“No. It happened that no one was. But the locomotive was derailed and lodged in a ravine, and the work of getting it back on the track and repairing it won’t start any too soon in this country. It may be two or three days before order will be restored. It looks like those robbers have won out after all.”
They walked on into the room, where they were met by the boys’ fathers and Fekmah.
“Is there anything wrong?” asked Mr. Holton, as he noticed the sober faces of his friends.
The situation was explained, and the men frowned. Fekmah especially was agitated.
“May the black monsters of Tidihet feast on them!” he exclaimed, running his fingers through his white hair. “Allah will punish them—they will not go free!”
“But that won’t help us any,” said Mr. Lewis dryly. “We’ve got to figure out some way to stop them, if it’s at all possible. The question is, what will it be?”
“There’s no way of telegraphing,” said Dr. Kirshner, gazing thoughtfully at the floor. “If we had any idea where they went—that is, what route they took—we might overtake them on fast dromedaries. But the chances even then would be slight.”
“We might——” began Joe but was interrupted by a knock at the door.
For a moment the adventurers looked at one another in surprise. Then Mr. Holton moved over and cautiously opened the door.