The Safe Breakers' Gang — page 15: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

: : 1 5 . ' »* brat , fy 4 > * . - ‘ , i"q oF . fa s /-_a 27 + ng RS, ms A 5D ey ad r ¥ , ase eee a ,. el * rg Re No. 194. THE LOG CABIN LIBRARY. \. ee Pp olice. The financial part is all I care to look after at | He heard the retreating footsteps of Lena; then the present.” opening and closing of a door, and knew by these sounds Like asinuous shadow Kirk Hyde flitted from the bank that the girl had complied with the commands of her com- to the Winthrop house, and thence, after a brief interview panion. with the servants, to the Dalton residence. | Then a brief interval of absolute silence ensued. As he approached the latter he sawa close carriage; Quimby compressed his lips. driven rapidly away. “If they think to keep me here till it suits them to dis- “Whose team was that?” he demanded of a laborer, | pose of my remains, they will get sorely left, and J’ll who stood near watching the departing vehicle. gamble on it,” he exclaimed, half-aloud. “ Dalton’s turn-out, mister,” was the reply. In another moment he was at work on the lock with his “ Who was inside ?” skeleton keys, of which he always carried an ample “His daughter, to be sure.” supply. ‘Olive Winthrop ?” The bolt was quickly thrown back, and he knew that he ‘Yes, sir. And wid the Dalton driver.” had only to open the door to be free. Kirk Hyde gave a quick glance up and down the quiet. “If I go this way, what shall I have gained?” he asked street. A young wheelman came leisurely along, his himself, bicycle running close to the sidewalk where the detective “I can go out and have some officers step in, and we stood. will have this invincible Jules like a rat ina trap. Why In a moment he had halted in response toa word from not? And go scoop some glory for the sandwich of the the dwarf; a swift bargain was struck: away sped the three H’s. And, as for the pretty Lena, she is in the wheel with the “tail-ender” of the “three H’s” crouching soup, and it isn’t my fault. But there is something more upon the seat. to think of,” It seemed literally to fly over the ground. | It wasin hot pursuit of the Dalton carriage, and al- though the latter was drawn by a mettlesome span, the small, silent steed gained every instant. The vehicle reached the station bardly a length ahead of the wheelman. A train was waiting. A graceful figure sprang from the carriage, and the driver hurried with her to the rear car of the waiting train. Quimby softly opened the door, and stepped out upon the narrow stair-landing, It was quite dark there, and absolute silence prevailed. He had noticed another door, opening, probably, into the room where Lena and the man had met, and whence the sound of their voices came so distinctly. This door he now cautiously tried. It was not locked in 4n instant he had crossed the threshold. There they separated, without a word. Before Olive, He found himself ina small, neatly furnished sleeping- Winthrop had reached a seat the train was in motion, room. He had no time to take in details, however, for he and she sunk down with a sigh of intense relief. was abruptly confronted by a tall, powerful man, whose But the train suddenly stopped with a jerk. She fierce, bright eyes met those of the detective with an ex- glanced apprehensively up and beheld Kirk, the dwarf, presson such as he had never encountered before. with his hand on tho bell-rope, and his single eye fixed “ Ha !—and so this is our visitor!” exclaimed the man. upon her. bending his heavy brows into a savage frown. Quimby Hall still held his revolver in one hand. But after regarding the stranger in silence for a moment, he coolly put up the weapon and folded his arms in token of peace. Quimby Hall, the “sandwich” of the “three H’s,” was | ‘“We won’t fight, my friend,” said Quimby, in his calm- in anything but a placid frame of mind. est tones. ‘‘You see,” he added, “it would be a mighty It was not alone because he realized that there was per- queer thing for two gentlemen to do—to pitch in and have sonal danger impending. He was used to that. Butit a row before they had been properly introduced. I make was the discovery that Jules Jepworth, the safe-breaker, it a point, you understand, never to have a row with any- and the beautiful and innocent-faced Lena were so closely : body to whom I have never had a straight introduction.” connected that the latter was bound to warn and abet the This was anodd remark to make under the circvm- crimes of the other. . 'stances, yet the keen young detective was presently jus- “I can’t understand it!” he exclaimed, half aloud, while tified in the presumption that the other would be better he stood with the revolver held in readiness for instant dealt with in this manner than in any other. use, and awaiting the next action of the man on the other, “Ha!” ejaculated the man, relaxing his frown a trifle. side of the partition. — ‘Of course,” continued Quimby, with the best of good- “She locked mein when she went out,” he mentally nature expressed in tones and face, “if you insist upon continued. “And that shows that she did not wish me to having a set-to with me, either with pistols or knives, I’ll | escape till she had seen him. And if she knows his char- accommodate you, provided you get somebody to properly acter, she must have understood that in doing that she introduce us to each other. And, also, if we were -to use was practically putting me in the power of the most in- knives, I would consider it a favor if you were to allow | _vincible crook living. And that looks as if she were not mé time to sharpen mine, as I got it pretty dull on the 4 yo; - as sweet as she looks.” bones of the last man I polished off with it. His bones Pees The bitter part of the detective’s profession to Quimby and cartilage were uncommonly gritty.” i ae Hall was the fact that so many beautiful women were The stranger’s frown relaxed entirely, and by a sud- | pee capable of even baser treachery and more merciless ac- den movement he extended his right hand with the most 3 ' tions toward their enemies than were the most brutal friendly gesture imaginable. ' ae ‘members of the professional criminal class of the opposite “Weare friends !’ he said, with a smile. “Dll gamble on it that we are!” returned Quimby Hall, CHAPTER IX. 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