Boy Scouts on Picket Duty Page 10

  CHAPTER X

  THE END OF THE RAID

  At the beginning of the fight, Hugh wakened from a troubled sleep intowhich he had fallen, wearied with fruitless efforts to break the lockof the door. One thought was ever in his mind, even in his dream:to escape. For this purpose he had clawed away a wide chink in thelog walls, he had even dug under the threshold---without avail.

  Nevertheless, he was glad to be active and thankful that he had beenunbound before his captors went away, leaving him a prisoner in theshanty until they were ready to release him. Joe Durgan had evenbeen considerate enough to leave a half loaf of bread and a glassof beer on the table; but Hugh declined these delicacies.

  All during the fight he crouched by the locked door, listening inalternate hope and dread of the outcome, now and then raising hisvoice amid the din and confusion outside. It was perhaps notstrange that none of his friends heard him, for his shouts onlymingled with those of the smugglers and were lost in the generalclamor.

  But they were heard by one man, who, though not exactly a friend,was yet an amiable enemy.

  In the midst of the conflict, when the Revenue Service men hadarrived to turn the tide of fortune, the door was quickly openedand shut, and a man stood in the room, panting hard.

  Hugh sprang to his feet, ready for any new emergency.

  "What are you-all doin' thar, youngster?" said a voice in thedarkness, a deep voice which Hugh recognized as Durgan's.

  "Trying to get out, of course," he replied defiantly, every nervein his young body tingling with excitement. "What did you expectme to do, Durgan?"

  "Eh? Oh, nothin'. Thought you might ha' gone to sleep like a goodlittle boy."

  The man's harsh laugh sounded hollow and unpleasant. Hugh shuddered.

  "I was asleep," he said, "but when----"

  "Real unkind o' your friends to wake you up, eh?" interrupted Durgan.His hand stole behind him. With a quick turn he opened the door,and admitted some one. "Come in, Harry," he said. "The kid's here,all right. What did I tell you?"

  "That so?" growled Harry Mole. "Well, we know who he is now.Somebody tipped off the officers about the run we was goin' tomake to-night; and since it wasn't this kid, it must-a been one ofhis bunch. Shall we heave him into the stream, Joe, or leavehim here?"

  "Not on your life!" Durgan replied promptly. "He's caught on to toomuch about us while he's been here, and he can tell those ginks alot that we don't want 'em to know. So's long as we kin get out o'here alive, we'd better take him along."

  "He spoiled our plans to-night. He deserves to be knocked on thehead an' thrown out to the 'gators!"

  "Spoilt our plans, you bet! But he'll get his, by-and-by. Come,take him and hustle away. Cripes! hear them bullets smashin' intothe wall!"

  "Remember, kid," said Mole, "if you shout or let out a word, we'llstick a knife between yer slats."

  From the fierce way in which Mole uttered this threat, Hugh did notdoubt he would do as he said. However, he did not yield withouta silent struggle, though he was soon overpowered by the two burlyruffians. Each taking him by an arm, they led him outside anddragged him over a stretch of bumpy ground, stumbling along in thesemi-darkness.

  Scarcely five minutes after they left the hut and the two burningshanties behind them, Hugh's friends burst into the empty cabin---toolate to rescue him.

  But these young, well-trained scouts lost no time in searching theplace. Separating into pairs---Norton and Mark, Alec and Chester,with Billy and Dave in advance, following Durgan's and Mole'strail---they formed a line of communication between the cabin andthe site of the bonfire, hoping that by thus keeping a picket linethey might catch sight of Hugh or his captors beating a hastyretreat toward the shore.

  Meanwhile, Durgan and Mole with Hugh between them walked very fastindeed. Had they not supported Hugh, he should have fallen severaltimes; for, young and strong as he was, he was almost worn out withthe rough treatment he had undergone. Every minute he thought theywould stop, and, making an end of their senseless threats, releasehim and run. But they evidently had no intention of doing so.

  Hugh tried to ascertain in what direction they were leading him,but he soon gave this up as useless. He was on the verge of despair,when suddenly out of the gloom came a startlingly familiar call---thecall of the Wolf patrol.

  "_Wow-ow-ooo-oooo-hoo-Hugh!_"

  It sounded not far away, on his left, and the lad's heart boundedwith joy. He knew that that call could come from none other thanBilly Worth, and Billy must therefore be near at hand, ready to leadhis comrades to Hugh's rescue.

  For one wild moment he was tempted to answer the call---then discretionprevailed, and he kept silence.

  Naturally, the two men also were startled at the sound. Mole gaveHugh a prod in the shoulder with the point of a knife and Durganswore volubly.

  "None o' that thar, Harry!" he warned. "Don't hurt the kid. If youdo, we'll-----"

  "Aw, shut up!" retorted the other, and they hurried on.

