BESIEGED.
Bob jumped to Rex's side and looked out the little window just in time
to see the three men running toward the cabin with a log nearly ten feet
long, and as big around as his leg.
"Get out your guns and be ready to cover them if she gives way," he
cried, in a low but distinct voice.
He had hardly finished speaking when the end of the log propelled by the
great strength of the three men smashed against the door with a bang,
which seemed to fairly shake the cabin. An ordinary door would have been
shivered to pieces by the blow, but up in the Maine woods they make
things to hold, and the only effect, so far as they could see, was a
slight loosening of one of the hinges.
"About three more of them will knock out the hinges," Bob declared, as
he saw the men stepping back for a second rush.
"'Bout time to stop 'em, isn't it?" Jack asked.
"Yes, I guess so, if we can," Bob replied somewhat doubtfully.
As he spoke he pushed open the little window and looked out. The men had
stopped about twenty feet from the door and had placed the log on the
ground to recover their wind before making the second trial.
"Better not try it again," he shouted, holding his automatic in his hand
in such a way that the men could not fail to see it.
All three men gave a sudden start of surprise, and for a moment no one
spoke. Then the leader, Jacques Harbaugh, stepped slowly toward the
window.
"That's near enough," Bob told him, when he had advanced about half way
to the window.
"So it's you, oui?"
"Looks like it."
"What you want up here?"
"Do you need to ask?"
"Me ask jess the same."
"All right. I don't mind telling you. We came for Mr. Stebbins."
"Oui? You find heem, eh?'
"Sure we did."
"What you tink you do with heem?"
"We'll take him back with us."
"Non!" And Bob could see a look of fierce determination on the face of
the man as he spat out the word. "You never tak' heem back till heem
tell us where dat monies."
"You may be right, but we're going to make a big try for it just the
same, and in the meantime don't forget that we are well armed, and the
first man who comes within ten feet of this cabin will get a hunk of
lead in him."
"We see 'bout dat."
"All right, but remem--"
A violent pull which jerked Bob back into the room interrupted the
sentence, and it was not a second too soon, for as he fell back onto the
floor a shot rang out and a bullet buried itself in a log at the back of
the room.
"That was pretty close," Bob gasped, as he picked himself up.
"I'll say it was," Jack agreed. "If I hadn't been peeping out through
that crack and see that other fellow pull his gun, we'd have had two
invalids on our hands."
"To say nothing of a dead one," Bob returned soberly. "It was very
careless of me to take my eyes off those other two fellows. I might have
known."
"Well, let's hope that those fellows haven't much ammunition with them,"
Jack said, as he again peeped out through the crack.
"What are they doing?" Bob asked.
"Just standing there talking."
"It's a lucky thing for us that this cabin is made of good big logs and
not of thin boards. We're safe for the time being if we keep out of line
with the windows."
"But those fellows aren't going to give up easy, and don't you kid
yourself that they are," Jack declared, with his eyes still at the
crack. "They're playing for big stakes."
"I know," Bob replied. "But don't forget that we are playing for the
same stakes."
"You bet."
"And what's more, we're going to win out."
"You bet." It was Rex who responded this time.
"They're going down toward the lake," Jack announced a moment later.
"They're getting into their canoe and pushing off. They're paddling up
the lake."
"What do you suppose they're up to now?" Rex asked.
"Hard to say," Bob replied, "but one thing is sure, they'll be back
before long and they won't go far; not far enough but they'll know if we
leave the cabin."
"They've gone out of sight around the point," Jack said, as he
straightened up.
"And that's about as far as they'll go," Bob declared. "Now we ought to
have a peep hole on each side of the room. That crack is all right for
the front, but there doesn't seem to be any at the back and sides."
"Then I guess it's up to us to make 'em," Jack declared.
"Spoken like a general," Bob laughed. "Go to it."
In the closet Jack soon found a long, slim knife, and with it set to
work digging out the clay and moss between two logs near the center of
the back. It was slow work, as the clay was almost as hard as cement,
but he stuck at it and in the course of an hour had a hole through large
enough to give a clear view of the ground at the back.
"Now for the sides," he said, as he selected a point near the middle.
Meantime Stebbins had been fed small amounts of the gruel at frequent
intervals and was gaining his strength rapidly, although he had been
forbidden to get out of the bunk.
"I don't suppose it's any use to tell you how sorry I am," he said to
Rex, who was sitting by his side.
"That's all right, old fellow, I think I understand what you were up
against and your resolve to make good, even though it cost you your life
has wiped out all the fault," Rex assured him.
A look of great joy lighted up the thin face of the man.
"Then you can forgive me?"
"Sure thing, and forget it, too."
