Bart Stirling's Road to Success; Or, The Young Express Agent
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CHAPTER XX
BART ON THE ROAD
"Get up!"
The rig that Bart was driving sped along the dusty country road at agood sharp pace.
The young express agent was undergoing the most vivid mentalperturbation of his career.
He kept whistling a jolly air, with a sidelong glance observed that hisrecent companions had turned back towards their camp in the clearing,and then, dropping his assumption of the reckless young adventurer,stared seriously ahead and began to figure out the situation in all itsdetails.
What had come about was quite natural and ordinary: the Tollivers wereanxious to get further away from the scene of their recent crime, to asafer and more obscure haunt than the open camp in the woods.
They dared not take the journey in the day time, as they did not wish tobe seen by anyone and Bart coming along, they had caught at the idea ofsending him on with the wagon and its load.
If Bart got through in safety, they could assume that the hunt for themissing trunk was not very active, or had been started in some otherdirection.
Bart had comprehended that they could take a short cut to the old mill.He had actually laughed to himself at the ease with which he hadobtained possession of the trunk, until they had mentioned that ominousname: Lem Wacker.
"They are going to wait for Wacker!" murmured Bart, as he urged on thehorse. "That means that they expect him soon, for they calculate onbeing at the old mill as soon as I can make it by road. When he doescome, and they tell him about me, he's sure to guess the truth. Thenit's three to one--get up!"
Bart did not allow the horse to lag, but his best pace was a poorshambling trot. All the time Bart thought deeply and practically.
"I have decided," he spoke definitely after a quarter of an hour. "Ishall turn to my left the first road I come to. The B. & M. does nottouch short of eight miles from here, but somewhere to the southeast isClyde Station. Once there, I'll risk the rest."
The road was not an easy one. It was not very smooth, and grew morestony and rutty as he proceeded, and there was a sharp climb for thehorse as they reached a hilly landscape.
Bart halted finally. A road branched to the left. It did not look veryinviting, nor did it seem to be much in use, but as it led away from themain highway, it broke the trail, and without hesitation he turned thehorse's head in the direction of Clyde Station.
The country was open here, all rocks, gullies and pits. He was surprisedto observe how little distance he had really put between himself and theTolliver camp as the road wound out along the crest of a hill.
He jumped out to lighten the load and coax up the horse. Then he stoodstock-still, straining his eyes across the valley.
"I declare!" said Bart in a tone of profound concern, "I got away justin time, but if that is Lem Wacker, he has appeared on the scene justten minutes too soon to suit me."
Over at the break in the woods a man had appeared from the direction ofMillville. He was waving a hand, and then placing it to his mouth asthough hailing someone, probably the Tollivers at the camp.
Then he turned straight around. If Bart could read anything at thatdistance, he could certainly trace that the man was looking fixedly atthe red wagon, and the white horse, and himself.
If it was Lem Wacker--and Bart believed that it was--just one thing wasin order: to get that trunk to some town, to some station, to somefriendly farmhouse, in hiding anywhere, before the pursuit, sure tofollow, was started.
Bart ran on, with a last glance at the lone distant figure. He could notafford to wait to see if the Tollivers joined it. Every minute wasprecious.
"Where is the horse?" exclaimed Bart.
Dobbin had "got up." While Bart was surveying the landscape, the oldanimal had plodded on, and was now out of sight.
Bart ran along the road. It turned between two walls of slate. Then camethe open again. Here the road descended somewhat. The horse stood at ahalt. He had run easily a few rods, one wheel had struck a deep rut, andthe wagon had broken down. It lay tilted over on one side, one wheelcompletely caved in.
Bart was dismayed. He reflected for a moment, and then followed the roadahead for about a hundred feet.
It turned through some slate heaps, lined the side of a deepexcavation, and came to an abrupt end where some boards, placedcrosswise, barred the sheer descent.
Just such a valley spread out beyond the barrier as on the other edge ofthe hill whence Bart had seen the man he believed to be Lem Wacker.
Here, however, the landscape was barren in the extreme. There was not ahouse visible.
Bart was in a dilemma, but he decided how he would act. He first ranback to the spot whence he had last viewed the break in the woods.
A glance stirred him up to prompt and decisive action.
Three men were now in view. They were running at their top bent of speedup the road he had taken.
"Lem Wacker and the Tollivers, sure!" murmured Bart. "They know thewagon is up here somewhere, and they will be here in less than half anhour."
Bart's one idea now was to locate some pit or cranny where he could stowthe trunk where it could not be readily found.
This done, he would start on foot in the direction of Clyde Station toget assistance and return before his enemies discovered it.
There were all kinds of holes and heaps around him, but too open andpublic to his way of thinking. Exploring, he came to the board barrieragain, climbed over it, and more critically than before scanned thefifty-foot descent, and what lay at the bottom.
"Why!" said Bart, in some astonishment, "there's a railroad track--"
He leaned over, and scrutinizingly ran his eye along the dull brownstretch of raised rails.
"And a hand car!" shouted the young express agent joyfully.