_Chapter XVI_
WHAT HAPPENED IN THE WINE CELLAR
"Sorry to be so late," greeted the bank's cashier. "My car broke down.I've had to walk five miles, at least--" He broke off, catching sight ofDorothy and Bill for the first time.
"Hello!" he exclaimed, "what are you two doing here?"
"They are waiting for you to bump them off," replied Sadie with a sneer.
"Why, what do you mean?" Perkins gazed breathlessly around the room.
"Just what I said. You are going to stop their mouths for good--and doit right now. We've been shilly-shallying over this business longenough!"
Perkins' glance took in the others seated at the table.
"Has she gone nuts?" he asked.
"We have decided that you are to do what my daughter has justmentioned," said the Doctor smoothly.
"And I," retorted Perkins angrily, "tell you here and now that I will beno party to murder!"
Sadie drew her revolver.
"Well--if he won't, I will!" she began when her wrist was caught in agrip of steel, then twisted up and backward.
"Drop it, little one--drop it--or I'll break your arm," said Mike.
Sadie shrieked with pain, but she dropt her revolver and Mike pocketedit.
"I'll get you for that!" she screamed.
Her father leaned forward in his chair. "Shut up, you idiot!" he saidcoldly and deliberately slapped her across the mouth with his open hand."We've had enough from you for one evening. Mike was perfectly right tostop you. Perkins is going to do this job, and you know _why_ he isgoing to do it. I'll have no more argument from you. Keep still now,until you have my permission to speak."
"But I tell you I'll have nothing to do with it," repeated Perkins, andattempted to light with trembling fingers the half-burned cigar he waschewing.
Doctor Martinelli swung round in his chair. "You'll do as you're told,"he said through clenched teeth. "A little persuasion of the kind I havein mind has been known to make braver men than you change theiropinions, Mr. Harry Perkins!" He glared at the cashier, who dropped hiseyes--and the cigar--at one and the same moment.
"That's the way, Doc," applauded Mike, getting to his feet. "We've beensittin' round this table so long we're all getting stale. What we need'sa little excitement."
He pointed to Dorothy and Bill.
"I'll take these two down stairs and stick them in the old wine cellar.They'll keep fine and dandy down there. Later, when Mr. Perkins seesreason he can run down and finish them off. While I'm gone, Johnny, youbeat it out to the woodshed and fetch in a length of garden hose." Heguffawed--"I guess you know that trick--the bulls have made it prettypopular?"
The lame man smiled and nodded.
"O.K. Doc?"
"It's a good plan, Mike. Go ahead with it."
Mike took a flashlight from his pocket and beckoned to the prisoners.
Sadie pushed back her chair and jumped up. "Tie that girl or she'll getaway!" she ordered.
"Pipe down!" thundered the gangster and there was an ugly gleam in hiseyes as he glared at her. "Give me any more of your lip, Sadie, andyou'll take a trip downstairs yourself. Some day when you ain't got athing to do fer a couple of weeks, try gettin' outa that place with thedoor locked. Run along now--murder yourself, if you have to--youred-headed bag of hot wind!"
He turned his back on the furious woman and motioned Bill and Dorothy towalk before him into the kitchen.
"Well, of all the nerve--" Dorothy heard Sadie cry sharply as HarryPerkins broke in with--"Look here, Doctor Martinelli, do you really meanto--"
Mike shut the door, cutting the argument in the front room to a meremumble of voices.
"Down those stairs to the right and then straight ahead, you two," hedirected, pointing the way with his flashlight--"No tricks, either,unless you want your buddie hurt worse than he is now, Miss Wildcat!"
Dorothy, with her arm about Bill's shoulders, stopped at the head of thecellar stairs.
"I think you told me you were getting two thousand dollars for yourshare in the New Canaan robbery," she murmured.
"That's right--a coupla grand," he acknowledged. "Not much, but when Imade the deal, I wasn't as strong with Doc as I am now."
"If you let us go, my father will pay you ten thousand!"
"Nothing doing!"
