| Show John Solomon Incognito I MOTHER I Alln Aline Lavergne o owns owne nl Cy r mort a plantation In the Louis Louls- Louisiana lana iana bayous bayou She leaves the management to t. t John an old retainer anc and faithful but nit 11 i l good Rood business man a. a Ah Jib AhLe I Le Leet- Leet the lie Manchu who Is la trying t is help Aline Allne explains to the John Solomon Allne's Aline uncle David Macarty and his hi histon Ion ton r under pretense pretence of looking after afler her ber Interests plot to ret get l control of the plantation One line ef et their schemes scheme Is I. to dam the tb bayou and thus dry up berce her ber herrice vice rice ce fieldi Then they tr try to ret get rid of Philbrick Aline suspects the Macarty and consults consult Jack Fortier a young lawyer who bo I takes taku her case car lie n. finds and a big on his hll hands band for the Ma Ma- arty urte are all powerful They try to bribe him off Then they have him beaten up but he Is rescued by John Solomon The Macarty drop open hostilities and Invite Fortier and Attn Aline to togo togo togo go on their yacht the Water Water- sprite to Inspect the plantation Solomon has bal secured the Job fob of steward leward Aline Allne gets get a telegram from Philbrick saying laying that he hell heIs ii going away for or a while and has baa left lett the tl plantation In charge of Captain Wrexham m. m The Water Water- sprite starts start on her ber hundred hundred- mile voyage Quartermaster of or found dead on deck deckwith deckwith deckwith with second mates mate knife In hi his back Captain Wrexham entertained entertained entertained enter enter- at Cypremort Takes Take charge and pockets pocket contents content of safe pate Philbrick charged with murder Sheriff searches for him Macarty rt attempts attempt to bribe Wrexham Wrex Wrex- Wrexham ham bam to betray Alice Lavergne Wrexham blows up the dam AhLee Ah AhLee AhLee Lee nol end n l Wrexham ancient foes fou Join oln hands hand The steal Vre schooner CHAPTER XU XI 9 sat alone In the library and suffered Even En had find l ad there been a launch to use he knew v how futile were any search Within five fire miles milE's there were u a score of ot places where the little schooner might be berthed amid the trees tres laid up and hidden Long Lone ore ere re this no doubt she had bad been perfectly concealed A dozen boats might PArch In vain aln He lIe cursed himself ilm elf elt for having haTing slept ashore for having haTing aba abandoned her lIe He would have haTe wakened at the first step of ot an alien foot on her deck leek at the first quiver of ot her ber parted cable For her sake he had broken more than one law jaw had bad committed more than one crime rime She Sill was twined deeper In his strings heart s than any creature of ot flesh h and blood could have been For the moment jf ment all fight light was gone out of ot him For the moment the spirit In the man was broken The thought of enemies on her deck of ot stranger tran r e-r hands nt at rl rigging and wheel horned burned Into him Intolerably He TIe looked up and saw saw the picture of ot Aline Allne er Lavergne ne gazing razing down at him From his lips fell a curse cure He Ile staggered stag stag- sta staggered to his life feet and shook hook his fist nil all the worst of ot him at nt the surface If It It It hadn't been for tor you 1 I he cried Inarticulately If It It hadn't been for yon Toll Toll- He lIe groaned swept suddenly by helplessness At whom to strike There was wu none He tIe le had come Into a web of unseen enemies Unless he were WE're to tot pu t forth find and run amuck like a crazed razel Lascar he could do nothing The breathing came ame from his nostrils harshly chokingly Suddenly he be flung out his hands hans and glared at the pic pin picture picture ture from bloodshot eyes Im done I he cried Im done I t tell you your r Played the d d-d d d tool fool all the while Sat In at another mans man's game and got Served me meI I right ht I Im I'm done I IlIe lIe He heard Uncle Neb appear and agitatedly Invite Ite him to breakfast Wrexham blasted out a curse strode to the door slammed It until the house shook hook He TIe wanted only to be alone I i I It t I Ia I j I I a II III I v I 1 h. h r nl 1 A Stronger Stranger Was Waa Standing There He ti went Int hack back to the fireplace For a slits ioe he tie gazed at the photograph there II i looking I Into the eyes that met methis his hili so quietly so 0 serenely r. r I l II apt u a ruddy fool he said at III at Sty sly I place aint here hert maam know lenow that jouve youve ruined me II 1 brought me to the gallows Well youline you bate lin e Ill I'll go IN out now and shoot that i r ci Cure uH and Macarty-and and the schooners schooner's i gone gone and and they'll hen get Iet me roe Oh IM Pd better better bet bet- t. t ter wait walt here bere I Macarty will be along soon oon enough with an offer otter If It It hadn't been for you Id I'd not be here now And what'll I do dot What'll you do about It lit litTell Tell me that I Ille He lle gazed at th the photograph as though expecting lome some answer Then Thea he shook his head and plucked at his beard with trembling fingers lingers His fils eyes widened strangely reproach self coming cornIng com corn ing Into their depths No I shouldn't blame you forit for