CHAPTER XLII.GALE TURNS A TRICK.
Virginia Throgmorton, congratulating herself upon the success of the ruse by which she hoped to get Captain Reyes safely out of the way while the Camera Chap was carrying out his daring plan, had received an unpleasant surprise when the launch containing the Baracoan army officer, Gale, and herself reached the landing at Puerto Cabero.
Instead of disembarking there, Reyes had turned apologetically to the girl. “I am filled with a thousand regrets, señorita, to be compelled to transfer the privilege of escorting you to your home to our friend Señor Gale,” he said. “Not for a great deal would I forego the opportunity, but a soldier must place duty before pleasure, and I find I have an important duty to perform which demands my immediate attention.”
“A duty!” Virginia exclaimed apprehensively. “Where? Are you going back to the battleship?”
The Baracoan’s reply had filled her with dismay. “No, señorita; I am going to the fortress,” he announced.
The significant smile which accompanied these words increased the girl’s apprehensions. “But I do not wish Mr. Gale to escort me home,” she objected, refusing to recognize defeat. “In fact, there are reasons why I cannot consent to that arrangement. I must insist that you go with me, Captain Reyes. I shall be terribly disappointed if you don’t.”
“I am sorry, señorita,” he answered firmly, “but I am compelled to deny myself the pleasure.”
“Then I will go back to the battleship,” Virginia announced, with sudden decision. “I have changed my mind about going home.”
The captain bowed. “Very well, señorita. But I must ask you to be good enough to go a little out of your way. I presume you won’t object to putting me down at the fortress first.”
The girl frowned. Her one idea, now, was to return to theKearsargein the hope that she might be able to intercept Hawley before he set out on his hazardous expedition, and warn him that their plan had gone awry. “I hate to be disobliging,” she said to Reyes, “but you will have to wait.” She turned to the sailor at the wheel. “Back to the battleship—as quickly as you can,” she requested quietly.
“I beg your pardon,” said the Baracoan. “But I must insist. My business is urgent. We will first go to the fortress.”
Virginia gave him an indignant glance. “I think you are horrid to-night, Captain Reyes! I did not think that you could be so rude to a woman. However,” she continued, suddenly changing her mind as a new idea came to her, “it shall be as you say. We will take you to your fortress first. After all, it will mean only a few minutes’ delay.”
Reyes and Gale exchanged a smile of triumph. Possibly they would not have felt so jubilant, however, if they had guessed what Virginia had in mind. It had occurred to her that it might be too late to interceptHawley, that he might already have started out for the fortress, in which case she believed she saw a way of rendering him valuable assistance by assenting to Reyes’ request.
As they drew near to El Torro, which loomed up blue-black in the moonlight, they caught sight of another navy launch heading for the fortress, and the girl’s pretty face became grim. She knew who was in that boat.
Reyes and Gale appeared to have the same knowledge. They jumped to their feet excitedly. “Hurry!” the Baracoan cried tensely to the man at the wheel. “If you get us there before that other boat lands I will make it well worth your while.”
But the jack-tar paid no attention to what he said. He was listening at that moment to Virginia, who had leaned forward and was whispering something in his ear.
In response to her request, the man grinned, and, giving the wheel a sharp turn, changed the craft’s course, at the same time slackening her speed.
“What are you doing!” Reyes cried angrily, aghast at this maneuver. “I am Captain Reyes, of the army of Baracoa. If you don’t obey my orders, my man, you will get into trouble.”
“You’d better do as he says!” exclaimed Gale, addressing the sailor threateningly. “He is a guest of your ship, and an intimate friend of Captain Cortrell.”
“And I am Miss Throgmorton, the daughter of the United States minister,” Virginia said, observing thatthe man at the wheel seemed to hesitate. “If you do as I tell you, I will answer for it that everything will be all right. Pay no attention to these men.”
The jack-tar grinned, and the launch kept to her new course—away from El Torro. Virginia laughed happily as she viewed the discomfiture of the pair.
“You will not be so merry, to-morrow, señorita,” the Baracoan said to her savagely. “You will get into great trouble for this service you have rendered to the enemies of our government—and, this time, neither your sex nor your father’s influence will save you.”
The girl shrugged her shoulders. “To-morrow is a long way off,” she informed him serenely. “Lots of things can happen before then.”
