CHAPTER IX.
FAITHFUL TO HIS FRIEND.
NOW they had stopped again, and seemed to be conferring in whispers.
If Elmer had had the least doubt before concerning their evilintentions, it was no longer in evidence. Honest men do not creep aroundthe house of a rich man at such an hour of the night, and put theirheads close together.
He flattened himself out on the ground, having dropped like a stone,though without the least noise.
"How lucky that I happened to come along this way!" was the thought thatseemed uppermost in the mind of the scout as he crouched there, waiting."If my wheel had stayed all right I would have been far away right now,and never known a thing about this. And it was that tool house that mademe go around to the back."
He even grew bolder, and began to speculate as to how he might creepcloser to the pair. If he could only overhear what they were saying, itmight help more than a little. And, somehow, his desire to be of someassistance to his good friend the colonel, urged him to make theattempt.
To an ordinary lad it might have seemed an impossible task, for in hisclumsiness he must certainly have made some sort of sounds calculated toarouse the suspicions of the men.
Elmer's experiences in the Canadian Northwest had proven of great valueto him ever since he joined the Boy Scouts. And when he started to creepforward, it was with some of the stealth of the cat gliding toward acoveted dinner in the shape of a feeding sparrow.
As he covered several yards of territory, Elmer noticed that he quicklybegan to catch the sound of conversation. The men were talking low, butone of them had a harsh voice, and while this had come to Elmer at firstas an indistinct murmur, presently he began to catch distinct words.
Having attained a place behind another bush, where he could have tosseda pebble and touched the two fellows, had he been of a mind, he strainedhis ears to catch the tenor of their earnest talk.
The man with the husky voice seemed to be scolding his companion, andaccusing him of being either timid or over-particular.
"But ye was jest as dead set on doin' it as I was, Con Stebbins; an' nowthat we got the chanct ye show signs o' the white feather. Brace up, an'lets git busy!" he was growling.
"Aw! what's eatin' ye, Phil?" the other remarked, with a whine. "I'dlike tuh do the job jest as much as yerself; but what if we got ketched?It'd mean a long time in the pen, Phil."
"I tell you we ain't agoin' to be caught," declared the heavier of thetwo, in an angry tone. "Ain't I aknowin' the ropes here; didn't I usterwork for the kunnel as a gardener? That's what made me so crazy mad whenhe had me locked up, jest because we went and took some o' his olepeaches, an' sold 'em so's to get the hard stuff."
"But how d'ye know the dorg ain't goin' tuh git back an' tackle us whilewe're adoin' the job?" demanded the whining Con.
"Didn't I tell ye that Bruno knows me, an' that when I kim hyar an hourback I let him loose?" declared the heavy-set man, warmly.
"But he might come back any ole time," protested the other.
"He ain't goin' tuh," declared Phil. "I orter know his ways right well.Every time he breaks loose he stays away the hull blessed night. It's apicnic fur the dorg. Reckon he's got some friends he visits, an' has afew scraps. Jest ye forgit there is sech a thing as a dorg, and leave ittuh me to fix the game like we wants it."
"Huh! ye sed as how ye knowed jest how the game cud be worked, didn'tye, Phil?" went on the taller man, nervously.
"Sure I did. All ye got tuh do is to foller me. I'm willin' tuh take thelead. Yuh sed as how yuh had matches along, didn't yuh, Con?"
"Plenty of 'em, Phil," mumbled the other.
"That's good. All yuh has tuh do is to strike a match, _and then dropit_! I wants tuh make sure both of us has a hand in it, that's all. Now,are yuh ready to move along, Con?" asked the shorter scoundrel.
The other seemed to want to take one more nervous look around beforeconsenting. Undoubtedly his nerve had failed him in the critical test,and he was now being actually dragged into the thing by his moredetermined and vindictive partner.
Elmer had been thrilled by what he heard. When he caught the significantword "matches" the terrible truth flashed upon him, and he realized thatthese rascals, bent on revenge on the colonel because of their recentarrest, meant to set fire to either the stables or the mansion itself.
In either event it was a dreadful thing. No wonder the boy grew cold,and then hot alternately. But he did not flinch. Elmer was made of goodstuff, and such an emergency as this called it out.
He shut his teeth so hard together that he could hear the grittingsound, and so excited was he at the moment, that he wondered whethereither of the men could have sharp enough hearing to have detected thenoise which to his aroused fancy appeared like the creaking of aseldom-used door.
But they gave no sign of any suspicion. Con seemed to have recovered alittle of his lost grit, and was allowing the ex-employee of ColonelHitchins to draw him along again. They made progress slowly, stealthilykeeping in the densest shadows, and at times almost creeping on theirknees.
"What shall I do?"
That was the thought that flashed through the mind of the boy as hewatched the pair of intended incendiaries moving off. He could shout,and thus arouse the house; or after they had gone it was within hispower to hasten back to the door, and demand admittance.
Doubtless the colonel would still be in his library, for he seldomretired before midnight, Elmer knew. And once he found a chance tocommunicate the terrible news to the owner of the place, prompt meanscould easily be taken for preventing the incendiary fire.
