“Something’s happened to her,” he whispered to Morgan. “I fear Lilian has got into trouble by her work at the Redbird’s wireless. What do you think, Phil?”
“I am not going to lose hope. We will find the ship and rescue our folks from the mutineers. Don’t doubt it, George!”
It was difficult to keep up their courage, however, when there was so much uncertainty regarding the sailing ship’s condition. It might be, too, that the latitude and longitude was several points off. A full degree is sixty miles, and sixty miles is a long way across the ocean!
Just before dark they raised the smoke of a steamer ahead and sailing athwart the destroyer’s course. This surely could not be the Redbird; yet the destroyer could not allow the stranger to pass without investigation.
Her radio could get no answer from the ship. It seemed as though the stranger was running away from the Colodia. Naturally suspicion was aroused in the minds of the commander that it was the Sea Pigeon.
But it became a blind chase as night fell upon them. They saw no lights, and the tropical night comes so suddenly that to have overtaken the steamship before dark was an utter impossibility. The destroyer swung back into her direct course for the point from which the last radio message of the Redbird was supposed to have come.
CHAPTER XXV—A NEW CONVOY
At dawn, while a light fog still overspread the sea, the crash of distant guns was brought to the ears of the watch on duty. From what direction the reports came it was impossible for the Colodia’s officers to determine.
It was still too dark for the lookouts to make out anything at a distance, even had the morning been perfectly clear. But all hands were aroused, the word running from deck to deck that the destroyer was within sound of a naval action of some kind.
It was not a signal gun they heard, for several shots were fired simultaneously. Then there was silence again. The Colodia sped on her course, the hope being expressed by all that “blind luck,” if nothing else, might lead her to the scene.