"I reckon I'll go now," he said, "it's getting rather warm
around here."
The officer quietly moved away, while Denman divided his men
into several squads and started them on a hunt for the spy.
The master of the "Nancy" was completely mystified. He could
not understand how it was possible, under even the most
extraordinary circumstances, that Ballard could be alive and
upon the island. He supposed; as a matter of course, the
detective was dead, and yet his man had positively sworn as to
the revenue officer's identity.
"This is the most wonderful thing in all my experience!"
declared the master of the "Nancy," as alone he walked back
toward the landing-place of the boats.
Meantime the detective had reached a most extraordinary
determination. He saw that the chances were against him if he
sought to reach the boat in which he and Taylor had crossed
from the mainland; and yet it ways absolutely necessary that
he should have a boat. He reasoned that the smugglers would
scatter all over the island, and concluded that the safest
place for him was the starting-point of the searchers.
It required a cool, level-headed man to decide under all the
circumstances, and our hero was just the sort of man
described.
CHAPTER XXVI,
The detective made sure that the men had scattered, and that
the search was in full blast, when he doubled on his course
and moved down toward the warehouse. Here again he displayed
his reckless courage. He approached the small building on the
bluff, from the rear, and entered it, and one mystery was
explained--the building was but the cover to the entrance to
an immense underground warehouse.
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