Alex watched the deputy turning out drawers and poking under them, investigating the motor pit, and even moving the provision supply out of the storage compartments. Anxious as the boy was, it still amused him, for he knew what a hopeless search it was.
King seemed to think that Alex, deprived of his revolver, would not attempt interference with his search. He looked over at him now and then and occasionally spoke to Captain Joe, but for the most part he kept on with his work of searching the boat. This went on for two hours or more, until, in fact, a pearl flush crept into the sky.
During all this time the boy had been thinking fast. How was he to get rid of King? For all he knew, defeated in his search, as he was sure to be, the officer would run the boat up to Yuma and lock him up on charge of receiving and concealing stolen property. And, then, Clay and Case must be having rather a hard and anxious time of it down on the sand island where they had been landed, at the point of a gun, by the deputy.
Captain Joe seemed to have exhausted his rage, and was now showing his teeth only when King came near him. The dog seemed to think that if Alex could lie easily in his bunk and talk with the man who was searching the boat he had no cause to interfere! Besides, he was tied so securely that there was no hope at all of his getting free!
Whenever the boy moved uneasily on his bunk King gave an uneasy glance in that direction. Once Alex tried to get to a revolver which he knew to be in a cupboard near the rear of the cabin, but King ordered him to lie down again before his feet were off the bunk.
After a time, when there was more of pink than pearl in the eastern sky, Teddy climbed up to the bunk and lay down by the side of the boy. He was preparing to go to sleep when Alex began whispering in his ear:
“Take him, Teddy! Take him! Give him a bath!”
Ever since Teddy’s capture on the Columbia river trip the boys had made a playmate of him. He had been taught to play leap-frog, and to wrestle and box. While bathing from the boat the boys had taught him to follow them into the water, and even to trip and bunt those on deck into the river if they did not jump in quick enough to suit him.
Alex was now trying to revive the play spirit in the bear in the hope that he would attack King and try to push him into the river. Not understanding the game, the deputy would be apt to take alarm at such a rush as Teddy sometimes made and so give the boy a chance to arm himself.
The cub sat up on the bunk as Alex talked to him, but did not seem to understand what was wanted. He put his paws in boxing position as he had been taught to do, and invited Alex out on the floor to have a bout with him! But this did not help at all!