CHAPTER X.
A DIVE FOR LIFE.
There was but one choice left for Fritz--that of standing his groundand meeting young Greyville boldly; for there was apparently no avenueof escape for him now.
Consequently, with his revolver drawn, ready for use, he positionedhimself at the water's edge, facing the aperture, and waited.
He had not long to wait.
In a few seconds Griffith Gregg--as we shall henceforth call him--camestriding into the chamber, and uttered a violent oath at sight ofFritz.
"Hello! by the Satanic I thought I was not mistaken. The Dutchman weleft adrift, for sure!"
Fritz did not speak, or allow himself to move a particle, but stoodglaring at his enemy like one turned to stone.
"Hello! why the devil don't you answer?" Gregg demanded; apparentlynot feeling positive that Fritz was in the flesh. "If you don'tanswer, I'm hanged if I don't drown ye."
No answer from Fritz.
But from directly over the villain's head seemed to come the words, ina hoarse voice:
"Villain, behold the reflection of your crime!"
"Bah!" Gregg cried, with a start, glaring about him. "You can't playany tricks on me, you Dutch blunderbuss! In some way you've escapedthe trap, and now I'll pay you a grudge I've got against you."
And with a long knife in hand which he had drawn from his belt, hedashed fiercely at Fritz, regardless of the drawn revolver.
Leveling his pistol at his opponent's breast, the young detectivepulled the trigger.
The weapon missed fire.
Gregg was almost upon him now.
There was but a moment to act, and yet, in that time, Fritz hurled theweapon with great velocity at the villain's head, and somersaultedbackward into the water, the toe of one of his boots catching Gregg inunder the lower jaw.
This, with the stinging blow of the pistol, dropped him like a log tothe ground, where he lay for an instant, howling with pain and rage.
Fritz, landing in the water, swam through the almost submergedentrance, and soon was outside the cavern, at the edge of the bluff.
To swim around to the southern side was the work of but a few moments,and he was once more on _terra firma_, at his starting-point.
Here he sat down upon the beach to collect his thoughts.
So strange had been his experience within the last few hours that hewas really more confused than he had yet been since entering upon hisprofession as a detective.
"Now den, let me see apoud somet'ings," he muttered. "In der virstblace, dis be a reg'lar ruffian seddlement, vere id don'd vas healthyvor such ash I, und id would puzzle me to do der shob all alone. Imust haff some help. Off der ish a delegraph office near here, den Imust find id, und delegraph to Philadelf vor assistance. Der ish nodoubt but I haff discovered der smugglers, und der next t'ing is tocabture dem. Und I don'd dink id vas healthy for me to go down mit dercave again, undil dis matter keeps shady. I vonder vot haff pecome offder gal vot called herself Silly Sue?"
"Here she is--what do you want of her?" a merry voice cried, and theelfin danced, laughing, out from behind a huge bowlder at Fritz'srear, where she had been concealed, evidently playing the spy. "Whatdo you want of Silly Sue, Irishman?"
"I vas no Irishman!" Fritz retorted. "I am a Dutchman."
"Get out! You're pure Irish. But that ain't the point. What do youwant of me?"
"I vanted to inquire how far it ish to der nearest delegraph station?"
"Oh! a good ways inland. The road you see in front of the old house onthe bluff leads direct to it. If you want to send a message, I'll sendit for you."
"You vil?"
"Yes. I'll hook one o' dad's horses from the pasture, and ride totown. Guess I know what ye propose doing."
"Vot?"
"You are a detective, and you have discovered that my dad and hissmugglers live around here, and you want to send for help to arrestthem!"
"How vos you know all dot?"
"Oh, I'm silly enough to guess it, and I hope you'll do it. They're ahard gang, and a wicked gang, and they hate me worse than poison,because I'm honest, unlike the rest of them."
"Captain Gregg und Honorable Granby Greyville are der same persons,not?"
"Yes. You're mighty cute to find that out, when some o' the villagersdon't even suspect it. I'm _his_ gal."
"Ish _dot_ a fact?"
