Like Hawkeye, the other agents of The Shadow had shipped aboard as able-bodied seamen to replace members of the crew swept overboard while the Dalmatia had been fleeing the hurricane.
The rest of the crew were up on deck. The ship was anchored off Timour Isle. One occupant alone remained in the forecastle with The Shadow's agents. That was a snoring man who lay sprawled in a lower bunk, rolling back and forth with every long sway of the ship.
"I've talked with Hexler," whispered Hawkeye, "and he's slated me to go ashore with the landing crew, to take the place of this fellow, Lopey" - he paused, indicated the dead head in the bunk - "so that puts me in the game. But Hexler don't want more than one."
"That's tough," remarked Harry, grimly.
"You bet it is," acknowledged Hawkeye. "But it's lucky that I'm in on the deal. I worked my head off getting Lopey loaded up with that grog we found in the hold. Say - it would be tough if Hexler found out I handed Lopey the booze."
"Lopey passed out before Hexler had a chance to question him," said Harry. "Cliff and I lugged Lopey down here. He could hardly talk when Hexler found him up near the bow. What's he going to do with Lopey?"
"He's taking him ashore," replied Hawkeye. "Just to have him later on. But he's supposed to bring six men with him. All in good shape. That's why he gave me the chance.
"It's tough that those poor guys who went overboard weren't part of Hexler's outfit. Then there'd be jobs for you two fellows, too. But as it is, you're slated to stick with the ship until she reaches Tampico."
"But we're going ashore tonight," put in Harry
"That's the ticket," agreed Hawkeye. "But how're you going to make it?"
"I'll tell you how." It was Cliff who spoke. "We'll lug Lopey up on the deck. If the captain wonders where we are, tell him what we're doing."
"And then?" prompted Hawkeye.
"Then," stated Cliff, "the stuff will be on its way up from the hold. We'll start down to help. But instead, we'll cut back to the stern. We'll lower one of the small boats on the port side."
"You'll have a tough time in this swell -"
"Maybe. It would be easier on the starboard side, but the unloading will be done in the lee of the ship; so we'll have to risk the outside. We'll clear the stern and head for the upper end of the island."
HARRY nodded his accord with Cliff's plan. Before further discussion could begin, footsteps clattered at the head of the forecastle stairs.
"Hey, you, below there!"
"Ay, ay, sir!" responded Hawkeye. The little man scampered to the steps. "Coming right up."
"Who else is down there?" growled the man at the top, as Hawkeye reappeared. The Shadow's agent recognized the second mate.
"Two seamen," returned Hawkeye, "bringing up Lopey. He's got to go ashore."
"Hurry it up!" bawled the mate, leaning toward the forecastle.
With the mate following, Hawkeye headed toward the starboard side of the ship. Reaching the rail, he saw a small cabin boat moored below. A man was coming up the rope ladder that the Dalmatia had lowered.
Hawkeye stared as he saw the hard face beneath the lantern light. He knew this fellow from days gone by. Ruff Turney, missing mob-leader from Manhattan. Hawkeye shrank back behind the rail, then shrugged his shoulders.
He had been small-fry when Ruff was a swaggering mob-leader. He realized that Ruff would not remember him, even if they came face to face.
Boldly, Hawkeye edged forward to join Hexler. This man - leader of the minions on the Dalmatia - was a brawny, rough-faced fellow who looked like a seaman.
"Where's Lopey?" growled Hexler.
"Coming up," responded Hawkeye.
He turned away as Ruff joined Hexler. Hatches were off the hold; boxes were being raised by the crew. Other men were lowering a boat on the lee side of the Dalmatia. Harry and Cliff, coming from the forecastle, were bringing "Lopey" toward the side.
They dropped the sodden mass of humanity upon the deck, then turned and moved away. The second mate, challenged them.
"Where you going?"
"Down to the hold, sir," replied Cliff, "to help with the boxes."
"Get a move on then," growled the mate.
Hawkeye noted Ruff observing Lopey's prostate form. The mob-leader grunted, then turned angrily to Hexler.
"What's the matter with this dope?" he demanded.
"Drunk," informed Hexler. "Got hold of some grog that was aboard. First thing I knew, he'd gone blotto."
