“After this we’ll have to guard ’em! That’s all there is to it!” declared Davenport. “Why, if we hadn’t been lucky enough to spot ’em, they’d have gotten away sure.”
“See here, Davenport! what’s the meaning of this, anyway?” questioned Jack, putting on as bold a front as he could.
“Hasn’t your father already told you what I intend to do?” demanded the oil man.
“He told me you demanded a lot of money of him.”
“So I did, Jack Rover. And I intend to get it—a whole lot of money.”
“And I suppose you want some money out of my father too,” put in Fred.
“That’s right!” answered Tate. “If you want to know some of the particulars I’ll tell you. We’re asking fifty thousand dollars for the release of Jack Rover, fifty thousand dollars for the release of Fred Rover and fifty thousand dollars for the release of Andy Rover and Randy Rover. That’s a hundred and fifty thousand dollars for the bunch.”
“Huh! Then you think my two cousins are worth twice as much as my brother and I, eh?” asked the irrepressible Andy, with a faint grin.
“Pah, Andy Rover! Don’t make fun of it!” snarled Davenport. “It’s nothing to laugh at. If you don’t like the price we’ve put on you and your brother we can easily raise it to fifty thousand apiece.”