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28 - Black Stars Campaign by Johnston McCulley · Black Stars Campaign

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  Speaker 1: Chapter twenty eight of Black Star's Campaign by Johnston McCully.
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  Speaker 1: This Liberalvox recording as in the public domain read by
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  Speaker 1: Yoganan Black Star's Campaign, Chapter twenty eight, The Alarm. The
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  Speaker 1: man realized in that instant that he had been tricked.
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  Speaker 1: He snarled like a beast in strength to one side.
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  Speaker 1: Max was upon him before he could utter a cry.
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  Speaker 1: They clashed, each trying to find the other's throat. Mux
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  Speaker 1: found that this would be no easy battle. Here was
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  Speaker 1: a man who was used to rough tactics such as
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  Speaker 1: did not meet with the approval of the Black Star.
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  Speaker 1: Across the room they fought, Max trying to get the advantage,
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  Speaker 1: trying to keep the other from shrieking for help, trying
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  Speaker 1: to get in a blow that would silence his adversary
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  Speaker 1: for a time. The servant fought to carry out his
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  Speaker 1: orders that Mux should be kept prisoner, but Mux fought
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  Speaker 1: with the knowledge that he was trying to prevent the
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  Speaker 1: Black Star from having success in his latest undertaking, trying
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  Speaker 1: to help roge Werberg to victory. Back and forth across
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  Speaker 1: the room they continued to battle. They fought fiercely, and
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  Speaker 1: both were becoming exhausted. Now they were on their feet wrestling.
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  Speaker 1: And now they were upon the floor, rolling over and doors,
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  Speaker 1: striking at each other, reaching for each other's throat and eyes,
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  Speaker 1: And finally Max's managed to get the grasp for which
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  Speaker 1: he had been striving. The servant gave a groan of pain,
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  Speaker 1: and his hold on the valet relaxed. Mux choked, choked,
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  Speaker 1: and finally sprang to his feet and looked down at
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  Speaker 1: the unconscious man. He would be unconscious for some time.
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  Speaker 1: Mux knew as he did not intend to waste precious
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  Speaker 1: time binding and gagging him. He ran to the door
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  Speaker 1: through which the Black Star had gone and stood there
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  Speaker 1: for a moment to listen. He heard nobody outside. Remember
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  Speaker 1: that nobody had been attracted with the sound of combat,
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  Speaker 1: Max lifted the curtain, opened the door, and stepped into
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  Speaker 1: a dark hall. He had no weapon, no electric torch,
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  Speaker 1: not so much as a match in his pocket. He
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  Speaker 1: ran lightly to the end of the hall and found
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  Speaker 1: another door. This he opened cautiously, an inch at a time.
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  Speaker 1: He found that it opened into a room that was
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  Speaker 1: dimly lighted, a room that did not seem to have
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  Speaker 1: seen much Usemux hurried in and closed and locked the
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  Speaker 1: door behind him. On the opposite side there was another door.
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  Speaker 1: Mux listened at that for a time and then opened it.
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  Speaker 1: He found himself facing another hall. He hurried into it
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  Speaker 1: and went on. He came to a flight of stairs
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  Speaker 1: and went up. He realized now that he had been
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  Speaker 1: in a basement. At the top of the stairs was
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  Speaker 1: a large room, half filled with rusted massionary and empty
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  Speaker 1: packing cases. Max stooped and picked up from the floor
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  Speaker 1: a short iron bar. He had a weapon. Now on
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  Speaker 1: he went across a big room to a window. He
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  Speaker 1: looked out. He was in the manufacturing district. He knew
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  Speaker 1: this building was an old, abandoned factory. He could see
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  Speaker 1: the yard filled with scrape iron, the high fence around it,
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  Speaker 1: and beyond the empty street. Farther beyond that was a
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  Speaker 1: city flashing with light. Max started to raise the window.
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  Speaker 1: It stuck, but he managed to pright up with a
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  Speaker 1: bar of iron. Stopping now and then to listen and watch.
