Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 105 — page 10: what you’re looking at

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

——— a os ~ — eee me wee 7 ee 10 Dan Brown of Denver. 7 | ——— et ge — <— aee —— ee ete we | ee en oes = - > — — -—"~ = - —— ee = —_ oo _—— Oe Aa en clean them out with their own tools, and the man who tries to hinder me from keeping that oath, is my enemy.” Those who overheard this skirmish of words | were amazed by the manner in which Dodge, a renowned fire-eater himself, accepted the situa- tion thrust upon him, yielding to the will of the other without a remonstrance. The marshal turned away and held a brief , consultation with the chosen second of Brick top. A crack shot, the latter had determined to make sure work, and named the width of the room as the distance, each man to stand upon a table and fire at the word. The crowd hailed this decision with shouts of approval. By it, all could see, without run- ning the risk by being hit by a bullet that might miss its mark. Both principals were eager to have the matter settled, and with little delay they took up their positions, revolvers in hand, Tn acted sharp tone, Enoch Dodge gave the signal, eat the word, Horace Treville fired, but every one present saw that the other pistol had snap- ped without Gmimegey Without a groan, Bricktop toppled forward, shot through the brain; a moment later Horace Trevillc also reeled and feli with a heavy crash! There had been only one report heard, but a jingle of broken glass guided all eyes to the door, where a curl of smoke was distinctly visible. A second shot had been discharged by some person standing outside the building, and it was this bullet that laid the young man from Boston low! ‘Out an’ ketch the murderer!” screamed Enoch Dodge, himself leaping to the side of his friend. ‘‘ Five hundred dollars fer the cuss, dead or alive!” In an instant the saloon was cleared, with yells of vengeance. CHAPTER IX. A NOCTURNAL VISITOR. THE second floor of the Golden Eagle was compose! almost entirely of sleeping apart- ments, and for several hours had been un- usually still and tranquil; but then a remarka- ble event occurred. A wide corrider extended from the front to the rear of the building, with the doors of the slesping-rooms opening at regular intervals on either side, ,corridor, ofl lamps depended from the ceiling, iow burning with a half-light. Without a sound one of the doors opened, and ' the thead of a man protruded, looking to the right and left as though to make sure that the coast was clear. His y followed and with a light, agile step, he passed from one lamp to the. other, turning the wick so low that but a faint glow was perceptible, leaving the hall in almost total darkness. This done, the stealthy prowler partially re- traced his steps, pausing before a door, but not that of the room from whence he had first ap- ed. For several minutes his hands were usy, but the gloom appeared to bother the rowler, and a momentary gleam was admitted roma small dark lantern that was attached to his button-hole. By this light it could be seen that he was manipulating the lock of the room, and afew moments later he was suc- cessful, the bolt noiselessly falling back. Slowly the door opened inwardly, the manip- ulator listening as though his life depended upon the acuteness of his hearing. But no sounds came from within save the barely perceptible one of some one breathing. A faint light was shed by a lamp within the room, and as soon as_the door was opened suffi- ciently for the purpose, the burglar thrust his head inside, his glittering eyes roving swiftly over the contents of the small apartment. As isthe case in all hotels of small towns throughout the West, the chamber, though so small, looked bare and cheerless. Bedstead, nd and several chairs formed the whole of its furniture, now added to by the two trunks which Rachel Trowbridge had brought with her from St. Louis—for this room was the one as- signed her, and she was now lying asleep in the uncanopied bed, unconscious of the evil gaze that was riveted upon her. Satisfied that she was soundly sleeping, the burglar entered the room, closing the door ‘be- hind him and turning the key in the lock. This done, his first move was to place one of the chairs beside the bed, and lay upon it sever- 1 articles, among them a sponge and a three- ounce bottle marked poison. Then he paused, and for afew moments gazed gloatingly upon the unconscious a whose face, slightly flushed by the warmth of the room, was now almost be- wilderingly lovely. What his emotions, could only be surmised from the red light that filled his dark eyes, for all the restof his features were hidden by a thick crape mask, while his form was shrouded in the long coat with cape, cut something after the style of the cavalry overcoat worn by the **bovs in bine” throughout the late civil war. There