Frank Merriwell's Triumph; Or, The Disappearance of Felicia

by Burt L. Standish

  CHAPTER XXV.

  HOW WAS IT DONE?

  What had happened to Dick? Intentionally he had permitted Felicia tokeep the lead in the race through the chaparral. It is possible he mighthave overtaken her had he tried. He had no thought of danger, and he waswholly unprepared when out from the shadows of the chaparral shot atwisting, writhing coil, the loop of which fell over his shoulders andjerked him like a flash from the saddle. The shock, as he struck theground, drove the breath from his body and partly stunned him. Before hecould recover he was pounced upon by two men, who quickly dragged himinto the edge of the thicket, where a third man--a half-bloodMexican--was coiling the lariat with which the boy had been snatchedfrom the horse's back.

  These men threatened Dick with drawn weapons.

  "Make a sound or a cry, kid," growled one of them, "and we sure cuts youup!"

  The boy's dark eyes looked fearlessly at them, and he coolly inquired:

  "What's your game? I have not enough money on me to pay you for yourtrouble."

  "Ho, ho!" laughed one of the trio. "We gits our pay, all right, younker.Don't worry about that. Tie his elbows close behind him, Mat. Mebbe webest gags him some."

  "No, none of that," declared the one called Mat. "If he utters a cheep,I'll stick him sure."

  But the other insisted that Dick should be gagged, and this they finallyand quickly did. With his arms bound behind him and a gag between histeeth, he was lifted to his feet and forced into the depth of thethicket. The Mexican, who was called Tony, seemed to know a path throughthe chaparral, although it was dim and indistinct, and this theyfollowed.

  Thus it happened that when Felicia missed Dick and turned back she foundno trace of him. On through the thick chaparral they threaded their way,now and then crouching low to push through thorny branches, theirprogress necessarily being slow. For a long time they tramped on, comingfinally to an opening.

  Several horses were grazing there. No time was lost in placing thecaptive boy on the back of a horse and fastening his feet togetherbeneath the animal's belly. Already it was growing dusky, but those menknew the course they would pursue. The Mexican and Mat mounted oneanimal and followed Dick, while the biggest man of the party, who hadonce been addressed as Dillon, now took the lead.

  Starry night came as they still pushed on, but they had left thechaparral behind and were on the trackless plain. Finally it was decidedthat the captive should be blindfolded. By this time his jaws wereaching, and he was greatly relieved when the gag was removed. Theyseemed to think there was little danger of his cries being heard shouldhe venture to shout for help. Dick did not shout; he felt the folly ofit.

  Long hours they rode, and the bandage over the boy's eyes prevented himfrom telling what course they followed. At last they halted. The cordsabout his ankles were released, and he was unceremoniously dragged fromthe saddle to the ground. Following this, he was marched into some sortof a building. There at last the bandage was removed from his eyes, andeven his arms were set free. Dillon and Mat were with him. The Mexicanhad been left to care for the horses.

  "Now, kid," said the big man, "you makes yourself comfortable as youcan. Don't worry none whatever; you're all safe here. Nothing troublesyou, and we looks out for you. Oh, yes, we looks out for you."

  "Why have you brought me here?" asked Dick.

  "We lets you guess at that a while. It amuses you perhaps, and passesaway the time."

  "If my brother finds out who did this----"

  "Now, don't talk that way!" cried Mat. "We don't bother with yourbrother any. We does our business with other parties."

  "So that's it--that's it!" exclaimed Dick, "My brother's enemies havepaid you for this piece of work."

  "That's one of the little things you has to guess about," hoarselychuckled Dillon. "Thar's a bunk in the corner. I sure opines this placeis stout enough to hold you, and all the while Mat or I sits in the nextroom. If we hears you kick up restless-like, we comes to soothe you.We're great at soothing--eh, Mat?"

  "Great!" agreed Mat.

  "If you has a good appetite," continued Dillon, "in the morning we givesyou a square feed. Oh, we treats you fine, kid--we treats you fine. Wehas orders to be ca'm and gentle with you. We're jest as gentle as twoplayful kittens--eh, Mat?"

  "Jest so," agreed Mat.

  "Of course, you being young, it disturbs you some to be introduced to usso sudden-like. Still, you seems to have a lot of nerve. You don't gittrembly any, and you looks a heap courageous with them fine black eyesof yours. By smoke! I almost believes you has it in yer ter tackle usboth, kid; but you'd better not--you'd better not. It does no good, andit ruffles our feelings, although we is so ca'm and gentle. When ourfeelings is ruffled we are a heap bad--eh, Mat?"

  "Sure," agreed Mat.

  "That's about all," said Dillon. "Now we bids you a pleasant good night,and we hopes you sleeps sweet and dreams agreeable dreams--eh, Mat?"

