"I believe he went ash.o.r.e in a small boat," said the lieutenant.
"I"m having him watched, though, for I think he had some hand in this smuggling. In fact, he may prove to be at the bottom of the whole business."
And so it turned out. Senor Ramo, while pretending to be a respectable Spanish coffee merchant, had been engaged secretly in smuggling. It was he who planned the mutiny on the Ramona for purposes of his own, though the storm gave him unexpected aid. He had joined the steamer later, after having stolen the papers from the room of Inez.
For it was Ramo who had taken them. His agents had sent him word that Inez had the means to free the political prisoner, and as this would have interfered with the plans of Ramo and his cronies, he determined to frustrate it. So, watching his chance, he took the papers and fled to join his mutinous and smuggling comrades. But the fates were against him. Later, it was learned that Ramo had tried, through agents in New York, to get the papers from the Spanish girl.
And the tramp in Chelton was, undoubtedly, one of them.
Inez said Ramo explained to her that he intended to keep her father a prisoner only a short time longer. With Senor Ralcanto free, the plans of the smugglers would have been interfered with, for the father of Inez, and his party, stood for law and order.
"But now I free my father myself!" cried the Spanish girl, proudly.
"No more do I wait for that fat one!"
So with the papers which would eventually release the Spanish prisoner, and well fitted out for the cruise to Double Island, the party once again set forth on her cruise.
"There the island is!" cried Lieutenant Walling, on the second day out. "And I think I can see a flag flying. Few ships pa.s.s this way, but, very likely, the refugees would try to call one."
And, a little later, as the Tartar came nearer, Cora, who was looking through the gla.s.ses, cried out:
"I can see them! They are on sh.o.r.e! There"s mother, Jack! She"s waving, though of course she doesn"t know who we are. And I see your mother and father, girls! Oh, Bess--Belle--we"ve found them!"
CHAPTER XXIX
AT SEA HORSE
There proved to be a good harbor at Double Island--a harbor ringed about with sand-fringed coral, with a sandy bottom which could be seen through the limpid depths of the blue water that was as clear as a sapphire-tinted crystal. And, a short way up from the beach was a line of palms and other tropical plants, while, in a little clearing, near what proved to be a trickling spring, was a rude sort of hut.
"Ahoy, folks!" yelled Jack, his voice a shout with its old vigor.
"Here we are!"
What the three on the beach said could not be heard, but they were plainly much excited.
"They don"t yet know who we are," said Cora.
"They only know they are being rescued," echoed Bess.
"Oh, but isn"t it great--we"ve found them!" cried Belle in delight, hugging first Cora, Bess and next Inez.
Inez said nothing, but her shining eyes told of the joy she felt in the happiness of her friends. Her time for rejoicing was yet to come.
So little did the beach in the coral harbor shelve that the big motor boat could come up to within a few yards of the sh.o.r.e.
"Why it"s Jack--and Cora!" cried Mrs. Robinson. "It"s your son and daughter--and the girls! Oh, of all things!"
Mrs. Kimball could not answer. She was softly crying on the shoulder of Mrs. Robinson, Mr. Robinson, who had been trying to catch some crabs along sh.o.r.e, had his trousers rolled up. He was rather a disheveled figure as he stood there--in fact, none of the refugees appeared to sartorial advantage--but who minded that?
"Hurray!" yelled Mr. Robinson, waving, a piece of cloth on a stick--an improvised crab-net.
"Hurray! So you"ve come for the Robinson Crusoes; have you?"
"That"s it!" shouted Jack, who was getting the small boat ready to go ash.o.r.e.
"I thought we"d find them," spoke Lieutenant Walling.
"Oh, and we can"t, thank you enough!" Cora murmured to him gratefully. "Only for you we might not have located the Ramona in a long time, and we night have been a month finding the folks. And you dear good girl!" she went on, putting her arms about Inez. "Next we are going to rescue your father."
"I shall be glad--mos" glad!" said the Spanish girl, softly.
Then they all went ash.o.r.e, and brother and sisters were clasped in the arms of their loved ones.
"But how did it all happen?" asked Mr. Robinson. "How did you know where to look for us? Did the Ramona"s crew repent, and send you for us? Tell us all about it! How are you, anyhow?"
He poured out a veritable flood of questions, which the girls, Jack, Walter and Lieutenant Walling tried to answer as best they could--the girls, it must be confessed, rather hysterically and tearfully.
"It was Cora and Jack who had the idea," said Bess, when quiet had been a little restored. "They determined to charter a motor boat and go in search of you, after we heard that the Ramona had foundered in the storm. And of course we wouldn"t be left behind."
"Brave girls," murmured their mother.
"Indeed they were brave," declared Jack, patting Bess on her plump shoulder.
"We--we were afraid of being left behind," confessed Belle. "So we came."
"But what have you done since being marooned here?" Cora wanted to know. "Wasn"t it awful--just awful?"
"Not so awful!" answered Mr. Robinson, with a laugh that could be jolly now. "We"ve had a fine time, and you should see some of the orchids I have gathered! It was worth all the hardship!"
"But, really, it hasn"t been so bad," said Mrs. Kimball. "The weather was delightful, except for the two storms, and we have had enough to eat--such as it was. We have been camping out, and no more ideal place for such a life can be found than a West Indian coral island in December."
She looked back amid the palms, among which grew in a tropical luxuriousness many beautiful blossoms, with birds of brilliant plumage flitting from flower to flower.
"And you look so well," commented Cora, for indeed, aside from traces of sunburn, the refugees were pictures of health.
"We are well," declared Mrs. Robinson. "But of course we have been terribly worried about you girls, and Jack, too. How are you, Jack?"
she asked, anxiously.
"You needn"t ask," laughed Cora. "One glance is enough."
"Oh, I had a little touch of my old trouble," said Jack, in answer to his mother"s questioning glance, "but I"m fine and fit now. But tell us about yourselves."
"Well, we"re camping out here," said Mr. Robinson, with a laugh, "waiting for some vessel to come along and take us off. We could have stood it for another month, though it was getting pretty lonesome, with all due respect to the ladies," and he made a mock bow.
"That"s nothing to how tiresome just one man can get, my dears!" put in his wife, to the girls.
Then they exchanged stories of their adventures. As those of the motor girls are well known to our readers, there is no need to dwell further on them.