The Limited heeled sharply as it struck a curve and the whistle moaned awarning through the wetness of the night. A street light flickered by andin the flash of light that penetrated the car Bob caught a fleetingglimpse of a man in the aisle. The figure of the intruder was heavy andhe was hunched forward. There had been no chance to recognize the face,but Bob was sure now that the other man in the car was Hamsa.
Another street light shot a beam through the windows and it playedsquarely on the face of the man in the aisle. It was Hamsa!
Bob felt in his coat pockets for something to defend himself and hisgroping hands came on the blackjack which Hamsa had used on Tully. Therewas the grim hint of a smile on Bob's lips as he slipped his right handthrough the leather thong on the leaden slug. He now had both aneffective and dangerous weapon and he knew he would be justified in usingit.
Once more there came the streak of light in the car as the Limited roaredover another crossing and Bob saw that Hamsa was nearer, almost at thehead of the berth.
With his muscles tense and his whole body balanced, Bob waited foranother flash of light from the street which would give him anopportunity to strike down the intruder. Then the clatter of the trucksover switch points told him the train was out of the village. Whateverhappened from that point on would probably be in utter darkness unlessthe porter happened to come back into the car and turn on the lights.
The Limited settled down to its steady stride again and Bob, tense andcrouching waited. His breath was coming in short jerks and he was afraidthat his heart was pounding so hard its beats would be audible to theother who was intent on catching him by surprise in the darkened berth.
By straining his eyes Bob finally made out the approaching shadow thatwas Hamsa. He drew back his right arm and waited.
Hamsa came nearer, treading cautiously lest he alarm the youth hebelieved was sleeping soundly in the berth.
Suddenly a beam of light shot out from Hamsa's hand as he turned on aflash light, but the rays fell only on the rumpled bedclothes.
Bob heard a smothered exclamation from the other and before Hamsa couldswing the beam of the flash light around in search of him he struck forthwith the blackjack.
Just as Bob swung the weapon the trucks hit a sag in the track and theyoung federal agent was thrown partially off balance. He had aimed atHamsa's head, and although his blow missed that the weapon crashed downon his shoulder and Bob heard a sharp cry of pain.
He jerked back the weapon and struck again and again. Each time he hearda cry of pain and then the flash light thudded to the floor and its beamwent out.
They went at it hand to hand then, Hamsa wresting the blackjack away fromBob and hurling it to the far end of the car. The other man was mucholder and twice as heavy as Bob, but he was not as lithe and his fistscould not move as rapidly.
It was a bitter struggle there in the narrow, darkened aisle of thePullman. Hamsa kicked out viciously and the blow caught Bob in thestomach. He felt sick all over and dropped into the aisle, crouchingthere and seeking temporary shelter until he felt able to resume thebattle.
Hamsa bent down and searched for the flash light and Bob lashed out athim with one foot. The blow caught the other in the face and was answeredby a startled exclamation of pain and rage.
Then Bob's own hands came upon the flash light. He picked it up and hisfingers sought the little button which controlled its beam of light. Bobturned on the light and the rays swept down the aisle, coming to rest onthe battered face of Hamsa.
It was not until then that Bob realized how powerful had been his ownblows for it was obvious that his assailant was in distress. Now if hecould land a real knockout he would be able to leave Hamsa long enough tosummon assistance from the trainmen.
Bob started down the aisle, but pulled up short when Hamsa drew a gunfrom his coat pocket. The young federal agent, unarmed, was in noposition to face a man with a gun and he tried to duck behind a seat. ButHamsa fired a snap shot and the flash light, shattered by the bullet,dropped out of Bob's numbed hand.
The tables had been turned. Where Bob had held the advantage a momentbefore with the flash light, Hamsa, aided by the darkness and his gun,was in a position to win.
But he had evidently had enough of hand to hand encounters for one nightand Bob heard him running toward the rear of the car. A moment later thedoor of the Pullman slammed shut.
Bob stepped out into the aisle and massaged his right hand. It prickledsharply as the blood flowed back into the fingers which had been bruisedby the flash light as the bullet had torn it out of his hands.
Then Bob took up the chase, for he felt sure that Hamsa must be seekinghis hideout on the train. If he could trace him to it, he would summonthe trainmen to assist in the capture.
Bob stepped cautiously into the rear vestibule of the car. There was noone there and the door to the next Pullman was open. He hastened insideand met a startled porter in the aisle.
"Did a man just go down the aisle?" asked Bob.
"Yes, sir, Boss, and he looked like he'd been in a fight."
"That's the fellow I'm after," said Bob. "Run up ahead and get theconductor and any other trainmen you can. Tell them to get back here asfast as they can."
Then Bob hastened down the aisle and the porter, willing enough to leavethe car, went forward to carry out Bob's instructions.
The young federal agent hastened through a second Pullman where thelights were low and finally stepped into the observation car. So farthere had been no trace of Hamsa and no indication that he had soughtshelter under one of the trap doors in the vestibules.
Bob entered the observation car cautiously. The lights had been turneddown and he stopped at the head end of the car and snapped on all of theswitches, a torrent of light illuminating the interior of the car. Eventhe observation platform at the back end leaped into view as a speciallight out there came on under the magic touch of the switches.
