IN A TRAP.
Our hero's first impulse, on finding himself entrapped, was to escape.
He sprang towards the door, but Martin quickly grasped him by the arm,
and forced him back.
"No you don't!" he said, with emphasis. "I want you to stay with me."
"Let me go!" exclaimed Rufus, struggling to escape.
"Sorry I couldn't oblige you," said Martin, with a grin. "Can't you stay
with your sick father a few days?"
"You've played me a mean trick," said Rufus, indignantly.
"What was you walkin' through this street for?" asked Martin. "Wasn't it
because you wanted to see me?"
"Yes," answered our hero.
"Well, you've got what you wanted," said Martin, smiling maliciously. "I
know'd you'd never find me if I didn't send out for you. Was there
anything partic'lar you wish to say to me?"
"Yes," said Rufus, bluntly. "I want you to give me back that tin box you
stole from me the other day."
"What do I know about any tin box?" asked Martin, not knowing that it
had been spoken of by Humpy in the street.
"You needn't deny it, Mr. Martin. The boy you sent after me told me you
took it."
"He did, did he?" said Martin, seeing that he must try another tack.
"Well, s'posin' I did, what then?"
"The law may have something to say. You'll stand a chance of going to
Sing Sing for a few years."
"You'd have to prove I took it," said Martin, uneasily. "I only told the
boy to say so, so's to get you in here. I read about the robbery in the
papers."
"I recognized you at the time, and am ready to swear to you," said
Rufus, firmly.
This was rather imprudent, for it made Martin even more determined to
prevent our hero's escape.
"If that's your game," he said, "I'll see you don't get a chance to
swear to any lies."
"What do you mean to do with me?" demanded Rufus.
"I aint decided yet," said Martin. "Your health's so delicate that I
don't think it'll agree with you to go out in the street."
"Are you going to confine me here?"
"Maybe," said his step-father. "I shan't charge you nothing for board.
Your cheerful company'll pay me for that."
"Mr. Martin," said Rufus, "I've got a proposition to make to you."
"Go ahead and make it then."
"You've got yourself into a scrape about that tin box."
"I thought you was the one that had got into a scrape," said Martin,
jocularly.
"So I have; but mine is of a different kind from yours. You run the risk
of going to prison."
"And you're in prison already," said Martin, with a grin. "Seems to me
I've got the best of it so far."
"Perhaps you have; but I wouldn't exchange with you for all that. Now
I've got a proposition to make."
"That's what you said before."
"If you will restore the tin box, and let me go free, I'll see that you
are not arrested for what you've done."
"You're very kind," said Martin; "but that won't pay me for my trouble."
"If I'll get you out of your present danger?"
"I don't know about that. S'posin' I was to do as you say, the first
thing you'd do after you got out would be to set the copps on me."
"No, I wouldn't. I'd go to prison first myself."
This proposition had some effect upon Martin. He realized that he was in
danger, and felt that he had been very poorly paid for his risk and
trouble. He was inclined to believe Rufus would keep his word, but he
knew also that matters had gone too far. Smith, he was sure, would not
consent to any such arrangement, and without him he could do nothing.
Besides, it was a satisfaction to him to feel that he had Rufus in his
power, and he had no desire to lose that advantage by setting him free.
Tyrant and bully as he was by nature, he meant to gratify his malice at
our hero's expense.
"I couldn't do it, Rufus," he said. "There's another man in it, and he's
got the box."
Rufus looked sharply at Martin to ascertain if he was speaking the
truth. He decided that it was as his step-father stated, and, if this
was the case, he would have more than one enemy to deal with.
"Does the other man live here?" he asked.
"Maybe he does, and maybe he doesn't."
"Who is he?"
"Maybe it's the Emperor of Chiny, and maybe it isn't. What would you
give to know?"
"Not much," said Rufus, assuming an indifferent tone. "You're the man
that took the box,--that's enough for me."
"He put me up to it," said Martin, unguardedly.
"I thought Martin wasn't smart enough to plan the robbery himself," said
Rufus to himself. He resolved to appear indifferent to this information,
in the hope of learning more.
"You can settle that among yourselves," he said, quietly. "If you
consented to do it, you're as much to blame as he."
