Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 742 — page 7: what you’re looking at

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

game, her steam the letter till it came open as nice as you please. I[t was a neat job and Mother Snipe seemed to go about it as though she had opened letters by that process before. I was delighted when she did the job, but of course did not show her the contents of the letter, Here is the copy I made; the other I took back to the restaurant where I feund Spanker to whom I delivered it with bim none the wiser for what I bad done,” Tne boy detective spread before the eager Phlox the copy he spoke of and the man bent forward, Billy, knowing what was in the letter, settled back in his chair and made a study of Phlox’s face, This is what he read: “My Dear Sam:— “T have “our letter before me with its cheering news. Be sure to make no mistake, for if, as you say, you have tracked the girl down, one-half of the workis done. I will per you the two thousand to- morrow when you call, and then we will go back to Jersey provided you bring me more encouraging news. vou were lucky to catch the tall man; now, if you can entrap the other one as well, with what ou have done with the «ld one, we shall be on the op wave of success and need fear no further trouble, I say again, Sam, make no mistake, The boy is in the city if the girlis. Silence is the only safe course and you know that dead people never give one any anxiety. Don’t fail. Ihave more than enough to pay you all and you know the pledge. BB.” Phlox’s eyes were aglow with excitement when he looked up at Billy Winks. ‘‘It was a find sure enough,” said he. ‘“ It settles one point beyond doubt. Van Loo, the man who gave you the original letter, is Blake Belden the conspirator.” ** That is right.” ‘*He is bound to deal harshly with the Petti- bone children. If be can help it they sball never touch a dollar of the estate rightfully theirs, He has come to this city for that purpose. He and his men, Spanker and Simon Short, are at work and this letter tells us how far along the have got. They have netted both Chuck Hol- comb, my partner, and Pappy Pink, for he cer- tainly is the ‘old man” mentioned in this in- famous letter.” ; “Right you are again, Phlox. The old in- ventor has fallen into the toils. You remember that he wrote the letter to Chuck which took him from the Metropolitan the night he disappeared. son pety think now that the old man wasa e20 “Ido not. He must have known Holcomb, however, and had some news for us,” Phlox took up the letter and read it again, “Van Loo, or Belden, was foolish to write such a letter,” he said. ‘‘ Yes, and I think he regretted it before I was gone far for I saw him at the door just as I turned the corner, but I didn’t go back; not very much!” ‘But look here, They say they have found the girl.” ‘* So the letter reads,” ‘Belden was watching Josie when I came across him and he gave me such a shock that I couldn’t keep from betraying myself,” ‘* Which was very foolish in you, Phlox.” **T know it, but the first thing that came up in my mind was the vanishment ot Chuck, and I could not keep my hands off bim, That man is Blake Belden and no mistake, and we will bave to look out with him in the city directing tho The chances are that Holcomb has been murdered somewhere, and if the girl falls into the grip of the Golden Coil, she will not fare very well,” By. said nothing fora moment; but Phlox saw his eyes twinkling across the table, ** Phlox,” suddenly said the boy detective, **T was thinking about something.” * Well?” ‘* Did you ever see a photograph of the missing children?” ‘* A thousand times, We brought one to the city with us.” ** Where is it?” ‘* At my room.” “ Where is that now?” * Down on ayy oo: Sen “T would like to see that photograph, Phlox. ““ When, Billy?” , id = Now.” P) The next minute the pair were on the sidewalk, the copy of the important letter having been put away again, » Phlox in quitting the hotel had taken up humble quarters where he was not likely to be found by the men who had netted his friend and fellow-worker, Chuck, and he led Billy to the place, _ In a little while Phlox laid before the boy a = LL a re tinge SE ee 47) photograph of two small children taken in their childish clothes, They were standing together, the girl a mite the tallest. ‘**Copies of that picture have been circulated alloverthe country, ‘They have gone to Europe but nothing has been beard of the children, I have told you, Billy, that the father, John Pettibone, is supposed to have perished in the ruins of his home. and that the children were ab- ducted that same night, You see the estate was worth thousands and under Blake Belden’s con- trol it bas nearly doubled in value and is to-day one of the richest places in Jersey.” Billy Winks was looking at the photograph while Phlox talked and when he handed it back he smiled and said: ‘* Phlox, what do you think?’ The man looked at a loss what to say. ‘*T mean what is your opinion o/ the girl these rascals have tracked?” ‘* T guess my pen is the same as yours,” * Out with it, Phiox,” “‘That missing girl is Josie.” In an instant B.lly was half-way across the table and his band had dropped into Phlox’s alm, —** You've hit my opinion to a T!” he cried. ‘¢ Josie 1s not Josie Jackson but Josie Pettibone! yNow, look here, Phlox! Everything goes to show this. Spanker is the.man who has dogged her footsteps for three months, He follows her to and from work and once or twice he bas been caught looking in at her window. Then, the next thing we see is Belden himself on the watch, They have closed in on Holcomb; they bave got old Pappy Pink in the toils, and now they want to fiud the boy before they wind up the whole raseally game by one big play.” “ That’s it!” cried Phlox, ‘* Not a word about this to Josie,” continued Billy Winks, ‘* She must not know what we think; time enough yet for that. We are to baffle this gang of villains. The air! will be watched so long as they can keep an eye on her, I know Josie. Some-how-or-other, ske is willing to take my advice in everything. She must get out of the shadow at once, Josie must go!” ‘Give up the type-writing job, you mean?” 6é Yes,” ** Will she do it?” “Tf danger