiding up here in the mountains."
"But why did that man want to get rid of Carlitos?" Jo Ann asked quickly.
"I can't figure that out yet. He said that this mean boss had givenorders for all the boys who were large enough to help at the mine. Joseand Maria sent Pepito up to work but kept Carlitos away--they were afraidthe man would mistreat him."
"But why should this man want to mistreat Carlitos?" Jo Ann queriedcuriously.
"One reason, Jose said, was that this man had been so mean to Carlitos'mother. They had also suspected that he'd had something to do with thedisappearance of his father and so were afraid to let him know that theyeven had Carlitos. Jose said they moved 'way back up in the mountains tokeep him from finding out about Carlitos. Jose himself kept on working atthe mine, though. All went well till one day when Pepito was sick andcouldn't go to work and Carlitos slipped off to the mine and took hisplace, because he was afraid the boss would beat Pepito when hereturned."
"That man must've been a terrible creature," put in Jo Ann indignantly."But go on. What happened?"
"Well, while Carlitos was working at the mine, the boss saw him andbecame suspicious about him. He asked Jose all kinds of questions aboutCarlitos, but Jose wouldn't answer. He just shrugged his shoulders, threwup his hands and kept saying, 'No _sabe_.' That made the boss furious, aswell as more suspicious, and he ordered Jose to make Carlitos work allthe time thereafter. That evening, when Jose was leaving the mine, hechanced to overhear one of the miners bragging to another about the easymoney he was going to get from the boss for kidnaping the blue-eyed boyfor him. Jose was immediately terrified, because he knew that the boy wasCarlitos."
"Horrible!" Jo Ann ejaculated.
Florence turned back to Jose, and after talking to him again shetranslated to Jo Ann and Peggy, "Jose said on hearing this that he rushedhome and told Maria and the grandmother that they must all leaveimmediately. They packed up their few possessions on the burro and leftthat very night. They wandered over the mountains then till they camehere."
"Isn't that terrible!" exclaimed Jo Ann. "That man's a demon. I feel surehe had something to do with the disappearance of Carlitos' father. AskJose, Florence, what Carlitos' father did at the mine--if he was theowner and if this mean boss had been in his employ."
"Well." Once more Florence translated Jo Ann's questions to Jose. Alleagerness, the two girls waited for his reply.
This time Jo Ann was able to catch the answer. Her eyes shone withexcitement as she broke out, "That's why that mean boss wanted to get ridof Carlitos. Carlitos is by rights the owner of the mine!"
"You're right--he is!" Florence exclaimed.
"Gee, Jo, you've run into a thrilling mystery this time, sure enough!"Peggy burst out in an excited voice.
"I feel sure this mean boss was responsible for the disappearance ofCarlitos' father, too," Jo Ann went on. "He wanted to keep the control ofthe mine in his own hands. He wanted to get rid of Carlitos so there'd beno possible chance of anyone's ever claiming the mine. Ask Jose,Florence, how long Carlitos' father had lived at the mine--where the mineis and what the name of it is."
Florence nodded. "All right."
After talking with Jose a few minutes, she explained to Jo Ann, "DonCarlos--that's what Jose calls Carlitos' father, had come down from theUnited States to inspect his mine and had been there only a short time. Igathered from what he said that Don Carlos had not liked the way theMexican boss was handling things and had dismissed him. It was only ashort time after that, he said, that Don Carlos disappeared and the bosstook charge of the mine again."
"That proves to me that the boss did steal the mine," Jo Ann said in anemphatic tone. "Doesn't it sound that way to you, Peg?"
"Yes, it does." Peggy shook her head dubiously and added, "You'll neverbe able to unravel this mystery--it's too complicated for you."
"Jose said it was a silver mine and that they called it La Esperanza,"Florence went on. "He couldn't tell me where it was. All he did was towave his hand toward the range of mountains across the valley and said itwas beyond that. He could find it himself, of course. I asked him howthey carried out the silver ore from the mine--if
there weren't arailroad near--and he looked blank and then shook his head and said theycarried it out on burros."
"That's certainly a poky way to carry the ore," observed Jo Ann. "Itlooks as if they ought to be able to build a railroad."
"But it might be too steep for a railroad. And this is Mexico, remember.Labor's cheaper than modern machinery. Come on, let's hurry up to thehouse and talk it all over with Daddy before he leaves."
"All right," Peggy agreed.
As the girls started off, Florence called over her shoulder to thechildren, "Don't forget to come to my house _manana_."