Bob stared hard at the back of the car. The door to the observationplatform was open but beyond that he could see a man's legs dangling,apparently in midair. Bob threw caution aside then and raced toward thehalf open door at the rear of the car. The legs were being drawn upward,twisting and kicking as the man attempted to pull himself onto the roofof the observation car. This then was Hamsa's hiding place--on the roofof the rear car of the train!
Chapter XVI FIGHTING FOR LIFE *
Bob leaped through the door and grabbed at Hamsa's legs. The other mankicked viciously, but Bob wrapped his arms around the legs and hung on.Once he had a good grip, he started pulling the other man down.
Hamsa was big and he was powerful, but the steady pull from belowweakened his grip on the steep rungs of the ladder which led to the topof the car and Bob could feel himself gaining. In less than a minute theother man would be down on the platform beside him and by that time thetrainmen should be on hand to help him subdue Hamsa.
There was a strange exultation in Bob's heart for he felt sure now thathe was about to make the first capture in what he felt was to be theclean-up of the international gang of smugglers. It made littledifference whether Hamsa had been trailing them south or whether they hadencountered each other by accident. The message from Washington hadindicated that Hamsa was deeply involved and Bob was determined to makethe capture.
The steady pull Bob put on Hamsa's legs and the tightness of his graspwas relentless. Slowly the other man was weakening and Bob braced himselfand prepared to release Hamsa's legs and cut loose with a half dozen hardpunches when the other man finally dropped to the observation platform.
There was a commotion at the head end of the car and Bob shifted his headjust enough to see the train conductor and brakeman, followed by awide-eyed Pullman porter, hurry in.
Hamsa kicked convulsively with his legs, but Bob tightened his grasp.Then, without warning, without giving Bob a chance to get set, Hamsasuddenly released his hold and dropped. It all happened so quic
kly thatBob later found it a little hard to remember just what took place.
On the split second while he was dropping to the observation platform,Hamsa must have seen the trainmen charging down the aisle of the car, forwhen he landed, he was a bundle of tremendous energy that seemed toexplode in Bob's face.
Great, bear-like arms wrapped themselves around Bob and the young federalagent felt himself being lifted upward. For a moment he was helpless, toosurprised even to attempt to struggle, but a sharp cry from behind himcaused him to try to strike out with his feet for beneath came the suddenrumble of the trucks on a trestle and he knew that Hamsa, in a lastdesperate effort, was attempting to hurl him from the rear platform ofthe train.
The young federal agent wrapped his own arms around Hamsa and clung tohim desperately. If Bob went, Hamsa would go with him. Of that he wascertain. The rail of the platform struck Bob's hips and he felt himselfbeing forced backward. It was sickening to hear the rumble of the trestlebeneath and a flood of rain beat down on his face, drenching the upperhalf of his body.
Then Hamsa gave one last, tremendous shove and Bob knew that he was goingover the edge of the railing, but Hamsa was going with him. The speed ofthe Limited had slackened, but it was still doing at least twenty milesan hour when Bob and Hamsa, locked arm in arm, went over the rearplatform. Bob closed his eyes for the shock of striking the trestle wouldbe terrific. If he could only remain on the bridge there would be somechance of rescue for the trainmen had seen them go over the back end andwould hurry back in a searching party.
As they left the train, Bob managed to get one last twist with his toesand as they fell, he was on top. The drop from the train to the trestleseemed endless. The clatter of the train trucks had dimmed, but a whistleup ahead was blaring an alarm.
Then they struck the trestle--struck it hard and rolled over once. Thefall dazed Bob, but through his foggy mind he could hear the rush ofwater somewhere below.
Hamsa had rolled away from him but it was too dark to see just where andBob clung to the wet steel of one of the rails. He was too weak andshaken to think of attempting to get to his feet and back of him he couldhear the shriek of the air brakes as they clamped down on the wheels ofthe Limited and brought the Southern to an emergency stop just beyond theedge of the long trestle.
Chapter XVII INTO ANGRY WATERS *
Bob ached in every muscle and he wondered, as he lay there on the trestlewith the rain beating down on him, if the dangers of being a federalagent were worth the rewards. Then he swept that thought aside. Of courseit was worth it, for he was on the side of right and honor--a side forwhich many a sacrifice could be willingly made.
As he lay on the bridge, trying to rally his senses and waiting forenough strength to flow back through his body to enable him to sit up,Bob's eyes became more accustomed to the rain and the night. He tried topick out the form of Hamsa, who must be close to him, for the other manhad been underneath when they fell. The shock had been severe enough forBob and he wondered if the other had been seriously injured.
Finally Bob's straining eyes picked out the form of the other man. He wassome feet away and beyond the outside rail of the trestle--on the veryedge of the bridge where a false move would plunge him into the rushingwaters below.
Bob tried to move, but he was still too weak and Hamsa was a dozen feetaway. He wanted to reach him and pull him away from the edge.
Someone at the end of the bridge was shouting and Bob turned his head tosee a group of trainmen, lanterns in their hands, making their way out onthe long trestle. They were coming cautiously for the long rain had madethe timbers slippery and treacherous.
