Chapter 9

THE DETECTIVE

The only thing which troubled Jet as he sat alone in the narrow cell was the possibility that the inspector might not get his message in time to bag the suspected men before they left the house in the woods, for now that he had made his escape, it was reasonable to suppose they would be alarmed.

On this score, however, he need have had little fear. Before sunset a gentleman was ushered into his cell and the door locked behind him.

"You wanted to see the inspector," the stranger began, as he seated himself on the narrow bench which served as a bed.

"Well, s'posin' I did?" Jet asked, thinking this man was some one attached to the station.

"He has sent me to know where you have been."

"Did you come from New York?"

"Yes, on the last train."

"Why didn't the inspector come?"

"He never leaves the city; there are plenty of officers at headquarters to do such work. Now, what do you know?"

"More'n I'll tell to anybody but him."

"In that case I shall have to take you back to the city."

"But then it will be too late; them fellers are bound to skip when they find out I've got away."

"What fellows?"

Jet looked up suspiciously.

"I don't want to say a word to anybody but the inspector."

"I told you he sent me to do the business. You can talk as freely as to him."

"Who are you?"

"Detective Harvey."

"From New York?"

"See here, my boy, I don't blame you for having doubts, and to set them at rest I'll prove that what I say is true," and the detective pounded on the bars of the cell door until the turnkey appeared.

"I wish you would ask the sergeant to step this way a moment."

That officer obeyed the summons at once, and when he stood at the door the detective said to him:

"Will you kindly tell this boy who I am? He is afraid I am sailing under false colors."

"You are Detective Harvey, sent by the inspector at New York in answer to a telegram I wired this morning. To give him perfect confidence in you I will say further that at present he is confined for passing counterfeit money, but if you should ask to have him released I guarantee that the charge will be withdrawn. Are you satisfied now, my boy?"

"Yes, I reckon it's all right. I'll take the chances; but if you fellers are playin' any game, the inspector is bound to raise a terrible row when I see him."

"That part of it is all right. Tell Harvey what you know, and I answer for it that it will be the same as if the inspector himself was here."

With this remark the sergeant walked away, and Jet said in a low tone:

"Now I'll tell the whole story; but first I want to know why that advertisement about me was put in the papers?"

"We thought those two men might have gotten hold of you, more especially since the manager at the district messenger station reported that you spoke of being hired to go to Yonkers."

Jet now gave, with careful attention to detail, the story of his misadventures from the time of leaving the Union Square Hotel, and Detective Harvey received the information with no slight degree of excitement.

"I suppose the bills you found in the pile of dirt are in the sergeant's hands," he said, half to himself, when Jet concluded.

"I reckon so; anyway, they took both away from me."

"We will go up stairs and look at them. If I'm not mistaken, my boy, we shall run to earth the gang who are flooding the country with the most dangerous counterfeit known, at the same time that we bag the murderers. Do you think you could lead me to the house in the woods?"

"I'm certain of it; but we shall have to walk a long distance."

"I wouldn't grumble if it was fifty miles, providing we finally succeeded. Come with me."

Again he summoned the turnkey, ordered him to open the door, and said to Jet:

"Follow me."

"Ain't they goin' to keep me here any longer?"

"I should say not. You heard what the sergeant said, and we must be out of this town within an hour."

Jet followed his conductor up stairs, and in a few moments the two were in earnest consultation with the Albany Chief of Police.

The counterfeits were found to be the same which had given the authorities so much trouble. They were so well executed as to pass without suspicion in the majority of cases, and the fact that the two discovered by Jet were imperfect impressions, which had been thrown aside by the makers, was, probably, the only cause of their having been refused by the ticket-seller.

"It is lucky you were arrested," Harvey said in a tone of satisfaction.

"Why?" Jet asked in surprise. "It wasn't any fun to stay in that little cell all day."

"I can fancy not; but if you had come to New York a great deal of time would have been wasted, and as it is we can start in search of those fellows at once."

"But you an' I can't handle the crowd if they show fight."

"We don't intend to try. When we leave this town our party will be large enough."

"How many men do you want?" the chief asked the detective.

