CHAPTER XIV
THE QUEER ACTIONS OF ZACK ARNOLD
ROOM was found for the newcomer later on in the half-circle before thefire, and though Zack Arnold took no part in the conversation, he satthere listening, and hearing things that must have given him many newimpressions. As a rule his eyes were fastened upon the beaming andgenial face of Uncle Caleb, who, however, made out not to notice thisattention he was receiving, though naturally he could not help knowingit.
The boys told their host numerous things connected with the organizationof the troop of Boy Scouts in their town, and what wonderful things ithad already done for many of those who had signed the muster roll. Hewas keenly interested, and asked questions so fast that it kept them allbusy answering; for Elmer would never consent that his chums simply sitthere while he spoke for all; he wished them to have a part in thetelling.
On his part, Uncle Caleb related a lot about his life in the past,touching upon some of the remarkable things that had happened to him.Strange as some of these might be reckoned, Elmer was privately of theopinion that nothing more singular could ever have happened to thetraveler and scientist than the dramatic coming to his cabin door onthis bitter cold winter's night of one who believed himself to be theold gentleman's enemy, sorely wounded, almost ready to die, and whollydependant upon Uncle Caleb's bounty for his very life.
When later on some of the scouts manifested signs of drowsiness andexhaustion, by sundry yawns and nods, the host declared it was time theythought of getting some sleep.
"I'd put you on the cot here, Zack," he told the guide, "only it isn'tas strong as it might be, and you're rather heavy. If it happened togive way you'd get a bad wrench to that arm of yours that wouldn't bevery pleasant. So I'm going to fix you out with a bunk on the floor nearthe fire. I happen to have some spare blankets, and here are some fursthat will make things feel easy for you. I don't suppose you object tosleeping on the floor, do you?"
At that the man grinned, for the first time since entering the cabin.
"Won't be the fust time by a thousand thet I've slept on boards, suh,"he went on to say, "an' right hyar I wants to tell ye how much 'bleegedI am ter yer fur all ye done by me. I don't deserve a bit o' the same.I'm a bad man, suh, I been thinkin' all manner o' rotten things 'boutye, sence ye guv me what I reckons I desarved, if ever a mean skunk did;an' thet's what."
"Don't mention it, Zack," said Uncle Caleb, pleasantly; "I know youlooked at things from the wrong side, and at one time thought I'd doneyou harm; but since then you've seen a better light; and I wouldn't besurprised if you were coming out of your way to my cabin to tell me so,when this accident happened."
The big guide's jaws worked several times as though he might be tryingto say something; but it was of no use, for not a word escaped him. Hedid heave a deep sigh, however, and gave his kind benefactor a long lookbefore allowing his eyes to drop.
Elmer felt satisfied, for he believed the cure must be working. Indeed,he could not for the life of him understand how any one could withstandfriendly advances from such a splendid old gentleman as Uncle Caleb. Hisvery eyes were full of benevolence and the kindly spirit that filled hisheart. The man who would take the keenest delight in binding up thebroken leg of a poor little rabbit that he found in distress, certainlycould not bear malice toward an uneducated woodsman, who had never hadhalf a chance to learn better things than entertaining an unreasonabledesire for revenge.
Under the direction of the owner of the cabin Lil Artha made up a mightycomfortable bed on the floor. When it was finished the scout tested hiswork, and declared he would not mind sleeping there all the rest of hisstay, if Uncle Caleb thought one of the bunks would be better for thewounded guide.
Zack, however, would not hear of it. He declared that he preferred thefloor for many reasons. Lil Artha managed to shoot a suggestive looktoward Elmer, upon which the other shook his head in the negative. Heknew that the lengthy scout suspected Zack might be thinking of takingFrench leave while they slept, and perhaps help himself to some of theirstores in the bargain. But Elmer had no such fear.
When the boys started to crawl into their respective bunks, partlyundressing, although none of them had dreamed of bringing their pajamasalong on this wintry expedition, Zack appeared to be asleep. At least helay there bundled up, and seemed to be breathing heavily.
