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Show 5 FORLORN ISLAND! a In v ( By Edison Marshall ,'';, Copyright by IMI.on M,,r.hB WNtl IWvI. e J aaBBaBBBBBBBBBBeaaaaaaSBBSBaBBSBaBBBBBaBJSBBBBBBi fiJ.''' CHAPTER V Continued lo.: 7 s ' : .Alien tlio knife-cuts on his rldo-i(:o rldo-i(:o reooruYil seven days when ' on eternities bad com and cone :J V co Ills exile on Forlorn Island bad gone to a lonely roach of tch to scout game sniuloninr'g K -n woro working Quietly at the :s nml traps. Ttio Aleuts seemed vrful, and the weather was worth .-online In picture writing In the -hives of the tribe. . ,'( For the first time since the shlp- eck, lie couhl take down his 1 ard. Ills muscles need not he ,x M eked like the lianimor of a pistol, S'v d tils eyes could wander dream- with no caro for tllckerliiK sluid- -s Just past their corners. ""Put suddenly the truce ended. It id been only an Illusion false .wa Over the dunes and down ,j e beach came two dark figures, i, '. fOne was a little man, with a '''""ilck, short step. The other, barrel-n barrel-n 'ested and Ions of arm, hnd n hob-fi hob-fi jl'iS. unsteady gait. Like most men who dwell close to e sources of life, Eric had a rong Intuitive power. A sense of ''1L-:-nve p(.ru hung over him. Some-w Some-w he knew that this open strand " is to be the scene of one of the feat crises of the Island adveuture. Str fne two nearng figures made : suspicious movements. Sando- . ' 'ir talked Idly, Eric could see his ad turn, and frequently Garge's 0 tie hand lifted to reply. To a l) sual view neither man was armed. "05t :ie heavy ten-foot pole on Sando-a! Sando-a! ir's shoulder was merely a piece 1 fr" driftwood he had dug out of the nd and could well he carrying u "r'me for the supper fire. Garge ''.eas-d a stone the site and shape of big potato In plain sight In his nd. I Eric's own right hand fell to his ti!sJe, In quick reach of his revolver, his foes trudged near. obl'. "I found this 'ere stone on the ach," Garge began" when he was :iat i'o paces off. But he did not stop ;!pla still talking, he followed Sando ar until both men stood within t feet of their prey. "The old lady IMllv-ba wanted a pestle for mash- up breadroot, and I thought this re might do." SErlc hardly heard him. His oughts were fairly flying, seeking liverance. That these two foes ld come deliberately . to kill him .'"w had not the least doubt. To je his head meant to lose his , e. . . . But that danger was ..ssed now. Suddenly his fears nttled away like coyote cubs, and 5y was cold and deadly as a she-T she-T ylt. If this pair wanted a flnlsh- :ht, by G d, they would get It! would not wait for the trap to JJring, but would strike first and hat rrd- 0 j He could spare the two car-Idges. car-Idges. The only question was the l0Uj-:st and safest way to carry out his jriTi"on resolve. In his present stand, I (,,; could not reach for his pistol. otn men would attack at once, and iough he might down one of them, le other would be almost certain get In a fatal blow. ;hea: j saw a Detter stone for the '''nrpose Just a few seconds ago," he tld thoughtfully. He backed a few ng ';et, his eyes on the ground. .,j,r Apparently he had dropped his j fuard. Actually It was as strict as "rer. He was not searching for rones, but watching the long Bliad- 1 ws of his enemies, cast by the low un. ' a. r The shorter shadow never wa-istKere(j wa-istKere(j Garge's eyes were quick as a at's: perhaps he saw through se ''irlc's trick. Anyway, It was not cu"'a his make-up to attack from the S "ront, even though the hated stern e yes were lowered. He made the irst move to warn his companion. But before the fingers of his un- ralned left hand could waggle their elf'hessage Sandomar's fury and hatred er b-iroke from Its leash. He did not 1 to?hlrl to strike sideways with the ime,,ole. Eric was already out of reach f such a blow. Instead he Jerked tortfhe short end of the pole straight be.'lown, with all the superhuman treogth of his long biceps. As the ong end flew up he meant to change it giiands, his left at the pole-end and i -drills right far enough back to give liat'Olm leverage, then strike down as Evic was only ten feet distant, In sasy reach. Unless all signs failed :he mighty bludgeon would be hanging hang-ing heavy over his head before he looked up. Sandomar's brutal heart lwas swelling, larger