"But your father."
"Will feel exactly as I do about it," Rex assured him, as he took his
hand.
"Thank God," Stebbins murmured, as he sank back and closed his eyes.
"There, we've got peep holes on all four sides," Jack announced awhile
later, "and I, for one, am mighty hungry."
"Which is a chronic condition if I know anything about you," Bob
laughed.
"But dinner'll be ready in about fifteen minutes. Think you can hold out
that long?"
"I'll try," Jack sighed.
During the afternoon they kept close watch at the peep holes, but
nothing was seen of the three men.
"All the same, I'll bet a cent they're not far off," Bob declared.
"I wouldn't take you," Jack said.
"They watch heap sharp, see if we start go way," Kernertok suggested.
"My idea exactly," Bob agreed. "They think that if they can only get us
out of the cabin we will be at their mercy."
"Well, we'll just fool them," Jack declared.
"That's all right so far as it goes, but the trouble is it doesn't go
very far," Bob said. "I don't know how you fellows feel about it, but it
seems to me that we're up against it good and hard. Those fellows aren't
going to let all that money slip through their hands if they can help
it, and I think it's about time that we were taking account of stock and
finding out where we're at."
"No doubt about it," Rex said, adding, "I'm mighty sorry--"
"Now nix on that stuff," Jack interrupted. "We know all about it, and
again I say nix."
"Then we'd better go into executive session and discuss ways and means,"
Bob suggested. "Kernertok, you're the oldest and wisest. What's your
idea?"
For a time the old Indian sat with bowed head, then he got to his feet
and said:
"Injun think only one thing do. It get heap dark pretty soon. Heap
cloudy, no moon. Injun creep out, get canoe, go down river to St.
Francis. Get help, back soon as can."
"How far is it to St. Francis?" Bob asked.
"'Bout twenty mile from canoe."
"Then you ought to get back some time to-morrow."
The Indian nodded his head.
"What say, fellows?" Bob turned to Rex and Jack.
"I'd say it's our best bet," Jack agreed readily.
"Same here," Rex joined in.
"Then Injun go soon as dark come."
"Do you suppose there's any possibility of getting any one with our
radio?" Jack asked a little later.
"I doubt it," Bob replied, shaking his head. "Wave length's too short,
but it won't do any harm to try. If we'd only had brains enough to have
left one of them at home we'd have had some help on the way before
this."
For a long time Jack tried to reach a station by means of the pocket
set, but finally was forced to admit it was of no use.
"If we get out of this scrape, the first thing I'm going to do is to
lengthen out that wave," he declared, as he placed the case on the
table.
As Kernertok had predicted, the night came on early and dark, for which
they were very thankful. Had it been moonlight it would have been
extremely difficult for him to get away, provided their enemies were on
the watch, as the cabin stood in a clearing and on no side did the
forest come nearer than twenty feet.
It was shortly after half past eight o'clock when he started, and all
wished him good luck.
"Injun be back by noon to-morrow. No get caught," he said, as he slipped
out the back door.
"Pray God he may get through safely," Bob murmured, as he put the bar
back in its place.
Sicum had whined to go with his master, but on being ordered to stay he
seemed to understand, and made no further protest.
The Indian had been gone not more than ten minutes when a shot rang out
in the forest back of the cabin. The four looked at each other and a
look of terror was on every face. For a moment no one spoke, then Jack
gasped.
"They've got him."
"Let's hope not," Bob said in a low tone.
For a long time they listened hardly daring to breathe, but no more
shots were heard and no sound from outside, save the creaking of the
boughs as they rubbed in the light breeze, came to their ears.
"Suppose I sneak out and do a little scouting," Jack proposed.
"I suppose you won't," Bob shook his head. "If they got him you could do
him no good, and the chances are that they'd get you. No, our best bet
is to stick close to the cabin and play it safe."
"I suppose you're right," Jack acknowledged. "But it's simply awful to
sit here and do nothing with Kernertok out there perhaps dying."
"I know," Bob soothed, "but it's only perhaps. That shot may have meant
nothing and he probably got through all right. Everything was in his
favor, and you know Kernertok."
"Yes, I know; but he's human at that."
Slowly the time passed. There was nothing they could do except listen
for the faintest sound. So dark was it that the peep holes were of no
use. But about half past ten Jack, who was near the broken window,
announced that the clouds were breaking.
"It'll be moonlight in a few minutes. She's trying to peep through the
clouds now."
"That'll help Kernertok," Bob declared.
"Provided he got through," Jack added mournfully.
"Well, I'm going to believe that he did till I find out that he didn't,"
Bob insisted.