Then, while he was trying to decide which of these courses might provebest, a sudden inspiration assailed the boy. It was, of course, born ofhis former experiences among the "men who do things" on the broadplains. Another lad would never had dreamed of such a bold course; oreven had it appealed to him, he must have quickly decided againstundertaking so hazardous an attempt to balk the wicked designs of theserascals.
But to Elmer it appealed irresistibly. He believed he could do it,given half a chance. And, unable to resist the temptation, he began tocreep after the two shadowy figures, now almost beyond range of hisvision.
He noticed that they were passing around the house. This would indicatethat they expected making their attack from the rear. Phil had worked onthese grounds, and apparently knew every foot of the estate. Possibly hemay, as he said, have been a gardener to Colonel Hitchins; Elmer faintlyremembered some man of about his squatty figure, whom he had seentrimming hedges, and working among the flowers early in the spring.
All at once the boy had a new thrill. They were certainly headedstraight for the very tool house where he had left his wheel! Doubtlessthere must be some particular object in this action on the part of Phil.Did he wish to secure some sort of tool to be used in furthering hisevil designs?
"Oh!"
This exclamation was forced from Elmer's lips when he suddenlyremembered something; but fortunately it was hushed to a whisper.
"That was kerosene I smelled when I was putting my wheel away," he saidto himself. "Perhaps there is a barrel of it kept in that place for useabout the house, or making an emulsion to kill insects on the trees androse bushes! And Phil knows all about it if he used to be the gardenerhere. He also knows that the door of the tool house is never locked, butjust fastened by a staple, a hasp, and that big nail held by a cord."
If, as seemed probable, the two men were bent on starting a fire thatwould, according to their evil way of thinking, pay the colonel back fortheir recent arrest, one of the first agencies for making a fierce blazethat Phil would be apt to think of must be that kerosene. It seems toappeal to every rogue who means to become an incendiary.
Elmer did not halt his footsteps. The terrible truth had thrilled, butnot dismayed him. He was, in fact, more determined than ever to balkthese villains in their intended work; though just why he kept on afterthem, when by rights he should have made direct for the front door ofthe house, Elmer was
never able to explain to his own satisfaction. Somesubtle power seemed to just pull him along as though he were being drawnby a powerful magnet which he could not successfully resist.
Yes, there could not be the slightest doubt now but that his guess wasthe true one; for just ahead he could see looming up the dark outlinesof a building which he knew full well must be the tool house.
Again the men were whispering together, and the harsher tones of Philseemed to breathe threatenings of some sort. Evidently the more timidCon was weakening once more, and had to be pulled on. His desire forrevenge was doubtless quite as strong as that of his companion; but helacked the bull-dog courage to put his evil designs into execution.
"Oh! if they would only _both_ go inside that tool house!" Elmer wassaying to himself exultantly, as a wonderful possibility flashed beforehis mind.
Phil evidently wanted to fully incriminate his companion. It was hisdesire to make the weaker rascal appear equally guilty with himself. Hisexpressed intention of having the taller fellow strike the match thatwas to start things going, was ample proof of this.
Would he himself enter the tool house to secure the kerosene? That wouldleave the timid one outside; and possibly he might seize upon such agolden opportunity to flee.
If Phil suspected him of harboring such an intention, then it washardly likely that he would allow the other a chance to remain alone. Onthe contrary, his plan would be to insist upon Con accompanying him in.And that was just what Elmer was hoping would occur; for he had a littleplan of his own, which had come into his active mind almost like aninspiration, and which he would then be able to put into practice.
Now they were at the door of the tool house. Elmer was trying toremember just what it looked like. It had a small window, to be sure,but, unless he was mistaken, this had been protected by several stoutiron bars, apparently with a view of preventing thieves from entering atsome time in the past, when valuable things may have been kept there bythe gentleman owning the estate before its purchase by the presentoccupant.
Yes, Elmer decided in his mind, it was worth a trial. At the worst afailure might only mean the escape of the rascals; and their viciousplot would have been frustrated at least.
He crept closer, still snaking his way along the ground in a fashionthat some of his former cowboy friends on the ranch farm three thousandmiles away might have recognized as familiar, since they had taught himhow to do it.
Con was trying to beg off about entering the tool house, but Phil hadoverruled his scruples, meeting every objection that was raised.
"Yuh jest _got_ tuh do it, I tell yuh, Con," he finished, angrily. "Thething's in our hands right now, an' yuh promised tuh stick by me. Soquit yer hangin' back, an' come along in. I know jest where tuh layhands on the five-gallon can, an' we kin be out agin in a jiffy. Yuhain't skeered, be yuh, Con?"
"Aw! course I ain't," whimpered the other, trying to steady hisquivering voice, and probably bracing himself up under this accusationwhich stirred his last drop of courage into life. "Lead off, Phil, an'I'm with ye."
"I'm agoin' tuh make dead sure o' that, Con; that's why I got this gripon your arm. Come right along, the door's open, and nawthin' tuh hinder,see!"
The two shadows passed from Elmer's range of vision. Instantly the boyarose, and darted silently forward. A dozen, yes hardly more than halfas many steps, carried him to the tool house. Then, quick as a flash, heprepared to close the heavy door, and fasten it with what means were athand!