CHAPTER XI.
IN HONOR BOUND.
"Thank you for the compliment," Jack said; "but there are just six ofus, all told; and each one is as much entitled to your praise as I am."
"I object," George broke in. "Lots of times the pack of us would havebeen in a bally lot of hot water only for the clever way you had ofhandling things."
"And that's no lie, either!" burst out Jimmy. "Whin there's any creditflyin' around loose, sure Jack desarves the lion's share, so he doesnow."
"Better and better!" cried the man who had given his name as Bliss."Why, you're as loyal a bunch of chums as I ever ran across. It's arare treat for my friend Carpenter here and myself to meet up with suchfellows, eh, Bryce?"
The way he laid particular emphasis on that name every time he used itsomehow gave Jack the impression that he did not wish the other toforget who he was! It was of course a queer feeling to have, but the boycould not get it out of his head.
"How about going back with us, Josh; feel equal to a little walk; orshall I come around after you in a small boat?" Jack asked.
"Rats! what d'ye take me for?" demanded Josh, indignantly. "Just becauseI've got a little puncture in my noggin is no sign I'm out of therunning. Why, course I'll go back with you, and right away, too."
"What's the hurry, boys?" asked Mr. Bliss, quickly.
"Well, for one thing," Jack remarked, "we've got a couple of anxiouschums in camp, who'll be eating their heads off with curiosity to knowwhat's become of Josh."
"That's right," declared the tall lad, chuckling; "and it's a shame tokeep poor old Nick away from his feed so long. Ten to one he's as hungryas a bear right now, waiting for grub time to come around."
"But won't you stay and have a bite with us?" asked Mr. Carpenter."We're not extra fine cooks, but we've got lots of good stuff aboard."
"That's right kind of you," George thought he ought to say; "but,considering the circumstances, I reckon we'd better be going, if Joshsays he's fit."
"Well, I'll show you I'm feeling just like myself, and not a bit weak,after bleeding like a stuck pig," and the long-legged boy started toclimb out of the cabin as he spoke.
"Please wait a minute," Mr. Bliss interrupted. "If you must go, there'sno need of Josh getting himself all wet. You see, we've got it fixed sowe can push ashore by a very little effort on our part, right alongsidethe roots of that tree; and where the water chances to be fairly deep.We had the boat in there when we brought your friend along, and it'll beeasy to get back again. Then a jump lands you, safe and sound."
He snatched up a setting pole, the most useful thing that can be carriedon a cruise along the shallow waters of the keys, and with very littleeffort managed to send the anchored boat into the tiny cove, hiscompanion having loosened the anchor cable meanwhile.
Jack was the first to spring ashore, and the others followed quickly athis heels, with Josh bringing up the rear, and anxious to prove hiswords true about being in first rate condition.
"Glad to have made your acquaintance, boys," said Mr. Bliss; "and if wehappen to cross each others' path again, there's no reason why weshouldn't be friends, is there?"
"Well, I should say our chum here is under heavy obligations to you,sir; and on his account, if no other, we'd feel inclined that way,"returned Jack.
"Shake hands on that, Jack," Mr. Bliss remarked; and each of the fourboys in turn did so, even carrying the friendly act out with the otherskipper of the little power boat.
"The best of luck go with you all!" called out Mr. Bliss, waving hishand after them.
"Same to you, sir!" replied George, who had apparently quite gotten overthe suspicions by which he had been almost overpowered earlier in theevening.
And presently, after they had pushed their way across the tongue of landlying between the two lagoons, they could only tell where the boat whichthey had just left lay, by the glowing light flooding out of her cabin.
Jack placed himself at one side of Josh, while George lined up on theother. But the lanky boy observed these movements with suspicion.
"Hey, what's this mean?" he demanded. "Got an idea I'm apt to keel overany old minute, have you? Just because I did that silly thing once, nowdon't you think she's goin' to get to be a habit with me. That's amistake, fellers. I'm tougher'n you reckon on, now. Come along, buck up,George, and hit up a faster pace."
"Hold on, now," said George, as he struggled with a vine that had caughthim under the chin, and almost lifted him off his feet; "there ain't anysuch hurry as all that, you know. It's bad walking here, and I don'tfeel like being strangled just yet awhile."
