Argosy All-Story Weekly — page 35: what you’re looking at

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

JEREMIAH PARSONS—HE-MAN. for a little trip, after all, step back and we can ramble. The rest of you gents had better stay jus’ the way you are for a little while. Your doctor wouldn’t recommend much activity for you right now.” He pulled a set of handcuffs from his pocket— Goss, tauntingly sarcastic, had completely outfitted him—and locked Hos- kins’s hands behind his back. He stepped back to the doorway. His belt bristled with the collection of weapons he had stripped from the men. His hand felt on the inner side of the door. It found, as he had expected, the unused key hanging by a string from the knob. He jerked it free and inserted it into the outer side of the keyhole, his eyes still trained on the row of men against the op- posite wall. 5 He stepped to the outside of the door sill. “Come out, Hoskins,” he commanded. He reached past his prisoner, pulled the door shut and twisted the key in the lock, dropping the key into his pocket. “‘ Hop in the car—make it snappy!” Jem ordered. When his prisoner was in place Jem snapped another set of irons on his ankles and slammed shut the door. Then he ran around to the other side of the machine, leaped into his seat, and the next instant he was tearing out of camp. CHAPTER V. THE AMBUSH. EM knew that he could not- figure on J too great a lead. The outcries of the imprisoned men would quickly arouse the rest of the camp and as soon as the door could be broken down and the men could rearm themselves, they would cer- tainly dash forth in search of revenge and the rescue of their captured comrade. But it was not the pursuit that hovered most disturbingly in Jem’s mind. His men- tal eye flashed the image of that telephone on the wall. He felt certain that the mo- ment the door of the bunk house had closed that instrument had been electrified into activity. His seething brain ran back to Goss’s re- ‘jn’, do you? mark the preceding night: ‘‘ He’ll be wait- ing to receive you, any time you get there.” That might have been general sarcasm, of course, and yet— “Well, they certainly was waitin’ for me, that’s a lead pipe cinch,” he reflected; ‘Kurtz and Hoskins settin’ up in front by th’ table, jus’ like the stage all set for a show.” The accomplice in Sky City that had warned the camp of Jem’s visit was certain- ly by now apprised of the result of that visit. And it was action at that end of the road that caused Jem’s brow to wrinkle anx- iously. He had no intention, after the risk he had run to secure his prisoner, of losing him now through treachery in the town. The challenge he had accepted from Goss and that he had thus far pursued success- fully, he was determined to defend to a victorious conclusion. Hoskins, who had been sitting in black, gloomy silence, awoke to momentary con- -versational life. ‘““ Smart as hell, you think you are, don’t you?” he sneered. ‘“ Think you’re going to get away with this?” “Well,” Jem confessed, “I do sort of figure on that.” “You damn fool!” the other scorned. ‘** You won't even get as far as Sky City.” “That so? Who you figurin’ on meetin’ and stoppin’ me?” - There was a momentary silence; then Hoskins dilated: “You don’t suppose Kurtz and the rest of the boys are jus’ settin’ round and cry- Don’t you suppose they’ve got autos in the camp?” But his tone was lame, his manner that of one attempting to repair an unguarded slip. Jem brought the speeding car to a stop. “This is a pretty rough deal I’m going t’? hand out to you,” he addressed Hoskins; “but I can’t help it. It’s your own pals that force me to it.” He jumped out of the machine. Rum- maging among the tools he brought to light a tow rope. He unshackled his prisoner’s ankles and helped him down to the ground. “We're going to climb this hill. some speed,”’ he ordered. ECOMiGcbdoo Show “S) 665 (S@)