Argosy All-Story Weekly, February 7, 1925 — page 86: what you’re looking at

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

- = | ARGOSY-ALLSTORY = =: sat, frankly, ‘stunned, incapable of mo- My voice - _dtilybled out in the silence that: — tion er of thought, while the fear that my choked me in a swelter of fear. 2 = | 2ew’s whispered words had aroused in “Got a match?” said my nephew—and Fae me, caused my body to break out in a-chill” I noted that his voice was always coming -_. sweat. My muscles were clamped i in tight from a different place in the saloon. “ ‘Strike bands. It seemed an eternity; in reality one—strike one quick!” it could not awe been for joager than three “T have,” I said, stupidly fumbling -with = seconds. trembling fingers in my pockets. oA Then I heard a thump as if a chair tall “Ouick?” been overturned—a stifled scream from My fingers almost refused to — Alice—a-confused noise like the sound of a Pocket after pocket proved empty. ‘Then, scuffle from Billings—the sharp whispering in the pocket of my waistcoat, 1 fons: of my nephew's voice followed by a cessa- them. I jerked out the paper packet and tion of the scuffling sound—then heavy, with my fingers trembling ‘more badly than sterterous breathing which I judged to be ever tore off a match. It was the worst Billings and which grew fainter as if it were shock I had ever received i in my life to feel moving away from me toward the further cold fingers close with a viselike grip about corners of the saloon— my wrist, and. others. swrench the" spacket « Billings!” i. called out. “ ‘Where are from my ‘hand: to feel a hot breath sear you?” into My ear and whisper, with ‘dire be oes } ~ J reached a hand to my left, where he cance, the word a2 ———_— ee 7 had been sitting, anc encountered nothing. gain I heard the Then, froma distance, came @ single word = See like the flick of a breeze from amy nephew. 7 T phmged i in its. rection. hye s folded: It was “ Silence!’ P= ~ around —— A = aie me and Zs could not : stand rane tension. i stum- in flee: ae ed. The was the: US = of his ee ir Mae lock. The ore was gone. Fro: “Ah!” said Billings. “I—save n— out came the muffled si ching of the sea—the Silence. swirl of heavy waters—while within could Five seconds of silence. be distinctly heard, in the ceonttecible sti Then = wee ness that clung like. thick ‘terror in the dark, s suddenly the sound of that sterterous bi — ed the And then, as the seconds _ passed, the riveted upon ee aan Billines who sound of something else. stood flat against the paneling of the port it was not so much a ‘sound as it was a bulkhead—the handle of a dagger protrud- sensation—a, sensation, if I can put it into ing from beneath his left arm. He ere words, of scraping—of some one scraping.a He ‘ell. : foot slowly, quietly across the floor. _ And the door to the passage ‘swung, with | “Tights!” said the voice of my nephew. the rolling, idly to and fro. €'Furn on the Eghts!” : I felt for the switch in the paneling be- side the door. I knew exactly where it was CHAPTER XVI. : and, putting out my forefinger, I pressed. 3 2 Fomed out and drew my hand sharply away. A GLEAM OF LIGHT. The point of some sharp imstrument had E were at Billings’s side in an im- = pricked it. : 3 stant—Alice 2 and 1. My nephew Zs “The -door’s locked,” I said. “The was g gone. \ lore quickly = any — =. switch—something is the matter with the of us = hac ‘caught the significance of the = Switch it _ idly swaying door and, with a shout, had - (E(0) micboo CS-GO