CHAPTER XXX

LEVI BEDFORD AND HIS PRISONER

Colonel Cosgrove and Squire Truman returned to Riverlawn with Major Lyon and his son. Colonel Belthorpe and Tom renewed their expressions of gratitude to Deck for the important service he had rendered to the family in the protection of Margie and Kate, and insisted that he should visit Lyndhall as soon as possible. They parted at the cross roads, and both parties received a warm welcome at their homes.

Levi Bedford and Artie Lyon had remained on watch in the fort, while a sufficient number of the hands patrolled the bridge and the creek; but the ruffians had found enough to do in the direction they had gone, and there was no alarm during the rest of the night. The major took his guests to the mansion, while Deck related to Levi and Artie the events of the visit to Lyndhall.

"Captain Titus and the mob have really been thoroughly whipped out of their boots," said the overseer, when Deck had finished his narrative. "But, as the leader of the ruffians said, we haven't seen the end of this thing yet."

"Do you think they will make another attack upon Riverlawn, Levi?" asked Deck with along gape.

"I don't reckon they will try it in the same way they did before; at least not till they are fully provided with arms and ammunition," replied Levi. "That attempt to capture the two daughters of Colonel Belthorpe looks like one of Buck Lagger's schemes. If he had obtained possession of the two girls, very likely he would have confined them in one of the caverns like the one where they put the arms, with a guard over them."

"That would have been awful," added Artie.

"I reckon they didn't mean to hurt the girls, and wouldn't if they had got possession of them," continued Levi. "But you can see for yourselves, boys, that they would have had the key to the fortress in their own hands if they had obtained the girls."

"That's so!" exclaimed Deck, who had seen the point before without any help from the overseer.

"I don't see what good the girls could have done them," said Artie, who had been asleep most of the time during the absence of the planter and his son.

"It is as plain as the nose on a monkey's face," added Deck. "With the two girls as prisoners, Captain Titus would have demanded the return of the arms and ammunition of Colonel Belthorpe."

"I see!" exclaimed Artie, as the object of the capture dawned upon him. "But the colonel did not have the arms, and he could not have given them up."

"But father would have made common cause with him, and he could not well have helped giving up the arms to get back his neighbor's daughter," Deck explained.

"But I wonder they didn't try to take our girls," suggested Artie.

"That is what they may try to do next; and I shall advise your mother not to permit Miss Dorcas or Miss Hope to go outside of the plantation unless they are well guarded," added Levi. "If Captain Titus could get away with your two sisters, and hide them, he could have things all his own way with your father."

"We must keep a sharp lookout for the girls," said Artie.

"Buck Lagger, with his gang, must have gone ahead of the main body of the ruffians," continued the overseer thoughtfully, "or he could not have been in the cross-cut. He must have known about the party, and that the colonel's daughters were there."

"Where does this Buck live?" asked Deck.

"He has a shanty on the road to the village, just above the schoolhouse. He is a pedler when he does anything like work, and I suppose he knows about every family in the county," replied Levi. "He could easily have found out all about the party, and who were to be there."

"There is the breakfast-bell," said Deck, who was quite prepared by his night's work for the summons.

At the table the story of the night's adventures was repeated for the information of Mrs. Lyons and her daughters, and they wanted to hug Deck; first, because he had been so brave and vigorous in the rescue of Margie and Kate Belthorpe, and second, because he had not been killed or severely wounded in the encounter of which he had been the hero.

After the meal Major Lyon and his two guests retired to the library, while the boys went to bed. Before the former separated, they had arranged a plan for the enlistment of a company of cavalry which had been discussed at the meeting the evening before. But all concerned were tired out after the labors of the night. Colonel Cosgrove was sent to the place where he had left his team, and Squire Truman was driven to the village by Levi, who had chosen this duty himself, in order to "see what was going on," as he expressed it.

The ruffians who had formed the mob had been gathered from the region around Barcreek, and not a few of them lived in the village. There appeared to be no excitement there, and the overseer started for home. On his way he had to pass the shanty of Buck Lagger, where he lived alone when he was at home, which was not much of the time. His worldly wealth, consisting of his stock of miscellaneous goods, was contained in a couple of tin trunks, with which he tramped all over the county.

As Levi drove by the hovel a bullet whistled past his head; and, removing his soft hat, he found that the missile had passed through it, and within a couple of inches of the top of his head. It required no reasoning to convince him that Buck Lagger had fired the shot which had narrowly failed to send him to his long home. This particular kind of outrage was not an uncommon occurrence in Kentucky during the exciting period which followed the bombardment of Fort Sumter. Not a few who had enlisted in the armies of the Union were killed in this cowardly manner.

Levi Bedford reined in his horses, and then secured them to a tree. He was not a man to permit such a dastardly deed to remain unpunished a moment longer than was necessary. The ruffian, who had appeared to be the lieutenant of Captain Titus the night before, could not be far off. Passing to the rear of the shanty, Levi discovered him running for the woods a short distance from the road. In his hand he carried an old flint-lock musket, from which he had doubtless fired the shot intended to deprive Major Lyon of the services of his valuable overseer.