tor forIt It he be said at last struggle straggle In his voice No No nol no I Im I'm Just a fool maam God or the devil has been around the comer corner all this while to hit me when I wasn't that's that all And Im I'm hit no mistake about that I Well Im I'm done In Lost my grip gripon on things This affair has has well well Its It's Jolted me clear to the keelson Hut But I cant can't blame you rou girl I dont don't know v about It Im I'm Just a fool foot He lie rested his arms on the mantel and looked into the eyes of at the photograph photo photograph graph for tor a time Presently his brow broww w went nt down on his arms and he stood there motionless He lie was lost to all extraneous things thugs completely enwrapped en en- enwrapped wrapped In his own wretched thoughts At length compelled by some agency outside himself he lifted his head bead and stood erect He III slowly turned and perceived that the door was open again A man man a stranger stronger was Vos standing there silently regarding him Wrexham returned the look In as as- The man was strong hearty frank and keen of ot eye One Oue could see that he stood foursquare Wrexham acknowledged Inwardly that he IB liked lilted this man on sight Hullo I I he exclaimed And who the he devil are you The TIle stranger came In Ignoring the theose pose ose In which he had surprised Wrex Wrex- ham barn mm He ne held out his hand and Youre Captain Wrexham of ot course courset My Iy names name's I Fortier-I I Just reached here bere lere Glad to meet you captain I 1 Wrexham put out his hand hand con con- Fortier turned and und beckoned another man And this Is my friend John Solomon Solo Solo- mon mon mon-he he wants to lay low for a while Wrexham and reach a friend of his up the bayou a Chinaman by the name of ot ofAl otAh Ah Al Lee Do you suppose one of ot the boys could take him In n R canoe Hell He'll have haTe to be guided of ot course course- Wrexham shook himself Into lato a semblance semblance sem sem- blance of ot action only action only a semblance lie Ile seemed ta fascinated by the round blank lank features of Solomon this this' he said brusquely Ah Ab Lee Lee Lee- You know that beggar do you Yes sir sir returned Solomon lilt If ItI I can find im sir Ir ell elt take care of ot me menil all nil right Wrexham waved his hand Canoe down there he said abruptly Go get Iet Into It Ill I'll have one of ot the boys take you you those those black devils know AhLee Ah AhLee AhLee Lee right enough Thank you w werry erry much sir returned returned returned re re- turned Solomon and disappeared CHAPTER XII And wheres where's Miss Lavergne demanded deman demanded de de- man ed Wrexham with his first show bow of ot Interest The two men sat at luncheon Hours had passed since e the arrival of ot For For- tier During these hours Wrexham had gradually recovered himself at Latouche returned Fortier For For- tier There are some business matters mat matters she must attend to In person David Macarty had to stop there too we had trouble on the way and got held up for tor a time Only reached there last night I got a launch early this morning and came on with Solomon The talk languished again The two men ate In silence Luncheon over Uncle Ned produced a whisky decanter and the two men adjourned to the gallery By Dy degrees Wrexham lost his sullen air and talked At any other time he would have been entirely too reserved to say anything to Fortier about the picture on the mantel Now however with the Nautilus gone the mans man's mental barriers were down He lIe spoke frankly enough In a detached way as though be he were telling some other mans man's tale He lIe told of ot the Influence exerted upon upon him by that photograph and of the resultant consequences lIe He apprised Fortier that the Manchu who called himself Ah Lee was a friend and aman a aDlan aman man Dlan to be trusted and went Into the reasons for this Fortier wondered The eyes of ot Aline Allne Lavergne he mused aloud when hEn the seaman had fallen tallen silent seem to have hae a strange power to reach men Wrexham I A singular thing thing thing- Not a II bit of It said the skipper coolly Not a bit of ot It I Not singular at alt all Its It's like Ah Lee said that said that girl has bas the sweet purity of at a flower Well Nell then I When a bad un like m me me or Ah AhLee AhLee AhLee Lee looks Into eyes eel like hers some- some thin Is stirred Inside em era A man who has lived hard who ho has seen life Ute knows knowl what a cursed wonderful thing It Is le to be good And that's all Fortier smiled Presently Wrexham departed by himself In n the launch that had brought trough Fortier from town He lie was gone forthe for forthe forthe the remainder of ot the afternoon searchIng search Ing nooks nook and corners of ot the bayous for those missing boats When he returned returnEd returned re re- turned the stoop to his shoulders told Its it own tale of ot failure During tills this afternoon Fortier was not Idle From Uncle Neb he added to story and gained sup sup- supplemental pl mental d details Also Ato he learned a amOt mOt most extraordinary fact tact about that picture pic pie ture over the mantel to hi the library Library a a j jr i r J 11 H. H Bedford Bedford- Jones Bedford Jones Copyright by br H. H Bed Bedford Bedford- ord Jones Ione t fact t which