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Billy seized hold of the muzzle of an Arab's revolver as it was thrust into his very face, and twisted it upward as it was discharged. Seizing up a camp chair Lathrop swung it round his head like a club and scattered the brains of a native follower of Muley-Hassan. But strategy was to put an abrupt end to the fight even if it could have continued much longer.
How posing as a naturalist he had wandered up and down the Ivory Coast for years acting as the secret agent of Muley-Hassan and making arrangements for the smuggling of slaves and illicitly procured ivory out of the country. He was too accomplished a rascal to be suspected and his learned appearance made it still more improbable that he should be engaged in any illegal trafficking.
"There is just a chance that Muley-Hassan, with the cunning of an Arab, may have put several more of those customers in here to guard his ivory."
"How does it depend on us?" asked Frank. "In just this way. Muley-Hassan has his eye on us -we can do nothing toward locating the ivory. You can pitch a camp there and scout about for it in your aeroplane or dirigible or whatever you call it." "But even if we do find the Arab's hiding-place, what good does that do?" objected Frank.
"You were attached to this boys' camp to prevent by all means their sailing till I attacked the camp and made them prisoners, were you not?" demanded Muley-Hassan angrily. Wiseman stammered something in reply. "You are a coward as well as a fool," went on the slave-dealer, a cruel sneer breaking over his face; "but you have blundered for the last time.
Now right at this point, in the Moon Mountain range," he pointed to a red-marked trail zigzagging across the map to the range and terminating in a red star "right at that thar point, old Muley-Hassan, the Arab, has hidden our ivory cache.
So far there was no sign of any rivals' approach, although Frank well knew that by this time Muley-Hassan must be upon his way to contest the boys' claim to the ivory. As the last stone was chucked aside with a mighty heave by the combined forces the perspiring adventurers broke into a hearty cheer.
"Will this Muley-Hassan be well armed?" asked Billy, in a voice which was rather shaky, of their black friend. "Plenty rifles," was Sikaso's brief reply. "Don't you want a rifle or at least a heavy caliber shotgun?" asked Billy.
Could they get the ivory out of the cache before Muley-Hassan and his band arrived by land? Fast as they had traveled through the air Frank realized that the Arab, who doubtless by this time had been informed by the treacherous Diego of the boys' bold dash, would push on at furious speed in order to head them off. That he would come accompanied by a well-armed band Frank could not doubt.
Hardly one of them had not received some minor injury, and the very fact that they had made such a poor showing against two American boys and a Krooman armed only with an axe, filled Muley-Hassan with savage rage. Furiously the slave-dealer ordered the two boys brought before him. A huge fire had been lighted by his followers and in the glare cast by this he received them.
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