and larger, ,-Jwlth a horrible sadist ecstasy. It was fulfilment . . . victory . . . xevenge. . . . -J But a3 the Island priestess had Jften told In the kashga on winter flights, chanting the ancient legends of the Aleuts, no man can escape J Jhls shadow. At Sandomar's first to move, his black flattened Image Jlmnoked him on the sand. - Eric saw Its first flicker. His N;hand leaped up and out fast as a ietriklng salmon. The blue steel of his revolver gleamed In the sun- T1IE STORY FROM THE BEGINNING Wild hl yclit, tl lillM. bumloiod br IU cr.w, Felix Morton, million. In, .nlllng with hli mothar, hU ttaughtar Nn. and Hoy Stuart, put Uito Squaw Hurtior, Aln.l., to rorutt. Falling to mur anllora, Morton anjagoa a bunqh ol nouilaioi lt. A gigantla Tolc. Sandomar, U thalr laadar. At tlia ru.at ol Captain Waymlra. the lntreuld'e klpter, an old (i land, Eric Erlcaaan, hoUIIng maater'a pnpere, but unemployed, engagae to aall aa chief oltuar. Nan. attracted by Eric, Indulgea In a moonlight nutation, whlcK brlnga tharn both to the threihold ot Inlereat u eaeh other, II not ol love. 1 he Intrtipld la wrecked by one ol Sendomar'e crowd. Eric taUea command ol a ainnll boat, with Horton'a party. Unable to halp, they watsb Sandomar hill Captain Waymlre and leave the ahlp with hla crowd. Waymlre haa thrown Erie a revolver. From one ol the Aleut Indiana, aahore, who apeaka a HltU Engllh, Eric laarna there la no communication with the outside woi Id. ' Flreheart, prleateae ol the Island, dracended Irom a white man In the remote paat, aleo knowing acmie English, welcomaa the rnatawaya. Sandomar declares there shall be no law on the Island, but Erie, having the only gun. cowa him lor the time, declaring he la the law, and laya out woi k for all. Nan (aces the situation bravely. Eric a lova for her. firat (elt on the Intrepid, awells, and he tells her he means to win her lor bis mate. She la not unwilling. Flreheart claims Eilc aa bar own, to his dismay. light. On his face was a look of doom. As the swooping barrel came level with Sandomar's breast, Eric pulled the trigger. . . . But the silence hold. There was only a futile click of the hammer against the broach. The gun had misfired. CHAPTER VI TO AIJ, Intents and purposes Eric was finished. Ho had no time to dodge or grapple w ith his enemy . . . yet he lived on I It was not a miracle from Beyond, but something hardly less strango and awe-lnsplr-Ing the workings of hidden natural nat-ural laws on men and minds. The same degeneration In Sandomar's Sando-mar's brain that gave him his gorilla strength and savagery had afflicted him with deafness per- As tho Sweeping Barrel Came Level With Sandomar's Breast Erie Pulled the Trigger. haps by Nature's scheme of checks and balances. He could see, but he could not hear. He did not know that Eric had already tried lu vain to kill him and was now at his mercy. Instead he thought that he himself was close to death. And he dared not face the great dark I He believed his only hope was to beg quarter. With his great strength he stopped the club in midair, then swung It aside. Before It struck the ground his huge ape-like arms were towering In surrender over his head. In the meantime, where was Garge? He was not deaf he had heard the gun click and now was his chance to hurl his stone. But the trouble was that his strength lay wholly and utterly In Sandomar. Sando-mar. Garge's hand started to draw back, but the sight of Snndo-mar's Snndo-mar's great paws In the air made the Iron In his muscles melt and run out His arm dropped slack to his side. ne could not pass a signal to his mate. Sandomar's yellow eyes were locked on Eric's face. Presently the chance had gone by. Eric had backed swiftly away; only a lucky throw could down hlra now. One stinging curse cracked slowly from Sandomar's gray Hps; then he wheeled and strode rapidly toward the village. The next thing Eric knew he was crouching In the half-dusk of his turf-house, the door closed and bnrred. He was aware of sharp nausea. ... Not yet could he learn the full truth. His fumbling hands and staring star-ing eyes could make no adequnte examination of the defective revolver. revol-ver. It was an old-style weapon with a solid breach. Rallying his faculties, Eric unscrewed the little ramrod from below the barrel, and turning the cylinder, pushed out the