CHAPTER XIII
A SHARP TURN
Billy Speedwell, in the hood of the robbers’ car, speeding over theselonely roads at this late hour of the night, had many sensations. He hadhis own anxieties and fears—nor were they much connected with thewrecked automobile in the tree-tops; nevertheless, they were poignanttroubles.
Billy was much shaken as the motor car bounced over the way. The pacewas not quite so wild, however, as it had been on the run down to theFalls. George was handling the car with more caution. Billy could hear alow murmur of voices—now and then a little cry. The man who had beenshot, and who had kept perfectly still while at Rebo’s garage, washaving his wound dressed, without doubt.
Nothing occurred to alarm Billy, or to spur his wit to any action, untilthe car suddenly took the turn into the lane, where the second maroonmachine was in hiding. The short turn surprised Billy quite as much asit surprised his brother and those with him.
Billy heard the shouting, saw a light flashed, and realized that the carhe was with had barely grazed another touring automobile standingwithout lights in the narrow roadway. Then he recognized his brother’svoice as Dan shouted his name!
Billy could do nothing but wave his hand—and he did not know that thesignal was seen. He realized on the instant, however—as did the threerobbers—that they were pursued. Somehow, Billy’s written information hadreached Dan Speedwell’s ear, and he—with others—were out to catch themen who had looted the Sudds’ house and who (so Billy believed) hadrobbed the Riverdale bank.
Billy knew quite well the direction in which he was traveling. In a veryfew minutes they would pass a spot in the big swamp which lay less thanhalf a mile from his own home. And Billy Speedwell very much wished thathe was safe in his home at that moment!
Lights flashed beside the road, but at some distance ahead. Billy knewthat they were already in the thick woods lying behind his own home. Theflaring of the lights assured him that they had come upon a huntingparty.
Indeed, as George shut off the power, and the noise of the engineceased, the yelping of the dogs could be plainly heard. They had treedsomething right beside the highway.
“Switch on the lights quick!” whispered the man who seemed to commandthe trio. “They are too busy to have seen us yet.”
“But can’t we take some side road?” asked the wounded one.
“There is none, I tell you; I know the country like a book. We have gotto pass that crowd of fools.”
The lamps were already alight; the chauffeur spun the flywheel and thecar moved on. It might have seemed to any of the party of hunters, whonoticed at all, that the automobile had only then flashed around thecurve in the road.
It leaped ahead again, but not before Billy heard the approaching purrof the car in pursuit. Dan and his friends were close behind!
“Hold on!” yelled somebody. “Look out for the dogs.”
The thieves uttered exclamations of anger, but George slowed down. Theexcited canines were leaping about in the roadway. The ’coon had takento a tall, straight tree, directly on the line of the highway. Thebranch on which the animal crouched overhung the road.
The torches and lanterns flashed in front of the car. The chauffeurbrought it down to a creeping pace. Those beside the road obtained agood view of the car, and of the men in it. This was in all probabilitynot to the liking of the latter. Beside, there was the license platebehind—no dragging robe covered those numbers now.
Already a man with an axe was at the base of the tree. He struck a blow,or two, before the motor car crawled past. They were going to fell thetree so as to get their quarry.
The maroon car passed. Billy heard the sound of the pursuing auto,growing louder and louder. He decided that the moment had come for himto escape from the car, for the hunters would protect him from thevengeance of the criminals.
And even as he was about crawling out of the canopy, and dropping to thelighted roadway, the boy was startled by a sharp detonation—followed bythe shaking of the automobile as it was brought to a sudden stop.
“A blow-out!” thought Billy.
The car was stalled. He heard the three thieves express their fear andanger. He knew he would be less likely to be observed by them now thanat any time. He leaped down and scuttled into the bushes in a moment.
“Hullo!” shouted one of the men of the hunting party. “A breakdown?”
Then another hunter heard a fast-approaching car, and uttered a cry ofwarning:
“Look out for the dogs! Here’s another of those plaguy autos.”
Billy was aware, from his place of concealment, that the three robberswere extremely busy men. They soon had a lantern beside the burst tire,and tools spread about the road. George and the wounded one were jackingup the car so as to get off the old tire and replace it with a new one.
With a sudden shout, the leader of the trio of robbers left the car andbounded toward the ’coon tree. He passed Billy so near that the boyshrank back with an affrighted cry. He thought he had been discovered.
But the man did not stop for Billy Speedwell. Indeed, he probably didnot hear the lad’s cry. He had seen the lights of the pursuingautomobile at the turn in the road.
He dashed in among the hunters who, with their flaring torches andlanterns and dogs, were gathered about the tree in which the ’coon hadtaken refuge. The man with the axe had already cut half through the talltrunk.
Without a word, but giving the axeman a strong push to one side, theleader of the thieves seized the axe, wrenching it from the other’shands. Then, with mighty blows, he set upon the work of felling thetree. The hunters were amazed. They did not know whether it was a joke,or not. But suddenly one observed the object of the stranger.
“Look out, there!” he cried. “You’ll have that tree down across theroad.”
And, even as he spoke, with the second motor car still some rods away,and slowing down, the event he had prophesied occurred! With a crash thetree fell. The motor rascal was an excellent woodsman. He had known justhow to slant his axe to make the tree fall in the right direction.
As it came down to earth the yelping dogs made a dash for the ’coon, andfor some moments there was a lively scrimmage in the brush across thehighway; but nobody had paid any attention to this event.
The pursuing car stopped in bare season to escape collision with thefallen tree. It had been completely blocked from further pursuit.
“Stop them! Hold them!” shouted Mr. Briggs and Mr. Armitage.
“Are you there, Billy?” yelled Dan Speedwell.
The leader of the party in the first maroon car leaped back toward thatcrippled machine. At the moment one of his mates whistled a shrillsignal, while George, the chauffeur, shouted:
“All ready! We’re off!”
Mr. Polk, as well as several of the hunters, made for the man. He eludedthem with ease, sprang into the middle of the road, and sprinted for theforward car. There was only Billy Speedwell between him and escape.