A little later an exclamation of dismay came from Gale. His eyes were turned anxiously toward the fortress. It was a clear moonlight night, and, although they were some distance off, he could discern what was taking place on the beach. The other launch had landed, and a tall figure had gone ashore. “He’s getting away with it!” theNewsman growled, as he saw the flash of light go up from behind the clump of bushes, and, immediately afterward, caught sight of the dim outline of a man running toward the water’s edge.
A laugh, half hysterical, came from Virginia, but it changed suddenly to an involuntary cry of despair. A shadowy group had rushed out from the fortress and seized the fugitive.
In striking contrast to her distress was the delightof Reyes and Gale. “Hurrah! They’ve got him!” the reporter cried. “Congratulations, Ernesto, old sport! We may have missed the first part of the performance, but at all events we shall be in time for the finale.”
Reyes turned with a mocking smile to Virginia. “Now that your charming little conspiracy has failed, perhaps you won’t mind permitting us to go ashore, señorita,” he suggested. “You must realize that it can no longer do you any good to hold us here.”
The girl sighed. “Yes; you might as well let them land now,” she instructed the sailor at the wheel. “As he says, nothing is to be gained by detaining them any longer.”
The launch landed some distance away from the point where the Camera Chap was struggling in the grasp of the captives. As Reyes and the reporter ran eagerly along the beach toward the group, they saw Lieutenant Ridder suddenly project himself into the tableau and threaten Portiforo with a revolver.
They did not know, then, that the man thus threatened was Portiforo. They had no expectation of finding the president there, for his visit to the fortress had been in the nature of a little surprise party to the garrison. But, as they drew nearer, Gale recognized the corpulent form of the chief executive of Baracoa, and announced his discovery to his companion, who promptly proceeded to distinguish himself by stealing up behind Ridder and throwing his arms around that reckless young man.
“Excellently done, my brave Ernesto!” Portiforochuckled as the soldiers went to Reyes’ assistance and took charge of the discomfited American naval officer. “Possibly, señor,” he sneered, addressing Ridder, “you will regret, now, that you did not take advantage of my good nature and go back to your ship while you had the chance. Of course, after the outrage you have committed, you must realize that your uniform cannot save you from the consequences of your mad act.”
Ridder shrugged his shoulders. “I’m ready to take my medicine,” he said quietly. “I trust, however, Mr. President,” he added anxiously, pointing to the three sailors who had followed him ashore, “you will not find it necessary to hold these men. They have done nothing.”
Portiforo held a brief debate with himself, and decided to permit the sailors to return to theKearsarge. They appeared to be loath to leave their young officer, who was very popular with all the men, but he smilingly ordered them to go, and they put back to the ship in the launch.
“Take these rascals and lock them both up!” the president commanded fiercely, pointing to the Camera Chap and the navy man. “Until further orders, nobody is to be permitted to communicate with either of them. But wait a minute! There is one little detail which almost escaped my attention. Before we lock him up, we will first relieve Señor Hawley of the camera with which he took that audacious flash-light picture.”
“Here it is, Señor Presidente,” announced Gale,bending down and picking up a small pocket kodak which was lying on the ground near the Camera Chap’s feet and handing it to Portiforo. “Guess he was trying to get rid of the evidence,” he added, with a grin.
“Thank you, Señor Gale,” said the president, regarding the camera with great satisfaction. “This is a dainty little thing. We will have the film developed as soon as possible,” he continued, with a sardonic smile. “I have heard much of Señor Hawley’s great skill as a photographer, and I am most anxious to see for myself what kind of work he can do.”
“Will you let me have a copy of the picture, Señor Presidente?” theNewsreporter requested, seemingly with great eagerness.
A scowl darkened Portiforo’s face for an instant. Then he smiled and shook his head. “It is painful to me to have to refuse you anything, my friend,” he said, “but I fear that would be impossible.”
Gale appeared to be keenly disappointed, but his demeanor was only a pose; for he had every reason to believe that when the film was developed, the result would be a blank, inasmuch as he knew that the camera which he had handed Portiforo had never been used.
TheNewsman, himself, had bought that camera, a few days previously, in San Cristobal, and had carried it in his pocket when he went to theKearsargedinner, anticipating that it might come in handy. Being rather clever at sleight-of-hand work, it had been a simple matter for him to drop his own kodak, unseen, at the Camera Chap’s feet.
With equal dexterity, he had pocketed the small camera which Hawley had used to take the flash-light picture of President Felix, and which, a few minutes earlier, he, alone, had observed the Camera Chap attempt to conceal by thrusting it into some bushes near which he was standing.