CHAPTER VI
CAPTAIN JOE MAKES A HIT
While the _Rambler_, in charge of reckless river pirates, was swingingdown with the current, threatening to capsize every instant, Alex. andJule sat flat on a rotten, yielding floor somewhere in the interior ofthe deserted house, feeling tenderly over their limbs to see if theyhad received severe injuries during the fall from the room where theyhad been so inhospitably welcomed by the aged man.
The boys had not fallen far. In fact, it seemed to them that they hadonly slid down a gentle incline to the story below. A hatch in thefloor in front of the hearth had been dropped back, and their chairshad slid into a chute which seemed, from its smoothness, to be infrequent use.
For a minute the boys were alarmed, excited, angry, then the humor oftheir sudden removal from the apartment above appealed to them. Alex.was first to speak.
"Vot iss?" he exclaimed. "This must be a page of a comic section inone of the Chicago newspapers. How many legs and arms have youbroken?"
"Not a one!" answered Jule. "What kind of hospital treatment do yourequire?"
"If I felt any better," laughed Alex., "I wouldn't know what to takefor it."
It was dark as pitch where the boys were, and they felt about untiltheir hands touched. The personal contact gave them new courage.
"What do you make of it?" asked Jule. "This doesn't look good to me!"
"We've simply butted in on some other fellow's game," Alex. replied."We seem to have visited a crank who thinks it best to be prepared inadvance for unwelcome guests."
"A moonshiner or a river pirate!" Jule suggested.
"That's about it!" Alex. answered. "We've interrupted the industry ofa set of illicit whisky makers or warehouse thieves. The valley issaid to swarm with bandits whenever the river is out of its banks.Now, the question is how are we going to get out and back to the_Rambler_?"
They did not know that at that moment Clay and the motor boat were ina situation far more serious than that in which they now foundthemselves!
"I wish it wasn't so dark here!" Jule whispered.
"Why the soft pedal?" asked Alex. "We've got a right to talk as loudlyas we like, I take it, being alone in a dark old donjon keep!"
"There's some one in the room with us!" Jule explained, in a whisperwhich barely reached his chum's ears, so faint it was. "I hear himbreathing."
"Hello!" Alex. called out, then. "Hello! Come on out an' be a goodfellow!"
There was no answer, and then Alex., reaching into a capacious pocket,brought out a small electric torch and pushed the button. On board the_Rambler_ or on shore, it was a rule of the boys never to move aboutwithout an electric torch and an automatic revolver ready for use.
When the light flashed out, its round circle showed only a room twentyfeet square in size, with bare discolored walls. Plastering hung tobroken lath, so they knew that they were on the ground floor of thedeserted house, and not in the cellar. The floor was worn, and therough boards which half protected the broken windows showed signs ofhaving been long in position. There was no furniture at all in theplace.
"Looks like we might rip off a board and walk out," Jule said, stillspeaking in a very low tone of voice.
"Don't you ever think we're not watched!" Alex. hastened to say. "Idon't know but I made a mistake in showing this light."
"There's only one way to discover whether we are watched or not," saidthe other, "and that is to try to get away. I'm going after thatwindow."
As Jule spoke he moved toward a window which seemed to open on thebayou, as a gleam of water could be seen through the cracks in thewindow-guard. The instant his hand touched a crumbling board a voicecame out of the darkness.
"I wouldn't do that, boys!"
That was all. Jule stopped at the uncanny interruption with a handsuspended in air, and Alex. quickly flashed his light in the directionfrom which the sound had come.
There was no one in sight. Rats or other creeping, crawling, thingsseemed to be working in the disreputable walls, for there was acontinuous scratching noise, but there were no other sounds. Alex.shut off the light and sat down on the floor again.
"I guess it is no use!" he said. "We'll have to surrender!"
"There will always be someone here to see that you don't get away!"said the voice. "If you make any trouble, you won't get anything toeat! Now, be good!"
"You can keep me as gentle as a lamb by feeding me right!" Alex. said,with a chuckle which was rather forced. "Why don't you show up?"
"You'll see me soon enough," the voice went on. "In the meantime,don't show that electric light again, and if you have any weapons laythem on the floor in this corner."
"I haven't any," lied Alex. "I brought the light instead."
As he spoke the boy nudged Jule, and he, understanding, slid hisrevolver along the floor in the direction of the voice. It struckagainst the wall with a metallic thud.
"That's right!" the voice in the darkness said. "Now, you with thelight, send it over here. I might want to use it!"
Alex. slid his torch along the floor. In its progress the button waspressed and a round illumination sprang up on the wall. Almost in thecenter of this they saw the white hair and beard of the old man whohad invited them into the room above!