"Yes, pull in your horses, Josh," Jack remarked. "We'll believe you'reall right without you being in such a rush about getting back to camp."
Three minutes later Jack spoke again.
"None of you noticed that either of those gentlemen came ashore after weleft, did you?" he asked, quietly.
"Why, no, of course they didn't," George remarked.
"For what are you askin' that same question?" demanded Jimmy.
"P'raps I might give a guess," remarked Josh, quietly.
"Well, I only wanted to make sure that anything we might say to eachother wasn't likely to get to their ears," Jack went on.
"Say, now you've gone and got me guessing good and hard again,"remonstrated George. "You seem to just love to say things that sound somysterious. Tell a fellow, Jack, there's a good chap, why you don't wantthem to hear us talking. Why, we hadn't ought to have anything but goodwords to say about those gentlemen after the fine way they acted towardour chum here."
"That's true enough, George," Jack went on to say; "and make up yourmind I'm the last one to look a gift horse in the mouth to find out hisage; but there were a few things about our two new friends that somehowmade me sit up and take notice; and I wanted to ask Josh here what hethought."
"I just expected you'd be up to that dodge," the party in questionobserved, with a little chuckle, as of amusement. "I knew that ifanybody could get on to their curves, Jack would."
"Curves!" repeated George, wonderingly.
"Sure, he do be thinkin' he's playing baseball again," laughed Jimmy.
"And from the way you talk, Josh," Jack went on, paying no attention tothese side remarks on the part of his other chums, "I can give a guessthat you must have made some little discovery on your own hook that hastold you our two friends might be playing a little game of blindman'sbuff with us right now. How is that, Josh?"
"Jack, you're the greatest feller I ever struck, to get on to anything,"replied the long-legged one, admiringly.
"That isn't answering my question," the other continued.
"Then I'll say, yes," Josh went on.
"Tell us what it was you heard," George asked, once more fairlyboiling with a desire to know everything connected with the mysteriouspassengers of the little power boat that had acted so strangely on thetrip down the east coast.
"Hold on a minute," said Josh. "This bandage is slipping down, so I'llhave to get you to fix it for me, boys. Hope the hole's leaked all it'sgoing to, because I can't afford to lose as much fluid as some fellers,Nick for instance. There, that feels all right. Now, what was you sayingto me? Oh! yes, about how I happened to get onto the fact that the twogentlemen that took me aboard their boat might be somethin' else besideswhat they said. Was that it?"
"Just what it was!" George came back, knowing how Josh always liked tobeat about the bush more or less before telling anything he knew.
"Well, here's the way it stands, fellers," went on Josh. "You see, afterthey carried me on board the boat, I laid there like a mummy in atrance. But by slow degrees I began to come back again. And all thewhile my eyes must have been shut, I could hear some mumbling voices,though for the life of me I couldn't make out who it was talkin'."
"Oh! hurry up, old ice-wagon; get a move on you, and tell us!" exclaimedGeorge, almost biting his tongue with impatience.
"I heard one man that I afterwards knew was Mr. Bliss say, as plain asan
ything: 'I tell you, they're nothin' but boys, and they ain't goin' togive us away.' And then the other one, he says, says he: 'If I thoughtthis one knew anything, I'd be tempted to let him lie there where wepicked him up, that's what. We can't afford to take any chances, and youknow it, Sam!'"
Jack gave a low whistle.
"And yet Mr. Bliss said his friend's name was Bryce Carpenter," heobserved. "I had an idea all along, from the way he called that name, hewasn't used to saying it. Sam came easier to his tongue. Now, we don'tknow who Sam is, or what he's done, but seems to me there's somethingcrooked about that yarn they set up, of a wager made with that Lenoxfellow."
"They never made such a wager," declared Josh, stubbornly; "and rightnow the only thing they want to do is to get around to Tampa, where theyexpect to slip aboard a boat bound for Cuba. I heard some more talkbefore I opened my eyes and spoiled it all. If the one who calls himselfCarpenter hadn't got cold feet, their plan was to drop down the keys toKey West, and get across to Havana from there."
"Well, what's that to us?" remarked Jack. "They treated you white, Josh,didn't they?"
"They sure did," answered the other, warmly.
"All right," Jack went on; "then it's no business of ours who and whatthey are; and we'll just have to forget them. But, listen, wasn't that ashout ahead, there?"