第11章

“Nothingelse？“hequeried，alittleblankly。 “Nothingelse，“shesaidmonotonously。 “Butsincelastnight，sinceyouknewthatthingshadgonewrong，“ hepersisted，“surelyyoutracedthattelephonenumber——theoneyoucalledup？“ “Yes，“shesaid，andshruggedhershouldersinatiredway。 “NaturallyIdidthat——but，likeeverythingelse，itamountedtonothing。HetelephonedfromMakoff”spawnshoponthatalleyoffThompsonStreet，and” “WHERE！“JimmieDale，suddenlystock-still，almostshoutedtheword。 “Hetelephonedfrom——where！Saythatagain！“ Shelookedathiminamazement，halfrisingfromherchair。 “Jimmie，whatisit？“shecried。“Youdon”tmeanthat” Hewasbesidehernow，hishandspresseduponhershoulders，hisfaceflushed。 “Boxnumberfour-two-eight！“Helaughedouthystericallyinhisexcitement。“JohnJohansson——boxnumberfour-two-eight！AndlikeafoolIneverthoughtofit！Don”tyousee？Don”tyouknownowyourself？THEUNDERGROUNDPOSTOFFICE！“ Shestoodup，clingingtohim；awildrelief，thatwasbasedonherconfidenceinhim，inhereyesandface，evenwhilesheshookherhead。 “No，“shesaidfrantically。“No——Idonotknow。Tellme，Jimmie！ Tellmequickly！YoumeanatMakoff”s？“ “No！NotMakoff”s——atSpiderJack”s，onThompsonStreet！“——hewasclippingoffhiswords，stillholdinghertightlybytheshoulders，stillstaringintohereyes。“YouknowSpiderJack！Jack”slittlenoveltystore！Ah，youhavenotlearnedalloftheunderworldyet！ SpiderJackisthecraftiest”fence”intheBadLands——andMakoffishispartner。Spiderbuysthecrooks”stuff，andMakoffdisposesofitthroughthepawnshop——it”sonlyastepthroughtheconnectingbackyardfromonetotheother，and” “Yes——but，“sheinterruptedfeverishly，“thepackage——yousaid” “Wait！“JimmieDalecried。“I”mcomingtothat！IfTraversstoodinwithMakoff，hestoodinwithSpiderJack。ForyearsSpiderhasbeenasortofclearinghousefortheunderworld——foryearshehasconducted，andprofitably，too，hisundergroundpostoffice。Crooksfromalloverthecountry，letalonethoseinNewYork，communicatewitheachotherthroughSpiderJack。These，forafee，areregisteredatSpider”s，andgivenanumber——aboxnumberhecallsit，though，ofcourse，therearenoactualboxes。Letterscomebymailaddressedtohim——thesealedenvelopewithincontainingtheactuallyintendedrecipient”sname。TheseSpidereitherforwards，ordeliversinpersonwhentheyarecalledfor。Dozensofcrooks，too，unwilling，perhaps，todisposeofsmallill-gottenarticlesatruinous”fence”prices，andfindingitunhealthyforthemomenttokeepthemintheirpossession，usethismeansofdepositingthemtemporarilyforsafe-keeping。Youseenow，don”tyou？It”scertainthat”swhereTraversleftthepackage。HeusedthenameofJohnJohansson，nottohoodwinkSpiderJack，Ishouldsay，butasanaddedsafeguardagainsttheCrimeClub。TraversmusthaveknownbothMakoffandSpiderJackintheolddays，andprobablyhadreason，andgoodreason，totrustthemboth——possibly，acrookthenhimself，asheconfessed，hemayhaveactedinalegalcapacityforthemintheirfrequenttangleswiththepolice。” “Then，“shesaid——andtherewasaglad，newnoteinhervoice，“then，Jimmie——Jimmie，wearesafe！Youcangetit，Jimmie！ItisonlyalittlethingfortheGraySealtodo——togetitnowthatweknowwhereitis。” “Yes，“hesaidtersely。“Yes——ifitisstillthere。” “Stillthere！“——sherepeatedthewordsquickly，nervously。“Stillthere！Whatdoyoumean？“ “Imeanifthey，too，havenotdiscoveredthathewasatMakoff”s—— iftheyhavenotgottherefirst！“hesaidgrimly。“Thereseemstobenolimittotheircleverness，ortheirpower。Theypenetratedhisdisguiseasachauffeur，andwhoknowswhatmoretheyhavelearnedsincelastnight？Wearefightingtheminthedark，and—— WHAT”STHAT！“hewhisperedtensely，suddenly——andleaningforwardlikeaflash，ashewhippedhisautomaticfromhispocket，heblewoutthelamp。 Theroomwasindarkness。Theystoodthererigid，silent，listening。Herhandfoundandcaughthisarm。 Andthenitcameagain——alowsound，thesoundofastealthyfootstepjustoutsidethewindowthatfacedonthestorageyard。 CHAPTERXI THEMAGPIE Aminutepassed——another。TheautomaticatJimmieDale”ship，themuzzlejustpeepingoverthetabletop，heldasteadybeadonthewindow。Camethefootstepagain——andthensuddenly，aseriesoflow，quicktappingsuponthewindowpane。TheTocsin”shandslippedawayfromhisarm。JimmieDale”ssetfacerelaxedashereadtheundergroundMorse，andhereplacedhisrevolverslowlyinhispocket。 “TheMagpie！“saidJimmieDale，inanundertone。“What”shewant？“ “Idon”tknow，“sheanswered，inawhisper。“Henevercameherebefore。There”sabackwayout，Jimmie，ifyou” “No，“hesaidquickly。“We”veenemiesenough，withoutmakingoneoftheMagpie。Heknowssomeoneisherewithyou——ourshadowswereontheblind。Don”tqueeryourself。Lethimin。I”lllightthelamp。” Hestruckamatch，assheranfromtheroom，and，liftingthehotlampchimneywiththeedgeofhisraggedcoat，lightedthelamp。Heturnedthewickdownalittle，shadinganddimmingtheroom——andthen，asheflirtedabeadofmoisturefromhisforehead，whimsicallystretchedouthishandtowatchitinthelamplight。 “That”sbad，Jimmie，“hemutteredgravelytohimself，ashenotedanalmostimperceptibletremour。“Gotastart，didn”tyou！Underabitofastrain，eh？Well“——grimly”nevermind！ItlooksasthoughtheluckhadturnedMakoffandSpiderJack！“ Hishandreacheduptohishat，jerkedthebrimatarakishangleoverhiseyes——andhesprawledhimselfoutonachair。HeheardtheTocsin”svoiceatthefrontdoor，andaman”svoice，lowandguarded，answerher。Thenthedoorclosed，andtheirstepsapproachedtheroom。Itwasrathercurious，that——avisitfromtheMagpie！WhatcouldtheMagpiewant？WhatcouldtherebeincommonbetweentheMagpieandSilverMag？TheMagpie，aliasSlimmyJoe，wascountedthecleverestsafeworkerintheUnitedStates，barringonlyandalwaysone——asmileflickeredacrossthelipsofLarrytheBat——onewhosepre-eminencetheMagpie，muchtohisownchagrin，admittedhimself——theGraySeal！ Helookedup，twistingthestubofacigarettebetweenhisgrimyfingersandfumblingforamatch，astheTocsinand，behindher，theMagpie，short，slim，andwiry，shrewd-faced，withsharp，quick- glancinglittleblackeyes，enteredtheroom。 “”Ello，Larry！“grinnedtheMagpie。“Gotyerbreathbackyet？I feltitthroughdewindowpanewhenyouseletgoatdelamp！“ “”Ello，Slimmy！“returnedJimmieDaleungraciously，speakingthroughthecornerofhismouth。“Fergetit！“ “Sure！“saidtheMagpieunconcernedly。Hestaredabouthim，andfinally，drawingachairuptothetable，satdown，motionedtheTocsintodothesame，andleanedforwardamiably。“Ididn”tmeantothrownoscareintoyouse，“hesaid，inaconciliatingtone。 “ButIhadalittlebusinesswidMag，an”Iwaskindofinterestedinwhethershewasentertainin”companyornot——see？Ididn”tknowyousean”Magwasworkin”together。” “Mabbe，“observedJimmieDale，asungraciouslyasbefore，“mabbedere”ssomemoret”ingsyousedon”tknow！“ “Aw，coughupdegrouch！“advisedtheMagpie，withahintofimpatiencecreepingintohisvoice。“Yousedon”tneedtobesoreallnight！ItoldyouseIwasn”ttryin”tohandyouseone，didn”tI？“ “NevermindLarry，Slimmy，“putintheTocsinpetulantly。“He”sdownonhisluck，dat”sall。Heain”thaddepriceofapinchofcokefertwodays。” “Oho！“exclaimedtheMagpie，grinningagain。“Sodat”swot”sgivin” yousedepip，eh，Larry？Well，den，say，yousecantakeitfrommedatmabbeyouse”llbegladIblewaround。Iwaslookin”feraguyaboutyersizeferalittlejobto-night，an”Iwast”inkin”oflettin”YoungDutchyinonit，butseem”youseareherean”inwidMag，an”datIgottogetMagin，too，youseareonifyousesaydeword。” “Wot”sdelay？“inquiredLarrytheBat，unbendingalittle。 TheMagpiecockedhiseye，andstuckhistongueinhischeek。 “GOOD-night！“hesaidtersely。“Nothin”likedat！Areyouseon，orain”tyouse？“ “Well，den，wot”sinitferme？“persistedLarrrytheBat。 “More”ndepriceofacokesneeze！“returnedtheMagpiepertinently。 “Dere”sacenturynoteferyouse，an”mabbetwoort”reeofdemferMag。” LarrytheBat”seyesgleamedavariciously。 “Aw，quityerkiddin”！“hesaidgruffly。“Acenturynote——ferme！“ “Dat”swotIsaid！Youseheardme！“rejoinedtheMagpieshortly。 “Onlyifitlistensgoodtoyousenow，Idon”twantnosquealin” afterthedivvy。I”mtakin”dechances，yousehasdesoftendofit。Onecenturynoteferyouse——an”derestisnoneofyerbusiness！Dat”sputtin”itstraight，ain”tit？Well，wotdoyousesay，an”sayitquick——”causeifyouseain”tcomin”in，yousecanbeatitoutofhereso”sIcantalktoMag。” “Dereain”tnothin”Iwouldn”ttakeachanceonferahundredplunks！“declaredLarrytheBat，withsuddenfervency——andstared，anxiouslyexpectant，attheMagpie。“Sure，I”monSlimmy！Sure，I am！Cutitloose！Spilldestory！“ “Well，den，“saidtheMagpie，“Iwants” “Youseain”tthroughyet！“interruptedtheTocsintartly。“Iain”theardyouseaskin”menothin”！Iain”tonmeupperslikeLarry，an” mabbedepricedon”tcutsomuchice——see？“ “Aw，“saidtheMagpie，withasmirk，“Idon”thavetoaskyouseondislay。Disiswhereyouse”dcomeinonitfermarbles。Say，disiswherewegetsdehookintoaguybydenameofHenryLaSalle！ Getme？“ HENRYLASALLE！Underthetable，JimmieDale”shandclenchedsuddenly；butnotamuscleofhisfacemoved，save，aswiththetipofhistongue，heshiftedthebuttofthecigarettethatwashangingroyallyfromhislowerliptotheothercornerofhismouth。 “Sure！She”s”got”youse，Slimmy！“heflungout，withagrin，astheTocsinwrinkledupherfacemenacinglyandbegantomumbletoherself。“He”sdeguydathandedheronewhenshewasyoung，an” she”sbeenlayin”ferhimeversince！Sure！Iknow！Ain”tI workedhimferhertillIwearsmeshoesouttryin”togetsomet”ingonhim！Sure，she”sinonit！Goon，Slimmy，wot”sdelay？WotdoIdoferdatcentury？“ TheMagpiehitchedhischairclosertothetableand，ashissharp，little，ferreteyesglancedaroundtheroom，motionedthetwotobringstheirheadsnearer。 “OneofmeinfluentialbrokerfriendsdownonWallStreetputmewise，“hesaid，withawink。“Dat”sgoodenoughferyousetwo，asfarasdatgoes。Buttakeitfromme，Igotitdeadstraight。”Heloweredhisvoice“Say，he”soneofderichestmugsinNewYork，ain”the？Well，he”sbeensellin”stocksan”bondsallday，t”ousandsan”t”ousandsofdollars”worth——fercash。” “Alldemt”ingsisalwayssoldfercash，“remarkedLarrytheBatfatuously。 “Aw，fergetit！“saidtheMagpieearnestly。“FerCASH，Isaid——decoin，delonggreen——understand？Hewasn”tshovin”nochecksferwhathesoldintodebankexcepttogetdemcashed。Dat”swothe”sbeendoin”allday——gettin”decheckscashed，an”gettin”demoneyinbigbills——see！Iknowofonebunchofeightyt”ousand——an” dat”sonlyone！“ “Wotfer？“inquiredLarrytheBat。Itwasthequestionthatwaspoundingathisbrain，ashestaredinnocentlyattheMagpie。Whatdiditmean？WhywasHenryLaSalleturning，and，iftheMagpiewasright，feverishlyturningeverysecurityhecouldlayhishandsonintocash？Andthen，inaflash，theanswercame。THEYHADNOT FOUNDTHEPACKAGE！Equallytothem，astotheTocsin，sittingtherebeforehim，itmeantlifeanddeath。IfthepackagewerefoundbytheTocsininsteadofthemselves，thegamewasup！Theywerepreparingforeventualities。Iftheywereforcedtorunatamoment”snotice，theyatleastwerenotgoingtorunempty-handed！ Farfromempty-handed，itseemed！Itwouldnotbedifficultfortheestate”sexecutortorealiseavastsuminshortorderoninstantlymarketable，gilt-edgedsecurities——say，halfamilliondollars。Notverybulky，either——inlargebills！Fivethousandhundred-dollarbillswouldmakehalfamillion。Itwasastonishinghowsmallahandbag，say，mightholdafortune！“Wotfer，Slimmy？“heinquiredagain，wigglinghiscigarettebuttonhistonguetip。“Wot”dhedodatfer？“ “HowdehelldoyousesupposeIknows！“demandedtheMagpie，politelyscornful。“Dat”shisbusiness——datain”twot”sworryin” me！“ “No——sure，itain”t！“admittedLarrytheBatingratiatingly。“Butgoon，keepmovin”，Slimmy！Wot”shedonewiddestuff？“ “Donewidit！“echoedtheMagpie，withashortlaugh。“Wotdoyouset”ink！He”sbeenluggin”ithometohisswelljointupdereondeavenoo，an”crammin”hissafefullofit。” LarrytheBatsuckedinhisbreath。 “Gee，dat”ssoft！“hemurmured，andthensuddenly，asthoughwithpainfulinspiration：“Say，Slimmy——say，areyousesureyouseain”tbeenhandedasteer？“ TheMagpiegrinnedwickedly。 “Iain”tfallin”fersteers！“hesaidshortly。“Disisondelevel。” JimmieDalelurchedupfromhischair，and，leaningoverthelampchimney，drewwheezilyonhiscigarettetogetalight。HiseyessoughttheTocsin”sface。ToallintentsandpurposesshewasentirelyabsorbedintheMagpie。Hesatdownagaintogape，withwell-stimulated，doglikeadmiration，atSlimmyJoe。WASTHIS，TOO，APLANT？WhyhadtheMagpiecometoTHEMwiththisstoryofHenryLaSalle？Andthen，thenextinstant，astheMagpiespoke，hissuspicionswereallayed。 “Let”sgetdowntocases！“theMagpieinvitedcrisply。“Ididn”tblowinherejustbyluck。DisHenryLaSalleisdeguyyouseworkedferonce，ain”the，Mag？Dat”sdespiel，ain”tit？——hesentyouseupferpinchin”detacksoutofhiscarpets！“ “Ineverpinchednothin”！“snarledSilverMagtruculently。“He”sadirtyliar！Ineverdid！“ “Cutitout！Cutitout！Candat！“complainedtheMagpiepatiently。“Depointis，youseworkedinhishouse，didn”tyouse？“ “SureIdid！“snappedtheTocsin，sullenlyaggressive；“but” “Well，den，dat”swotIwant，dat”swotIcomefer，Mag——aplanofdehouse。See？“ JimmieDalecouldfeeltheTocsin”seyesuponhim，questioning，searching，seekingacue。Aplanofthehouse——yesorno？Andadecisionontheinstant！ “Sure！“saidLarrytheBatbrightly。“Dat”swotIwast”inkin” yousewereafteralldetime。Say，youseareallright，Slimmy！ Yousearedekindtoworkwid！Goon，Mag，drawdedopeferSlimmy。 Dat”sbetterdantryin”toputoneoverondeswellguy。Dis”llmakehimsquealferfair！“ TheMagpieproducedapencilandapieceofpaperfromhispocket，andlaidthemonthetableinfrontoftheTocsin。 “Dereyouseare，“heannounced。“Helpyerself，an”gotoit，Mag！“ TheTocsin，evidentlynotquitecertainofherpart，wetthepencildoubtfullyontheendofhertongue。 “Iain”tneverdrawedplans，“shesaidanxiously。“Mabbe“——sheglancedatJimmieDale”mabbeIdunnohowtodoitRIGHT。” “Aw，goahead！“noddedLarrytheBat。“Yousecandoitright，Mag。 Yousedon”thavetomakenooilpaintin”！AlldeMagpiewantsisdedoorsan”windows，eh，Slimmy？“ “Sure，“agreedtheMagpieencouragingly。“Dat”sall，Mag。Justmarkderoomsoutondefirstfloor，an”debasement。Yousecanexplainwotyouse”redoin”asyousegoesalong。I”llgetyouse。” TheTocsincackledmaliciouslyinassent；andthen，whiletheMagpiegotupfromhischairandstoodpeeringoverhershoulder，shebegantodrawlabouriously，herbrowsknitted，thepencilhookedawkwardlybetweencramped-upforefingerandthumb。 LarrytheBat，slouchedforwardoverthetable，hischininhishands，appearedtowatchtheproceedingswithmildinterest——buthiseyes，likeahawk”s，werefollowingeverylineonthepaper，transferringthemtohisbrain，photographingeverydetailoftheplaninhismind。Andashewatched，thereseemedsomethingthatwasneartotheacmeofallthatwasironicalintheMagpiestandingthere，hissharp，little，blackeyesdrinkingingreedilytheTocsin”swork，intheTocsinherselfaidingandabettingintheprojectedtheft——OFHEROWNMONEY！HowfarwouldhelettheMagpiego？Hedidnotknow。Perhaps——whocouldtell！——alltheway。 Betweennowandthentherelaythatpackage！IfitwereatMakoff”s，atSpiderJack”s，ifhecouldfindit，getit——theMagpieasatemporarycustodianoftheestate”smoneywouldatleastprecludeitslossbyflightiftheCrimeClubtookalarmtooquickly。LarrytheBat”seyes，underhalf-closedlids，restedmusinglyontheMagpie”sface。TheMagpiewouldnotgetveryfarawaywithit！Ontheotherhand，ifhefailedatSpiderJack”s，if，afterall，hewaswrong，andthepackagehadneverbeenthere，oriftheyhadforestalledhim，turnedthetrickuponhim，alreadysecuredit，then——LarrytheBat”slips，workingonhiscigarette，formedinatwistedsmile——then，wellthen，thatwasquiteanothermatter！ PerhapsheandtheMagpiemightnotagreesofar！Ahalfmilliondollarswasperhapsnotmuchoutofelevenmillions，butitwasasalvagenottobedespised！Whydidhesayhalfamillion！Well，whynot？IftheMagpieknewofasingletransactionofeightythousand，andtherehadbeenmanytransactionsduringtheday，ahalfmillionwaslittlelikelytoproveanexaggeration——andthelesslikelyinviewofthefactthat，ifthoseintheCrimeClubwerepreparingforanemergency，theywouldnotstintthemselvesinthedisposalofsecurities。 TheMagpiewaskeepinguparunningfireofquestions，astheTocsintoiledonwithherpencil。Wheredidthehallleadto？Howmanywindowsinthelibrary？Didsherememberthekindoffastenings？ Didtheservantssleepinthebasement，orabove？Andfinally，twiceover，asshefinishedtheclumsydrawingandpushedittowardhim，hedemandedminutedetailsofthepositionofthesafe。 “Aw，dat”sallright，Slimmy！“LarrytheBatcutinairily。“Ifyousefergetanyt”ingwhenyousegetindere，yousecanaskme。I gotitcinched！“ TheMagpiefoldedthepaperandstoweditcarefullyawayinhispocket。 “Askyouse，eh！“hegruntedsarcastically。“An”wheredoyouset”inkyouse”llbeaboutdattime？“ “Inderewidyouse，ofcourse，“repliedLarrytheBatpromptly。 “Dat”swotyousesaid。” “Yes，yousewill——NOT！“announcedtheMagpie，withcoldfinality。 “Doyouset”inkIwanttoqueermyself！Ahotoneyouse”dbeonaninsidejob！Youse”llbeOUTSIDE，widyerpeepersskinnedfordebulls——yousean”Maghere，too。See！Getdatstraight。WhileI”mondejobyousetwoplaysdegame。Nowyouselistentome，bothofyouse。Don”tstartnothin”unlessyousehasto。Ifit”sacinchI gottomakeaget-away，yousetwostartadrunkfight。Getme？ Youseknowdelay。T”rowdetalkloud——an”I”llfade。Dat”sall！ We”llcrackdecribearly——it”llbequietenoughupderebyoneo”clock“ Oneo”clock！LarrytheBatshookhishead。Whattimewasitnow？ ItwasaboutninewhenhehadfirstmettheTocsin，thentheSanctuary，thenthelongwalkashehadfollowedher——sayaquarteroftenforthat。Andhehadcertainlybeenherewithhernotlessthananhourandahalf。Itmustbeaftereleven，then。Oneo”clock！AndbeforethatmustcomeMakoffandSpiderJack！Thenightthathalfanhouragohadseemedsosterile，wascrowdingaprogramofeventsuponhimnow——toofast！ “Nothin”doin”！“hesaidthoughtfully。“Youseareinwrongdere，Slimmy。Oneo”clockdon”tgo！Say，takeitfromme，I”vewatcheddatguytoomanynightsferMag。”Tain”toftenheleavesdeclubbeforeoneo”clock——an”heain”tneverinbedbeforetwo。” “Allright，“agreedtheMagpie，afteramoment”sreflection。“Youseoughttoknow。Makeitthreeo”clock。”Hepulledacigarfromhispocket，lightedit，and，leaningbackinhischair，stuckhisfeetuponthetable。“Ifyousedon”tmind，Mag，I”llstickaroundawhile，“hedecidedcalmly。“MabbedelessI”mseento-nightdebetter——an”Iguessderewon”tbenobodylookin”fermehere。” LarrytheBatcoughedsuddenly，androseupalittleheavilyfromhischair。Hehadnotcountedonthat！IftheMagpiewassettlingdownforaprolongedstay，itdevolveduponhim，JimmieDale，togetaway，andatonce——andwithoutexcitingtheMagpie”ssuspicions。Hecoughedagain，lookednervouslyfromtheTocsintotheMagpie—— stammered——swallowedhard——andcoughedoncemore。 “Well，wot”sbitin”youse？“inquiredtheMagpieironically。 “Nothin”，“saidLarrytheBat——andhesitated。“Nothin”，only”Hehesitatedagain；andthen，thewordsinarush： “Say，Slimmy，couldn”tyousecomeacrosswidapieceofdatcenturynow？“ “Wotfer？“demandedtheMagpie，alittleaggressively。 LarrytheBatclearedhisthroatwithadesperateeffort。 “Youseknows，“headmittedsheepishly。“Justgimmedepriceofone，Slimmy——justone。” “Coke！“explodedtheMagpie。“An”getsoakedtodeeyes——notbyadamnsight！“ “No！HonesttoGawd，no，Slimmy——justone！“pleadedLarrytheBat。 “Nix！“saidtheMagpieshortly。 LarrytheBatthrustoutahandbeforetheMagpie”seyesthatshooktremulously。 “Igottohaveit！“hedeclared，withsuddenfierceness。“IGOTto—— see！Lookatme！Iain”tgoin”tobenogoodto-nightifIdon”t。 Itellyouse，Igotto！Iain”tgoin”tot”rowyousedown，Slimmy—— honest，Iain”t！Justone——an”it”llsetmeup。IfIdon”tgetnoneI”llbeonderocksbeforemornin”！Dat”sstraight，Slimmy—— askMag，sheknows。” “Aw，lethimgogetit！“brokeintheTocsinwearily。“Dat”sdebestt”ingyousecando，Slimmy——dey”reallalikewhendeygetsinhisclass。” “Yousecocainesniffersgivesmedepip！“snortedtheMagpie，indisgust。Hedugdownintohispocket，producedabill，andflungitacrossthetabletoLarrytheBat。“Well，dereyouseare；butyousecantakeitfromme，Larry，datifyousegetswhiffed“——hesworethreateningly”I”llcrackeveryboneinyerface！Getme？“ “Slimmy，“saidLarrytheBatfervently，grabbingatthebillwithahungryhand，“yousecancountonme。I”llbeupdereondejobbeforeyouseare。Threeo”clock，eh？Well，solong，Slimmy“——heslouchedeagerlytothedoor。“Solong，Mag“——hepausedonthethresholdforasingle，quick-flung，significantglance。“Seeyouseondeavenoo，Mag——I”llbeupderebeforeyouseare。Solong！“ “Oh，solong！“saidtheTocsincontemptuously。 And，aninstantlater，JimmieDaleclosedtheouterdoorbehindhim。 CHAPTERXII JOHNJOHANSSON——FOUR-TWO-EIGHT Nearlymidnightalready！Itwasevenlaterthanhehadthought。 LarrytheBatpressedhisfaceagainstashop”swindowpaneontheBoweryforaglanceataclockthathadcaughthiseyeonthewallwithin。Nearlymidnight！ Heslouchedonagainhurriedly，stilldebatinginhismind，ashehadbeendebatingitallthewayfromtheTocsin”s，thequestionofreturningagaintotheSanctuary。Sofar，thewaybothtoSpiderJack”sandtheSanctuaryhadbeeninthesamedirection——buttheSanctuarywasonthenextstreet。 JimmieDalereachedthecorner——andhesitated。Itwasstrangehowstrongwastheintuitionuponhimto-nightthatbadehimgoonandmakeallspeedtoSpiderJack”s——whileequallystrongwasthecold，stubbornlogicthatbadehimgofirsttotheSanctuary。Therewerethingsthatheneededtherethatwouldprobablybeabsolutelyessentialtohimbeforethenightwasout，thingswithoutwhichhemightbesobadlyhandicappedastoinvitefailurefromthestart； andyet——itwasalreadymidnight！ OstensiblybothMakoffandSpiderJackclosedtheirplacesateleven。Butthatmightmeananything——dependingupontheirownrespectiveinclinations，oronwhatoftheirownpeculiarbrandofdeviltrymightbeafoot。Iftheywerestillabout，stillinevidence，hewasstilltooearly，midnightthoughitwas；though，ontheotherhand，ifthecoastwasclear，hecouldillaffordtoloseamomentofthetimebetweennowandthehourthattheMagpiehadplannedfortherobberyofHenryLaSalle，foritwouldnotbeaneasymatter，evenonceinsideSpiderJack”s，tofindthatpackage—— sinceitwasSpider”sopenboastthatthingscommittedtohiscarewerewherethepolice，oranyoneelse，mightaswellwhistleandsucktheirthumbsastrytofindthem！ Andthen，withsuddendecision，takinghishesitation，asitwere，bythethroat，JimmieDalehurriedonagain——totheSanctuary。Atmost，itcoulddelayhimbutanotherfifteenminutes，andbyhalf- pasttwelve，oraquartertooneatthelatest，hewouldbeatSpiderJack”s。 Disdainingthesecrecyofthesidedooronthealley，forwhohadabetterrightorwasbetterknowntherethanLarrytheBat，atenantofyears，heenteredthetenementbythefrontdoor，scuffledupthestairstothefirstlanding，andlethimselfintohisdisreputableroom。Helockedthedoorbehindhim，lightedthechokedandwheezygasjet，inasingle，sharp-flungglanceassuredhimselfthattheblindsweretightlyshut，and，kneelinginthefarcorner，threwbacktheoilclothandlifteduptheloosesectionoftheflooringbeneath。Hereachedinside，fumblingundertheneatlyfoldedclothesofJimmieDale，andinamomentlaidhisleathergirdlewithitskitofburglar”stoolsonthefloorbesidehim；andbesidethatagainanelectricflashlight，ablacksilkmask，and——whathehadneverexpectedtouseagainwhen，earlythenightbefore，hehad，ashehadbelieved，putitawayforever——thethin，metalinsigniacaseoftheGraySeal。Anothermoment，and，withtheflooringreplaced，theoilclothrolledbackintoposition，hehadstrippedoffhiscoatandwaspullinghisspotted，greasyshirtoffoverhishead；then，stoopingquickly，hepickedupthegirdle，putiton，putonhisshirtagainoverit，putonhiscoat，putthemetalcase，theflashlight，andthemaskinhispockets——andoncemoretheSanctuarywasindarkness。 ItwasperhapsfifteenminuteslaterthatJimmieDaleturnedintotheuppersectionofThompsonStreet。Hereheslowedhispace，thathadbeenalmostarunsincehehadlefttheSanctuary，andbegantoshuffleleisurelyalong；forthestreet，thatafewhoursbeforewouldhavebeenchokedwithitspushcartsandvenders，itshalfnakedchildrenplayingwheretheycouldfindroominthegutters，itssidewalksthrongedwithshawledwomenandpicturesquelydressed，earringed，dark-visagedmen，ascene，asitwere，transportedfromsomeforeignland，wasstillfarfromdeserted；thequiet，ifquietitcouldbecalled，wasbutcomparative，thereweremanyyetabout，andhehadnodesiretoattractattentionbyanyevidenceofunduehaste。And，besides，SpiderJack”swasjustahead，makingthecornerofthealleywayafewhundredfeetfartheron，andhehadverygoodreasonsfordesiringtoapproachSpider”slittlenoveltystoreatapacethatwouldaffordhimeveryopportunityforobservation。 Onheshuffledalongthestreet，until，reachingSpiderJack”s，alittletwo-storied，tumble-downbrickstructure，amutteredexclamationofsatisfactionescapedhim。Theshopwasclosedanddark；and，thoughSpiderJacklivedabovethestore，therewerenolightsevenintheupperwindows。SpiderJackpresumablywaseitherout，orinbed！