  "We does," nodded Mat.

  Then they backed out through the door behind them, which led into thefront room of the building, leaving Dick in darkness, as the door wasclosed and barred.

  Dick knew there was very little chance for him to escape unaided fromthe clutches of those ruffians. Still, he was not the sort of a boy togive up, and he resolved to keep his ears and eyes open for anyopportunity that might present itself. Left without a light, there wasno hope of making a satisfactory examination of his prison room untilthe coming of another day.

  He flung himself down on the couch and meditated. But for the fact thathe was in fine physical condition, his fall when jerked from the saddlemight have injured him seriously. As it was, he had simply been somewhatshaken up. He felt a slight soreness, but regarded it as of noconsequence. Of course, he understood the game the ruffians wereplaying. Beyond question he was to be held as a hostage in order thatFrank's enemies might force Merry into some sort of a deal concerningthe mines.

  His one satisfaction lay in the belief that Felicia had escaped. As helay there on the bunk, he could hear the mumbling voices of his captorsin the next room. After a time his curiosity was aroused, and he felt adesire to hear what they were saying.

  Silently he arose and stole over to the partition between the rooms.This partition was strangely thick and heavy for a building in that partof the country. Seemingly it had been constructed for the purpose ofsafely imprisoning any one who should be thrust into that room. Althoughhe pressed his ear close to the partition, he was unable for some timeto understand anything the men were saying. He moved softly about,seeking a place where he might hear better, and finally found it in acrack beneath the massive door, through which shone a dim light.

  Lying flat on his back, with his ear near this crack, the boy listened.To his satisfaction, he was now able to hear much of the talk thatpassed between the men. Plainly but two of them, Mat and Dillon, were inthe outer room.

  "This piece of work certain pays us a good thing, Mat," said Dillon."The gent what has it done is rotten with coin, and we makes him plankdown a heap liberal."

  "What does yer know about him, pard?" inquired Mat. "Whoever is he,anyhow?"

  "Why, sure, I hears his name is Morgan, though I deals with him directnone at all myself."

  "Well, partner, this is better and some easier than the railroad job."

  "All the same, Dan gets a heap sore when he finds we has quit t'otherjob. And, as for this being less dangerous, I am none certain of that."

  "Why not?"

  "Well, this yere Frank Merriwell they say is a holy terror. Dan hisselfhas had some dealings with him, you know. He knocks the packing out ofDan down at Prescott not so long ago."

  "Down at Prescott," thought the listening boy; "down at Prescott. Why, Isupposed it was up at Prescott. If it's down, Prescott must be to thesouth. In that case these fellows doubled and turned north afterscooping me in."

  This was interesting to him, for one thing he desired to know very muchwas just where he had been taken. As he was meditating on this, Dickmissed some of the ta
lk between the men, for in order to understand whatthey were saying it was necessary for him to listen with the utmostintentness.

  "Do you allow, Dillon," he finally heard Mat say, "that Dan will stickto his little plan to hold up that train?"

  "I opine not. He won't be after trying it all by his lonesome. One manwho holds up a train and goes through it has a heap big job on hishands."

  "So that's the kind of a railroad job they were talking about!" thoughtDick. "They surely are a tough lot."

  "Mebbe he comes searching for us," suggested Dillon.

  "Mebbe so. Ef he does, we has to deceive him."

  "He gits a whole lot hot, I judge."

  "You bet he does. And when he is hot we wants to keep our eyes peeledfor a ruction."

  "That's whatever."

  Although Dick listened a long time after this, the conversation of theruffians seemed of no particular importance. Finally they ceasedtalking, and evidently one of them at least prepared to sleep. Dickarose and returned to the bunk, where he lay trying to devise somepossible method of escape. Scores of wild plans flittered through hisbrain, but he realized that none of them were practical.

  "If I could get word to Frank," he thought. "But how can it be done--howcan it be done?"

  Such a thing seemed impossible. At last he became drowsy and realizedthat he was sinking off to sleep, in spite of his unpleasant position.He was fully awakened at last by sudden sounds in the outer room. Therecame a heavy hammering at the door, followed by the voice of one ofDick's captors demanding to know who was there. Dick sat upright on thebunk, his nerves tingling as he thought of the possibility that theruffians had been followed by a party of rescuers, who were now at hand.

  The one who was knocking seemed to satisfy the men within, for Dick knewthe door was flung open. He swiftly crossed the floor and lay again withhis ear near the crack beneath the door.

  "Well, you two are a fine bunch!" declared a hoarse voice that seemedfull of anger. "You keeps your dates a heap well, don't yer! Oh, yes,yer two nice birds, you are!"

