Arnold watched the girls contemptuously. “I don’t believe you!” he said. “I think you came here to watch me.” Suddenly he turned to Bud. “Go on down there and see what’s the matter with Terry’s plane.”

“But I’d rather fix my own plane. I’m used to it and can fix it in a minute. I know exactly what’s the matter.”

“No! Let Bud go as I told him! You stay here!” There was a note of command that frightened the girls. Prim touched Terry’s arm and said softly. “Careful Terry, don’t make him angry.”

Terry gave her sister a grateful smile. She turned to Arnold and asked pleasantly. “Did you get into that storm?”

“No, I knew too much to let that happen. I saw your plane go into it and thought you were done for,” he answered.

“How did you avoid it?” asked Terry.

“I was flying high, fifteen thousand feet. It never touched me. The storm was all below me. I’m used to these hurricanes and I can usually guess about how far the storm extends.”

“I tried to get above it, but I didn’t go far enough.” Terry was watching Joe’s face while she was talking. Would he guess that she was carrying an important paper for Peter Langley? Would she be able to keep it hidden where he could not find it?

Now it was safely sewn once more in the lining of her flying coat but that was not a good hiding place if he thought to search her.

A sudden shout from the harbor sent Joe Arnold hurrying down the trail. Then he turned back. “Stay right where you are,” he ordered the girls. On second thought he said. “No, go on down the trail ahead of me.”

“But I don’t want to go!” flared Terry.

“If you’re wise you’ll do as I say!” Without another word he thrust the girls ahead of him toward the beach.

Terry went without any further argument. For suddenly it had occurred to her that she might learn something of Joe Arnold’s schemes if she pretended, to be friendly with him and didn’t make him angry.

At the harbor a gang of blacks were loading a boat, preparing to take it to the plane. Pedro, the chief was over six feet tall, wore only a loin cloth and looked half savage. This giant was watching his men, who were working for Joe Arnold. Pedro seemed to have a few words of English but he spoke to his men in a mixture of Spanish and his own language.

“What terrible looking savages!” whispered Prim. “They look as if they might be cannibals.”

Terry laughed to conceal her fear. “I could even stand having a cannibal around if I were sure that Allan and Syd had come through the storm. They were flying higher than we were but I’m afraid they weren’t high enough, even then.”

Terry was looking about her taking stock of the camp, which was composed of mud huts, and several shacks that had evidently been built recently. On the trail loomed a tall, weathered rock. Terry was pointing out to her sister a great crevice in this stone and explaining the formation of that wide fissure when Joe Arnold turned and saw her. His face flushed angrily. He gave a final order to the black leader and then signalled the girls to precede him up the trail.

“This is no place for you, after all. I shouldn’t have brought you down here where those savages could see you. They belong to a fierce tribe of natives living in the clearings in the jungle. Pedro, the chief, that big fellow, lives in one of my mud huts down there, so you’d better keep away.” Joe Arnold was nervous and stammered as he talked.

As they reached the summit once more Terry took a good look at him, and saw that he was agitated.

“Evidently there is something down there that he doesn’t want us to see,” whispered Terry to Prim as soon as she could do so without Joe hearing her. “When I was interested in that big fissure in the rock, he was scared stiff. I’d like to find out what he’s got down there that he doesn’t want me to see. I'm going to find out! Just watch me!”

“Please don’t, Terry! What do you care about his affairs? We’ve got troubles enough as it is. How are we ever going to get away from here? How will we fly to Peru with Dad’s papers? My head is whirling with problems and all I want to do is to get out of this jam as quickly as possible.” Prim ceased whispering as Joe came closer.

Terry was looking toward her plane. Bud Hyslop was busily testing the motor. The girl could not bear the idea that Bud should touch Skybird.

“If you don’t mind, I think I’d like to do my own repair work, Mr. Arnold,” said Terry with as polite a smile as she could muster. “I’ve always done my own overhauling and somehow, I’d rather attend to it myself. It’s very kind of you to want to be so helpful, but please tell Bud to leave my plane alone.”

As she started toward the beach where Skybird was standing, Joe Arnold stepped ahead of her. “Now don’t bother yelling and carrying on for there is no one around to hear you except some savages and they are my men. I’m boss here, and I tell you to keep quiet. I’m giving that plane to Bud Hyslop. It’s his from now on.”

“You’re giving him my plane!” stormed Terry. “You have no right to do that!”

“Is that so? Well, I’m taking the right!”

“But what about us? How can we get away?” cried Prim, almost in tears. “If you take our plane, we’ve got to stay here.”

“That’s it exactly!” Joe sneered. “Here you stay until I get ready to let you go.”

He stared at them coldly then turned and walked away.