CHAPTER III.
HURRY-UP ORDERS.
When Matt entered the bare little room on the second floor which servedas a public parlor for the hotel, a girl of sixteen or seventeen aroseto meet him. She had black hair and eyes, was well dressed, and lookedlike a Spanish se?orita.
"Motor Matt?" she asked, stepping toward him with an engaging smile.
"My name," he answered.
"I am----" She paused, and a frightened look came into her wide, darkeyes. For the first time Matt noticed that, in spite of her smile, sheseemed to be ill at ease. "I am Miss Harris," she finally went on,"Miss Sadie Harris, a niece of your friend, Mr. Townsend. Perhaps youhave heard my uncle speak of me?"
The girl's English was good, so Matt argued that she was not a Spaniardafter all.
"No," he answered, "I did not know that Mr. Townsend had a niece."
"That's strange," murmured the girl, "for I was always a favorite ofhis. As soon as I learned that he was sick I came right on to NewOrleans. When I arrived here, yesterday, I found my uncle nearly wellagain. All this, though, has nothing to do with my errand. Here arethree tickets to British Honduras, good on the steamer _Santa Maria_,which sails at ten, this morning. There is not much time, Motor Matt,and it is my uncle's wish that you go on that boat."
To say that Matt was "stumped" would hardly do justice to his feelings.
"British Honduras?" he echoed.
"Yes; the boat sails from the Fruit Company's dock."
"But why am I and my friends to go to British Honduras?"
"I don't know. My uncle gave me the tickets and asked me to hand themto you and tell you to expect word from him at Belize. He said thework was very important, and that you must not say a word about it toanybody."
"I don't know anything about the work, Miss Harris," answered Matt, "soit won't be possible for me to say anything to any one."
"Your intention of leaving on the _Santa Maria_, too, ought to be kepta secret. At least, that's what my uncle says."
"This is mighty sudden," murmured Matt dazedly. "Why couldn't Mr.Townsend have called me out to the house and talked this over with meyesterday?"
"He didn't know anything about it yesterday, Motor Matt. In fact, thework only came to his knowledge an hour ago."
"Wasn't he well enough to come and tell me himself?"
"Well enough, yes, but he had not the time. The _Grampus_ is over atWestwego, and he is very busy getting her ready for sea."
"Isn't he going to British Honduras on the _Santa Maria_?"
"No."
"How am I to hear from him in Belize?"
Miss Harris tossed her head petulantly.
"My uncle isn't telling all his plans, even to me. I've delivered hisorders, and it's getting along toward ten o'clock and you haven'tmuch time if you're to sail on the _Santa Maria_. I'm to go on theboat myself, and it isn't likely my uncle would leave me alone andunprotected in Central America. He thought you and your friends couldlook after me a little, both on the boat and until he was able to reachHonduras, but----"
Miss Harris used her lustrous Spanish eyes with telling effect.
"Certainly we will go," broke in Matt, "only it was such a hurry-uporder that it rather floored me. I and my pards have been waiting tohear from Mr. Townsend about some work which he was going to do when hegot well enough. Perhaps the work has something to do with you?"
Matt was clever at drawing inferences. There might be Spanish blood inMiss Harris' veins--British Honduras was partially peopled with menand women of Spanish descent--and here was a call to Belize. Then,again, Miss Harris had only recently arrived in New Orleans, and itrequired no great stretch of fancy to imagine that she had sprung, thussuddenly, some line of endeavor for which her uncle had been waiting.
"I am not at liberty to tell you anything more, Motor Matt," said MissHarris, with another of her bright smiles. "Will you take the _SantaMaria_?"
"Yes."
A strange glow danced in the girl's expressive eyes.
"That is nice of you," said she. "Here are the tickets. My uncle was sosure you'd go that he got them and secured your stateroom reservations."
Matt took the envelope the girl handed to him and walked down thestairs with her. She bade him good-by at the ladies' entrance, and, ashe turned to go back to the office he had a disturbing thought.
If there had been time to secure tickets and cabin reservations, thereshould have been time for Townsend to give Matt and his chums a littlemore notice of that trip to Honduras.
Matt, however, had abundant faith in Townsend. Undoubtedly he wasproceeding in the manner that best suited his plans.
"Come on, boys," said the young motorist, hurrying up to Dick and Carl,"we've got to pack, and be in a rush about it."
"Hoop-a-la!" gloried Carl, catching the spirit of Matt's words,although he had not the remotest idea of the underlying cause. "Oof veare going to pack oop, den id vas a skinch ve're going someveres; undoof ve vas going someveres, den der drouple-pot iss on, und vill peginto poil righdt----"
"Ease up a bit on that jaw-tackle, mate," interrupted Dick, grabbingCarl's arm and hurrying him off after Matt. "It's as plain as the noseon your face that some kind of word has been received from Townsend,but it's just as plain that there's no time to talk about it. Matt's ina tearing hurry, and it's up to us to pull back into our shells, hustlethe stuff into our dunnage-bags, and wait for him to tell us what wewant to know."