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  Speaker 1: He couldn't convince himself to the black had left no
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  Speaker 1: guard other than the servant now unconscious pillow that wasn't
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  Speaker 1: at all like the black Star. Max thought there must
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  Speaker 1: be a trap somewhere. Then he remembered that the Black
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  Speaker 1: Star had been forced to move quickly. Perhaps his headquarters
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  Speaker 1: had not been completed when the master criminal had taken
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  Speaker 1: up his abode there. Max got the window, put out
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  Speaker 1: his head and looked around. It was pitched out beneath
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  Speaker 1: the window and along the wall. Max got through, lowered
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  Speaker 1: himself and dropped. He crouched against the wall, listening, the
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  Speaker 1: bar of iron trusted in his hand, ready for instant fight.
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  Speaker 1: Evocation demanded. Then he started following the wall, going toward
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  Speaker 1: where he had noticed a gate in the high fence.
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  Speaker 1: He reached the corner of the building and glanced around
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  Speaker 1: it cautiously. Not far from him, he seemed to see
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  Speaker 1: something more. Max was not sure at first whether it
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  Speaker 1: was an elusive shadow or a man. He decided an
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  Speaker 1: instant later that it was a man. He scarcely breathed.
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  Speaker 1: Now it escaped thus far, and he did not intend
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  Speaker 1: to be stopped. He did not intend to waste much time.
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  Speaker 1: Even now, perhaps the Black Star and his followers were
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  Speaker 1: surrounding the Braniton residence. Even now, perhaps they were robbing
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  Speaker 1: women of their jewels, rendering the three men they had
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  Speaker 1: decided to object unconscious and preparing to carry them away
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  Speaker 1: like a shadow. The iron bar held ready, mus crept
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  Speaker 1: along the wall in the direction of the guard. He
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  Speaker 1: was within ten feet of him when a match glowed.
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  Speaker 1: The flame shot up, and Mux could see that the
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  Speaker 1: match was burning in the man's cupped hands, and that
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  Speaker 1: he was trying to light a cigar. Max covered the
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  Speaker 1: ten feet in two springs. The iron bar swept through
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  Speaker 1: the air and landed. There was a little whimper, and
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  Speaker 1: the Black Star's guard was stretched on the ground. Max
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  Speaker 1: turned and ran across the yard. He had decided not
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  Speaker 1: to try the gate, for there might be another guard there.
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  Speaker 1: He sprang, grasped the top of the fence, running the
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  Speaker 1: wrist that it might be charged, and deadly, found that
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  Speaker 1: such was not the case, and drew himself up. A
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  Speaker 1: moment later he was in the Streetmux never had been
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  Speaker 1: much of a runner, but he ran to night. Up
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  Speaker 1: the straight he went, his elbows glued to his sides.
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  Speaker 1: He head bent forward, stumbling and staggering over the rough cobblestones,
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  Speaker 1: but making excellent progress. There was no person on the street,
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  Speaker 1: no vehicle insight. This was an old manufacturing district far
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  Speaker 1: down the river, where there was nothing to attract people.
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  Speaker 1: While a few street lights were burning and they were
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  Speaker 1: far apart. Almost breathless, MutS ran on. His heart was
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  Speaker 1: pawning at his ribs, his side pained, his breathing was labored.
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  Speaker 1: He turned a corner into another street and continued running.
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  Speaker 1: Would he never reach a telephone? Would he never run
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  Speaker 1: across a member of the police forces. Was there nobody
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  Speaker 1: at the end of the town who could help him?
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  Speaker 1: Block after block he ran, always looking for a light,
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  Speaker 1: for a dingy saloon, for some place where he could
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  Speaker 1: get into communication with police headquarters and give the alarm.
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  Speaker 1: He was in despair. He felt that he could not
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  Speaker 1: keep up much longer. Presently he saw lights ahead of
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  Speaker 1: him and felt hope and joy surge within him. Ahead,
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  Speaker 1: only two blocks away, was one of the barns of
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  Speaker 1: the City Street railway. Panting, exhausted, Mux tumbled through the
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  Speaker 1: entrance and ran into the little office. Half a dozen
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  Speaker 1: conductors and motormon sprang from their benches and hurried toward him.