"Making you one man short?"
"I've got this mug" - Hexler turned to indicate Hawkeye - "and he'll fill in for Lopey. Says he can handle a gat."
"Can you?" demanded Ruff.
"Sure," acknowledged Hawkeye.
"He shipped aboard at Charleston," explained Hexler. "He's not one of the regular bohunks in the crew. This is a guy we can use."
"Looks all right," admitted Ruff. "But that doesn't help. We're still short-handed."
"How come? I've got six -"
"The chief wants more. Two, anyway. But coming out here, I began to figure it would be tough to get them. We can't yank off the regular members of the crew. The captain would put up a squawk -"
"Say" - Hexler had an idea - "There were two other birds came on at Charleston. Buddies of this guy. What about 'em, Ruff?"
"What are they like?"
"Tough eggs."
HAWKEYE put in a clincher of his own.
"We was hiding out in Charleston," he confided to Ruff. "The three of us. We ain't seamen; we just bluffed it. We used to be with Cozy Doman's mob."
"Yeah?" quizzed Ruff, in surprise. "A bunch of bank workers."
"Sure," acknowledged Hawkeye, with a nod. "We cut loose from Cozy after he pulled that job in Wilmington, North Carolina. It was getting too hot. That's why we was laying low."
"Go get your pals," ordered Ruff.
Hawkeye turned and hastened off, as though heading for the hold. But he changed direction as soon as he was out of sight. Running to the stern, he came upon a boat that was hanging loose from the davits.
"Cliff!" whispered Hawkeye, hoarsely. "Harry!"
The two agents popped into view. They had ducked into a companionway at the sound of Hawkeye's footsteps. Quickly, Hawkeye gave them the news.
"Duck down into the hold," he suggested. "I'll tell Hexler you're coming up."
Returning, Hawkeye found Hexler impatiently awaiting him. Ruff had gone away to confer with the captain. What he was doing was arranging for the Dalmatia to stand by until a cargo came from shore.
"Where are the other guys?" demanded Hexler.
"Coming up," replied Hawkeye. "You'll see 'em in a minute."
THE last of the boxes had come from the hold. Immediately following came Cliff and Harry, up through the open hatchway. They slouched over as Hawkeye beckoned. Hexler studied the new recruits. He had not noticed Harry and Cliff carefully before. Now he nodded, convinced that they would measure up to Ruff's requirements.
Boxes were being lowered into the boats; some into Ruff's cabin launch; others into the boat that the Dalmatia had dropped. Ruff's crew was exchanging greetings with the men in the Dalmatia's boat. These outfits had met before.
Ruff came back from his confab with the captain. He eyed Harry and Cliff, then nodded approvingly to indicate that they were satisfactory.
"We're coming out again," he told Hexler. "Bringing back the boat to the ship here and loading some stuff aboard. We'll arrange all that later. Let's go."
Cargoes were loaded. Hexler motioned to the rope ladder. Harry and Cliff descended; then Hawkeye followed. The little man got snarled in the rope. That seemed to please Ruff.
"That bird's no seaman," chuckled the mob-leader, speaking to Hexler. "You can tell it from the way he tangled. You hit a ten strike, getting these three bimboes. They're just the ones we'll need."
"More work ahead?"
"Plenty. You'll get the dope later."
Ruff leaned over and motioned Hawkeye into the Dalmatia's boat, s
eparating him from Harry and Cliff. Hexler descended, stepped aboard Ruff's boat and shifted over into the other boat as Hawkeye had done. Ruff was the last to come down the ladder.
The two boats pushed off from the heaving side of the Dalmatia. Ruff's boat began to chug toward the island, its motor throttled low. The Dalmatia's boat followed, propelled by the strokes of brawny oarsmen.
Combined crews of crime were on their way to accomplish evil. Timour Isle was threatened with armed invasion as the first step toward a fiendish purpose. But with those invaders were coming men prepared to strive for right.
Though outnumbered by their dangerous companions, The Shadow's agents were grimly prepared to play their part when the time of conflict came.
CHAPTER XVIII. THE ATTACK
THE power boat was the first to meet the lower inlet. Passing the sand dunes, the craft veered toward a channel which Ruff, at the tiller, picked with accuracy. The boat came to a stop with its prow wedged in a muddy landing place.
