CHAPTER X.
THE CAPTIVE'S WARNING.
The captive was the first to break the picture. With a violent wrench hefreed himself of the arms of his captors, while the boys gazed in dumbamazement at the unexpected encounter.
"What's this here buccaneer bein' a' doing of now?" demanded Ben, aftera few seconds.
"We 'uns caught him trying to scuttle you 'uns canoes," explained one ofthe crackers, "and we calculate to have him decorating a tree-bough bysundown on our own account. We don't like live strangers round here."
The face of the man we know as Nego grew as yellow as parchment. Therewas little doubt from the expressions of the moonshiners' faces thatthey were quite capable of carrying out their threat. In fact a murmurof approval greeted the cold-blooded proposal. One man--a little shortfellow with a tangle of black whiskers that reached to his waist--evenpointed to a custard apple-tree that grew at the edge of the clearingand remarked casually:
"He'd look uncommon well decorating that thar tree I'm thinking."
After the boys had made insistent demands to be given the details ofNego's capture they were finally informed that a group of themoonshiners, who had been off wild-hog hunting, had been much surprisedto see the motor-boat manoeuvring off the point on the far side of whichthe boys had beached the canoes. They stealthily watched the two men whowere in the craft from the screen provided by the mangroves. One ofthem--the man they had captured,--continually scanned the shore with apair of field-glasses.
"They must have known we had left the sloop and come in pursuit of us,"exclaimed Frank and Harry in one breath as the narrator reached thispoint of his story.
After rounding the point it appeared that the watchers, who had beensneaking along through the undergrowth, saw Nego order the boat's headpointed for the shore and when she was fairly close in, get into a smalldinghy that towed astern and come ashore at the spot where the canoeswere lying. He carried a small axe and was about to raise it and destroythe craft when the crackers, with a startling yell, burst out of thewoods and made him a captive. The other man must have seen his comrade'splight, for he instantly headed the motor-boat about and giving her fullspeed vanished round the projection on the coast of the island.
The boys' faces paled as a common thought flashed across their minds."What if the two men had visited the sloop and scuttled her or destroyedthe _Golden Eagle II_?"
Harry was the first to voice their fears. Frank's answer, however, gavethe adventurers a gleam of hope.
"That occurred to me, Harry," he replied, "but, on thinking it over, Ithink it is more likely that they planned to destroy the canoes beforeattacking the _Carrier Dove_, as with the small craft stove in theywould be able to work without fear of our paddling back and surprisingthem."
They agreed that this was a reasonable theory and turned their attentionto the captive who stood defiantly with folded arms and a sneeringexpression on his dark face. He looked very different from thewell-dressed man who had first attracted their attention in thedining-room at the Hotel Willard, but he was unmistakably the samedespite the fact that now his chin was covered with a heavy stubble andhe wore rough clothes and a dark blue flannel shirt.
"Who are you?" demanded Frank finally.
The dark man raised his eyebrows and as he did so the boys noticed atonce the cause of his peculiar expression. The man's eyes were almostalmond-shaped, dark and malevolent looking--the eyes of an Oriental.Combined with his dark yellow skin they stamped him at once as anunmistakable subject of the ruler of the far Eastern power the agents ofwhich the Secretary of the Navy was certain, had kidnapped LieutenantChapin and stolen the formula of his explosive. When he spoke it was ina rasping voice that matched well his general appearance of sinisterenergy.
"What if I should refuse to tell you?" he grated.
"In that case you would be very foolish," rejoined Frank, "you are nowin the power of these men, over whom we have some influence. If you willgive us some information we will in return try to intervene for you,notwithstanding the fact that you have tried to blow up our aerodromeand now we find you here attempting to scuttle our canoes. What have youdone with the colored man you took from the sloop last night?" hedemanded suddenly.
"To that I shall simply reply that he is in good hands," was therejoinder.
"Not if he's got anything to do with you, he ain't, my fine fellow," putin Ben indignantly. The man looked at him with cold contempt.
"You may do with me what you will," he said proudly, "I shall not sueAmericans for my liberty or even my life."
The boys were amazed at the cool audacity of the man. With death staringhim in the face, surrounded by the cruel faces of men who would have nohesitancy in killing him, he showed no more trace of emotion than if hewere still sitting eavesdropping in the Willard dining-room.
"We 'uns will find a way to make him talk," broke in one of themoonshiners, a big, powerful fellow. "Here, Shadduck, heat up thegun-barrels."
The boys looked puzzled, but Ben realized at once the horrible thing theman contemplated. They meant to brand the prisoner with the red-hotgun-barrels.
"Avast there," he cried, "none of that in this yere ship. Fair play andall above board. If you want to string up this fellow to the yard-arm Idon't know, if it wasn't for my friends here, that I'd say 'no,' but weain't going to have no branding."
"Who are you to be giving orders?" demanded the man who had made thesuggestion angrily and leaning forward on his rifle, "I reckon we 'unsain't asking for your advice or figgering on taking it either."
Several of the younger men muttered, "That's right--who's he to comehere 'a ordering us about."
"I wouldn't put it past yer that you're turned a revenue," went on thefirst speaker following up his advantage. At this an angry cry went up.The boys and Ben perceived that matters would soon reach a crisis ifsomething were not done. Ben, however, knew how to handle these peoplebetter than his young companions imagined.
