"Can you call on me at once? Black Madge has escaped."
That was all, but it was enough to stir the detective to action, and, taking Patsy, who happened to be in when the message arrived, along with him, Nick at once visited the office of the railroad.
"Well, Carter, it didn't take long for Black Madge to make good her threat, did it?" said the president as he rose and shook hands with the detectives.
"I think," replied the detective, smiling, "that, considering the trouble we were put to in capturing her, it was a very short time for us to hold her. Now, what can I do for you, Mr. Cobalt?"
"Do? Why, you can catch Black Madge again for us."
"Oh," said the detective, smiling. "Can I? Well, possibly."
"You see," the president continued, "we have called a hasty meeting of the board since the information of the escape of Black Madge came to us, and we have decided that no effort shall be spared to get that woman into custody again. At liberty, she is a constant menace to the welfare of the road, and of every town along the line, as well as of everybody who lives in those towns."
"I'll admit that she's a bad one," said Nick.
"We don't want her at liberty. With the following she has, she is a dangerous woman--much more dangerous than a man would be in her position."
"I don't know about that. But she is dangerous enough without argument about it."
"Exactly. We want her caught. And we want you to catch her."
"I imagine that this time, Mr. Cobalt, it will be rather a harder task than it was before."
"She will be very much more on her guard now than then. And, besides, she knows enough about me to know that now I will most certainly hunt her down."
The railway president was thoughtful a moment, and then he said:
"You see, Carter, the very manner of her escape is a menace to us."
"How is that?" asked the detective. "The first and, therefore, the only information I have had on the subject was that contained in your message, which told me merely that she had escaped. What is there that is particularly interesting about the manner of her escape?"
"I have just informed you that I have heard nothing."
"Well, to say the least, her escape was characteristic. Her hoboes did it for her."
"You don't say so!" he exclaimed. "Well, we might have expected something like that, I suppose. I regarded it as a little bit unfortunate that the arrest was made in the county where it was, for that compelled us to put her temporarily in the Calamont jail--and I thought at the time that the Calamont jail was a trifle close to her stamping ground. Now, suppose you tell me exactly what happened."