"Come," he invited. "Ben no shoot."
O"Toole rose from his place of concealment, grinning triumphantly.
"Begorra, Oi think Oi saved mesilf a foine hole in me shkin," he chuckled, as he advanced. "Whin Misther Browning towld me about th"
Injun in th" boat wid the wolf, sez Oi to mesilf, sez Oi, "Oi"ll bet me loife Oi know th" mon, an" it"s Red Ben." Misther Merriwell wur sure th"
spalpane he"s afther must be somewhere here, an" it"s the counthry all over they are searchin". Oi took it on mesilf to invistigate this soide av th" mountain, but Oi had me oies open all th" toime. Something towld me ye"d be on th" watch if ye wur with them; an" it"s sudint Oi dhropped whin Oi saw th" bushes move."
"How," said Red Ben, accepting O"Toole"s extended hand.
"Howdy yersilf. Long toime no see, eh?"
"What you do here?"
"Pwhat th" divvil are you doin", Ben? It"s a bad shc.r.a.pe ye"re afther gettin" yersilf in through this girrul business. Arter Oi saved ye from bein" shot full av lead fer foolin" round Bill Curran"s woife Oi thought ye"d know betther than to iver monkey wid a female again."
"Ben he no monkey. White man him gal crazy."
"But ye"re afther hilpin" him, ye lunatick, an" it"s a schrape ye"ll foind yersilf in. Oi"ve known ye tin year now. We"ve worruked togither guidin" more than wance, and nivver a bit av a quarrel did we have. Oi"d not tell ye a loie, an" Oi want ye to know thot Frank Merriwell will rake these mountains down an" lay them level av he don"t foind thot girrul. It"s a big oath he has taken to make anny wan shmart thot has caused her wan minute av distress."
"How you know so much "bout him?" asked Red Ben, a heavy frown on his face.
"It"s a long shtory, an" Oi"ll not tell ye the whole av it. Oi wur paid to hilp do him a bad turn, an" Oi troied to bate th" head off him. It"s a foine lickin" Oi got. Afther thot he saved me loife whin a mad buck had me down an" wur about cuttin" me to pieces wid his hoofs. Sure Oi found him a foine young gintleman, an" it"s his friend Oi became. Wid me own hand Oi put a bullet through the head av thot shnale Porrfeeus dil Noort; an" now it"s some av Dil Noort"s gang that"s seekin" to git square by carryin" off Merriwell"s girrul. As yer friend, Ben, Oi ax ye to give th" spalpanes th" double-cross an" hilp Frank Merriwell git back th" girrul. Av ye do thot Oi promise ye Oi"ll see that nivver a bit av throuble do ye get into. Av ye refuse it"s more than wan year ye"ll be afther spindin" in jail fer your foolishness."
The Indian had listened with the frown growing deeper.
"Mebbe you go back on me?" he questioned. "Mebbe you tell um Merriwell Red Ben help carry off gal?"
"Oi didn"t have to tell him. His bist friend saw ye in your canoe afther ye shtarted wid th" girrul. Ye"re in fer it, Ben, me bhoy, onliss ye turrun roight-about-face an" do pwhat ye can fer th" girrul an" to have the indacint rascals pwhat shtole her poonished."
"Sit down," invited the redskin, motioning toward the ground at his side. "We talk it over."
O"Toole accepted the invitation and squatted on the ground.
"Ben he must think," said the Indian. "He must have time to make up him mind."
"Take yer toime, me bhoy," nodded O"Toole, in his pleasantest manner; "but don"t yez fergit Oi"m yer friend, an" it"s fer your good Oi"m advisin" ye. Th" divvils pwhat shtole th" girrul can"t git away, fer Merriwell has tilegraphed it all over this parrut av th" counthry, an"
it"s big rewards he has offered fer th" apprehinsion av th" rascals.
Whin th" shtorm comes, Ben, ye want to git out from under. There"ll be a terrible crash, moind pwhat Oi say."