In a short time Jack's prediction proved true. The moon peeped out from
behind the clouds and by eleven o'clock was riding in a clear sky,
making it almost as light as the day outside. In a way it was a great
relief to them, for they had feared to have a light in the cabin, and
waiting so long in the intense darkness was trying to their nerves.
"I reckon we'd better get an eye at those peep holes now," Bob
suggested. "There's one apiece, that is if Mr. Stebbins feels strong
enough to take one."
"Certainly I am," Stebbins insisted.
"Any of you smell anything?" Rex, who was sniffing the air, asked, as
they were about to take their places at the holes.
"Seems to me that I do," Bob said. "Smells like something burning."
"'Tis too," Jack cried, "and what's more, it's birch bark."
"You don't suppose--" Bob began, but Jack interrupted.
"I suppose they've set fire to the shack, if that's what you mean."
"I'm afraid you're right," Bob said slowly, as the odor of burning bark
became more pronounced.
"That's apt to be serious, isn't it?" Rex asked.
"There's no apt to be about it. Unless we can get it out we'll be at
their mercy in a mighty short time," Bob told him. "How much water is
there in the place, Jack?"
"About half a bucket full."
"Hum, not much to fight fire with. We should have got all we could."
"I did, but there were only two buckets, and we've used a bucket and a
half."
"Well, let's see if we can locate it."
"It's right in this corner," Jack declared a moment later. "I can hear
it when I put my ear close to the logs and see, there's a little smoke
working its way in."
"If we could get at it the half bucket of water would probably put it
out right now, but it would be sure death to go out there."
"And it's equally sure to stay here and let it burn, isn't it?" Rex
asked.
"While there's life there's hope," Bob reminded him.
"I know, but we've got to do something."
"And if we can find an axe we'll be doing it. Do you know if there is
one in the cabin?" he asked, turning to Stebbins.
"I think so," Stebbins replied, and to their great joy he pulled one
from beneath one of the bunks.
"Now we've got a chance at least," Bob cried, as he grabbed the axe.
"Jack, light that lantern and hold it for me."
Jack sprang to obey, and in another minute Bob was making a vigorous
attack on the logs in the corner where Jack had located the fire.
"It's gaining pretty fast," he gasped a few minutes later, as he paused
to get his breath.
"And so are you," Jack encouraged him. "That log's most through, and
then it'll be easier. Here, let me have a try at it."
"Not yet. I'm all right," Bob panted, as the axe sank deep into the log.
Chopping a log out of a cabin is an entirely different matter from
cutting that same log in two in the open, where one could get at all
sides of it. It was slow hard work, as the cut had to be made very wide,
and it was impossible to get the full benefit of the swing. But he kept
doggedly at it, and at last the axe sank completely through the six-inch
log. He had made the cut about three feet from the corner and a few
blows with the back of the axe sufficed to knock out the short end.
"Now my turn," Jack said, as he sat down the lantern and took the axe
from Bob's hand.
"It doesn't seem to be burning very fast now," Bob panted. "One more log
will be enough, I reckon."
The next log was not quite so large, and Jack soon had it out. Bob was
ready with the bucket and a large dipper.
"Now if only it hasn't got too big a start," he said, as he thrust his
head out in an effort to see where to throw the water.
For the moment he had forgotten all about the men outside in his
eagerness to put out the fire, but memory returned in a flash as he
heard a sharp ping and a bullet struck the log just over his head. He
pulled his head in with a jerk.
"That was pretty close," he gasped.
"I'll say so," Jack agreed; "but how's the fire? Did you see it?"
Instead of replying, Bob threw himself on the floor directly beneath the
opening, and filling the dipper with water, he reached out and poured it
down the side of the logs.
"It's hardly more than started to catch on the logs," he explained, as
he reached for a second dipper of water. "If I can hit the right spot
this will put it out all right."
Bob's glance out of the opening had revealed the situation to him. The
men had piled considerable birch bark and other light stuff against the
cabin, but the logs had, fortunately, been slow in catching fire, and
the kindling had nearly burned out before the cabin itself was fairly on
fire.
He had just reached out with the third dipper of water when another shot
was heard, and a bullet struck the dipper and knocked it from his hand.
"Be careful and don't get in front of that hole," he cried, as he drew
back his arm. "I think it's out," he added; "but I guess we'll have to
wait a few minutes and see. It'd be pretty risky to look out just now."
"You mean it'd be sure death," Jack declared grimly.
Fifteen minutes passed, during which they watched closely at the peep
holes, one on each side of the room.
"I think we put it out," Bob finally announced. "It would be burning up
in good shape by this time if we hadn't."
"Seems to be pretty quiet along the Potomac," Jack said.
