Adventure, July 1, 1928 — page 170: what you’re looking at

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

164 “Good Lord!” Cartwright suddenly ex- claimed. “I never thought of it before! There’s a scoundrel here who. was out in Singan with me, who would give a lot to see me under ground. Of course, Liu Tang may not know he’s here; but if that rascal happens to come across the gentle- man who calls himself Mr. Eugene Pai, we'll have two of them to tackle, instead of one!” Eade glanced at his cousin. He had got a sudden idea that was not alto- gether reassuring. “What sort of a fellow is that man?” he asked. “Man!” repeated Cartwright. “He’s not a man. A Shanghai sewer rat—half of him Chinese, while not even he him- self knows what the other half is. I ex- pect he thinks Eugene sounds better than Yu Chin. In this place he’s running a store where he sells cheap gin to Tamil coolies and conducts a profitable money lending business. A week’s credit at twenty per.cent! I warned him that if I had any trouble with him, I'd get Headley to clear him out.” “That’s not the point,” said Eade. “Ts this the man you spoke to when we left your bungalow, the chap you told to clear out and mind his own business?” “Sure,” said Charles. ‘I wonder what the fellow was doing, hanging around there. He may have seen Madame Scala come in; and that’s why he wanted to talk tome. John, this looks like trouble.” S HE was speaking, Cartwright not only quickened his footsteps, but he had visibly paled. As he ap- proached his bungalow, he broke into a run and dashed up the steps of the ve- randa three at a time. “Ah Yen!” he shouted. And rather like a cuckoo out of a clock, the Chinese boy appeared from the spare bedroom. “Ah Yen!” said Charles. “I want the truth. Has Eugene Pai been inthis bunga- low during my absence?” “Yes, master,” promptly answered the boy. “What did he want?” CHARLES GILSON “Say him. wantchee see you.” “And that was a damned lie,” said Cartwright, “for he knew I wasn’t here. How long after I had gone out did he come in?” “No can say, master,” replied Ah Yen. “When you go, I go kitchen-side to catch tiffin. Coolie there, too. Nobody in bungalow. When I come back, I find Eugene Pai standing in veranda, all same corkscrew, just like he see ghost.” “Corkscrew! Looking as if he’d seen a ghost!” echoed Cartwright. ‘What the dickens do you mean, Ah Yen?” “Him standing very funny way. Body all bent sideways. Him look plenty frightened, when he seen me. Then him make bobbery, shout very loud, ‘Where © Mr. Cartlight, you number one size fool?’. I tell him no belong my pidgin.” Cartwright, with raised eyebrows, turned round slowly and stared at his cousin. “Can you make head or tail of that, John?” asked he. “Because I’m blowed if I can.” John Eade shook his head. “Nor I,” said he. “You’ve got to re- member I’m not only a stranger in this country, and from what I’ve seen of it, I don’t mind telling you I’m darned glad I am. But I know absolutely nothing about what’s been happening in this place Singan, from which, Pm told, you escaped by the skin of your teeth.” “T’ve no time to tell you all that now,” said Charles hurriedly. ““You wait here for a few minutes. If you’ve got a touch of fever, you want to. keep out of the sun. I’m going down to the office to tell our Telegu clerk—who is one of the best men we have on the estate—that he’s got to get hold of a policeman and keep Eugene Pai under close observation until he gets further orders from me. There are two men here of the Malay States Police. Ill take the responsibility. The district police officer only comes here once in a blue moon.” : Cartwright was out of the bungalow before he had: finished; and Eade, glad enough of a rest, flung himself into. a comlicloooks.com