Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 1015 — page 7: what you’re looking at

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

ee EEEEEEEEEEEEE “Curse the gas company!” growled Leland, ‘“Set out some wine and brandy. something strong for this night’s work.” The butler brought bottles and glasses, then was ordered to remain and pay attention. a | | | door and pocket the key. ‘*T have some things to say concerning your | own safety as well as mine, Swivel,” informed Leland after helping himself to brandy, The butler glanced nervously behind him. There was a portiére which concealed sliding- doors that led intothenext room. Over this doorway was a transom. A slight—a very slight creaking sound was now beard, ‘* What is that?’ demanded Leland, who was also nervous as well as irritable, ‘* A swinging window-blind, I guess, But had you not better be cautious about what you say, sir? Sometimes the very walls have ears.” ‘* You are very squeamish, all at once,” sneered Leland feeling the brandy in his veins. ‘‘How much did I have to pay you to see that all the other servants were out of the house— that night?” ‘* H-s-s-h!” whispered Swivel, as a cold per- spiration started on his brow. ‘* What’s the use of going over this? The pay is all right.” ‘© Yes; but your part of to work is not, bya devilish sight! Ose man was left in the house. He went for meafterward and I had to come down handsomely in order to close his mouth. He will come again, I guess, and keep coming.” ‘¢] thought all were gone,” whimpered Swivel, who, between bis fear of Leland’s saying too much, with Boland as a secret autitor, and his dread of the latter’s pistol, was nearly beside himeelf, being soWwatilly at heart. ‘* But, why rake things up that cannot be helped? I tried to do the best I could.” ‘* Well, mark me! You have not got all your pay yet. Unless you strictly doall I want done, you won't getiteitber, If it comes to the law, you are in for it as well as the others, as an accessory, ‘* Well,” said Swivel, in dogged desperation, ‘““whatelseisit ] am todo? Donottaik so loud, sir, if you please.” Leland’s back was toward the portiére. As Swivel spoke, the butler saw the curtains slow! Sigh and the face of Boland appear. Tom shoo is head menacingly, as an intimation to Swivel that his master must be allowed to talk. The butler shuddered as he noted the gleam of Tom’s pistol-barre!, Then the face disappeared as the curtain fell. ‘* What the deuce is the matter with you?” demanded Leland. ‘‘ Drink that and put some courage into your shaking bones. I’m tired of looking at your ugly yellow face,” Swivel gulped down a glass of raw spirits, while his master, leaning far across the table, fixed on the servani a burning gaze, ‘*This chap who is coming here must never leave this house alive!” he whispered, in accents of startling intensity, Swivel could only stare helplessly. ‘* We must make way with him—we! understand ?” ‘* T_T dare not,” began the butler; ‘‘ I can’t—” ‘Oh, yes you can. It only requires a little nerve and shrewd management, Remember! Asi said before,in helping me to conceal the real cause of the commodore’s death, you are guilty before the law. If I am arrested you will be. How does that strike you?” Apparently it struck bim hard, for Mr. Swivel appeared to be on the point of a total collapse, Leland smiled grimly. ‘¢T gee you understand,” hecontinued, ‘' Your only safe course is to keep on, with me, The only witness of my—of our guilt, will be here very shortly, He will come alone. He must not go back—alive.” ‘** But h-h-ow shall we—” ly talk at all, Leland drew forth a very small vial contain- ing a few grains of a white crystalline powder, ‘*Leave that part-to me,” said he. ‘** What are you afraid of? Weare alone and will be un- interrupted. This house is closed until the Christmas holidays, is it not? Miss Sutherland and myself are in the country, nre we not, and for the benefit of her health? You are merely here to look after things and are on board wages, are you not?’ Lelani lauzhed at his own grim, humorous way of putting things; then be grew grave. ‘All you need do is to assist re to dispose cf the body—d’ye hear, my man? The butler heard, but his heart was like ice as he thought of Boland listening to every word over his cocked pistol! For him the situation ws almost maddening. Do you Swivel could hard- _<-em t C L LLO L LLL L ee ee eee ee SS SC rr OC Ol" auditur behind the portiére, ‘‘ When he swal- We shall need | lows this the work is done.” Again tbe bell rung below. ‘* Let him in!” ordered Leland, ‘‘ Lock the We do not want to be interrupted,” Swivel staggered from the room, and Leland again helped himself to the brandy. . ws the dark stairway Boland intercepted tbe utler,. CHAPTER IX. SIGNOR FRANCONI, WHAT SMALLEY DOES, THE young reporter thrust thie barrel of his pistol aguinst the craven’s temple as he softly accorrpanied him to the lower hall, ‘* Listen,” he whispered. ‘‘ Leave that key in the door. [ am going to probe your master’s villainy to the bottom. At the slightest eign of your treachery you area dead man. Youronly chance of safety lies in your keeping faith with me. Now go. Remember | am watching ou. The butler, like a man in a state of mental coma, opened the sireet-duor and admitted a thin, shambling figure, that followed bim up- stairswithouta word. A solitary candle burned in the lower hall. By its dim light Tom, from his point of concealment, no sooncr saw that the front door was left sotbat Smailey, who was now his partner, could enter safely, than he hastened to bis post behind the portiére in the room back of the one where the three others now were, There he could overhear and see everything. Kuaowing Swivel’s cowardice he felt himself measurably master of the situation. ** Glad to see you, Franconi,” said Leland care- lessly as the butler ushered the new-comer in, who looked like an artist very much at war with good fortune, ‘‘ Sit down and have some- thing.” Ali three then ‘had something.” After that came an interval of silence, in which the parties appeared to be watching each other with suspi- cion, Tom, outside, beard the front door open and close softly. He glided tothe head of the stairs and beckoned to an approaching figure, Then the two disappeared inside of the back second-story room, ** Now, Franconi,” began Leland at length, ‘‘I suppose you have an idea us to why I want to see you here to-night?” **T know that Iam hard up,” replied Franconi, with an insinuating smile, that was somewhat contradicted by the snake-liku gleam cf his nar- row black eyes, ‘* That means—cold cash—does it not?” “Ah, yes. Plenta of money. You have so much of money, Itis vera hard for one so poor as I to keep tue tongue still.” _“*T suppose you are aware that the police will give you nothing,” remarked Leland coolly. ‘*The governor’s reward is only one thousand. Now, I will give you ten thousand an‘ a ticket to China, Africa, anywhere, so that you agree never to set foot in America again.”’ The Italian seemed to reflect. ‘*1 tcink the Mees Sutherland might give twenta thousand to know—a—to know—just what I happen to know about—” ‘* Possibly, But Iam Miss Sutherland’s guar- dian. Sheisa minor. I control every dollar of her father’s estate at present.” Franconi chewed at his whiskers in silence, Suddenly he broke into a ravishing smile. ‘*T cannot resist you,” he said sweetly. ‘‘I will go to the end of all tLis world—stay there— come back never—keep hold of my tongue for- ever for—for—” ‘* For ten thousand. Well, then, we will—” ‘‘Wor twenta-five thousand,” added Franconi, beaming benignantly upon his auditors, ‘*The deuce you will!” Leland glared upon the sallow-faced, shabby- looking foreigner malevolently. But he con- trolled himself. ‘*All right,” said he, breaking into a laugh. ** You shall have thecash in the shape of a draft on some foreign bauk, whenever my servant here sees you safely on board of an outgoing steamer, Let us bind the bargain with another glass.” The glasses were filled by Swivel, whose face was still very white. As Franconi turned aside _ to place his hat in the chair, Leland dropped the ' ' | ‘* That is all,” continued Leland, staring at | the vial, and all unconscious of the unseen powder from the vial into the Italian’s glass where it instantly dissolved. The butler wus shaking in every limb. Here we go,” said Leland, biting his lips to disguise their tremulousness, while Franconi raised the glass to his mouth. But before he had drank the door-bell rung. aoe three men set their glasses down un- _ — - . = rs ee a ee ee OOO