| Show FORLORN ISLAN 11 J by edison marshall copyright by edison If arshall service CHAPTER X continued 17 she had forgotten he was deaf I 1 her muscles had set to hurl burl her into the room with the mail mad aim of attacking him from behind with any vealon she could seize but now she stopped wilted in her tracks ile he was dent she must not forget this spain again it was his one weakness her ryes eyes began to recede far and far into their sockets their crazed light grew re teely steely and pray gray San Sandom domar nr stood leaning calling over eric watching him as aa a cat watches a stunned mouse it wits was a jungle posture impelled Impel leil by a jungle instinct nothing hb had ever done had shown tile the subhuman sub human workings of his mind letter better than this vigilant and deadly scrutiny of his fallen prey there was no hatred a purely human emotion in his heart otherwise lie he would have quickly seized the he chance to crush erics skull ills rage was impersonal like that of a grizzly bear for a steel trap just gnawed from ills his paw and the one thing that hat prolonged erics life was that he made not the slightest motion perhaps somo some lingering sixth sense bade him lie still possibly lie was too far gone to raise his hand at the first stir San domars quivering maul would have lashed down slowly his guard dropped aroi aped ills tense tens form relayed relaxed a lettle ag aa he saw that hla his prey lay helpless you yon cheated us ch ehl he mumbled I 1 in his low pitched monotone you take the girl after till nil now ill take her but ill ante the gun llast 11 ile he began to grope at erics hip fallang to find the weapon he patted erics side bide breast the pocket of h his 1 s blue coat behind him in the dark doorway nans withered fainting heart swelled and grew strong where was his revolver for all her dream state her mind moved clear and sure instantly slie site remembered seeing eric unstrap the weapon and hang it up peering with steely eyes she bile saw its blue steel barrel catch the lamp gleam on the opposite wall slie site began to stalk across the room behind San domars back even now it was hard to remember that he was wag dent that she need not guard against sound but only the flick of her shadow on oil the floor that she had best run before f re he turned his head saw her and reached reached for tier her with ills his terrible arina rm steady and straight tier her hand sped her fingers clasped the butt steal ing back two st strides till site she was directly behind her enemy she slowly raised the barrel until she saw his bullet head bead over the sights she must not miss the first shot I 1 never in tier her life was she so cool so steady site she deliberately chose his head for her target rather than his back to destroy ills his brain to matte harn fall like ilke swede had fallen lest lie ile break erics neck in his dying struggle even the frantic yell yeli above her head did not throw oft off her aim behind you San sandy dyll it was ft a shrill cry of utter terror and futility oil oh good gord cord it was garge barge on the way to over oer take his big runaway mate th thrusting ills head through the gaping hole in the roof in one glance ile he took in tile the still ligure alln ure in the white parka tile the lifted steady wrist the leveled barrel that never twinkled in tile the light and its certain target et beyond and lie he never dared dream but that he had come too late ile HP saw nans finger jerk back against the trigger div again that futile click 1 when she heard it when San Sandom domar nr did not crash the fire and powder of her life seemed to fall too tiie the room turned black before her eyes shrieking she pulled the trigger again find and again warned by a swirl in the air San domar looked up saw her came lunging at the same instant barge garge pitched down into the room only because the jackal fell in the tigers way throwing him headlong did she escape his malu maul 1 in the seconds respite she dropped the useless weapon threw back the bolt of the he door and fled down the village row As the clouds drifted from eries erics mind and the light crept hack back into hla his thick eyes he saw San Sando domar roar rear up and peer after nan then kick carge garge out of the way and recover the gun tie lie mut have seen nans futile effort to fire it because he handled it with simian curiosity holding it close to ills his eyes pointing at the floor he pulled the trigger As the hammer clicked he grunted in brute wonder the thing wont shoot he muttered to himself it was a strange antl alitt clinear forgetting ge eting hs his late victim the ungainly figure squatted on the floor and be began nn to unscrew the ramrod As in a gro tesque dream eric saw charge clamber to his kleest and come creeping near to watch their heads were close together ns as San Sandom domar nr worked out one of the cartridges and hell held it to 10 the light grunting he pulled back the hammer to look at the breach then he raised his hend head and blinked at fric across the room you yon cheated us its with this thing too loii he said in his dead monotone anything might have happened next n surge of rage violence lo lence hit bat what did cappen ans incredible Sando San domar look il from erie eric to the weapon then threw back its hend head with a hoarse bellow of laughter ills bis big hands snatched at ills ribs alba hla his mouth gaped wide as the inhuman bay rang through the ruined root far into the silence of the night it stopped suddenly as it began iles hes all right that fellow ho he told garge barge kept us marching around like school children for three months with a gun that wont shoot ile ho started bit ills hla lip and turned to eric with a malignant grin it was waa a food joke you played now im going to play one on yon eric gave no outward sign but in his inner mind he turned on the top tap of ills his emergency strength still half paralyzed from the blow he called on nil all the shell shocked battered forces ot of ills his brain nerve and sinew to prepare for a last charge San domars jests would he w worse orse tat lhnn his furles furies you think this guns no lt bod but im going kang to show you its good enough R 1 11 R ft 06 7 i ile she must not miss the first never in her life was she sha so cool so steady to kill a man San domar went on quietly ile he looked at the pearl handle ribbed with steel it suited him so he gras grasped ped the barrel in his huge white while palm with his left hand flat on the floor in an ape posture he started to roll forward erics brain gave gaie a signal the strong wrench of his will somehow hurled him to his feet at the same instant Sandom nr tir heaved erect with dog fangs bared and arms spread wide drawing a knife that made little wicked lit in the shadows cargo leaped to cut off tile the victims escape rut but eric did not jump tile the way they expected neither till did he back to tile wall to fight ile he had only one chance and he played placed it with all the valor of his big soul weaving to avoid sando mars rush he sprang toward the oil lamp 1 lie would have picked it up and hurled burled it it tie lie could hut but the quarters were too close instead he kicked it over there was wag one instants brilliant glare revealing all three antagonists in frozen motion then the room went inky black San domar was deaf lie he lived by light when it went out it was as though he had died a rattle rose in his throat and lie he could not move a finger now was the time to dispatch him film provided eric had a weapon and could first lit kill conrge nut but garge barge slashed right anti and left cursing and eries erics hands were empty ile he roust must run to live and tight fight again ducking low slinking along the wall he made for the open door A second later the night wind was in ills his face ant and he was free |
