Chapter 3 THE HITCH-HIKER

Just as Florence was speaking, she and Jo Ann saw the car that had been following whiz by them with only the two men in civilian clothes in it.

"Oh, there goes the mystery man!" Jo Ann exclaimed. "He's going the Laredo road. I wish I could follow and see if anything happens to him."

Miss Prudence spoke up quickly: "We're not going to follow anybody who's expecting to be murdered any minute. We'd better go the Brownsville road. Back to that filling station and ask if the road's good."

Jo Ann obediently backed the car to the filling station, though a queer feeling now possessed her that she ought to have kept on the Laredo road. "I can't help feeling as worried over that man as if I'd known him for a long time," she told herself. "I wonder if I'll ever see him again."

By this time Miss Prudence was talking to the service-station man about the road.

"I think the road's okay, but"-he nodded toward a man in uniform-"he'll know. He's a coast guard and goes back and forth often that way. He's waiting to catch a ride to Brownsville now."

Miss Prudence inspected the tall blond young man closely, then remarked low-voiced, "It might be a good idea to have him go with us: coast guards are used to protecting people."

"I hope she asks him to ride with us," Jo Ann whispered to Florence. "He might know about the mystery man, since he's been riding in the car with him."

The next moment Miss Prudence gestured to the coast guard, who promptly hurried over to the car and in answer to her questions began praising the road and the beauty of the valley.

"Californians could learn how to boost higher and better from him," Jo Ann thought, smiling. "Miss Prudence'll be sure to go now."

She was right. Miss Prudence promptly decided to go to Brownsville and asked the coast guard to accompany them. To make room for him on the front seat, she ordered Carlitos and Florence to exchange places.

"You're the sandwich filling now," Jo Ann laughingly told Carlitos, as he slipped in beside her.

Carlitos smiled doubtfully. From the expression on her face he knew she must be joking, but he could not understand the point.

After she had explained it to him, she told the curious coast guard briefly how it was that Carlitos, though an American by birth, was just beginning to speak English. The guard, proud of his newly learned Spanish, began talking in that language to Carlitos, much to his joy and to Miss Prudence's disapproval.

At the first break in their conversation Jo Ann quickly recounted to the guard the strange telephone conversation she had overheard in the hotel and ended tentatively, "I believe that man I overheard was one of those men whose car you were in."

"You're probably right," the guard replied. "I'd never seen either of those men before they picked me up, but they told me they'd been chasing some smugglers who'd been bringing in dope and gold across the Mexican border. I shouldn't like to be in those men's shoes. Those smugglers belong to a desperate gang who're as cold-blooded as snakes. They'd as soon kill anyone as not."

"With as many officers as we have, it looks as if they could stop that smuggling," Jo Ann replied.

The guard shook his head. "Easier said than done. When we get to Brownsville, I'll show you just one of the smugglers' many tricks-how some of the boldest bring dope and gold across the bridge there, closely guarded as it is. Smugglers have whole bags of such tricks."

"Be sure to show us that. It'll be interesting to find out first hand about smugglers."

Though it was dark when they reached Brownsville, Jo Ann reminded the guard of his promise as he was about to get out of the car near the International Bridge.

"Sure, I'll show you if you want to see," he answered. "It's black as pitch under the bridge now, and you'll get a better idea of how the smuggling's done."

Jo Ann turned to Miss Prudence and rapidly explained that the guard was going to show them how some of the smuggling was carried on across the border.

Miss Prudence raised her eyebrows in disapproval. "I hardly think you girls need any information along such lines. Of course, it's probably a little interesting-in a way-to see how smuggling could be carried on right under our custom officials' noses, but--"

Jo Ann smiled to herself. Miss Prudence was as curious to know about smuggling methods as she was. "She'll consent-after she objects a while."

Jo Ann was right. Finally, after protesting a few more minutes, Miss Prudence gave her permission, and all five followed the guard below the bridge. Blinded by the sudden change from the lighted street, they stumbled along in the darkness, half terrified at their daring.

"The river's very low now," the guard explained. "Anyone can manage to crawl down the bank and get out a long way under the bridge and hide. Just before the smuggler, coming from the Mexican side, nears the appointed place, he whistles his signal to his confederate waiting under the bridge, then tosses his package over the railing to him."

"There might be some of those smugglers here this very instant," Miss Prudence whispered nervously. "Let's go back."

"They might think we're spying on them and shoot us," added Peggy.

Jo Ann heard the amused note in the guard's voice as he answered, "There won't be any smuggling going on this early in the evening."

"But it's pitch dark," Miss Prudence put in.

"And terribly scary," added Florence, grabbing Jo Ann by the arm. "Come on."

Even though Jo Ann was reluctant to leave this fascinating spot, she too felt more comfortable when they climbed back up the bank and out on the lighted sidewalk again. Her thoughts centered once more on the mystery man whose work kept his life endangered by smugglers.

"I hope he breaks up that gang of smugglers without losing his life," she told herself.

After they had said good-by to the coast guard, they went to the nearest hotel.

"The first thing we've got to do now," Jo Ann said while they were being whisked up in the elevator, "is to phone Lucile and tell her we're here."

"She'll be sure to invite us to her house to dinner tonight," put in Peggy, her eyes shining with anticipation.

"Won't it be nice to be together again?" added Florence.

As soon as Jo Ann had succeeded in getting Lucile on the telephone, Peggy and Florence listened eagerly to the one-sided conversation and tried to guess the other side.

Lucile's eager voice came back quickly in answer to Jo Ann with an invitation for all five to spend the night at her home. "You've arrived at the right moment," she went on. "Edna is visiting me and I'm having a little dinner party for her tonight."

Jo Ann refused the first part of the invitation, explaining that they had already secured their rooms at the hotel. "We'll be delighted to come to your dinner party, though," she added.

Miss Prudence broke in quickly with an emphatic, "Tell her it'll be impossible for me and Carlitos to come. I'm too tired to go another step anywhere. If they'll come after you girls and bring you back, it'll be all right for you to go without me."

Jo Ann relayed this message to Lucile, ending, "We'll be ready when you get here."