“Brack? Brack! What do you mean?”
“While you’ve been lying in your room Brack has been doing his best to fascinate Miss Baldwin. You should know something of the man’s power. Well?”
“Brack?” Chanler was struggling to his feet. “Brack, eh? So he’s after Betty, and you—you say he’s made an impression?”
“You know the man,” I replied bitterly.
He straightened, struggling to tighten the set of his jaw.
“Brack, eh?” he repeated. “Brack and little Betty. Oh, no. We can’t have that. He doesn’t belong. Get your —— canoe ready. I suppose we’ll have to go up to this place, but I warn you, Gardy, I warn you I’m going to be awf’ly bored.”
XXV
Riordan was inclined to be brusk to me when he saw the canoe going into the water. He was captain for the time being; he had given no orders for using any of the yacht’s boats. Then came Chanler, grumbling and shuffling, and Riordan’s expression suddenly showed great elation which he tried hard to conceal.
“Pleasant trip,” he said sarcastically. “Captain Brack’ll be glad to see you.”
Neither of us said a word as we settled ourselves into the canoe. George was angry with me for causing him to go, and I was eager only to reach the mine and Miss Baldwin and the captain. I hoped—no, I felt confident—that Chanler’s appearance in his present condition would solve the most delicate and dangerous phase of the problem confronting us, which was a safe return of Miss Baldwin to civilization.