Sofar，then，hecouldhaveaskedfornothingmore。 JimmieDaleedgedinclosetothebuildingasheslouchedby，soclosethathishatbrimseemedtotouchthewindowpane。Itwaspossiblethatfromaroomattherearofthestoretheremightbealightwithatelltalerayperhapsfilteringthrough，say，adoorcrack。Buttherewasnothing——onlyblacknesswithin。 Hepausedatthecornerofthebuildingbythealleyway。Downhere，adjoiningthehighboardfenceofSpiderJack”sbackyard，Makoffmadepretenseatpawnbrokeringinasmallanddingywoodenbuilding，thatwaslittlemorepretentiousthanashed——andinMakoff”splace，sofarashecouldsee，therewasnolight，either。 JimmieDale”sfingerswereindustriouslyrollingacigarette，as，underthebrimofhisslouchhat，hiseyeswerenotingeverydetailaroundhim。AyardinagainstthewallofSpiderJack”s，thewallcuttingofftheraysofthestreetlampatasharpangle，itwasshadowyandblack——andbeyondthat，fartherin，thealleywaywaslikeapit。Itwouldtakeless，farless，thanthefractionofasecondtogainthatyard，butsomeonewasapproachingbehindhim，andalittlegroupofpeopleloitered，withannoyingpersistency，directlyacrossthewayontheothersideofthestreet。JimmieDalestuckthecigarettebetweenhislips，fumbledinhispockets，andfinallyproducedaboxofmatches。Thegroupoppositewasmovingonnow；thefootstepshehadheardbehindhim，thoseofaman，drewnearer，themanpassedby——andtheboxofmatchesinJimmieDale”shanddroppedtotheground。Hereachedtopickthemup，andinhisstoopingposture，withoutseemingtoturnhishead，flungaquickglancebehindhimupthestreet。Noone，forthatfractionofasecondthatheneeded，wasnearenoughtosee——andinthatfractionofasecondJimmieDaledisappeared。 Adozenyardsdownthelane，hesprangforthetopofthehighfence，grippedit，and，litheandactiveasacat，swunghimselfupandover，anddroppednoiselesslytothegroundontheotherside。 Herehestoodmotionlessforamoment，closeagainstthefence，togethisbearings。TherearofSpiderJack”sbuildingloomedupbeforehim——thebackwindowsasunlightedasthoseinfront。Lucksofar，atleast，waswithhim！Heturnedandlookedabouthim，and，hiseyesgrowingaccustomedtothedarkness，hecouldjustmakeoutMakoff”splace，borderingtheendoftheyard——nor，fromthisnewvantagepoint，couldhediscover，anymorethanbefore，asinglesignoflifeaboutthepawnbroker”sestablishment。 JimmieDalestoleforwardacrosstheyard，mountedthethreestepsofthelowstoopatSpiderJack”sbackdoor，andtriedthedoorcautiously。Itwaslocked。FromhispocketcamethesmallsteelinstrumentthathadstoodLarrytheBatingoodsteadahundredtimesbeforeinsimilarcircumstances。Heinserteditinthekeyhole，workeddeftlywithitforaninstant——andtriedthedooragain。Itwasstilllocked。AndthenJimmieDalesmiledalmostapologetically。SpiderJackdidnotuseordinarylocksonhisbackdoor！ Thediscountenancedinstrumentwentbackintohispocket，andnowJimmieDale”shandslippedinsidehisshirt，andfromoneofthelittle，uprightpocketsoftheleatherbelt，andfromstillanother，andfromafterthatathird，cametheviciouslittleblued-steeltools。Thesensitivefingerstravelledslowlyupanddownthesideofthedoor——andthenhewasatworkinearnest。Aminutepassed—— another——therewasadull，low，gratingsound，asnickasofmetalyieldingsuddenly——andJimmieDalewascoollystowingawayhistoolsagaininsidehisshirt。 Hepushedthedooropenaninch，listened，thenswungitwide，steppedinside，andcloseditbehindhim。Around，whitebeamoflightflashedinaquickcircle——andwentout。Itwasasortofstoreroom，innocentenoughandorderlyenoughinappearance，bare- floored，withboxesandpackingcasespiledneatlyagainstthewalls。Inonecornerastaircaseledtothestoryabove——andfromabove，quiteaudiblynow，hecaughtthesoundofsnoring。SpiderJackwasinbed，then！ Directlyfacinghimwastheopendoorofanotherroom，andJimmieDale，movingsoftlyforward，enteredit。HehadneverbeeninSpiderJack”sbefore，andhisfirstconcernwastoformanintimateacquaintanceshipwithhissurroundings。Againtheflashlightcircled，andagainwentout。 “Nowindows！“mutteredJimmieDaleunderhisbreath。“Nothingveryfancyaboutthearchitecture！Threeroomsinarow！Storeinfrontofthisroomthroughthatdoorofcourse。Wonderifthedoor”slocked，thoughit”saforegoneconclusionthepackagewouldn”tbeinthere。” Notasound，histreadsilent，hecrossedtothecloseddoorthathehadnoticed。Itwasunlocked，andheopenedittentativelyalittleway。Afaintglowoflightdiffuseditselfthroughtheopening。 JimmieDalenoddedhisheadandclosedthedooragain。Thestreetlamp，shiningthroughtheshopwindows，accountedforthelight。 Andnowtheflashlightplayedwithsteadyinquisitivenessabouthim。 Theroominwhichhestoodseemedtocombineasortofoffice，withaloungingroom，inwhichSpiderJack，nodoubt，entertainedhisparticularcronies。Therewastableinthecentre，cardsstilluponit，chairsaboutit。Againstthewallfarthestawayfromtheshopstoodahuge，old-fashionedcabinet；andalittlefartheralong，anglewise，partitioningoffthecorner，asitwere，hung，forsomepurposeorother，acretonnecurtain。Also，againstthewallnexttothelane，bringingacommiseratingsmiletoJimmieDale”slipsashiseyesfelluponit，wasaclumsy，lumbering，antiquesafe。 JimmieDale”seyesreturnedtothecurtain。Whatwasitdoingthere？Whatwasitfor？Instinctivelyhesteppedovertoexamineit。Asingleglance，however，ashelifteditaside，sufficed。Itwasnothingbutamake-shiftclothescloset。Heturnedfromit，switchedofftheflashlight，andstoodstaringmeditativelyintothedarkness。Inastrangehouse，withtheknowledgetobeginwiththatwhathesoughtwascarefullyhidden，itwasnosinecuretofindthatpackage。Hehadneverforamomentimaginedthatitwouldbe。Butofonething，however，therewasnouncertaintyinhismind——hewouldgetthepackage！——bysearchifpossible，byothermeansifsearchfailed。Itwasnowclosetooneo”clock。Ifbytwoo”clockhiseffortshadbeenfruitless，SpiderJackwouldhandoverthepackage——attherevolverpoint！Itwasquitesimple！Meanwhile—— JimmieDaleshruggedhisshoulders，and，goingovertothesafe，kneltdowninfrontofit——meanwhile，aswellbeginhereasanywhereelse。 Thetrainedfingersclosedonthehandle——andontheinstant，asthoughinstartledamazement，shiftedtothedial。Theycamebacktothehandle——awrench——thenalow，amusedchuckle——andthedoorswungopen。Thegreat，unwieldythingwasonlyamonumentalbluff！ Itnotonlyhadnotbeenlocked，butitCOULDNOTbelocked——themechanismwasoutoforder，theboltscouldnotbemovedbysomuchasahair”sbreadth！ Stillchuckling，JimmieDaleshottheflashlight”srayintotheinteriorofthesafe——andthechucklediedonhislips，andintohisfacecamealookofstrainedbewilderment。Inside，everythingwasinchaos，books，papers，amiscellanyofarticles，asthoughtheyhadfirstbeenruthlesslypulledoutonthefloor，thengatheredupinanarmfulandcrammedbackinsideagain。Foraninstanthedidnotmove，andthenaqueer，hard，mirthlesssmiledrewdownthecornersofhismouth。Withasortofbitter，expectantnodofhishead，heturnedthelightuponthedoorofthesafe。Yes，therewerethescratchesthatthetoolshadleft；and，asthoughinsardonicjest，theholes，wherethesteelbithadbored，werepluggedwithputtyandrubbedoverwithsomeblacksubstancethatwasstillwetandcameoff，smearinghisfinger，ashetouchedit。 Itcouldnothavebeendonelongago，then！Howlong？Ahalfhour—— anhour？Notmorethanthat！ Mechanicallyheclosedthedoorofthesafe，rosetohisfeetand，almostheedlessofnoisenow，theflashlightraydancingbeforehim，hejumpedacrosstotheold-fashionedcabinetandpulledthedooropen。Here，aswithinthesafe，allinside，plainevidenceofthorough，ifhasty，search，wasscatteredandtossedaboutinhopelessconfusion。 Heshutthecabinetdoor；theflashlightwentout；andhestoodlikeamanstunned，thesenseofsomeabysmaldisasteruponhim。Hewastoolate！Thegamewasup！Ifithadeverbeenhere，thepackagewasgonenow——GONE！TheCrimeClubhadbeenherebeforehim！ “Thegamewasup！Thegamewasup！“——hismindseemedtokeeponrepeatingthat。TheCrimeClubhadbeatenhimbyanhour，atmost，andhadbeenhere，andhadsearched。Itwasstrange，though，thattheyshouldhavebeenatsuchcuriouspainstocovertheirtracksbyleavingtheroominorder，bysuchpaltryeffortstomakethesafeappearuntouchedwhenthefirstglancethatwasatallcriticalwoulddiscloseimmediatelywhathadbeendone！Whyshouldtheyneedtocovertheirtracksatall；or，ifitwasnecessary，why，aboveall，insuchapitifullyinadequateway！Hismindbarkedbacktothesameghastlyrefrain”thegamewasup！“ NO！Notyet！Therewasstillachance！TherewasstillSpiderJack！Suppose，inspiteoftheirsearch，theyhadfailedtofindthepackage！JimmieDale”slipssetinathinline，ashestartedabruptlytowardthedoor。Therewasstillthatchance，andonethingwasgrimlycertain——SpiderJackwould，atleast，showhimwherethepackageHADBEEN！ Andthen，halfwaytothedoor，hehaltedsuddenly，andstoodstill—— listening。Anelectricbellwasringingloudly，imperiously，somewhereupstairs。Followedalmostimmediatelythesoundofsomeone，SpiderJackpresumably，movinghurriedlyaboutoverhead；andthen，amomentlater，stepscomingdownthestaircaseintheadjoiningroom。 JimmieDaledrewback，flatteninghimselfagainstthewall。SpiderJackenteredtheroom，stumbledacrossit，inthedarkness，fumbledforthedoorthatledintohislittleshop，openedit，passedthrough，fumbledaroundinthereagain，formatchesevidently，thenlightedagasjetinthestore，and，goingtothestreetdoor，openedit。 JimmieDalehadedgedalongthewallalittletoapositionwherehehadanunobstructedviewthroughtheopendoorwayconnectingtheshopandtheroominwhichhestood。SpiderJack，introusersandshirt，hastilydonned，nodoubt，ashehadgotoutofbed，wasstandinginthestreetdoorway，andbeyondhimloomedtheformsofseveralmen。SpiderJacksteppedasidetoallowhisvisitorstoenter——andsuddenly，acrybarelysuppresseduponhislips，JimmieDaleinvoluntarilystrainedforward。Threemenhadentered，buthiseyeswerefixed，fascinated，upononlyone——thefirstofthethree。 Wasitanhallucination？Washemad——dreaming？ItwasHiltonTravers，THECHAUFFEUR——themanwhomhecouldhaveswornhehadlastseendead，lashedinthatchair，inthatghastlydeathchamberoftheCrimeClub！ “Ratherroughonyou，Spider，topullyououtofbedatthishour，“ thechauffeurwassayingapologetically。 “Oh，that”sallright，seein”it”syou，Travers，“SpiderJackanswered，grufflyamiable。“OnlyIwaskindoflookin”foryoulastnight。” “Iknow，“thechauffeurreplied；“butIcouldn”tconnectwithmyfriendshere。Shakehandswiththem，Spider——BobMarvin——HarryStead。” “Gladtoknowyou，gents，“saidSpiderJack，withahandgripapiece。 Thechauffeurloweredhisvoicealittle。 “Isupposewe”realonehere，eh，Spider？Yes？Well，then，youknowwhatI”vecomefor——thatpackage——MarvinandStead，here，aretheonesthatareinonitwithme。Getitforme，willyou，Spider？“ “Sure——Mr。Johansson！“Spidergrinned。“Sure！Comeonintothebackroomandmakeyourselvescomfortable。I”llbemabbefiveminutes，orso。” JimmieDale”sbrainwaswhirling。Whatdiditmean？Hecouldnotseemtounderstand。Hismindseemedtorefuseitsfunctions。 Travers，thechauffeur——ALIVE！Hedrewinhisbreathsharply。Thatcurtaininthecorner！Hemustseethisoutnow！Theywerecoming！ Quick，noiseless，hestolealongthesideofthewall，reachedthecorner，andslippedinbehindthecurtain，asSpiderJack，strikingamatch，enteredtheroom。 SpiderJacklightedthegas，and，astheothersfollowedbehindhim，wavedthemtowardthechairsaroundthetable。 “I”lljustaskyougentsnottoleavetheroom，“hesaidmeaningly，overhisshoulder，ashesteppedtowardthereardoor。“It”skindofafadofminetokeepsomethingsevenfrommywife！“ “Allright，Spider——Iunderstand，“thechauffeurreturnedreadily。 JimmieDale”sknifecutatinyslitinthecretonneonalevelwithhiseyes。Thethreemenhadseatedthemselvesatthetable，andappearedtobelisteningintently。SpiderJack”sfootstepsechoedbackashecrossedtherearroom，soundeddullandmuffleddescendingthestoopoutside，anddiedaway。 “Itoldyouitwasn”tinthehouse！“themanwhohadbeenintroducedasSteadlaughedshortly。“Wewastedthehourwehadhere。” Thethirdmanspokecrisply，incisively，tothechauffeur。 “Turndownthatgasjetalittle！You”vegotacrosswithitsofar—— butyoucan”tstandasearchlight，Clarke！ Andatthewords，inaflash，themeaningofit，allofit，tothelastdetailthatwasspellingdeath，ruin，anddisasterforher，theTocsin，forhimselfaswell，burstuponJimmieDale。ThatVOICE！ Hewouldhaveknownit，recognisedit，amongathousand——itwasthemaskedmanofthenightbefore，theleader，theheadoftheCrimeClub！