eee re The Reporter-Detective’s Big Pull. 7 ‘‘ Who can that be?” exclaimed Leland, great- ly alarmed, ‘‘ Run down and see, Swivel.” The butler obeyed. As he disappeared down the dark stairway, Leland, carried away by an ungovernable anxiety, followed to the head of the stairs and peered down. Franconi, also curious, accompanied him, leaving the room va- cant for a moment, Then the porticre was drawn aside. Smalley, pistol in hand, darted noiseless!y forth, threw the contents of the pois- oned glass into the empty grate, and refilled it from the open bottle. ly disappeared. Meanwhile Swivel found the front door locked though the key was there. At that instant a low voice whispered from behind the inner ves- tibule door: ‘*Go back upstairs, Report no one here, Obey, or it will be the worse for you.” Likean automaton the butler returned. Amid the dim flare of the candle his eye had caught the aull gleam of steel. Evidently Tom and his revolver were in waiting there, ‘You say there is nobody?’ exclaimed Leland, greatly mystified. ‘‘ Well, maybe the rats were gnawing aboutthe wire. Let us have our drink apd get down to business again,” Franconi tossed cff bis glass lightly, though the other twocould bardly swallow theirs, ‘‘Now, g -ntlemen,” remarked the artist, ‘‘ we understand each other, Onthenight of thecom- modore’sceath, [ happen to be detained later than usual by Mees Sutherland to retouch a portrait in her boudoir, Meanwhileshe goes out. I find thatlam hungry. Lring. But no one answers, For why? My friend bere, Signor Swivel—he have sent them all out of the house on cue pre- tense or another,” ‘‘ What is the use of going into details?” inter- rupted Leland harshly. ‘‘ We now understand each other,” . ‘‘Tt is well to have everythings made plain. Then I come down to see about that lunch and I hear loud voices below. I go forward to the hall —I look into the drawing-room and I see—” ‘*Curse it!” roared Leland, in so savage a tone that Swivel fell back, though Franconi only smiled sweetly. ‘‘ Never mind what you thought ) ou saw.” ‘‘ Very well, sir;” returned the Italian, suave- ly. ‘‘Lsaynomore, Signor Leland is a man of his word, and I havo made—twenta-five thou- sand dollar.” Leland bowed. He, too, was growing pale, Why was not the poison doing its accur.sd work? Instead of writhing upon the floor in his death agony, Franconi, enlivened by tbe brandy, was the personification of serene urban- ity. % And now willl go,” he continued. ‘ I shail look to see Monsieur Swivel in the morning. The Ceety of Paris leaves before noon, If I fail to get off on her, I may not be able to keep myself away from Inspector Byrnes, He is such an inqueesitive man that I—that1 thiok I had better go away on the Ceety of Paris.” As be spove Franconi backed and bowed him- self into the corridor, while Leland stared help- lesaly, as if paralyzed by this unaccountable failure of his diabolical attempt. ‘‘ Shall I Jet him out?’ whispered Swivel. ‘*Curse him—yes!” groaned Leland, gt confounded, ‘‘ The devil protects him, think.” As the butler opened the door below, Franconi laid a band on his arm. ‘*Tell Signor Leland to make that twenta- five-thousand check payable to bearer,” he whis- pered. ‘*So-long, my dear Swivel. Twenta-five thousand—it is not too much,” He glided away and the butler returned, feel- ing dazed, helpless and terrified. For a moment or more the tvo men gazed at each other in si- lence, Then Leland bolted another glass, rose and began to put on bis light overcoat, ‘*T cannot explain its failure to act,” he said, ‘‘T had that stoff from a sure hand. Well, f am out twenty-five thousand dollars, But I will have the fellow followed. In his own ne- tive Italian town astiletto will make sure work,” “You will not remain all night?” asked | Swivel. ‘‘No. I feel oppressed here. The houseseems as if it were haunted. Do you not feel rather queer?” ‘‘ Y-y-es—or rather no. Iam all right,” fal- tered the butler, who presented every evidence of being all wrong. ‘* Shall I show you to the door?’ ; He half intended, es he ushered his master out, to east discretion to the winds and flee him- self, once they were at the front door, But a haunting fear of pursuing pistol-balls restrained him at the last, Then he swiftly and silent- comicbook au - ¢ co ~ = a to