wns a powerful magnetism in those Ine- trous eyes, but in this case it worked contrary — —! -. =< — —- ' to the will of their owner. At each end and the center of this | All at once, without any warning flutter, Rachel’s eyelids unclosed and she gazed full into the threatening orbs that were bent upon her. Quick as a flash one palm of the burglar was pressed firmly over her lips, and in a low, grating tone he said: ‘Utter a cry or attempt to give the alarm in any way, and you are a dead woman—I will drive my knife to your heart without a mo- ment’s hesitation. Be sensible and no injury shall be done you,” At almost any other time, Rachel would have | curred at the Shades, a nearly complete report acted like the vast majority of women, and have fainted dead away from terror, but the strange scenes through which she had that night passed, lent her a courage or desperation foreign to her usual sunny nature. And ber small white teeth nearly met in the flesh of the burglar’s palm. A hissing curse parted his lips, and his bared knife was pressed to her fair throat until the keen point indented the soft white flesh. ‘‘Unlock your teeth, or I'll slit your throat from ear to ear! I repeat that I don’t mean you any harm, unless you bring it on yourself by being obstinate.” The chilling touch of the cold steel caused Rachel to obey, and the masked burglar shook the red blood from his lacerated palm with a low, hard laugh. * A truly ee way for a tender bride to receive her loving husband, on their bridal night!” ‘* Begone—leave this room instantly, or I will cry aloud for help and denounce you as the no- torious outlaw, Captain Moonshine!” uttered Rachel, with remarkable firmness. ‘* Do so, and your friends will find you a dead woman. [t is my last warning. mem ber that a husband has the right to visit his wife’s chamber at any and all hours.” If he ho by such taunts and threats to awe Rachel, the burglar was in error. Instead, he rendered her still more desperate, and her lips parted to utter a loud cry for aid. Fiercely he sprung upon her, his blood-stained hand grasping her throat and cutting short the scream. ‘Then, with his knife uplifted in readi ness to carry out his terrible threat, the burglar turned his face toward the door, listening to learn if the alarm had been given. bell without the slightest desire to respond, and thus missed a curious sensation. Ezra Blackwood and son were among the first to reach the eating room, and took their seats with as smooth faces and healthy appetites as though they had passed the whole of the vanish- ed night in the sleep of the just. They had but little to say to each other, though there was more than one covert and meaning glance interchanged by them as they | listened to the eager talk of those around. _Asa matter of course the general conversa- tion turned on the exciting events which oc- of which has already been laid before the reader. The only other items of interest to the two listeners were that the daring assassin had _ escaped without leaving the faintest clew to his | thanks. identity, and that the wound received by the young man from Boston was certainly mortal. As far as could be ascertained, the murderer’s bullet had either passed through, or still lay imbedded in the heart of the a stranger. “No such good luck,” muttered Frank in a uarded tone to his worthy sire. ‘‘Ten to one at the scoundrel recovers to make us more trouble. He has the lives of a dozen cats—” Unnoticed by them, Enoch Dodge had enter- ed the room, and now rapped sharply upon one of the tables as if to command general atten- tion. His long face seemed longer than ever, and there was a cold, steely look in his eyes that caused the heart of more than one man present, whose record was not exactly white or square, to flutter uneasily. ‘*Gentlemen,” he said, in a forced and un- natural tone, ‘‘ I s’pose you all hearn of the lit- tle muss round to the Shades, last night, an’ of the dirty devil’s deed that ended it all? A man so white that a chunk o’ snow would make a black mark onto him, was shot down by a cow- ard in the dark, jest because he was doin’ of his bounden duty by cleanin’ out two p’izen critters that ought to ’a’ been bounced long ago. ‘*T see some o’ you yer that did your best to find the murderer last night. To you Il give my I won’t forgit it soon. Nur he won’t, nuther, ef so be folks in the happy land kin re- member what was done down here on airth— But no ; fer my friend died in these here two arms, not | sound came to his ears, and he gradually re- | two hours ago! laxed his fierce gripe, leaving the maiden gasp- ing for breath and nearly suffocated. yuring the brief struggle, his mask hecame loosened and slipped down over hischin. Rachel | saw that she had not been mistaken. | / Her | nocturnal visitor was indeed the notorious road- | agent, Captain Moonshine. ‘* Now listen to me,” he said, readjusting