"Yes, but he don't own me, because I denounce his dishonesty. Ha! ha!an old man was found dead on the beach once. The next day my papa hada big sum of money in his possession. I smelled foul play. I stole themoney from him and burned it up. Ha! ha! Then he whipped meunmercifully, and turned me adrift. But, pooh! I don't care! I getalong famous, and I'll make fun for the smugglers yet. So if you wantme to go to the telegraph station for you, and will give me a fewshillings, I'm ready."
"I'll giff you five dollars!" Fritz assured.
"Bully!" the girl assented. "Now, just tell me what you want, and I'myours."
"Vel, I vant you to go to der delegraph office und send a message toTony Fox, care of Police Headquarters, Philadelphia, telling him tofetch a half-dozen men der dis village at once. Can you rememberdot?"
"Well, you bet I can! I don't forget things easily. Give us yourmoney, and I'm off for a wild horseback ride."
Fritz accordingly gave her a V-note, and then, after again instructingher what to do, she took her departure by clambering up the bluff.
Fritz then lay down upon the sand in the warm sunlight, littledreaming that his plans had been overheard.
The Irishman, Pat Grogan, had been concealed behind another bowlder,and had over heard every word of Fritz's conversation with Silly Sue.
Shortly after her departure, and when sure Fritz was not watching, hestole softly from his place of concealment and up the side of thebluff.
Once on top of the bluff, he quickened his pace, descended theopposite side, and hurried toward the village. At the residence ofGranville Greyville he paused, and entered the spacious lawn.
His honor and the countess were seated upon the lawn in front of thehouse, enjoying the shade of a great tree, and Grogan tipped his hatas he approached them.
"Sure, sur, it's mesilf as has made a discovery, sur," he said, with ahuge grin of satisfaction.
"Ah! indeed! I thought you might be of some use!" his honor replied,complacently. "What is the nature of your discovery, Grogan?"
"Sure, sur, it's consarnin' the girl you set me to watchin'."
"As I expected--curse her! What new devilment has she been up to?"
"Sure I did kape a civil eye on her, as yez told me to, and a bit agoshe met a Dutchman on the beach, an' it's a grand plot tha be aftherorganizin'. The loikes av the Dutchman he ha wanted to ba sindin' atiligraph missage to Philadelphia for tha detectives, an tha gal shedid till him for a V she would stale a horse forninst your pasture an'be carryin' the missage for him hersilf, whereat he forked over thecash, and she skipped, bedad!"
His honor listened, his face growing purple with passion.
"May all the furies seize that obstinate and meddlesome littlewretch!" he hissed. "She seems determined to ruin me. No amount ofwhippings have ever served to make her like other girls. Why didn'tyou stop her, Pat?"
"Sure, it was yersilf as told me to be doin' naught else but watchin'her."
"True, I had forgotten. She has probably gone so far that it would benext to useless to attempt to overhaul her now. Do you think you couldmount a horse and overtake her, Pat?"
"Bedad, no. It's sorry a horse I can ride, yer honor."
"Then ascertain from the ostler the location of the pasture, and whenshe returns capture her. I'll give you ten dollars for the job."
"Bad 'cess to me if I don't do it. An' what shall I be doin' to herafter I cotch 'er?"
"Then take her to the old mansion on the bluff and wait until I come."
"Och! howly murther, I'll not go in where the skelegon is--nary atime!"
"Nor need you. What time intervenes between your arrival and
mine youcan spend outside. But look sharp she don't escape you."
"Sure, it's mesilf as will ba doin' that same!"
Then Grogan executed a grotesque bow and took his departure toward thestable, while Greyville turned toward the countess.
"The devil will be to pay now. As I suspected, that Dutchman is a spy,and having suspicioned or ferreted out some knowledge concerning theleague, has sent for his fellow watch-dogs. In less than two days weshall be in the clutches of the law, unless we make a break forliberty at once."
"Oh! there is no particular reason for hurry. When we find there isdanger, we can easily escape," the countess said, calmly.
"How? If we wait until their arrival, it will be too late."
"By no means. My steamboat lies out but a short distance, and we canboard it and sail for _la belle_ France, in defiance."
"What! without unloading?"
"Bah! what are a few thousand dollars to life? Besides, the goods willsell again, for full value, at Havre."
Fritz to the Front, or, the Ventriloquist Scamp-Hunter Page 10