CHAPTER XII
A BRIBE OF HALF A MILLION
"What do you want to talk about?" asked Ned, as Thomas Q. Collinsadvanced a step, both hands still high above his head, as anindication that he was unarmed.
"I want to reach an understanding with you," was the reply.
"About what?"
"About--well, about your errand here."
"Oh! Well, what about it?"
Collins hesitated a moment and then asked:
"Why can't I come to you and sit down? I'm not armed. This is notan easy or a dignified position for me to hold."
"You say you are not armed," Ned replied. "Will you say as much forthe savages who are with you in this dirty game?"
"There are no savages here with me," Collins protested. "YourIndian killed one by throwing him from the ledge, one was killedwhen the Vixen burned and dropped, and one was shot by one of yourboys. The other went away with the motor car. You must have seenthem riding away?"
"There were five people with him when he first came out here in thecar," Jackson said, under his breath. "Ask him where the otherwhite man now is."
"Did you see the other white man?" asked Ned of Jackson.
"Not distinctly."
"Would you have recognized him if it had been Lyman?"
"I might. I can't say. I wasn't very near to them. They kept mescouting over the hills to keep them in sight."
"Well," Collins called out, impatiently, "are you going to let mecome in for a talk? If not, I'll go back and bring some shootersout here."
Without answering that special question, veiled, as it was, with athreat, Ned asked the one proposed by Jackson.
"Where is the white man who was with you when you first came here inthe car?"
"I did not come in a motor car," was the reply. "I came in theVixen."
"That's a lie!" Jackson whispered. "The Vixen, if that is what theycall their airship, never showed up until a few days ago. I triedto signal to the driver; or, rather, I did signal to him, but heignored me. This man Collins came in with the car more than twoweeks ago, and went out in it, too, and the other white manremained. The next time he came, he was in the Vixen."
"Who is that fellow who is filling you with prejudice against me?"demanded Collins, presently. "It looks like a man wanted forstealing cattle from the Lyman ranch."
"Why didn't you communicate with him, if you were so hungry?" askedNed of Jackson, suspiciously. "You say he has been here at least twice."
Jackson frowned and looked away. Then his forehead flushed and hesaid:
"I guess there's no use lying about it. I was accused of runningcattle off the Lyman range. That is the man who accused me. Inever did. He knows that. Now you know why I didn't approach himand ask for food."
"Well," insisted the boy, "why didn't you browse around and find thewhite man he left here? That is what he came in here for, isn't it--tohide some one he wanted out of the way?"
"I thought he came to look for gold," was the reply. "Now, aboutthe other question. I did try to find the man he left here. Iwanted to eat with him! I knew there was some one in the hills, butI never found him. It beats the Old Scratch where he is!"
"Come, come!" Collins cried, impatiently, "you can do your visitingafter we have our talk. Shall I come to you, or will you come tome?"
"Don't you go out there!" Jimmie warned. "He's got some one hidden.You'll be shot if you do. Tell him to come here."
"Keep your hands up and come here," Ned ordered, thinking this goodadvice.
He had already experienced the treachery of the fellow, and did notcare to take any chances. Collins came along sullenly, stood stockstill, while Jimmie searched him, and then sat down on the frameworkof the Nelson.
"That aeroplane would look handsomer," Ned said, grimly, "if yourmen had not set it on fire."
"That was war!" Collins replied. "It is war still, unless we cancome to some kind of agreement."
"I haven't much faith in your word," Ned replied. "You played adirty game on me at Lima, you know."
"The chances of war!" Collins replied. "Now," he went on, "we cancome to terms without any reference to the International PeaceCongress, if we want to. I'll admit that if things were a littledifferent I wouldn't be asking for terms, but that is neither herenor there. I want your assistance."
"On the level?" demanded Jimmie.
Jackson grinned scornfully, and Collins glared at both.
"The man we brought out here--merely as a matter of business--hasdisappeared," Collins went on. "We left him in the little cavernwhere you found his coat and the food. He's got away."
"You refer to Lyman?"
"Of course."
"You were keeping him a prisoner until his concession should lapse?"
"That's only business."
"When does it lapse, in case he does not appear and make payment?"
"On the 31st of August."
"And this is the 18th?"
"I think so. I'm pretty well mixed as to time, as well aseverything else."
"Then he has only fourteen days in which to get back to Asuncion andmake a large payment?"
