Kirby, angry and baffled, could rave and threaten; but to no end.
Whether this condition of affairs had been attained as a result of legal advice, or through a mere accident, made no difference; the present inability to reach the daughter of the Judge--the legal heiress to his estate--completely blocked the conspiracy. Yet Kirby was not the kind to surrender without a fight, and a desperate one; all that was savagely brutal in the man had been aroused by this check. The very sound of his voice indicated his intention--he proposed to drive, with a whip if necessary, the helpless girl in his power to a full confession. She was his slave, his chattel, and, under the influence of ungoverned pa.s.sion, he was capable of any degree of cruelty to attain his end. I knew--seemed to realize--all this in an instant, and as swiftly decided to risk life if need be in her defense. There was at that moment no thought in my mind of her stain of negro blood; she was not a slave to me, but merely a woman helpless and alone, fronting dishonor and degradation.
I slipped along in the shadow of the house, without definite plan of action, but with a firm purpose to act. The side door I knew to be securely locked, yet, first of all, it was essential that I attain to the interior. But one means to this end occurred to me--the unshaded window through which the glow of light continued to stream. I found I could reach the edge of the balcony with extended fingers, and drew myself slowly up, until I clung to the railing, with feet finding precarious support on the outer rim. This was accomplished noiselessly, and, from the vantage point thus obtained, I was enabled to survey a large portion of the room. The illumination came from a chandelier pendent from the center of the high ceiling, but only one lamp had been lighted, and the apartment was so large that both ends and sides remained in partial shadow. It might have been originally intended as either a sitting room or library, for there were bookcases against the walls, and a large writing table, holding books and writing material, stood directly beneath the chandelier, while on the sofa in one corner reposed a bit of women"s sewing, where it had apparently been hastily dropped. A fireplace, black and gloomy, evidently unused for some time, yawned in a side wall, and above it hung a rifle and powder horn.
I clambered over the rail, a.s.sured by this first glance that the room was empty, and succeeded in lifting the heavy sash a few inches without any disturbing noise. Then it stuck, and, even as I ventured to exert my strength to greater extent to force it upward, the single door directly opposite, evidently leading into the hall, was flung violently open, and I sank back out of view, yet instantly aware that the first party to enter was Joe Kirby.
Without venturing to lift my eyes to the level of the opening, I could nevertheless imagine his movements, while the sound of his voice when he spoke was as distinct as though I stood beside him. He strode forward to the table, striking the wooden top angrily with his fist and knocking something crashing to the floor.
"You know where she is, don"t you?" he asked, in the same threatening tone he had used without.
"Of course I do; didn"t I help put her there?" It was Carver who replied, standing in the open doorway.
"Then bring the hussy in here. By G.o.d! I"ll make the wench talk, if I have to choke it out of her; she"ll learn what it means to be a n.i.g.g.e.r."
The door closed, and Kirby strode across to the fireplace, muttering to himself, and stood there, an arm on the mantel, nervously stirring up the dead ashes with one foot. Plainly enough the events of the night had overcome all his boasted self-control, his gambler"s coolness, and the real underlying brutality of his nature demanded expression. He yearned to crush, and hurt something--something that would cringe before him. I ventured to raise my head cautiously, so as to gain a glimpse of the man, and was surprised to note the change in his face.
It was as though he had removed a mask. Heretofore, always holding the winning hand, and able to sneer at opposition, he had always in my presence a.s.sumed an air of cold bravado, insolent and sarcastic; but now, baffled in his plans, checkmated by a girl, and believing himself un.o.bserved, the gambler had given way to his true nature, both expression and manner exhibiting a temper beyond control.
I had but a moment in which to observe this new exhibit of the man"s personality, for almost immediately Carver flung the door of the room open, and Kirby swung impatiently about to face the entrance. Except for a possibility of thus attracting the attention of the newcomer, I was in no special danger of being detected by those within.
Nevertheless I sank lower, with eyes barely above the edge of the sill, eager to witness this meeting, and especially interested in gaining a first view of their prisoner. Carver thrust her forward, but remained himself blocking the doorway. I use the word thrust, for I noted the grip of his hand on her arm, yet in truth she instantly stepped forward herself, her bearing in no way devoid of pride and dignity, her head held erect, her eyes fearlessly seeking the face of Kirby. Their glances met, and she advanced to the table, the light of the swinging lamp full upon her. The impression she made is with me yet. Hers was a refined, patrician face, crowned by a wealth of dark hair. Indignant eyes of hazel brown, shadowed by long lashes, brightened a face whitened by intense emotion, and brought into agreeable contrast flushed cheeks, and red, scornful lips. A dimpled chin, a round, full throat, and the figure of young womanhood, slender and yet softly curved, altogether formed a picture so entrancing as to never again desert my imagination. With one bound my heart went out to her in sympathy, in admiration, in full and complete surrender. Yet, even in that instant, the knowledge of the truth, in all its unspeakable horror, a.s.sailed me--this girl, this proud, beautiful girl, was a slave; within her veins a cursed drop of negro blood stained her with dishonor, made of her a chattel; and the sneering brute she faced was by law her master. My hands clinched in the agony of the thought, the knowledge of my own impotence. Yet all this was but the flash of an instant. Before I could change posture, almost before I could draw fresh breath, her voice, trembling slightly with an emotion she was unable wholly to suppress, yet sounding clear as a bell, addressed the man confronting her.