"Ben him git big money for what him do."
"It"s litthle good money will do yez wid yer neck shtretched, an" th"
bhoys are carryin" ropes fer th" gints pwhat run off wid th" girrul.
Oi"d not fool yez fer th" worruld," O"Toole continued, in his most convincing manner. "Says Oi to mesilf whin Oi made up me moind ye wur wid the gints pwhat done ut, said Oi, "Pat, me bhoy, Ben is yer friend, an" ye are his friend, an" it"s up to ye to go along an" foind him an"
give him a tip to git under cover before it rains." Oi"m here. It"s roight foine luck Oi found yez. A foine broth av a bhoy is Frank Merriwell, an" whin he knows ye hilped save th" girrul, Oi"ll shtake me loife he pays ye well fer it."
The Irishman was doing his level best to win the Indian over, and his words were not without effect. After a while Red Ben said:
"You go to um Merriwell, ask how much he give Ben to bring gal. Ask if him swear Ben no git hurt. Ask if him dare meet Ben an" swear he no git hurt to bring gal. Come soon, tell what him say."
"It"s darruk it will be, fer th" sun is down now."
"Ben stay here. Men who steal gal leave him to watch. He stay. You know owl hoot. When you come back make owl hoot so Ben no think it somebody else an" shoot um. Must know what Merriwell him say. Must have him promise."
Evidently the Indian was determined to drive the best bargain possible, and at the same time he was resolved to take every precaution to insure his own safety in case he betrayed Inza"s captors.
O"Toole knew the redskin well enough to comprehend quickly that further argument and pleading would be a waste of words. Once Red Ben had set his mind on anything he was stubborn as a mule.
"All roight me bhoy," said the Irishman, rising. "Oi"ll do jist pwhat ye say; but don"t yez be afther lettin" thim carry off th" girrul whoile Oi"m spinding toime this way. It"s a bit nervous Oi am about thrampin"
round through th" woods afther darruk since Oi shot thot divvil Dil Noort, but it"s no more he"ll bother any wan at all, at all, an" soon Oi think some of his foine friends will be in th" same box wid him."
"You shoot um Del Norte?" asked Red Ben, with a show of interest. "Him say Irishman do it, but Ben no think it him friend."
"He said so?" cried O"Toole. "Begorra, thot"s th" firrust toime Oi ivver knew av anny wan thot had hearrud a dead mon talk!"
"You think you kill um Del Norte?" asked the Indian.
"Oi know Oi did onless a man can live wid a bullet clean through his head," declared the Irishman.
Out of the shadows suddenly appeared a man, who exultantly cried, as he pointed a finger at O"Toole:
"Diablo! I have you! Traitor, this is my time of vengeance!"
As O"Toole saw before him Del Norte, with a white bandage about his head, the face of the Irishman turned ashen gray and his knees smote together.
"Howly saints!" he groaned. "It is the dead aloive!"
A moment later, uttering a wild shriek of terror, he turned and ran blindly toward the precipice close at hand, over which he rushed, being unable to check himself when he reached the brink.
As the poor fellow fell he uttered another shriek, which was followed by the silence of death.
CHAPTER VIII.
AT THE FOOT OF THE PRECIPICE.
The strange disappearance of O"Toole, who was unaccountably missing, caused much wonderment among the searchers for Inza Burrage and her captors.
There were at least thirty of these searchers in that vicinity, Frank Merriwell being their leader.
Some hunters camped on the northeastern sh.o.r.e of Lake Placid had seen Del Norte and his companions, having the girl a captive, land at a certain point after leaving the island, conceal the boat and canoe there, and then strike into the wilderness.
These hunters had aided the party of searchers led by Frank to pick up the trail early on the morning following the kidnapping of the girl.
Merriwell"s skill as a trailer had enabled him to follow the villains to a point in the vicinity of the mountain where, at the suggestion of Red Ben, Del Norte had sought concealment in a cave, the mouth of which was hidden by thick shrubbery.