Lil Artha, when he thought he was not noticed, managed to deftly movehis Marlin gun closer to the bunk into which he meant to clamberpresently. He acted as if he more than half suspected he might findoccasion to make some sort of use of the weapon before dawn broke again.
But Elmer had seen him; indeed, it was very little that ever eludedthose wideawake eyes of the scout master, when out with his chums. Hemanaged to get a chance to whisper with Lil Artha when the others werebusily engaged making their sleeping quarters ready.
"I'd be mighty slow to think of using that gun, if I were you, LilArtha," he suggested.
The lengthy scout flushed a little, and looked somewhat confused.
"I might have known you'd glimpse me doin' that same, Elmer," heconfessed, "but when a wildcat comes down our chimney what's to hinderits mate from doin' likewise? And if a fellow was waked up in the nightto find that a ferocious critter had taken possession of our bungalow,why, a gun'd be a good asset, believe me."
Elmer looked at him, and then smiled grimly.
"Oh! well, if that's what you've got troubling you, it's all right, LilArtha," he went on to say, meaningly. "I kind of imagined you werethinking of something else. And if some one should take a notion to skipout, remember it's no business of yours. We wouldn't want to detain anyone against his will."
"Sure, I didn't mean to try to," acknowledged the tall scout, "'less,f'r instance, he tried to loot the whole shebang, when I'd think it myduty to cover him, and then call Uncle Caleb."
"I don't think you'll find any need of doing that, Lil Artha," continuedElmer; "fact is, all the signs point just the other way."
"Hope so," grunted his chum; and this was all that passed between them.
Later on the cabin became quiet, except for the heavy breathing of thosewho were sound asleep. Elmer dozed. Somehow, although he was desperatelysleepy, he did not appear to be able to lose himself for more than briefintervals at a stretch.
Perhaps it was his strange surroundings, although Elmer could hardlybelieve such to be the case, for past experiences were against it. Hecould remember sleeping soundly on more than a few occasions when dangerthreatened; he had helped guard the saddle band of horses on hisuncle's ranch when rustlers in the shape of horse thieves were operatingall through the vicinity; and on being given a chance to snatch anhour's sleep had lost himself as soon as his head touched the ground.
The wind moaned through the branches of the trees without. Now and thenElmer believed that he could hear faint sounds that might proceed fromcertain of the four-footed denizens of that great snow forest aroundthem, possibly searching for food while the night lasted, since theyhugged their dens in the daytime.
Once he saw Lil Artha thrust his head out from his bunk, and stare atthe figure bundled up in those blankets on the floor. This told thescout master that Lil Artha had not been able to quite get over thesuspicions he had formed, and which Elmer believed to be whollyunwarranted.
It must have been long after midnight when Elmer, chancing to once moreawaken, on glancing out from his bunk saw that Zack Arnold was no longerlying there on his well side, and wrapped in sleep.
The revengeful guide was now sitting up. He seemed to be intentlylistening, as though to either discover whether all of the others weresound asleep, or else trying to catch some signal from without.
A dreadful thought flashed into Elmer's mind, though he quicklydismissed it as unreasonable. It was of course possible that Zack mayhave coaxed others to accompany him on his mission of revenge; but ifhe had company why should he appeal to his bitter enemy when indesperate need of succor? That alone stamped the idea as next door toabsurd; and so Elmer put
it out of his mind as impossible.
At the same time the actions of the guide were certainly queer, to saythe very least of it. He was now getting slowly and painfully to hisfeet, repressing a groan while so doing; because with one arm tied upand useless it is not always the easiest thing in the world to get upoff the floor, and out from a mess of clinging blankets.
Once he was on his feet the actions of the man became even moresuspicious. He crept toward the door, turning his head several times asthough to make sure that no one was watching him. Here he fumbled for abrief time, managing presently to take aside the bar. Then he gentlyopened the door, and as the wind was from the north, and the openingfaced the south, the cold air did not enter when he had done this.
Elmer, still watching, half expected to see the guide step out anddepart. He was even debating with himself as to whether his duty mightnot compel him to raise his voice in protest against such an act, sincethe chances were the man would not be able to survive the exposure inhis present weakened condition, without his rifle, and with no food tosustain him.