Ruff ordered all ashore. Harry and Cliff followed the other members of the crew. Ruff led the way through heavy underbrush, while his men brought the boxes from the boat.
Stacking the spoils, Ruff ordered his crew toward the beach. They skirted a sand dune, then waited on a little point. Ruff swung a lantern; an answering glimmer came from the inlet. The boat from the Dalmatia was heaving toward this portion of the shore.
Hexler and his henchmen landed. Ruff ordered his own men to take the boxes that had come from this second boat. The shore crew lugged their burdens off through the darkness, toward the spot where they had left the first load.
Cliff and Harry remained with Hexler's crew. Ruff held confab with Hexler. Nods of agreement were exchanged beneath the dull moonlight. Ruff turned and took the path along which his burden carriers had gone.
HAWKEYE sidled over beside Cliff and Harry. The Shadow's three agents were again united. Yet the situation was not entirely to their liking. Though they exchanged no comments, all held the same idea.
They knew that danger was abroad. Two crews of thugs were ready to deliver an attack somewhere. If Hexler's crew should strike, The Shadow's agents would be in the proper place. But if Ruff's outfit intended trouble on its own, that mob could move unmolested.
One thought alone was saving. Ruff's outfit had a definite task; to store the boxes that had been brought from the Dalmatia. That signified that the criminal work would probably be shifted to Hexler and his outfit. As members of that band, The Shadow's agents might find opportunity to counteract trouble.
There were eight men besides Hexler. Lopey had been left in the boat, which was drawn high on the shore. Thus The Shadow's agents were outnumbered two to one. But such odds did not trouble them. Like the rest of the crew, they were armed. They felt capable of tendering a good account should the pinch arise.
"We're going up the island." Hexler growled this information as he joined his men. "Don't worry about those other fellows. This is our job. We're heading for a house at the upper inlet!"
Harry nudged Cliff. This was the kind of news they had been waiting for. It meant that Hexler, not Ruff, was scheduled to attack some place on Timour Isle.
"The house is in a clearing," continued Hexler. "When we get there, plant yourselves on the edges. Ready for a rush when I give the word."
Affirmative growls from the band. The Shadow's agents joined in the comment. Hexler was about to start the march when a thick voice called from the shore. "Lopey," a trifle unsteady, was coming to rejoin the invaders.
"Get back in the boat!" ordered Hexler, in a rasping tone. "Stay there until we get back!"
"I'm all right," growled Lopey, rubbing his forehead. "The air's got me braced. Comin' in from the ship brought me to. Say, I was groggy -"
"Join up with us then," snapped Hexler, "and keep your trap shut!"
"All right," agreed Lopey. "But listen, Hexler - it wasn't my fault, gettin' plastered that way. There was a guy on the ship -"
"Lay off the chatter," broke in the leader, "or you'll go back in the boat with a cracked konk! Get me?"
"All right," responded Lopey. "But if I get that lousy guy -"
Hexler handed the big fellow a jab in the ribs. Lopey doubled up, regained his footing and trailed in at the rear of the mob.
Hawkeye, up ahead, whispered to Cliff:
"I'm not letting Lopey lamp me. If he wises that I'm with the outfit, he may spill something to Hexler. Lopey thinks I'm with the crew on the Dalmatia."
"I get it," responded Cliff, in an undertone. "Keep ahead of us, Hawkeye. When we get to the house, pick a spot where Lopey won't see you."
OTHER members of the band were closing in. Trudging northward, the complete crew skirted the edges of the forest strip. They straggled into little groups as they marched along. This gave The Shadow's agents a chance for further comment.
"The job is ours," whispered Harry. "This shore outfit is busy storing those boxes. Maybe they'll join us later."
"We'll work quick when we get the chance," put in Cliff. "We don't know what we're going into; but if we can get the jump on Hexler and his bunch, we ought to come through clean."
"Maybe he'll spill more when we get there," added Hawkeye.
Others were overtaking the trio. They trudged along in silence, veering left as the coast line took a slight curve. All was peaceful on this isle, where the steady roar of the surf was lulling in its monotony. Men of crime seemed strangely out of place in the setting.
