The bushes planted
before the mouth of the tunnel bothered me, a while, in finding the way
in here after you--_but now I'm here!_"
Of a sudden Hal leaped forward, intent upon pouncing on the chauffeur.
But Hal's foot caught in a break in the flooring. He pitched and fell
forward.
With a snarl of glee Gaston burled himself upon the prostrate body of
the second submarine boy, pounding him furiously.
CHAPTER XIII
THE FELLOW WHO SHOWED THE WHITE FLAG
Hal lay face down, and subjected to all the brutal fury of the
Frenchman's assault.
For a few seconds young Hastings did all in his power to fight back.
He was rapidly losing consciousness, however, and poor Jack lay unable
to lend as much as a finger's weight to the defense of his chum.
Then, with an oath in a foreign tongue, Gaston forced Hal's hands back,
snapping handcuffs on the engineer's wrists.
"Now, then, you young pest!" snarled Gaston, springing to his feet.
"Instead of one of you, I have two. But two shall give me no more
trouble than one. So you thought you could subdue me--_me_, did you?"
"I'd have thrashed you all right," muttered Hal, his senses returning
under the storm of taunts, "if my foot hadn't caught and thrown me.
You wouldn't dare to free my hands and let me to my feet, just to see
what would happen to you! You can't fight--unless all the advantage
is handed to you.
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