Ralph Boston

“ Mantell replied, placing his hand on that of the detective.
"Are you ill?"
"No. Only worried."
"About what?"
"My wife."
"Your wife?" Nick echoed inquiringly. "You don’t mean——”
"No, no; there’s nothing wrong on her part, Nick," put in Mantell quickly. "She is all that a man could wish. But we’re living in a house of fear, Nick, a house of fear. The dread that hangs over us is something appalling. ”

“ Thus it happened that the newspapers next morning, in their accounts of Owen Sheridan’s trial and its sensational developments, exonerated Boss Coggswell, and unanimously declared that while at first it had been assumed that the conspiracy to railroad the letter carrier to jail was of a political nature, it had been discovered that rivalry in love was at the bottom of it all—that Jake Hines had been inspired solely by personal motives, and had acted without the knowledge of his master. ”

“ There’s nothing to prevent us from getting married now, and she can throw up that job as soon as she’s ready."
He was smiling to himself at the pleasant picture his mind drew of a cozy little flat, with Dallas, trim and dainty, pouring coffee at a breakfast table laid for two, when the strident voice of the boarding-house woman brought him sharply to his senses:
"Why a young woman that’s earning twelve dollars a week—which I understand is her salary, Mr. Sheridan—shouldn’t be able to keep out of debt when her board bill’s only eight, is something that I fail to understand. ”

“ Mullen’s hangdog companion then ran up the road as far as the bend, where he turned and waved his hand, plainly signifying that no observer was in sight.
Patsy then saw the other three men hasten to the door of the taxicab. He could see only their legs for a few moments, by gazing under the intervening wagon, but presently they appeared at the rear end of it, bearing between them—the lax form of the veiled woman.
"Thundering guns!" thought Patsy, when their designs became obvious. "They have come out here to get rid of that woman, or to transfer her to some place. ”

“ Patsy’s train of thought ended when Mullen, having tipped the trapdoor back against one side of the stall, turned and said to Corson, who had been grimly watching him:
"Lend a hand, Jim, and we’ll lug her down there. It will be safer than keeping her in the house until we learn how the cat’s going to jump. Is the old woman in the house?"
"Not now," said Corson, with his habitual growl. "She’s gone to market. It takes some grub, Mullen, to feed you fellows."
"We’ll have coin enough for grub, Jim, if his nibs gets all he’s banking on from this job," Mullen pointedly answered. ”

“ Nick said confidently. "Crooks flock together as naturally as blackbirds. Both Goulard and Sadie Badger, despite that she said last night that she now has no pal on whom she would bank, are in touch with the worst elements of the New York underworld. Through her and the subterfuge I have adopted, I intend to locate some of them, at least, and discover the whereabouts of Gaston Goulard."
"Ah, I see."
"It is not easy for either of us to worm our way into the confidence of a crook, particularly if he is an old-timer," Nick added. "We and our tricks are too well known. They fight shy of us. ”

“ What most astonished Patsy Garvan was the woman’s companion, however, whom he saw quite distinctly when the taxicab passed the store.
"Great guns!" he mentally exclaimed, though his face did not betray his amazement. "That’s Goulard’s former partner, Mr. Henry Mantell, as sure as I’ve got eyes in my head. What’s the meaning of this? What business can he have with such a woman as Sadie Badger? He certainly is stopping there to see her." ”

“ Nick stepped in front of him, drawing his revolver.
"Put your hands behind you, Fallon," he said sternly. "You are under arrest. Take it easy and save yourself worse trouble."
Fallon staggered and glanced back over his shoulder in search of Sadie Badger. The hat, veil, and cloak had been discarded by the figure behind him, and he found himself gazing at the face of Chick Carter.
"Good heavens!" he gasped involuntarily. "What am I up against?"
"You know, Fallon, without my telling you," said Nick. "The game is up, and we’re out to get the entire gang. We’re going to do it, too." ”

“ Nick Carter’s first impulse was to arrest the thief then and there—but he did not do so.
Another and better move, in view of the greater possibilities it presented, quickly occurred to him.
"By Jove, this may be the opportunity of a lifetime," he said to himself. "It’s odds that the rascal is not alone, that he has one confederate, at least, who may be watching outside, probably in the rear of the house. I can fool this scamp and gather in both of them, I think, or even round up a bigger gang with which they may be identified. ”

“ The music becomes wilder, the shouts of the nonparticipants become louder, and the dancers begin to puff and blow and grunt strange sounds and exclamations, much like so many blacks playing at craps. Their queen, the while, is not idle. She continues to cast the varicolored flash powders into the fire, and many times the dancers are lost in the misty clouds that the brazier throws off. ”

