Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 453 — page 13: what you’re looking at

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

: ° Captain Coldgrip’s Long Trail. At that moment the eyes of the two men met, and then Grant Thurston pushed forward and halted in front of Mortimer. His eyes still flashed with the vengeful light that had not left them for a moment since his discovery of Medora’s abduction, ‘““Are you hunting your master?” he cried leaning toward the young man with clinched hands. ‘* My master?” echoed Mortimer, as a smile played with his finely shaped lips. ‘“‘I have no master.” ‘‘T mean the brute you came here with from Denver the other day. Ah! we know him as well as you do. Colonel Redpath, eh? You've come a little too late to find your captain.” It was evident that Mortimer’s surprise was genuine. ‘* He isn’t counected with the count, Id bet my head on it!” asserted Cyclone who stood where he could see the young man’s face. “Tm not seeking the man you mention,” he replied to Thurston in calm tones. ‘Mebbe it’s Captain Coldgrip, then!” The young man gave a sudden start which all saw. ‘Yes, sir. I want to see Captain Coldgrip,” he promptly answered. ‘It’s all the same—whether you want to see the foreign sleuth or the native one!” cried the exile. ‘* It is the same old league against the in- nocent; the same dastardly scheme botched in Russia! So you want to see Captain Coldgrip, the Yankee detective? You hear him, Captain Mark? This is another member of the gang. Stand back, men of Silver Deck, and Ill make er We beginning a game of vengeance ever ad! But Mark Million’s hand held fast Grant Thurston’s wrist as it came up. ‘*I don’t understand this,” said the young man, as the boss of the camp held the exile’s arm. ‘* Why is ee Coldgrip such a fiend here that I have to be assaulted for being his friend?” ‘It’s a long story,” answered Mark. ‘** Let ’im answer for himself! By Jupiter! hyer’s the Atlantic sleuth now!” Nobody saw Mortimer from that moment, and one man on the outside of the crowd behind him ducked his head and disap . A man had just come in, a man with a large hat that had fresh dark stains, and a bullet-hole through the brim! ‘** That is the fiend!” cried Thurston, breaking from Mark’s grip, and starting toward the new- comer, ‘* Where is my child, Captain Coldgrip? In God’s name, where is Medora?” =? The city sleuth turned toward Captain Mark. ‘* Is this man Grant Thurston?” he asked. **T am no one else!” admitted the exile. ‘*‘ My child sed sey into the hands of the Palace rpion, Coldgrip struck the cbunter with his fist. ‘** By the living God, Til find her!” he cried, CHAPTER XVL. SLEUTH AGAINST SLEUTH. ‘‘ A BULLET-HOLE through the rim of his hat, and probably a furrow along the temple, nothin more!” muttered a man, whose was pro- tected from the detective’s by the crowd of surprised miners. ‘He wouldn't mind findin’ me » but he'll not enjoy thet pleasure if I can help it. I don’t want to see tain Cold- grip after what happened just outside o’ camp,” and Cyclone took good care to keep the crowd between him and the man who startled all by swearing that he would find Medora. He did not see Grant Thurston staring at the sf sleuth like a man lost in amazement, nor did he see the exile spring forward to halt with an exclamation of wonder before Claude, ** Say that again!” he cried. ‘‘ Let me look into your — when you speak the oath. You find my child for me? What does it mean, Cap- tain Coldgrip? Not long ago you were Paul Demidoff’s man!” ** Not for ong," answered the detective, a smile li tt pain ma i erowd reached the door. ty ihe trent The back of Captain Cold was turned to- ward him, and a moment lator be cleared the ranch threshold and was gone. ‘* The next time [’ll look at my dead!” averred Cyclone, grimly, throwing a glance toward the ranch as he turned away. “If Colonel Red- h did make a su ul swoop, he wants to eep out 0’ this man’s way. When Claude Cold- grip told Thurston that he will find Medora, he will do nothing else, and at the same time he'll show the colonel a crushing hand, Don’t waste any time, count. Push forward with your prize, the one you oe for in Russia. I pro to make myself immediately scarce, for the man whom I tumbled with a bullet isn’t likely to handle me with gloves, if I fall into his clutches,” Meantime, Grant Thurston had slowly come to the conclusion that Captain Coldgrip’s unex- pected oath had not been couched in idle “You must know this young man,” spoke cet imeem