When Dick and Carl reached their room, Matt was already throwing hisbelongings into a grip. The sailor and the Dutch boy got busy.
"The girl is a Miss Sadie Harris," explained Matt as he worked, "andshe's a niece of Townsend's."
"Vas she a pooty goot looker?" inquired Carl, rolling up his eyes.
"What's that got to do with it?" demanded Dick.
"Nodding, only id vas more romandick oof a pooty girl vas mixed oop inder pitzness."
"My eye!" exploded Dick. "Well, cut out the romance. Unless I'm wide ofthe course this is nothing but pure business. Eh, Matt?"
"Yes," answered Matt. "We're to sail at ten o'clock for Belize, inBritish Honduras."
Carl slumped into a chair with a gasp.
"Pridish Honturas!" he gurgled. "Vere iss dot? Ofer py China someveres?"
"It's in Central America, you saphead!" cried Dick. "I've been in thosewaters, and I'm a Feejee if they ever took much of my fancy."
"Miss Harris brought our tickets," proceeded Matt, "and she's going tosail on the same boat."
"Vat are ve to do ven ve ged dere?"
"Wait for instructions from Townsend."
"Then Townsend isn't sailing with us, mate?"
"No."
"Well, keelhaul me, it's a queer course that's been laid for us. Whatmakes it queerer is, that in all the time we've been hooked up withTownsend he's never once mentioned his niece."
"Townsend is an odd chap, in some ways, but he's as straight as astring for all that," returned the young motorist. "This work inHonduras, I feel pretty sure, has something to do with the girl."
"I like dot," spoke up Carl, kneeling on his rusty old suit-case inorder to make the cover go down. "Peauty in tisdress alvays cuts someice mit me. Dere! I vas alretty for anyding vat comes my vay."
"I'm ready, too," added Dick.
"And I," said Matt, picking up his satchel.
They left the room hurriedly. At the bottom of the stairs Matt handedhis grip to one of the porters.
"Carry that over to the Fruit Company's dock," said he. "Dick, you andCarl go on. I'll square up with the proprietor and trail along afteryou."
"Mind dot you don't get left," cautioned Carl.
"I've ten minutes," was the answer, "and I can get to the dock in halfthat time."
Dick, Carl and the porter hastened off, and Matt turned back into theoffice. He was only two or three minutes settling the bill, and as hestarted for the hotel door he passed a telephone booth and an idea cameto him.
There could be no harm in calling up Mrs.
Thomas' boarding-house inPrytania Street, telling Townsend they were off and saying good-by. Aword of that kind with Townsend would prove reassuring.
The idea was no sooner conceived than it was carried out. But Matt wasdestined to disappointment. He was informed by "central" that the wirewas busy, and, as it was already five minutes of ten, he had no time towait.
Throwing the receiver back on the hooks, he left the hotel and rantoward the Fruit Company's dock. The warning bell of the _Santa Maria_was ringing, and deck hands were preparing to haul in the gang plank ashe rushed across it.
"Py chiminy, aber dot vas some glose connections!" cried Carl, who,with Dick, was waiting and watching for Matt.
"A miss is as good as a mile," Matt replied. "Have you seen MissHarris?"
"She's forward, matey," said Dick.
"We'll stow the luggage somewhere," went on Matt, "and then go forwardourselves and see the boat get away."
The baggage was piled in the cabin, and when the three boys reappearedand made their way toward the forward part of the main deck the _SantaMaria_ was shivering from stem to stern under the impetus of herpowerful engines and drawing away from the dock and into the channel.
There were a dozen or more people on the dock waving hats andhandkerchiefs, while a dozen or more were clustered at the steamer'srail returning the parting salutes.
"Dere iss nopody dere to vave goot-py ad us," remarked Carl, "not efenDownsent!"
"We certainly couldn't expect Townsend, Carl," said Matt. "He has othermatters to occupy his mind, I suppose."
"I shouldn't think he'd be too busy to come down and see his niece offon her voyage," put in Dick. "Still, as you say, mate, he may be----"
Dick suddenly broke off his words. His eyes had been roving over thepassengers along the rail.
"Sink me!" he exclaimed, dropping a quick hand on Matt's arm. "Lookover there--to the left."
Matt looked, and immediately experienced the same surprise that hadlaid hold of his chum.
The burly form of Captain Sixty was in plain view, and at the captain'selbow, and talking with him, was Miss Harris!