*VIII.*
Without further hesitation Torrence hitched the hook onto the cornice,and throw down the other end of the rope. He then, having obtained mypromise to follow, commenced letting himself over to the building below.I slipped after him as quickly as possible, until we found ourselvesstanding side by side upon the lower level. It was here that I againdemanded an explanation, though foolishly enough, when I had come sofar; retreat being now out of the question, as the hook had beendisengaged from above, by a dexterous twirl of the rope and caughtwithout striking. He only answered by saying:
"If you value your life and liberty, you will follow me as quickly aspossible!"
I saw it was no time to hold back. We slid from roof to roof, Torrencealways unloosing the hook above, and catching it before it struck. Atlast we found ourselves on the top of a low building, overlooking analley, at the head of which a solitary gas lamp was burning. Here wepaused.
"I'd give a thousand pounds if that light was out!" said Torrence, notseeming to know how to proceed. Then he added:
"Now, listen! An officer will be due in about five minutes. We muststop where we are until he has gone; then we must get down into thealley and cut for our lives!"
We crouched in the shadow of a chimney and waited. The alley and thestreet beyond seemed equally deserted. There was no sound, save for thatof an occasional cab, or the shout of a passing reveler in the distance.Fortunately there was a light fog and if the wall below was not tooclosely windowed, I thought we had a fair chance of escape; though whyhe had not come by the front door of the Mustapha was a riddle I saw noprospect of guessing.
"Quiet!" said Torrence, suddenly pressing his hand against my shoulder,"he is coming!"
There was the slow even step of a policeman. I could hear him pause ashe reached the end of the alley, and imagined him looking up it to seeif all were well. Presumably he was satisfied, for the step graduallyreceded into the distance, and the street became quiet again. I wasintensely excited and resolved to elude the vigilance of the officer ifit were possible to do so.
"This way!" said Torrence, stepping softly along the edge of the gutterin search of a suitable anchorage for the hook. But the place lookeddangerous. There was an attic window hard by, which we must avoid, andthe gutter flared too broadly for a holding. Fortunately there wasplenty of rope, as the drop to the ground could not have been more thantwenty feet.
"Now don't make a sound for your life. I am going to take a loop aroundthe chimney. There is a blank wall where we must drop, but wholefamilies are asleep beneath us. Follow me and hold your breath. If wecan once gain the air ship we are safe!"
It was the first intimation he had given of where we were going, and Iwas relieved to be assured that we were headed for our own property,though why we should be afraid to go there openly was the mystery.
We passed the line around the chimney and made a loop with the hook, andthen Torrence, grasping the rope firmly, disappeared over the edge intothe alley below. I followed him as quickly as possible, but must havemade more noise than I intended, for scarcely had I touched the groundthan a window opened above me, and a man's head was thrust out.
"Hello, there!" he cried; and then seeing the rope, which was hanging infull view of the gaslight, shouted at the top of his voice:
"Police! Stop thief! Police!"
"Run for your life!" cried Torrence, "but don't lose sight of me!"
He led the way down the alley at a lively pace; I followed, thoughfarther off than I liked. It was only a short distance to where astreet crossed at right angles. Turning to the left we dashed down thethoroughfare at full speed, and before I had gone fifty yards, ransquare into the arms of a policeman.
"No so fast, young man!" said the officer, holding me firmly, "what'sall this about?"
"What's it about," I answered indignantly; "I'm trying to catch thethief, and there he is." I pointed to Torrence, who at that minuteturned another corner, "and if you'd do your duty and help, instead ofstanding here holding me like an idiot, we'd have him!" I added.
"And what's he done?" asked the man stupidly, evidently mortified at hismistake. "Has he robbed you?"
"I should say so. He's grabbed my watch and chain and made away withit; and we'll never get it back again either, if you keep me here muchlonger."
The man released his hold. Fortunately my coat was buttoned up so thatthe chain was covered. The policeman had only got a glimpse ofTorrence, who passed while he was on the opposite side of the street,but he was now convinced that he was in error and had caught the wrongman, and so joined me in the pursuit. Scarcely had we turned the cornerafter Torrence than we met that gentleman walking very leisurely towardus.