cartridges one by one. Presently he found one dented in the rim by the Drlng-pln. And now the grim truth was plain. The gun held six shells. Five of these, Including the failure, were new and bright, made for modern mod-ern center-fire revolvers. But this weapon was rim-fire, and not even a gunsmith with his tools could change the mechanism so that It could discharge center-lire cartridges car-tridges Only one of the six shells was rlm-fire, a left-over from some for mer gunplay or target practice. It was old, Its bram somewhat corroded, cor-roded, and of doubtful value, hut It was the only remaining rampart ngalnst death, dishonor, and unconscionable un-conscionable disaster. With cool and steady niovoments Eric began to put tho dummy loads back in their chambers. The lone rlmflro cartridge was tho last grimly he turned the cylinder until It was In position to Are. Then he unbolted the door and pushed out Into the fading day. Key and IH-Valera hurried forward for-ward to meet him, suppressed excitement ex-citement on their faces. "There seems to be somo trouble brewing," Roy began. "Sandomar and Gnrge came In very excited, and rounded up their gang. They are mighty bold, and Garge hinted to DoValera of a big Jamboree tonight. Have you any Idea what's got Into them?" Eric did not answer, but looked keenly into the Irishman's dark, narrow nar-row sot eyes. "What time did he say the row was going to start?" DeValera hesitated briefly. "He didn't tell me. Ha knows I'm with you follows. But I was Just suggesting suggest-ing to Mr. Stuart that unless you're mighty confident, perhaps we ought to make a compromise " "Compromise with the devil!" Eric's tones wore rough. "I'll decide de-cide what's to be done, and don't need any suggestions. Now go and help the natives with today's catch." DeValera s right hand went up In a half-salute before he remembered that he was no longer before the mast. At once he turned to obey. "It seems to me you're a little bit high-handed," Roy said quietly. "Our position Isn't so good that you can risk antagonizing DeValera. He's one of our pnrty " "Do you trust him ?" Eric broke In. "As far as I can trust anybody In this mess." "We want only those who'll stick through thick and thin. The rest will do more harm than good. And I don't want DeValera to know our plan of battle." Roy's hand was perfectly steady as he lighted a smoke. "You think there'll be a mutiny tonight?" "A good one. They think they can kill me or bluff me out They may do one, but It's too late for the other. Now get Horton and the reBt, and bring 'em here." A moment later Eric gased Into the tense, pale faces of his friends. His first question, shot between hard lips, raised the short halra on their scalps. "Nan, can you row?" Her answer came qulek and clear. "Pretty fair." "Mother Horton, can you? Even a little?" "I used to, as a girl. I'll do my d dest, If that's what you mean." "What are you getting at, Eric?" Horton gasped. "I must know at once." "There may be some trouble tonight. to-night. If I'm killed, as many of you as can must leave the Island. Don't ask me where you'll go. I know there'd be only one chance In a hundred of getting through the reefs alive but that's a better chance than to stay here at Sandomar's mercy." "I'm not so sure of that." Roy's tones came cold and gray through the cold, gray dusk. "We might be able to persuade hlra and his crew " "For God's say, Roy, believe me 1 You can't trust them a minute, much less this whole night" The tide of his courage, for the moment running run-ning out, surged up again. "They won't likely make trouble until nearly dark, and as soon as the light falls, I want you to be ready to go. You three women will leave the fire and say you're going to bed. Horton, you go with them. At once circle back to the bench and ship the boat ready to shove off on a second's notice. Tut In It every oar and paddle you enn find from all boats so they can't follow you until un-til you've got a good head start ; put In water and blankets, too. Then wntch there in the dark until the clanger's over or until I go down." "Until you go down !" Nan echoed slowly. "You mean you're going to try to stand them off alone?" "If they can be stood off at all, I can do It alone. For others to stay won't help my chnnces, and will only throw away lives. And It wouldn't delay