"Two, providing they are ready at once."

"I suppose you will go a certain portion of the way on the train?"

"Certainly."

"On that road the next one leaves in about an hour. I will have the best men I know of waiting at the depot. Is there anything else to be done?"

"Not now. Jet and I will go for dinner, and meet you at the station. Can you lend the boy a revolver; one more weapon may come in handy in case of a fight, and unless those fellows have already made a change of base I reckon we shall have a lively time."

The chief gave Jet a weapon and plenty of cartridges, and District Messenger No. 48 felt exceedingly proud as he walked out of the station with the revolver in the inside pocket of his coat.

Harvey was no niggard so far as caring for the comfort of his small assistant was concerned.

A dinner at the Delavan House such as Jet had never set down to before was indulged in, and when the messenger arose from the table it was with the sensation of being full almost to bursting.

To the boy's relief Harvey informed him that the inspector never for a moment believed he had run away; but attributed his absence to exactly the true cause, and all which had been done toward finding him was with this view of the case.

"It will be a mighty big thing for you if we succeed to-night," the detective added, "for the rewards which have been offered, both for the counterfeiters and the murderers, amount to no small sum, a portion of which will, of course, belong to you."

"I'm satisfied if I make wages out of the thing; but it's too bad that money I found wasn't good, for I allowed to put the most of it away so's to pay my board till I got another job."

"You needn't hunt very far for work if this thing turns, out all right. I'll take care of that part of it."

Since Jet was to be the guide on the expedition his advice was asked for when the tickets were purchased, and in order to be certain of his bearings he thought best to return to the town where he boarded the cars during his flight.

Two officers, dressed in citizens' clothes, reported to Harvey at the depot, and one would say, judging from their personal appearance, that they were well able to cope with twice the number of desperate characters who might be found in the house in the woods.

It was late in the evening when the party alighted from the train, and Jet set out up the track leading the way, until he arrived at the point where he emerged from the woods.

"This is the place," he said, pointing to the trunk of a dead tree. "I took especial notice of that so's I'd be able to know where to strike in again."

"In what direction is the house situated?" Harvey asked.

"About there," and Jet pointed toward the north.

"Do you think you could find it in the night?"

"I'm certain I could when it was light; but there is a long distance to walk, so what's to hinder our goin' as far as I traveled, an' then waiting for morning."

"It's a good idea. Go ahead, and when you think we are far enough, call a halt."

"I don't fancy camping in the woods all night, and that is about what you are preparing to do," one of the Albany officers said, grumblingly.

"This is a case where we must put up with considerable discomfort for the sake of bagging our game. Let the boy do as he chooses; I'll answer for it that he's got brains enough to lead us right."

Harvey was ready to undergo any discomfort in order to gain the desired end; but his companions were not as enthusiastic. They complained at being under the guidance of a boy in whom they did not feel the most perfect confidence, and Harvey was obliged to speak very harshly before they would consent to follow.

Jet led the way with no slight degree of mental disquietude.

If he failed to conduct the party correctly it might be said he was playing the traitor, and the task set for him was a difficult one, considering the fact that he had only been over the ground once before.

Nevertheless he was willing to do all in his power, trusting for success to the chapter of accidents rather than any especial skill of his own, and the men followed close at his heels.

During his flight he had noted carefully all the prominent landmarks, and the fact that he had seen them only in the night aided him now.

During at least four hours he advanced at a rapid pace, stopping now and then to take counsel with Harvey, and at the expiration of that time he said, as he pointed toward a clump of alder bushes:

"There is where I first began the tramp after the fight with the dog."

"Are you certain of that?"

"You can make sure by crawling through the bushes three or four hundred yards, when the house should be in sight."

"I'll go ahead now. If I get off the course, stop me," and Harvey took command of the party.

That Jet had made no mistake was shown ten minutes later when the outlines of the building with its barricade of cord-wood could be seen against the gray sky.

The house was wrapped in darkness, presenting a striking contrast with the scene as viewed by Jet a few hours previous, and the latter said mournfully:

"I reckon all hands have skipped."

"It won't take us long to find out, for we'll overhaul the place at once."