The afternoon had lengthened out before Maru returned with Holman and Kaipi, and we hurriedly considered the best course to pursue.  One Eye had been with Leith when Maru deserted, so it was obvious that we were not far from the ruffian’s hiding place.

“If we could catch this lunatic on the cliff?” muttered Holman.  “Gee! we could tickle him with Kaipi’s old knife blade till he ran us right into the haunt.”

“He’s deaf,” I said; “there’s a good chance of roping him in if we could scale the cliff.”

“Me climb!” said Maru.  “Him not hear.  Me climb all alonga track, drop down, breakem him neck.”

“No, don’t break his neck!” growled Holman.  “We want him as a guide.  Do you understand?  He knows where Leith is hiding, and if we could get hold of him it would be clear sailing.”

Maru borrowed Kaipi’s knife, nodded confidently as we adjured him to use caution, and then slipped back along the track so that he could climb to the level of the one-eyed person’s perch before attempting to creep upon him.  We sat down to await developments.  The witless one was evidently a lookout, and it was advisable to wait and see the success of Maru’s expedition before we attempted to move.

It was a long wait.  Maru didn’t intend to take any chances by closing in hurriedly, and it was nearly two hours after his departure before we saw his head rise above a boulder high up over the spot where One Eye was keeping his vigil.  It was evidently not the first time that the native had stalked a human being, and his fine tactics, which should have called forth praise, severely tried the small amount of patience that we possessed.  Holman cursed softly beneath his breath as Maru sat for ten minutes at a time studying the route before attempting to move from a sheltering rock, and my own nails burrowed into the palms of my hands as I watched.  The Raretongan was a genius in his own particular line, and I think he took more than ordinary precautions so that his success would prove to Holman that Barbara Herndon had not overpaid him when she presented him with the emerald ring as a reward for his desertion from Leith.  Maru had no idea of the sentimental view of the matter which the youngster took; and he thought that Holman’s objections against the bargain were caused by the thought that no services could be rendered that would be half as valuable as the trinket.  The unsentimental savage could not imagine that the unstrung lover wanted the ring as a keepsake of the girl who had won his heart on board The Waif.

“Caesar’s Ghost!  Why doesn’t he hurry?” cried Holman.  “That madman looks as if he’s going to change his camping ground!”

It looked as if the witless one was really going to move, and Maru had still some fifty yards to cover before he would be directly above the other’s head.  Our nerves were in such a state that we felt inclined to scream out to the patient stalker.  If we could grab the scout we could probably induce him by gentle persuasion to act as guide, but if he escaped us, we pictured ourselves stumbling over precipices and through dark caverns with the same lack of results as had marked our trip to the place of skulls.