CHAPTER XII.
While these things had been going on at the cavern, and Captain Flinthad been pretending to use his influence with the Indians for therecovery of Hellena, Carl Rosenthrall himself had not been idle in themeantime.
He had dealings with Indians of the various tribes along the river,and many from the Far North, and West, and he engaged them to makediligent search for his daughter among their people, offering temptingrewards to any who would restore her, or even tell him to a certainty,where she was to be found.
In order to induce Fire Cloud to restore her in case it should proveit was he who was holding her in captivity, he sent word to thatchief, that if he would restore his child, he would not only not havehim punished, but would load him with presents.
These offers, of course made through Captain Flint, who it wassupposed by Rosenthrall, had more opportunities than any one else ofcommunicating with the old chief.
How likely they would have been to reach the chief, even if he hadbeen the real culprit, the reader can guess.
In fact he had done all in his power to impress the Indian that to puthimself in the power of Rosenthrall, would be certain death to him.
Thus more than a month passed without bringing to the distractedfather any tidings of his missing child.
We may as well remark here, that Rosenthrall had lost his wife manyyears before, and that Hellena was his only child, so that in losingher he felt that he had lost everything.
The Indians whom he had employed to aid him in his search, informedhim that they could learn nothing of his daughter among their people,and some of them who were acquainted with Fire Cloud, told him thatthe old chief protested he knew nothing of the matter.
Could it be that Flint was playing him false?
He could hardly think that it was Flint himself who had stolen hischild, for what motive could he have in doing it?
The more he endeavored to unravel the mystery, the stranger and moremysterious it became.
Notwithstanding the statements to the contrary made by the Indians,Flint persisted in giving it as his belief, that Fire Cloud hadcarried off the girl and was still holding her a prisoner. He evensaid that the chief had admitted as much to him. Yet he was sure thatif he was allowed to manage the affair in his own way, he should beable to bring the Indian to terms.
It was about this time that the dark suspicions began to be whisperedabout that Captain Flint was in some way connected with the horriblepiracies that had recently been perpetrated on the coast, if he werenot in reality the leader of the desperate gang himself, by whom theyhad been perpetrated.
Those suspicions as we have seen, coming to Flint's own ears, hadcaused him to plan another project still more horrible than the one hewas pursuing, in order to quiet those suspicions until he should havean opportunity of capturing the rich prize which was to be thefinishing stroke to his achievements in this part of the world.
The suspicions in regard to Captain Flint had reached the ears ofRosenthrall, as well as others, who had been secretly concerned withhim in his smuggling transactions, although in no way mixed up withhis piracies.
Rosenthrall feared that in case these suspicions against Flint shouldlead to his arrest, the whole matter would come out and be exposed,leading to the disgrace if not the ruin, of all concerned.
It was therefore with a feeling of relief, while joining in thegeneral expression of horror, that he heard of a most terrible piracyhaving been committed on the coast. Captain Flint's vessel was lyingin port, and he was known to be in the city.
There was one thing too connected with this affair that seemed toprove conclusively, that the suspicions heretofore harboured againstthe captain were unjust.
And that was the report brought by the crew of a fishing smack, thatthey had seen a schooner answering to the description given of thepirate, just before this horrible occurrence took place.
Captain Flint now assumed the bearing of a man whose fair fame hadbeen purified of some foul blot stain that had been unjustly cast uponit, one who had been honorably acquitted of base charges broughtagainst him by enemies who had sought his ruin.
He had not been ignorant, he said, of the dark suspicions that hadbeen thrown out against him.
But he had trusted to time to vindicate his character, and he had nottrusted in vain.
Among the first to congratulate Captain Flint on his escape from thedanger with which he had been threatened, was Carl Rosenthrall.
He admitted that he had been to some extent, tainted with suspicion,in common with others, for which he now asked his forgiveness.
The pardon was of course granted by the captain, coupled with hopethat he would not be so easily led away another time.
The facts in regard to this last diabolical act of the pirates werethese.
Captain Flint, in accordance with the plan which he had decided upon,and with which the reader has already been made acquainted, fitted outa small fishing vessel, manned by some of the most desperate of hiscrew, and commanded by the Parson and Old Ropes.
Most of the men went on board secretly at night, only three menappearing on deck when she set sail.
In fact, no one to look at her, would take her for anything but anordinary fishing smack.
They had not been out long, before they came in sight of a vesselwhich they thought would answer their purpose. It was a small brigengaged in trading along the coast, and such a vessel as underordinary circumstances they would hardly think worth noticing. Buttheir object was not plunder this time, but simply to do somethingthat would shield them from the danger that threatened them on shore.
The time seemed to favor them, for the night was closing in and therewere no other vessels in sight.
On the pirates making a signal of distress, the commander of the brigbrought his vessel to, until the boat from the supposed smack couldreach him, and the crew could make their wants known.
To his surprise six men fully armed sprang upon his deck.
To resist this force there were only himself, and two men, allunarmed.
Of these the pirates made short work not deigning to answer thequestions put to them by their unfortunate victims.
When they had murdered all on board, and thrown overboard such of thecargo as they did not want they abandoned the brig, knowing from thedirection of the wind, and the state of the tide, that she would soondrift on the beach, and the condition in which she would be found,would lead people to believe that she had been boarded by pirates, andall on board put to death.
After having accomplished this hellish act, they turned their coursehomeward, bringing the report that they had seen the notoriouspiratical schooner which had committed so many horrible depredations,leading every one to conclude that this was another of her terribledeeds.
Captain Flint, satisfied with the result of this last achievement,felt himself secure for the present.
He could now without fear of interruption, take time to mature hisplans for carrying out his next grand enterprise, which was to be thecrowning one of all his adventures, and which was to enrich allengaged in it.
Fire Cloud; Or, The Mysterious Cave. A Story of Indians and Pirates. Page 12
