“The wind’s all right. We can get away just the way we come—sure.”
“And these kids?” growled the other, eyeing the panting and bruised Speedwell boys with much disfavor.
“Leave ’em here with Dummy.”
“They’ll set the officers after us in short order.”
“Not if these two lads were foolish enough to come here to the island alone,” growled the first speaker.
“Huh! Going to tie ’em up—eh?”
“You bet. And Dummy, too. They can stop here a while and be company for each other,” and the fellow laughed in anything but a comforting way.
Dan and Billy were badly frightened, whether the dummy was, or not. The latter nursed his scorched legs in one corner. The Speedwell boys lay side by side in another. There wasn’t the first chance for them to escape, and the brothers knew it.
“We butted in where we had no call to, this time,” muttered Billy, in despair.
They had not long to wait. The three robbers had come to the island for just one thing, and they had found it. Whatever was in the padlocked box, they seemed delighted to have it.