"And I promise you he'll use his influence in your behalf, as well. Itseems to me a mighty easy way to make a lot of money--"
Mike shrugged his shoulders.
"Maybe it is," he admitted. "But then you see, I've never double-crosseda pal yet, and I'm not going to start at this late day. Cut the chatternow--there's nothing doing."
"You won't regret it, Mike."
The door behind them opened slowly, revealing Doctor Martinelli's slightfigure.
"My judgment of human nature is rarely at fault," the little man went onrather pompously. "I believed I could trust you--now I know it. There'sa full share coming to you on this deal, Mike. Cut along now, but hurryback. As soon as you've locked them up, I'll need your help withPerkins."
The door closed once more and Mike waved toward the gaping black of thecellar stairs.
"You heard what Doc said--down you go!"
"Over there to the left," he directed when his two prisoners reached thebottom and Dorothy helped Billy to hobble across the damp, earthernfloor, in the shifting rays of Mike's torch.
Ahead in the wall of native stone that formed the foundation of thehouse, they could see a door of heavy wood, at least six inches thick.Mike pushed it fully open. For a moment Dorothy thought of jumping him,but now she saw he carried a revolver in his free hand.
"In you go!" he said roughly, elbowing them over the threshold. Butinstead of locking them in, he stepped over the sill and gently pulledthe door shut behind him.
Bill, anticipating the end, stepped between Dorothy and their captor.
"Let her go, Mike. Her father and mine will give you anything you ask.Shoot me if you must--but let her go. Use two shots, and the others willthink--tell them--"
"Quiet, please," whispered Mike fiercely, and Dorothy started, for hespoke now with the voice of a well bred Englishman.
"Neither of you will be shot tonight, if you do as I tell you.Here--take this automatic, Miss Dixon. And listen carefully, both ofyou. I've only a minute. You'll find a few useful articles under thepile of sacking in that far corner," he went on, pointing into the gloombehind them. "Then, get out of the window as quickly as you can--thebars are sawn through. Your car is still parked where you left it. Gostraight home. That, I think, will be all at present."
Bill and Dorothy stared at him in wide-eyed amazement.
"Who are you, anyway?" the girl whispered, peering up at him.
"To ease your minds," he smiled, "I'm not exactly what I pretend to be.And I want to apologize to you, Miss Dixon, for the exceedingly crudegame I was forced to play with you. The Doctor had his suspicions of me,until just a few moments ago, I believe, and he has had us watched eversince I brought you here. But now he has proved his judgment to besound--" he chuckled to himself--"and has ceased his strictsurveillance."
He paused a moment then went on, more seriously. "My name is MichaelConway. I am a detective-inspector in the Criminal InvestigationDepartment of New Scotland Yard. I've trailed certain members of theMartinelli gang all the way from London. My plans seem to havemiscarried this evening; otherwise, you need not have been put to allthis inconvenience. Remember that the house has ears, and be as quiet aspossible. Good night--and good luck!"
The door swung shut behind him. They heard him turn the key in the lockand he was gone.
"Gee Whiz!" muttered Bill, "and I thought--"
"Sh--Bill!" cautioned Dorothy. "Never mind now. Stand where you are, oryou'll break your neck in this darkness."
Her voice came from farther off now. He knew she was feeling her wayacross the room toward the corner.
Presently a light appeared and she spok
e again.
"I've found the things," she told Bill. "Besides this flash, there'sanother automatic, a small ax, and a chisel."
"Thank heaven for that," said Bill. "Now I've a chance of getting thesehandcuffs off!"
"But we can't do it in here," Dorothy objected. "Remember what Mike saidabout making a noise. We'll have to wait till we get outside. There'sthe window. It's going to be a tight squeeze."
Her light showed them they were standing in a narrow room, walled likethe cellar in native stone. Along the sides, piled one on top of theother were wine casks, which proved to be empty. The damp air was heavywith the fumes of evaporating lees. High to one side was a small barredwindow.
