The Carter Girls' Mysterious Neighbors

“Boss, ain’t yer gonter han’ us over?” asked James Hanks, who was rapidly recovering.

“Naturally not! You can thank your stars that you are too big a fool to be trusted to face a judge,” snarled Herz.

The three negroes who were hanging to the car were jubilant at the news.

“I sho’ is lucky,” said one. “I ain’t nebber had no sinse an’ it looks lak it done he’p me out a heap ter be so foolish lak.”

“It would be much easier to shoot them all and testify that they endeavored to escape,” suggested Herz with a humorous twist to his ugly mouth.

“Oh, boss! Please don’t do no sich a deed,” whined James Hanks. “I ain’t never a-goin’ ter let on that you – ”

“I know you are not!” and Herz put a cold revolver against the negro’s temple. “You are not even going to let on anything here in this car. Now you keep your mouth shut, and shut tight or I’ll blow your head off. We’ve got no use for people who fail.”

“Heavens! What a Prussian you are, Herz!” laughed the count.

Richmond was reached in safety. Money was handed out to each one of the grateful negroes with instructions to take the first train north and then to separate.

“They’ll catch you sure if you stick together. But if they do catch you, you keep your black mouths shut about anything connected with the Count de Lestis or me, – do you understand?”

They understood and made off as quickly as they could.

“Ain’t he a tur’ble slave driver, though?” said the bandy-legged one, and the others agreed.

No time for rest for the occupants of the little red car. Back they went over the muddy roads as fast as the wonderful engine could take them. It was just dawn when they reached a certain spot in the road on the way to the court-house where they considered it most likely they could work their machinations.

There was a sharp curve with a steep embankment on the outer edge. The car was carefully steered until two wheels were almost over the precipice. Then the count alighted, first turning off his engine. With shoulders to the wheel, the two men pushed until the machine toppled over into the ditch.

“There, my darling! I hated to do it. I hope you are not much hurt,” said the count whimsically.

“Now roll on after her,” and Herz pushed his employer over the embankment. Then he jumped down himself and wallowed in the mud.

“Here’s blood a-plenty for both of us. You can furnish blue blood but I have good red blood for two.”

He deliberately gashed his arm with his penknife and smeared his face with blood, and then rubbed it all over the countenance of the laughing count, who seemed to look upon the whole affair as a kind of college boy’s prank.

“Now your ankle is sprained and you can’t walk, so I’ll go to the nearest farmhouse for assistance and there telephone Mr. Sutton that his prisoners have escaped. You were pinioned under the car and I had to dig you out, – remember!”

“All right, but I wish you would have the sprained ankle and let me go for aid. I’m beastly hungry and besides I don’t want to be laid up just now. I rather wanted to take a walk with Miss Douglas Carter this afternoon. Heavens! Wasn’t she beautiful last night?”

“Humph!”

“Much more beautiful than her sister, although I tell you that that Helen was very wonderful, especially after her hair came down and she had played angel. I wish I could have taken that stupid doctor’s car instead of my own little red devil. I should have enjoyed ditching his car, but we needed the endurance and speed of my own darling.”

“You had better be having some pain now in case a traveler comes along the road. I’ll get help as soon as possible;” and Herz went off without any comment on the comparative beauty of the two Misses Carter. Douglas was to him the most beautiful person in all the world, but he hated himself for loving her, feeling instinctively that his love was hopeless. His very name was against him and should she ever know the truth – but pshaw! These stupid people never would find out things. They were as easy to hoodwink as the darkies themselves.

Mr. Sutton’s fury knew no bounds when he got the message from Herz that the prisoners had escaped. It was with difficulty that he composed himself sufficiently to ask after the welfare of the two gentlemen who had undertaken the job of landing the negroes safely in jail.

“The Count de Lestis has sprained his ankle and his face is all smeared with blood, – I could not tell how great were his injuries,” lied the unblushing one over the telephone. “I spent hours getting him from under the car. Fortunately the mud was soft and deep and he is not seriously injured.”

“Just where was the accident?”

“At that sharp curve in the road about two miles this side of the court-house, – just beyond the bridge.”

“Umhum! Do you need any assistance?”

“No, I thank you. I’ll get some mules to right the car. I think I am mechanic enough to repair the engine.”

“How about a doctor for your friend? Dr. Wright is still with the Carters.”

“Oh – er – ah – I think he can get along very well without calling in a physician. I have bandaged his ankle.”

“You did a good deal before you gave warning as to the escape of the prisoners.”

There was no answer to this remark, so without further ceremony Mr. Sutton hung up the receiver.

There was to be no rest for the weary, it seemed. A search party must be called and the country scoured for the missing men.

CHAPTER XXIII

VISITORS AT PRESTON

Dr. Wright was pretty sure that James Hanks would not have been able to travel very far after the knockout blow he had received, so when they could not find him in the woods near by it was decided he must be in hiding in some cabin. The search continued but no trace was found of the missing men.

“Sounds shady to me,” declared Lewis Somerville.

“The idea! You can’t mean that the count and Mr. Herz deliberately let the men get away!” exclaimed Douglas.

“I believe they are capable of it.”

“Lewis! How can you?”

“I tell you I mistrust them both. I don’t like their names – I don’t like their looks – I don’t like their actions.”

“Nor do I,” declared Billy Sutton, who had dropped in that morning to have a chat after the ball. Everybody was too exhausted to think of going on with any very arduous work.

“Well, I think that after you accepted the count’s hospitality you have no right to say things about him,” broke in Nan.

“Well, hasn’t he accepted the hospitality of this country, and what is he doing? Don’t you know it is that fool darky school that got all those poor nigs thinking that Grantly belonged to them? I bet Miss Helen agrees with me.”

“I – I – don’t know,” said Helen faintly. “I am all mixed up about the whole thing. Why should the count want to make trouble?”

The matter was discussed up and down by the young people. The males for the most part sided against the count and his secretary, the females, with the exception of Lucy and Mag, taking up for them. Mrs. Carter was most indignant that anyone should say anything disagreeable about a gentleman of such fine presence and engaging manners as the Count de Lestis, one who knew so well how to entertain and who was so lavish. As for the other man, that Herz, no doubt he was fully capable of any mischief. He could not dance, had no small talk, and held his fork in a very awkward way when at the table.

The count’s ankle did not keep him in very long. He was soon around, although he limped quite painfully. His only difficulty was in remembering which foot was injured. He renewed his attentions towards the ladies at Valhalla. His protestations of concern for the Misses Grant were warm and convincing. He offered to come stay with them or let Herz come until they were sure that the county had settled down into its usual state of safety and peace.

Those ladies were not in the least afraid, however, but still declared that nobody would ever hurt them. It turned out that on the night of what came so near being such a tragedy they had had in the house exactly three dollars and twenty cents. What an angry crowd it would have been when they began the division!

Now came stirring news in the daily papers.