ee ee ccc NC ee Mark Million, addressing the detective, as he glanced at Mortimer, the youth who had come in on the stage. The two men exchanged significant glances. ‘‘Gentlemen, this is Mortimer,” explained Captain pg ay 0 the crowd. ‘‘ Be has a per- fect right to be here at this time, and I can say that he has come to take a hand in this game, You see this,” he went on, taking off his hat and holding it up so that the track of Cyclone’s bul- let was plainly visible to all. ‘‘ These are the compliments of one of your old citizens,” and his hand touched the rent and the flesh-wound along his temple. ‘I was invited to retire from Silver Deck by this individual, and when I con- cluded to remain there was a little trigger-work —like this.” ‘‘Name him, captain!” cried the crowd. ‘* Out with the handle uf the man who tried his hand and eye on you.” ‘*‘ Let him go,” was the answer. ‘“ There may come a time of reckoning; there probably will,” and the eyes of the handsome speaker seemed to snap. ‘War it Cyclone? He war hyar when you came in; but he’s not hyar now.” The detective’s smile answered the question, and the crowd drew back to confirm the speak- er’s observation. ‘‘ Come, Mortimer,” resumed the sleuth to the young man, who had been watching him with an Reece ate which he made no attempt to con- ceal. Mortimer went forward. ** When will you begin the hunt?” asked Grant Thurston, eagerly. ‘‘Every moment that my child remains in that villain’s power is torture tome. Iam going to trust you, Captain Cold- grip, you, the man who ran us out of New York and forced us to take to the wilds of the great West. I am going to trust you, I say. help you if you deceive me! But, you will not.” ‘(tive me a little time,” was the reply. ‘‘A trail never gets cold for me. I want to see this young man now. Come, Mortimer.” The men of Silver Deck saw the detective walk with the youth from the ranch. ‘* What do you think?” suddenly cried Thurs- ton, clutching Mark Million’s arm. ‘‘Can we trust this spotter? Dare we send Captain Cold- grip on the trail, and remain away ourselves?” ‘* Who says we've got to keep back?” demand- ed Captain Mark. ‘‘I want nothing better than to hunt this Russian dog to the end of his trail! You can trust Claude Coldgrip. He will take the trail, and do his part; but you must not forget that he is to play against the coolest and greatest rascal that ever set foot on our shores—the Scorpion of the czar’s palace.” Captain sion. oh said but little to Mortimer until they reac a cabin not far from the mountain ranch. ‘** A little too late, Mortimer,” announced the detective. ‘The bird was here, but he has flown.” ‘““T know it now,” was the response. “It is oo that the man in whose company I came m Denver was the very person we want.” A faint smile came to the sleuth’s lips. ‘* Yes, Colonel Redpath is Count Paul Demi- doff, the Russian whose one great crime, com- mitted shortly after his coming to this country, changed the whole tenor of your life.” ‘*Tf [ had but known it!” flashed Mortimer. ‘* Why, I was bours alone in the with him! What an opportunity I had! But, it was not to be,” he added, after a se. ‘* The second part of my trail is to at Silver Deck; but I have rejoined you, captain, and I am satisfied.” **'You did not find me in Leadville,” smiled the detective. ‘*No. I turned back as quickly as possible. If you were not in Leadville, I argued, you had gone to Silver Deck, for your last dispatch told me that your man was likely to be found among these mountains.” ‘*'You see, Mortimer, that my hunt for Me- dora includes the Russian scoundrel,” resumed Cold : Gorbainly. You are not to go alene!” cried the young man.” ‘*T would prefer it.” ‘*T et me take the trail with you. You know my desires: you have heard my oath!” con- tinued Mortimer. ‘‘ I never saw the face of the Russian until I encountered it at the Grand Hotel in Denver, and then how should I know that Colonel Redpath was the man whom I want? It may be a long trail, Captain Cold- ‘*T have won on long hunts.” ‘‘It may be a dangerous hunt. The tiger is apt to turn on the hunters.” ‘*Tigers have turned on me before,” was the cool answer. gaia 9a looked amazed at the man before m. “There is no telling which way the man went,” he went on. ‘We will find the trail. He went on horse- back. What is more, he took the last horses in Silver Deck.” Mortimer started. ‘Then we are in the lurch sure enough!” he exclaimed. ‘‘There are no horses nearer than Leadville.” . at 13 ‘‘ None?” asked the