the purmilt moio than a mlnule or two tailing all tho oars'll hamllu that and tho more of you to row, tho better chance you'll have of getting through tho reefs." "1 think that's true," Roy said. "There'd bo only a chance lu n hundred hun-dred at best." Nan looked at him strangely. Then, to Eric: "When wu see you fall, we're to steal away. Is that It?" "Clot away quietly If you can. In any case get away I Roy and Wilcox Wil-cox bettor stay by the (Ire almost (o tho lnt, to keep tho gang from getting on to your plan, but when they boo tho Jig's up, they can duck, shovo you off, and pllo In with you. Row as fast as you can. They'll not got Btartod right away, and'll loso you In the darkness. You'll probably prob-ably bo drowned In the morning, but tho hundredth chance remains." Morton's. gray face suddenly turned dark red. "I'm going to stay I It's my daughter and my mother, and by (I d, I can help fight for them!" Mis gazo grew fixed, and his voice began to break. "They they don't need me In the boat and If thoy get to clrillzntlon they enn draw on my account " Mo did not see Nan's eyes Oil with tears, but ho saw Eric nod his head. "You can stay If you like. It may give the others a little ruoro chance." "I'll stay, then. It's my place and I'm not afrnld of death." "Why need anyone stay?" Nnn demanded. "Why can't we all steal off now?" "It may not bo neoom-ary for anyone any-one to go," Eric answered. "Remom-bor, "Remom-bor, It's practically suicide. And I'm not Hiked yet by a long shot. 1 mean to fight to the last ditch, kill as ninny as I can, and I may scare out the rest. Vnder no circumstances circum-stances are you to run the rlk until un-til I go down." "How about trying to line up the Aleuts?" Nan asked. "It enn't be done on such short notice, If at all. I know 'em, they'll Just stand and stare. If they took part at all It would be on Sand omar's side." The silence fell again. At last Nun turned quietly to Roy. "What are you going to do?" "I'm going to do the rational thing, try to get away In the boat and save your life," Roy answered calmly. "To stay here and fight would be a gesture, an empty piece of folly, that, thank God, makes no appeal to nie." "How about Eric? Is It a piece of folly for him, too?" "It's his own funeral. This Is his show, first to last, and he apparently appar-ently enjoys It. Mis way Is not my way. And when he gets himself killed off, I'd favor our turning back to the Island In the dawn, when the men's heads are cool, and making terms with them." A shadow that might have been terror swept across Eric's face. His arms rose, then fell to his side. "Nan, will you make me a I promise?" he asked tensely. "What Is It?" "Will you swear that If Sandomar Sando-mar wins and you hnve to go, that you'll never turn back? That no matter what happens, storm or hunger hun-ger or thirst, you won't let Roy bring you hack? That you'll Jump overboard first?" The fading light showed Nnn's countenance cnlm and strong, her long eyes bright with tears. "I promise, Eric." "And I'll stnnd by her," Mother Horton said. "If they return, It will be over my dead body." Eric could only nod his thanks. "Then all of you buck up and get busy. Don't show any fear act the same as always only be rendy. And I think we'll all come through all right." The group broke up and sauntered saun-tered bnck to the cooking fire. It was only a moment later that Sandomar San-domar and his henchmen came j tramping over the bluff, their figures fig-ures dnrk and ominous agninst the twilight sky. Eric had given orders for the safety of passengers and crew ; from now on, he alone miiBt pint the course and turn the wheel. If he were forced to shoot, who would be his victim? It was not as simple a question as It seemed. If the tiger dropped, the Jackal might go mad, rushing In with that awful frenzy of little, cowardly things. It would seem wise to destroy Garge, and thus crush Sandomar beneath a wall of silence. Yet ngnln Eric's Instincts triumphed. Sandomnr was his own and Nan's arch enemy ; If Erie must fall, the Jungle-beast must He beside him. It would not be long now. The gulls were walling the day's departure; de-parture; the sea was one purple shadow blending Into dusk. Horton Hor-ton rose, spoke In unsteady tones of being tired, and with the three women, left the firelight (TO BE CONTINUED.) |