One jab and a turn of the wrist, and open came the stateroom door. There were two rooms and a bath, it will be remembered, but only one door led to the corridor. The others communicated with each other. Nick ran into the first room. It was empty! He hurried to the next. To his surprise, that was unoccupied, too! He looked into the diminutive bathroom, which was the last of the three. But he was not astonished to see that no one was in there. “Chief!” bellowed Patsy, outside. “By all the gods!” exclaimed Nick Carter. “He’s trying to trick us, after all.” The window of the middle room was wide open, with the curtains flapping idly in the opening. It was not a large window, but a man not too stout, and who was fairly active, could get through. This was apparent to the detective at a glance. The next moment he had gone through headfirst, falling on the deck in a heap. It was rather an uncomfortable proceeding, and he bumped his head so that it rang again. But it was the quickest way to get out, and Nick Carter did not mind a crack on the head when on the heels of a slippery criminal. He was on his feet in an instant, and looking around to see what the situation might be. He heard Chick and Patsy both shouting on the other side of the vessel, and could distinguish the sound of running feet. Then he saw Captain Douglas holding out his arms, as if to stop somebody at the forward end of the deck, while the commander of the steamer indulged himself in picturesque profanity, because, as he declared, they were making a fool of his ship. “Hey, chief!” bellowed Patsy. “What is it?” responded Nick. “Catch him when he comes around!” came from Chick. “Stop, or I’ll plug you!” roared Captain Douglas at somebody. It was just as this threat emanated from the chief of police that a man came tearing across the deck, in the shadow of the smokestacks, and made a leap for the gangway, where the ladder hung. The ladder was a perfectly straight one, the sort of things to be negotiated only by a nimble person, whose head was cool and level. But John Garrison Rayne was both nimble and unterrified. He gave one glance at the ladder, saw that the motor boat was made fast to it at the bottom, and over he went! He was not quick enough to elude Nick Carter, however. The detective surmised what he intended to do before he did it. So it came about that, when Rayne was nearly at the bottom of the ladder, the detective had already begun to climb down, and was three or four rungs on his way. Rayne feverishly began to untie the painter. “Ha! ha!” he shouted, with laughter that had a touch of hysteria in it. “Fooled you again, Carter!” “Not yet, my friend!” was the detective’s rejoinder. “Look out! I’m coming!” “If you do you’ll drop into the water!” Rayne had the boat loose by this time. Then, turning the engine over, he got it to moving as he took the wheel to steer toward the shore.