Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 773 — page 13: what you’re looking at

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

> 4 5 Peg ay DE moment of uncertainty, drawn; and at the ~ The Rustler of Rolling Stone. 13 ‘*Run upto Sam Burns’s stable an’ send ’im hyer with his fastest horse,” looking up from the diiewen hesitated. He was go slippery a character himself that he feared to trust others. **T}l have this ready fer ye by the time you git back. Send Burns byer at once!” He resumed bis writing; and Thomas, after a fet t the office, Within five minutes Burns was there: and Red Fee went out on the steps to speak with him. ** Go to Rolling Stone as fast as yer borse’ll let bin Call on that law-sharp, leolm, and ring me the money he gives ye. Give him this, and it’ll be all right.” He delivered t> Burns some papers which he had taken from his desk, They were deeds, signed upin due form the day before and con- veying to Malcolm all of bis interests in Lucky Ledge, with the exception of the Grizzly Bear mine, for the ridiculously small sum of two thousand dollars. Malcolm bad made bim the offer the previous “~ b and the papers had been ast moment Red Fee bad backed down and refused to deliver them. A few words of explanatioa followed; but - Burns was not detained a moment beyond what was necessary, and was gone before the coming of Curt Thomas, Although Red Fee was taking this step with seeming haste, it had really bee in his mind for some time, and was the outgrowth of many hours of weary and anxious thought. What had recently occu was precipitating the catastrophe that be had felt must come; and now it only seemed the part of wisdom to save what be could from the approaching wreck and betake himself with it to some place cf safety, In comparison with the figures that bad for months wreathed themselves in his roseate dreams, the amount he could bear away was small; but it was that much better than nothing; and if he remained he might not only lose it, but would in all eared lose his liberty, He was still scribbling away, divided between bis task and thoughts on his plans, when Thomas arrived, The paper was finished in a short time and delivered; and then Ked Fee me- self of the bills, Thomas did not remain any longer than was necessury, and went away feeling very jubilant, CHAPTER XVIII. BACK TO ROLLING STONE, QUINTIUS QUARTZ had but one idea firmly fixed in his mind, as he bastened from Redmonda’s, after his nocturnal conversation with Louise, That was to hurry to Rolling Stone, gather a force of tried and true men, return with them and oblige Red Fee to tell what he knew of the whereabouts of Tom. Not only would he do that, but, if Tom had been imprisonni—as Quintius believed—then he could compel Fee to compromise the matter by a transfer of bis in- terest in the Grizzly Bear Mine, This was the _ plan outlined by the assayer, and be did not doubt that it could be worked, There was, of course, a possibility that Tom Craigen had been foully dealt witb, and the assayer’s brows darkened and bis eyes flashed as he thought of this, If Red Fee, in his desperation, bad gone so far as that, he re- solved that a swift and bitter vengeance should overtake him. The collecting of the men was not so easy a task as he had anticipated, Many of those on whom he most relied were absent from the town, and substitutes had to be sought. This occupied a great deal of time; and nearly two hours elapsed before he was ready to turn his face toward Lucky Ledge, at the head of a band of mountcd mep. They bad covered perhaps half the distance, when they heard the hoof-strokes of a hor-e advancing from the direction they had themselves come, Feeling that it would not do to permit this horseman to pass, Quartz disposed his men Nn a semicircle across the trail, The man might be a messenger sent by friends of Red Fee to give the Jatter warning of the coming of Quartz’s party.” he horse scented the men; and on bein forced forward by its rider, whirled quickly ap threw him to the ground, Before he could arise, Quartz was on him. As the reader has was Sam Burns, Burns was wiry and strong; and hurling Quarts desperately aside, leaped to his feet in an effort to break away. He did not know who his assailants were; but he saw the shadowy suspected, this horseman B outlines of the men and borses; and thinking of s T ' 4 4 wis Asa ‘“ bine am 1S as . ; ai q Tu . os the money in his pocket, decided the men were road-agents, They were closing about him, though; and their loud commands to halt, backed as they were by a suggestive clicking of revolvers, brought him to a stand. A match was struck, and its light flashed into the prisoner’s face, There was a mutual recognition, Burns gave a short, hard laugh. ‘*T thought you was agents, pards, and that I was done fer!” It was an unfortunate speech. As a general thing, Sam Burns was not known to carry any- thing that would be likely to arouse the cupidity of a road-agent, **'You were mistaken in that; stil], we must see what you’ve got. I’m not certain but that you’re bearing a message to Red Fee, We are going for him, and we don’t care to have him warned of our coming.” The match bad gone out; but even the gloom could not conceal Burns’s uneasiness, The search, which was quickly made, brought to light the two thousand dollars, and a note from Malcolm to Red Fee concerning the sale. The conclusion was irresistibly forced on Quartz that Red Fee intended to leave the country at once; and with it came an added un- certainty as to the fate of his brother. If Red Fee had murdered Tom Craigen, that would be the most powerful reason in the world for urging him to instant flight. “You were taking these things to Redmond?” his voice harsh and choked. ‘Speak truly, Sam Burns, or it will be the worse for you! Redmond has borne away, and perhaps murder- ed, my brother; and [ do not propose that he shall escape punishment for it.” lt was Burne’s first intimation that the as- sayer had a brother, He saw, though, that Quartz was in deadly earnest, and that it would be foolhardy to anger him by a refusal to reply, or by an evasion. “Tell me bow ” bony came by these bills?’ crowding one question on another. ‘ And why ou were riding so swiftly toward Lucky Ledge? Kpeak up, man!” He was trembling with excitement, and showed also that he felt there was no time to ‘‘I was carryin’ them things to Red Fee,” Burns avowed, thinking a direct confession the safest. ‘‘He sent me over to Malcolm’s to git ’em, an’ I wason my way back, when you stop- ped me,” ‘‘ And you were to deliver them to him at his office?” Burns hesitated. ‘‘No; not exactly. I wasn’t to take ’em to his office, but to the little bunch o’ trees on the river-bank, not fur from the Grizzly Bear Mine,” Quartz felt that his suspicion that Red Fee intended an immediate departure was correct, ‘““And did he tell you that he was going away?” ** Nothin’ of the kind!” ** 'W hat is this money for?” ‘* Hanged if I can say, exactly; but I reckon he’s sold out to the Jaw sharp. That’s how I sized it up, anyway.” ‘‘And I size it up that he means to leave, as soon as be gets these bills. You will have to go with us, Burns! We'll not rob you or hurt you. We'll give you a chance to deliver the money to him; and then we'll scoop him in and make him do some talking, or know va, e gave the money and the letter back to Burns, but did not restore to bim his borse. It was led by one of the men; wiile the others closed with their animals about its late rider to prevent an escape, CHAPTER XIX. PRISONERS TWO. To return to Louise Norton, locked in her room, She gave way to a paroxysm of ago- nized grief, as she listened to Red Fee’s retreat- ing footsteps and thought of Tom Craigen im- risoned in the black mine. She could not know ut that Red Fee meant to return to the mine to harm or abuse the prisoner, really fearing that was his intention. Tom’s situation and danger oppressed her far more than her own, She heard Red Fee stop in tae corridor below and begin bis restless pacing. Although this was a relief, as indicating that be did not intend to return directly to the mine, it also prevented her from making any outcry or attempting to esca pe, Thomas’s rapping at the door reached her, but, } though she strained her ears to catch some words of the conversation that ensued, it was in vain. There only floated to her a low droning, barren of significance. The coming of Burns, the borseman, did not tend to relieve heranxiety. She felt that it por- tended some ill When Burns rode away, sbe strove to catch a glimpse of him from the win- dow that looked out on the street, but the dark- ness was too great. All she could tell was, that. he was galloping in the direction of Rolling Stone, ' How sbe longed for the return of Quintius Quartz, with the men he had gone to collect! She resolved that when he did come, she would in some manner succeed in attracting his atten- tion, even if it was followed by condign punish- ment, She hoisted the window-sash and leaned far out, hoping some one migbt pass near to whom she could whisper of the strait she was in. But. the hour was too late and the place too isolated to really expect any passere, Even the principal street was almost deserted, though she could yet. see a few lights gleaming redly. ** Oh, if Faas had a ladder or a rope!” was ber mental wail. The distance was too great for her to attempt to leap down; and, as she could see or bear noth- ing, and the night wind chilled her, she closed the window. After atime she heard Curt Thomas tramp away;and hoped, even while she feared, that Red Fee might accompany or follow him. But Fee resumed his nervous pacings, For many minutes the monotonous and heavy tread of his boots informed her that be was stilb in his office. Then she heard the door open and close, and his crunching steps on the k, A nervous tremor seized ber, If he left the place, there might yet be a chance for her to es- cape in time to be of service to Tom Crai- gen. She waited until the sounds had died out: then began to count slowly so as to accurately measure the passing moments, They seemed so leaden-winged that she feared she might other- wise be too hasty in her movements. It would be fatal to ber plans to make any outcry while Red Fee was still within orice § When ahe felt sure be bad had time to place a. sufficient distance between bimself and the house, she began to shout to the servant-girl, and to stamp furiously on the floor. The servant’s room was just below her own, ** Ob, Betty!” she called, emphasizing the cal? witha vigorous thump from the heel of her boot. ‘** Betty, are you asleep? Ob, Betty! Wake up, and come up bere at once!” Betty Butterball was a heavy sleeper, a thing well-known to Lonise; and so she stamped and shouted with all ber might, making enough noise, as she afterward declared, ‘‘to awaken the dead,” Finally ber efforts seemed rewarded with suc- cess. She heard Betty’s startled exclamations, and the thud of the girl’s bare feet as they struck the floor, “*Come up here, Betty; and bring the hall-key with you. is locked in here.” There were burried, rustling sounds in Betty’s room; aud soon after she appeared excitedly be- fore Louise’: door, bearing a lighted lamp. ‘‘ What in the world is the matter?’ was ber anxious inquiry. ‘‘Y’m locked in here, Betty! Did you ~— the hall key? Father locked me in here, an took away the key!” Betty gave acry of astonishment and alarm, ane in ber agitation came near dropping the amp. ‘Ob, dear!” she wailed. ‘‘ Locked you in? Whatever shall I do?’ ‘“Go and get the hall key, if you haven't got it already, It will unlock this door, And be tas about it, for father may return at any me, Betty seemed incapable of action; all she could do was to give utterance to exclamatory evidences of her surprise and alarm. ‘*Go and get the hall key!” Louise sharply commanded, ‘* Don’t you hear?” Betty bad a bigh regard for her mistress, but it was sometimes outweighed by her fear of Red Fee. ‘* Yes: [ bear! But, Mise Louise, if he should catch me? Ob,dearme! Whatever shall I do?’ Louise’s patience was rapidly becoming ex- hausted, when Betty at length turned to the stairway and descended to the corridor. She was back very shortly. ‘* The key isn’t there, Miss Louise!” Louise understood why. Red Fee had feared something of the kind, and had taken it with bim, ‘“* Isn’t there another key that will do?’ Louise. | nN pele) cboo . | oF > ‘ : = § ' ; * | » * ?_ aay . é