Secret Agent X - The Complete Series Volume 5

by Paul Chadwick

  ONCE again they were searched as they passed through the door of the torture room. Even the pockets inside the Neanderthals’ garbs were frisked. Then the slaves were lined up on the opposite side of the room. “X” was careful to place Thaddeus Penny a little apart from the others and near the door.

  In the meantime, Thoth had descended from his stone platform. His automatic was thrust into his belt ready for immediate use. In his hand was a peculiar sort of a whip. It consisted of a handle of black Bakelite attached to which were many fine, flexible wires. Each wire was tipped with a little metal ball.

  A long electric cable extended from the handle to an electrical connection in the floor. Doubtless the lash carried an electrical current, inert and powerless until the circuit was completed by the touching of the metal beads that tipped the lashes to the steel platform where Betty lay. In other words, Thoth evidently flogged his victims with a high-voltage, low-amperage electrical current.

  Understanding the torture that was intended for Betty, “X” was nevertheless perfectly calm and collected. He had to be calm if he hoped to succeed in the plan that had formed in his mind.

  Thoth, perfectly insulated from the charged steel by means of his rubber-soled shoes, strode to the platform. His gaunt, terrible frame towered above the cowering girl at his feet. Betty was no longer relaxed, stoically awaiting her fate. Perhaps she, too, had guessed the torment in store for her. She lay on her side, head slightly raised, and frightened eyes on the fiend. She was breathing in short, shallow gasps.

  “You—you wouldn’t dare!”

  Thoth’s laughter rolled hollowly beneath the mask. “No, my dear lady?” he mocked. Then the silk-like lashes flicked out, touching the steel platform near the girl. A thousand sparks snapped from the little steel balls to the metal platform, crackling like firecrackers and illuminating every strained face within the room. Betty’s startled cry rang throughout the chamber piercing Thoth’s hollow laughter. Not a single countenance within the room showed the slightest trace of pity for the frightened girl; only eagerness and morbid excitement. There followed a moment of tense silence while Thoth’s odd eyes roved around the room.

  “Observe that the whip did not touch the girl,” he said finally. “I was but demonstrating the power of the electric charge. But the current is not lethal. It can only produce pain that is almost unbearable. You realize, Agent ‘X,’ wherever you may be, that this girl has magnificent courage. Nevertheless, ten minutes beneath the electric lash will reduce her to something less beautiful; something less sane. If you care to trade places with the girl, Agent ‘X,’ speak up now.”

  Thoth whirled the lash tauntingly above his head. Every muscle in the girl’s body crept with anticipated agony.

  “Just a minute.” The words of Agent “X,” softly spoken, were none the less authoritative.

  Thoth’s eyes never left “X’s” face.

  “You’ve made a mistake, Thoth,” said “X.”

  “What, Ziek? Are you going to tell me that you are Secret Agent ‘X’?”

  “X’s” voice was rising to its full oratorical power, as he spoke both rapidly and convincingly. “You’ve made a mistake in telling your slaves that you can cure them when actually you have given them ostectis—a disorder that has changed them from men into what they are!”

  THERE was a sudden, angry stir among the group of Neanderthals. Thoth yanked out his automatic. “Agent ‘X’!” he shouted. “Kill Agent ‘X.’ Ziek is Agent ‘X’!” But Thoth dared not shoot without running the risk of killing some of his own men. “X” had darted behind the group of mobsters and was shouting at the top of his lungs:

  “Slaves of Thoth! Act as the men you were. Turn upon this fiend. I, who am your friend, tell you that there is no cure for your malady. Until the day you die, you will remain the ugly creatures you are—all because of Thoth. Take vengeance, as I do now!”

  “X” lashed out with a powerful blow that sent a mobster reeling back into his companions. Another he met with a jiu-jitsu hold that flung the man over the Agent’s shoulders. And all the time he was shouting, “Slaves, avenge yourself. Stamp out Thoth!”

  As one man, the group of Neanderthals hurled themselves forward toward the man who had once mastered them. “X” had seen a gleam of sanity in their dull eyes—and a mad desire to kill the Frankenstein who had made them.

  Thoth was shouting orders to his men—orders they could not follow. For “X” was fighting the battle of his life and the mobsters had no lethal weapons with which to bolster their ratlike courage. They were quaking before a double menace—the raging Neanderthals and the fighting Secret Agent.