"Seems is right," Bob returned. "But we must not let them have a chance
to start another fire. We haven't water enough left to put out a match,
and if they get another one going it's curtains for us."
"Then they mustn't start it, that's all," Rex said.
"I don't believe they'll try it while it is as light as it is now," Bob
declared. "They know that we can see them and they have a good deal of
respect for their skins. It's the time after the moon sets that's
worrying me. It'll be mighty dark again along about two o'clock."
"You think they'll try it again?" Rex asked.
"I imagine it depends some on whether or not they got Kernertok. If they
know that he has gone and they failed to get him, they of course know
that he's gone for help and they'll be in a hurry to get us before he
can get back. On the other hand, if they didn't get him or don't know
that he's left they'll think that they have plenty of time. But, of
course, it's all guesswork on our part."
But the intense darkness which he dreaded came even sooner than he had
expected. It was shortly after twelve o'clock when the moon slipped
behind a cloud, and it was only a short time until the rapidly gathering
clouds had blotted out all the stars as well.
"No use trying to see out of these holes any longer," Jack declared, as
he crossed the room. "It's as black as the ace of spades out there and
getting darker every minute."
"What can we do?" Rex asked. "I don't fancy the thought of staying here
and being burnt out."
"If it wasn't for Stebbins, I'd be in favor of sneak-out and having a
try at getting away, but he could never do it, and of course we can't go
and leave him."
"Of course not," both Rex and Jack agreed.
"There's only one thing to do that I can think of," Bob began.
"What is it?" Jack interrupted.
"It's for the three of us to go outside and stay there till it begins to
get light. I know it sounds risky, and it is, but it's a chance and we
haven't even got that cooped up here. It'll be three against three and I
believe we'll have a slight advantage over them."
"How so?" Rex asked.
"Well, we'll be looking for them and they'll naturally think we're still
inside."
"Righto," Jack said; "it's the dope all right. Let's not lose any time
or we may be too late."
Mr. Stebbins vigorously opposed the plan when they made known their
intention to him.
"The thing for you to do," he insisted, "is to get away and leave me
here. I don't believe they will kill me so long as they don't know where
the money is."
"Nothing doing along that line," Jack declared emphatically, and Bob and
Rex quickly agreed with him.
"But it's not right for you to risk your lives for me," Stebbins
insisted.
"Right or wrong, we're going to stick together," Bob said in a tone
which told him that it would be useless to argue further.
"Then I think your plan is probably best," he acknowledged reluctantly;
"but please be careful. If anything should happen to any of you I'll
never be able to forgive myself."
"We'll be careful, all right," Bob assured him.
Stebbins at first insisted that he was strong enough to go out and watch
with them, but the boys finally convinced him that three would be as
good as four, and the more there were the better chance the enemy would
have of finding out that they had left the cabin.
"You see, we've only three guns," Bob argued, "and if you go one of us
will be out there unarmed. If it comes to a rough and tumble fight, of
course, you can come in as a kind of reserve force.
"Now then, fellows, when we get out we want to keep close to the cabin,
and much depends on not making the slightest noise. Don't shoot unless
you have to, and if you do, aim low. I don't want to kill one of them,
even if they do deserve it. We'll go out the front door. Mr. Stebbins,
you fasten it after us, but be ready to let us in on short notice if
it's necessary."
"Do we keep together?" Rex asked, as Bob was about to slip the bar.
"Guess we'll have to," Bob replied, then after a moment's thought he
added, "I believe we're going at this all wrong after all. If we all
three go out we'll have to keep close together or we'll be unable to
tell who's who. It's so dark you can't see your hand before your face.
No, the proper thing is for me to go alone. So far as watching is
concerned, one will be as good as three, and if I call, you can come."
"What's the matter with me going?" Jack asked.
"Or me?" Rex put in.
"No, I'm going," Bob insisted. "I don't want to brag, but this is no
time to stand on ceremony, and you both know that if it should come to a
rough and tumble fight, as it may, I've had more experience than either
of you. Now please don't say anything more about it, because I'm going."
It was no reflection on the courage of either Rex or Jack that they
recognized the force of Bob's argument and made no more protest.
"But before I go, I think it would be well for Mr. Stebbins to tell us
where he has hidden that money," Bob suggested.
"I should have told you before," Stebbins said. "About a hundred yards
down the lake there is a gray birch, which leans over the water. You
can't help finding it, and the money's buried right at its foot, on the
side away from the lake. It's about eighteen inches down."
"Now you be careful and don't go to taking chances," Jack cautioned, as
Bob again reached for the bar.
"You know me," he whispered, as he swung open the door and slipped out
into the night.