At this moment Smith, influenced by curiosity, opened the door and
entered.
"This is my undootiful son, Mr. Smith," said Martin.
"So his name's Smith," thought Rufus. "I wonder whether it's his real
name, or a false one."
"I'm glad to see you, young man," said Smith. "So you've called to see
your father?"
"He isn't my father."
"You see how undootiful he is," said Martin. "He won't own me."
"We'll teach him to be more dutiful before we get through with him,"
said Smith.
"Mr. Smith," said Rufus, "I'm not here of my own accord. I dare say you
know that. But as long as I am here, I'd like to ask you if you know
anything about a tin box that was taken from me the other day by Mr.
Martin."
"By your father?"
"By Mr. Martin," said Rufus, determined not to admit the relationship.
"What should I know about it?"
"Mr. Martin tells me that, though he took it, somebody else set him to
do it. I thought you might be the one."
"Did you say that?" demanded Smith, looking angrily at Martin.
"I was only foolin'," returned Martin, who began to think he had made a
blunder.
"It's my belief that you're a fool," retorted Smith. "You'd better be
careful what you tell your son. Young man," turning to Rufus, "as to the
tin box you speak of, I can tell you nothing. Your father says that he
has recovered some property which you stole from him a while since, and
I suppose that may be the tin box you refer to."
"That isn't true. It belonged to Mr. Turner, my employer, or rather to a
customer of his."
"That's nothing to me. Mr. Martin boards with me, and as long as he pays
for his board I don't want to pry into his affairs. If he has taken a
tin box from you, I presume he had a better right to it than you had.
Are you going to bring your son down to dinner, Mr. Martin?"
"I guess he'd better eat his victuals up here," said Martin.
"Just as you say. I can send Humpy with them. We shall have dinner in
about an hour."
"All right; I'll go down now if my dootiful son can spare me."
As Rufus did not urge him to stay, Martin left the room with Smith,
taking care to lock the door after him.
"What's the boy's name?" asked Smith, abruptly.
"Rufus."
"He's smart. I can tell that by his looks."
"Ye-es, he's smart enough," said Martin, hesitatingly; "but he's as
obstinate as a pig."
"Likes to have his own way, eh?"
"That's what he does."
"He'd make a good boy for our business," said Smith, musingly.
Martin shook his head.
"It wouldn't do," he said.
"Why not?"
"He wants to be honest," said Martin, contemptuously. "We couldn't trust
him."
"Then there's only one thing to do."
"What's that?"
"We must keep him close. We mustn't on any account allow him to escape."
"I'll look after that," said Martin, nodding. "I've had hard work enough
to get hold of him. He won't get away in a hurry."
"If he does, you'll be arrested."
"And you too," suggested Martin.
"Why should I?"
"Didn't you put me up to taking the box, and haven't you taken half what
was in it?"
"Look here," said Smith, menacingly, "you'd better stop that. You've
already told the boy more than you ought. If you are taken through your
own carelessness, mind what you are about, and don't split on me. If
you do, it'll be the worse day's work you ever did. Imprisonment isn't
the worse thing that can happen to a man."
Martin understood what his confederate meant, and the intended effect
was produced. He began to think that Smith was a desperate man, and
capable of murdering him, or instigating his murder, in case of
treachery. This made him feel rather uneasy, in spite of his capture of
Rufus.
Meanwhile, our hero, left to himself, began to examine the apartment in
which he was confined. The door had been locked by Martin, as we have
already said. This was the only mode of exit from the apartment, except
what was afforded by two windows. Rufus walked to them, and looked out.
The room was in the back part of the house, and these windows looked out
into a back yard. He could see the rear portions of the houses on a
parallel street, and speculated as to the chances of escape this way. As
the room was only on the second floor, the distance to the ground was
not great. He could easily swing off the window-sill without injury.
Though he knew it would not be well to attempt escape now when Martin
and Smith were doubtless on the lookout, he thought he would open the
window softly and take a survey. He tried one window, but could not
raise it. He tried the other, with like want of success. He thought at
first that the difficulty lay in their sticking, but, on closer
examination, he ascertained that both were firmly fastened by nails,
which accounted for their being immovable.