  With a mighty leap, “X” cleared the sprawling bodies of the three men and gained the edge of the steel platform. From there he could see Thoth, a tower of savage strength battling with half a dozen of his slaves, firing wild shots that scattered around the room wounding now a Neanderthal and now one of his own mob.

  But “X” had a greater objective than Thoth now. Later would come the criminal’s reckoning. “X” dragged himself to the platform. One of the gangmen, seizing the electric lash that Thoth had dropped, struck out at “X.” Sparks flew about “X’s” head, but none of the current passed through his body due to the rubber-soled shoes he always wore. “X” caught the stinging thongs of the whip and gave them a mighty heave that dragged the gangman within striking distance.

  A blow from “X’s” fist sent the man crashing from the platform. “X” stooped, swooping up Betty with a single motion. He swung her to his left shoulder and using the blunt handle of the whip as a club, forced his way through the struggling mob. A Neanderthal, mad with killer’s lust, blocked the Agent’s way. A blow to the head and the monster’s legs doubled under him. Across the room, “X” hurried, carrying his precious burden, his eyes darting from one to another of the Neanderthals.

  Thoth, by some miracle, had broken away from his slaves and was running across the room. Just ahead of him, he faced another group of mad monsters, crouched to kill. A few feet from the Neanderthals, Thoth stopped. He stamped the floor like an angry child. Then suddenly, “X” knew the reason. The floor beneath the master criminal opened. In a moment, Thoth had slipped through the trap that was swinging closed behind him. Evidently it was through a similar exit that Thoth had made his escape from the Agent in the pain room.

  AN angry snarl from the Neanderthals. They had been cheated of vengeance. But they were rabid killers. Now that Thoth was gone, the horde of monsters would turn upon anyone in the room. “X” knew that he must retreat before this storm of discord he had aroused. Running across the room, he encountered Thaddeus Penny. The old man had evidently escaped injury in the brawl that was going on between Neanderthals and mobsters. “X” extended a hand to Thaddeus’s blindly groping one and pulled the old man to his feet.

  “Ready, Thaddeus! Can you make it? I’ll steer you to the door; but once in the passage, everything depends on you!”

  “All right, Mr. Robbins!” Thaddeus’ voice was thin with excitement.

  “Grab my coat!” directed “X.” Then carrying Betty and half dragging Thaddeus, he reached the door. There, a single mobster tried to stop them, but a blow from the Agent’s fist sent him flying. The men seemed as anxious to get out of the room as “X,” but the army of Neanderthals stood in their way, working their fearful vengeance upon them.

  Across the pain room into the council chamber, “X” fled with his burden. Gaining the hall, he turned to the left, dragging Penny behind him.

  “That’s the wrong way, Mr. Robbins!” shouted Thaddeus. “I know it is!”

  “I’ve got to go back for something!” called “X.” And gaining the first of the slaves’ cells, he gently put Betty on the floor.

  “You’re all right, Betty?” he asked softly. “Not frightened?”

  “Not with you. Never with you,” she whispered.

  “X” bent over her, working quickly at the knotted cords that bound her hands and feet. Down the pa
ssage came a dull, booming sound like distant thunder. “X’s” jaw set tight as he yanked at the cords. A strange premonition told him that Thoth had a final trump to play.

  “X” pulled the last cord free, seized Betty beneath the arms, and lifted her to her feet. “Move about a little. Try to get your circulation going again. When we start out of here, we may have to go fast!”

  “Where are you going?” Betty asked anxiously as “X” pushed through the door of the cell.

  “I’ll be back in a moment. Don’t leave Thaddeus,” “X” called over his shoulder. He turned up the passage, searching for the shadowy corner in which he had left Bill Ziek. He half fell over the mobster’s extended legs as another dull boom shook the structure. Somewhere in the distance, “X” heard a sinister background for the cries of the fighting men and Neanderthals—the sound of rushing water.

  “X” hurriedly searched through Ziek’s pockets, extracting gas pistol and other equipment. There was a thin glittering little stream of water trickling along the floor where he knelt. Hastily pocketing his paraphernalia, “X” stood up and doubled back on his tracks. Behind him the rush of water increased, while ahead of him sounded a muffled explosion. Beneath the make-up that covered his face, he felt cold, clammy sweat.

