The Purchase Price; Or, The Cause of Compromise

by Emerson Hough

  CHAPTER XVIII

  ON PAROLE

  In this strange house party, a truce was tacitly agreed. It seemedsufficient that the future for the time should take care of itself.Dunwody's injury left Clayton practically leader of theMissourians. His party gravitated toward him, while opposite satthe two prisoners, Carlisle and Kammerer, composed and silent, nowand then exchanging a glance with each other, but making no spokencomment.

  Dunwody, in his own room, was looking into the seriousness of hisinjury, with the old trapper Eleazar, once more summoned asreadiest physician. Eleazar shook his head when he had strippedoff the first bloody bandages from the limb. "She'll been broke,"was his dictum. "She'll been bad broke. We mus' have docteursoon." For half an hour the old man did the best he could,cleansing and rebandaging.

  "We _mus_' have _docteur_!" complained he, mindful of Jamieson, faraway, busy with cases as bad as this.

  For half an hour or so Josephine remained in her own room above,having done all she could to establish some sort of order. All atonce to her strained senses there seemed to flash some apprehensionof a coming danger. She rose, tiptoed to her door, looked down. Amoment later she turned, and caught up an old pistol which hung onthe wall near the door in the narrow hallway. Silently and swiftlyshe stepped forward to the head of the stair.

  What she saw now was this: Carlisle and Kammerer, themselves nowarmed with weapons carelessly left in the lower hall, had passedunnoticed from the dining-room, and now were tiptoeing down thehall toward the door of Dunwody's apartment. Clayton and his men,dulled with loss of sleep, had allowed them to leave the main room,and these two, soldiers by training, had resolved to turn thetables and take possession of the place. Their plans were at thepoint of success. They had almost reached the door of Dunwody'sroom, weapons in hand, when from above they heard a sharp command.

  "Halt, there!" a woman cried to them.

  They turned and looked up, arrested by the unmistakable quality inthe tones. They saw her leaning against the baluster of the stair,one arm bound tightly to her side, the other resting a revolverbarrel along the baluster and glancing down it with a fearless eye.She took a step or two lower down the stair, sliding the weaponwith her. "What are you doing there?" she demanded.

  A half-humorous twist came to the mouth of Carlisle. He answeredquietly, as he raised a hand for silence:

  "Just about what you might expect us to do. We're trying to takecare of ourselves. But how about yourself? I thought you werewith us, Madam. I had heard that you--"

  "Come," she answered, lowering the weapon and stepping swiftly downthe stairs. "Come outside, where we can talk."

  The three now passed out the open front door to the wide gallery,which lay in the dim twilight untenanted. Kammerer kept his eyesstill on the muzzle of the revolver. Carlisle laughed. "That'sright, Kammerer," said he. "Be careful when a woman gets the dropon you. She'll shoot quicker than a man, because she doesn't knowany better. I don't doubt you had a reason for stopping us,Madam," said he; "but what?--that puzzles me."

  "How came you here?" she demanded. "You left me. I don't knowanything about what's going on. I'm all at sea."

  "So are we all, Madam. But I'll tell you all I know. I left youfor several reasons. I knew my main errand with you was done. Mypost is out beyond, up the Missouri. I was on my way there when Igot orders to take you with me, as you know. I concluded to dropoff and send a telegraphic report to Washington, and to ask consentto go on out to my post. I saw your note to Dunwody. You had thenchosen a new jailer. I thought, since he was better known in thiscountry than myself, your reputation would be safer in his handsthan mine. But as soon as I left, I began to think it over, and Iresolved to follow after you, not as a jailer but as a friend. Imet a little party of northern men, going out to the Kansascountry; and I knew Lieutenant Kammerer, here, at St. Louis. Weall thought alike. That girl yonder pleaded so hard that we tookher on with us, at Cairo. She was bound to get away. When we tiedup for the night, above St. Genevieve, we were attacked by theseMissourians here. I had intended to leave the boat, for now I knewwhere you were. Lily told me you were taken--handled rudely--likea slave--that you--Well then, I knew it was Dunwody.

  "Of course, I was going to kill him. In the night none of us knewwho made up the party that fired on us. There were half a dozenmen killed, more than that many wounded, and we are prisoners here,as you see. I suppose that's about all. But then, good God!Madam, why break up our attempt to escape? Aren't you with us?And how did you get hurt?"

  She told him, simply, there had been accident.

  "Are you of the revolutionists, Madam?" demanded the big Germansuddenly.

  "Yes!" she wheeled upon him. "I am from Europe. I am for liberty."

  "Come, then," said Kammerer, quietly reaching out and taking awaythe revolver from her hand. "We're friends. How came you to be inthis country, here?"