“ Nick added, a bit grimly.
"By Jove, that’s too true for a joke," Chick quickly declared. "In that case, Nick, your subterfuge is all off, and the woman may have bolted."
"You are right on one point, Chick."
"Regarding the subterfuge?"
"Yes."
"But not the other?"
"I think not," Nick said thoughtfully. "Both Goulard and Sadie Badger have extraordinary nerve. They don’t scare easily. Both, moreover, would give a trifle, or even take a desperate chance, to wipe me off the map." ”

“ The figure at the library desk started up as if electrified by the faint sound.
The circle of light from the flash lamp vanished in [Pg 9] stantly, leaving the room and hall in impenetrable gloom.
"He heard it," thought Nick, holding his breath. "He’s waiting and listening. He fears that some one is here, but he is not sure."
The waiting detective was right. He presently could hear the stealthy, catlike tread of the crook approaching the near door. It ceased after a moment, and Nick knew that the rascal then had reached the threshold and again was listening intently. ”

“ By Jove, I had a hunch the chief might be in wrong. Things look a bit rocky, for fair."
Patsy’s face betrayed none of these thoughts, however, but wore an expression as if he wondered why he had incurred such animosity and rough handling. He gazed at Goulard, after being jerked to his feet by the others, who were hastening to bind him, and demanded, with well-feigned perplexity:
"What’s it all about, anyway? What are you putting over on me?"
"The boot’s on the other leg," snapped Goulard. "We’re preventing your putting something across us." ”

“ Taxi."
"Ain’t that taking a chance?" growled Nick, still seeming doubtful. "I don’t bank strong on chauffeurs."
"The one I employ is all right," said Sadie, with sinister earnestness. "He is one of the gang. We can trust him the limit."
"Well, that’s more like it," said Nick. "What’s his name?"
"Fallon."
"How can you get at him?"
"By telephone," said Sadie, with a glance at an instrument on a stand in one corner. "He’s expecting to hear from me. I’ve been waiting only for you to show up, Bosey, and say you would go." ”

“ One, that the miscreant by whom Helen Mantell had been repeatedly threatened was none other than Gaston Goulard.
Another, that Gaston Goulard now had got in his iniquitous work.
Nick saw, too, that Frank Mantell was in a fair way to collapse under the alarming discovery, and he at once took steps to encourage him.
"You keep your head, Frank, and don’t let blind fear unman you," he commanded a bit sharply. "There is nothing in getting rattled. I know a good deal more about this matter than you suppose, and there is much less to fear concerning the personal safety of your wife than you imagine. ”

“ Nick Carter ignored the miscreant’s repeated threats, though he knew him to be capable of executing even the worst of them. Watching vainly, too, for a chance to turn the tables on the scamp, for Goulard was not to be caught napping, Nick coldly inquired:
"How did you accomplish it, Goulard? How did you escape from the East River?"
"I told you the devil serves his own at times," Goulard proceeded to explain, though Nick had hardly expected him to do so. ”

“ Sadie Badger greeted him with a smile, however, placing her forefinger on her lips and glancing significantly up the stairs.
"Not too loud, Bosey, till we’re inside and the door closed," she said quietly, drawing back for him to enter. "I’m a bit leary of those ginks on the next floor. What they don’t know won’t hurt them. If they get wise to too much, it might hurt me."
Nick nodded approvingly, with a grim smile on his made-up, hangdog face, and he took the chair to which she pointed. ”

“ Mullen drove on and into the stable, Corson following, and Patsy lost sight of the man and wagon, a side view of the stable being all that he then could obtain.
"His nibs—that must mean Mantell," he said to himself. "But who is the woman and what’s the old man’s game? Why would he drug any woman and give her in charge of these rascals? Gone back to town to frame up a job with Sadie Badger against the chief. Gee! this certainly is the strangest mix-up that I ever tackled. I must find a way to inform Nick and put him on his guard. ”

“ He may be a relative."
"Describe him."
"He’s a young, smooth-faced chap about eighteen years old. He always wears knickerbockers and a golf cap. I don’t see him very often, but I know he is there occasionally."
"I understand," nodded Patsy.
So he did, indeed. He had not the slightest doubt that the person described was Sadie Badger herself, masquerading in the same attire in which Nick had encountered her, and presumably with knavery of some kind in view. That she was thus living a double life, committing her crimes in the disguise of an innocent-looking young man, Patsy was equally confident. ”

“ I haven’t laid any."
"But let me help you, Nick. Is there nothing I can do?"
"Yes, one thing," said the detective, rising abruptly. "Take me downtown in your limousine and drop me about a block from my residence."
"Why not at your door?"
"Because my house may be under espionage," said Nick, a bit grimly. "There is no telling what steps Goulard may take to prevent the miscarriage of his designs. He is a crafty, as well as a daring dog. Do merely what I have requested, Mantell. Leave me to do the rest." ”

