by Roy J. Snell
CHAPTER XV ANXIOUS MOMENTS
As soon as Miss Prudence and Carlitos were out of hearing distance,Florence asked eagerly, "Did you get to talk to the man, Jo?"
"Yes, and he was glad to get the information. He gave me his card. See?His name's Mr. Andrews, and I'm to write to him here in care of generaldelivery. I'll tell you all about it when we get back to the hotel."
In spite of this promise Jo Ann did not get an opportunity to recountthis conversation till hours later.
After purchasing the sandals with much bargaining in true Mexican style,Jo Ann and the girls waited for some time at the fruit booth for MissPrudence and Carlitos.
"I wonder what's happened to Miss Prudence and Carlitos to keep them solong," Florence said finally.
"I know Miss Prudence's not delayed by carrying on a conversation inSpanish with anyone," smiled Peggy. "She's like me--about the only wordsshe knows are _cuanto_ and _adios_."
"Perhaps she's bargaining by the gesture method," added Jo Ann.
Several minutes later an anxious-faced Miss Prudence came hurrying up andasked, "Where's Carlitos? Have you seen him?"
"No," all three replied.
"Well, he's disappeared--was right by my side one minute--then the nexthe was gone. I've searched all around the market but can't find him."
"You've just missed each other in the crowds," Florence repliedcomfortingly. "You stay right here, and we three'll separate and go indifferent directions and meet here again. We'll find him."
Noticing an empty chair near by, Jo Ann moved the chair over to MissPrudence's side and said, "Sit here and rest. I'm sure we girls can findhim."
Wearily Miss Prudence sank down in the chair, and the girls started offto find Carlitos. Each took a different section of the building to searchand wound in and out the maze of crowded passageways that divided thescores of booths.
After Jo Ann had made the rounds of her allotted part twice withoutseeing Carlitos, she started back to Miss Prudence, hoping that the othergirls had found him. Peggy arrived almost the same moment, but she, too,was alone.
The worried frown on Miss Prudence's face deepened on seeing they had notfound Carlitos.
"Florence'll find him: she's more familiar with this building," Jo Anntold her more confidently than she felt. Into her mind had darted therecollection of the harrowing experience they had once had when Carlitoshad been kidnaped by the treacherous Mexican foreman. Just suppose he'dbeen kidnaped again! That one of those smugglers had stolen him to geteven with her and Florence. That pottery woman had said they hadthreatened to get even some way.
Just as she had come to this painful point in her thoughts, Florenceappeared--alone.
"No sign of him anywhere," she announced. "One man told me he'd seen aboy of his description going out a side door."
"Did he say this boy was alone?" Jo Ann asked anxiously.
"He didn't say." Florence had caught Jo Ann's emphasis on the word alone,and her heart began thumping rapidly. Did Jo Ann think someone might havekidnaped him again? The smugglers! Could they---- "I'll go back and askthat man if Carlitos was alone," she said.
She hurried back to find the man and returned a few moments later, sayingin a disappointed voice, "He said he didn't notice whether he was aloneor not."
"Maybe he got tired of waiting here and went back to the hotel," Jo Annsuggested.
"He might have," Miss Prudence replied. "Florence, tell the woman at thisbooth"--she gestured to the booth just back of them--"that if she sees anAmerican boy looking for somebody to tell him we've gone to the hotel."
After another round of searching they left the market and drove back tothe hotel. Florence parked the car near the side entrance, saying, "We'dbetter leave the car here handy, as we'll be leaving as soon as we canfind Carlitos."
They hurried into the hotel, looked about the lobby, and then went up totheir rooms. Carlitos was nowhere to be seen.
"I declare, I'm getting more and more worried--and thoroughlyexasperated," Miss Prudence announced after looking in the last room.
"Wait here, Miss Prudence, and I'll run down to the lobby and ask theclerks at the desk if they've seen him," Jo Ann said hurriedly. "Hemight've left some message there."
"Well--I'll finish my packing while I'm waiting."
"I'll go with you, Jo," offered Florence and Peggy together.
On inquiring at the desk Jo Ann found that neither of the clerks had seenhim.
