It is quite probable that General Yozarro felt himself unequal to the
situation, for he said nothing more. He could plainly be seen standing
out in front of his friends, who, he noted, were busy at something.
They were hoisting the sail of the catboat and the whole party
scrambled aboard, as it was shoved from shore. Their weight sank the
craft low, but it buoyed them safely, and the smaller craft began its
pursuit of the larger one, somewhat after the manner of a handcar
chasing a locomotive.
As before, there was no comparison in their speed, despite the fact
that the tug had slowed down considerably. Major Starland ordered the
Captain to hold their relative position. His contempt for the ruffian
Dictator was so deep that he could not forbear exulting over him.
The men in the fire room knew that they had no choice except to obey
the orders sent down to them. No responsibility could attach to them,
and the American would visit fearful punishment upon any disobedience
or treachery.
Guzman and Martella came to the upper deck, where Major Starland was
holding converse with Captain Ortega.
"I wish," said the Major, speaking too low for the Captain to hear
him, "you would find out how many are in the boat yonder. I make it
six."
The three gave several minutes to scrutiny and agreed there were
seven, which was more than had been supposed.
"And all are heavily armed, some with pistols and some with swords; if
they should come alongside, they could give us a pretty fight."
Captain Guzman took it upon himself to say:
"General Yozarro and Captain Sepulveda--if he is there--are the
biggest cowards in the Atlamalcan army, but the others are fighters. I
know three of them who are worse than tiger cats. They are eager for a
chance to attack us."
"And they should have it, but for two reasons: it will be too great a
trial for my sister. We could beat them off, except for the danger in
our rear."
The two looked inquiringly at the American.
"That Captain at the wheel is one of the bravest of men. He is devoted
to General Yozarro, or at least holds him in fear; the moment he
gained a chance to strike a blow for him he would strike hard, no
matter at what risk to himself."
"He carries no arms; he has no chance."
"He may know where he can lay hand on a weapon; if he attacked us
behind, while we were repelling boarders--as I am sure he would--the
jig would be up. So I have ordered him to keep the present distance
between us and their boat. After awhile, we shall pull away from
them."
There was no driving off the uneasiness regarding Captain Ortega.
Starland sauntered over to the pilot house, and, with assumed
carelessness, kept furtive watch of the man. He could see nothing
suspicious in his deportment. He had flung away his cigarette, and
both hands were upon the spokes of the wheel, which now and then were
shifted slightly as cause arose. He peered keenly ahead, for the
bifurcated river has its treacherous places, like our own Mississippi,
and he who guides so large a craft in its current has need to keep his
wits about him. The moonlight gave a fine view of the broad stream,
and the Captain seemed to feel no interest in anything else.
"I don't know whether he is up to mischief or not," reflected the
American; "if he is, he is mighty sly. Let him try to play me false
and I won't hesitate a minute to shoot him."
The Major looked toward the other boat, which instead of trailing
directly at the rear, was following a parallel course, about half way
between the tug and the southern shore, and some two hundred yards to
the rear. Filled with so many men, the craft looked like a variegated
bouquet floating down the muddy Rio Rubio.
It was the fact that General Yozarro maintained a pursuit which,
in the nature of things, was hopeless, that caused Major Starland
misgiving. It must be that the Dictator was counting upon some move
in his favor by the Captain of the tug, which held the former to
his course, and the latter was biding his time. Studying hard, the
American could think of no scheme which promised the slightest success
in this direction, but none the less, he was convinced that something
was on foot, and that it could be frustrated only by alertness on his
own part.
In this uncomfortable frame of mind, he came down from the upper deck
and followed his two friends forward, where they were leaning against
the pile of wood near the gun. Both were smoking and occasionally
glancing up at the pilot house, as if they too were apprehensive of
the man, whose head and shoulders were in sight. He had resumed
smoking and the tip of his cigarette glowed in the moonlight.
The three stood for a few minutes without speaking, when Martella
straightened up and asked in a low voice:
"Have you noticed, Major, that our speed has increased within the last
few minutes?"
The American looked off over the water and then at the shore, but
could see nothing to enlighten him.
"The other boat is falling behind," said Captain Guzman.
Glancing at the smaller craft, all doubt was instantly removed. The
tug was steadily drawing away from it.
"Captain," he called, looking up at the pilot house; "we are going too
fast; slacken your speed."
"As you please, Senor; I beg your pardon."
The signal was sent down to the engineer, who quickly brought about a
diminution in the progress of the tug.
"Probably it was unintentional--"
At that moment, all felt a jar through the craft, accompanied by such
a rapid slackening of pace that the three took an involuntary step
forward.
"We've run aground!" exclaimed Starland.
"There's no doubt of it," calmly added Martella.