“That’s the correct answer!” laughed Alex. “Why don’t you go on up to the motor boat and get King? He’s looking for you.”
“I’m not looking for him,” was the sullen reply. “I’m waiting for him to go away, then I’ll make myself scarce—him and his minions!”
Case now began to understand the situation. He had heard King say that Don Durand carried about with him the money he had stolen. He knew that King’s paid assistants had deserted him in order to get the money for themselves if they could. What he saw now, was that these Mexicans had originally been in the employ of the deputy, and that they had succeeded in getting the boy where King had failed. Still, he could not account for Alex’s being there with Don.
“King is going to remain here until he gets his prisoner,” he said, presently, glancing at Don. “He wants that reward,” he continued, “and is likely to get it, too, for all of you fellows!”
“He may have the reward,” snarled the Mexican, glancing at the boy angrily, as if ready to punish him for speaking without permission. “He may have the reward. All we want is the stolen money!”
“I hope it will burn up before you touch it!” Alex cut in.
“It is hot enough here to burn most anything!” Case observed.
“You see,” Alex commented, turning to Case, “what a fine, honest bunch I butted into when I followed Don off the rear deck of the boat! This lad, Don Durand, is a prince compared with the three Mexicans.”
The spokesman scowled fiercely, but the boy went on, taking a savage delight in making at least one of his captors show temper.
“These three,” Alex added, swinging a hand around the circle of dusky faces, “are the—the—well, they are the limit! They want to steal the cash from the boy who stole it from the man who stole it from another man! When they get it, if they ever do, they will fight over it—and this Englishman, or the person who speaks English, will murder his companions and take it all. It is a fine flock of jailbirds!”