"How?" Rick asked. "How can we find him?"
Hartson Brant smiled at his son. "It seems to me that you and Scotty have acquired considerable reputations as detectives, Rick. I suggest you earn them. Find the governor for us. We will give you Honorario as an interpreter, but it will be up to you. The rest of us must operate as best we can short-handed."
"How about Connel?" Scotty demanded.
The scientist shrugged. "He's the least of my worries. Let him develop his diamond mine. My concern is with this island and the people on it. If our guess is right, Connel will be lucky to have a few days in which to work—scarcely enough to do much mining."
"Any ideas?" Rick asked.
"Yes. Talk to the governor's family, and to his personal staff. Stay away from Guevara. Once Connel tells him we know about the diamonds, he may become dangerous. Do what you can, boys. After all, this isn't a big island and the governor must be somewhere on it."
"If he's alive," Scotty added.
Hartson Brant looked at the boy and his face grew grim. "Yes," he agreed. "If he's alive."
Rick and Scotty had always relished the adventure and excitement of trying to solve a mystery. Sometimes the success or failure of a project had hung in the balance, but this one was different. The fate of an island and nearly 32,000 people depended on solving the riddle of the missing governor. Rick felt the weight of the responsibility.
The plan he and Scotty developed was simple and logical. They would start with the governor's movements on the morning of his disappearance and continue from there.