CHAPTER XXVI.
A BLUFF CALLED.
Ned cast his eyes despairingly this way and that, in the hope of spyingsomething that might promise even a faint hope of salvation.
"Ned," it was the inventor's voice; but it sounded faint and far off,"shall I call out?"
"And betray your trust--no, sir!"
"Thank you; I thought you would say that. There is no chance of ourgetting away?"
"Not a loophole that I can see, sir."
"So be it. The explosion must come in a few seconds now, and all willbe over."
The inventor bowed his head. Ned's brain worked as it had never workedbefore, but, think as he would, he could not contrive any avenue ofescape. "If only I could work these ropes loose; if only they'd leftthe lamp--I'd have risked knocking it over and burning them off. Ifonly----"
The boy came to a sudden stop.
On the floor by the table he had espied a small, gleaming point offire--the burning stub of a cigar, carelessly thrown aside by one ofthe Pulsifers. They smoked only the best of cigars and the weed burnedred and strong.
To Ned its spark rekindled hope.
That tiny glow meant perhaps life and freedom.
Without an instant's delay, he threw himself on the floor, for, boundas he was, he could not bend or move. Otherwise he would have taken achance on burning through his thongs at the candle in the powder keg.
The Dreadnought Boy rolled himself toward the burning cigar butt. Mr.Varian watched him wonderingly, but made no comment. He realized thatthe boy had found what he thought was a way of escape.
Ned placed his mouth alongside the cigar, and after some difficulty gotit between his teeth. He took a few sharp puffs, as he had seen smokersdo, although the rank taste of the tobacco sickened him. It was Ned'sfirst and last smoke.
With the end of the cigar now blazing redly, he was ready for the nextstep. Dropping the "weed," he wriggled along the floor till he hadbrought his bound wrists up to the red end. Then he pressed the ropedown on the glowing tobacco, with a silent prayer that he might be intime.
A smell of burning rope filled the air.
A second later Ned Strong, his hands free, uttered a low cry of triumph.
He had won the first step of the desperate fight for liberty.
Rapidly, with his freed hands, he felt in his pockets. His captors hadforgotten--or, as was more probable, had not deemed it worth while--tosearch him. His jackknife was in his pocket. To sever his leg bondswas the work of two quick slashes. In his excitement the pain of hisleg was forgotten. All that the Dreadnought Boy knew was that he had afighting chance.
Hastily he stepped up to the powder barrel and prepared to pluck outthe candle. This was risky work. Not only might the Pulsifers or someof their gang be on the lookout, but he might, in his haste, spill aspark which would blow both himself and the inventor sky high.
As he reached the side of the keg, however, Ned's first utterance was agasp of surprise and then a low laugh.
"Bluffed!"
The exclamation came sharply as he plucked out the candle and threwit to the floor. Luckily it did not go out, for the next instant herealized that he would have to use its light.
Hastily he made his way to the inventor's side. A few quick slashes ofthe knife, and Mr. Varian stood free, words of gratitude on his lipsand a light of admiration in his eyes.
Ned hastily checked the other's words.
"Time for action now, sir," he said briskly. "Can you run an auto?"
"Can you tie a running bowline?" smiled the inventor, who now seemed ascool as ice.
Ned grinned appreciatively.
If all went well, the next step of his hastily contrived plan of escapecould be carried out.
"One moment, sir," begged Ned, as the inventor whispered: "What next?"
The boy was over at the side of the keg and rummaging there, it seemed.
"For Heaven's sake, don't waste time on that, my lad," urged theinventor. "Let us make a dash for it. Those men may be near at hand."
"All in good time, sir; but I want to cinch these rascals if we canand cinch them good and tight!"
"But why waste time on that powder barrel?"
"Powder barrel nothing---- I mean, it's not a powder barrel, sir."
"What?"
"That's right. Look here!"
Ned held up a handful of papers which he had extracted from the keg.
"When I said 'bluffed' just now, that's what I meant. But, Mr. Varian,we've called their bluff with these!"
"These" were papers which seemed to be maps of different placescarefully marked and figured, and other diagrams of different kinds.
"What are they?"
"As well as I can see, sir, material to forge steel chains on thoserascals who brought us here. They appear to be plans of United Statesports and details of our harbor defenses. But we've no time to lookthem over now. Come, sir!"
The lad stuffed the papers in his blouse.
He had noticed with his keen eyes that few things escaped, that thePulsifers had not locked the front door when they entered their hut.He now flung it open, and, a second later, he and the inventor stoodunder the open starlight, their hearts leaping excitedly.
In front of the door, a dark shadow in the gloom that had set infollowing the sinking of the moon, was the automobile.
A little gasoline, and more than a little good luck, was all that laybetween them and safety.
"Crank her up, sir. I'll stand guard here," breathed Ned.
The inventor bent over the front of the machine and jerked the crankinghandle over. There was no explosion.
Again he turned it, without result.
"We'll have to hurry, sir, or else run for it," warned Ned. "Hark!"
Inside the house they could hear trampling of feet.
Evidently Pulsifer and his brother had decided that their "bluff" wouldhave burned itself out by this time, and were returning to the room inwhich they confidently supposed their helpless victims were lying inagony of mind.
"We'll have to try them another way, since they have withstood theordeal of powder," Ned heard the elder Pulsifer's heavy voice boomout, half-amusedly, as the inner door of the room banged open.
At the same instant there came a low "chug" from the motor.
"Speed up that spark," ordered the laboring inventor. "No, not thatlever. There, that little attachment on the wheel. That's it."
Chug-chug-chug!
"Hurray! that did the trick!" shouted Mr. Varian, forgetting hisdignity in the excitement of the moment.
As he spoke, from inside the house they heard, above the roar of thenow awakened motor, the shouts of dismay with which Pulsifer and hismercenaries greeted their discovery that their "birds had flown."
"They can't be far off!" Ned heard the heavy voice boom out. "Scatter,boys! After them! One hundred dollars to the lad who bags the firstone!"
The front door burst open and out rushed the men who a few minutes agohad been so confident of bluffing out one of Uncle Sam's sailors andone of his brainiest citizens.
"There they are!" yelled Pulsifer, as his eyes lit on the two figuresas they lightly swung into the auto. "Don't let them get away! Fivehundred dollars if you stop them!"
"Shoot 'em down!" bawled the shrill tones of Schultz.
As the inventor opened up the motor and threw in the clutch severaldark figures leaped in front of the machine, and one jumped on to theseat beside Ned.
This last figure--it was that of Kennell--raised a knife high and thenbrought it down with a vicious swoop. The blade seemed to strike fullat Ned's heart.
The inventor gave a cry of dismay.
But at the same instant, like a thing instinct with life, the carleaped forward.
"Stand from under!" bawled the inventor, as he threw in the third-speedclutch.
Ned saw the figures of Schultz and Hank Harkins flung aside by thewheels and go rolling down the steep hillside. At the same time he drewback his fist and sent it crashing into
Kennell's face. The knife fellclattering twenty feet away, as the treacherous bluejacket, with a howlof alarm, fell backward.
"Take that from Herc Taylor!" shouted Ned.
Forward into the darkness plunged the car, leaping and rolling over therough road.
"Hurt, Ned?"
It was the inventor speaking. His voice was anxious. Already the shoutsand cries behind them were dying out.
"No, sir, why?"
"That blow with the knife. I thought it would have killed you."
"Well, it might have, sir, but for _this_. I carried it for a luckpiece, and I guess it's earned its name!"
The Dreadnought Boy held up a tiny silver coin. It had a big dent init, where Kennell's blade had been turned.
It was old Zack's parting present, the Canadian dime.