Buck turned to look at his pursuer, though he hardly abated his speed in doing so. His left arm was hung in a sling, the material of which looked as though it might have been a part of the flag of truce displayed on the creek bridge the night before. Levi had the heavy revolver with which he had armed himself still in his pocket; and it had even occurred to him that he might have occasion to use it before he returned from his present visit to the village.

Though he was a heavy man, Levi was agile in his movements, and the ruffian could not help seeing that his pursuer was gaining upon him. Before he reached the woods, he realized that he had no chance to escape, and he halted. Elevating his gun, he took aim at the overseer. But Levi knew that the weapon could not be loaded, for he had fired its only charge at him, and had not had time to reload it.

"It won't go off again till you load it," said the overseer, as he rushed up to him, and wrenched the musket from his hand, thinking he might try to use it as a club. "It's no fault of yours, except in your aim, that you are not a murderer, Buck Lagger!"

"I'm only sorry I missed my aim," replied Buck. "You have a revolver in your hand, and you can shoot me as soon as you please."

"Shooting is too good for a ruffian like you. If I had a rope I would hang you to one of the beams of your own shanty," replied Levi, as he grasped the ruffian by the collar of his coat.

"Oh, I'll lend you a rope if you will come to the house," replied the obliging ruffian. "But hold your hand! You hurt me! You can see for yourself that I am wounded. One of Lyon's cubs put a ball through my shoulder last night."

"It's a pity he did not put it through your brains, if you've got anything of that sort in the top of your head," added Levi, as he proceeded to lead his prisoner to his wagon.

"You hurt me, Bedford!" pleaded Buck. "If you want to hang me, I'll help you do the job in proper fashion; but you needn't torture me before you do it. When we lynch a fellow we don't do that."

Levi released his hold upon the prisoner.

"My aim is better than yours; walk to my wagon, and if you attempt to run away, I won't kill you, but I will put two or three balls through your legs, so that it won't be convenient for you to run," said he, as he drove the villain before him towards the road.

"What are you go'n' to do with me, Bedford?" asked Buck.

"That's my business," replied Levi.

"Well, I think it rayther consarns me too."

"If you live long enough you will find out in time. Now get into the wagon."

"Are you go'n' to take me down to Lyon's place?" asked Buck, looking his captor in the face as they stopped at the side of the vehicle.

"Get in quick, or I may hurt you again!" said Levi impatiently. "You won't get killed by a ball from my shooter, but you may have another wound."

Probably the ruffian preferred shooting to hanging, and the remark of the overseer did not please him. If he had told his whole story, he would have said that he had been unable to sleep on account of the wound in his shoulder, and for that reason he had been up early enough to see Levi drive past his shanty with Squire Truman. The suffering made him angry, stimulated his desire for revenge; and he had tried to put the overseer out of the way.

He pretended to be more afraid of wounds than of death; and with the assistance of Levi he climbed into the wagon, taking his place on the front seat as directed. His captor put the gun he had brought with him into the wagon, and then seated himself beside his prisoner. The spirited horses went off at a lively pace, and Buck immediately complained that the motion increased his pain.

"That wasn't a bad scheme of yours to get possession of Colonel Belthorpe's girls, Buck. You meant to trade them off for the arms, I suppose," said Levi, as he reduced the pace of his horses to a walk; for he desired, if he could, to obtain some information from his prisoner.

"That was just it, Bedford; and if that cub of Lyon's hadn't interfered, we should have had the arms before this time," replied Buck, with both a chuckle and a groan.

"Why didn't you try it on Major Lyon's girls first, for that would have brought the matter nearer home?"

"That's just what we meant to do," replied Buck, with refreshing confidence in his custodian. "That was my plan; but Cap'n Titus was obstinate, and wouldn't hear to me. He ain't much of a cap'n; and I'd had the arms and the rest o' the things if he had left it to me."

"What was your plan, Buck?" asked Levi quietly.

"That's tellin'; we may try it on some other time, if I live long enough. Our folks are fightin' this thing on principle, and we ain't go'n' to see the good old State of Kaintuck turned over to the Abolitionists."

"What do you mean by Abolitionists, Buck?"

"Such fellers as Lyon, Cosgrove, Belthorpe."

"They are all slaveholders."

"They're all Lincolnites, and gave arms to their niggers to shoot down white Kaintuckians last night," replied Buck bitterly.

"Only when a mob of ruffians came down upon them to burn their property and carry off their daughters!" added Levi. "They are Union men, and they will stand by the old flag as long as there is anything left of them."

"The Union's busted!"

"Not much! Why don't you enlist in the Confederate army, and carry out your principles? You are a cowardly ruffian, Buck!"

"We can do more good to the cause by stoppin' here, Bedford; and when I git command of that Home Guard, as I shall afore long, I'll clean out the Abolitionists in less'n a week," said Buck boastfully.

"If you live long enough," suggested Levi.

"If I don't I'm willin' to be a martyr to the good cause!" protested the reprobate.

As before suspected by Levi and his employer, "that Home Guard" was composed of the ruffians who had been the assailants the night before. Levi drove to the fort, where a guard of a dozen negroes, under the command of General, had been placed over the arms and ammunition. The prisoner was taken from the wagon, and permitted to lie on one of the beds which had been brought from the mansion the night before for the use of the defenders of the plantation. General and his men were charged to shoot the captive if he attempted to escape.