Gordon Craig

“ I rapped on the wood three times, my nerves tingling from excitement. There was a moment's delay, so that I lifted my hand again, and then the door opened silently. Within was like the black mouth of a cave, and I involuntarily took a step backward.
"This you, Craig?"
"Yes," I answered, half recognizing the cautious voice.
"All right then—come in. There is nothing to fear, the floor is level."
I stepped within, seeing nothing of the man, and the door was closed behind me. The sharp click of the latch convinced me it was secured by a spring lock. ”

“ A cord from the portière curtain draping the bathroom entrance completed his lashings. With wicked eyes he stared up at me, unable to move a muscle.
"By God, Craig!" he snarled, "you'll both wish you 'd killed me before ye 're done with this job."
I made no reply, using the corner of the desk to help me get to my feet.
"Do you hear!" he shouted. "What chance have you got to get away?"
"That is for me to decide," I answered. "But if you open your mouth again I 'll gag you. Now stop it; the first word you utter will mean a handkerchief in your mouth." ”

“ What became of the girl?"
"The steward took her below, and locked her in before the fracas started."
"I thought so; I heard a little of the talk, and hung back so as to give you plenty of time." He laughed, good-humoredly. "Nice little scrap, Craig; those fellows never even heard us, until I was over the rail. By the way, is the young lady married? I never heard the whole story."
"She is a widow," I replied, a bit stiffly, resenting his flippancy of tone. "She was the wife of this Henley's half brother, but I have every reason to believe he is dead." ”

“ He gazed with black eyes narrowed into slits at the two of us, too pleased with himself to doubt his success. The sarcastic smile curling his lips caused me to swear under my breath, but I had gone too far now to retreat.
"Just as you say, Craig," affecting an easy good nature. "That is perfectly agreeable to me. However, as it makes no difference what the late Mrs. Henley thinks, we will dismiss her from the case, and settle the affair quietly between ourselves. I 've got a proposition which will interest you." ”

“ The man judged me by himself, and believed me helpless.
"Hard luck, Craig—hey!" he began tauntingly. "Played with the wrong man, did n't you. Now I 've got the girl just as I want her, and as for you—Lord! but I 'll keep you to play with all the way to Honduras. It will be a pleasant voyage, my friend. Here, Masters, you and Peters stand by. Now, you robber, give me those papers."
I handed them out, watching closely. Peters stood at my right, one hand on my arm; the other fellow must have been behind me. Henley grasped the envelope, opening the flap to be sure of its contents. ”

“ If the latter, then how had he succeeded in getting his picture on the same plate with Judge Henley's? And what were those other more important documents on which he rested his claim? These considerations flashed through my mind, yet I was sufficiently aroused to answer quickly, aware that even the slightest hesitancy might awaken suspicion.
"It would seem to be unanswerable," I replied, replacing letters and photograph on the desk. "What hurts my pride is to have been made such a fool of."
"That's nothing, Craig; we have all had that experience. ”

“ Her sensitive face brightened; her eyes clearing of mist.
"It is a comfort to speak with a gentleman again. I—I had almost begun to believe there were none left in the world. You give me courage to go on, to acknowledge everything. Mr. Craig, I was a soul tottering on the brink when I met you out yonder; a desperate, disheartened girl, tempted to the point of surrender. I had lost hope, pride, all redeeming strength of womanhood. ”

“ Unship your rudder and let it go. Let them think you are wrecked, helpless to escape, and they will be more careless. You men there, loosen your guns, and be ready to scale a ship's side in a jiffy, but lie perfectly still until I give the word." He turned his head.
"You understand what you are to do, Craig, you and the lady?"
"I think so. We are to obey Henley's orders, and go on board."
"Yes, but do something as soon as you reach the deck to attract attention, and get them away from the rail. Try and get the lady as far astern as possible, for there is likely to be some fighting. ”