h he did not dare breathe to I Captain Wrexham however I With dinner Wrexham drank heavIly heavily heave ily and had fallen tallen Into a black and ugly mood The meal helped to fetch tetch him out of ot It t but Fortier saw plainly that the man FBI vas as ripe for tor any sort lort of ot action that offered Itself The mention of Aline Allne too made Wrexham uneasy Suddenly his eyes ees struck up at Fortier For For- tier with keen Incisive force See here I ever hear of ot the Gemini or the tho Sea moon Sea moon ant I So you have eh Fortier had bad not been able to repress an Involuntary start at those names Theres some mystery about It he responded Mr Lavergne died sud sod denly He left those names scribbled on a bit of ot paper paper that's that's all we know Fd rd been hoping might have more Information Did he tell you about them t No such luck Wrexham's face tace fell I dont don't like mysteries I can tell you I What's the game these are piny In Tell me roe that 1 l lI II I wish I knew it It said Fortier uneasily un un- easily David Macarty Is trying now I f I I I IGel II I I Gel m I A Man Was W. Urging th the Canoe For Foro I ward to Induce Aline Allne to take a little cruise aboard his hll yacht Theres There's something here bere they want to grab Shell She'll probably probably proby ably be he here tomorrow and we can tun go over matters In detail Wrexham tell fell Into a frowning si- si i lence ence I Dinner over they sought the library and smoked Fortier showed the skipper skip skip- per that scrawl made by Lavergne on the he back of at the document but It threw no light on the situation He lie put his papers with the others In the safe sate and ond was content to await the return of at Aline Allne before probing deeper It H was as still early when Fortier said Bald good night and followed Uncle Nebo Neb to o the room prepared for tor him Not so Captain Wrexham After pacing up and down the library for a along long ong while the seaman stuffed some cigars Into his Jacket pocket and escaped escaped escaped es es- to the open air He lie passed down to the wharf and resumed his ceaseless striding up and down the length of the planks Under the glow of ot starlight his cigar tip burned steadily stead ily lIy a red dot of light Wrexham was In no mood to meet Mine Aline Lavergne on the the morrow As he gazed across the bayou at the darkness which enveloped the Macarty 1 house he be promised himself a raid with torch and bullet In the dawn unless something something something some some- thing first turned up That something would turn up he tie firmly believed Macarty Ma Ma- Macarty Ia carty would come to him with some offer orter some bribe he could have the Nautilus back upon upen some sort lort of con cou Thus It was really for tor the coming of Macarty that Wrexham waited here upon the wharf Time fled however and Felix Macarty Ma Ma- Macarty carty came came not Wrexham watched the waters with savagely burning eyes eyell He lie had almost decided to go to bed and get some sleep before his meditated meditated medi tate raid of ot solitary vengeance when he discerned a gliding gilding shape down the bayou a bayou a long sliver of darkness against the starlit water lIe He lighted a II fresh tresh cigar patted the pistol In his pocket and waited grimly Slowly ly that dark shape drew near heading beading for tor the wharf and Wrexham i saw that a single a man was Wal I urging the canoe forward In silence Come to make a deal have bave you said the seaman A maudlin laugh answered him News for tor you I l said laid the thO voice of ot Wrexham stifled a cur cure e and lind went down to the landing Philbrick by a u miracle got ashore and stood reeling lie He was drunk Also he W was II tattered stained mud disreputable His beard I was 81 a wild tangled mas mass Just been aboard your boat he said laid with a hiccup Shell She about fourmile fourmile four fourmile mile down the bayou moored N Nobody there Got some lome whisky Have a drink Wrexham disregarded the proffered 1 bottle hottle He TIe stood stiffly Ita staring ring at this apparition Ills iii schooner ute schooner cafe I Ills IUs i again for the takla t taking It was va incredible e. e w He III sh shoved shaved ved a cigar cisar Into 1 hand seized the bottle and drank lust lustily lly ily clapped the graybeard on the back Good for tor you I 1 he be exclaimed Good for you ou Lets Let's sit down and talk It over OTer Theres There's n n a hurr hurry W We W. got t all night Youve been a lot out Inthe In Inthe inthe the canebrakes ha he asked Aye with a ghastly grin Aye Are Nothing l' to do but drink an dream You lou know what Aeschylus said about old men went Dreams left wandering In the day dllY That's That me Im I'm far tar gone You look it It said Wrexham brutal ly Iy Why dont don't you lay off ort whisky Cant I lifted the bottle and drank again kill me Wrexham laughed Cure you you JOU mean meant I Id I'd cure you quick enough if it iti I had bad you aboard the Nautilus D By the Lord Harry but bat Id I'd cure you I Ive I've Ive H a notion to do It It too Ive I've a notion to shanghai you make a man o 0 you brick Can do You'd fight like h h I hIat I at first but a few weeks ud see lee you a anew anew anew new man I 1 tell you I You leave me lone said By Dy the way Miss Lavergne comes home |