"Lean against this barrel, so it won't slip," whispered Dorothy, andclambered up to the window. "Yes, the bars are loose!"
She removed the short lengths of rusty iron from the open frame andcarefully laid them on the ground outside.
"Now the paraphernalia--" She placed ax, chisel and revolver beside thebars on the grass and descended to Bill's side.
"Guess I'll have to go first," observed Bill. "We'll never make it,otherwise. Give me a boost, will you?"
They were both breathless and nearly exhausted by the time Bill had beenpushed up and out of the window. Dorothy was so tired it took everyounce of her waning strength to drag herself through the narrow apertureafter him. They rested for some minutes in the long, dewy grass,gathering strength and courage for the waiting ordeal.
As soon as they began to move away from the house, Dorothy realized thatBill was near collapse. Even with her supporting arm, he lurched andstumbled through the tangled undergrowth.
"It's that old hole in my leg," he grumbled in answer to her question."It's opened up again--been bleeding pretty freely. You'd better leaveme here."
He sank wearily to the ground behind a cluster of elder bushes, abouttwo hundred yards from the house, the weight of his body pulling Dorothyto her knees beside him.
"I'll do nothing of the kind!" she whispered fiercely.
"But you must--I can't go any further," his voice trailed off weakly.
With a quick movement she felt for his wound in the darkness andtightened the bandage.
"We'll wait here till you're strong enough to walk, that's all. If I tryto run the car up here, they'll hear it from the house. There's no useto try to cut off your handcuffs, either. The least sound will bringthat gang down on us."
"Not the car--" he mumbled. "The amphibian--beat it for the Loening--andbring help."
Dorothy bit her lip. With Bill delirious there was nothing she could dobut remain with him.
"That's all right," she said, trying to calm him--"We'll stay here tillyou feel stronger, Bill. Then I'll help you down to the car."
Bill had been lying on his side, his head pillowed on her knees. Now hewriggled into a sitting position.
"I'm pretty well all in," he admitted, "but I'm not off my head--notyet--if that's what you're thinking.--Didn't I tell you about theamphibian?"
"You certainly did not----" Dorothy's tone was relieved, yet excited.
"Well, here's the dope, then. She's parked in the next valley--over thathill behind the house. You'll find her under the trees at the edge of awood lot. I flew up here several nights ago. Wanted a means of quickgetaway, if it became necessary. Frank met me over there and drove mehome. It's a rotten landing place. You'll find it worse for the takeoff. You'll be taking an awful chance to do it."
Dorothy got to her feet. "You certainly are the one and onlylife-saver," she breathed joyfully. "Every time we get really up againstit--you've a plane up your sleeve or something. Don't worry--I'll fly itall right!"
"Hop it for Danbury, then. When you get there, land in the fair grounds.Phone the police and tell them to run down in a car and that you'll flythem back here. You can land on the lake. The bus has a searchlight--"
He broke off as the sharp detonation of an automatic came from thedirection of the house. This was followed by shouts and the sound of ascuffle. Presently all was quiet once more.
"Something's up!" said Dorothy.
Bill nodded gravely. "I wonder if they haven't found we're not in thewine cellar--if they've charged Mike Conway with our escape?"
"Well, I'm going over to see."
"No, you're not--I'll go."
But by the time Bill had struggled to his feet, Dorothy had run to thehouse and was peering between the shutters of the side window. She stoodthere for a moment, then ran back to him.
"The Doctor has been shot," she gasped. "Not badly hurt, Ithink--evidently took it in the shoulder. But they've got Mike. He'stied hand and foot and bound to a chair!"
"That's bad," said Bill slowly.
"It's awful! They'll surely shoot him before I can get the police here!"
Bill hobbled back toward the shelter of the bushes with Dorothy's armabout his waist.
"Some break!" he said disgustedly, as he sank to the ground. "I'm out ofthe running and you can't hold up that bunch single handed--"
"I can try it though, Bill."
"Not if I have anything to say, you won't. There are too many of'em--it's impossible. But what we're going to do now, I haven't theslightest idea!"