“ I reckon I got yer number, Craig. Yer after a little easy money. Somehow yer caught onto the mix-up down yere, an' framed up a scheme to cop the coin. Might hav' worked too if I had n't been on the job, an' posted. Damn nice-lookin' girl yer picked up—"
"Drop that, Coombs!" I interrupted sharply, leaning forward and staring him in the eyes. "Let loose all you care to about me, but cut out the woman!"
"Oh, too nice, hey!"
"Yes, too nice for you to befoul even with your tongue. If you mention her name again except in terms of respect there is going to be trouble." ”

“ A dozen armed men ought to clear the decks. How do you look at the affair, Craig? Will the plan work?"
"I am not sure I understand exactly what is proposed, sir?"
"My thought is, that this man Henley will be sufficiently anxious to get hold of you two again, and regain those papers, so that he will steam about slowly all night, hoping to get sight of the missing boat at daylight. He has no means of knowing that the revenue officers are after him. If he sights us at daybreak, he 'll make a run, and show us a clean pair of heels. ”

“ To be frank, Craig, I sent for you just now in a friendly spirit. You can be decidedly useful to me, and I can afford to pay well for services rendered. Now wait! don't break in until I am through. I know who you are, and how you originally became involved in this affair. You have no personal interest in the final outcome, so you receive the amount promised. You are a mere soldier of fortune, an adventurer. Good! Then it is certainly to your interest to be on the winning side. What did Neale, and that other fellow—Vail—offer? ”

“ He leaned forward, both arms on the desk, his black eyes narrowed into mere slits.
"Oh, I see," finally. "Driven out of one position, like a good general, you have another in reserve. You are more of an antagonist than I had supposed, Craig. So now it is the widow who claims the ducats. Am I also to understand that you are prepared to submit proof of the death of Philip Henley? ”

“ I believe the fellow will cruise about in the same neighborhood until daylight. What do you say, Smith?"
"I agree with you, sir."
"Good; then all we have got to do is lay a trap; the boat's the trap."
"You mean conceal a squad of men in the bottom, and send it adrift again?"
"Exactly; lower the mast, as though Craig here had been unable to step it; or, better still, heave it overboard; the loss of weight will give room for another man. Then cover the lads over with the canvas. They will never suspect the ruse on the Sea Gull, or study it out through glasses. ”

“ That 's all right, Neale," he added as the other made a gesture of dissent. "I know my business, and enough about men to judge Craig here for that amount. That we are in earnest we have got to assure him someway, and money talks best. See here, Craig," and he leaned forward, peering into my face, "you look to me like the right man for what we want done; you are young, strong, sufficiently intelligent, and a natural fighter. All right, I 'm sporting man enough to bet five thousand on your making good. If you fail it will be worse for you, that's all. I 'm not a good man to double-cross, see! ”

“ Vail blotted it carefully, folded the paper, and placed it in a drawer of the table. Then he handed me two bills.
"There is a thousand dollars there, Craig, and I will send you a typewritten memoranda of instructions, covering all points in the game. Where can I be sure of finding you at three o'clock tomorrow?"
"At 407 Green Street."
"All right; as soon as you read those instructions call me up by 'phone, and let me know what you have done regarding a woman, and ask any questions you may desire. That will be all now. Neale, you might show Craig the way out." ”

“ With grip on his collar he jerked the poor wretch to his feet, and held him there.
"Hand over those papers to Craig," he ordered shortly, "and be lively about it. I have n't anything to do with that affair, and I don't think you will have much more from now on. You are my prisoner, and you are good for a ten spot at least. Stand up, you coward." He forced him back against the rail, and glanced about the deck. The boatswain was coming aft.
"Well, Sloan, how did you find things?"
"All serene, sir; the whole crew bottled up, and mighty little fight left in them." ”

“ There is no one but us in this part of the ship; I fixed that up before I went after you; even your friend Craig is mooning around somewhere on deck, dreaming about a fortune. If you cry out, no one will hear you, and if they did, God pity the man who attempted to come in here. I 'm Captain of the Sea Gull, and there 's not a rapscallion on board who would risk his skull to help you. Even Craig would n't ”