"May I ask, sir, what this outrage means? I presume you are responsible for the insolence of this fellow who brought me here?"
Kirby laughed, but not altogether at ease.
"Well, not altogether," he answered, "as his methods are entirely his own. I merely told him to go after you."
"For what purpose?"
"So pretty a girl should not ask that. Carver, close the door, and wait outside."
I could mark the quick rise and fall of her bosom, And the look of fear she was unable to disguise. Yet not a limb moved as the door closed, nor did the glance of those brown eyes waver.
"You are not the same man I met here before," she began doubtfully.
"He said he was connected with the sheriff"s office. Who are you?"
"My name is Kirby; the sheriff is here under my orders."
"Kirby!--the--the gambler?"
"Well I play cards occasionally, and you have probably heard of me before. Even if you never had until tonight, it is pretty safe to bet that you do now. Donaldson, or his man, told you, so there is no use of my mincing matters any, nor of your pretence at ignorance."
"I know," she admitted, "that you won this property at cards, and have now come to take possession. Is that what you mean?"
"That, at least, is part of it," and he took a step toward her, his thin lips twisted into a smile. "But not all. Perhaps Donaldson failed to tell you the rest, and left me to break the news. Well, it won"t hurt me any. Not only this plantation is mine, but every n.i.g.g.e.r on it as well. You are Rene Beaucaire?"
"Yes," she replied, slowly, almost under her breath, and hesitating ever so slightly, "I am Rene Beaucaire."
"And you don"t know what that means, I suppose?" he insisted, savagely, angered by her coolness. "Perhaps the sheriff did not explain this.
Yet, by G.o.d! I believe you do know. Someone spread the word before we ever got up here--that d.a.m.n lawyer Haines likely enough. That is why the others have disappeared; why they have hidden themselves away. Who was it?"
"I cannot answer."
"Oh, I reckon you can. Why did they run off and leave you here?"
"I cannot answer."
"d.a.m.n you, stop that! Don"t try any of your fine airs on me. Do you know who and what you are?"
She rested one hand on the table in support, and I could note the nervous trembling of the fingers, yet her low voice remained strangely firm.
"I know," she said distinctly, "I am no longer a free white woman; I am a negro, and a slave."
"Oh, so you know that, do you? Then you must also be aware that you are my property. Perhaps it will be well for you to remember this in answering my questions. Now tell me who informed you of all this?"
"I cannot answer."
"Cannot! You mean you will not. Well, young woman, I"ll find means to make you, for I have handled your kind before. Drop this dignity business, and remember you are a slave, talking to your master. It will be better for you, if you do. Where is Eloise Beaucaire?"
"Why do you seek to find her? There is no slave blood in her veins."
"To serve the necessary papers, of course."
He spoke incautiously, urged on by his temper, and I marked how quickly her face brightened at this intelligence.
"To serve papers! They must be served then before--before you can take possession? That is what I understood the sheriff to say."
"Why, of course--the law requires that form."
"Then I am not really your slave--yet?" her voice deepening with earnestness and understanding. "Oh, so that is how it is--even if I am a negro, I do not belong to you until those papers have been served.
If you touch me now you break the law. I may not be free, but I am free from you. Good G.o.d! but I am glad to know that!"
"And d.a.m.n little good it is going to do you," he growled. "I was a fool to let you know that; but just the same you are here in my power, and I care mighty little what the law says. Sheriff, or no sheriff, my beauty, you are going to St. Louis with me tonight; so I advise you to keep a grip on that tongue of yours. Do you think I am going to be foiled altogether by a technical point of law? Then, by G.o.d! you don"t know Joe Kirby. Possession is the main thing, and I have you where you can"t get away. You hear me?"
She had not moved, although her form had straightened, and her hand no longer rested on the table. Kirby had stepped close in front of her, his eyes glowing with anger, his evident intention being to thus frighten the girl into compliance with his wishes, but her eyes, defiant and unafraid, looked him squarely in the face.
"I certainly hear," she replied calmly. "Your voice is sufficiently distinct. I am a slave, I suppose, and in your power; but I despise you, hate you--and you are not going to take me to St. Louis tonight."
"What can stop me?"
"That I am not obliged to tell you, sir."
"But what will prevent? The sheriff? Puh! a few dollars will take care of him. The Judge is a friend of mine."
"It is not the sheriff--nor the Judge; I place reliance on no friend of yours."
He grasped at her arm, but she stepped back quickly enough to avoid contact, and the red lips were pressed together in a thin line of determination. Kirby could not have seen what I did, or if he did see, failed to attach the same significance to the action. Her hand had suddenly disappeared within the folds of her skirt; but the angry man, apparently blinded by the violence of his pa.s.sion, his eagerness to crush her spirit, thought only that she counted on outside aid for deliverance.
"You silly little fool," he snapped, his moustache bristling. "Why, what could you do to stop me? I could break your neck with one hand.