AnditwasnotTraversthereatall！Herememberednow，toowell，thatsecondroomtheyhadshowedhimintheCrimeClub——itsmultitudeofdisguises，thoughinthiscasetheyhadthedeadman”sclothesreadytotheirhands——theleader”sboastthatimpersonationwasbutchild”splaytothem！Andnowheunderstoodwhytheyhadcoveredupthetracesoftheirsearchinonlysocuriouslyinadequateamanner。Theyhadfailedtofindthepackage，and，asalastresort，hadadoptedtheruseofimpersonatingHiltonTravers，thechauffeur，whichmadeitnecessarythatwhentheycalledSpiderJackfromhisbed，astheyhadjustdone，thatSpiderJack，ataCASUALglance，shouldnoticenothingamiss——butitwouldbenomorethanacasualglance，for，whoshouldknowbetterthanthey，hewouldnothavetogoforthepackagetoanyplacethattheyhaddisturbed！Andhe，JimmieDale，couldonlystandhereandwatchthem，helpless，powerlesstomove！Threeofthem！Astepoutintotheroomwastoinvitecertaindeath。Itwouldnotmatter，hisdeath——ifhecouldgainanythingforher，fortheTocsin，byit。 Butwhatcouldhegain——bydying？Heclenchedhishandsuntilthenailsbitintotheflesh。 SpiderJackre-enteredtheroom，carryingwhatlookedlikealarge，bulky，manilaenvelope，heavilysealed，inhishand。Hetosseditonthetable。 “Thereyouare，Travers！“hesaid。 “Iwonder，“suggestedtheleaderpleasantly，“if，nowthatwe”rehere，Travers，yourfriendwouldmindlettingushavethisroomforafewminutestoourselvestocleanupthebusiness？“ “Sure！“agreedSpiderJackcordially。“You”rewelcometoit！I”llwaitouthereinthestoreuntilyousaytheword。” Hewentout，closingthedoorafterhim。Theleaderpickedupthepackage。 “We”lltakenochanceswiththis，“hesaidgrimly。“It”sbeentoocloseacall。Afterwe”vehadalookatit，we”llputitoutofharm”swayonthespot，here，whilewe”vegotit——beforeweleave！“ Herippedthepackageopen，anddisclosedperhapsadozenofficial- lookingdocuments，besidesamiscellaneousnumberofothers。Hetookupthefirstofthepapers，glancedthroughithurriedly，thentossedittothepseudochauffeur。 “Tearitup，andtearitup——SMALL！“heorderedtersely。Thenext，afterexaminingitashehadthefirst，hetossedtotheotherman。 “Goahead！“——curtly。“Workfast！Fromthelooksofthese，Travershaduscold！There”sproofenoughhereofLaSalle”smurdertosendusalltothechair！“ Hewentonglancingthroughthedocuments；andthensuddenly，joiningtheothersintheirwork，begantoripandtearatthepapershimself。 AsortofcoldhorrorhadsettleduponJimmieDale，andhisforeheadwasclammywet。Theinhumanironyofit！Thatheshouldstandthereandwatch，impotenttopreventit，thedestructionofwhathewouldhavegivenhislifetosecure！Andthenslowly，agrim，hard，mercilesssmilecametohislips。Hehadrecognisedtheleader”svoice——nowhewouldrecognisetheleader”sFACE。Atleast，thatwaslefttohim——perhapsthemastertrumpofall。ItwouldnotbeveryhardtofindtheCrimeClubnow——withthatmantoleadtheway！ Thescrapsofpaper，tinyshreds，mountedintoaheaponthetable—— andwiththelastofthecontentsofthepackagedestroyed，theleaderstoodup。 “Putthesepiecesinyourpockets；wedon”twanttoleavethemhere，“hedirectedquietly。“Andthenlet”sgetout。” Inscarcelyamoment，thelastscrapofpaperhadvanished。Thethreemenwalkedtothedoor，passedthroughit，andjoinedSpiderJackinthestore——andJimmieDale，slippingoutfrombehindthecurtain，gainedthedooroftherearroom，creptthroughit，reachedthestoop，andthen，dartinglikethewindacrosstheyard，wasoverthefenceinasecond，andinanotherwasoutofthealleywayandonthestreet。 Hewasintime——inplentyoftime。TheyhadjustleftSpiderJack”s，andwere，perhaps，fiftyyardsorsoaheadofhim。Heslouchedonbehindthem——thecold，grimsmileonhislipsoncemore。 ItwastheCrimeClubnow，thathell”scradlewheretheirdevil”sschemeswerehatched，thatwastheonethinglefttohim；theywouldleadhimtothat，andthen——andthenitwouldbehisturntoSTRIKE！ Theyturnedthefirstcorner。Andsuddenly，astheracingengineofanautomobilecaughthisear，hebrokeintoarun，anddashedaroundthecornerafterthem——intimetoseethemjumpintoacar，andthecarspeedoffalongthestreet！Hehalted，asthoughheweresuddenlydazed——startedinvoluntarilytorunforwardagain——stoppedwithahollowlaughatthefutilityofit——andstoodstillandmotionlessonthesidewalk。 Andthenheswayedalittle，andhisfacegrewgray。Failure，defeat，ruin——inthatmomentheknewthemalltotheirbitterestdregs。Howcouldhegotoher！Howcouldhefaceher，andtellherthattheywerebeaten，thatthelasthopewasgone，thathehadfailed！ “God！“hecriedaloud，andclenchedhishands。 Thendeepinhisconsciousnessathoughtstirred，andhesweptashakinghandacrosshiseyes。Whyhaditcomeagain，thatthought！ DiditmeanthatHEmustplay——thelastcard！Therewasaway—— therehadalwaysbeenaway。ThewaytheCrimeClubtook——MURDER。 Itwastheirownweapon！IfthemanwhoposedasHenryLaSallewerekilled！Ifthatman——werekilled！ “TheMagpiewastobethereatthree！“hemuttered——andstartedmechanicallybackalongthestreet。 CHAPTERXIII THEONLYWAY Itwasahorriblething——anditgrewuponhim。Inablind，mechanicalway，hisbrainreceptivetonothingelse，JimmieDalewalkedonalongthestreet。Tokillaman！Deathhehadfacedhimselfahundredtimes，witnesseditahundredtimesinitsmostviolentforms，hadseenmurderdonebeforehiseyes，hadbeeninstraitswhere，tosavehisownlife，ithadseemedtheonelastdesperatechance——andyethishandswerestillclean！Tokillamaninfairfight，instruggle，whenthebloodwashot，wasterribleenough，apossibilitythatwasalwaysbeforehim，theonethingfromwhichheshrank，theonethingthat，astheGraySeal，hehadalwaysfeared；buttokillamandeliberately，tocreepuponhisvictimwithhideous，cold-bloodedpremeditation——heshiveredalittle，andhishandshookashedrewitnervouslyacrosshiseyes。 Buttherewasnootherway！Againandagain，insidiouslygrapplingwithhisrevulsion，withthehorrorthattheimpulsetomurderinspired，camethatotherthought——therewasnootherway。IfthemanwhoposedasHenryLaSallewereDEAD！Ifheweredead！Ifheweredead！See，now，whatwouldhappenifthatmanweredead！Howclearhisbrainwasonthatpoint！ThewholeplotwouldtumblelikeahouseofcardsabouttheheadsoftheCrimeClub。Thecourtswouldrequireanauditingoftheestatebyatrusteeofthecourts” ownappointing，whowouldcontinuetoadministerituntiltheTocsin”stwenty-fifthbirthday，oruntiltherewastangibleevidenceofherdeath——buttheTocsin，automaticallywithherpseudouncle”sdeath，couldpubliclyappearagain。HerdeathcouldnolongerbenefittheCrimeClub，sinceit，theCrimeClub，withthesupposeduncledead，couldnotprofitthroughthefalseHenryLaSalleinheritingasnextofkin！Itwastheweaklink，thevulnerablepointinthestupendousschemeofmurderandcrimewithwhichthesehellfiendshadplayedforandwon，sofar，thestakeofelevenmillions。Notthattheyhadoverlookedorbeenblindtothis，theyweretooclever，toocunningforthat——itwasonlythattheyhadplannedtoaccomplishtheTocsin”sdeath，astheyhadherfather”sanduncle”s，andESTABLISHthefalseHenryLaSalleinundisputedpossessionandownershipoftheestate——andhadfailedinthat——uptothepresent。Butthematerialresultsremainedthesame，solongastheTocsin，tosaveherlife，wasforcedtoremaininhiding，solongasproofthatwouldconvicttheCrimeClubwasnotforthcoming—— SOLONGASTHATMANLIVED！ TimepassedtowhichJimmieDalewasoblivious。Attimeshewalkedslowly，scarcelymoving；attimeshispacewasanervous，hurriedstride，thatwasalmostarun。Andashewasoblivioustotime，sowasheoblivioustohissurroundings，tothedirectionwhichhetook。Attimeshisforeheadwasdampwithmoisturethatwasnottherefromphysicalexertion；attimeshisface，deathlywhite，wasfullasofthevisionofsomeshuddering，abhorrentsight；attimeshislipswerethinnedintoastraightline，andtherewasaglitterinthedarkeyesthatwasnotgoodtosee，whilehishandsathissidesclencheduntiltheskin，tightovertheknuckles，wasanivorywhite。Tokillaman！ Whatotherwaywasthere？TheproofthatithadtakenHiltonTraversyearstoobtain，theproofonwhichtheTocsin”slifedepended，wasdestroyedutterly，irreparably。Itcouldneverbeduplicated——HiltonTraverswasdead——MURDERED。Murder！Thatthoughtagain！Itwastheirownweapon！Murder！Wouldonekillavenomousreptileinwhosefangswasdeath？Whatrighthadthismantolife，whoselifewasforfeitevenunderthelaw——formurder？Wasshetodragonanintolerableexistenceamongthedregsandthescumoftheunderworld，she，inherrefinementandherpurity，toexistamongthevileanddissolute，indaily，hourlyperilofherlife，becausetheweaponsthattheseinhumanvultureshadusedtorobher，todestroythosesheloved，tomakeofherlifeahideous，joylessthing，shouldnotbeusedagainstthem？ Buttokillaman！Tostealuponamanwithcoldintentintheblacknessofthenight——andtakehislife！Tobeamurderer！Toknowthehorrorofbloodforeveruponone”shands，torise，cold- sweated，inthenight，fearfuloftheveryshadowsaroundone，tolivewitheverydetailofthatfearsomeactsweepinglikesomedreadspectreatunexpectedmomentsupontheconsciousness！Heputuphishandsbeforehisface，asthoughtoblotoutthethoughtfromhim。 Mindandsoulrecoiledbeforeit——tokillaman！ Hewalkedonandon，untilatlast，consciousofasenseoffatigue，hestopped。Hemusthavecomealongway，beenwalkingalongtime。 Wherewashe？Helookedabouthimforamomentinadazedway——andsuddenly，withalowcry，shrankback。Asthoughhehadbeendrawntoitbysomeghastlymagnet，hefoundhimselfstandinginfrontoftheLaSallemansion，onFifthAvenue。No，no；itwasnotforthathehadcome——tokillaman！Itwasonly——onlytogetthatmoney。 Yes——herememberednow——thatmoneyfromthesafe，beforetheMagpiegotit。TheMagpiewastobethereatthreeo”clock——andtheTocsinwastobethere，too。TheTocsin！Thatpackage！Hehadfailed！ Ithadbeenheronehope，and——anditwasgone。Whatcouldhesaytoher？Howcouldhetellherthemiserabletruth？But——buthehadnotcomethereinthedeadofnighttokillaman，theseotherthingswerewhathad—— “Jimmie！“Itwasaquick-breathedwhisper。Ahandwasonhisarm。 Heturned，startled。ItwastheTocsin——SilverMag。 “Jimmie！“inalarm。“Whyareyoustandingherelikethis？YoumaybeSEEN！“ Seen！SupposeheWEREseen？Heshudderedalittle。 “Yes；that”sso！“hesaidhoarsely。Heglancednumblyupanddownthewide，deserted，butwell-lighted，avenue。Itwasnoplace，thatmostaristocraticsectionofthecity，forsuchasSilverMagandLarrytheBattobeseenatthathourofnight，or，rather，morning。 AndifanythingHAPPENEDinsidethathouse！“I——Ididn”tthinkofthat，“hesaidmechanically。 “Comeacrossthestreet——underthestoopofthathousethere。”Shehadhisarm，andwashalfdragginghimasshespoke，thealarminhervoiceintensified。Andthen，amomentlater，safefromobservation：“Jimmie，Jimmie，whatisthematter？Whathashappened？Whatmakesyouactsostrangely？“ “Nothing，“hesaid。“I” “TELLme！“sheinsistedwildly。 Andthen，withaviolenteffort，JimmieDaleforcedhismindbacktotheimmediatepresent。Hewasonlyinspiringherwithterror——andtherewastheMagpie——andthatmoneyinthesafe！ “WhereistheMagpie？“heasked，withquickapprehension。“AmI late？Isheintherealready？“ “No，“shesaid。“Hehasn”tcomeyet。” “Whattimeisit？“hedemandedanxiously。 “Abouthalf-pasttwo，“shereplied。“But，Jimmie” “Wait！“hebrokein。“Whereishenow？Youwerebothtogether！ Andyouwerebothtobehereatthree。Whatareyoudoingherealoneathalf-pasttwo？“ Astrangelittleexclamation，onealmostofdismay，itseemed，escapedher。 “TheMagpieleftmyplaceanhourago——togethiskit，Ithink。AndIcamehereatoncebecausethatwaswhatyouandIunderstoodIwastodo，wasn”tit？Jimmie，youfrightenme！Youarenotyourself。 Don”tyourememberthelastwordsyousaid，asyounoddedtomebehindtheMagpie”sback——thatyouwouldbehereBEFOREus？Therewasnomistakingyourmeaning——ifIcouldgetawayfromhim，Iwastocomehereandmeetyou。” JimmieDalepassedhishandnervouslyacrosshiseyes。Ofcourse，herememberednow！Whatafrightfulturmoilhisbrainhadbeenin！ “Yes；ofcourse！“Hetriedtospeaknonchalantly。“Ihadforgottenforthemoment。” Shecaughthisarminaquick，tighthold，shakinghiminaterrifiedway。 “YOU——forgetathinglikethat！Jimmie——somethingterriblehashappened。Can”tyouseethatIamnearlymadwithanxiety！Whatisit？Whatisit？Thatpackage，Jimmie——isitthepackage？“ Hedidnotanswer。Whatcouldhesay？Itmeantlife，hope，joy，everythingthattheworldheldforher——anditwasgone。 “Yes——itISthepackage！“shewhisperedfrantically。“Quick，Jimmie！Tellme！It——itwasnotthere？You——youcouldnotfindit？“ “Itwasthere，“hesaid，asthoughthewordswereliterallyforcedfromhim。 “Then？Then——WHAT，Jimmie？