Eveline Mandeville Part 30

When he reached the cave it was already night. He found the sentinel in a very uneasy mood, and very anxious to get off till morning, to carry out some design of his own. He had engaged a member to take his place, but from some cause he had not arrived. Bill gladly a.s.sumed the post, and in a few minutes was alone with his thoughts and plans.

When a.s.sured that the other was far enough away, he closed the door to the cave and locked it. Then, going to the armory, he selected several braces of the best pistols, and secured them about his own person, for his and d.i.c.k's future use. He next opened the money-chest, and took from it all the gold that had been collected since the last division, some two thousand dollars in all. This he fastened in a belt worn next to his person. After making every other arrangement about the room according to his wishes, he went to the magazine and brought out all the powder it contained, and so placed the kegs and other vessels containing it, as to secure the greatest amount of destructive force from the whole. All these he then connected by trains of the explosive material, which were united in one wider one leading out at the door of the cave.

These preparations made, he went to apprise Eveline of their readiness for departure, intending while she was making the few preparations necessary for starting, to go out and see after d.i.c.k.

When he opened the door to the captain's room, he was struck with the profound stillness which everywhere pervaded the place. No Eveline was there; but he remembered having seen the door to the small room open on a former occasion, and supposing her to be within, went and rapped on the door, at first gently. No answer. Then louder, and louder. All was still.

He called her. No response came. Wondering if she was asleep, or what could prevent or deter her from answering his call, he proceeded to break open the door. This he succeeded in doing, after considerable effort; but when he perceived she was not there, his surprise and astonishment were unbounded. He knew not that while he was robbing robbers, and placing powder for the demolition of the cave, she had left its dismal precincts by a way unknown to him or Duffel, and was now far away in the wilderness.

"Where is she? What does it mean?"

These questions he put to himself, but could not answer. A thousand conjectures rushed through his brain; but no satisfactory clue to the mystery was. .h.i.t upon. Had Duffel deceived them? No, his anger and earnestness were too real for that. Had she other friends? Had not the sentinel turned traitor, and having liberated the prisoner, was anxious to get away, lest his perfidy should be discovered, or to gain a reward for his treachery? This, though hardly probable, was the most plausible supposition, and Bill concluded to act upon it. He was resolved to carry out his plans in, all their details; except that Eveline could not be taken with them; for he was not going to yield up his stolen gold, nor forego his revenge on Duffel.

Looking at his watch, in the midst of these perplexing reflections and strengthened resolves, he saw that it was time for him to be off to see Duffel, as the place of meeting was some ten miles from the cave, and a part of the distance had to be gone over on foot. He reached the spot about the hour appointed, and found the miscreant already there, impatiently awaiting his arrival.

"What success?" inquired Duffel, the moment he came up.

"None at all, your honor."

"How?"

"Bad news, _very_."

"What?"

"I fear there is treason in the League. The doors of the cave are all open, even to the inner door of the inner room, and no living person is within its walls!"

Duffel was speechless with surprise and terror, the astonishing intelligence seeming to paralyze all his powers; at last he made out to loosen his tongue and queried:

"She is gone, then?"

"Yes, and the sentinel, too!"

"Then we are betrayed! What shall we do?"

The terrible news Bill brought, completely unmanned Duffel, and his presence of mind entirely forsook him; hence his last query, which was propounded with all the imbecility of helplessness.

"I'll tell you what I am going to do," said Bill; "and that is, leave this part of the country as speedily as possible."

"But won't the officers be upon us immediately?"

"No; if at all, not before to-morrow. We can make our arrangements to-night, lay in the swamp all day, and leave to-morrow night. You have a horse already prepared in the swamp; I would advise you to go home without a moment's delay, and make all necessary preparations for your journey, and be back in the vicinity of your horse before daylight, or as soon after as possible; and to-morrow night we can set out for the cave in the south-west."

"I believe your plan is a good one; but when shall we meet again?"

"Not until we get away from this section of country; perhaps not until we reach our ultimate destination. But we have no time to lose, all depends upon dispatch, and we had best be about our preparations. Good-by, captain."

"Good-by, my fine fellow. I thank you for your advice, and hope that when we meet again it will be under more cheering skies, and with brighter prospects before us. Good-by."

And thus they parted, to meet again--where?

Bill hastened back to the cave, where he found d.i.c.k in waiting with the horses. In as few words as possible, Bill explained to his confederate how matters stood, and what measures he had taken; then sending d.i.c.k back some distance with the animals, he laid a long train of powder from the cave outward, and at the farthest extremity placed a can of the explosive compound, wherein he had adjusted a slow match, to which he now set fire, and then hastened away with d.i.c.k to a place of safety.

Duffel, as we have seen, was thoroughly alarmed by the intelligence communicated by Bill; and like all who depend more on stratagem than on courage, he cowered before the danger which seemed to stare him in the face. The suddenness of the announcement had not a little to do in producing the result; but when on his way home from the interview, after having more time to contemplate the calamity and his own situation, his fear did not abate. Every little noise startled him, and his mind was constantly hara.s.sed with the idea that officers of justice were after him.

One cause of his trepidation may be traced to the fact of his many and fearful crimes; he knew how deeply he had involved himself in guilt by the abduction of Eveline and the murder of her lover, as he believed, at his own instigation and command; and he felt well a.s.sured, now that his intended victim was at large, she would not be slow to act with vigor for his apprehension and punishment. He knew full well, too, that Mr.