threatens sbe will do anything. She fears the man who has been watching her, I will see her at once.” This being determined on between Billy and Phlox, the two left the house and after promising to come together again two bours later on, the Bell Boy Detective went toward Josie’s home, ‘¢]t’s a deep game,” be said to himself as he flitted through the sbadows, ‘* This is more ex- citing than playing bell boy at the Metropole, I am almost sure Josie is the missing child of the Pettibones and in time we wili run across the boy and some day astonish Mr. Blake Belden and make bim jump out of his boots, I won't leton to Josie what is up, but she shall know that it is best for her to quit the old rooms at once and give up type-writing till the clouds roll by. I’m going to stand by her, and Nelse needn’t be Jealous, either,” illy thought over what he would say to the pretty type-writer and when he ran up the stair aud rapped on the door he bad his plans laid, There was no response to his raps, and rapping louder than before he waited a moment longer and then tried the knob. But the door was locked and would not yield. ‘*t never knew her to go out after coming home from work,” said he witb a little white suddenly appearing on bis face. ‘'I don’t be- lieve anything. has happened to her, though she is watched by as precious a lot of scoundrels as ever drew a breath,” All at once be heard a footstep and the next instant saw standing before bim a woman with a lank figure and peaked face, He took it for granted at once that be was looking at a tenant of one of the other rooms, “The girl I suppose you are hunting isn’t at home,” said the woman, ‘‘T want to see Miss Jackson,” “Yes, but she went off awhile ago with a gen- neenan,” illy started. “ Not with Nelse? Do you know Nelse?” he BE ‘* Nelse is the young gentleman who calls now and then? I know him. But that wasn’t the man who escorted Miss Jackson from the house,” ‘*My God!” cried Billy, covering the distance between himself and the woman at a bound, ‘‘What sort of man was be? You must have seen him from what you say?” ‘*T caught a glimpse of him as they went down- stairs,” was the reply, ‘fle was tall, had a v . . my" 7 " - ee See arte ow macreed, eh vb . Md * Pride iS Billy Winks, the Bell Boy Detective. | is good figure and wore a mustache which crooped over his mouth. He was dressed in dark clothes and had hold of Miss Jackson’s arm,” ‘*'The infernal villain!’ cried Billy. ‘* How long have they been gone?” ‘* Not twenty minutes,” For a second ay Winks stood like one thun- derstruck in the hallway. He had received the greatest shock of his life, He had come too late to help Josie, She had fallen into the power of the Golden Coil; the plot bad found its victim, CHAPTER IX, BLED. Tue identity of the man known as Burton Van Loo was no longer a question with the Bell Boy Detective. He was none other than Blake Belden, the person who was enjoying the proceeds of the rich Pettibone estate over in Jersey—an es- tate which had passed into his bands through the strange will lett bebind by John Pettibone, who was supposed to have perished in the fire that wiped out his bome, Pettibone was a widower at the time of the fire, but bad two children who vanished the same night, and of whom from that time no- thing had been beard, It was true, as Flash Phlox had told Billy Winks, that, unless the children were found within a given time the estate would become the permanent property of Blake Belden, hence the man’s desire to prevent the boy and girl from turning up to plague him, There were some who believed that the little ones were taken off the night of the fire by a wandering band of Gypsies who were in the neighborhood, but the tramps bad been followed by a detective in the pay of interested people, without results. Blake Belden, we need call bim Van Loo no longer, since his true identity is fully known, went home after bis encounter with Phlox on the sidewalk with singular thoughts, He had seen Josie Jackson, and the sight of the pretty type-writer had thrilled bim. He was confident that he had looked upon one of the Pettibone heirs, and while seated in his parlor, he waited with impatience for the com- ing of the tool called Spanker, No one in Jersey knew what had become of Belden. All mis him from the elegant home there, but none knew that he was in New York directing one of the coolest conspiracies against two young people, only one of whom bad, as yet, been found. He knew that an enemy had hired Holcomb and Phlox and sent them to the trail for the pur- pose of baffling him, but be was more than that enemy’s match, and bad resolved not to come off second best, : If Belden could bave seen Billy Winks in the hall-way of Josie’s home extracting information from the peaked-face woman he might have formed another opinion of the boy detective, but this sight was not for him. — Spanker dropped in at last, with a smile on his face, : ‘+ Well, one’s safely in the net,” he said, unable to conceal his delight, Blake Belden almost sprung from bis chair, ‘Which one have you netted, Spanker?” ‘‘' The girl, of course,” ‘* Not the pretty type-writer?” ** Josie!” The next moment Belden put bis hand across the table and seized the one on the other side, “Avy trouble, Sam?’ ‘None to speak of. She went along almost as quietly as the old man did, *You’re a trump. ‘‘T thought you knew that before.” “So I did, but you are two tru.nps,” ‘That will do better,” grinned the rascal’s tool, ‘' Now that we bave her safely housed—” ‘“ Where is she?” eagerly asked Belden, ‘‘You must let me keep that secret for the present, . There must be no blunders'in this game, and the fewer the sharers of the secret the surer will be its keeping.” — The man in the arm-chair bit his lips, but was compelled to accede to his agent’s wishes, e The next one is the boy,” he said. ‘6 Yes,” ‘‘ Haven't you no clew concerning him? Don’t the girl know anything about ber brother?” “<P haven't asked her yet, When [ left her she was in no mood for talking to me, and [ thought I would let her cool down a little,” ‘A wise plan, Sam. But does she suspect the truth?” ‘6 No! she had never heard of the Pettibones from what hints I dropped just to try her, but _ ———EE————— — it ae 4a dle ig