Jack Harkaway and His Son's Escape from the Brigands of Greece Part 16

Harkaway's triumph was but temporary.

One of the Greeks, who was watching the conflict between these giants of the combat in great interest, had by now crept up behind Jack, and seizing him suddenly round the middle, hurled him to the ground.

"Ha, ha!" yelled Toro.

And bounding forward, he fell upon Harkaway, knife in hand.

"At last, at last, your life is in my hands," he cried in fiend-like joy.

The knife gleamed in the air.

A piercing shriek from little Emily was heard.

A cry of fear from Paquita, and suddenly the latter, disengaging herself from her captors, bounded forward and seized Toro by the hair.

She dragged him back with all her strength, and little as it was, it saved the life of Jack Harkaway.

Jack put forth all his strength at this most critical juncture, and succeeded in grappling once more with his herculean opponent.

Toro lost his balance.

A moment more and he was rolling upon the ground in deadly battle with brave Jack Harkaway.

So fierce a strife could not last long.

In the heat of the combat cries were heard encouraging Harkaway and Harvey to fresh exertions, and up dashed the bold Monday, closely followed by Jefferson and several gentlemen from the contessa's fete.

The Greeks now began to lose heart.

The odds were veering round to the wrong side.

Greeks can fight moderately well when they are three or four to one Englishman, but when the numbers are equal, they do not care to provoke hostilities.

And so they blew upon their whistles for a.s.sistance, and soon the answering calls came in every direction, causing the gravest fears to the Harkaway faction.

"Hah!" e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed Jefferson; "they are coming to help you. But at least I'll make sure of you, Master Toro."

The Italian did not shirk the encounter.

Toro, to do him justice, was, with all his faults, no coward.

He had felt the weight of Jefferson's arm, and he had reason to remember it.

Yet he met his old adversary boldly.

Jefferson fell upon the huge Italian with tiger-like fury, and in spite of his prodigious size and weight, he lifted him in his arms, swung him round, and hurled him to the ground.

The Greeks now, seeing their leaders in such dire peril, thought of avenging themselves by the most dastardly o| expedients.

"Kill the girls!" cried one of them.

The hint was caught up with avidity.

A savage yell responded to the bloodthirsty suggestion, and the lives of the two innocent girls were in real peril.

"Look to the girls!" shouted d.i.c.k Harvey, who was fully occupied with two of the Greek brigands who were pressing him closely.

There was a cheer in response to this appeal, and over went two of the Greeks.

Jefferson too lent a hand at this juncture.

Finding himself free from Toro's attentions, for the huge Italian had received such a desperate shaking with his fall that he was not fit for much now, he rushed into the _melee_, and dealt out such slogging blows that there were at least a dozen bleeding noses and black eyes distributed amongst the bandits in rather less time than it takes to note the fact.

The Greeks were thoroughly discouraged.

This unpleasant British mode of attack was not at all to their liking.

They could do pretty well with knives or swords, or even with firearms, but they could only regard men who used their fists in the lights of savages.

Gradually they retreated before the fierce onslaught of the Britishers and their gallant Yankee ally.

This was no small triumph.

The brigands mustered at least twenty men.

Their enemies were five.

The five were Harkaway, Harvey, Jefferson, and the two negroes Sunday and Monday.

The chicken-hearted Greeks, however, did not altogether turn tail, for ere they could get fairly off this hardly-contested field, they received considerable reinforcements.

About ten more Greeks put in an appearance.

A ragged, ruffianly crew, and ill armed.

The Harkaway party were not armed at all.

The Greeks fell back and made attempts to re-form in something like good order.

But Jefferson saw the danger, and he followed them up closely.

Jack and d.i.c.k Harvey were at his heels.

Neither of our old friends were inferior to the bold Jefferson in courage; but they did not possess his great advantages of size and strength.

Jefferson's right arm went out like a battering ram, and each time he struck out, down dropped his man.

At all events, the brigands did not give any particular signs of coming up for a repet.i.tion dose.