The boys sat for a long time in serious thought after that, wellknowing that every word uttered would be heard by their guardian.Alex. was more than hopeful in his views of the situation.
"If these fellows were professionals," he mused, "they wouldn't takeany chances on us not having more weapons and more lights. They wouldmake sure by searching us! I don't believe they ever took a prisonerbefore, or that they are very anxious about keeping us. I guess wejust butted in where we're not wanted, and they'll let us go after atime. Anyway, they're easy!"
Directly loud noises were heard in the old house, and the insecurewalls shook under heavy burdens. It seemed to the listening lads thathuge boxes and barrels were being transferred from one room toanother.
There were excited voices, too, although no words could be understood.It seemed to the two prisoners that the old mansion was beingdeserted, and their impression was that the thieves were removingtheir plunder because their hiding-place had been intruded upon. Inthat case, they thought, they might soon be released.
After what seemed a whole day, food was pushed into the room, and theboys ate heartily of the fresh pork sausages, corn pones, and sweetpotatoes given them.
"You're all right on the feed!" Alex. called back in the direction ofthe corner where for an instant the old man had been seen.
There was no answer, but, somehow, the boys were convinced that therewas some one there in the room with them. It does not always requirethe eyes, or the hands, or the ears, or the sense of smell, to showone that others are close by.
There is a tingling of the nerves which warns of the presence ofhostile elements, and this it was which showed the prisoners that theywere still under guard.
That was a long afternoon. For the most part there were no sounds inthe old house; still, now and then, there came the jar of heavyburdens on the floors, and the sharp and angry voices of men, speakingin a tongue the boys did not understand.
When the cracks in the boards at the windows began to darken, theyknew that night was falling. They thought of the comfortable cabin ofthe _Rambler_, and of the companionship of the other boys with spasmsof anger and regret. As the darkness became more complete outside,they arose and walked up and down the floor of their little room.
"Say, Mister!" Alex. called out to their invisible guard, directly,"how many acts are there in this drama? When do the persecutedc-h-e-i-l-d-s return to their agonized and heart-broken parents?"
"I'm as weary of it as you are!" was the remarkable answer, still inthat calm voice they had heard before.
"Then why don't you cut it out?" asked Jule.
"There are men in the party who advise that," was the significantanswer. "They are at present discussing your fate. Many declare thatit is not wise
to permit you to leave the place! I'm sorry for you,but you had no right to snoop in here!"
"Next time," Alex. replied, "you hoist a piracy flag, and we'll keepaway."
"When will this strategy board you refer to make a report?" askedJule.
"I may receive orders at any moment," was the answer.
Silence followed. There were crunchings and chatterings, in the wallswhere rodents were busy making nests, but no sound of human action. Inthe long wait the boys heard a low, inquisitive sniff!
Alex. drew Jule's head over to him and whispered in his ear:
"That's Captain Joe, for a dollar and a half!"
"You're on!" Jule responded. "I'll be glad to lose the bet at that,too!"
"I guess I know that inquisitive snort!" Alex. went on. "Besides, Itold you that the dog would find some way to get to us!"
"Aw, Clay sent him!" declared Jule. "He never found his way herealone."
"The boys may be with him," Alex. suggested, as the sound came again."I hope he won't make enough noise to disturb his nibs, over in thecorner. Good old dog!"
After a time they heard the patter of the dog's feet, and then theguard whistled softly, as if attempting to make friends with whateveranimal was approaching.
"Come here, you foolish dog!" he said. "Why don't you come in out ofthe dark?"
The pat-pat of the dog's soft feet came nearer, and the guard spokeagain:
"How the Old Harry did you get in here?" he demanded. "Whose dog areyou, anyway?"
The dog growled and there came a flash of light. The guard, becomingafraid of this thing which had found its way into a room supposed tobe secure from intrusion, and had switched on the electric.
The light revealed the two prisoners, grouped together in the middleof the room, the old man, standing with weapon extended and withstaring eyes, Captain Joe all ready for a spring, an open window, and,lastly, the black face of Mose overlooking the scene with eyes whichseemed too large for his head!
"Get him, Joe!" cried both boys in unison.
The light dropped as the dog leaped, and a revolver clattered to thefloor. Alex. had hold of the dog in an instant, his other handreaching for the rolling flashlight.
"Don't eat him up, Joe!" the boy said, tearing the dog away from thefallen man. Captain Joe fell away with a sullen growl.
"The brute has bitten my arm!" the old man moaned.
"If you remain quiet," Alex. said, "you won't have any more wounds tocomplain of. We'll just tie you up and get out! After we are gone someone will come and let you out. What sort of a place is this, anyway?"
The old man groaned and made no reply, so the boys secured him andcrept out of the window into the darkness.