As she was starting to turn away, one of the clerks summoned the porterwho stood at the front entrance and asked him if he had seen Carlitos. Tothe girls' delight the porter nodded and replied that he thought he hadseen him talking to a newsboy about half an hour ago.
The girls' faces brightened on hearing this, Jo Ann's especially, as sheimmediately recalled how fascinated Carlitos had been with a Mexicannewsboy the first day they had arrived. After a quick "_Muchas gracias_"to the porter, the girls hurried out to the street, Jo Ann in the lead.
When they had walked only a short distance down the street, Jo Ann hearda newsboy's shrill cry in broken English. "Carlitos's voice!" sheexclaimed. "I hear him!"
She rushed around the corner and stared across the street. There, a bagof newspapers slung across his shoulder, stood Carlitos selling a paperto an American.
"Can you beat that!" Peggy ejaculated, catching sight of Carlitos at thesame time.
"Of all things!" Florence gasped.
They hastened across the street to his side. He greeted them halfjoyfully, half sheepishly; then, with a gesture to the grinning littleMexican newsboy beside him, he said, "I sell lots of papers for Diego. Hesay I very good 'cause I can speak de Spanish and de English."
"You may be good at selling papers, Carlitos," Jo Ann answered, "but youshould've told your aunt Prudence where you were going. She's beenworried stiff about you."
"Worried stiff--stiff," he repeated, puzzled.
"Badly worried--_mucho_. She's been afraid something terrible hadhappened to you. Come on to the hotel. We're leaving for the mine in afew minutes."
Reluctantly Carlitos parted with his newsboy friend.
As soon as they had brought Carlitos to the hotel room and Miss Prudencehad delivered him a strong lecture, she urged them all to hurry and packtheir few belongings and leave at once. "You know it's a long hard tripto the mine, and I certainly don't want to be riding horseback on thatsteep, rocky mountain trail after dark."
"We don't either," said Jo Ann quickly. "Florence and I had oneexperience riding in the mountains in the dark and through a terriblestorm, too, and we don't want another, do we, Florence?"
"No, indeed."
After leaving the city Florence slipped over to let Jo Ann drive. "You'rea better chauffeur than I am and always make better time. We must getback to the mine before dark, especially since we saw----"
She left her sentence unfinished, but Jo Ann knew that she meant thesmuggler they had seen near the mine.
When they finally reached Jitters' House in the late afternoon, theyfound Jose waiting for them.
"I wonder why he happened to come?" Peggy remarked curiously on seeinghim standing beside the shed. The next instant she realized that he mustbe uneasy because of the pottery woman's account of the smugglers'threats. "He's come as an extra protection for us," she thought.
"It's good of him," Jo Ann put in, and Florence added, "He's alwaysthoughtful and kind."
Carlitos was delighted to see him. Another male was a welcome changeafter having to stay with women for two days. That was one reason he hadfelt that he must slip off with the newsboy awhile, though he couldn'thave explained that in words. He was eager to tell Jose all about histrip, too.
Even Miss Prudence expressed appreciation of Jose's coming, adding, "He'sas thoughtful as he can be."
Jo Ann was the first one of the group to finish changing into ridingclothes. She hurried back to the shed where Jose was still waiting, asshe was anxious to know how thing
s had been running at the mine, andespecially if he had seen anything of the smuggler hanging around. Shehad described the smuggler so carefully to him that he would be able torecognize him.
"Have you seen anything of that strange man while we've been gone?" sheasked him.
To her relief Jose shook his head. "No."
"Everything all right?"
This time Jose shook his head more emphatically. "Ah--there was muchtrouble at the mine today." With many excited gestures he went on to tellher that one of the loaded tram-cars had got loose and had crashed downthe mountain side, tearing up the track and causing much trouble. "Verymuch trouble," he repeated, shaking his head.
"What caused the car to break loose?"
Jose shrugged his shoulders expressively. "That I do not know. Me no_sabe_. Senor Eldridge say he no understand."
All at once the thought flashed into her mind that perhaps the smugglerwas at the bottom of this accident. Maybe that was his way of gettingeven.