  This was the voice of the newcomer.

  "Howdy, Dan?" said Mat. "We thinks mebbe yer comes around this yereway."

  "Oh, yer does, does yer?" snarled the one called Dan. "Why does yerthink that so brightlike? Why does yer reckon that when you agrees termeet me at Win'mill Station I comes here to find you five miles away?That's what I'd like to know."

  "Windmill Station," Dick said to himself. "Five miles from WindmillStation, and Windmill Station is some twelve or fifteen miles north ofPrescott."

  "You seems excited, Dan," said Mat, in what was intended to be asoothing manner. "Mebbe we has reasons why we didn't meet you any."

  "Reasons! If you has, spit 'em out."

  "Yes, we has reasons," quickly put in Dillon. "Dan, we finds we iswatched a whole lot. We finds somebody suspects that little game weplans."

  "Is that so?" demanded the newcomer, with a sneering doubt in his voice.

  "That's what it is," asserted Mat. "We don't have a chance to move muchwithout being watched, and so we reckons we does best to drop thislittle job for the time being."

  "Is that so?" sneered Dan.

  "Didn't we say it was?" indignantly demanded Dillon. "You hears us, Ijudge."

  "Now, who is it what watches you so closelike?" questioned thedissatisfied man. "Mebbe you tells me that."

  "We don't know just who it is, but we has been followed for the last twodays. You know a hold-up down on the Southern Pacific gits peoplesuspicious. Mebbe they thinks we had a hand in that."

  "Which we didn't have any at all," hastily put in Mat.

  "So you two fine chaps takes water?" contemptuously cried Dan. "Youthrows up a chance to make a good thing? Why, it was a snap! We could'a' stopped the train, gone through her, and then hiked it for Mexicohot foot, and the Old Boy hisself wouldn't 'a' ketched us."

  "Mebbe not," admitted one of the other men. "But we opines it would 'a'been a whole lot bad for us if the holding up had been expected. Lookhere, Dan, we thinks it right and proper to put this thing off some. Wethinks mebbe in a week or so we is in fer it."

  "Oh, that's how you figgers. Why didn't you let me know about it any?That's what I'd like ter have yer explain. You leaves me a-waiting anda-watching fer yer while you bunks down yere all ca'm and serene-like.That's what sores me to the limit."

  "We thinks," said Mat, "if we goes to meet you, mebbe we is seen, andthat makes more suspicions. We thinks the best thing to do is to laylow. We're right sorry that we couldn't keep the app'intment, but ithappens that way, and there is nothing else fer it."

  "Well, it is evident ter me that you two are squealers. You both lacknerve, and I quits you cold. The whole business is off, understandthat."

  "Well, if you gits hot and quits us that way, we can't help it," saidDillon.

  "Well, I does quit. What I wants is my blanket I leaves in yar. I takesthat an' gits out, and you two goes to blazes for all of me."

  Evidently Dan started for the back room at this moment, and thelistening boy prepared to spring away from the door. At the same timeDick was seized by a sudden determination to attempt a dash for freedomthe moment the door was opened. He knew he might not succeed, but therewas a slim chance of it, and he decided to take that chance. Both theruffians on guard, however, were startled when Dan proposed getting hisblanket from the back room. Quickly Dillon interposed.

  "Hold on, Dan!" he cried. "Never mind that blanket. We fixes that allright with you. Yere is mine. You take that."

  Had Dick been able to see them he would have beheld the newcomer, ahuge, pockmarked individual, standing in the centre of the floor,staring at the men before him in no small surprise.

  "Why, whatever is this?" asked Dan. "I opine I takes my own blanket."

  "But mine is worth more than yours," hastily asserted Dillon.

  "And you're a heap anxious ter give it up in place of mine, I sees.That's right queer. I don't just understand your generosity. It seemsmighty curious."

  "It's all right, Dan," declared Mat. "Take the blanket."

  "Not by a blamed sight," roared the big man. "I takes my own blanket. Igoes into that room. I sees what you has in there."

  As he said this, he suddenly whipped out a long revolver, with which hemenaced the man who attempted to bar his progress.

  "Get out of the way," he commanded, "or I furnishes funeral stock forthe undertaker."

  "He's coming!" whispered Dick. "They can't stop him!"

  The boy rose to his hands and knees, where he listened a moment more. Heheard the men on guard protesting, but their protestations availednothing, and a moment later a hand was on the door.

  Dick sprang up. The bar that held the door fell, and it was flung open.With a spring, Dick was out into the lighted room, bending low andstriking the man with the revolver like a battering-ram full and fair inthe pit of the stomach, bowling him over. As Dan went down, his fingerscontracted on the trigger of the pistol, and a shot rang out.