He saw that Lil Artha had that long neck of his "rubbering," as hehimself would have termed it; doubtless his gun was alongside him inthe bunk, and even then he had hold of it.
To the astonishment of Elmer, however, the man did not pass beyond thedoorsill. He seemed to have drawn some object from a hidden receptacleabout his person, where it must have escaped observation when hisbenefactors were helping him. And giving this a swift toss Zack Arnoldhurled it far out amidst the snow drifts; after which he backed into thecabin, softly closed the door, glanced hurriedly around to see if he hadbeen observed, but seeing nothing, because Lil Artha had hastily drawnhis head back as might a cautious old tortoise when threatened withperil; after which the guide replaced the bar.
Five minutes after all this queer happening had taken place Zack wasonce more bundled up in his blankets, and apparently bound to go tosleep, this time in real earnest.
After that Elmer seemed to find no difficulty whatever in getting asleephimself. Why, it really seemed as though a great load had been removedfrom his mind; and the first thing he knew George was calling him to getup, because breakfast was almost ready.
It was a most unusual thing for the scout master to over-sleep. Some ofthe others, notably Toby and George, joked him about it; but Elmernoticed that Lil Artha did not say a word.
Later on, after they had all partaken of the fine meal that Georgeprepared, he doing his level best to show Uncle Caleb that there wereother cooks as well, Elmer caught Lil Artha making certain gestures inhis direction. He could manage to guess what it all meant, and believedthe other wanted a chance to talk with him outside.
"I wonder what the weather promises for to-day; and I think I'll stepout to see how things look," Elmer presently remarked carelessly.
"I'll go along and give you the benefit of my vast experience as aweather prophet!" exclaimed Lil Artha, jumping up; "the rest of you stayinside, because too many cooks spoil the broth, and two of us ought tobe enough to settle this job with the clerk of the weather."
It happened that George was still busy with some of his dishes, aboutwhich he saw Uncle Caleb was unusually particular, in that he used twoseparate waters in washing the same; while Toby was busily employed inlooking over some traps he had discovered hanging from a nail, andevidently seldom used; so that neither of them dreamed of leaving thecomfortable cabin, and braving the outside air just then.
"What's all this about, Lil Artha?" demanded the scout master, after thedoor had been carefully closed behind them.
"Why, I happened to know that you saw that ugly looking guide movingaround in the middle of the night, Elmer; and I thought you must havenoticed that he threw something away when he was standing there in thedoorway?"
"I did see him do that, and I knew you were on the job, too, Lil Artha,"Elmer went on to say; "but if you've made a discovery, hurry up andtell me what it is, because I haven't thought to put my sweater on, andit's pretty chilly here."
"Well, I was that curious to know what it could be the fellow threwaway," continued the tall scout, "the first thing this morning, beforeany of the rest of you had peeped an eye open, I got up, and came outhere to look around."
"And did you find anything?" asked Elmer, his own curiosity aroused bynow.
"I had to go back and forth a heap before I came on a little hole in asnow drift that looked like something had dropped in there," continuedLil Artha, in a highly mysterious fashion. "So I began to dig down, andpretty soon my hand touched this!"
He thereupon drew something from its place of concealment, and held itup before the eyes of his astonished companion.
"Why, it only looks like a piece of common gaspipe!" exclaimed Elmer.
"Just what it is," Lil Artha went on, in an awed tone; "but say, Elmer,the same is crowded chock full of some sort of stuff that may bedynamite for all I know. It's a sure-enough infernal machine, one of thecrude bombs that you read about in the New York papers, such as Italiansuse when they want to make some rich merchant or banker hand overblackmail money. Look at it yourself, and then you'll know what fetchedthat skunk of a Zack Arnold up here to this region. He meant to blowUncle Caleb's cabin to flinders, that's what he did; and p'raps withthe owner inside of the same. Huh! no wonder he didn't want that thingto be discovered on his person! I sure don't blame him a little bit!"
And Elmer, as he examined the miserable contrivance which would explodewith so great a power for harm, felt a thrill pass all over his body.