THE DETECTIVE
The only thing which troubled Jet as he sat alone in the narrow cell
was the possibility that the inspector might not get his message in
time to bag the suspected men before they left the house in the woods,
for now that he had made his escape, it was reasonable to suppose they
would be alarmed.
On this score, however, he need have had little fear. Before sunset a
gentleman was ushered into his cell and the door locked behind him.
"You wanted to see the inspector," the stranger began, as he seated
himself on the narrow bench which served as a bed.
"Well, s'posin' I did?" Jet asked, thinking this man was some one
attached to the station.
"He has sent me to know where you have been."
"Did you come from New York?"
"Yes, on the last train."
"Why didn't the inspector come?"
"He never leaves the city; there are plenty of officers at headquarters
to do such work. Now, what do you know?"
"More'n I'll tell to anybody but him."
"In that case I shall have to take you back to the city."
"But then it will be too late; them fellers are bound to skip when they
find out I've got away."
"What fellows?"
Jet looked up suspiciously.
"I don't want to say a word to anybody but the inspector."
"I told you he sent me to do the business. You can talk as freely as
to him."
"Who are you?"
"Detective Harvey."
"From New York?"
"See here, my boy, I don't blame you for having doubts, and to set them
at rest I'll prove that what I say is true," and the detective pounded
on the bars of the cell door until the turnkey appeared.
"I wish you would ask the sergeant to step this way a moment."
That officer obeyed the summons at once, and when he stood at the door
the detective said to him:
"Will you kindly tell this boy who I am? He is afraid I am sailing
under false colors."
"You are Detective Harvey, sent by the inspector at New York in answer
to a telegram I wired this morning. To give him perfect confidence in
you I will say further that at present he is confined for passing
counterfeit money, but if you should ask to have him released I
guarantee that the charge will be withdrawn. Are you satisfied now, my
boy?"
"Yes, I reckon it's all right. I'll take the chances; but if you
fellers are playin' any game, the inspector is bound to raise a
terrible row when I see him."
"That part of it is all right. Tell Harvey what you know, and I answer
for it that it will be the same as if the inspector himself was here."
With this remark the sergeant walked away, and Jet said in a low tone:
"Now I'll tell the whole story; but first I want to know why that
advertisement about me was put in the papers?"
"We thought those two men might have gotten hold of you, more
especially since the manager at the district messenger station reported
that you spoke of being hired to go to Yonkers."
Jet now gave, with careful attention to detail, the story of his
misadventures from the time of leaving the Union Square Hotel, and
Detective Harvey received the information with no slight degree of
excitement.
"I suppose the bills you found in the pile of dirt are in the
sergeant's hands," he said, half to himself, when Jet concluded.
"I reckon so; anyway, they took both away from me."
"We will go up stairs and look at them. If I'm not mistaken, my boy,
we shall run to earth the gang who are flooding the country with the
most dangerous counterfeit known, at the same time that we bag the
murderers. Do you think you could lead me to the house in the woods?"
"I'm certain of it; but we shall have to walk a long distance."
"I wouldn't grumble if it was fifty miles, providing we finally
succeeded. Come with me."
Again he summoned the turnkey, ordered him to open the door, and said
to Jet:
"Follow me."
"Ain't they goin' to keep me here any longer?"
"I should say not. You heard what the sergeant said, and we must be
out of this town within an hour."
Jet followed his conductor up stairs, and in a few moments the two were
in earnest consultation with the Albany Chief of Police.
The counterfeits were found to be the same which had given the
authorities so much trouble. They were so well executed as to pass
without suspicion in the majority of cases, and the fact that the two
discovered by Jet were imperfect impressions, which had been thrown
aside by the makers, was, probably, the only cause of their having been
refused by the ticket-seller.
"It is lucky you were arrested," Harvey said in a tone of satisfaction.
"Why?" Jet asked in surprise. "It wasn't any fun to stay in that
little cell all day."
"I can fancy not; but if you had come to New York a great deal of time
would have been wasted, and as it is we can start in search of those
fellows at once."
"But you an' I can't handle the crowd if they show fight."
"We don't intend to try. When we leave this town our party will be
large enough."
"How many men do you want?" the chief asked the detective.
"Two, providing they are ready at once."