“Theclutchonhisarmwaslikeavise。 “Theygotit，“hesaid。Itwaslikeadeathsentencethathepronounced。“Itisdestroyed。” Shedidnotspeakormove——savethatherhands，asthoughnervelessandwithoutstrength，fellawayfromhisarms，anddroppedtohersides。Itwasdarkthereunderthestoop，thoughnotsodarkbutthathecouldseeherface。Itwasgray——grayasdeath。Andtherewasmiseryandfearandapitifulhelplessnessinit——andthensheswayedalittle，andhecaughtherinhisarms。 “Gone！“shemurmuredinadead，colourlessway——andsuddenlylaughedoutsharply，hysterically。 “Don”t！ForGod”ssake，don”tdothat！“hepleadedwildly。 Shelookedathimthenforamomentinstrangequiet——andliftedherhandandstrokedhisfaceinanumbedway。 “It——itwouldhavebeenbetter，Jimmie，wouldn”tit，“shesaidinthesamemonotonousvoice，“itwouldhavebeenbetterif——ifIhadneverfoundoutanything，andthey——theyhaddonethesametomethattheydidto——tofather。” “Marie！Marie！“Itwasthefirsttimehehadeverspokenhername，anditwasonhislipsnowinanagonyoftendernessandappeal。 “Don”t！Youmustn”tspeaklikethat！“ “I”mtired，“shesaid。“I——Ican”tfightanymore。” Shedidnotcry。Shelaythereinhisarmsquitestill——likeawearychild。 Theminutespassed。WhenJimmieDalespokeagainitwasirrelevantly——andhisfacewasverywhite： “Marie，describetheupperfloorofthathouseoverthereforme。” Sherousedherselfwithastart。 “Theupperfloor？“sherepeatedslowly。“Why——whydoyouaskthat？“ “HaveYOUforgotteninturn？“hesaid，withasteadysmile。“Thatmoneyinthesafe——it”syours——wecanatleastsavethatoutofthewreck。YouonlydrewthebasementplanandthefirstfloorfortheMagpie——themoreIknowaboutthehousethebetter，ofcourse，incaseanythinggoeswrong。Now，see，tryandbebrave——andtellmequickly，forImustgetthroughbeforetheMagpiecomes，andIhavebarelyhalfanhour。” “No，Jimmie——no！“Sheslippedoutofhisarms。“Letitalone！I amafraid。Something——I——Ihaveafeelingthatsomethingwillhappen。” “Itistheonlyway。”Hesaiditinvoluntarily，moretohimselfthantoher。 “Jimmie，letitalone！“shesaidagain。 “No，“hesaid。“Iamgoing——sotellmequickly。Everyminutethatwewaitisonethatcountsagainstus。” Shehesitatedaninstant——andthen，speakingrapidly，madeaverbalsketchoftheupperportionofthehouseforhim。 “It”saverylargehouse，isn”tit？“hecommentedinnocently——topavethewayforthequestion，aboveallothers，thathehadtoask。 “Whichisyouruncle”s，Imeanthatman”sroom？“ “Thefirstontheright，attheheadofthelanding，“sheanswered。 “Only，Jimmie，don”t——don”tgo！“ Hedrewherclosetohimagain。 “Now，listen，“hesaidquietly。“WhentheMagpiecomesandfindsI amnothere，leadhimtothinkthatthemoneyhegavemewastoomuchforme；thatIamprobablyinsomeden，dopedwithdrug——andholdhimaslongasyoucanonthepretextthatthereisalwaysthepossibilityImay，afterall，showupbeforehegoesinthere。Youunderstand？Andnowaboutyourself——youmustdoexactlyasIsay。 OnnoaccountallowyourselftobeseenbyANYONEexcepttheMagpie。Iwouldtellyoutogonow，only，unlessitisvitallynecessary，wecannotaffordtoarousetheMagpie”ssuspicions——he”dhaveeverycrookintheunderworldsnarlingatourheels。Butyouarenottowait，evenforhim，ifyoudetecttheslightestdisturbanceinthathousebeforehecomes。And，equally，afterhehasgonein，whetherIhavecomeoutornot，atthefirstindicationofanythingunusualyouaretogetawayatonce。Youunderstand—— Marie？“ “Yes，“shesaid。“But——but，Jimmie，you” “Justonethingmore。”Hesmiledatherreassuringly。“DidtheMagpiesayanythingabouthowheintendedtogetin？“ “Yes——bythesideawayfromthecornerofthestreet，“shesaidtremulously。“Yousee，there”squiteaspacebetweenthehouseandtheonenextdoor；and，besides，thehousenextdoorisclosedup，there”snobodythere，thefamilyhasgoneawayforthesummer。Thelibrarywindowthereislowenoughtoreachfromtheground。” Foramomentlongerheheldherclosetohim，asthoughhecouldnotlethergo——thenbentandkissedherpassionately。AndinthatmomentalltheemotionshehadknownashehadwalkedblindlyfromSpiderJack”sthatnightsurgedagainuponhim；andthatvoicewaswhispering，whispering，whispering：“Itistheonlyway——itistheonlyway。” Andthen，notdaringtotrusthisvoice，hereleasedhersuddenly，andsteppedbackoutfromunderthestoop——andthenextinstanthewasacrossthedesertedavenue。Another，andhehadslippedthroughtheirongatesthatopenedonthestreetdriveway——andinyetanotherhewascrouchedcloseupagainstthefrontdooroftheLaSallemansion。 Itwasalargehouse，averylargehouse，oneofthefewthat，evenamidthewealthandluxuryofthatquarter，boasteditsowngrounds，andthosesorestrictedasscarcelytodeservethename；butitwassetfarenoughbackfromthestreettoescapetheradiusofthestreetlamps，andsoguaranteeinitsshadowssecurityfromobservation。ItwasnottheMagpie”sway，thefrontdoor——theobvioustotheMagpieandhisilkwasathingalwaystobeshunned。 JimmieDale”slipsweresetinagrimsmile，ashisfingersworkedwithlightningspeed，nowtakingthisinstrumentandnowthatfromtheleatherpocketsinthegirdlebeneathhisshirt——thepenitentiarieswerefullofMagpieswhoshunnedtheobvious！ Veryslowly，verycautiouslythedooropened。Helistenedbreathlessly，tensely。Thedoorclosedagain——behindhim。Hewasinsidenow。Stillness！Blackness！Notasound！Aminutewentby—— another。Andthen，ashestoodthere，strained，listening，thesilenceitselfbegan，itseemed，topalpitate，andpound，pound，pound，andbefullofstrangenoises。Itwasahorriblething——tokillaman！ CHAPTERXIV OUTOFTHEDARKNESS Amomentlater，JimmieDalesteppedforwardthroughthevestibule。 Hewasquitecalmnow；asortofcold，mercilessprecisionineverymovementsucceedingtheriotofturbulentemotionsthathadpossessedhimashehadenteredthehouse。 Thehalfhour，themaximumlengthoftimebeforetheMagpiewouldappear，ashehadestimateditwhenoutthereunderthestoopwiththeTocsin，haddwindlednowtoperhapstwentyminutes，twenty-fiveattheoutside。Twenty-fiveminutes！Twenty-fiveminuteswassolittlethatforaninstantthetemptationwasstronguponhimtosacrifice，ratherthananyofthosepreciousminutes，theMagpieinstead！Andtheninthedarkness，ashestolenoiselesslyacrossthehall，heshookhishead。Itwouldbeacowardly，brutalthingtodo。WhatchancewouldamanwitharecordliketheMagpie”sstandifcaughtthere？HoweasyitwouldbetoshiftthemurderofthesupposedHenryLaSalletotheMagpie”sshoulders！JimmieDale”slipsclosedfirmly。Self-preservationwas，perhaps，thefirstlaw，buthewouldsavetheMagpieifhecould——theMagpieshouldhavehischance！Themanmightbeacriminal，mightdeservepunishmentatthehandsofthelaw，hislibertymightbeamenacetothecommunity——buthewasnotamurderer，hislifeforfeitforacrimehehadnevercommitted！ Ifhe，JimmieDale，couldonlyinsomewayhavearrangedwiththeTocsinouttheretokeeptheMagpieawayaltogether！ButitcouldnotbedonewithoutarousingtheMagpie”ssuspicions；and，asacorollarytothat，afterward，withthesubsequentevents，wouldcome——thedeluge！Thelawoftheunderworldwasclear，concise，andadmittingofnoappealonthatpoint；todoublecrossapalmeant，soonerorlater，aknifethrust，ablackjack，or——Butwhatdifferencediditmakewhatformtheexecutionofthesentencetook？ And，since，then，thatwasoutofthequestion，sincehecouldnotkeeptheMagpieawaywithoutpracticallyriskinghisownlife，theMagpieatleastmusthavehischance。 JimmieDalewasatthelibrarydoornow，that，accordingtotheplantheTocsinhaddrawnfortheMagpie，andasherememberedherdescriptionwhenshehadtoldhimherstoryearlierintheevening，wasjustatthefootofthestaircase。Howdarkitwas！Thoughthestairscouldbeonlyafewfeetaway，hecouldnotseethem。Andhowintensethesilencewasagain！Here，wherehestood，theslighteststirfromabovemusthavereachedhim——buttherewasnotasound。 Hishandfeltoutforthedoorknob，foundit，turnedit，andpushedthedooropen。Hesteppedinsidetheroomandclosedthedoorbehindhim。Thesafe，accordingtotheTocsin”splanagain，wasinthatsortofalcoveatthelowerendofthelibrary。JimmieDale”sflashlightplayedinquisitivelyabouttheroom。Therewasthewindow，theonlyoneintheroom，thewindowthroughwhichtheMagpieproposedtoenter；therewasthearchwayofthealcove，withits——no，therewerenolongeranyportieres；andtherewasthesafe，hecouldseeitquiteplainlyfromwherehestoodattheupperendoftheroom。 Theflashlightwentoutforthespaceofperhapsthirtyseconds—— thirtysecondsofabsolutesilence，absolutestillness——thentheround，whiterayofthelightagain，butglisteningnowonthenickelknobsanddialofthesafe——andJimmieDalewasonhiskneesbeforeit。 Alow，scarcelybreathedexclamation，thatseemedtomingleanxietyandhesitation，escapedhim。He，whoknewthemakeofeverysafeinthecountry，knewthisoneforitstrueworth。Twenty-fiveminutes！ Couldheopenitinthattime，letalonewithanytimetospare！ItwasnotliketheoneinSpiderJack”s；itwasthekindthattheMagpie，howevercleverhemightbeinhisownway，wouldbeforcedtonegotiatewith“soup，“and，withtheattendantnoise，doublehischanceofdiscoveryandcapture——andtheresponsibilityforwhatmighthavehappenedUPSTAIRS！No；theMagpiemusthavehischance！ And，besides，themoneyinthesafeapart，whyshouldnothe，JimmieDale，havehisownchance，aswell？Allthiswouldhelp。Themotive——robbery；theperpetrator，therewasgrimmockeryonhislipsnowasthelightwentoutandthesensitivefingersclosedontheknobofthedial，theperpetrator——theGraySeal。Itwouldaffordexcellentfoodfortheviolenteditorialdiatribesunderwhichthepoliceagainwouldwritheinfrenzy！ Stillnessagain！Silence！Onlyalow，tensebreathing；only，sofaintthatitcouldnotbeheardafootaway，acuriousscratching，asfromtimetotimethesupersensitivefingersfellawayfromthedialtorubuponthecarpet——toincreaseeventheirsensitivenessbysettingthenervestothrobbingthroughtheskinsurfaceatthetips。AndthenJimmieDale”shead，earpressedcloseagainstthesafetocatchthetumbler”sfall，waslifted——andtheflashlightplayedagainonthedial。 “Twenty-eightandaquarter——left。” Howfastthetimewent——andhowslowly！Stilltheblackshapecrouchedthereinthedarknessagainstthesafe。Attimes，instrange，ghostlyflashes，thenickeldialwiththerayuponitseemedtoleapoutandglistenthroughthesurroundingblackness；attimes，thequickintakeofbreath，asfromgreatexertion；attimes，faint，musicallittleclicks，as，afterabortiveeffort，thedialwhirled，preparatorytoafreshattempt。Andthen，atlast——agaspofrelief： “Ah！“ Camethesound，barelyaudible，asofsteelslidinginwell-oiledgrooves，themuffledthudofmetalmeetingmetalastheboltsshotback——andtheheavydoorswungoutward。 JimmieDalestretchedhiscrampedlimbs，andwipedthemoisturefromhisface——thensettoworkagainupontheinnerdoor。Thiswasaneasiermatter——fareasier。Fiveminutes，perhapsalittlemore，wentby——andthentheinnerdoorwasopen，andtheflashlight”sraywasfloodingtheinteriorofthesafe。 Aqueerlittlesound，halfofastonishment，halfofdisappointment，issuedfromJimmieDale”slips。Therewasmoneyhere，agreatdealofmoney，undoubtedly，buttherewasnosuchsumashehad，somehow，fantasticallyimaginedfromtheMagpie”sevidentlyovercolouredstorythattherewouldbe；therewasmoney，tenpackagesofbanknotesneatlypiledinthebottomcompartment——buttherewasnohalfmillionofdollars！Hepickeduponeofthepackageshurriedly——anddrewinhisbreath。Afterall，therewasagreatdeal——thenoteswereofhundred-dollardenomination，andonthebottomweretwoone-thousand-dollarbills！Calculatedroughly，ifeachoftheotherninepackagescontainedalikeamount，thetotalmustexceedahundredthousand。 AndnowJimmieDalebegantoworkwithfeverishhaste。Fromtheleathergirdleinsidehisshirtcamethethinmetalinsigniacase—— andagraysealwasstuckfirmlyonthedialknobofthesafe。Thisdone，hetuckedawaythepackagesofbanknotes，someintohispocketsandsomeinsidehisshirt；andthenquicklyransackedtheinteriorofthesafe，flauntinglyspillingthecontentsofdrawersandpigeonholesoutuponthefloor。 Hestoodup，and，leavingthesafedoorwideopen，walkedbackacrosstheroomtothewindow，unfastenedthecatch，andopenedthewindowaninchortwo。ThewaywasopennowfortheMagpie！TheMagpiewouldhavenoneedtomakeanynoiseinforcinganentrance； hewouldbeabletoseealmostataglancethathehadbeenforestalled——bytheGraySeal；andthat，asfarashewasconcerned，thegamewasup。TheMagpiehadhischance！IftheMagpiedidnottakethehintandmakehisescapeasnoiselesslyashehadentered—— itwashisownfault！He，JimmieDale，hadgiventheMagpiehischance。 