  By great effort Hugh said nothing, asked no questions, did not evenanswer the wolf-call. Instinct told him it would be better to do ashis captors had ordered, and now he pretended to feel resigned to hisfate---knowing that help was forthcoming.

  As they went on, sounds of a lively scuffle reached his ears, and hecould also hear the dull booming of surf, by which he knew that hecould be at no great distance from the shore. Behind him, evidentlyfollowing, again sounded the wolf-call, giving him courage and renewedhope.

  Durgan turned to him angrily.

  "What made you jump when you heard that thar howl?" he demanded.

  "Nothing. Where---where are we going?" Hugh ventured to ask, atlength, forgetting that he was not to utter a word of protest. "I'mdog-tired, and my knee aches---a sprain, I guess."

  "You lie!" retorted Mole fiercely, and he struck Hugh across themouth.

  "You'll soon have time enough to rest yourself, youngster," addedDurgan in a kinder tone. "You're in luck that things ain't no worsefor you."

  But Hugh scarcely heard; at any rate, he paid no heed. Boilingwith rage at the insult, he gave one shout: "Billy! This way,scouts!" and struggling desperately, he managed to slip from hiscaptors' grasp.

  In another minute he had whirled around and was running as fast ashe could put foot to the ground.

  To his surprise, Mole and Durgan did not chase him. When he pausedfor an instant to rub his bruised knee and to look around, he dimlysaw them in the distance running to a spot where a crowd of menwere pushing and struggling to get into a boat.

  Presently he discerned a larger body of men hastening to the place,and in the dim light of the moon he saw that they were soldiers andseamen.

  While he stood lost in wonderment, Uncertain where to go, he heardfootsteps and familiar voices near. He gave the call of his oldpatrol, and Billy answered it immediately.

  The next minute, Billy rushed into view, and the two chums werereunited in a vigorous bear-hug of sheer, silent rejoicing. Theyfound words at last.

  "Billy, old scout, I was beginning to think I might never see youagain!"

  "You were? Why, Hugh, I'd have looked for you from here to Yucatanand back again, twenty times over, by sea and land, before I'd giveup!" cried Billy, forgetting in his enthusiasm how near he had cometo the verge of despair.

  "I'm dying to know whatever happened to you," he added. "But herecome the rest of the bunch; so you'll have to tell all of us yourstory."

  "It's soon told," said Hugh; and after joyful greetings had beenexchanged, he told them all that had happened to him since hisunlucky morning stroll to the hut on the far-away beach.

  In their turn, they related the events of their search for him, anddescribed the fight around the cabin in which he had so lately been aprisoner.

  "And there's the end of the fight now," said Norton, pointing tothe group of combatants and to a boat manned by five oarsmen whowere putting out to sea. "Look! There they go!---all of themwho managed to escape No! B
y Jove, the boat's coming back toshore! I suppose Uncle Sam's men threatened to shoot the rascalsif they didn't come back."

  "Serves 'em right!" said Chester.

  "Let's go over there and watch proceedings," urged Alec.

  "I second the motion!" Hugh declared, eager to see the latestdevelopments.

  So without further discussion, they hurried over to the place, andwere in time to witness the capture of Bego and his gang.

  * * * * * * *

  By morning, a sullen company of prisoners was put aboard the _Petrel_and conveyed southward to Key West for trial.

  The interval between their capture and the departure of the revenuecutter was spent in putting out the fire near Durgan's cove, allthat remained of the three adjoining shanties being a heap ofcharred logs and wind-swept ashes. Durgan's motor boat was fastenedby means of a long cable to the aft rail of the _Arrow_, whichwas commissioned to tow it to a wharf at Charlotte Harbor, whereit would be delivered to a brother of the smuggler. This brother,a thoroughly honest fisherman, was well known to Captain Vinton.

  Bego's ship, the _Esperanza_, remained at anchor off the cove.Arrangements were made for its safe delivery at Charlotte Harbor,as soon as a suitable crew could be sent to convey it to that haven.

  Hoping that his presence might not be required at the trial, thoughfully resigned to the probability of having to attend it, Hugh wroteout and signed a full statement of his experiences with the outlaws.

  This paper was also signed by Norton, Captain Vinton, and LieutenantDriscoll, as testifying their belief in its veracity. The captainof the _Petrel_ undertook to deliver it to the proper authorities,and it was eventually accepted in lieu of Hugh's personal testimony.

  Having attended to these matters, the crew of the _Arrow_ wentaboard about noon. The day was perfect for the return voyage, a fairbreeze blew against her weather-stained sails, and the ocean was asblue as sapphire.

  The entire party was glad to be on the sloop's clean decks once more;even Dave seemed happy and relieved when Durgan's Cove and itsoutlying shores faded into a velvety green blur along the horizon.So they left the scene of their adventures, and glided swiftly away"on the home stretch," as Chester called it, under cloudless skies.