With two quick steps he was alongside the trouble-maker and seizing himin an iron grasp put his face close to his and fairly hissed in his ear:
"Look a here, 'Red' Mavell, one more word like that and you're as goodas dead--understand?"
The other apparently did for he sullenly muttered:
"Ain't no use a gettin' het up. You know the way we do these things an'if you don't like 'em you don't have to stay and watch."
During this scene Nego had stood as impassively as if carved out ofwood. Indeed with his parchment-like skin and dark, slit eyes he didresemble an Oriental ivory image almost as much as a human being.
It was of course evident to him that escape was impossible. Rugged,wild-eyed moonshiners stood all about him and the women even had comeout of the huts, with their timid children peeping from behind theirskirts, to be onlookers at the unwonted scene. The captive retained hisposture of proud defiance in the face of this. His bearing was eveninsolent in fact.
"Look here, mates," went on Ben, turning suddenly to the boys, "we don'twant to have any hand in killing this here reptile--much reason as we'vegot to--and we don't want him to be tortured, and I'll be keelhauled ifwe want to keep him," he glanced ferociously at the captive, "the onlything to do is to turn him loose."
The captive's face lost its impassivity for a moment. So completely hadBen's determined manner cowed the more ruffianly moonshiners that eventhey did not demur.
"But there's a string hitched to the offer," went on Ben, "if we do letyer go you've got to make tracks in that thar motor-boat of yours forthe north and swear to follow us no further. And tell us what you'vedone with that thar poor coon."
"Yes, that is our proposal," said Frank, "if we get you out of the handsof these people you will have to pledge us your word to trail us nofurther and to leave this part of the country at once--will you dothat?"
"If we were only north we'd have you in jail by this time," put in Billyangrily.
The man was silent for a moment with h
is eyes downcast, then he lookedup but with some of the expression of sullen cunning obliterated fromhis dark face at least temporarily. It was plain the Americans'generosity had affected him.
"I do promise--yes," he said quietly. "My companion was to wait for mein the motor-boat till I signaled to him that I was going to put offagain. If you will let me go I promise to go straight on board and nevertrouble you again."
"But they said your companion put about and drove the boat round thepoint when he saw your capture," objected Harry.
The other smiled.
"Simply a measure of prudence," he said. "I can easily signal him withthis," he drew from his pocket a small whistle, of the shrill kind knownto seafaring men as the "bos'n's pipe."
"But," he went on in a grave tone, "I want to do something to repay youfor your kindness which I confess I do not understand--you Americans area queer people."
"Blame lucky for you we are," snorted Ben, who didn't much like the coolway the captive took his good fortune.
"Do not fear for your negro. He is safe. We put him ashore this morning,and by this time he must be at your camp. We only carried him off in anattempt to prevent his giving the alarm. But," and his voice sank to awhisper, "give this attempt up. Do not go into the Everglades."
Frank gazed at him in astonishment. The tone he used was full of import.
"Grave danger threatens you there," the other went on, "more thandanger--death itself and in a terrible form. As for me I have pledgedyou my word. I am your country's enemy, but I know brave and generousmen when I see them; you have no more to fear from me----"
"Well, you haven't done us much harm anyway," Frank could not refrainfrom saying, "though I'll admit you have tried," he added.
"I have but been the agent for others more powerful, more unscrupulousand more to be feared than I," the other replied, "even now your comingis being looked for."
"Then you did spy on us in Washington," cried Frank.
"I did, and telegraphed my report to my superiors," replied the man, "itwas my duty. We soldiers of the Samurai know no word but duty when weare assigned to a task."
"Then you are an officer?" asked Frank.
"I am in the Onaki regiment. I fought through the Russian war and wasafterward given the honor to assist in the enterprise which you areabout to try to frustrate."
"I don't see much honor in what you and your countrymen have done,"rejoined Frank warmly; "it looks to me like plain everyday stealing andworse."
"Perhaps," replied the other with a slight shrug. "Our points of vieware different. Now," he said abruptly, "I must be going. We must be wellon our way north by dark for the inland channels are very intricate tonavigate in and our boat draws a good deal of water.
"Recollect what I have said and be warned," he repeated impressively.
As he spoke there came a low growl of thunder in the distance and aheavy splotch of rain fell on the back of Frank's hand. They all lookedup astonished. So engrossed had they been by the remarkable scene thathad just transpired that they had not noticed that for some time the skyhad been growing blacker and that one of the sudden storms, peculiar tothe tropics, had been advancing towards them with all the rapidity thatmarks the advent of a "Black Squall," as they are sometimes called. Thesky had in a few minutes become overcast completely with an ominousslate-colored pall. A hush as if of expectancy had fallen on the jungleabout them.
"You are likely to get a ducking if you don't git aboard before thisyere squall breaks," growled Ben as his seaman's eye noted the signs ofbad weather. The Oriental swept the overcast sky with a quick glance. Henodded.
"Good-bye and thank you," he said, and the next minute, guided by one ofthe moonshiners, he vanished down the trail leading to the shore. Themoonshiners turned to the adventurers with sardonic looks as hedisappeared.
"You 'uns might better have let us hang him," said one of them, "he'llwork you a pesky lot of mischief yet."
"I don't believe he will trouble us any more," rejoined Frank, who hadbeen impressed by the man's earnest manner and evident gratitude. Howsoon and how literally his words were to be fulfilled he littleimagined.