Cosetta."

"Cosetta is in town to-day," Dave remarked.

"Are you sure of that?"

"I saw him here," Darrin replied, quietly.

"Then you must have been the officer in command of last night's
landing party."

"I was." replied Dave Darrin, shortly.

"Then, Mr. Darrin," said the Consul, earnestly, "I am going to
give you a bit of advice that I hope you won't disregard. Cosetta
may feel deep resentment against you, for you thwarted his plans.
Probably, too, you were the cause of laying several of his men
low last night. Cosetta won't forget or forgive you. Whenever
you are in time streets of Vera Cruz I would advise you to keep
your eyes wide open. Cosetta might detail a couple of his worthless
desperadoes to bury their knives in your back. This bandit has
done such things before, nor is it at all easy to punish him,
for the scoundrel has many surprisingly loyal friends in Vera
Cruz. In a more strictly-governed country he would be arrested
in the city streets as soon as pointed out, but in Mexico the
bandit is likely to be a popular hero, and certainly Cosetta is
that in Vera Cruz. If he were wanted here for a crime, there
are hundreds of citizens who would gladly hide him in their homes.
On any day in the week Cosetta could easily recruit a hundred
men for his band. Perhaps he is now in town on that errand."