"I suppose you will go a certain portion of the way on the train?"
"Certainly."
"On that road the next one leaves in about an hour. I will have the
best men I know of waiting at the depot. Is there anything else to be
done?"
"Not now. Jet and I will go for dinner, and meet you at the station.
Can you lend the boy a revolver; one more weapon may come in handy in
case of a fight, and unless those fellows have already made a change of
base I reckon we shall have a lively time."
The chief gave Jet a weapon and plenty of cartridges, and District
Messenger No. 48 felt exceedingly proud as he walked out of the station
with the revolver in the inside pocket of his coat.
Harvey was no niggard so far as caring for the comfort of his small
assistant was concerned.
A dinner at the Delavan House such as Jet had never set down to before
was indulged in, and when the messenger arose from the table it was
with the sensation of being full almost to bursting.
To the boy's relief Harvey informed him that the inspector never for a
moment believed he had run away; but attributed his absence to exactly
the true cause, and all which had been done toward finding him was with
this view of the case.
"It will be a mighty big thing for you if we succeed to-night," the
detective added, "for the rewards which have been offered, both for the
counterfeiters and the murderers, amount to no small sum, a portion of
which will, of course, belong to you."
"I'm satisfied if I make wages out of the thing; but it's too bad that
money I found wasn't good, for I allowed to put the most of it away
so's to pay my board till I got another job."
"You needn't hunt very far for work if this thing turns, out all right.
I'll take care of that part of it."
Since Jet was to be the guide on the expedition his advice was asked
for when the tickets were purchased, and in order to be certain of his
bearings he thought best to return to the town where he boarded the
cars during his flight.
Two officers, dressed in citizens' clothes, reported to Harvey at the
depot, and one would say, judging from their personal appearance, that
they were well able to cope with twice the number of desperate
characters who might be found in the house in the woods.
It was late in the evening when the party alighted from the train, and
Jet set out up the track leading the way, until he arrived at the point
where he emerged from the woods.
"This is the place," he said, pointing to the trunk of a dead tree. "I
took especial notice of that so's I'd be able to know where to strike
in again."
"In what direction is the house situated?" Harvey asked.
"About there," and Jet pointed toward the north.
"Do you think you could find it in the night?"
"I'm certain I could when it was light; but there is a long distance to
walk, so what's to hinder our goin' as far as I traveled, an' then
waiting for morning."
"It's a good idea. Go ahead, and when you think we are far enough,
call a halt."
"I don't fancy camping in the woods all night, and that is about what
you are preparing to do," one of the Albany officers said, grumblingly.
"This is a case where we must put up with considerable discomfort for
the sake of bagging our game. Let the boy do as he chooses; I'll
answer for it that he's got brains enough to lead us right."
Harvey was ready to undergo any discomfort in order to gain the desired
end; but his companions were not as enthusiastic. They complained at
being under the guidance of a boy in whom they did not feel the most
perfect confidence, and Harvey was obliged to speak very harshly before
they would consent to follow.
Jet led the way with no slight degree of mental disquietude.
If he failed to conduct the party correctly it might be said he was
playing the traitor, and the task set for him was a difficult one,
considering the fact that he had only been over the ground once before.
Nevertheless he was willing to do all in his power, trusting for
success to the chapter of accidents rather than any especial skill of
his own, and the men followed close at his heels.
During his flight he had noted carefully all the prominent landmarks,
and the fact that he had seen them only in the night aided him now.
During at least four hours he advanced at a rapid pace, stopping now
and then to take counsel with Harvey, and at the expiration of that
time he said, as he pointed toward a clump of alder bushes:
"There is where I first began the tramp after the fight with the dog."
"Are you certain of that?"
"You can make sure by crawling through the bushes three or four hundred
yards, when the house should be in sight."
"I'll go ahead now. If I get off the course, stop me," and Harvey took
command of the party.
That Jet had made no mistake was shown ten minutes later when the
outlines of the building with its barricade of cord-wood could be seen
against the gray sky.
The house was wrapped in darkness, presenting a striking contrast with
the scene as viewed by Jet a few hours previous, and the latter said
mournfully:
"I reckon all hands have skipped."
"It won't take us long to find out, for we'll overhaul the place at
once."