CHAPTER XXVIII--THE POLICE LAUNCH
Down on the bank of the river a speedy launch was concealed underoverhanging trees. Two men were waiting in it when the Black Star, hisother followers, and the two prisoners arrived. The prisoners, stillbound, were stretched on a robe in the bottom, the Black Star and hismen got aboard, and the launch slipped almost noiselessly out into thestream and started down it toward the city.
The craft showed its lights properly, but it kept away from all othervessels, and the men aboard crouched down low and spoke in whispers.In time the two prisoners groaned and opened their eyes, the effect ofthe vapor having worn off, and at a sign from the Black Star one ofhis men inspected bonds and gags and made sure that they were secure.The Black Star did not want any slip this night with a fortune atstake.
"Your attitude this evening puzzles me, Mr. Verbeck," the mastercriminal whispered in a sarcastic tone. "You do not seem to be yourusual self. Three or four times now I have had you as prisoner, and wehave exchanged some conversation, and while I cannot say that I knowyou well, yet you do not seem the Verbeck of old. Apparently you havegiven up the fight; you are passive. Been worrying, eh? Afraid I'llabduct your fiancee, as I almost did once, and through her force youto join my band? Stop your silly attempt to capture me, Verbeck, andyour worry will end. No? Very well, then!"
Muggs gurgled behind his gag at this baiting of his comrade, and theBlack Star laughed at his ineffectual attempt to speak and at theangry glint in his eyes.
"Nor do you seem to be up to standard, my dear Muggs," he went on. "Iam disgusted with you this evening. Here you have been in my power fora couple of hours, and have not made a violent move. Generally youmanage to slip your ropes by some clever means. Losing your fightingspirit, are you?"
Muggs gurgled again, and the Black Star laughed softly and turnedaway.
"We do not go into a wharf," he told his men. "We will take no chancesof the police being informed and in wait for us. We stop at a certainplace and transfer to touring cars. Get those fantastic robes from thelocker and dress Verbeck and Muggs in them. We'll mask them, too, andso, when we reach the city, if any one gets inquisitive we are merelyinitiating two gentlemen into the Knights of Certainty."
They were halfway to the city now, and his men began carrying out hisorders. Suddenly the engineer of the launch growled something, shutoff the power, cut out all the lights, and let the craft drift.
"Police launch!" he hissed over his shoulder.
Up the river and directly at them rushed a high-powered craft that washurling back the water from her bows. Her searchlight was sweeping theriver. The Black Star growled orders, his men stretched beside him onthe bottom, and the engineer hurled quantities of sacks over them.Then he snapped on the lights again and started the launch forwardslowly, for he would be able to escape suspicion that way better thanif discovered by the searchlight and found to be drifting withoutlights burning.
For a moment the searchlight rested on the launch, which continued onits course. The police craft swung in and headed directly for it. Ahail came across the water. The launch was slowed down and the policeboat stopped almost alongside.
"Who are you, and where are you going?" an officer demanded.
"This is the launch _Speedy_," the engineer replied. "I'm runnin' toth' fish market with a load o' sacks. What's th' matter?"
"Seen any other launch?" the officer demanded.
"Nope!"
"How far have you come?"
"From the mouth o' th' river. Good fishin' there now."
"I'll come aboard and look you over," the officer said.
The police boat started slowly and swung nearer. In that instant theBlack Star's engineer acted. He threw on the power and dropped, forthe wheel was locked. The screw churned the water and hurled a greatwave at the police boat.
Behind, the men in the police boat were shouting, and a fusillade ofrevolver shots spattered around the Black Star's craft. But the policefound themselves at a disadvantage. The Black Star's launch wasswifter, and the police boat was headed the wrong way and had to beturned. While the turn was being accomplished, the firing continued,and the searchlight kept the prey in sight but that prey was graduallyputting distance between itself and the boat behind.
The Black Star's boat was a hundred yards in the lead by the time thepolice launch had straightened out and taken up the chase in earnest.The grim race was on, with the police firing at times, and thesearchlight always playing on the vessel ahead. The Black Star hadcrawled from beneath the sacks now, and was directing operations.
"All the speed you have, and get around the bend," he ordered. "We canleave the boat and take to the touring cars. We'll be lost in the citybefore they can telephone headquarters or get cars and trail us!"
The bend in the stream was not far ahead now, and the master criminalissued further orders. The two prisoners were treated to shots fromthe vapor gun again. The siren of the launch shrieked a message to themen ahead waiting with the touring cars.
Around the bend--and the launch dashed for the shore. As it wasreached, the police boat came into view, its searchlight trying topick up the quarry. The Black Star and his men tumbled out, carryingthe prisoners. From the road a short distance away came the honking ofan automobile horn.
Then the searchlight struck them, and the police launch turned andheaded for the shore. More flashes of flame split the darkness, andbullets whined through the trees and underbrush.
But the Black Star and his men were in the dense woods now andhurrying along a narrow path that led to the road. They reached thetwo waiting motor cars and tumbled in, and the automobiles startedtoward the city.
The police were just leaving their boat and rushing into the woods,flashing their pocket torches, their revolvers held ready, calling toone another. They reached the road in time to hear the roaring of twomotors and to see two cars disappearing down the highway. They wastedanother fusillade of shots, and then hurried back toward the boat.