Mandeville, when once his eyes were opened, would pursue him with unflagging energy and tireless perseverance, until his crimes were duly expiated to the full extent of the law. With such knowledge and reflections for companions, well might the guilty wretch quake with fear. If "conscience makes cowards of us all," how much more so _him_, reeking as he was with blood and crime!

Notwithstanding all his fears, he reached home in safety, made a few hasty preparations for his journey, placed his effects left behind in as good order as the shortness of the time would allow, gave them in charge to his servant, with such orders for their disposal as pleased him, and then started for the swamp, which he reached about daylight, and into which he plunged with as much pleasure as ever a hunted fox entered its secure burrow. Though still very uneasy, he breathed more freely than before since receiving the unwelcome tidings from Bill.

'Squire Williams was seated in his easy chair after the labors of the day, quietly enjoying himself in a train of dreamy reflections, when he was aroused from his state of languor and but half wakefulness by a knock at the door. Feeling tired, he did not get up to open for the visitor, but in the old fashioned style, requested the knocker to "come in."

A neighboring boy entered, and handed him a letter, saying:

"The man who gave me the letter for you told me to tell you, you had better read it immediately."

"Indeed! Then it must be of some importance," said the 'Squire as he opened the doc.u.ment. It read as follows:

"'SQUIRE WILLIAMS:--Having learned that you take a deep interest in the movements of young Mr. Duffel, who is supposed to be connected with a body of outlaws and thieves by yourself and others, I take the liberty, though a stranger, to address a line relative to the individual named, which may be of some service to you in detecting him, and to community, by preventing his further operations.

"If you will go to the swamp, nine miles from C----, early to-morrow morning, and watch closely all day and all the next night, should he not make his appearance sooner, you will detect him in the act of leaving the place on a horse which he has forgotten to pay for. I would advise that you take a few confidential friends with you, and, if possible, induce Mr.

Mandeville to be one of them; you will understand my reasons for making this request in the end. Make all your arrangements with great caution and secrecy, _and be sure to trust no one in whom you have not the most implicit confidence, or you may be betrayed_. I make this remark, on the supposition that you are not aware of the fact, that some of your neighbors are a.s.sociated with a cla.s.s of men who do not live by lawful avocations, but are members of an organization which has for its object union of strength and harmony of action among those who prey upon community. I would further advise, that you do not go to the swamp before daylight--_give him time to get into the trap_. I will cut the letter B on a beech-tree at the south-western corner of the swamp, which will be a sign and guide-mark that you are in the right way; from that tree keep a direct north-east course until you reach a large walnut tree, then turn at right angles with your former course, and cross the marsh on the logs which you will find placed there for that purpose. Beyond the marsh, or rather in the center of it, there is an island, which it is extremely difficult to reach by any other route than the one pointed out. On it you will find Duffel, _provided you are cautious and wary in your movements_. You will wonder how I am so familiarly acquainted with the operations of these bad men: without fully satisfying your curiosity, let me say, that whatever I may have been, I am now desirous of handing over to justice one who is deeply guilty--guilty of crimes of which even you, perhaps, have never dreamed of accusing him. On this point I have only to say, you yourself came near losing your life in place of one of his victims. I allude to the attack made upon you by two persons in the 'dark pa.s.sage,' some weeks ago. You will remember it! I know all, though revealing but little; and as it will be known that treason is in the camp of the League of Thieves, I shall leave the country at once. Go to the swamp as directed, and you will satisfy yourself of all that I have told you; but let me advise you to note strictly the directions I give you, and be extremely careful in your movements and choice of confidants. Yours, for law and justice,

"EX LEAGUEIST."

So soon as he finished reading this singular communication, the 'Squire asked the boy:

"What sort of a man was he, that gave you the letter?"

"He was large, with dark eyes, and sun-burnt face."

"You did not know him, then?"

"No, sir; he was a stranger."

"That will do."

The 'Squire was puzzled to know what to do. The man might be acting in good faith, or he might be only leading him into a snare. After mature deliberation, he came to the conclusion that his informant was not deceiving him, and resolved to act upon the suggestions of the unknown writer, be he friend or foe.

He accordingly set about making preparations for the adventures of the morning, without delay. By midnight all his arrangements were completed, and he lay down to s.n.a.t.c.h a little rest before setting out on the expedition. At three o'clock in the morning, the little company, numbering five in all, of whom Mr. Mandeville was one, set out for the swamp.

Bill and d.i.c.k had scarcely reached a safe distance from the cave, when a sound as of ten thousand thunderbolts rent the air, and the ground at the same time trembled as in a violent earthquake. The horses plunged and snorted, and then stood still in mute fear. The villains, who were looking in the direction of the cave, saw a column of fire, smoke, earth, and rocks heaved up in the air--a huge ma.s.s like a mountain--some portions to the height of several hundred feet, and then fall again with a heavy crash, making the earth vibrate beneath them. They knew then that the cave was in ruins, and its place occupied by a shapeless ma.s.s of matter.

The explosion took place a little after three o'clock in the morning, and consequently but a few minutes after 'Squire Williams and his party had set out for the swamp. They heard it, and felt the quivering of the earth, though twenty-five miles distant, and for a moment paused in alarm, fully believing it was an earthquake. But as no repet.i.tion of the sound or shock took place, they concluded the danger was past, and proceeded on their way.

Duffel also heard the report and felt the shaking, and it filled him with alarm. He was nearing the swamp at the time, and for a little while hesitated to proceed, but finally did so, arriving at the same conclusion as did the party in his rear.

It became the general belief in the neighborhood, and for forty miles around the cave, that the noise and its accompaniments were to be attributed to a veritable earthquake; and we believe a report to that effect finally went the rounds of the press.