Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 312 — page 12: what you’re looking at

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

12 Redtop Rube, the Vigilante Prince. — CHAPTER XIV. TREACHERY. THE Vigilantes lost little time outside the cave. Their triumph was so complete, as far as it had gone, that Rube was inclined to follow it up and strike the foe anew. A good general never lets a beaten enemy retreat in peace if he isin condition to follow. ‘‘ We will return to Zella and talk matters Bl ver a little, and then the war shali be pushed nto Africa.” / ‘‘ What of Sam Lefferts?” asked Lane. ‘‘He is the murderer of Moses Halpine, and as the latter met his fate by working for me, 1’il try to avenge him if you and your friends, re- presenting the best men of Torpedo Gulch, say the word. When I named my band the ‘ Vigil- antes’ if was an unwarranted assumption of the name, but we will make it a thing of fact if you so vote.” ‘*Wedoso vote. We represent three-fourths of the wealth of the Gulch, and have only hired those ruffians to work for us because honest men stood no show in the town. Clear away this element and we are all your friends, while in the fight we’ll serve under your lead and obey you a3 do your other men.” It was an offer Rube would not refuse, and though the Vigilantes were still in the minority, they felt capable of ae the day. The united force returned to the cave, where Brown Ben had left two men as a guard when the dash was made. The lieutenant was in ad- vance, and as he passed within his face clouded. Both the men were invisible, and that certainly meant something wrong. ‘‘ Alf! Alf Belden! Where are you?” All had paused, and as Ben heard a sort of choking sound at one side he strode in that di- rection. There lay Belden, bound and gagged. The lieutenant’s hands moved quickly, and as soon as the gag was removed Beldon spoke; he hed not been long enough confined to have stiff ans, ‘* Quick!” he said, excitedly. not bev got away yet.” ‘‘Who? Was it Sam Lefferts?” The question came in Rube’s keen voice. He saw that some misfortune had fallen, but he in- tended to make sure. ‘No; it was Ned Norris an’ that tiger-cat, Ellice Norton. She bewitched him an’ he turned traitor. It was him what tied me up.” The case had been stated in a nutshell, and Rube’s opinion of Miss Norton was confiruied. ‘‘ Which way did they go?” “Toward ther upper entrance.” Rube dashed away, followed by his men, and the cave and the adjacent vicinity were soon searched, Useless work; the entire party—Ell- ice, Norris and Zella—had disappeared. Alf Belden kept by his captain’s side and told the story as they searched. He had not for an instant suspected that anything was wrong un- til he was beaten to the ground by the weight of his fellow guard, and then, by the help of Ellice, Norris soon bound him, It had been so quietly done that Zella, who had gone to the extreme limit of the entrance, “pond nothing, and was brought to the realiza- tion of her fresh misfortune when seized by “They may orris. She had been hurried away despite her strug- gles, and Belden had seen them no more. By the time the disconnected story was told, the foot of the mountain was reached, and the roughs were seen just entering the village, while the fluttering of female clothing told that Zella and Ellice were there. -» “ Baffled!” muttered Brown Ben; but Rube \carned to Lane, ‘‘What would be the chances if we made a charge?” ‘‘['m afraid it would work mighty bad just now. Weare twenty and they near forty, and it’s pretty clear we can’t take them by surprise just at present.” ‘You are right,” said Rube gloomily. ‘‘Sam Lefferts has snatched victory out of defeat by the treachery of Ned Norris.” Belden again came to the front. ‘I’ve just thought of somethin’ more, which I b’lieve explains why Ned kicked over ther traces.” ‘* What is it?” “This morning I heerd Ned an’ that female tiger talkin’ kinder sly-like, an’ I ketched enough that was said to see she was tellin’ him about ther gold some man had buried, and that she knowed whar it was, an’ that it would make ther man who dug it uprich. O’ course I put my oar in, an’ then Ned seemed kinder flustrat- ed, an’ said she had be’n givin’ him a wild yarn . ’bout an ole monk that buried gold near a mis- sion in Californy, near where she used to live. Now it’s my opinion she made him b’lieve this yarn, an’ that’s why he turned traitor.” ‘“Hold on!” said Rube quickly. ‘How did Ned Act while he was explaining to you? Did he seem to believe what he was saying?’ ‘* Wal, skeercely. He kinder stumbled over his words.” . ‘‘ Exactly; because he was lying. His story wes all moonshine. If he turned traitor for gold, the real or imaginary pile of which she told him is not so far away as California.” ‘**T have an idea!” cried Lane. “What is it?” ** Moses Halpine buried all the gold he got— so did all the honest men about the Gulch—and 1 remember, when I was at the town, hearing Lefferts talking with Ellice. He suspected she knew where Halpine’s gold was buried, and de- manded the secret; but she swore she knew nothing about it. He bluntly told her she was lying, and sol think she was, Now, is it wild to think she upset Ned’s honesty by talking of this very treasure?” ‘‘T cotton to your theory a good deal,” said Rube, promptly. *“ But this Ellice—who and what is she?” ‘‘ A first-class sharper, I t-ke it. Dve heard it said she had to flee from California because of some swincle in which she was engaged, and she came here to get out of sight. She bas been around several weeks, but she has lived at Bel- dick’s and kept very shady, so that few people knew she was here.”’ ‘‘T have bad a suspicion that there was some sham in that affair when I carried her off by mistake,” ‘* So there was. Shebad promised Sam to go to vour cave and betray you all into his hands,” “ Exactly; and when she found me carrying her away it just suite i her purpose. She is, in- deed, deep and artful.” Rube said no more, but, withdrawing from his nen, gave himself up to earnest thought. He was fairly and, according to Arizona ways, legally entitled to purify the morals of Tor- pedo Gulch. The name ‘* Vigilantes,” which bad at first been a boyish freak, had become a thing of fact. A vand wasin existence tosubdue the roughs of the town, and asits Jeader there was work and thinking for him to do. The ee question in his mind was whether Ellice Norton intended to deal fairly with Ned Norris, providing sbe had told him of Haipine’s buried gold. He was inclined to think she did, The defeat of the Regulators would naturally impress her forcibly, and it seemed that rather than to fullow Sam L-fferts’s waning fortunes she would accept the gallant Ned as a cavalier, and, securing the gold, flee to fresh fields of action. At any rate, it would not do any harm to watch for the pair, even though he bad no idea where Halpine’s gold bad been buried. He consulted with his men, and when he said that he was in favor of a bold attack on the town that night, and a settlement of the matter one way or another, every Vigilante voted with im. With this matter settled, they took position where they could watch and make sure nO one left the place, and thus they awaited the mo- ment of action. At that time Zella Halpine was alone in the room at Beldick’s which she had reviously 0c- cupied when a prisoner. She bad been thrust in with ber hands still bound, and giving way to despair for the first time, had wept freely, but the weakness soon passed and when Sam Lef- ferts entered she was calm. The young villain’s face bore an ugly scowl. He had been badly beaten in the mountain, where death and desertion had deprived him of one-fourth of his men, and this fact, with the supposed escape of Redtop Rube, more than overbalanced the capture of Zella. He looked at her with an evil smile. _“ Well, you’re cooped up ag’in, ain’t ye?” was his coarse taunt. ‘** You ought to know.” “And soI do know. I’ve got:ye, but trouble ae you hev made me. Do yer know ther blood o’ all them men is on your head?” ‘‘Base wretch!” she cried, passionately, ‘how dare you speak to me?—you who murder- ed my father.” be eye already said that Mose committed sui- cide ‘Don’t trouble yourself to repeat it. No- body believes you. I know my dear.father too well to suppose he wonld proceed to such a step. Your band, Sam Lefferts, took his life!” 7 / yo. She bad arisen and was confronting him with eyes whose flashing anger awed bim for a mo- ment, but be forced an unnatural laugh from his throat, and looked like a dog which firs cringes and then shows bis teetb in a surly way. ‘You kin bev this matter jest as you please; I don’t go out 0’ my way a peg ter change your views, but I will try ter give ye practical proof tbat I mean you wal, my pritty one!” His smile became more natural, but it was one which made Zella shiver. ‘* Bf l bave robbed you of a father,” be con- tinued, ‘‘V’ll try ter fill up ther gap in ther fam’ly. What d’ye say ter a busband in place o’ a parient?”’ _Zella’s heart sunk and ber face paled. Sam had Jong and industriously made love to her, but there was that in his manner now which told that affairs were to be pressed bo a crisis. She could not answer, and then he added: ‘‘Thar’s a minister in ther burgh, an’ I’ve asked him over here. He’s come, an’ now we will be tied up in the shake of a deer’s huff. You will find mea right nice, indulgent bus- band, chicken.” CHAPTER XV. THE BURIED TREASURE. Zei.LA found speech at last, but she spol e with a manner as though the terror which h: d at first chained her tongue was now what made ber speak, having become too much for ber en- durance, ‘‘Oh! no, no!” she cried. ‘‘ You would rot be so cruel; you cannot! Oh! let me go aw: 7 from here, and I will never come back. I never harmed you, Sam. Let me go and } 1 never return!” It was acry from her beart rather than an argument, but Lefferts remained unmoved, He was not one to let sentiment or pity inter- fere witb bis plans, and he bluffly informed her that such was the fact, He had sent for the minister, he had come as directed, and the ceremony was going forward. “ll bring good witnesses, an’ see that rll is did in first-class style,” he added, as he went out. Zella sunk into a chair, miserable enough, and wishing she was with that father who bad evidently left her friendless, Friendless? No; she was not that while the Vigilantes lived, but they were now powerless. She thought of Ridtcp Rube and shuddere.. Her last glimpse ot bim Lad been when be van- ished over the precipice. He had teen kind to her, and now he was lyirg dead at the foot of the rock. Tiuly, she seemed beset by all imaginable evils. She struggled to free her hands, for she had the will to detend herself, feeble girl though she was, but the work was useless, and she sat down once more to await the next act in the drama. At least an bour passed, and then the sound of footsteps outside the deor was followed by the appearance of Sam, Ellice Norton, Beldick the Jandlord, and another man whom she did not know. It needed no explanation to tell her this was the minister, real or pretended, and she looked at bim weiod but the gathering shadows of evening, coupled with the big beard and profu- sion of bair be wore, were proof against almost any geze. She could vot tell whether he was a villain or not. Sam waved his band in a wide circle. ‘‘ Mr. Smiterock, minister, and so forth, this is ther bride-elect,” he announced. The nny G2 bowed very low. ‘‘ Happy [am to meet her, end glad to my heart are such scenes,” he said, in a whining tone, The voice and the words were enough to con- vince Zella tbat he was either a consummate hypocrite of a minister or no minister at al]: but he was a man and she would let no chance pass to try to improve ber fortunes. Earnestly she made a plea for bis protection, but the coolness and patience of Lefferts were proof enough that she spoke in vain. If Sem was willing she should talk, it was because he had no fear that she would move the so-called minister. And she did not. At the end he briefly in- formed her that, baving learned she was an orphan, he believed if his duty to provide ber with a brave and honest protector, and such be knew Sam to be, Ellice approached to add her word, but Zella proeapity turned ber back upon the traitress who had brought this fresh trouble upon her, | JOO com G cS (E(e)