Part 30 (2/2)
”To the saloon, Courtenay!” roared Tolle a path for hi in both hands Followed by Frascuelo, he jues followed, two entering through the doorway behind him One raised a hatchet-like ilishman had not Christobal whipped out his revolver and shot hiirl's wrist in his flurry The Indian pitched headlong down the stairs, falling liure and seized the ht She felt her arh her body, like a gush of strong wine She was assured that she, unaided, could beat down all the puny, despicable creatures who barred the path to her lover She vaulted over the writhing form of the Alaculof, and made to cliain and brought another Indian to his knees
The second Indian's fall caused Frascuelo to trip; and the Chilean, locked rib to rib with a somewhat sturdy opponent, rolled into the saloon Elsie drew back just in time, or the twoover on the steep steps she saw Frascuelo's knife seek that favorite junction of neck and collar-bone which Christobal had said was so well understood by those of his ilk At the foot of the stairs the Indian lay still, and Frascuelo tried to rise She helped hier appalled her Each dead or disabled Indian was one less obstacle between her and Courtenay A third time the revolver barked, but Christobal reatly, as Tolle it twice as a et that he had only three cartridges left, two of which were bespoke long before the fight began
At last, then, the as clear Elsie would havehand detained her
”I cannot walk, senorita My leg has given way And we can do no good there They are all down”
A death chill gripped her heart at Frascuelo's words
”All down!” she repeated, white-lipped
”I think so,” said he, blankly The h which he had passed
As if to answer and refute him, Joey's hysterical yelp sounded from a point close at hand, and they distinctly heard Courtenay's loud coe!”
”You areherself free fro short of violence would stop her now
Tollemache darted out into the darkness, and she mounted the steps two at a time Christobal panted by her side He was deter her away from any doubtful encounter on the battle-field of the deck But his blood was afla rather than by a suicide's bullet
They were not yet clear of the doorhen an extraordinary burst of cheering and shouts in English and Spanish assailed their wondering ears The sounds seemed to come from the sea, from so the Indians; Courtenay, clubbing his gun, rushed past, with the dog at his heels, and ran up the bridge coress as he raced towards the port side, and they heard his amazed cry:
”What boats are those?”
”Your own, captain,” ca yell, plainly audible above the din
”That is Mr Gray,” screae, with the doctor close behind
”Sink every canoe you can get alongside of, and knock those fellows on the head who are swi,” roared Courtenay, as so carried away by the fierceness of the fight froiven the sael Michael had that warrior-spirit come to his aid
He seemed to have eyes in the back of his head, he turned so suddenly when Elsie neared hi her to him for an instant ”Stand there, dear heart!”
He placed her in the forward angle of the bridge rail, and leaned out over the side She understood that she reat joy overwhelmed her, and her eyes melted into tears
Christobal, who had missed no word of Elsie's frenzied protest in the saloon, nor failed to note the , seemed to take the collapse of his own aspirations with the uner
”The shi+p's boats--” he began, but the captain raised his gun and fired twice aft along the side of the vessel Cries of pain and a good deal of splashi+ng in the sea proved that he had expedited the departure of several Indians ere perched on the rails beyond the reach of Walker's steam jet
”The shi+p's boats,” went on Christobal calmly, ”have turned up in some mysterious manner, just in the nick of time A few minutes more, and they would have been too late”
”But where have they come from? Where can they have been all these days?” whispered Elsie, whose eyes were so dimmed that she perforce abandoned the effort toon in the sea near the shi+p
”My brain reels under the wildest guesses At present we are chiefly concerned in the fact that they are here Yet people say that the age of miracles has passed: obviously a foolish remark”
Those who have been plucked from the precipice by a sleeve, as it were, are seldoht which should apparently swamp all others They either yield to the strain, and lapse into unconsciousness, or their minds become the arena of minor emotions, wherein trivialities play battledore and shuttlecock with the tree of all that had happened, joined to a nicer adjustment of the time-factor in events, enabled Elsie to realise the extraordinary deliverance froan to appreciate the service which Christobal rendered her in discussing matters with such nonchalance