. He called, "Oh, Mateo!" And Mateo came
in haste, bent down, and the two murmured together in Mexican.
Afterwards Cliff turned to Johnny with his little smile.

"It's all right, old man--glad you weren't hurt. It was a mistake,
though. You were a stranger, and it was thought, I suppose, that you
were spying on this place. While it was a close call for you, it
proves that we are being well cared for. Better forget it and turn in."

He yawned again and turned over so that his back was toward Johnny, and
that youth took the hint and departed to find blankets to spread for
himself. He was tired enough to lie down and sleepy enough to sleep,
but he could not blandly forget about those bullets as Cliff advised.
There were several things he wanted to know before he would feel
perfectly satisfied.

Since the Thunder Bird was not here, why should strangers be shot at?
Their only trouble would be with the guards along the boundary, when
they tried to cross back from Mexico. But they had not tried it yet.
The guards were still happily unaware of how they were going to worry
later on, so why the shooting?

"Oh, well, thunder! They didn't hit me--so I should care. If Cliff
wants to set guards around this camp before there's anything to guard,
that's his business. Like paying me before I fly, I guess. He's got
the guards up there practising, maybe. I should worry; my job's
flying."

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

INTO MEXICO AND RETURN

Bright-eyed, eager for the adventure trail, Johnny swung the propeller
of the Thunder Bird over three times and turned to Cliff. "Here's
where you learn one of the joys of flying. Hold her there while I
climb in. When I holler contact, you kick her over--if you're man
enough."

Cliff smiled, dropped his cigarette and ground it under his heel, then
reached up and grasped the propeller blade. "I never actually did
this, but I've watched others do it. I suppose I must learn. Oh,
before we go up, I ought to tell you that I'd like to go on over the
line this morning if possible. If you can fly very high, and when you
near the line just glide as quietly as possible, I think it can be
managed without our being seen. And since it is only just daylight
now, it should not be late when we arrive."

"It should not," Johnny agreed. "Arriving late ain't what worries a
flyer--it's arriving too doggone unexpected. Where do we light, in
Mexico? Just any old place?"

"Straight toward Mat