CHAPTER VIII.A BLOW FROM BEHIND.
For an instant I did not know what to do. Carney had vanished, and that, I was satisfied, boded no good to me.
With my gun ready for use, I picked my way back to the rock nearest to my boat, intending to embark at once. The man was probably not alone on the island, and had gone off for assistance. Perhaps he would soon appear with the other two men Tom Darrow had mentioned.
But as I jumped aboard my boat another surprise awaited me. Carney was hidden under an old sail forward, and I had hardly set foot upon deck when he jumped up and struck me a cruel blow from behind.
“Take that for interfering with me!” he cried.
I caught but a glimpse of him; then came the blow, and I saw millions of stars. I staggered forward, and for a while my senses forsook me.
I think I remained unconscious at least a quarter of an hour. When I came to I found myself lying on the bottom of my sloop.
Somewhat confused from the rough treatment I had received, I raised my head and looked around me. Water was on every hand, and I saw that the craft had been shoved off from the island, and sent drifting down the lake.
As soon as I was able I ran up the mainsail, and then stood over for the west shore. There was no use returning to Rock Island for the present.
Carney had his gun once more, and would not now hesitate to use it. I must get some one to help me before going back for my property.
I turned the matter over in my mind, and then decided to return to the mill, leave the groceries and Mr. Norton’s tobacco, and then sail down to the Bend for Tom Darrow, and perhaps one or two others with whom I was well acquainted, and who I knew would help me.
As I skimmed over the surface of the lake I decided not to tell Mr. Norton of what had happened and of what I intended to do. It was none of his affair, and he would no doubt claim the boat as part of the estate under his charge. Perhaps I was not doing right according to law, but I was no lawyer, and I thought I could run matters quite as well as he could.
The distance to the mill-landing was soon covered, and then I lowered the sail and prepared to tie up.As I did so I saw two strange men walk out of the mill-room, followed by my newly arrived relative.
I knew every man, woman, and child in the region, and I was sure the two men were total strangers in the lake district. They were short, small built, well dressed; and I could not imagine what had brought them to the place.
The spot where I had tied up was partly hidden from the mill by a number of bushes and trees. I saw that the painter was properly fastened, and then walked slowly towards my home.
“Yes, there is no use of waiting any longer,” I overheard one of the men say. “We have made enough mistakes already. Delay will mean more.”
“Then you intend to go ahead to-night?” asked the voice of Mr. Norton anxiously.
“Yes. By the way, how do you get on with the boy?”
“Pretty well. He’s rather high-strung. I expect him back any moment. I sent him over to Bend Center for some tobacco.”
“Good. Come, Bill; let’s be off before he returns.”
“Just as you say, Dick. You are running this deal, not I.”
And with these words the two men passed out of hearing, and made for the boat I had seen anchored in the inlet when I had gone down to the Bend in the morning.
This conversation surprised me not a little. At first I had intended to come forward and show myself, but now I was glad I had not done so.
Who were the two men? and what was their mission to the mill? Plainly they were well known to Mr. Norton; and yet he had just come from the West, and had not been in Bend Center for many years.
Perhaps these men were also from the West, and, knowing Mr. Norton was at the mill, had stopped over, most likely from Bayport, to see him. This was a rather lame explanation, and it by no means satisfied me. As to what was to be “gone ahead with” that night I had not the faintest idea.
Ordinarily I would not have given the entire matter any attention; but, as I have said, Mr. Norton’s way of doing things did not suit me, and I was anxious to find out something about him, and what I was to expect from him in the future.
I waited for several minutes after the men had gone, and then making rather more noise than was necessary, walked up to the mill.
Mr. Norton met me at the door. “Back at last, I see,” he said. “Got that tobacco?”
“Yes, sir;” and I handed it over.
“Good. I’m nearly dead for a smoke. Do you use the weed?”
“No, sir.”
“That’s right. Never start. It’s costly, and does a fellow no good.”
I took the groceries I had brought, and put them in the pantry. Mr. Norton filled his pipe, and began to puff away vigorously.
“Always have to smoke when I’m thinking,” he remarked as he blew a cloud of smoke to the ceiling.
I was on the point of asking him the subject of his thoughts, but checked myself.
“What are you going to do now?” he inquired.
“If I can, I would like to get off for the rest of the day,” I returned.
“Has that grinding got to be done?”
“No, sir; to-morrow will do.”
“Then you can go. I didn’t think about this news of your father’s death being so new to you, or I wouldn’t have asked you to go to work to-day. Fact is, I’m all upset with traveling around. That’s what riled my temper up last night.”
“I’m not used to such treatment,” I could not help remarking.
“I suppose your father was very easy. Well, we’ll let what’s gone alone, and take a new start. What time do you expect to be back?”
“Some time this evening.”
“All right.”
“By the way,” I went on, as I walked towards the door, “weren’t there two men here just before I came?”
Mr. Norton jumped to his feet.
“What’s that?” he exclaimed in surprise.
I repeated my question.
“I didn’t see them,” he answered. “What made you think they were here?”
His reply rather staggered me. I had not expected so deliberate a falsehood.
“I thought I saw them,” I said simply.
“Must have been mistaken. Nobody here since you went away.”
I walked down to the sloop in a thoughtful frame of mind. What did this false statement mean? Surely there was some mystery connected with the visit of the two strangers,—a mystery that Mr. Norton was anxious to conceal.
I was half inclined to turn back and find out what was “in the wind;” but I concluded that for the present it would be useless to do so. No one but my uncle was about, and he would not tell me a word.
When I reached the pier at the Bend I found Tom Darrow at his accustomed place, disposing of a big mess of fish he had caught during the morning. I told him of what had happened at the island, and he agreed to go with me without delay.
“Never mind taking anybody else,” he said. “I know Andy Carney. He is a rough customer, but a regular coward at heart. When he sees that we mean business he’ll cave right in.”
“I trust it is as you say, Tom,” I replied. “He was pretty ugly this noon.”
“We’ll manage him, never fear.”
“If we get the sloop, I wish you would take charge of her for me,” I continued. “I don’t care to take her down to the mill-landing.”
“I will, Rube.”
Tom jumped aboard, and we were off and up the lake. It was now getting well on in the afternoon, and by the time we approached the island the sun was setting.
“We’ll have to be careful,” I said; “Carney may be on the lookout for us.”
“He wouldn’t dare to fire at us,” laughed Darrow.
But I shook my head. Carney was a desperate character, and I would have felt safer had I had a gun on board, which, unfortunately, was not the case.
At length we rounded the south shore of Rock Island, and stood up for the north end. As we did so Darrow drew attention to another craft directly ahead.
“There’s a boat I’ve seen a number of times in the past few days,” he said. “If I ain’t mistakenit’s the same I saw towing that raft behind it—the raft that I guess was the Catch Me on her side.”
I looked, and was sure I had seen the boat before. Then we ran closer to her, and just as we passed around a bend I caught sight of the boat’s side, and recognized her as the same craft the two strangers had used on their visit to the mill.