Adventure, November 1915 — page 42: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

“a kj ’ , oi one ; ot od) ee | ‘ ‘ LPR nat oe r ’ 7 +t > 97 PAP Oa, TENE, Pea ee BU eS tah tu See we! ies re We Wy Pee Re rth igs Se. fe by a , Bo cael PR tC Kak el dain Boil Stet | x ji AWRAGA ¥} VAT Ee; “) ery d ae i eh at: 4 ' . 1” ‘ >* Aka tay >, : we “Chane af at; ° : * hs ’ - . J 40 CHAPTER XV ADDAMS CAPITULATES ee grille resolved itself once more into an orange square, set with vertical bars. As it brightened, the halting step of Henley, followed by the lighter, firmer ones of the Chinaman, brought back Addams from the borderland of unconsciousness. His shoulders seemed swollen to an enor- mous size, his cracked lips and parched tongue ached for water as he wondered how long he had been left on the little platform, half standing, half suspended. The door opened and the two men en- tered. Once more the electric flash blinded him and Henley laughed while the victim tried to bring his pain-racked features to some semblance of composure with which to face his tormentors. At the command of the Chinaman, Hen- ley roughly slackened the rope sufficiently _ for Addams to sit upon a bale, and the blue- white ray of the torch was shut off. The swift and painful release from the strain summoned all his reserves of will to keep from fainting. The Chinaman’s voice seemed very far off. “T have been looking at the matter from all sides, Mr. Addams,” the suave tones purred on. “You see, naturally, intending to secure the treasure yourself, you gave a false position in the newspaper in an en- deavor to throw Henley off the scent. It has occurred to me that you and your friend, Mr. Winton, might have agreed on a set of figures to use In a crisis like this. I may be overcrediting you, but you seem to have been a very careful man with your secret. So I decided to raise an issue that should settle the matter to treat the affair psycho- logically. “You may not rate your own safety, nor that of your friend as worth this three- quarters of a million, but I fancy you may place a higher estimate upon your friend’s sister?” A flick of the electric beam showed Ad- dams’s jaw rigid and thrust forward, his lips in a tight line, his eyes steely and deter- “This is not a trick of the “third degree,” went on the Oriental blandly. ‘The lady is in my possession. I should be loath to use any means of persuasion with her. She is very charming. You, I am sure, would be Adventure - unwilling to have me do so. Don’t try to rise, Mr. Addams, or we shall be forced to string you up again.” Addams relaxed, with.a mental groan at his uselessness. “T shall ask you to tell me the position,” went on the Chinaman, “and I shall then verify it as far as possible through your friend and the young lady. All three of you will then be kept where I have placed you until such time as we secure the treasure. We shall not return to Hawaii. It will be unnecessary, but I shall arrange for your release within, say—two weeks. “Now then—” the smooth voice altered its tone to the sound of metal upon metal— “the position of the island?” Addams opened his lips but only a harsh clicking sound issued from his throat. The Chinaman produced a silver flask from an inside pocket. “T thought you might need this,” he said, _ pouring some of the contents into the con- tainer that cupped the bottom of the flask and holding it to his prisoner’s lips. “It will not hurt you.” Addams sipped, then gulped eagerly. The drink was slightly acidulous, yet fruity and deliciously soothing to the fevered mem- branes of his mouth and throat. ‘“‘Made from tamarinds and limes,” said the Chinaman. ‘You can speak now. There is no need to delay matters. You must be very uncomfortable.” “Vou say,” said Addams, “that you have Miss Winton in your possession. I do not believe it.” ° “Took,” said the Oriental. He threw on the contact switch of his torch. The beam shone on a tress of red- gold hair that shone alive, iridescent, as it moved in the Chinaman’s smooth fingers. Addams started forward, bound as he was, to fall back at Henley’s rough thrust. A groan that all the torture could not wring from him, broke from his lips. The electric ray was clicked off, the lock of hair, shimmering even in the dim light of Henley’s lantern, was restored to the pocket from which it had been taken. ie less at the hands of this imperturba- ble fiend, set every pulse in Ad- dams’ body throbbing with hot blood. He struggled to burst the cords that bound him and, realizing his absolute impotence, as A VISION of Peggy bound, help- CORICLOOKS (C@