“ Is she necessary?"
"It will be better to have one, as they know down there young Henley was lately married. Any good-looker, with an easy conscience, will do. You could coach her on the train."
"But I don't know a young woman in town," I admitted soberly, "except my landlady's daughter, and she 's the limit."
Vail and Neale both laughed.
"You 're slow, Craig," the former said good-humoredly. "I thought better of you than that. However, you will have all day tomorrow. Get on your new clothes, and look around. There 's plenty would jump at the chance." ”

“ With loaded revolver in my pocket, I slipped into the hall. The faint light revealed its shabbiness, the grimy rag carpet, and discolored walls. Some spirit of adventure led me the full length until my hand was upon the latch of that last door. I could not resist an impulse to look upon the dead man again by daylight, and thus assure myself of the reality of what seemed only a dream. ”

“ Like a spectral ship we swept through the slight smother, gently lifted by the long swell, without a light burning fore or aft. I heard no movement of men, no voice shouting orders, yet before that last gleam faded, I had seen outlined several figures on the bridge. To better assure myself that no watch was upon the after deck, I circled the cabin, and then, crouching in the shadow of the rail, advanced even with the chart-house. ”

“ Now I do not understand why you were upon the street tonight unattended; why you came to my assistance, or why you are here with me now. I have no desire to pry into your secret. I am content to remain grateful, to count this a red-letter day, because somehow, out of the mystery of the dark, we have thus been brought together. An old professor used to say all life hinges on little things, and I believe our chance meeting is going to change both our lives, and for the better. Without asking a question, or harboring a suspicion, I have faith in you—is that enough? ”

“ There was silence, the only sounds the slash of the boat through the water, and the slight flapping of the canvas.
"I am a woman," she said at last, "and we like to pretend to misunderstand, but I am not going to yield to that inclination. I do understand, and will answer frankly. We can never be friends as we were before." ”

“ And Coombs! Suspecting him, as I did, it would be the height of folly to seek him out yonder in the dark. There was nothing left but to await daylight; to remain on watch, endeavoring alone to formulate some plan of future action.
Accustomed as I was to danger, the situation set my pulses throbbing—the intense blackness, the silence, the memory of that dead face, utterly unnerving me. I imagined things—a presence in that deserted hall through which I groped. Some unknown horror close at hand, even a spectral passing down the stairs. ”

“ I had no conception of what I was confronting, or of what was to be revealed by my explorations, but the dismalness of the picture presented to that first glance gave me a shock impossible to explain. The house itself, big and glaring as it was, was nevertheless little better than a ruin, the porch beams rotten, the front blinds sagging frightfully, the paint blistered by the sun. ”

“ Even now, sitting here with you, I cannot believe I was wicked. You will not misconstrue my words, but—but life is not always the same, is it? How inexpressibly cruel a great city may be with glaring wealth flaunting itself in the pinched face of poverty. ”

“ The coast line was not visible from our elevation, and nothing broke the gray round of horizon but clouds of floating vapor, slowly drifting away before the sun, which was already yielding a faint crimson glow to the east. Behind us, probably two miles distant, arose the rough ridge of Cosmos Island, while bearing down upon us from the north, with a westward sheer sufficient to expose her beautiful lines, came the Sea Gull. Yet graceful, handsome as she appeared, my entire attention centered on the group of men at her rail. They were watching us intently, Henley with a glass at his eyes. ”

“ I led her forward slowly, so that the flapping of the oilskins against the stair-rail would not be heard. The steady patter of rain on the deck planks drowned what little noise we made, and as we emerged into the hood a gust of wind drove the moisture into our faces. I could feel my heart thump, yet it was more because of her proximity than any excitement of adventure. So far as I could perceive, peering out into the storm with hand shading my eyes, the way was clear, and, bidding her stoop low, we slipped back along the narrow deck passage into the shadow cast by the boat. ”