Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 363 — page 20: what you’re looking at

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

- Same, - and ih can judge what ~ % 20 Crowningshield, the Sleuth. drew a pretty picture of the life I would enjoy | if I entertained his offer.” “You always were lucky,” commented the man. ‘‘T neither accepted nor declined told him I was already married. But he said that didn’t make any difference. It would be easy enough for me to run away from my hus- band and he would take me out West where a divorce could be easily obtained. ‘* So, when Old Lead Pencil threatened to at- tach himself to me like the Old Man of the Sea to theshoulders of Sindbad, the Sailor, I defeated his game by flying with Judge Jones to Chicago, abandoning the husband whom I hated and the child for whom I never felt a mother’s love. ‘*There in due time a divorce was obtained and then I became Mrs. Judge Jones. You see I have twice committed bigamy, but then I was innocent of any evil intent for I had no idea that you were alive,” she said with a light laugh. “ Oh, you're all right as far as Iam concerned. ‘You needn’t be afraid of my troubling you, al- though I will confess I would like to take you away from this old duffer of a judge as soon as possible.” She hesitated for a few moments, a thought- ful expression upon her face. ‘* Reuben,” she said at last, ‘I have always been frank and honest with you no matter how many others I have deceived and I will not at- tempt to trick you now. You are the only hu- man being in this world for whom I have ever felt one particle of love, but selfishness is so in- grained in my nature that I shrink with horror at the idea of giving up the life of ease and com- fort that I now enjoy to again follow your un- certain fortunes. ‘Wait, let time pass on. I have already laid ‘by considerable money and now [ will putaway every cent I can secure, and when I feel I have enough to secure our future then in some other Jand we may bo happy. Will that content you?” And she gazed anxiously in his face as she put the question, CHAPTER XXVI. A DARK SCHEMEZ, ** CERTAINLY,” the gambler replied without a Taoment’s hesitation. “ Pray don’t think for a moment that I want ven to make 9 sacrifices on my account. I ove you too well to ask you to do that. “Seep on as you are going; get your hands on as much money as possible and I will do the Then there’s the chance too that the old judge may take his departure to the other ‘world one of these days. He’s not a young man, although he seems to be tolerably tough, yet still men of his kidney drop off suddenly and then you'll be a rich widow. The lip of the woman cured in contempt. **Oh, no!” she exclaimed, ‘‘Con’t run away with any idea of that kind. You don’t know my resent lord and master, *He’s as tricky as an Indian and doesn’t have the least faith in anybody. From the very be- ginning he gave me to understand that I would not profit in the least by his death; he fixed matters so that it would be to my interest to take good care of his precious self so as to keep him alive as long as possible. **Tt was one of our marriage conditions that I ‘was to execute a deed by which I gave up all claim to the judge’s est:te in the event of his death, in consideration of a certain amount of cash paid to me.” “That was a crafty move on his part.” _ “Yes, he is a far-sighted schemer and is sel- dom taken at a disadvantage. But tell me, Reuben, how is that if you did not know I was Mrs. Judge Jones you are here?” ‘Tam working out one the details of a big eheme,” the gambler replied. **T don’t suppose that [ ought to give my part- ner away, but [m going to do it all the same. I have been traveling lately with a certain gentle- man who stands at the gt of the heap in his line tind of a man he must be when I say the name by which he is best know is Curly Kid.” **T have heard of the man,” the lady remark- ed. “Some time agolread an account of his being up tosome mischief. I don’t remember exactly what it was, but the police were mixed up in it.” ** Yes, whenever Curly Kid’s name gets into ‘the newspaper the police generally figure in the account also. “ He's a first-class rascal—a very king among the fraternity; never touches anything, ‘you know, without there’s a chance fora big stake at the back of it. “My luck pee Me not been particularly good and so Curly Kid roped me into a specula- tion with him. ‘By accident he happened to drop to Old Lead Pencil’s game, learned all the facts regard- ing your marriage to Crowningshield, the birth of your child, your abandonment of it and flight with the copper king. ** He thought he saw an opportunity for a big