JimmieDaleturnedfromthewindow，andmadehiswayoutofthelibrarytothefootofthestairs，leavingthelibrarydooropenbehindhim。Howlonghadhebeen？Wasitmoreorlessthanthetwenty-fiveminutes？Hedidnotknow——only，asyet，theMagpiehadnotcome，andnowperhapsitdidnotmakesomuchdifference。 Wherewashegoingnow？Hisfootwasonthefirststair——andsuddenlyhedrewitback，thecoldsweatburstingoutonhisforehead。Wherewashegoingnow？“THEFIRSTROOMONTHERIGHTAT THEHEADOFTHELANDING。”Fromhisinnerconsciousness，asitwere，theanswer，inallthebald，nakedhorrorthatitimplied，flasheduponhim。Thefirstroomontheright——THATman”sroom！God，howthedarknessandthestillnessbegantopalpitateagain，andsuddenlyseemtoshriekoutathimoverandovertheonesingle，ghastlyword——MURDER！ Ithadbeenwithhim，thatthought，allthetimehehadbeenworkingatthesafe；butithadbeentherethenonlysubconsciously，likesomeheavy，namelessdread，subjugatedforthemomentbytheworkhehadhadtodowhichhaddemandedthecentredattentionofeveryfacultyhepossessed。ButnowthemomenthadcomewhentherewasonlyTHATbeforehim，onlythat，nothingelse——onlythat，themanupstairsinthefirstroomtotherightofthelanding！ Whydidhehesitate？Whydidhestandtherewhilethepricelessmomentsbeforedaylightcamewerepassing？Themanwasamurderer，ablotchonsociety，and，hislifealreadyforfeited，hewaslivingnowonlybecausethelawhadnotfoundhimout——themanwasacriminal，bloodstained——andhislife，becausehehadtakenherfather”slifeandhadtriedtotaketheTocsin”sownlife，stoodbetweenherandeveryhopeofhappiness，robbingherevenliterally，inamaterialsense，ofeverythingthattheworldcouldholdforher！Whydidhehesitate？Itwasthatman”slife——orhers！Itwastheonlyway！ Heputhisfootuponthebottomstepagain——pausedstillanotherinstant——andthenbeganstealthilytomountthestairs。Thedarkness！Therehadneverbeen，itseemed，suchdarknessbefore！ Thestillness——hehadneverknownsilencesoheavy，sofullofstrange，premonitorypulsings；asilencethatseemedsoincongruouslyfullofclamouringwhispersinhisears！Itmustbethoseimaginedwhispersthatwereaffectinghisnerve——fornow，ashegainedthelandingandslippedhisautomaticfromhispocket，hishandwasshakingwithaqueertwitchingmotion。 Foraninstant，fightingforhisself-composure，hestoodstrivingtolocatehissurroundingsthroughthedarkness。Thestaircasewasacircularone，makingthelandingnearlyatthefrontofthehouse，andrearwardfromthis，theTocsinhadsaid，ahallwayrandownthecentre，withroomsoneitherside。Thefirstroomtotheright，therefore，shouldbejustathishand。Hereachedout，feelingcautiously——therewasnothing。Heedgedtotheright——stillnothing；edgedalittlefarther，asenseofbewildermentgrowinguponhim，andfinallyhisfingerstouchedthewall。Itwasverystrange！Thehallwaymustbemuchwiderthanhehadunderstoodittobefromwhatshehadsaid！ Hemovedalongnowstraightaheadofhim，hishandonthewall，feelingforthedoor——andwitheverystephisbewildermentincreased。Surelytheremustbesomemistake——perhapshehadmisunderstood！Hehadcomefullytwicethedistancethatonewouldexpect——andyettherewasnodoor。Ah，whatwasthat？Hisfingersclosedonsoft，heavyvelvethangings。Thesecouldhardlybeinfrontofadoor，andyet——whatelsecoulditbe？Hedrewthehangingswarilyapart，andfeltbehindthem。Itwasawindow；butitwasshutteredinsomewayevidently，forhecouldnotseeout。 JimmieDalestoodmotionlessthereforfullyaminute。Itseemedabsurd，preposterous，theconvictionthatwasbeingforcedhomeuponhim——thattherewerenoroomsontheright-handsideofthecorridoratall！ButthatwasnotliketheTocsin，accuratealwaysinthemostminutedetails。Theroommustbestillfartheralong。Hewastemptedtousehisflashlight——butthat，aslongashecouldfeelhisway，wasanunnecessaryrisk。Aflashlightupstairs，whereasleeping-roomdoormightbeajar，orevenwideopen，wheresomeonewakeful，THATmanhimself，perhaps，mightseeit，wasquiteanothermatterthanaflashlightintheclosedanddesertedlibrarybelow！ Hewentononcemore，stillguidinghimselfbyalightfingertouchuponthewall，passedanotherportieresimilartothefirst，and，afterthat，another——andfinallystoppedbybringingupabruptlyagainsttheendwallofthehouse。Itwascertainlyverystrange！ ThereWEREnoroomsontheright-handsideofthecorridor。Andhere，hangingacrosstheendwall，wasanotherofthoseubiquitousvelvetportieres。Hepartedit，and，alittletohissurprise，foundawindowthatwasnotshuttered，butthat，instead，washeavilybarredbyanornamentalgrillework。Hecouldseeout，however，andfoundthathewaslookingdirectlyoutfromtherearofthehouse。Alampfromthesidestreetthrewwhatwasundoubtedlythegarageintoshadowyoutline，andhemadeoutbelowhimashortstretchofyardbetweenthegarageandthehouse。Herememberedthatnow——shehaddescribedallthattotheMagpie。Therewasnodrivewaybetweenthefrontandtherear。Thehousebeingonthecorner，theentrancetothegaragewasdirectlyfromthesidestreet。Yes，shehaddescribedallthatexactlyasitwas，but——hedroppedtheportiereandfacedaround，carryinghishandinanonplusedwaytohiseyes——buthere，upstairs，withinthehouse，itwasnotasshehadsaiditwasatall！Whatdiditmean？Shecouldnothaveblunderedsoegregiouslyasthat，unless——hecaughthisbreathsuddenly——unlessshehaddonesointentionally！Wasthatit？ Hadshesurmised，formedasuspicionofwhatwasinhismind，ofwhathemeanttodo——andtakenthismeansofdefeatingit？Ifso—— well，itwastoolateforthatnow！Therewasoneway——onlyoneway！Whateverthecost，whateveritmightmeanforhim——therewasonlyonewayoutforher。 Hisflashlightwasinhishandnow，andtheround，whiterayshotdownthecorridor——seemedsuddenlytofalterunsteadily——sweptinthroughanopendoorthatwasalmostbesidehim——andthen，asthoughanervelesshandheldit，theraydroppedandplayedshakilyonthetoeofhisbootbeforeitwentout。 Astifledcryrosetohislips。Somethingcold，likeahandofice，seemedtoclutchathisheart。Thoseportieres，thewide，richlycarpetedcorridor！Itwasthecorridorofthenightbefore！ThatroomathissidewastheroomwherehehadseenHiltonTravers，thechauffeur，dead，lashedinachair！Hefeltthesweatbeadsburstoutanewuponhisforehead。 ITWASTHECRIMECLUB！ CHAPTERXV RETRIBUTION Hisbrainseemedtowhirl，staggeredasbysomegigantic，ghastlymockery。TheCrimeClub！HERE！Hehadthoughttocreepuponthatman——andhehadrunblindlyintotheveryheartandcentreofthesehellfiends”nest！ Silentlyhestoodthere，holdinghisbreathashelistenednow，motionlessasastatue，forcinghismindtoTHINK。Herememberedthatlastnighthisimpressionoftheplacehadbeenthatitwasmorelikesomegreatprivatemansionthananythingelse。Well，hehadbeenright，itseemed！Hecouldhavelaughedaloud—— sardonically，hysterically。Itwasnotsostrangenowthattherewerenoroomsontheright-handsideofthecorridor！Andwhatcouldhavesuitedtheirpurposebetter，what，byitsverylocation，itsunimpeachablecharacter，couldbeamoreideallairforthemthanthishouse！Andhowgrimlysimpleitwasnow，theexplanation！ InthefiveyearsthatthefalseHenryLaSallehadbeeninpossession，theyhadcunninglyremodelledtheupperfloor——thatwasall！Itwasquiteclearnowwhythemanneverentertained——whyhehadneverbeencaughtorfoundorknowntobeincommunicationwithhisfellowconspirators！Itwasnolongercuriousthatonemightwatchthedoorofthehouseformonthsatastretchandgounrewardedforone”spains，astheTocsinhaddone，whenaccesstothehousebythosewhofrequenteditwassoeasythroughthegarageonthesidestreet——andfromthegarage，iftheirworktherewasinkeepingwiththeirclevercontrivanceswithinthehouse，byanundergroundconnectioninto，say，thecellarorbasement！ AgainJimmieDalecheckedthatnervous，unnaturalinclinationtolaughaloud。Wasthereanything，anysingleincident，anysingledetailofallthathadtranspired，thatwasnotexplained，borneout，asitcouldbeexplainedandborneoutinnootherwaysavethattheCrimeClubshouldbenootherthanthisveryhouseitself？ Itwastheexpositionofthatfavouritetheoryofhis——itwassoobviousthatthereinlayitssecurity。HehadmockedattheMagpienotmanymomentsbeforeonthatscore——andnowitwasthebeaminhisowneye！Itwassoobviousnow，soglaringlyobvious，thattheCrimeClubcouldhavebeennowhereelse；soobvious，witheverywordoftheTocsin”sstorypointingitoutlikeasignpost——andhehadnotseenit！ Andthensuddenlyeverymusclegrewstrainedandrigid。WASTHERE SOMEONEINTHECORRIDOR？Wasitsomeonemoving——orwasitonlyfancy？Helistened——whilehestrainedhiseyesthroughthedarkness。Therewasnosound；onlythatabnormal，heavysilencethat——yes，herememberedthat，too，now——thathadclungabouthimlastnightlikeapall。Hecouldseenothing，hearnothing——butintuitively，bringingacolddismay，thegreaterbecauseitwassomethingunknown，intangible，heFELTasthougheyeswereuponhim，thateveninthedarknesshewasbeingwatched！ Andashestoodthere，then，slowlytherecreptuponJimmieDalethesenseofperilanddisaster。Itwasnotintuitionnow——itwascertainty。Hewastrapped！Itwasthepartofafooltoimaginethatwiththeirdevil”scunning，theircleverness，theiringenuity，he，oranyoneelse，couldenterthathouseunknowntoitsoccupants！Hadhemadeelectriccontactwhenhehadopenedthefrontdoor，andrungasignalhere，perhaps，upstairs——hadhesetsomesystemofalarmatworkwhenhehadtouchedthatwindow？Whatdiditmatter——thedetailsthathadheraldedhisentrance？Hewascertainnowthathispresenceinthehousewasknown。Only，whyhadtheylefthimsolongwithoutattack？Heshookhisheadwithaquick，impatientmovement。That，too，wasobvious！Hewasunderobservation。Whowashe？Whyhadhecome？Washesimplyapaltrysafe-tapper——orwasheonewhomtheyhadarealneedtofear？Andthen，too，theremightwellbeanotherreason。Itwasfarfromlikely，infactunreasonable，toimaginethatallthemenhehadseenherethenightbeforewereinthehousenow。Notmanyofthem，ifany，wouldLIVEhere，forCONSTANT，dailycomingandgoing，eventhroughthegarage，couldnotescapenotice；and，oftheservants，probablyalesserbreedofcriminal，someofthem，atleast，nodoubt，wereengagedatthatmomentinwatchinghisownhouseonRiversideDrive！TherewaseventhepossibilitythatthemanposingasHenryLaSallewas，forthetimebeing，herealone。 Heshookhisheadagain。Hecouldhardlyhopeforthat——hehadnorighttohopeforanythingmorenowthanastruggle，withaninevitablyfatalendingtohimself，butoneinwhichatleasthecouldsellhislifeasdearlyaspossible，oneinwhich，perhaps，hemightpaytheTocsin”sscorewiththemanhehadcometofind！Ifhecoulddothat——well，afterall，thepricewasnottoogreat！ Therewerenotremoursofthemusclesnow。ItwasJimmieDale，theGraySeal，everyfacultyalert，tense，keyeduptoitshighestefficiency；thebraincool，keen，andactive——fightingforhislife。 Thefrontdoorthroughwhichhehadenteredwasanimpossibility； buttherewasthewindowinthelibrarythathehadopened——iftheywouldlethimgetthatfar！Thatwasasgoodachanceasany。Ifhemadeanefforttofind，say，awaytotheflataboveandchancedsomemeansofescapethere，itwouldinnowiseobviateanattackuponhim，andhewouldonlybeundertheaddeddisadvantageofunfamiliarsurroundings。 Feelingoutwithhislefthand，hisautomaticthrownalittleforwardinhisright，hebegantoretracehiswayalongtheblankwallofthecorridor，pausingbetweeneachsteptolisten，movingsilently，histreadontheheavycarpetasnoiselessasthoughitweresomeshadowcreepingthere。 Stillness——utter，absolute！Alwaysthatstillness。Alwaysthatsenseofdangeraroundhim——thetense，batedexpectancyofmomentaryattack——arevolverflashthroughthedarkness——asuddenrushuponhim。Butstilltherewasnothing——onlythedarkness，onlythesilence。 Hegainedtheheadofthestairsandbegantodescend——andnowthestrainbegantotelluponhisnervesagain。Againhewaspossessedofthemadimpulsetocryout，todoanythingthatwouldforcetheissue，thatwouldendthehorrible，unbearablesuspense。Whydidthatrevolvershotnotcome？Whyhadtheynotyetrusheduponhim？ Whyweretheyplayingwithhimasacatwithamouse？Orwasitallwild，fancifulimagination？NO！Whatwasthatagain！Hecouldhaveswornthistimethathehadheardasound，buthecouldneitherdefineitscharacter，norlocatethedirectionfromwhichithadcome。 Hewasatthefootofthestairsnow；and，guidinghimselfbythewall，movingnowbarelyaninchatatime，hereachedthelibrarydoorthathehadleftopen，andstoleinoverthethreshold。 Halfwaydowntheroomanddiagonallyacrossfromwherehestoodwasthewindow。Inamomentnowhecouldgainthat，buttheywouldneverlethimgosoeasily——andsoitmustcomenow，inthatnextmoment，theirattack！Wherewerethey？Whereweretheynow？