“Why do you figure she and that company agent are so bent on keeping us away from the mine?”
“I wish I knew,” Jack returned thoughtfully. “Something is stirring there, that’s certain. Appleby Corning said he was in trouble when he wrote Mr. Livingston. It may be he’s mixed up in some mess the Rhodes’ have been cooking. I’ll be relieved when we manage to get in touch with him.”
A toot of the engine informed the Scouts that the banana car was about to move out. They swung aboard and rode to the main gate. There, as Mrs. Rhodes had predicted, Mr. Livingston and the other Scouts anxiously awaited them.
Enroute back to the hotel, Jack and War related the conversation they had overheard in the banana shed. Mr. Livingston was gravely concerned, and unable to understand why Ferd Baronni had trailed the party to Santa Marta.
“I distrusted that company agent at the start,” he admitted. “Now I’m more than ever convinced that he’s no friend of Appleby’s. If only Mr. Corning would get in touch with us, some of this fog might clear.”
The Scouts reached the hotel and headed for the dining room for a late lunch. As they crossed the lobby, the clerk signalled Mr. Livingston.
“A wire for you,” he said, thrusting an envelope into the Scout leader’s hand.
Quickly, Mr. Livingston read the enclosed message. His face became a puzzle.
“Anything wrong?” Ken inquired anxiously.
“Plenty,” Mr. Livingston replied, offering the message for the others to read. “This is from Appleby. He says an unusual situation has developed at the mine. We’re instructed to return to Cartagena.”