  He ran down the hall to the block of prison cells. Quickly he found the one where the strange blond girl was imprisoned. A twist of a master key and the door was open. “Come out,” he ordered crisply. “You’re saved!”

  With a sob, the girl flung herself through the opening into the Agent’s arms.

  “No hysterics!” “X” cautioned. “Stand where you are.” He broke from the blond woman’s frantic grip and turned to the next cell. “Mr. Kaxton! Are you all right?”

  Kaxton’s wan, grey face appeared pressed against the iron grill. “You—you’re going to torture me?” he gasped out.

  “No! You’re safe. Safe if you’ll keep your head and be a man!” “X” flung back the door of the cell, and Kaxton staggered into the hall, dazed.

  “What—what’s that sound—that strange rushing sound,” Kaxton murmured. “Is it water?”

  “Afraid so,” “X” whispered grimly. “But keep it to yourself.” He beckoned to the blond woman who had remained standing before the door of her cell. She hurried forward.

  And at that moment, the dim lamp globe flickered out. The woman screamed. Kaxton swore. “X’s” angry, “Keep your head!” rang out along the passage. “Kaxton,” he ordered, “get hold of that girl.”

  “I—I’ve got her,” came Kaxton’s helpless reply. “But my God! We can’t see!”

  “X” HAD no flashlight. It had been removed from his pocket along with his cigarette lighter when he had been searched by the masked man. To trace his steps along the passage would be next to impossible. If only Thaddeus didn’t fail him! He raised his voice and shouted, “Thaddeus, can you hear me?”

  “Yes,” came the reply, sounding far away.

  “Can you bring Miss Dale here?”

  “Coming!”

  Silence in which “X” strained every nerve to hear the sound of footsteps. But whatever sound there might have been was hushed by the ever increasing sound of water. Another dull boom and the rumble of falling masonry. Agent “X” sprang forward. If a wall had fallen. If Betty had been caught beneath the wreckage.

  His eager, groping hands clutched flesh in the dark. “Thaddeus?” he questioned hoarsely.

  “Me, Mr. Robbins. I got the girl’s hand. But we’ve got to hurry. There—there’s water back there up to your ankle. And it’s coming fast. It’s river water! I can tell by the smell.”

  “Water?” Betty whispered.

  “Hush.” Then “X” raised his voice. “Kaxton, stand still! Hold the girl. We’re coming in your direction!” Then clutching the blind man with one hand and Betty with the other, “X” gave the order to move. In another moment, Thaddeus had encountered Kaxton’s groping hands.

  “You there, Blondie or whatever your name is?” “X” asked.

  The blonde woman uttered a faint affirmative. “I’ve got hold of somebody’s hand. But can’t we get out of here? The floor’s getting kind of wet.”

  “On, Thaddeus!” “X” urged. The floor was more than wet; it was flooded. And behind them, like a hungry, pursuing beast, was a racing, roaring torrent.

  “Going, Mr. Robbins!” Thaddeus led them in a sharp turn and then another. “The passage ought to rise a bit here now soon.”

  “I hope it does!” Kaxton ground out between his teeth.

  “X” was silent. His fingers were closed upon Betty’s wrist in a grip of steel. The blackness seemed as confining as a shroud.

  Suddenly, Thaddeus turned sharply to the right and stopped.

  “Not lost, Thaddeus?” came the Agent’s tense whisper.

  “Nope. It’s not that. There’s something about the floor. Unsteady feeling. It’s—it’s—”

  And then the Agent’s coarser senses felt it, too. The floor beneath them was shaking. “Forward!” he shouted.

  “Back!” screamed Thaddeus.

  And in another moment, it was too late. With a groaning, creaking crash, the floor gave way. Damp air rushed by the Agent’s ears. Then a spine jolting shock as he struck bottom. Cries, oaths, and screams mingled in a hideous cacophony and echoed from the walls of the pit. Then the roar of the cataract as water poured over the edge of the pit, deluging the Agent’s face. And above it all, the mocking, rollicking, triumphant laughter of Thoth.

