“If any mistake has been made, it was entirely mine,” Dan said. “But I can’t understand—”
He gazed at Jacques who was looking at him with a strange expression in his eyes. It seemed to Dan that the boy wanted to speak, that he was trying to make something known, and yet was afraid. Dan decided to question him.
“Jacques,” he said earnestly. “Why did you leave the Cave? Who took you away?”
“You came here of your own free will, Jacques,” his uncle replied, putting words in the boy’s mind. “Wasn’t that it? Tell the officers.”
“Yes,” Jacques replied, his eyes downcast. “Oui.”
Obviously disgusted by the turn of events, the policemen made a quick and casual inspection of other rooms in the old hotel.
“Everything seems to be in order here,” they informed Mr. Manheim. “Sorry to have caused you annoyance.”
Mr. Hatfield and Dan also apologized to the island owner. However, he was in no mood to accept an explanation or to forgive.
“I made a mistake allowing the Cubs to come here,” Mr. Manheim declared. “You’ve spread damaging rumors about the island.”
“If that’s the way you feel, we’ll leave at once,” the Cub leader replied. “An error of judgment was made, but under the circumstance, I don’t feel Dan should be too severely criticized.”