“You know what Mr. Green said,” Frank interrupted. “He said the government officers wanted you to take the case and find out everything for yourself. Perhaps they feared that you would pay too much attention to these smugglers, and let the forest fires issue go with scant investigation. They might have arrested the smugglers at any time, you know.”
“Perhaps so,” Ned replied, “But that wouldn’t have brought the manager of the unlawful enterprises into the hands of the law. After all, the Secret Service men may have been right in sending me up here without instructions or special information. What a laugh they would have had if I had failed to discover the Chinamen and the opium.”
“Perhaps they wanted to see if you would discover them,” laughed Frank. “Have you any idea,” he added, “that the Secret Service men knew that you would be followed in here—that the plans of the government regarding your work were known to the outlaws? Do you think they knew of the employment of Sawyer and the others by the men at the head of the conspiracy?”
“No; I hardly think the man who gave me final orders at San Francisco knew that all he did was known to the men he was fighting,” Ned replied. “The head of the bunch put a good one over on him there.”
“And came near putting one over on you, also,” grinned Frank. “The aeroplane has been attacked twice already, and others are doubtless waiting to get a crack at it.”
“They will have to hurry up if they do,” Ned said, with a chuckle, “and you will have to look out for yourself if they succeed, for I’m going to have you take me to Missoula in the morning and then go back and collect the boys.”
“And not come back here again?” asked Frank.
“Not unless we come back for a pleasure trip,” was the reply.
“Well,” Frank said, “that pleasure trip idea looks pretty good to me. Why not?”
“I may have time,” Ned replied.