"Certainly. What do you think Mr. Petrak and I kept so close at your heels for in Manila?"
"Well, it did rather puzzle me for a while. Everywhere I turned you or the little red-headed rascal seemed to be near."
"And never seemed to remember having seen us in Saigon?"
"In Saigon? Were you in Saigon when I was there?"
"Left before you did, when we knew you had the order for the gold from
Commander Kousmitch."
"Never met the gentleman."
"Of course not. He got the cable-operator to have you deliver the order in Manila for him. But I heard him and the cable-operator talk it over, and that was all I wanted, and left. So you didn't see us in Saigon? I told Petrak you didn't, but he thought you did. That's one reason we got so bold in Manila."
"But the cable-operator told me the message didn't amount to much, and that he would send duplicates by mail, anyway."
"Of course he did. It didn't amount to much, except to give a code order about shipping this gold. And you dropped it in the bus, and I picked it up, and you were rather rude to me, which proved that you either had no suspicions about me, or knew it all and wanted to throw me off my guard. I believe you were actually laughing at me the last few hours in Manila. I couldn't understand, unless you had things rigged to trip me the minute we sailed.
"I was looking for it at dinner the minute we cast off; and what a scrimmage there would have been at that table if you had drawn one of those pistols! Why, Petrak and Buckrow and Long Jim were in the passage with pistols ready to come in, and I would have shot you first, and then Trego, for I knew Captain Riggs had no arms on his person. If I made away with you and Trego the next would have been Rajah, for the lad could have given a nasty cut with that kris. And I had to keep a close eye on Mr. Trego's malacca cane."