Chapter 23
BENEATH THE MASK
Jack stared into the countenance of a clean shaven man who might have been thirty-five years of age. The resemblance to photographs of Burton Monahan was marked.
“You are Albert Monahan’s missing brother!” he accused.
Ino made no attempt to replace the mask. He smiled. “So you know my name, lad. How did you learn it?”
“From your brother. He financed our expedition here in search of you.”
“My brother sent a party here? Well, if that isn’t one for the book!”
“You are Burton Monahan?” Jack pressed him. “You don’t deny it?”
“Deny it? Why should I? I’d have revealed myself before this, if I had known you were searching for me. I thought you were only here for gold.”
“Nothing could be further from our purpose. Your brother assigned us to find you and bring you back to civilization. Why do you smile?”
“Because this is the first I knew that I was considered lost. Evidently, my brother never received the message I sent.”