you're
sailing on an American yacht; Jack's the owner, Gates is captain, I'm
the boss. We're hoping to overhaul the _Orchid_, board her, capture the
princess, and all that. Then for one entire week Jack's to have an
uninterrupted tete-a-tete while you make yourself invisible. Come along
if you want to and turn the old rascal over to your consul when we get
home, plead with the princess after Jack's week is up, recover a hundred
good bucks for your bad ones--but he has to have his chance first, and
we sign articles of agreement _right now_!"

"Children," he cried, with a great show of disgust. "Should you return
to Key West, how would you ever find the _Orchid_ again! Ah-ha, you have
tripped yourselves!"

"Not on your life, we haven't. We'll keep on now and locate her hiding
place, then deliver you to a guardian, and come back."

The professor thought a moment, breathing fast and blinking.

"What are those bucks you spoke about?" he asked.

"Bucks? Hell, man, they're beans, bones--the things you won at
roulette!"

"I won no such things at roulette," he gravely shook his head, adding
slowly: "So I must agree, eh? _Tres-bien!_ Yet I warn you that she will
go back with me in spite of all my boy Jack can say in a week, or a
year. It is inevitable--she can not possibly disobey! Come! You win for
the moment, so we will drink, standing together for Azuria!"

"Standing for your grandmother," Tommy laughed. "No, you jolly old
filbert, we stand for Jack and Sylvia, and don't you forget it! We'll
use your vaunted authority, too, when the time comes to make that
scoundrel surrender. Now let's get our arsenal in shape!"

Monsieur approved of this, entering into it with a boyish spirit, and
for a long time we went over rifles and automatics, showing him their
virtues, explaining the accuracy of their range, occasionally throwing
one up to the shoulder and taking a quick aim over the sights, as
fellows will who find them good companions.

"I'll lay you odds, Professor, that the barrels of some of this hardware
get hot before night," Tommy said.

"Ah, I will not bet on such bloody business. You think we fight today?"

"Two to one on it," he answered; then giving my shoulder a slap that
felt like the kick of a mule, he cried:

"So romance and adventure died with the war, did they? Oh, _baby_, what
a shame!"

CHAPTER IX

A SHOT FROM THE DARK

During the first few hours of the afternoon we had looked on deck
se