by Rex Beach
CHAPTER VI
"Well, did you land them hicks?" It was Gray's driver speaking. Throughthe gloom of early evening he was guiding his car back toward Ranger.The road was the same they had come, but darkness had invested it withunfamiliar perils, or so it seemed, for the headlights threw every rockand ridge into bold relief and left the holes filled with mysteriousshadows; the vehicle strained, its motor raced, its gears clashednoisily as it rocked along like a dory in a boisterous tide rip. Onlynow and then did a few rods of smooth going permit the chauffeur totake his attention from the streak of illumination ahead long enough tolight another cigarette, a swift maneuver, the dexterity of whichbespoke long practice.
"Yes. And I made a good sale," the passenger declared. With pride heannounced the size of the Briskow check.
"J'ever see a dame the size of that gal?" A short laugh issued from thedriver. "She'd clean up in vaudeville, wouldn't she? Why, she couldlift a ton, in harness. And hoein' the garden, with their coin! It'slike a woman I heard of: they got a big well on their farm and she cameto town to do some shoppin'; somebody told her she'd ought to buy apresent for her old man, so she got him a new handle for the ax._Gawd!_"
A few miles farther on the fellow confessed: "I wasn't crazy aboutcomin' for you to-night. Not after I got a flash at what's in thatvalise."
"No?"
"You're takin' a chance, stranger."
"Nothing new about that." Gray remained unperturbed. His left arm wasbehind the driver; with it he clung rigidly to the back of the seat asthe car plunged and rolled. "Frequently we are in danger when we leastsuspect it. Now you, for instance."
"Me?" The man at the wheel shot a quick glance at his fare.
"You probably take more chances than you dream of."
"How so?"
"Um-m! These roads are a menace to life and limb; the country isinfested with robbers--"
"Oh, sure! That's what I had in mind. Joy-ridin' at night with a hatfulof diamonds is my idea of a sucker's amusement. Of course, we won't'get it'--"
"Of course! One never does."
"Sure! But if we should, there's just one thing to do."
"Indeed?" Gray was pleasantly inquisitive, but it was plain that hesuffered no apprehensions. "And that is--?"
"Sit tight and take your medicine."
"I never take medicine."
The chauffeur shrugged his shoulders. "Well, I do, when it's put downmy throat. I _been_ stuck up."
"Really!"
"Twice. Tame as a house cat, me--both times. I s'pose I'll get nickedagain sometime."
"And you won't offer any resistance?"
"Not a one, cull."
"I'm relieved to be assured of that."
For a second time the driver flashed a glance at his companion. It wasa peculiar remark and voiced in a queer tone. "Yes? Why?"
"Because--" Gray slightly shifted his position, there was a movement ofhis right hand--the one farthest away from the man at the wheel--andsimultaneously his left arm slipped from the back of the seat andtightly encircled the latter's waist. He finished in a whollyunfamiliar voice, "Because, my good man, you are now held up for thethird time, and it would distress me to have to kill you."
The driver uttered a loud grunt, for something sharp and hard had beenthrust deeply into that soft, sensitive region overlying his liver, andnow it was held there. It was unnecessary for Gray to order the carstopped; its brakes squealed, it ceased its progress as abruptly as ifits front wheels had fetched up against a stone wall.
"Hey! What the--?"
"Don't try to 'heel' me with your elbow," Gray warned, sharply. "Now,up with 'em--you know. That's nice."
The faces of the men were close together. Gray's was blazing, thedriver's was stiff with amazement and stamped with an incredulousgrimace. Paralyzed for the moment with astonishment, he made noresistance, not even when he felt that long muscular left arm relax andthe hand at the end of it go searching over his pockets.
Gray was grim, mocking; some vibrant, evil quality to his voicesuggested extreme malignity at full cock, like that unseen weapon themuzzle of which was buried beneath the driver's short ribs. "Ah! You goarmed, I see. A shoulder holster, as I suspected. I knew you hadnothing on this side." Seizing his victim's upstretched right hand withhis own left, he gave it a sudden fierce wrench that all but snappedthe wrist, and at the same instant he reached across and snatched theconcealed weapon from its resting place. He flung the chauffeur's bodyaway from him; there was a sharp click as he swiftly jammed the barrelof the automatic back and let it fly into place.
The entire maneuver had been deftly executed, even yet the object ofthe assault was speechless.
"Now then"--the passenger faced about in his seat and showed his teethin a smile--"it is customary to permit the condemned to enjoy the lastword. What have you to say for yourself?"
"I--got this to say. It's a hell of a joke--" the man exploded.
"Do I act as if I were joking?"