  She smiled at him bitterly. "Because of my zeal. There werepowers who wanted me out of Washington. Ask Captain Carlisle as tothat. But this man I met later on the boat, as you know.He--brought me here--as you have heard!"

  "It iss outrage!" broke in Kammerer. "It iss crime!"

  "We'll call him to account," interrupted Carlisle. "Why did youstop us? We'd have killed him the next minute. I'll kill him yet."

  "I was afraid you _would_ kill him," she said simply.

  "Well, why not? What has he done to us,--our men,--to you?"

  "I could not see it done."

  "You'll see worse done. We'll do it yet. You must not stand inour way." His hand closed over his own revolver butt, and he madea half motion forward.

  "No!" she said, and stepped before him.

  Carlisle would have put her aside. "What do you mean? They'll beout here in a minute,--we'll have to fight if they catch us here.Do you want to see us killed? Quick! Out of the way!" His voice,raucous in anger, rasped at her ears, low as it was pitched.

  "No," she still replied. "Let me do the thinking. Keep quiet!I'll get you out. There's been blood enough shed now."

  "You are magnificent, Madam!" said Carlisle. "But you arevisionary. Get out of our way. I claim him. Leave him to me."

  "No, I claim him myself. Leave him to me!"

  "In God's name, what next!" exclaimed the young Northernerbitterly. "Are we all mad? Haven't you had trouble enough alreadywith this man? You don't make yourself clear. What do you want ofhim?"

  "I'm entirely clear about it myself. I can't get away from herenow, but I'm safe here now. For all of you to stay would meantrouble, certainly. If those men knew you were planning escapethere would be more men killed. But you don't belong here. Verywell. I'm obliged to stay for a time. So, I'm just going to takethe position of commander. I'm just going to parole you two.You're free to go if you like!"

  Carlisle turned toward the big German, Kammerer, and broke into alaugh. "Did you ever see anything like this?" he demanded. Butthe assent of the other shone in his eyes.

  "The lady hass right," he said. "What she said iss wise, if it canbe done."

  "But, Madam, what will become of _you_?" said Carlisle at last.Her answer was instant. She turned back to the door.

  "Judge Clayton!" she called out, loud and clear. "Mr. Yates! Allof you, come here!"

  The inner doors opened, and they ran out at her call. Some of themhad been asleep, leaning back in their chairs against the wall.The confusion of their approach now aroused all the house. Thereappeared also the tall form of Dunwody himself, leaning on a riflebarrel for a crutch. All these paused in the hall or on thegallery, close to the great door. Dunwody's frown was unmistakableenough, when he saw the three grouped outside, the two prisonersarmed.

  "There's been plotting here!" he cried. "What's up? Get yourarms, men! Cover them, quick!"

  "Wait!" said Carlisle quietly. "We're armed, and we've got youcovered." His weapon and that of Kammerer shone gray in the halflight. Dunwody threw hims
elf against the doorpost with a growl ofanger.

  "You've been plotting against us!" he said to Josephine grimly."Well!"

  "You are unjust, as usual, Sir," said Carlisle hotly. "On thecontrary, she just kept us from killing you--which by all therights of God and man we ought to have done,--and will do, someday."

  "What do you mean?" demanded Dunwody dully. "You--she saved--"

  "It iss the truth," assented Kammerer, in his turn. "It wass thelady who hass saved you. She hass spoken for peace and not forbloodshed. You owe to her your life."

  "My life!" he said, turning toward her. "You--"

  "I've assumed command here," interrupted Josephine calmly. "I'veparoled these gentlemen."

  "Indeed!" said Dunwody sarcastically. "That's very nice, forthem!".

  She went on unperturbed. "I'm going to set them free. JudgeClayton and Mr. Jones and you others, too, must go on home. Youwill have to surrender to the courts. These men are going to leavethe state. All of you must disperse--at once."

  "And you yourself,--" began Dunwody grimly; "what do you plan?"

  "I remain. I am a hostage. It will now be known where I am. Youwill be responsible for me, now. I fancy that will suit Washingtonas well as to detain Captain Carlisle as my jailer any longer. IfI thought I needed him, I would not let him go. We are all of usgoing to be under parole, don't you see?"

  "Is it your wish that we should give parole in these circumstances,Dunwody?" Judge Clayton himself smiled rather sardonically.

  "I don't see why not, after all," said Dunwody, at length, slowly."I don't see why that isn't about as wise as anything we can do.The law will do the rest of this work, and we must all be ready forit, as she says. Only one thing, gentlemen, before we part. As tothis young lady here, I'll kill the first man, friend or foe, whoraises a breath against her. Do I make myself plain? Put downyour guns, then. I won't turn any man away, not even an enemy.Have you eaten, gentlemen? Are you rested enough to go to-night?"

  An hour later clattering hoofs once more resounded along theTallwoods road.