"That is just it."
"And he is lost?"
"Yes."
"When did you see him last?"
"You remember how I came to be here? You brought me, trussed uplike a hen in that aeroplane harness. Well, when the Vixen wentinto that pit and you went away to look over the scenery, I knewthat the motor car would be along soon, so I didn't try to get away.I knew what would happen if I did. You'd shoot! Just as soon asthe car came and I was released--the car brought in food forLyman--I sent a man over to the cave to find Lyman. He wasn't there.Understand? He wasn't there."
"But there were live embers in the cave when I got there," Ned said.
"I know. That was built by one of my men, who wanted to makecoffee, but didn't. The food you stole was brought in by the car asI said before. You found Lyman's coat, didn't you?"
"Yes, and a packet of letters."
"I knew what you were in Lima for from the first. I knew of yourmission before you left San Francisco. So I did not lie to you whenyou asked if the man who was brought in, something over two weeksago, in a motor car was Lyman. I knew that you knew. You see, wehad to get him out of Paraguay when it was learned that the UnitedStates had placed the Lyman affair in the hands of the SecretService."
"Go on," Ned said. "You are getting pretty close to the point now."
"I thought at first," Collins went on, "that you had blundered intothis district just by blind luck. Now I know better. I gave myselfaway by my fool antics at Lima. Then the Vixen showing up andchasing the Nelson around increased your suspicions. Oh, I know howit happened. You fooled us all. We led you right to the spot whereLyman was hidden by our attempts to mislead you. More fools we!"
"You have stated the case correctly," Ned said. "If you had keptaway from me at Lima, and the Vixen had kept out of sight, I shouldhave gone straight on to Asuncion, and should have been wasting mytime there this minute."
"Yes, that's the truth! Well, now I've been perfectly frank withyou, and I want you to be equally honest with me. Do you know whereLyman is?"
"I do not."
"You haven't seen him?"
"Never saw him."
"If you find him, what do you propose doing?"
"I shall take him back to Asuncion and see that he gets justice."
"Acting as a Secret Service man of the United States?"
"No, as an individual."
"But you are in the employ of the government?"
"Yes, but I'm not authorized to mix the two countries up in a war."
"Yes, I know, but your government will back you in whatever you do.That is the point with me. If you report no cause for interferencedown in Paraguay, there will be no danger of our getting intotrouble. Your government wouldn't make a demand for Lyman'srelease, although it was understood he was kept in duress by a hig
hofficial of the republic. Still, it sends you out to actunofficially. Now, this being the case, you are the person I wantto talk with."
"Well?"
"I want you to help find Lyman, and then I want you to help me cometo terms with him--we can't fight the United States!"
"In other words, you want me to betray my trust and help you robhim?"
"No. There are two sides to everything--where there are not three,or more. So there are two sides to this cattle concession business.I think that Lyman will be glad to settle if we find him--if he doesnot know that the United States has Secret Service men on theground!"
"So you really do want to buy my silence?"
"I want to make sure that you will not attempt to defeat our plans."
"Nothing doing," Ned replied.
"Wait!" Collins continued. "You haven't heard me out. We'll seethat Lyman gets all his money out of the deal, with somethingbesides, and also that you get a quarter of a million dollars forsaying nothing."
"Nothing doing!" Ned repeated.
Collins actually gasped with amazement. He had offered bribesbefore, but had never started out with so large a sum. And he hadnever been denied!
"Understand the proposition," Collins said, presently, as soon as hecould catch his breath, "it is not you we want. We don't care acontinental cuss for you. What we want is for you to keep quietafter we find Lyman. It is the Secret Service of the United Stateswe axe afraid of. I'll make it half a million."
"It must be a rich concession," Ned said.
"It is, and Lyman got it for a song, for no one ever supposed thatswamp would make good grazing ground."
"I guess Mr. Lyman will earn all he gets out of it," Ned laughed.
"He will never get anything out of it, unless he comes to terms withme," Collins said, impatiently. "We'll find some way to keep himout of Asuncion until after the 31st. It is a long way from here toParaguay!"
"All the more reason why we should get busy looking for him," Nedsaid.
"And when we find him?" asked Collins, tentatively.
"I shall take him back to Asuncion."
