"No. But we have teams out, and they know where to go and what to look for, thanks to the man who talked last night."
"Who are these people?" Scotty demanded.
Steve scratched his chin. "Well," he said finally, "you might put it this way: they're people who have no business knowing what they're trying to find out."
Rick hid a grin. He knew perfectly well they would get no more information out of Steve. The essence of security is to give information only to people who have a need to know it. The Spindrifters had no reason for knowing the identity of the enemy, apart from their own curiosity. One thing was certain, though, it was another nation that wanted the information.
"You're probably tired of answering questions," Rick said, "but I've got one more. How did you happen to arrive right in the nick of time?"
"Nothing very mysterious about it," Jimmy Kelly answered. "We steamed up to the island and sent a boat ashore, with Professor Zircon. Dr. Briotti had seen us approach, and he met the boat. He told us you were diving. Zircon had assumed as much since we could see your boat anchored on the reef."
"I told them about last night," Tony added.
"Yes, and we sent a party of men to the house up the beach to capture these fancy frogmen of yours. The house was empty. Since their boat was tied up, we made a quick assumption that they were out on the reef with you. We did a fast run out ..."
"And got the fright of our lives," Steve finished. "We knew there were three of the enemy and two of you down below, and we could see only three sets of bubbles. We thought you were done for."
"It was remarkable the way Lieutenant Kelly and his men got ready to dive," Zircon said. "I've never seen people move so fast. Steve, too. Then, just as they were about to go over the side, we saw two more bubble trails and knew at least that you were still alive. But in a moment the entire pack of bubbles merged."