"If you think it's funny to jab a gun in a man's belly when he ain'tlookin'--"
"A gun? My simple friend, you have--or had--the only gun in this party,and you may thank whatever gods you worship that you didn't try to useit, for--I would have been rough with you. Oh, very rough! I might evenhave made you eat it. Now, inasmuch as you may be tempted to embellishthis story with some highly imaginary details, I prefer that you knowthe truth. This is the 'gun' I used to stick you up." With a rigidlyoutthrust thumb Gray prodded the driver in the side. "Simple, isn't it?And no chance for accidents." The speaker's shoulders were shaking.
"Well, I'll be damned!"
"Not a doubt of it!" chuckled the other. "Especially if you follow inthe course you have chosen. And a similar fate will overtake your pal,Mallow. By the way, is that his right name?... Never mind, I know himas Mallow. A shallow, trusting man, and, I hope, a better judge ofdiamonds than of character. As for me, I look deeper than the surfaceand am seldom deceived in people--witness your case, for example. Iknew you at once for a crook. It might save you several miles of badwalking to tell me where Mallow is waiting to high-jack me.... No?"
"I dunno what you're ravin' about," growled the unhappy owner of theautomobile. "But, believe me, I'll have you pinched for this."
"How sharper than a serpent's tooth is ingratitude! And what bad tasteto prattle of prosecution. I sha'n't steal your car, it needs too muchoverhauling. And I abominate cheap machines. It is true that I'm onepistol to the good, but in view of the law against carrying lethalweapons, surely you won't prefer charges against me for removing itfrom your person. Oh, not that! It seems to me that I'm treating youhandsomely, for I shall even pay you the agreed price for this trip,provided only you tell me where you expect to meet Mr. Mallow."
"Go to hell!"
"Very well. Oblige me now by getting out.... And make it snappy!"
The driver did as directed. Gray pocketed the automatic, slipped inbehind the steering wheel, and drove away into the night, followed byloud and earnest objurgations.
He was still smiling cheerfully when, a mile farther on, he brought thecar to a stop and clambered out. Passing forward into the illuminationof the headlights, he busied himself there for several moments beforeresuming his journey.
For the first time in a long while Calvin Gray was thoroughly enjoyinghimself. Here was an enterprise with all the possibilities of afirst-class adventure, and of the sort, moreover, that he waspeculiarly qualified to cope with. It possessed enough hazard to lendit the requisite zest, it was sufficiently unusual to awaken hiskeenest interest; he experienced an agreeable exaltation of spirit, butno misgivings whatever as to the outcome, for he held the commandingcards. Little remained, it seemed to him, except to play themcarefully and to take the tricks as they fell. He had not the slightestnotion of permitting Mallow to lay hands upon that case of jewels.
There was no mistaking the road, but Gray did not bother to stick tothe main-traveled course when detours or short cuts promised bettergoing, for he knew full well
that Mallow would be waiting, if at all,in some place he was bound to pass. It was an ideal country for aholdup; lonely and lawless. Derrick lights twinkled over the mesquitetops, and occasionally the flaming red mouth of some boiler gaped athim, or the foliage was illuminated by the glare of gasflambeaux--vertical iron pipes at the ends of which the surplus fromneighboring wells was consumed in what seemed a reckless wastage.Occasionally, too, a belated truck thundered past, but the traffic waspretty thin.
At last, however, he beheld some distance ahead the white glare of twostationary lights. The road was narrow and sandy here, and shut in bybanks of underbrush; as he drew nearer a figure stepped out and stoodin silhouette until his own lights picked it up. The figure waved itsarms, and called attention to the car behind--evidently broken down.Here, then, the drama was to be played.
Gray brought his machine on at such a pace and so close to the man inthe road that the latter was forced to step aside, then he swung it farto the right, brought it back with a quick twist of the steering wheel,and killed his motor. He was now in the ditch and outside the blindingglare of the opposing headlights; the stalled machine was in the fullillumination of his own lamps.
Contrary to Gray's expectations, the car in the road was empty and theman who had hailed him was a stranger. As the latter approached, heinquired:
"What's wrong?"
"Out of gas, I guess. Anyhow--I--" The speaker noted that there was butone new arrival, where he had expected two, and the discovery appearedto nonplus him momentarily. He stammered, involuntarily he turned hishead.
Gray looked in the same direction, but without changing his position,and out of the corner of his eye he glimpsed a new figure emerging fromthe shadows behind him. Very clever! But, at least, his unexpectedmaneuver with his own car had made it necessary for both men toapproach him from the same side.
While the first stranger continued to mumble, Gray sat motionless,keenly conscious, meanwhile, of that other presence closing in upon himfrom the rear. He simulated a violent start when a second voice cried:
"Don't move. I've got you covered."