“ You rats are up to some devilish game, though I cannot fathom how old Mantell figures in it."
"You saw his nibs, then," remarked the man in a cardigan.
"Sure. He rode out with Fallon in his taxi, as he promised," said Mullen. "He’s gone back to town, Corson, to look after a job he has framed up with Sadie."
"What kind of a job, Jake?"
"To get the big dick."
"The big dick?" echoed Corson, staring. "You don’t mean Nick Carter?"
"That’s what. He’s the biggest dick in the running." ”

“ One by one the male dancers divest themselves of their superfluous clothing, females the while making the same preparations. The queen liberates the half-starved snake and holds a tiny, frightened mouse before its glistening eyes. The snake darts forth its head and swallows the mouse with a single gulp. This is repeated until the snake has been fed three mice. As the snake bolts each morsel of living food, the queen throws some red-flash powder on the brazier, and for a moment the whole circle is lost in a sweetly perfumed cloud of vapor, which gradually rises and floats away. ”

“ Goulard is a cur who finds delight in threatening those upon whom he has designs. That appeared in the previous case, in the nerve and audacity with which he held me up, and in what has occurred here during the past month. Aside from getting back at me, however, whom he really would like to kill, Goulard is out only for money. You can bank safely on that, Mantell, and that your wife will not be harmed as long as the rascal sees any prospect of bleeding you out of a large sum."
"I hope you are right," Mantell declared, with a look of relief. "I will pay——”
"Nothing!" Nick cut in quickly. ”

“ Finding that immediate escape from under the stone steps was impossible, and that he could not at once pursue Goulard, Nick proceeded more deliberately to seek means to liberate himself. He knew that he could not [Pg 7] have been overheard by any person in the house, having spoken only in whispers, while hardly a sound had been made that would have been audible ten feet away.
"The rascal must have been watching me, as he said, and contrived to intercept me in front of this house, probably having learned that this grille door was open, also that it could be quickly and securely locked. ”

“ It was the shot that killed James B. Marcum as he stood in the front door of the bullet-riddled courthouse at Jackson, and while Marcum was only one of the many who opposed the leaders of the old Hargis-Callahan factions and had gone the same route, by the assassin’s bullet, his death aroused the people of the State to action, and from that moment the law camped on the trail of those believed to be guilty of procuring Marcum’s death. ”

“ Then I heard rumors of Gillette. The town became a city in a night. The rush of men here at that time was heavy. Being one of the first on the ground, I started a saloon in a shack and a boarding house in a tent. Then I leased the upstairs of a building and owned the first dance hall here. For several months Gillette was fast becoming the center of the Cripple Creek region. Then the gold gave out. It was shallow. People left here in a single night. Many did not take even the precaution of shutting their doors. Gillette started like a whirlwind, and in a like manner it became deserted. ”

“ Patsy’s sudden resolve then appeared entirely feasible, barring one fact. He did not know by what means the trap could be so secured as to prevent the three men from raising it from below, providing he went in search of assistants. He was not long, however, in solving the problem.
"I have it," he muttered, with a constant eye on the three crooks. "I’ll shift the horse into that stall and make him fast. He’ll hold them down, all right. They cannot raise the trapdoor with him on it. I’ll get assistance and arrest all three, and then telephone to the chief." ”

“ The chauffeur remained as motionless on his seat as a figure of bronze.
Patsy, more deeply puzzled, fell to watching the woman, or the small part of her figure which he could see through the taxicab window. She continued motionless, as absolutely motionless as if the hand of death had been laid upon her. The veil that covered her mouth and nostrils, even, did not indicate by the slightest movement that she was breathing.
"Great guns!" thought Patsy, quite nonplused. "She [Pg 24] must be in a trance, or sleeping like a log. I’ll be hanged if I don’t have a closer look at her." ”

“ He had related his experiences of the previous night, and informed them of his extraordinary compact with Sadie Badger.
"Much!" he tersely replied. "My bargain with her, Chick, was entirely warrantable. In dealing with crooks, one must fight them with their own weapons, craft, deception, and treachery, when necessary."
"I admit that, Nick, of course."
"What good to have arrested her alone, if more can be accomplished?" Nick added. "It would have amounted to comparatively little. I would merely have put one dangerous female crook out of the running. ”

“ This was too good an opportunity to lose, therefore, and I resolved to take advantage of it."
"That’s the stuff, chief," said Patsy. "It’s bound to cut ice of some thickness."
"I think so, Patsy, and that it will enable me to finally run down Goulard," said Nick, rising to go to his business office. "I will call on Sadie Badger either to-night or to-morrow, disguised as I was last night, and find out just how the land lies. I can take her in at will, you know, as far as that goes." [Pg 13]
"Like breaking sticks," said Patsy. "You’re in right, chief, to pull off a big stunt of some kind. ”