Thetable——hemustremembernottobumpintothetable！Apausebetweeneachstep，hewascrossingtheroom。Hewashalfwaytothewindow。 Haditbeenallfancy，washeto——AndthenJimmieDalestoodmotionless。SOMEONEHADCLOSEDTHELIBRARYDOORSOFTLY！ Stillnessagain！Asortofdeadlycalmuponhim，JimmieDalefeltoutbehindhisbackforthebiglibrarytablethathehadbeencircuiting——ifthewindowwerewideopenitmightbedone，buttojumpforitandstandsilhouettedthereduringthepausenecessarytoflingthewindowupwaslittlelessthansuicidal。Heedgedbacknoiselesslyuntilhisfingerstouchedthetable；then，loweringhimselftohisknees，hebackedinunderneathit，andlayflatuponthefloor。Itwasnotmuchprotection，butithadoneadvantage：iftheyswitchedonthelightsitwouldshowanEMPTYroomforthefirstinstant，andthatinstantmeant——thefirstshot！ Whereweretheynow？Bythelibrarydoor？Howmanyofthemwerethere？Well，itwastheirmove！Twocouldplayatcatandmouseuntil——untilDAYLIGHT！Thatwasn”tveryfaroff，now，andwhenthatcamehemightstillhavethefirstshot，butafterthat——heturnedhisheadquicklytowardthewindow。Therewasafaintscratchingnoiseasoffingernailsgrippingthesill；thenthewindow，veryslowly，almostsilently，waspushedsteadilyupward，andadarkformloomedupoutside；andthen，crawlingthrough，amandropped，asthoughhisfeetwerepaddedlikeacat”sonthefloorinsidetheroom。TheMagpie！ Aflashlight”srayshotout——and，withatwistedsmileproppednowonhisleftelbowtogivefreeplaytohisrevolverarm，JimmieDalefollowedthewhitespoteagerlywithhiseyes。Butitdidnotcirclearound；instead，thelightwasturnedalmostinstantlytowardthelowerendoftheroom——and，asecondlater，washoldingsteadilyontheopendoorofthesafe，andthelitterofpapersonthefloor。 CameasavagegrowlofamazedfuryfromtheMagpie：thenhisstepdowntheroom；and，ashereachedthesafe，atorrentofunbridledblasphemy——andthen，inasortofstaggeredgasp，asheleanedsuddenlyforwardexaminingtheknobofthedial： “TheGraySeal！“ AmomenttheMagpiestoodthere；andthen，cursingagaininabandon，turned，andstartedbackforthewindow，hisflashlightdancingbeforehim——andstopped，asnarloffuryonhislips。TheflashlightwasplayingfullonJimmieDaleunderthetable！ “LarrytheBat！TheGraySeal！ByGod！“chokedtheMagpie。“You—— you”TheMagpie”sflashlight，asheshifteditfromhisrighthandtohisleftandwrenchedouthisrevolver，hadfallenupontwomencrouchedcloseagainstthewallbythelibrarydoor——andhescreamedoutinanaccessoffury。“Dedoublecross！Aplant！Debulls！Youdamnedsnitch，Larry！“screamedouttheMagpie——andfired。 ThebullettoreintothecarpetbesideJimmieDale。Cameansweringshotsfromthemenbythedoor；andthentheMagpie，emptyinghisautomaticatthetwomenasheran，theflametonguescuttingviciouslanesoffirethroughthedarkness，dashedforthewindow。 Therewasacry，thecrashofaheavybodypitchingtothefloor—— andtheMagpiehadflunghimselfoutthroughthewindow，andinthemomentaryensuingsilencewithintheroomcamethesoundofhisfootstepsrunningonthegravelbelow。 Therewasalowmoan，themovementasofsomeonestaggeringandlurchingaround——andthenthelightswenton。ButforaninstantJimmieDaledidnotmove。Hewasstaringattheformofamanstillandmotionlessonthefloorinfrontofhim——themanwhohadposedasHenryLaSalle。Dead！Themanwasdead！Hismindranriotforamoment。Whereweretheothers——werethereonlythesetwo？Onlythesetwointhehouse！Onlythesetwo——andonewasdead！AndthenJimmieDalewasonhisfeet。Onewasdead——buttherewasstilltheother，themanwhowasreelingthere，backturnedtohim，bytheelectric-lightswitch。ButevenasJimmieDalesprangforward，thissecondman，clawingatthewallforsupport，slippedtohiskneesandfelluponthecarpet。 JimmieDalereachedhim，snatchedtherevolverfromhishand，andbentoverhim。Itwasthemanwhosenamehedidnotknow，butwhosefacehehadreasonenoughtoknowtoowell——itwastheleaderoftheCrimeClub。 Theman，thoughevidentlybadlywounded，smileddefiantlyinspiteofhispain。 “Soyou”retheGraySeal！“heflungoutcontemptuously。“Acleverenoughsafe-cracker——butonlyalowbrow，liketherestofthem。 Anotherillusiondispelled！Well，you”vegotthemoney——betterrun，hadn”tyou？“ JimmieDalemadenoanswer。Satisfiedthatthemanwastoobadlyhurttomove，hewentandbentoverthesilentforminthecentreoftheroom。Amoment”sexaminationwasenough。“HenryLaSalle“wasdead。 Hestoodtherelookingdownattheman。Itwaswhathehadcomefor——thoughitwastheMagpie，nothimself，whohadaccomplishedit！ Themanwasdead！Thewordsbegantorunthroughhismindinaqueerreiteration。Themanwasdead——themanwasdead！Hecheckedhimselfsharply。Hemustthinknow——thinkfast，andthinkRIGHT。 TheMagpieknewthatLarrytheBatwastheGraySeal——andasfastastheMagpiecouldgetthere，thenewswouldspreadlikewildfirethroughtheunderworld。“DeathtotheGraySeal！DeathtotheGraySeal！“Hecouldhearthatsloganringingagaininhisears，butashehadneverhearditbefore——withasnarloftriumphnowasofwolveswhoatlasthadpulledtheirquarrydown。Hehadnotasecondtospare——andyet——thatmanwoundedthereonthefloor！Whatofhim——guiltyofmurder，thebrainsofthisinhuman，monstrousorganisation，theonetowhom，moreeventhantothatdeadman，theTocsinowedthehorrorandthemiseryandthegriefanddespairthathadcomeintoherlife！Whatofhim？WhatoftheCrimeClubhere？ Whatofthisnestofvipers？Weretheytoescape？Weretheyto—— Withasudden，lowexclamation，JimmieDalejumpedforthetable，and，snatchingupthetelephone，rattledthehookviolently。 “Giveme“——hisvoicecameinwell-simulatedgasps，eachlikeamanfightingforeveryword”giveme——police——headquarters！Quick！ QUICK！I”ve——been——shot！“ Thewoundedmanonthefloorraisedhimselfonhiselbow。 “Whatareyoudoing？“hedemandedinastartledway。“Areyoumad！ Thankyourstarsyouwereluckyenoughtogetoutofthisalive——andgetoutnow，whileyouhavethechance！“ JimmieDalepressedhishandfirmlyoverthemouthpieceofthetelephone。 “I”llgo，“hesaid，withacoldsmile，“whenI”vesettledwithyou—— forthemurderofHenryLaSalle。” “Thatman！“ejaculatedthemanscornfully，pointingtotheformonthefloor。“Sothat”syourgame！Goingtotryandcoveryourtracks！Why，youfool，ILIVEhere！DoyouthinkthepolicewouldimagineforaninstantthatIkilledhim？“ “Isaid——HENRYLASALLE，“saidJimmieDaleevenly。 Themancamefartheruponhiselbow，asuddenlookoffearinhisface。 “What——whatdoyoumean？“hecriedhoarsely。 ButJimmieDalewastalkingagainintothetelephone——gasping，chokingouthiswordsasbefore： “Policeheadquarters？I”mHenryLaSalle。FifthAvenue。I——I”vebeenshot。Takedownthisstatement。I”ll——I”llbedeadbeforeyougethere——I”mnottherealHenryLaSalleatall。WemurderedHenryLaSalle——inAustralia，andmurderedPeterLaSallehere。We——wetriedtokillthedaughter，butsheranaway。Thishousehasbeenourheadquartersforthelastfiveyears。Themanwhoshotmeto- nightistheleaderofthegang。Wequarrelledoverthedivisionofahaul。He”shereonthefloornow，wounded。Getthemall，getthemall，damnthem！——doyouhear？——getthemall！They”reoutofthehousenow，butlayatrapforthem。Theyalwayscomeinthroughthegarageonthesidestreet。Oh，God，I”mdonefor！Breakdownthewestwallsoftheroomsupstairs——if——you——wantproofofwhat—— thegang”sbeendoing。Hurry！Hurry！I”m——I”m——donefor——I” JimmieDalepermittedthetelephonetodropwithaclashfromhishandtothetable。 Thefaceofthemanonthefloorwaslivid。 “Whoareyou？InGod”sname，whoareyou？“hecriedoutwildly。 “Doesitmatter？“inquiredJimmieDalegrimly。“Yourgameisup。 You”llgotothechairforthemurderof”HenryLaSalle”——ifitisbyproxy！Thoseroomsupstairsaloneareenoughtodamnyou，toproveeverywordofthatdying“confession“——butto-morrow，addedtoit，willcomethestoryofMarieLaSalleherself。” Foramomentthemanhungthereswayingonhiselbow，hisfaceworkinginghastlyfashion——andthensuddenly，withastrangelaugh，hecarriedonehandswiftlytohismouth——andlaughedagain——andbeforeJimmieDalecouldreachhimwaslifelessonthefloor。 Atinyvialrolledawayuponthecarpet。JimmieDalepickeditup。 Adroportwoofliquidstillremainedinit——colourless，clear，likethatliquidthissamemanhaddroppedintotherabbit”smouththenightbefore，liketheliquidintheglassestheyhadcarriedintothatthirdroom，liketheliquidthathismanhadsaidwasfromaformulaoftheirown，thatwasinstantaneousinitsaction，thatdefieddetectionbyautopsy！ Theset，sternfeaturesofJimmieDalerelaxed。Itwasjustice——butitwasalsodeath。Inasurgeofemotion，theeventsofscarcelymorethantwenty-fourhours，begantocrowduponhim——andthen，ominouslydominant，aboveallelse，thatsloganoftheunderworld，“DeathtotheGraySeal！“cameringingoncemoreinhisears。Itbroughthim，withastartledmovementofhishandacrosshiseyes，toarealisationofhisowndesperateposition。Yes，yes，hemustgo！ThewaywasclearnowfortheTocsin——clearnowforher！ Hedroppedthevialintohispocket，and，runningtothesafe，quicklyscrapedthegraysealfromthedial”sknob；thenhedrewthepackagesofmoneyfromhisshirtandpocketsandtossedthemontheflooramongthelitterofpapersalreadythere——shewouldgetitbackagainwhenithadserveditspurpose，itwouldbeself-evidentthatitwastheproceedsofthatday”ssaleoftheestate”ssecuritiesoverwhichthe“quarrel“hadoccurred！ Andnowthewindow！Herantoit，closedit，andLOCKEDit；then，layingtherevolverhehadtakenfromtheleaderdownbesidetheman，hesteppedacrosstheroomagainanddrewthebodyof“HenryLaSalle“closertothetable——asthoughthemanhadfallentherewhenthetelephonehaddroppedfromhishand。 Itwasdonenow！Onthefloorbesidehimlayeachman”sweapon——andbothoftherevolvershadbeendischargedseveraltimes。JimmieDalepausedonthelibrarythresholdforafinalsurveyoftheroom。 Itwasdone！Thewaywasclear——forher。Andnowifhecouldonlysavehimself！TherewasnochanceforLarrytheBat！Couldhesave——JIMMIEDALE！ Hecrossedthehall，aqueer，half-grim，half-wistfulsmileonhislips，unlockedthefrontdoor，steppedout，lockeditbehindhim—— andinanothermoment，doublingaroundthecorner，wasrunningalonglikeaharealongthesidestreet。 CHAPTERXVI “DEATHTOTHEGRAYSEAL！“ OnJimmieDaleran。AcrossonFourthAvenueheswungonacarthattookhimtoAstorPlace。Thenstrikingeastoncemore，makingadetourtoavoidtheBowery，heranonattopspeedagain。ToreachtheSanctuary，notbeforetheMagpieshouldhavespreadthealarm，thatwasimpossible，buttoreachitbeforetheunderworldshouldhavehadtimetorecoveritsbreath，asitwere，beforetheunderworldshouldhavehadtimetoact——thatwashisonlychance！ TheMagpiehad，attheoutside，astartoffifteenminutes；buthe，JimmieDale，hadprobablyretrievedfiveminutesofthatinthetimehehadmadeingettingdowntown。ThatlefttheMagpietentothegood。HowlongwouldittaketheMagpietobringtheunderworldswarminglikehornetsaroundtheSanctuary？ OnLarrytheBatran。AttheSanctuaryweretheclothes，thebelongingsofJimmieDale。CouldhesaveJimmieDale！Ifhecouldgetthere，change，andgetoutagain，thewaywasclearforhim——asclearasfortheTocsinnow。InafewhoursthepolicewouldhaveeverymemberoftheCrimeClubinthetrap；therewouldbenowatchanymorearoundhishouseonRiversideDrive；andhewouldbefreetoreturnthereandresumehisnormallifeasJimmieDaleagainifhecouldmaketheSanctuaryintime！ButlettheMagpiegettherefirst，lettheunderworldteartheplacetopiecesinitsfuryasitwoulddo，letthemdiscoverthathidingplaceundertheflooring，forinstance，andtheGraySealwouldnotbemerelyLarrytheBat，butJimmieDaleaswell，and——acryescapedhimevenasheran——itmeantruin，thedisgraceofanhonouredname，death，crimeswithoutnumberathisdoor。Crimes！TheGraySealhadnevercommittedacrime！ButthecrimesattributedtotheGraySealhecouldnotdisprove，notoneofthem！Hehadmeantthemtoappearascrimes—— andhehadsucceededsowellthattheGraySeal”sname，execrated，wasasynonymforthemostcallous，dangerous，andunscrupulouscriminaloftheage！ Hewasgaspingforbreathasfinally，makingforthesidedoor，hedartedintothealleywaythatflankedtheSanctuary。WhatstorywouldtheMagpietell？Notthetruth，ofcourse——thatwouldlettheMagpieinforwhathadhappenedthatnight，fortheMagpiemustbewellawarethathehadshotatleastoneofthetwomeninthatroom。Butthetruthwasn”tnecessary；itwasforeign，andhadnobearingontheoneoutstandingfact——theGraySealwasLarrytheBat。AtthepresentmomenttheMagpiehadadoubleincentivefor“getting“theGraySeal——theGraySealwastheonlyonewhocouldprovemurderagainsthimthatnightintheLaSallemansion。Andafterwards，whenthepoliceversionoftheaffairwasmadepublic，theMagpie，tosavehimself，wouldbecarefulenoughtodoorsaynothingtocontradict“HenryLaSalle”s“confession！ LarrytheBatslippedinthroughthedoor，haltedthere，listened； andthenbegantomountthericketystairs，withhissilenttread。 Atthetophepausedagain。Nothing——nosound！Theywerenothereyet——sofarhewasintime！HesteppedtotheSanctuarydoor，unlockedit，passedintothesqualid，miserableroomthathadharbouredhimforsolongasLarrytheBat，lockedthedoorbehindhim，crossedquicklytothewindowtomakesurethattheshutterswereclosed——andthen，forthefirsttime，asthegraylightstreakedinthroughtheinterstices，hewasconsciousthatitwasalreadydawn。Somuchthemoreneedforhastethen！ Hewhippedouthisrevolverandlaiditathishandonthedilapidatedtable；thentheflooringinthecornerwasupinaninstant，andhebegantostripofftheragsofLarrytheBat。 Boots，mismatedsocks，thetorn，patchedtrousers，thegreasyflannelshirt，thethreadbarecoat，thenondescriptslouchhatwerethrowninapileonthefloor；andwiththem，fromtheirhiding- place，thegreasepaintsandheterogeneouscollectionofmake-upaccessories。Thisdone，hebegantoslipontheclothesofJimmieDale；and，whenhalfdressed，turnedtothetableagaintoremovethecharacteristicgrime，stain，andpaintofLarrytheBatfromface，hands，wrists，throat，andneck。Thiswasalonger，morearduoustask。Hereachedforthecrackedpitchertopourmorewaterintothebasin——and，snatchinguphisrevolverinstead，whirledtofacethedoor。 Someonewasoutside！Hehadcaughtthecreakofafootstepuponthestairs。Inaflashhewasacrosstheroomandcrouchedbythedoor。Yes，thestepwasnearernow——attheheadofthestairs——onthelanding。Hisrevolverlifted，holdingasteadybeadonthedoorpanel。Andthentherecamealowvoice： “Jimmie！Jimmie！Areyouthere？Quick，Jimmie！Areyouthere？“ TheTocsin！Whatwasshedoinghere！Whyhadhenotwarnedherupthereontheavenue，foolthathewas，thatofallplacesshewastokeepawayfromhere！ Sheslippedintotheroomasheunlockedthedoor。 “They”recoming，Jimmie！“shepantedbreathlessly。“There”snotaninstanttolose！Listen！WhentheMagpieranfromthehouse，Iranwithhim——butit“——shetriedtosmile”itwasn”ttoobeyyou，torunaway——IhadmadeupmymindIwouldn”tdothat——itwastofindoutfromhimwhathadhappened。HetoldmeyouweretheGraySeal。 Hedidnotsuspectme。HethinksyouwerenomorethanjustLarrytheBattome，asyouweretoeverybodyelse。HewentstraighttoChicagoIke”sgamblingroomsandfoundtheSkeeter”sgangthere——youknowthem，RedMose，theMidget，HarveThoms，andtheSkeeter——yourememberyourfightwiththemoveroldLuddy”sdiamonds！Well，theyhavenotforgotten，either！Theyareontheirwayhere，now！ThenewsthatyouaretheGraySealistravellinglikelightningallthroughtheunderworld——therewillbeamobhereontheSkeeter”sheels。So，Jimmie——quick！Run！“ Run！HalfLarrytheBat，halfJimmieDale——andrun！Inanotherfiveminutes，perhaps——yes。Butthereprobablywouldnotbefiveminutes——andshe——ifshewerefoundhere！ “Yes，“hesaidquietly。“I”llgetawayinamoment。Yougoatonce。I”ll“——hewassmilingatherreassuringly”I”llmeetyouat” Shelookedathimthenforaninstant——interruptinghimquickly，assheshookherhead。 “Ididn”tnotice，Jimmie。Youcannotgolikethat——canyou？ItwouldbeevenworsethanbeingcaughtasLarrytheBat。Hurrythen——Iamnotgoingwithoutyou。” “No！“hesaid。“Gonow！Goatonce，Marie——whileyoucan。Youhaveriskedyourlifeasitistocomehereandtellmethis。ForGod”ssake，gonow！“ Thegreat，browneyesweresmilingbravelythroughasuddenmist。 Sheshookherheadagain。 “Notwithoutyou，Jimmie。” Itbroughtafierce，wildthrobofjoyuponhim——andthenacold，sickeningfear。 “Listen！“hecriedoutdesperately。“Youmustgonow！Youcannottakeanychancesnow，Marie。Everythingisrightforyou。Thatmanwhoposedasyouruncleisdead——theleaderoftheCrimeClubisdead。Don”tyouunderstandwhatthatmeans！YouhaveonlytobeMarieLaSalleagainandclaimyourown。Icannottellyouallnow—— there”snotime。ThathousewastheCrimeClubitself。Thepolicewillgetthemall。Don”tyousee！Don”tyousee！Everythingisclearforyounow——andnowgo！Go——youmustgo！“ Shewasstaringathim，astrangewonderinherface。 “Clear！Allclear——forme！I——Icangobackto——tomyownlifeagain！“Itwasasthoughshewerewhisperingsomeamazingthingofunbelievablejoytoherself。 “YES！“hecriedoutagain。“Yes！Butgo——go，Marie！“ Butnow，foranswer，suddenlyshereachedoutandtookthekeyfromthedoorandputitinthepocketofherdress。 “Wewillgotogether，Jimmie——ornotatall，“shesaidsimply。“Wearewastingpreciousmoments。Hurryanddress！“ Hehesitatedmiserably。Whatcouldhedo——ifsheWOULDnotgo！Anditwastrue——themomentswereflying。Better，ratherthanfutileargument，tousethemasshesaid。Therewasstillachance！Whynot！Fiveminutes！Hecoulddobetterthanthat！HeMUSTdobetterthanthat！ Withoutaword，heranbackacrosstheroom。Infrantichaste，fromface，hands，wrists，andneckcamethestain。Therewasstilltime。 Shewasstandingtherebythedoor，listening。She，theTocsin，shewhomheloved，shewho，allthroughtheyearsthathadgone，hadbeensostrangelyelusiveandyetsointimatelyapartofhislife，SHEwasstandingtherenow，herewithhim——inperilwitheverysecondthatpassed！ Hehadonlytosliponhiscoatandvestnow——andmakeabundleofLarrytheBat”sthingsonthefloor，sothathecouldcarrythemawaytodestroythem。Hestoopedtogatheruptheclothes——andstraightenedsuddenly——andjumpedtowardthedooragain。 “Theyarecoming，Jimmie！“shecalled，inalowvoice。Buthehadalreadyheardthem——thestairswerecreakingloudlyunderthetreadofmanyfeet。HepushedtheTocsinhurriedlybackagainstthewallatthesideofthedoor。 “Standthere！“hesaid，underhisbreath。“Outofthelineoffire！ Don”tmove！“ Therewasarushagainstthedoor——andthenavoicegrowled： “Aw，cutdatout！Wotdoyousewanttodo——scarehimawaybybustin”it！Pickdelock，an”we”lllayforhiminsidetillheshowsup。” ItwastheSkeeter”svoice。TheSkeeterandhisgang——theworstapachesinthecityofNewYork！Professionalassassins，deathcontractors，hehadcalledthem——andthelowestbidders！Aman”slifeanytimefortwenty-fivedollars！No，theywerenotlikelytoforgettheaffairofthepushcartman，toforgetoldLuddyandhisdiamonds，toforget——theGraySeal！Andtheywereonlythevanguardofwhatwastocome！ Someonewasworkingatthelocknow。Therewasonewaytostopthat。ItwouldnottakethemlongtofindoutthatheWASthereoncethedoorwasopened！BetterknowitwiththedoorSHUT！ JimmieDaleliftedhisrevolvercoollyandfiredthroughthepanel。 Aburstofyellsansweredtheshot；andamongthem，highabovetheothers，theMagpie”sscream： “Wegothim！Wegothim！He”sderenow！“ Andthenitseemedthatpandemoniumbrokeloose——therewasavolleyofshots，thebulletssplinteringthroughthedoorpanelsasfromamachinegun，sofasttheycame——andthenanotherrushagainstthedoor。 Flatonthefloor，butwellbackandtooneside，JimmieDalefiredsteadily——againandagain。 Camescreamsofpain，yells，andoaths——andtheyfellbackfromthedoor。 Andnowfromabove，fromoverhead，cametumult——windowsthrownup，thestampoffeet，criesoffright。Andfromthestreet，alow，sullenroar。Theunderworldwasgatheringfast！ Oncemoretherushuponthedoor——andJimmieDale，agrim，twistedsmileuponhislips，emptiedhisrevolverintothepanels。Oncemoretheyfellback——andthentherecametheSkeeter”svoice，snarlinglikeaninfuriatedbeast： “He”llgetdelotofuslikedis！Cutitout！Besides，we”llhavedebullsdownhereinaminute——an”he”sOURmeat，nottheirs。 Dey”dbetoodamnedsoftwidhim——dey”donlysendhimtodechair。 Yousechaseupstairs，Mose，an”passdewordtobeatit——an”beatitquick。We”llBURNdeskunkout——dat”swot。An”debullscanstandalongsidean”watch，ifdeylikes——buthe”sourmeat。” JimmieDaledidnotdaretolookattheTocsin”sface。Mechanicallyherefilledthemagazineofhisautomatic——andlaythere，waiting。 Theroarfromthestreetgrewlouder。Theyseemedtobefightingoutthere，asthoughaninadequatenumberofpoliceweretryingtodisperseamob——andnotsucceeding！Prettysoon，withtheriotcallin，therewouldprobablybeabattle——fortheGraySeal！Sublimeirony！Itwasdeathatthehandsofeitherone！ Childrenwhimperedonthestairsoutside，menswore，womencried，feetshuffledhurriedlybyasthetenementemptied。Occasionally，apertinentinvitationtohimtoremainwherehewas，therewasaviciousripthroughthepanel，andthedrummingwhirofabulletflyingthroughtheroom。Andthenacurious，ominouscracklingsound——andthenthesmellofsmoke。 JimmieDalestoodup，hisfacedrawnandhaggard。Thetenementwouldgolikematchwood，burnlikeabonfire，withanykindofastart——andtherewasnodoubtaboutthestart！TheSkeeter，theMagpie，andtherestwouldhaveseenthatithadheadwayenoughtoservetheirpurposebeforeeitherfiremenorpolicecouldthwartthem。He，JimmieDale，couldtakehischoice：walkoutintoabullet，orstaythereand——hesmiledmiserablyashiseyesfelluponthepileofLarrytheBat”sclothingonthefloor。TherewasnolongerneedtoworryaboutITSdestruction——thefirewouldtakecareofthatonlytoowell！Andthenalow，bittercrycametohislips，andheclenchedhishands。Ifitwereonlyhimself——onlyhimself！ HecrossedtotheTocsinandcaughtherinhisarms。 “Oh，myGod——Marie！“hefaltered。 Thecapeandhoodhadfallenfromher，andwiththehoodhadfallenthegray-streakedhairofSilverMag——andnowasshesmiledathimitwasfromafacethatwasverybeautifulandverybraveandveryfulloftenderness。 Andheheldherthere——andneitherspoke。 Itseepedinunderthethresholdofthedoor，itcamefromeverywhere，fillingtheroom——theblack，stranglingsmoke。Outsideinthehallallwassilencenow——saveforthatcrackleofflamethatgrewinvolume，thatcamenowinquick，sharpreports，likerevolvershots。Fromoutinthestreetswelledacry：“DeathtotheGraySeal！“Thentheclangofbells，theroarandrattleoffireapparatus，stridentvoicesbellowingorders，andthecrowdagain，bloodhungry：“DeathtotheGraySeal！“ Therewasachance，justone——ifthefirehadnoheadwayalongtheupperendofthelanding——andiftheyhadnotthoughttosetawatchforhimABOVE！They——theMagpie，theSkeeter，andhisgang——musthavebeendrivenevenoutofthehousenowbythesmokeandflame。 “Givemethekey，Iamgoingtoopenthedoor，Marie，“hesaidquietly。“Coveryourfacewithahandkerchief，anything，andruntotheLEFTtothenextflightofstairs。Therearetwoflatsabovethis——we”llmaketheroofifwecan。Now——areyouready？“ Itwasaninstantbeforesheanswered，aninstantinwhichsheliftedherfacetohis，andheldhisfacebetweenhertwohands——andthen： “Iamready，Jimmie。” Heflungopenthedoor，hisarmaroundhertohelpherforward——andinstinctively，withacry，fellbackforamoment。Withtheinrushofthedraftpouredthesmoke，andthroughit，lurid，yellow，showedtheflamesleapingfromthestairwell。 Andthenallwasblindmadness。Togethertheyran。Atthefootofthestairsshefell，recoveredherself，staggeredupanother——andfellagain。Hecaughtherupinhisarmsand，staggeringnowasshehadstaggered，wenton。Hislungsseemedtobebursting。Hislimbsgrewweakandtrembledunderhim。Hecouldnotseeorbreathe。Thenauseatingfumessuffocatedhim，bringinganintolerableagony。Hegainedthefirstlandingabove。Therewasonemore——onemore！Ifhecouldonlyresthereforamoment！Yes，thatwasit——rest。Itwasn”tsobadherenow。Shestirredinhisarms，struggledtoherfeet——andhewashelpingheronagain，andupthenextflightofstairs。 Andsuddenlyhefoundhimselflaughinginhysteria——fortheywereclimbingahalfstair，halfladderwayattheendoftheupperlanding，andtheopenskylightwasabovethem，andtheyweredrinkinginthepure，freshair——andnowtheywereoutupontheroof，andtheroarfromthestreetwasintheirears，liketheroarofgreatwatersfromsomecanyonfarbelow。JimmieDaletriedtospeak，andfoundhislipswerecrackedanddry。Hewetthemwithhistongue。 “Don”tstandup——we”dbeseen——CRAWL，“hemumbledhoarsely。 Ittookalongtime——overoneroof，andthenanother，andyetanother——andthenthroughtheskylightofatenementwhoseoccupantswereeithercraningfromthefrontwindows，orwereonthestreetbelow。Itwas，perhaps，halfanhour——andthenthey，too，werestandinginthestreet，andallaboutthemthecrowdwasshoutinginwildexcitement。 Uptheblock，insidethefirelines，theSanctuarywasblazingfuriously——andnowsuddenlythewallseemedtobulgeoutward。Itbroughtayellfromthecrowd： “DeathtotheGraySeal！“ Shepulledathisarm。 “Letusgetaway！Letusgetaway，Jimmie！“shewhisperedfrantically。 AstrangesmilewasonJimmieDale”slips。 “We”resafenow——foralways，“hewhisperedback。“Look！“ TheSanctuarywallbulgedfartheroutward，seemedtohanganinstanthesitantinmid-air——andfellwithamightycrash。 TheGraySealwasdead！