Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1911-03-03

Jimmy Valentine pulled manfuIly at
the handles of the vault door. Per
haps, after all, the combination had
not been turned and only the doors
weight held It In place. But the metal
barrier would not move. He pressed
his ear to the hairlike crack. He
heard the sound as of a little body
falling to the floor and the faint means
OF the prisoner calling. Bobby, Bobby.
Bobbyr'
Valentine bent over the combination.
peered sharply at 1t, then began TO
twtri the cylinders gently. Around
and then back he turned the knob.
No; II was OF no use Nothing could
be done until the sandpaper arrived.
His fingers had lost their sensitiveness
and hence their cunning, and In the
meantime Valentine well knew the
prisoner was consuming whatever Of
the priceless air that remained.
The door leading from his ONCE
swung open, and again Red Flanagan
darted In He flung himself on the
vault room door directly below Val
entine's knees and held his ear close
to the crack of the safe door.
Think you can make ii, JimmyF
he gasped.
"Guess SO; never failed on q lock
Ike this. why, In Gods name. don't
that fool come with that sandpaper?"
Valentine was desperate at the delay.
Hes gone to a-here he Isl" cried
Red as he heard hurrying footsteps in
the assistant cashiers once. Red
jumped to his feet and out into Val
h. 80
sandpaper from the messengers
hands.
What are you going to do with it7'
asked the inquisitive clerk
Red showed him away and darted
back toward the vault room
None Of your business" he cried.
land keep out OF here"
give II here. What is it?" exclaim-
ed Valentine as Red ran to him
mo. T."
That's best. Is the bank emptyT'
Eyes, thank God. Mr.. Lane has
gone There's no one here to pipe
what we're doin'-and even If there
was we'd Just materially have to 20
through with it-for that girl Kitty
shut upr' cried Valentine nervous
". He bent over and rubbed his en-
gers briskly across the gritty surface
of one of the sheets of sandpaper
which Red had handed him-rubbed
until the white flesh showed pink
Red stood and watched him breath
lessly. The sound of Valentines fin
gers scraping back and forth across
the face OF the sandpaper seemed to
his feverish brain the physical demon
stration Of an evil being. appalled, him
as sinister omen of impending doom.
He had heard a story of his old grand
mothers. when a young lad. that Of
ten when a person was going to die a
be heard in the fated house, the sound
coming as though from a mysterious
watch concealed in the wall-the
death tick" AS the sound of the
scraping fingers continued the zip, zip,
zip, zip echoed from the walls and
smote into Reds ears and into Reds |
brain-an uncanny reminder of that |
long forgotten tale.
And, strangely enough. Reds pre- |
monition Of the presence Of an unseen
menace was not without foundation
in fact 1t may be that this active
career in the underworld had devel- |
oped in him that sixth sense of the
habitual thief which sometimes gives /
him warning Of approaching dangers.
AS Red stood there fascinatingly
watching the rapid play of Valentines |
fingers the door leading into the mar
row hallway noiselessly opened-open- |
ed just enough to allow the sound of /
the scraping fingers to reach the ear |
pressed against the crack between the |
door and the jam. A few inches mors |
of space and the face of George Doyle |
appeared in the doorway.
As the door ON opening swung to- |
ward the rear of the chamber toward |
the vault, Doyle. shielded by II. was
enabled to put one foot over the sill |
and stand half within the vault room. |
Pressing himself close against the |
door, he could watch in the darkened, |
shadowy room the operations of Red |
Flanagan and Mr.. Lee Randall. alias |
Jimmy Valentine.
He saw the sheet Of sandpaper fut- |
ter to the floor; he saw Valentine lick |
his fingers with his tongue to ease the |
burning pain that throbbed through |
them; he saw Red Flanagan drop on |
his knees and crouch against the door
of the giant safe: he saw Valentine |
step forward, seize the combination |
with the tips of his fingers. press his |
ear against the vault and gently, ca |
ressinSly, ever SO gently. twirl the |
shining nickeled knob OF the combina-
ton.
George Doyle had his dearest wish
gratified. At last he saw the great |