detective, smiling. ‘*‘ How did you get here, young man?” ‘* The stage brought me—” “And good horses pull it over the moun- tains.” ‘‘But the driver may not submit to being robbed.” ‘‘We will see. Let that gofor a moment. You may depend upon it, Mortimer, that I am not going to start afoot after the Russian. The horse that brought me from Leadville died a few hours after | reached Silver Deck. Now, will you obey me?” **] don’t know,” answered the young man, with a doubtful shake of the head. ‘Il came into this. country to find the fiend whose hand blighted my whole life. I know that he still lives; I am now on his trail. You are going to keep me back while you pursue alone. Is this right, Captain Coldgrip? I am the son of Ralpb Romaine. Over the grave of my father I swore to find this Russian Satan. You heard theoath. Do you want to force me from the track of ven- geance at this e of the game?” Captain Coldgrip was looking coolly into the flushed face of the young man, who spoke with a fervor that filled his veins almost to bursting. ‘*‘T see,” he said, calmly. ‘‘ You don’t want to obey me, and yet I have promised that you — shall be in at the death. This man comes from the empire of giants, and with the name of be- — ing invincible. He comes from the shadow of the imperial palace after two persons whose lives he wrecked by hisinfamy. Il did notknow Paul Demidoff when he first came to meand | engaged me to help him run down Grant Thurston and his child. For a time I was in the Scorpion’s employ. I did chase the exiles from their hiding place in New York,and — I did it as the Russian’s employee, as you might say. But then came the crime which has dark- ened your life, Mortimer. You sought me out and put me on the new trail. What did I dis- cover?—that a giant committed the deed, that he was a foreigner, and, finally, that the blood fe in his veins was Russian!” ‘‘ You told me that, but you did not, at the time, tell me about the exiles.” “No: I still wanted to find Grant Thurston and kis child, for, in my search for them, ] had — discovered that he was American, although his wife, Medora’s mother, was a Russian. t ou see how the two trails came together? I new that in bunting the exiles I would a 4 certain Lig Russian who left New York i" after the crime that struck you down. It is plain now, is it not, Mortimer.” ‘Nothing can be plainer!” exclaimed the young man. . ‘* Now,” and Captain Coldgrip leaned toward Mortimer and touched his arm witha hand that — inspired him with confidence. ‘‘ Beforeanbour I will be on the trail again. away from Sil- ver Deck. Leave it to the pards and to Grant — Thurston.” ¥e ‘** He will not remain!” cried Mortimer. M bh bia bar gem San Francisco.” exclaimed the young man, starting back. ‘‘I see! you are Pine. ee to drive me © off the trail.” C. ‘* Tt is because I don’t want this Russian ti "es to turn on the son of his victim,” answered the ccicr tance eth tike :teiah. aiie: ns ortimer le rough chair he ae or and walked to the one window of the ence, | The re of Captain Coldgrip followed him and watched him while he stood there fighting a mental battle. ‘on ‘“‘T have come thousands of miles to meet this _ man!” he exclaimed turning suddenly and con- a the untiring sleuth. ‘* You are the only living man whom I will obey.” ‘Then you will go to ’Frisco?” came over the _ detective’s hps. os ‘T will go,” assented Mortimer. “‘I need not tell you to follow this trail to the bitter end, — Captain ae ie I look to you for vengeance, for justice! If the tiger turns on you,if the Muscovite assassin gets the upper I give © you leaveto strike for me: but not until member! not until then !” The New York detective held out bis hand, — and the two men on ce in the lamp-light. | i, “To-morrow I be on the road to Frisco, _ while you, captain—” : Pie: ‘*T will be on the trail of this Russian sleuth.” ‘ ‘Sleuth against sleuth!” ejaculated Morti- Ns ‘But not for the first time in my life, “‘ was ee ‘Now let us go downand break the -—" ho oie irty minutes later a man mounteda horse in front of the mountain ranch and looked down into the face of Grant Thurston, whose hand — rested on > a 2 speed you, Captain Coldgrip,” cried the i exile. : | ‘The devil take you!” growled a man in the ~ shanty’s shadow, and the detective rode away. i CHAPTER XVIL THE CHAMPION OF YELLOW JACKET. IT was a night seldom witnessed in the Wild — West, and nowhere else was it to be found in | its wild picturesqueness than in Yellow Jacket. — “'comicbooks.con * S > ag a a mic