"Did you see a fellow running this way?" asked the officer excitedly.
"Yes," said my brother; "he's just ahead of you! If you run I think youmay catch him!"
Having delivered himself of this information, the gentleman walked onleisurely; not, however, without having given me the tip to meet him onthe lower corner. And then to divest myself of all suspicion, shouldany still be lurking in the officer's mind, I feigned considerablefeeling at the loss of my watch, and even went so far as to offer areward for it, paying the man ten shillings down on account. Of courseI gave him a fictitious name and address. It was a capital ruse, if Ido say it myself, and worked like a pair of charms.
As soon as I was free I hurried down the street to join Torrence, whowas waiting quietly for me on the corner.
"And now the sooner we get out of this neighborhood the better!" hesaid, leading the way quickly down the thoroughfare; "but mind, we mustnot run. Not a step."
We then hastened along all manner of back streets, till I thought wewere lost, but suddenly emerged on the bank of the river, at a smallwharf, where, to my surprise, I found the launch already waiting, withsteam up. In an instant we were aboard, and in a couple of minutes morehad shoved off, and were out in the channel of the river.
"Give her her head!" called Torrence to one of his men. "We have losttime, and must make it up!"
We were soon shoving down the stream at a tremendous pace; the ghostlyhouses on either side rushing by, and giving me a happy sense of reliefafter our scary adventure.
"I'm glad we're free at last!" I said, cuddling up to Torrence in thestern of the boat.
"Don't crow before you're cut of the woods!" he answered. "We shan't besafe until we're in the air ship, above the heads of all of them!"
"Not knowing who the _them_ are, I'm not in a position to disagree withyou!" I answered.
"Nor to agree with me, either," said he; "but wait 'till we're up in theclouds; then I'll tell you all about it."
The launch trembled under the pressure of steam put upon her. The grimdocks, just showing their heads through the darkness, and the blackswirling water beneath, made it seem as if we were rushing down somegiant millrace. It was the stillest hour of night, and Torrence said wemust make Gravesend before dawn, which at that season of the year, wouldnot be long in coming.
As usual, a tremendous fog came piling in from the sea, as we swept downthe river; and before reaching our landing, we were enveloped in a densecloud-like vapor which wet us to the skin. Luckily our pilot knew hisbusiness, and I believe that with points of the compass given, andrevolutions of the screw, he could have landed us with his eyes shut.However that may have been, we got there without an accident; and whenready to go ashore, I saw Torrence put a pile of money into the hands ofeach of the men; at the same time, he said:
"Boys, she's yours! I shall never want her again!"
Then leading the way with his lantern, we hastened forward towardWetherbee's barn.
The air was thick, and the road difficult to find, but we stumbled alongwithout a word, until reaching an old fence, where Torrence suddenlystopped.
"We are nearly there," he said, putting his hand on my shoulder, andspeaking impressively. "The air ship is ready to carry us aloft at atou
ch from my hand; but for certain reasons which I cannot now explain,there is an obstacle in the way of our leaving which we must overcomebefore the approach, of dawn. It is this. The barn is surrounded by aforce of armed men, whose object is to prevent our escape. I will tellyou all about this as soon as we are out of their reach; meanwhile, ifyou, Gurt, will stand by me, and do exactly as I say, we shall outwitthem. No human being in this wide world understands the mechanism ofthis thing but me. At this hour we may reasonably expect thoselubberheads to be asleep. We must crawl in among them stealthily, climbup into the machine and be off before one of them suspects that anythingis wrong. If by any accident they should be aroused and attempt todetain us, why I intend to plow through them like a reaper in a wheatfield. There are, however, two points in this programme which must becarefully observed, and adopted if necessary. The first is, if we aresuspected, drop immediately on the ground, and assume to be one of thewatchers by feigning sleep, and a due suspicion of the others. Second,if we find them awake and recognizing us, fight if necessary; but reachthe air ship under any circumstances, for once in it we can plow themdown like chaff. Whatever you do, be sure and take your cue from me,and follow close upon my heels."
