"We caught you about in time," he said, with a smile. "You were nearly there. But I suppose the story is made up for the occasion. What is your cargo?"
The captain went over quite a list of articles; the sailors who were with Clif chuckled with delight as they heard him.
"We get a share in all this," Clif heard one of them whisper under his breath.
Clif smiled; and as soon as the captain finished he raised his arm and pointed to the stern of the vessel.
"You and your men will go aft," he commanded, "for the present; I will see you shortly."
The Spaniard was on the point of obeying; he had half turned, when suddenly with a single bound the treacherous Ignacio sprang forward.
His keen knife glanced in the air as he raised it in his outstretched arm and leaped upon the unsuspecting cadet.
Ignacio was clever at that sort of thing. He had tried it before; his spring had been silent as a cat's. Neither the sailors nor the officer heard him. And the blow might have fallen; Clif's only warning of his deadly peril.
But unfortunately for the desperate assassin, he had failed to let the captain of that vessel know what he meant to do. And the captain, as he saw him leap, realized in a flash that would mean an instant hanging for him.
And a look of horror swept over his face; Clif saw it and whirled about.