As the trainmen moved out on the bridge, Bob's eyes went back to Hamsa.To his surprise the other man was moving, struggling to sit up, and Bobcalled out a warning.
"Don't move, Hamsa!" he ordered. "You're under arrest. Stay where you areor you'll fall off the bridge."
There was no reply from the other, but he continued his struggle to situp and Bob tried to drag himself closer to the man he had placed underarrest. There was no strength left in his own arms or legs and he couldgo only a foot or two.
The glow from the lanterns of the approaching trainmen now penetrated theblackness and Bob could see Hamsa's face turned toward him.
"You're clever, Kid," growled the other, "but you're not going to arrestme this time. I'll see you later and when I do, watch out!"
Then the other turned and deliberately rolled to the edge of the trestle.
"Hamsa, you're under arrest!" cried Bob. But he knew the words werefutile for the only reply was a mocking laugh. Then Hamsa disappearedover the edge and seconds later there was the dull splash of a heavy bodystriking the water. Bob thought he heard the mocking laugh once more, buthe couldn't be sure.
Then the trainmen, led by the conductor, reached the scene.
"Where's the other fellow?" demanded the conductor.
Bob pointed to the darkness below.
"He just rolled over the edge," he said.
The startled conductor went to the edge of the trestle and swung hislantern over the side, but only the rush of dark waters could be seen.
"That's the last you'll see of him," he said. "This stream is on arampage and only a powerful man could get to shore."
Bob nodded, but he was not sure about the conductor's surmise that he hadseen the last of Hamsa for he was both a powerful and resourceful man.
The trainmen helped Bob to his feet and assisted him back to the Limited.
"I guess now you'll be content to go to bed and give us a little rest,"said the conductor when Bob reached his own berth.
"I've got to get off a telegram first," replied Bob. "Give me the name ofthat stream and the correct time."
The conductor supplied the information and Bob wrote a brief report ofthe night's events and addressed it to Waldo Edgar, the chief of thedivision of investigation back in Washington.
"See that this message is dispatched at the first stop," said Bob. Thenhe turned, crawled between the crisp, cool sheets, and dropped into adeep sleep of exhaustion.
Chapter XVIII PICKING UP CLUES *
When he awoke the Limited was pulling into the train shed at Jacksonvilleand his uncle, Merritt Hughes, was waiting for him on the platform.
The older federal agent jumped aboard the Limited before it came to afull stop and hastened down the aisle to the berth where Bob, still theonly occupant of the car, was partially dressed.
"How are you, Bob?" There was real anxiety in the question as MerrittHughes looked down on his capable young nephew.
"I'm a little stiff, but otherwise all right," grinned Bob. "My bag isunder the berth. See if you can find a clean shirt for me."
"Never mind the shirt now. I want to know what happened last night. Wegot only the briefest word from Washington over the wires and CondonAdams left before dawn for the hospital up the line where they tookTully."
"Is he all right?" asked Bob.
"I understand he'll have to stay in bed for a couple of days."
"What about the man we knew as Joe Hamsa?"
Merritt Hughes shook his head.
"There are no reports on him. There's a large searching party out lookingalong the banks of the stream where he disappeared, but it looks likewe've seen the last of him."
Bob wished that he could have had the confidence his uncle displayed inbelieving that Joe Hamsa was gone forever.
At his uncle's urging, Bob recounted in detail everything that had takenplace after the Limited left Washington.
"So Hamsa hid out on top of the observation car?" mused the federalagent. "Well, that's a new one for me. No wonder you failed to find himeven though you went through the train several times."
Bob motioned toward his bag beneath the berth, "Now how about my shirt?Then some breakfast, and I'll be ready to go along
on my assignment."
"You'll do nothing of the kind. You're going to spend the rest of the dayin bed in my room at the hotel. Tomorrow we'll talk about your going onto Atalissa. I'm not sure that I want you to go there alone. It's a toughlittle town. People know too much there, but they won't talk. Eitherscared or in league with some illegal racket."
"And you figure the racket is the jewel smuggling?"
Merritt Hughes nodded gravely.
"This thing is big, Bob," he went on. "As you know from the confidentialreport you got, we feel sure that only a few men are actually involved inthe ring, but they must be men of great daring and resourcefulness, forthey have managed to elude some of the best detectives."
"Then it seems kind of foolish for me to tackle it," said Bob, half tohimself and half to his uncle.
"Not at all. A new, younger man may have some ideas that older men in theservice would not have. You've had one break in getting Hamsa out of theway and we're sure that he was linked with the gang."
"I guess there's no question about that for he stole the confidentialreports Tully and I had."
"Then what does that mean to you?" asked Bob's uncle.
The younger agent, struggling to button a shirt collar that was tootight, stopped and sat down on the edge of the berth.
"In the first place it means that he wanted to find out just what thefederal people knew about the operations of the gang. Then it appearspretty obvious that he didn't want any more federal men nosing aroundAtalissa and Nira."
"Right in both cases," agreed Merritt Hughes. "Now what?"
Agent Nine and the Jewel Mystery: A Story of Thrilling Exploits of the G Men Page 7