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  Speaker 1: Quick telephone, Mux gasped police. He saw the telephone instrument
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  Speaker 1: on the wall and lurched toward it. He grasped the receiver,
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  Speaker 1: tore it from the hook began calling into the transmitter.
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  Speaker 1: One of the conductors was trying to talk to him.
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  Speaker 1: One of the motormen was trying to stop him from
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  Speaker 1: using the instrument until he explained. Mux threw out a
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  Speaker 1: foot and kicked him away. Pulliceid quarters, pullicad quarters. He shrieked,
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  Speaker 1: this headquarters, give me the chief. This is Mus. Yes, Mus, hurry,
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  Speaker 1: hurry that your chief, mister Berberck there, this is Mus.
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  Speaker 1: I just got away. Plakstas going going to Reid brand
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  Speaker 1: it a house. Get you twelts kinnad them swells and
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  Speaker 1: then Mux sank slowly against the wall. His words had
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  Speaker 1: electrified the conductors and motormen. They picked him up, and
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  Speaker 1: one of them continued the conversation, telling what had happened,
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  Speaker 1: But he soon found himself talking to nobody. The Chief
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  Speaker 1: had recknessed Mus's voice, and that had been enough. The
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  Speaker 1: conductors and motormen threw water into Muck's face, and he
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  Speaker 1: gasped and sat up. They helped him to a bench
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  Speaker 1: and sat him there while he fought for breath, grasped
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  Speaker 1: his chest to where it pained, struggled to regain his
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  Speaker 1: strength God to get there. He gasped where one of
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  Speaker 1: the men cried, Richard Branditton's house in the west hand.
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  Speaker 1: The foreman's flivvers out in front. He let us use it.
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  Speaker 1: A conductor cried, I don't go on duty for an
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  Speaker 1: eye yet. Come on. He ran toward the curb, and
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  Speaker 1: muck staggered after him. Mus scored into the cheap little car.
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  Speaker 1: The obliging conductor cranked it and sprang in beside him.
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  Speaker 1: We'll get there quick, or we'll shake every bolt nut
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  Speaker 1: off the blame thing, he said. The flivver lushed away
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  Speaker 1: down the street. It would have done Mus good had
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  Speaker 1: he been able to see the effect of his message.
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  Speaker 1: At police headquarters, the chiefs sprang from his chair, shrieking
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  Speaker 1: the news. Werberck and the sherriff dashed with him through
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  Speaker 1: the assembly room and out to the street, and as
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  Speaker 1: they went the chief shouted his orders. The reserves ran
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  Speaker 1: out and sprang into the automobiles, and deputies did the same. Good.
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  Speaker 1: Mus Erbert cried, as he drove like a fiend through
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  Speaker 1: the streets. I knew he'd do it if he had
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  Speaker 1: a chance. Werberk spung between two street cars, causing two
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  Speaker 1: motormen to turn pail for an instant, and then to
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  Speaker 1: curse joy riders strung out behind the powerful roadsters where
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  Speaker 1: the police cars. The sirens were not working. Now the
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  Speaker 1: Chief had issued orders that they were not to be
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  Speaker 1: used if it could be avoided, as it would indicate
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  Speaker 1: to the Black Star and his men that they were coming.
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  Speaker 1: Hope we get him this time, the Chief shrieked into
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  Speaker 1: Berberg cre drive, Man drive, Werbert drove. He forced the
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  Speaker 1: powerful roadster to its utmost. He called upon the expensive
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  Speaker 1: engine to pay for itself this night. He swung around
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  Speaker 1: other vehicles, dashed around corners, swept up hills like a comet.
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  Speaker 1: They passed through the retail district and got on a
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  Speaker 1: wider avenue where there was not so much traffic and
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  Speaker 1: where better speed could be made. And now they were
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  Speaker 1: in the section of better residences. Speeding on, they turned
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  Speaker 1: another corner and the Branniton House was but four blocks away.
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  Speaker 1: The end of chapter twenty eight