"My God!" Gray twisted about in his seat and exposed a startledcountenance. A masked man was standing close to the left running board,and he held a revolver near Gray's head; the apparition appeared toparalyze the unhappy traveler, for he still tightly clutched thesteering wheel with both hands.
"Just sit still." The cloth of the mask blew outward as the wordsissued; through the slits two malevolent eyes gleamed. "Act pretty, andyou won't get hurt."
"Why! It's--it's Mr. _Mallow_!" Gray hitched himself farther around inhis seat and leaned forward in justifiable amazement. "As I live it'syou, Mallow!" Both highwaymen were in front of him, now, and shoulderto shoulder; he made sure there were no others behind them.
"Shut up!" Mallow snapped. "Frisk him, Tony, and--"
The command was cut short by a startled, throaty cry--a hoarse sound ofastonishment and rage--and simultaneously a strange, a phenomenal thingoccurred. An unseen hand appeared to strike down both Mallow and hisaccomplice where they stood, and it smote them, moreover, withappalling force and terrifying effect. One moment they were in completemastery of the situation, the next they were groveling in the road,coughing, sneezing, barking, retching, blaspheming poisonously. Baffledfury followed their first surprise. Mallow tore the mask from his faceand groped blindly for the weapon he had dropped, but before he couldrecover it, pain mastered him and he fell back, clawing at himself,rubbing at his eyes that had been stricken sightless. He yelled. Tonyyelled. Then upon the startled night there burst a duet of squeals andcurses, a hideous medley of mingled pain and fright, at once terrifyingand unnatural. Both bandits appeared to be in paroxysms of agony; fromTony issued sounds that might have issued from the throat of a woman indeadly fear and excruciating torment; Mallow's face had been partiallyprotected, hence he was the lesser sufferer; nevertheless, his eyeswere boiling in their sockets, his lungs were ablaze, ungovernableconvulsions ran over him.
The men understood vaguely what had afflicted them, for they had seenGray lift one hand from the wheel, and out of that hand they had seen astream of liquid, or a jet of aqueous vapor, leap. It was too close tododge. It had sprung directly into their faces, vaporizing as it came,and at its touch, at the first scent of its fumes, their legs hadcollapsed, their eyes had tightly closed, and every cell in theiroutraged bodies had rebelled. It was as if acid had been dashed uponthem, destroying in one blinding instant all power for evil. With everybreath, now, a new misery smote them. But worse than this torture wasthe monstrous nature of their afflictions. It was mysterious, horrible;they believed themselves to be dying and screamed in abysmal terror ofthe unknown.
Gray squeezed again the rubber bulb that he had carried in his handthese last several miles, ejecting from it the last few drops of itscontents, then he opened the car door, stepped out of it and stood overhis strangling victims. He kicked Mallow's revolver off the road, and,holding his breath, relieved the other high-jacker of his weapon. Thishe flung after the first, then he withdrew himself a few paces andlighted a cigarette, for a raw, pungent odor offended his nostrils.Both of the bawling bandits reeked of it, but their plight left himindifferent. They reminded him of a pair of horses he had seendisemboweled by a bursting shell, but he felt much less pity for them.
His lack of concern made itself felt finally. Mallow, who was the firstto show signs of recovery, struggled to his feet and clawed blindlytoward the automobile. He clung to it, sick and shaking; profanely heappealed for aid.
"So! It _is_ Mr. Mallow," Gray said. "Fancy meeting you here!"
A stream of incoherencies issued from the wretched object of thismockery. Tony, the other man, stifled his groans, rose to his knees,and, with his hands clasped over his eyes, shuffled slowly away, as ifto escape the sound of Gray's voice.
"Better quiet down and let me do something at once, if you wish to saveyour sight," the latter suggested. "Otherwise I won't answer for theresult. And you needn't tell me how it hurts. I know." This proffer ofaid appeared to throw the sufferers into new depths of dismay. Theycalled to him in the name of God. They were harmless, now, and anyhowthey had intended to do him no bodily harm. They implored him to lendsuccor or to put them out of their distress.
Gray fell to work promptly. The bottle of cream he had begged from MaBriskow he now put to use. With this soothing liquid he first washedout their eyes, the membranes of which were raw and spongy, andexcruciatingly sensitive to light, then he bandaged them as best hecould with compresses, wet in it.
"You'll breathe easier as time goes on," he announced. "You'll cough agood deal for a few days, but where you are going that won't disturbanybody. Your eyes will get well, too, if you take care of them as Idirect. But, meanwhile, let me warn you against lifting those bandages.Advise me as they dry out and I'll wet them again."
