"Then take us to the submarine," urged Ned.
"It won"t do no good to take us there after that cheap skate has geezled the boat," Jimmie cut in.
"And you are Jimmie," the chief went on. "I saw your picture, too.
Well, this is quite a surprise for me," the chief added.
"You"ll get a greater surprise if you let that murderer get off with the Sea Lion," Jimmie remarked.
The chief called the sergeant again and in a moment all was confusion in the police station. A wagon was called, and the chief and his ex-prisoners were soon on their way to the wharf, followed by the eyes of the policemen left behind.
"That"s Ned Nestor, of New York," the boys heard one of the men on the iron steps in front saying as they pa.s.sed, "and the little fellow is Jimmie McGraw. Great hit Preston made arresting them!"
But the minds of the boys were too full of anxiety regarding the fate of Scott and the Sea Lion to pay much attention to the words of flattery they overheard. If the unknown murderer succeeded in securing the arrest of Jack and Frank and getting away in the submarine, the whole trip would have to be abandoned, at least for the present.
Besides, Ned had no idea of going back to New York and reporting that he had been robbed of his boat under the very guns of the Mare Island Navy Yard. He urged the driver to make greater speed, and in a short time the wharf was in sight.
Half a dozen policemen were gathered about the end nearest the float which upheld the Sea Lion, and the figure of another showed at the top of the conning tower. As the police wagon dashed up to the wharf another rig came up on a run and halted close at the side of it.
"h.e.l.lo," called the chief, recognizing a man on the seat, "how did you manage to get here so soon?"
"Some one "phoned for me," was the hurried reply. "Where is the dead man?"
"In the submarine," answered an officer who had drawn closer to the official"s buggy.
Without another word the newcomer leaped out and was conveyed to the Sea Lion in the rowboat Ned had left tied to the wharf.
"That"s the Coroner," the chief said, in explanation. "He"ll soon get at the bottom of this."
"Suppose we get aboard the Sea Lion," suggested Ned.
"Of course," said the chief, "you"ll remain here a few days and a.s.sist in the capture of this fellow?"
"I shall have to ask for instructions from Washington," was the reply.
"I really ought to get away on the steamer which sails in the morning."
When the three, using a boat an officer found nearby, reached the main cabin of the Sea Lion they found Jack and Frank sitting by the table, handcuffed, repeating over and over again their individual and collective opinion of the police of Vallejo. Jimmie seemed to take great delight in taunting them.
"Black Bears in chains!" he roared.
"Huh, where have you Wolves been?" demanded Jack. "These cops said they had you in a pen!"
While the Coroner was making his examination the chief ordered the irons removed from the wrists of the boys. For a time the Coroner appeared to be puzzled. He lifted the hands of the apparently dead man and dropped them again. Then he held a pocket mirror before his lips.
"Look here," he said, presently, "I don"t believe this man is dead."
"I hope you are right," Ned said, hopefully. "Still, the poison I got near killed me, while he must have gotten much more."
There was a short silence, during which the Coroner held his watch.
CHAPTER VI
NIGHT ON AN OCEAN FLOOR
"Over there, straight to the west," Ned said, pointing from the conning tower of the submarine, "is the coast of China, not far from seventy-five miles away."
"And there, to the north," Frank said, "lie the Taya Islands. The big fellow beyond is Hainan."
The sun was going down into the Gulf of Tong King like a ball of red fire, and the night was far from cool.
Jimmie declared he could hear the water hiss as the sun dipped its red rim under the waves. The boy now stood by Ned"s side, looking over the wonderful scene.
"We"ve been somewhere near here before," he said. "You remember the time we came over to this side of the world and found a key to a treaty box? Well, we wasn"t far from this spot at one time."
"Right you are," Frank replied. "Only we hope to find something more important than a key now. I hope they"ve had use for a cell key in connection with that mix-up at Mare Island Navy Yard."
"It was rotten to let that fellow get away!" Jimmie declared. "I just knew they would."
"We were all so astonished at the recovery of Lieutenant Scott," Ned observed, "that we overlooked a few things we ought to have kept in mind. Wasn"t it glorious! Think of Scott coming out of it all right at last!"
"Well, he said he was a fixture on the coast until he found the man who came so near killing him," Frank said, in a moment, "and I hope he"ll make good."
"Huh," Jimmie interrupted, "if you think that fellow is on the Pacific coast yet, you"ve got another think comin". You remember the Diver left San Francisco just about the time we did."
"What has that to do with it?"
"Most nothin" at all, only he sailed in her."
"You"re a wise little man!"
"And, what"s more, we"ll see the Diver come pluggin" along here before we get this job done," Jimmie went on. "That Captain Moore and his son are out for blood."
"But the Diver will require at least a couple of months to get here,"
urged Frank. "We can get away before that time."
"You don"t know what the Moores will do," Ned said. "I rather agree with Jimmie, that we shall see something of the Diver before we leave this part of the world."
"I hope so," Frank said.
"Well, who"s for the bottom of the sea?" demanded Jimmie. "I want to see what"s down there before the Bogy Man gets me."
"I don"t mind going down," Ned said. "Come on, we"ll close the top hatch and drop to the bottom, then, if conditions are right, we"ll enter the water closet, put on the diving suits, and take a walk on the floor of the big water."
"Suppose we all go," suggested Frank.