Torrence blew out the light, and threw the lantern away as a uselessencumbrance, and we plodded along through the dark. I confess that myanticipation of trouble did not put me in the most cheerful frame ofmind, but I resolved to do my best and stand by my leader at allhazards. Presently we climbed a fence and I knew that I was inWetherbee's field; the one in which the barn stood. We moved stealthilyon, over a grassy sod, and once, as I looked aloft, thought I saw thefaint flickering of a star, and called Torrence's attention to it as agood omen.
"We don't want any stars to-night," he whispered; "the denser the fogthe better."
Suddenly he stopped.
"We are there!" he said; "now remember!"
We felt our way with utmost caution among the sleeping bodies around us,examining the ground carefully with each foot before setting it down.Our progress was naturally slow, but after awhile I saw the dark outlineof the barn looming up through the fog, in the first faint intimation ofapproaching dawn. We were getting along famously, and beginning tocongratulate ourselves upon our success, when Torrence reached for myhand and then with his mouth against my ear, said:
"Now, be doubly careful; we are about to enter the building. They arethick as hail upon the floor!"
We crept slowly forward among legs and arms. A dozen men were snoringaround us, and one fellow turned over, muttering something in his sleep,as my boot brushed against his shoulder. The ladder was gained. Weclimbed up the side of the great machine without a sound, and took ourplaces within, as best we could in the darkness. Again Torry's mouthwas at my ear.
"I must wait a minute," he said, "until my eyes become accustomed to thelight. As soon as I can see the outlines a little better we are off!"
The silence was only broken by the breathing of the sleeping men aroundus. I was in an agony of suspense fearing there would be some hitch atthe last--something wrong about the machine which might prevent itsrising. The time seemed eternal. But the great open end of the barn wasgrowing in clearness of outline. The fog was friendly; but the dawn wasapproaching. Again my brother's hand was upon my shoulder.
"Now brace yourself!" he said; "we are going!"
The air ship trembled. It was a sensation never experienced before.The vibrations seemed to pass through the innermost fibers of my being.I felt that we were being lifted in the air, and then that we wereslowly floating out at the open end of the barn.
There was a shout and a curse and a call to arms. Noiseless as ourmovements had been, the men were aroused, and in an instant a score ofvoices were calling and yelling in every direction:
"Stop thief! Surround the barn! Where are they?"
A hideous medley of curses, groans, and sounds of fighting rose throughthe darkness from every quarter of the field; but the air ship was farabove, and hidden from eight in the dense gloom of the morning fog.
"Let them fight it out among themselves," said Torrence, drawing a longsigh of relief; "we shall never see them again!"
We rose steadily and slowly for several minutes, Torrence saying itwould be necessary to be well above the houses, as we were going to passdirectly over London and must take no risk of a collision in thedarkness. Presently I could feel that we were sweeping ahead. Themovement was perfect, and as we sped rapidly forward through the denseatmosphere, catching an occasional glint of a street lamp below, allsense of fear departed. The trembling had ceased; and I felt as thoughwe were floating rapidly away on the breast of a cloud, or upon, theback of some monstrous bird; only here there was no effort. It was theonly element comprehended. I could imagine nothing more sublime, moreexhilarating. It was the absolutely finished poetry of flight. Beyondthis, there was a feeling of safety far surpassing that of earthlylocomotion, possibly due to the knowledge that we were lifted clearabove all obstacles; that no uncertain switch, or ill-timed train couldaffect us. On we swept, in an ecstasy of rapture, realizing neither ourspeed nor place, engrossed only with the novelty of our situation, andwatching the coming dawn.
Suddenly a great, dazzling object not twenty yards away flashed past us.
"_Great God!_" exclaimed Torrence, rising, "I thought I was too high forthat."
"What was it?" I asked in amazement.
"The cross on top of St. Paul's!"
We had narrowly missed it, and caught sight of it, just as it reflectedthe first rays of the rising sun, in a rift of the fog, and just as Iwas congratulating myself upon being above every earthly object. But itwas a clear miss and no harm done.
Presently the fog cleared and we looked down upon the great city ofLondon speeding away below.
"And where are we going, old man?" I inquired at last, hardly able tocontain myself with the strange delight of this new sensation of flying.
"To the North Pole!" said Torrence, holding fast to his levers, screws,and steering apparatus.