A blessed relief stole over the unfortunate pair; they were still sickand weak, but in a short time the acuteness of their suffering haddiminished sufficiently for Gray to help them into the back seat of hiscar and resume his journey.
Sarcastically he referred to the sample case on the tonneau floor. "Ifthose diamonds are in your way, I'll take them in front with me. Ifnot, I'll ask you to keep an eye on them--or, let us say, keep a footon them. If you should be foolish enough to heave them overboard or tryto renew your assault upon me, I would be tempted to break this milkbottle. In that event, my dear Mallow, you'd go through life with a tincup in your hand and a dog on a string."
Tony groaned in abject misery of body and soul. Mallow cursed feebly.
"What--is that devilish stuff?" the latter queried. It was plain fromhis voice that he meditated no treachery. "Oh! I was going to tell you.It is a product of German ingenuity, designed, I believe, for thepurpose of quelling riotous and insurrectionary prisoners. It wasefficacious, also, in taking pill boxes and clearing out dug-outs andthe like. With some care one is safe in using it in an ordinary ammoniagun--the sort policemen use on mad dogs
. Forgive me, if I say that youhave demonstrated its utility in peace as well as in war. If there weremore high-jackers in the world the device might be commercialized atsome profit; but, alas, my good Mallow, your profession is not a commonone."
"Cut out the kidding," Mallow growled, then he fell into a newconvulsion of coughing. The car proceeded for some time to the tune ofsmothered complaints from the miserable figures bouncing upon the rearseat before Gray said: "I fear you are a selfish pair of rascals. Haveyou no concern regarding the fate of the third member of yourtreasure-hunting trio?" Evidently they had none. "Too bad! It's a goodstory."
Whatever their indifference to the welfare of the chauffeur, they stillhad some curiosity as to their own, for Mallow asked:
"What are you going to do with us?"
"What would you do, if you were in my place?"
"I'd--listen to reason."
"Meaning--?"
"Hell! You know what he means," Tony cried, feebly.
"So! You do me the honor to offer a bribe." Gray laughed. "Pardon myamusement. It sounds callous, I know, but, frankly, your unhappycondition fails to distress me. Well, how much do you offer?"
"All we got. A coupla thousand."
"A temptation, truly."
Mallow addressed his companion irritably. "Have a little sense. Hedon't need money."
Calvin Gray had never been more pleased with himself than now, formatters had worked out almost exactly according to plan, a complimentindeed to his foresight and to his executive ability. He lovedexcitement, he lived upon it, and much of his life had been devoted tothe stage-management of sensational exploits like this one. As a boyplays with a toy, so did Gray amuse himself with adventure, and now hewas determined to exact from this one the last particle of enjoymentand whatever profit it afforded.
Within a few minutes of his arrival at Ranger, the town was noisy withthe story, for he drove down the brightly lighted main street andstopped in front of the most populous cafe. There he called loudly fora policeman, and when the latter elbowed his way through the crowd,Gray told him, in plain hearing of all, enough of his experience toelectrify everybody. He told the story well; he even made known thevalue of his diamond stock; mercilessly he pilloried the twoblindfolded bandits. When he drove to the jail the running boards ofhis car were jammed with inquisitive citizens, and those who could notfind footing thereon followed at a run, laughing, shouting, acclaiminghim and jeering at his prisoners.
Having surrendered custody of the latter, he dressed their eyes oncemore and explained the sort of care they required, then he made anappeal from the front steps of the jail, adjuring the mob to dispersequietly and permit the law to take its course.
Nothing like this had occurred during the brief, busy life of the town.It was a dramatic incident, but the manner in which this capablestranger had handled it and the discomfiture he had brought upon hisassailants appealed more to the risibilities than to the anger ofRanger. Admiration for him displaced indignation at the high-jackers;cries for vengeance upon them were drowned in noisy appreciation oftheir captor. Gray became a popular character; men clamored to shakehis hand, and complimented him upon his nerve. The editor of the localnewspaper dragged him, protesting, to the office and there interviewedhim. Gray was covered with confusion. Reluctantly he made known hisidentity, and retold the whole story of his trip, this time beginningat his meeting with Coverly in Dallas. He displayed the bewilderingcontents of his sample case, now guarded by a uniformed arm of the law,and explained how he had volunteered his services out of pure love ofadventure, then how he had played into Mallow's hands while aware ofhis malign purpose at all times.
This was more than a local story; it was big enough for the wire. Graysat at the editor's elbow while that enthusiastic gentleman calledDallas and gave it to the papers there.
He was escorted to the railroad station by an admiring crowd; he wascheered as he passed, smiling, into his Pullman car.