  Chapter XII

  “THOTH LIVES ON”

  IN FALLING, “X” had not released his hold on Betty Dale. He had struck the bottom of the pit and she had fallen on top of him. His first words were, “You’re safe, Betty?”

  “Safe,” she whispered. “Always safe with you.”

  “Can you stand up?” And he felt her body roll from his.

  “Up,” she said. “You’re not hurt?”—anxiously.

  “Not a bit!” The Agent’s attempt to be cheerful rang out hollowly from the watery tomb. He picked himself up. “All here?” he rapped. “Kaxton?”

  “Ankle twisted. But I’ll be all right!” came Kaxton’s strained reply.

  “Thaddeus?”

  “A bit shook up, Mr. Robbins. Wet, too. But I can navigate.”

  “Blondie?”

  “Oh, I—I want to get out of here! I don’t want to die like this!”

  “Shut up, girl!” Kaxton growled. “Who does?”

  “Got a light of any kind, Kaxton?” asked “X.”

  “Who needs a light!” from Thaddeus. “We’re in a hole. The walls are smooth. The floor is rough. But we’re stumped if this water keeps comin’.”

  “X” needed no reminder of the water. It was already chilling his knees.

  Then, by some miracle, Kaxton’s cigarette lighter sprang into flame. “X” strained his eyes toward the top of the pit. But the light was too feeble, or the blackness too black—or the top too far away.

  “X” moved over to one wall, leaned against it, doubling over. “Up on my back, Kaxton. Climb to my shoulders. See if you can make it.”

  “The girls first,” replied Kaxton. “This water’s rising too damned fast!”

  “You’ll go first, Kaxton!” “X” rapped. “You’ll help pull the rest up from the top.”

  “If he can reach the t-t-top,” the blonde woman whimpered.

  Laboriously, Bert Kaxton climbed to the Agent’s back, then planted both feet on his shoulders. Hands clinging to the wall, he balanced himself. “C-can’t reach it,” he murmured dismally.

  “Wait. Keep your balance. I’m going to straighten up.” And very slowly, “X” straightened his back.

  “Got something!” cried Kaxton. “Wait until I get a grip! Now! Heave!” He strained every muscle. “X” gripped the man’s calves and pushed with all his strength. Suddenly, the burden lightened. Kaxton had reached the top!

  “Down flat, Kaxton!” “X” ordered. “Stay right where you are.
Arms over the edge. Blondie comes next.”

  With the aid of Betty, the blond woman climbed to the Agent’s back, stood up, and encountered Kaxton’s groping hands. In another moment, she was safe.

  “Now, Betty,” said “X.”

  “Not yet. Take Thaddeus next. He’ll need my help to climb up on your back.” And the generous girl helped the old blind man to the Agent’s shoulders.

  “How the devil are you going to get up, Mr. What’s-your-name?” shouted Kaxton from the top after he had brought Thaddeus to safety.

  “X” didn’t reply. He had known all along that one must remain below in the pit. “Come, Betty,” he said quietly.

  “I—I can’t,” she whispered.

  “What do you mean?”

  “My—my leg. It must be broken. I know it is!”

  The Agent’s hands found the girl’s shoulders. “I’ll lift you. You’ll make it all right.”

  “But I can’t stand up, I tell you!” her voice sounded almost angry.

  “Say, hurry up down there!” shouted Kaxton. “There’s another break in the wall directly ahead of us. Water’s coming in there, too!”

  “Betty!” “X” said sternly. “You’re keeping the others waiting. I know if I could see through the dark and look into your eyes I would know you were lying about the leg!”

  “Mr. Kaxton!” Betty called. “Go for the police. Get the fire department. Hurry! I’ve hurt myself and neither one of us can get out without help!”

  Frantically, “X” groped for Betty’s mouth, trying to check her words. Then he shouted for Kaxton and the others to wait. But already they had gone, probably making the best possible speed with Thaddeus as their guide.

  “Betty!” There was agony in the Agent’s voice. “Why did you do that? The water’s rising. It’s up to my waist! You’ll—”

  “Do you think I would care for safety knowing that you were down here alone? I thought the wisest man I ever knew was wiser than that!”

  “But don’t you see, I’ve failed to keep my word!” The Agent’s strong arms went about her body, holding her tenderly, closely to him. “Long ago, I swore that I would always take care of you above everything else. And I’ve failed!”