his mask and speaking ina guarded but menacing tone. ‘“‘ There has been enough nonsense. came here fora fe) 8 which I mean to ae complish before I leave. Aid me as far as you can, and [ will solemnly swear to leave you un- harmed, never again to molest you while we both live. “The man who stole you away from me, directly after our marriage, at the same time snatched from my hand the certificate signed by us both. This he must have given to you, for he has it not. To decide that fact, cost him his life. Let that fact be a warning to you. ‘* Tell me where you have hidden the certifi- cate, and [ will bid you farewell forever.” of have not seen it since I was rescued from | your power,” said Rachel, huskily but with determination, ‘“‘nor do I know where it is. Even if I did, you should be none the wiser.” There could be no doubting her earnestness, and realizing that further parleying would only consume valuable time vainly, Captain Moon- shine quickly saturated the sponge with chloro- form and before Rachel realized her peril, she was once again helpless in his stro grasp. For a brief space she struggled against fate, but | _ the white, handsome face of the famous de- then the powerful drug prevailed, and she lay unconscious, Satisfied that she was beyond the power of giving the alarm, Captain Moonshine left the sponge lying upon her bosom, and set to work searching the room closely, not excepting the trunks. But in vain. e important paper upon which at least one life depended, was no- where to be found. Daylight was rapidly approach‘ug, and the road-agent only paused to write a few words upon a scrap of paper, which he pinned to the bosom of Rachel’s night-dress. en, epening the window and throwing out both bottle and sponge, he left the room and glided along the kened corridor. The new day was dawning when Rachel awoke from her enforced sleep, and nearly the first object ber gare rested upon was the scrap of paper left behind by Captain Moonshine. tisfied that she was alone, Rachel secured the note and perused its brief contents: “The less you say about my visit, the better it will be for your reputation. Keep silent about our wedding; say nothing to outsiders about the certifi- cate, but make every effort to recover it, consistent with prudence. If your enemies find it first, your life will not be woeth a day’s purchase.” Sick en? faint. still feeling the nons°ou; effects uf the drug, Rachel heard the | | the table, takin’ your last look at the corpse ‘*Gentlemen, I come to give you all a invite to step in an’ view the co of the whitest white man that ever trod the footstool. I’ve knowed him from the time he was knee high to a grasshopper, an’ kin sw’ar to that much, I don’t reckon thar’s many o’ you but what has hearn tell of him, an’ not one that kin say aught aginst him, when I tell you his name: Dan Brown of Denver!” This announcement created an intense sensa- tion. The fame of the Rocky Mountain Detec- tive had spread all over the West, and though | there may have been some among the number who would not have been quite so eager to meet Dan Brown of Denver face to face, while living, the boarders arose as one man and followed the lead of Enoch Dodge: Frank Blackwood and his father, still suspi- cious, because they felt that the news was far too good to be true, fell into line, their amey sense on the alert to detect the deception whic they believed was about to be attempted. The marshal led the way to bis own private office, before the door of which stood two men on guard. He opened the door, and entered, placing himself ide the ped table upon which rested a coffin, the lid of which he gently lifted. ‘Fall into line, gentlemen, and pass ’round of Dan Brown, murdered by a cowardly skunk!” he said, in a husky tone. In silence he was obeyed. One by one the men paused beside the ble and looked upon tective, then passed on to make way for others. The Blackwoods, father and son, paused longer than the rest, and Frank even touched the white, high forehead with the tip of one finger before ing on. n silence they went to Ezra Blackwood’s room, where Frank, in a tone of intense relief, exclaimed: ‘* He is dead—and lucky for us both, too!” CHAPTER X. “PLANTING” THE DETECTIVE. THE two conspirators looked at each other with ugly smiles. Now that the young man from Boston was proven beyond a doubt to be the celebrated detective, Dan Brown, they were doubly de newin at his death. ‘**T don’t believe Iam much of a coward, but if I had known that he was to be mixed up in the affair, double the stake wouldn’t have tempted me to enter into it,” added Frank Blaekwood, with a slight shudder. ‘‘He is dead, and killed by some one un- known. Thank heaven his blood does not rest on our hands!” uttered the elder hypocrite in a sanctimonious tone. ‘*No one will ever know who fired the shot.” said Frank, seriously. “The knowledge wonld =mprecomicbooks: