Nick Carter listened with more intentness than ever. He had learned, at the very beginning, that there was a plot to kill him--or to get him out of the way for a long time. He did not quite know what was meant by “permanently,” although he could guess. But he had found out now that Marcos was somewhere close at hand--doubtless in the power of these two traitorous rascals. “What I was going to say,” went on Solado, “is that there is a strong reason for getting this American detective out of the way. He is taking too active a part in this matter. I do not feel that we have Marcos safe even now until we have pared the claws of Carter.” “You’re right to a certain extent, Solado,” was the response. “It would be well to stop this detective if we could. But I suggest that our first business is to take Marcos away, so that there will be no danger of his getting back to Joyalita by the eighteenth.” “Isn’t he safe enough here?” asked Solado. “He would be safer out at sea. Then we should not have to fear the detective, even though we were not able to dispose of him--permanently, as you so humanely put it,” returned Miguel, with a grin. “The blackguards!” muttered Nick Carter, over their heads. “You forget that assistant of his,” came from Solado, in response to Miguel’s suggestion. “What are we to do with him?” “I thought it was settled what was to be done with him,” answered Miguel, in a more earnest tone than he yet had used. “There is a lot of ammonia stored in the lower part of this building, isn’t there?” “Yes, but----” “There is no ‘but’ about it,” broke in the other man impatiently. “If you only had a little more red blood in you, Solado, instead of being always afraid to do what common sense dictates, we should have had Marcos safe long ago, and we shouldn’t be bothered with this detective and his man, as we are. Are you going to forget that he had handcuffs on us, and that, if it hadn’t been for Dugan and his men, we might have been in that prison over in New York now?” “I haven’t forgotten anything,” hissed Solado. “There will be an international inquiry into that outrage when we get back to Joyalita. The heir presumptive to the throne and the prime minister can’t be treated as felons without making trouble.” “Bah!” “I mean what I say!” shouted Solado, who seemed to lose control of himself as he thought of the indignity that had been put upon him. “We are guests of a civilized country--men of substance and wealth. We were torn away from our private yacht and treated like criminals, just because this man, Nicholas Carter, seems to be in the way of Prince Marcos.” “A good way to put it,” sneered Miguel. “And I have no objection to your taking up the matter with the United States government when once we are safely in our own country. At present, it would be well to take the law into our own hands.” “What do you mean?”