The Pensacola journal., 1922-12-24

6enind nm, close to those electric
light switches, her way clear to the
front door, save for the peril of
that hghted passage down which
she must run. In front of him,
Just out of arms reach, the
Cherub's bland eyes smiled into his
with sort of hideous serenity;
While over the CheKub's shoulders,
one on each side, showed the
VICIOUS faces of the other two
and, under cover of the Cherub's
body, Clarke Munn's hand seemed
to pc stealing in the direction of
his hip pocket.
Billy Kane seemed suddenly to
80 to pieces and to lose his nerve.
His tongue/circled his lips with ner-
Vous repetition. He put out his
hands IN an imploring attitude,
and stumbled a step forward to-
ward the Cherub, and caught a
CLINT of light on a revolver barrel
in Clarke Munn's hand, as it came
stealing. from the latter's pocket.
"Wait-wait minute, Cherub"
Billy Kane whispered thickly, and
stumbled forward another step.
Waltz he whispered-and then,
swift as the winking of an eye,
Billy Kane flung his body forward
with all his weight upon the
Cherub, hurling the Cherub back
upon Clarke Mum, and whirling,
whipped a lightning left full into
Gypsy Joe's face on the other side.
There was a fash, the deafening
roar of report, as the Cherub
INF
volVer; then scream of agony,
and the Cherub, grasping at his leg
with both hands, went to the floor.
"The switches there - beside
your Billy Kane shouted a. the
girl. "Put out the lights-both
switches! Quick! Run for it"'
Gypsy Joe, recovering his bal
anIe, and with below like a mad
dened bull, was charging for
ward; Clarke Munn's hand had
swung upward again-and then the
place was in darkness. A second
late, Clarke Munn's revolver cut
vicious flame-tongue through the
black, but Billy Kane had fattened
himself out on the floor, and was
wriggling rapidly backward toward
the door and the now dark passage
way.
There was a moan, then a shrill
scream in the Cherub's voice, and
coincidentally a torrent of bias
phemy from Gypsy Joe, as the lat
ter, quite obviously, in his rush and
in the blackness now, had stumbled
none too gently into the wounded
man.
''Youse fool! Curse youse,
youse fool!" shrieked the Cherub.
Amt youse got pocket torch ?
Amt either of youse got torch
Flash a torch on him, an'-''
Billy Kane was across the thresh-
old now; and now, rising to his
knees, he CROPPED out for the edge
of the door, found it, and, as he
slammed it shut, it seemed to cut in
two, as a knife might cut it, the
sudden, white, piercing ray of q
fiaShlight that leaped out from the
interior of the warehouse. And
then in another second he had shot
the bolt home in it's grooves, and,
in the darkness, leaning heavily for
an instant against the door to re-
cover himself, he stared down the
black passage for the girl, and
could see nothing.
There came an abor.ive rush
against the door; snarls and oaths
came muffled from within. He
moved a step forward along the
passage. They were a negligible
quantity in there now. The door
would hold, and when they sue
ceeded in getting out and making
their way along the side of the
dock perhaps, they would be more
concerned in getting to cover them
selves than anything else; and be-
sides they would have a wounded
man to hamper their movements.
1t was she now, the Woman in
Black, that concerned him.
"Where are you?'' he called
quickly. "Where are you?"
A draft Of air touched his face
The front door at the farther end
of the passage was being opened.
81 am here, Bundy.''
1t was her voice. but there was
something of cold, merciless for
bidding in it. He halted .instinc-
lively. He did not quite under
stand.
"Bundy, are you listening ~
came the level tones again. This
is the end, absolutely and finally
the end tonight. You have saved
my life, but / owe you no thanks
for that. You saved it, after hir-
ing thugs to take it, you thing of
loathing, because you dared do
nothing else, since you say you be
lieve the police got wind enough of
this thing tonight to scare you off.
Very well, Bundy-but there is
more, isn't there, that the police do
not know? Well, they will know
it, and certain secrets in that den
of yours, the moment can reach
them. l have warned you otter
enough. l am through, Bundy
This is the end of the Rat tonight,
nothing shall stop that-but I am
still fool. I am still giving you
warning of what mean to do now.
l am still giving you a chance to
save yourself if you can; the rather
slim chance that the police will not
be able to run the man who was
known as the Rat to earth! And I
l.. L