They were coming close to the upper inlet. Hexler, apparently, had gained complete directions from Ruff; for the leader moved forward to slow his band. He pointed out an opening between the trees. Leading, he took the path toward the house.
Dull lights glimmered from white walls as the invaders reached the clearing. Here Hexler halted the crew and delivered an order for deployment.
"Spread out all around," he instructed. "I'm going up to the house. I'll rap; they'll let me in. There'll be talk at the front door.
"Then I'll come out again. Watch for a move of my left arm. Up and down; That'll mean to close in. Do it in a hurry. But there's one point more. If I start things quick, I'll signal with a shot. That'll mean to rush the place."
A pause. The invaders were ready to spread. Hexler picked out two men from the crew. He called them by name: Jake and "Curry." He pointed toward the house.
"Sneak up there," he ordered, "you two. One on each side of the door. Well out of sight. Then when you get the signal, I'll have the two of you close by."
Jake and Curry sneaked forward across the clearing. Hexler gave a final injunction to the remainder of the band: one that was most important.
"We've got friends inside there," he informed, "so keep your rods steady. Any guy that tries quick shooting will answer to me later. Maybe we won't have to fire a single shot.
"But if there's trouble, use your noodles. Aim for the guys that aim for you. Leave the others alone. That's simple enough. Remember: hold it for the pinch. Not before."
He motioned with his right hand. The invaders spread along the edge of the clearing, Cliff and Harry moving to the right. Hawkeye sneaked past his fellow agents and took a spot on the flank.
Hexler moved cautiously forward. He beckoned to Jake and Curry. They closed in from the wall and listened while their leader whispered the same instructions that he had given to the balance of the mob.
WATCHING, the deployed invaders saw Jake and Curry resume their positions on the sides of the door. Then they watched Hexler walk boldly up to the portal. The leader had his left hand in his pocket. It was plain that he was left-handed, that his hidden fist was gripping a ready revolver.
Harry, between Hawkeye and Cliff, was tense and alert. He knew that his fellow agents were the same. This was the time for which they had been waiting long. They had reached Timour Isle, headquarters of The Shadow.
Yet they had gained no contact with their hidden chief. They knew only that word had gone to him that they were coming. Had T
he Shadow received that word? Was he ready, waiting, relying on his men? Or had The Shadow encountered danger here alone - had he met with some adversity that had already placed him in the hands of foemen?
The next minutes would tell. To these aids of The Shadow, the immediate future hovered in the form of Hexler's tight fist, raised to tap upon the door. For with Hexler's knock, the tide of invasion would be ready for its surge.
CHAPTER XIX. STROKE AND COUNTER-STROKE
INSIDE the house, Tully and Chunk were still keeping the semblance of weary guard duty. One man was slouching in the hall; the other was standing by a window of the living room.
Purvis Elger was lounging in a chair, smoking his pipe. Jalway was across the room, leaning against the bookcase, while Hadlow was standing at the entrance to the hall, his hands in his coat pockets.
Francine had gone to bed. The tenseness had wearied the girl. That same feeling of uneasiness had extended to the others. Elger was affable; Jalway appeared matter-of-fact; and Hadlow looked calm and unperturbed. Yet every one of the three possessed a peculiar alertness that had not previously been evident.
A knock from the door. Hadlow started, then smiled quietly. Jalway looked curiously toward Elger. The portly crook lowered his meerschaum from his lips and called to Tully.
"Was that a knock at the door?" he inquired.
"Sounded like it," returned Tully.
"Did Royne go out?" inquired Elger.
"No, sir." The reply came from Royne himself as the servant appeared from the hall. "Did you want me, Mr. Elger?"
"There was a knock at the door," - Elger paused as the rap came again - "yes, I was sure of it. Probably someone has come in from the mainland. Suppose you answer it, Royne."
As he spoke, Elger arose from his chair. He walked past Hadlow and joined Royne. Tully was standing with arms akimbo, ready to draw a gun if so commanded.
"All right, Dashler!"
These words came as a sudden order, from the lips of Seth Hadlow. The sailor, who had been at his solitaire on the window ledge, came suddenly to his feet, swinging a revolver with which he covered Chunk, by the inner window.
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