"Then you'd better not find him," threatened Collins. "If you'regoing to oppose me, I'll leave it to you to look him up. I'll goback to Asuncion and bring men out here who will see that you neverleave the mountains."
"Gee! That's a cheerful proposition!" grinned Jimmie.
Collins, disgusted at his failure to either bribe or frighten theboys, started away, but Jackson laid a heavy hand on his shoulderand swung him around.
"Wait a minute!" he said.
"What do you mean?" demanded Collins.
"You're not going to Asuncion after help," Jackson said. "I have alittle score to settle with you myself! You're the man who accusedme of running off cattle. Well, you're going to remain right herewith me until I go out with you and give you a chance to make thatright."
Collins glanced at Ned.
"Is this by your order?" he asked.
Ned shook his head.
"I have no present quarrel with you," he said.
Collins started away again, but Jackson thrust him back, not any toogently.
"If you make a touse," he said, "I'll tie you up. Now," he added,as Collins, almost foaming with rage, threw himself on the ground,"I want you to tell me where you left that tent."
Both Ned and Jimmie sprang to their feet at the mention of the word.
"A tent! Here!"
Collins snarled out some impertinent reply, and Ned asked:
"Did they bring in a tent?"
"You bet they did!" Jackson answered. "This fine-haired duck withthe circus parade clothes wasn't going to sleep in no cavern. Hewas going to have a nice, soft, cool bed under a tent while he waswaiting for the Lyman concession to lapse. He was reared a pet--hewas!"
The ex-cowboy was so enraged at Collins for the insinuations he hadcast upon him that he pushed up to where he lay and would haveassaulted him if Ned had not interposed.
"Let him alone," the boy said. "We'll leave the law to make paymentin his case. Are you going to tell us where the tent is, Collins?"he added, turning to the angry captive.
"I guess you can get along without the tent," Collins said. "Youwon't have to remain here long. I've got men coming in. They maybe here at any moment. Officers of the Republic of Paraguay!"
"I shall be glad to meet them!" Ned laughed. "If you'll tell mewhere the tent is I'll be able to entertain them properly."
"Aw, I can find the tent if it is around here anywhere!" Jimmiebroke in.
"What do you want of it?" demanded Collins
"A little tent cloth," Ned smiled, "would make a serviceable machineof the Nelson. We could make new planes in no time. What do youthink of the idea?"
"I'm not going to have the tent cut up," shouted Collins.
"I guess yes," Jimmie said, provokingly. "You burned our planes,and you've got to supply material for new ones."
The little fellow darted away as he spoke, working his way over theledges which separated the two dents on the mountain sides. In ashort time Ned heard him calling and saw him looking down from theshelf above the cavern.
"Come on up," the lad cried. "I can see the tent over in the othervalley, and there's another automobile coming. What do you think ofthat? This must be a regular station on the underground railroadbetween Asuncion and Lymanville!"
Ned lost no time in gaining the ledge. The white body of the tentwas in plain sight, just where the men had dropped it out of themachine. The two boys hastened into the depression, seized thecanvas in their arms, and started back toward the Nelson. On theshelf again, Ned asked:
"Where did you see a motor car?"
"Over east," was the reply. "There's a tunnel under the range offthat way. I take it that a river ran there once, draining thisvalley."
Presently the machine appeared in the valley from which the Vixenhad slipped off into the pit. There were four men in the two seats.One was the Indian in goggles who had driven the car away, theothers were white men. The car could not have gone far, so thesemen must have been picked up just outside.
The boys carried the canvas down to the Nelson and began the work ofmaking new planes, keeping close watch, but leaving the newcomers todo the calling if there was any to be done. There was plenty ofcanvas and the tools necessary for the work were found in theNelson's tool chest. Collins watched the doings angrily.
"These men," he finally said, "are officers. Two from Paraguay andone from Peru. They have warrants for your arrest."
He started to his feet as if to join the others as he spoke, butJackson saw that he did not get very far.
"Tell your friends," Jackson said, "that we're too busy to bebothered now. We'll soon have this aeroplane fixed, and then we'llgive an imitation of men sailing out of this mess. Lyman knows afriend is here, for he heard my cowboy call. He will soon come outof his hole, and we'll take him back to Asuncion--just to preventinternational complications!" he added with a grin.
The work of preparing the new planes progressed swiftly, but beforeit was completed the men who had arrived in the automobile appearedon the ledge and called down to those below.