Part 29 (1/2)
CHAPTER XIX
TREACHERY EXPOSED
”He didn't say,” replied the watchman. ”He left this letter.”
Proffering an envelope to Jack the watchman pa.s.sed on to his duties.
Apparently he had lost all interest in the missive.
Jack looked blankly at his comrades. He held the letter in his hand unopened, while the others crowded closer.
”Open it up, Captain,” urged Tom. ”Let's get at this mystery at once.
We're usually shrouded in so much mystery you could cut it with a knife.
What's the good news? Is the treasure discovered?”
”Quit your joking, Tom. This may be more serious than we think. Wyckoff is not writing letters for the fun of it. He means business.”
”I can testify to that,” declared Frank. ”He surely does mean business.
This treasure stuff is actually real to Wyckoff.”
”And that's what makes him so dangerous,” Jack mused. ”He's really deluded himself into thinking there is a treasure and that it should rightfully belong to him. Therefore he gets desperate when he imagines anyone is trying to take it from him. He's bad medicine.”
”Well, let's get at the letter,” cried Tom impatiently.
”Yes, open it up, Jack, and let's hear what he has to say.”
”Well, here it is,” Jack replied unfolding the paper. ”He says: 'For the last time, go back. Your pals are put out of the way and you are next.
The treasure belongs to me and I'm going to have it.'”
”That's a pretty 'howdedo,'” declared Tom as Jack's voice ceased. ”I suppose he thinks a Boy Scout will up and go right home.”
”Evidently he doesn't believe any such thing, but just to be on what he calls the safe side, he's sent this warning.”
”What did he sign it? Does he leave any address for an answer?”
”Not an address,” declared Jack. ”It's a pretty poor thing to scare a lot of Boy Scouts with, but I suppose it was the best he could do. It wasn't quite up to his standard of boring holes in boats, though. This is rather mild for Wyckoff.”
”That reminds me,” announced Tom. ”We'd better have them drop the Fortuna into the water as quickly as we can, for she won't improve any where she is and we may want to make a quick getaway.”
”Bright boy,” Jack responded. ”We'll do that same and then go uptown for some more supplies. I wonder where we can get some gasolene. We ought to have a wagon load of the stuff.”
”Yes, we surely need it and if we get any more of that Madero lad on board we'll need to have a wagon go along with us.”
”Wonder where he is now,” Frank mused. ”He certainly was a great lad. He didn't look so bad at heart. He looked to me as if he had gotten into bad company and didn't know the way out.”
”He's a bright fellow, surely,” agreed Jack. ”Now let's get to work.
Where is the foreman? We'll need him first.”