stake and after getting me to join him went in r it. ** The first move in the game was to get pos- although I | session of the boy which he easily accomplished, luring the youngster away with the idea that he was going tosee his mother, and in order to cover up his tracks, he got the boy to write a note to his father telling him that he had gone to see his mother.” ‘* Ah, [ understand now!” exclaimed Roxanna, ‘** Crowningshield has been here. I tried to de- ceive him of course, saying that I had a twin sister named Roxanna, who was tho girl whom he married, and that after running away from Boston she died in Chicago. ‘*T took care to fix that matter years ago, so that the records would show that Roxanna Meri- vale after obtaining a divorce from Howard Crowningshield in one of the courts of that city died there soon afterward.” ‘** A very ingenious tale, but I’m afraid that if Iwas in Crowningshield’s place I would not have swallowed it.” ‘Neither did he, but speaking for the dead Roxanna, I told him precisely how she had felt toward him and did not hesitate in the least to explain to him how grossly he had been deceived by asco whom he befriended, trusted and oved. ‘* That must have been a bitter pill for him to swallow,” Raymond observed. ‘No doubt it was; but my object in tellin him the exact truth was to disgust him, so tha he would go away and not trouble me any more but he showed a revengeful spirit, and eclared I had stolen the child away and should be pun- ished.” **Oho; he means war then.” ‘Yes; and he has begun at once, too, The house has been watched by spies all day long, and the judge’s footsteps even have been fol- lowed.” The gambler laughed. ‘* And this is Curly Kid’s work,” he observed. ‘* Tf be had not got after the boy with the idea of pulling a big stake ovt of either the mother or the father, Crowningshield probably would not have troubled you, after learning the truth in ee to what kind of a woman you were,” “1 don’t think the abduction of the child makes much difference,” Roxanna replied. “T thought that when | retenlod to him frankly what a miserable creature I was as far as he was concerned, he would be so completely disgusted, that he would shrink from giving any publicity to the matter; but, I see now I did not understand the man as well as I thought I did.” ‘** But about this child?” the gambler said. ** Of course now that Iseo how you feel about the matter, I understand that there isn’t any money to be expected from you,” ‘* No, but there is from him!” the woman ex- claimed, an angry light flaming in her eyes, ‘* He thinks the world of the boy. I could see that from the way in which he spoke of him. **T suppose that all the love he once had for me he transferred to the child, and he loved me as wellas any woman would care to be loved and that was one reason, I suppose, that caused me to hate him. It’s a strange contradiction, of course, but that is the way it has always been with me. I[ didn’t care for the man, but circum- stances rendered it advisable for me to marry him. I was really led into the match without knowing what I was doing, and after it was over, I blamed myself for having been weak enough to consent. ‘*T had bound myself to a man who in every respect was as different from me as daylight is from darkness; we had not two ideas in com- mon, yet I played my poe so well, that he never suspected that I could not bear him, although he often wondered at my quiet coldness. ‘** Now then, he looks wpon his boy as the apple of his eye; Iam sure of that from the way in which he spoke when he came to see me. ‘*He is rich, or has wealthy relatives from whom he can get money, it is all the same, and Ihave not the least doubt, if you play your cards right, you can get a good sum out of him for the boy’s ransom. ‘* But you will have to play a careful game, for he believes that I am at the bottom of the matter, and in his present state of mind, I’ve no doubt that he would jump at any chance to deal me a deadly blow.” ‘* When we touch him for the ransom, though, he ought to understand that you hav’n’t any- thing to do with the matter.” ‘Yes, that ought to open his eyes; but still it may not.” or a few moments the woman paused, her head sunk down upon her breast, and her eyes were fixed upon the floor, while a dark, angry look came over her face. Tt was plain that her thoughts were not pleas- ant ones. Her companion watched her with interest; but as he perceived that she was busy in medita- tion, he did not interrupt her. At last Roxanna raised her head and spoke: ** This Curly Kid is a very king of scoundrels, if I rightly comprehend your meaning.” ** Yes, lie is.” ou have become his associate?” ** Yes, [ have been obliged to go in with him; I have been in hard luck for some time, and as this thing seemed to promise a big stake, with- out much if any risk, t oohelnded to take a hand “« in it; but outside of that I hav’n’t had any deai- ings with him, although I have been a sort of a chum of his for about six months now.” ‘** He is in communication, I suppose, with all sorts of desperate and dangerous men?’ Rox- anna remarked, a peculiar look shining in her eyes, , ‘*‘Oh, yes, I presume he numbers as many rascals among his acquaintances as any man in Boston.” ‘‘Some men, possibly, who for money could be hired to commit almost any bloody deed.” The voice of the weman had sunk almost to a whisper, and she leaned across the little table, a baleful light gleaming in her eyes, The gambler guessed what was coming, and bis voice, too, grew low, and his face dark, when ke rep] ied: ‘Yes, I know two or three such men,” he said. ‘*Reckless scoundrels who, I really be- lieve, would murder their own brother with as little compunction as though the victim was a vagabond dog, provided they were well paid for the deed. ‘*Suppose this Crowningshield tries to push me to the wall, would I not be justified in fight- ing for my life?’ she asked, with a frown upon her beautiful face, that for the moment made her look far more like a demon than an angel. ** Most certainly you would.” ‘Let this Curly Kid remain in ignorance of the fact that you and I are old acquaintances; tell him that you have seen me, and I care nothing for the child; that from Crowningshield alone can money be obtained, then you seek out some of these scoundrels, and I will arrange a plot to kidnap Crowningshield. ‘* Then, when I have him safe, he must either agree to leave me alone, or else he will find me as pitiless as a raging tiger deprived of her young.” A few more words of small importance, and then the gambler departed. CHAPTER XXVIII. A CONSULTATION, DrEsPITE his habitual coolness the gambler’s head was ina whirl as he descended the steps of Judge Jones’s mansion. The meeting with the woman, whom for years he had thought dead, and the design which she had revealed to him—her intention to force Crowningshield to give up his idea of bringing her to justice—gave him ample food for thought. ‘‘Things are getting decidedly complicated,” he muttered to himself as he slowly strolled down the street. ‘‘Wirst, Curly Kid wants to strike Crowning- shield for five or ten thousand dollars on ac- count of the child; he may be able to do it and again he may not; as far as the woman is con- cerned, his cake is all dough. I shall have to invent some plausible story so that he won’t suspect that Mrs, Judcce Jcnes and myself are old acquaintances, for if he discovers that fact, he might think I was not dealing fairly with him. ‘‘ Second, Crowningshield must be got at in some way so that he will be compelled to let up on Roxanna, ‘* To accomplish this will require considerable head-work and I must have time to think it out.” Tt had been arranged between Randolph and Curly Kid that the latter would wait at a certain saloon on Charles street near the P:ovi- dence until the former had interviewed the lady. To this saloon the gambler at once proceeded. Curly Kid was sitting at one of the tables in the rear of the place, smoking a cigar and read- ing an evening Parer when Randolph came in. The moment the gambler came in, Curly Kid made the cabalistic sign to the German behind the bar which signified ‘‘ two beers.” The lager was brought, Randolph took a sezt at the table, then taking a hearty drink of tho amber-colored liquid, the two proceeded to busi- ness. Although a saloon of this kind would seem at the first glance to bea very strange place for an artful dodger like Curly Kid to select in which to discuss such an important matter as the one upon which he and his companions were about to converse yet in reality it was a good idea for the publicity of the place was a defense against eavesdropping. The saloon depended greatly upon the tran- sient trade attracted by its near proximity to the depot. About all of its customers rushed in, got a drink and then hurried out, and few tarried to exchange words with the presiding genius be- hind the bar. None of the men seemed to have any time to sit down at one of the tables to enjoy their drink, and so the two conspirators were able to converse without fear of being overheard. ‘Well, how did she pan out?’ asked Curly id Kid. ** Not at all.” ‘Whew! you don’t say so? Well, well, that’s a pretty bad beginning.” ‘Yes, about as complete a beat as I ever run into,” the gambler remarked. ‘She wouldn’t have it foracent, Of course SOM EE a * |