The Courage of Captain Plum Read online

  CHAPTER III

  THE WARNING

  So quickly that Obadiah Price might not have counted ten before it hadcome and gone the significance of his new situation flashed upon CaptainPlum as he stood under the king's window. His plans had changed sinceleaving ship but now he realized that they had become hopelesslyinvolved. He had intended that Obadiah should show him where Strang wasto be found, and that later, when ostensibly returning to his vessel, hewould visit the prophet in his home. Whatever the interview broughtforth he would still be in a position to deliver the councilor'spackage. Even an hour's bombardment of St. James would not interferewith the fulfilment of his oath. But those few minutes at the king'swindow had been fatal to the scheme he had built. The girl had seenhim. She had not betrayed his presence. She had called to him with hereyes--he would have staked his life on that. What did it all mean? Heturned to Obadiah. The old man was grimacing and twisting his handsnervously. He seemed half afraid, cringing, as if fearing a blow. Thesight of him set Nathaniel's blood afire. His white face seemed toverify the terrible thought that had leaped into his brain. Suddenly heheard a faint cry--a woman's voice--and in an instant he was back at thewindow. The girl had risen to her feet and stood facing him. This time,as her eyes met his own, he saw in them a flashing warning, and heobeyed it as if she had spoken to him. As he dropped silently back tothe ground the councilor came close to his side.

  "That's enough for to-night, Nat," he whispered.

  He made as if to slip away but Nathaniel detained him with an emphatichand.

  "Not yet, Dad! I'd like to have a word with--this--"

  "With Strang's wife," chuckled Obadiah. "Ho, ho, ho, Nat, you're arascal!" The old man's face was mapped with wrinkles, his eyes glowedwith joyous approbation. "You shall, Nat, you shall! You love a prettyface, eh? You shall meet Mrs. Strang, Nat, and you shall make love toher if you wish. I swear that, too. But not to-night, Nat--notto-night."

  He stood a pace away and rubbed his hands.

  "There will be no chance to-night, Nat--but to-morrow night, or thenext. O, I promise you shall meet her, and make love to her, Nat! Ho, ifStrang knew, if Strang _only_ knew!"

  There was something so fiendishly gloating in the councilor's attitude,in his face, in the hot glow of his eyes, that for a moment Nathaniel'sinvoluntary liking for the little old man before him turned toabhorrence. The passion, the triumph of the man, convinced him wherewords had failed. The girl was Strang's wife. His last doubt wasdispelled. And because she was Strang's wife Obadiah hated the Mormonprophet. The councilor had spoken with fateful assurance--that he shouldmeet her, that he should make love to her. It was an assurance that madehim shudder. As he followed in silence up out of the gloom of the townhe strove, but in vain, to find whether sin had lurked in the sweet facethat had appealed to him in its misery--whether there had been a flashof something besides terror, besides prayerful entreaty, in the lovelyeyes that had met his own. Obadiah spoke no word to break in on histhoughts. Now and then the old man's insane chucklings floated softly toNathaniel's ears, and when at last they came to the cabin in the foresthe broke into a low laugh that echoed weirdly in the great black roomwhich they entered. He lighted another candle and approached a ladderwhich led through a trap in the ceiling. Without a word he mounted thisladder, and Nathaniel followed him, finding himself a moment later in asmall low room furnished with a bed. The councilor placed his candle ona table close beside it and rubbed his hands until it seemed they mustburn.

  "You will stay--eh, Nat?" he cried, bobbing his head. "Yes, you willstay, and you will give me back the package for a day or two." Heretreated to the trap and slid down it as quickly as a rat. "Pleasantdreams to you, Nat, and--O, wait a minute!" Captain Plum could hear himpattering quickly over the floor below. In a moment he was back,thrusting his white grimacing face through the trap and tossed somethingupon the bed. "She left them last night, Nat. Pleasant dreams, pleasantdreams," and he was gone.

  Nathaniel turned to the bed and picked up a faded bunch of lilacs. Thenhe sat down, loaded his pipe, and smoked until he could hardly see thewalls of his little room. From the moment of his landing on the islandhe turned the events of the day over in his mind. Yet when he arrived atthe end of them he was no less mystified than when he began. Who wasObadiah Price? Who was the girl that fate had so mysteriously associatedwith his movements thus far? What was the plot in which he hadaccidentally become involved? With tireless tenacity he hung to thesequestions for hours. That there was a plot of some kind he had not theleast doubt. The councilor's strange actions, the oath, the package, andabove all the scene in the king's house convinced him of that. And hewas sure that Obadiah's night visitor--the girl with the lilacs--wasplaying a vital part in it.

  He plucked at the withered flowers which the old man had thrown him. Hecould detect their sweet scent above the pungent fumes of tobacco and asObadiah's triumphant chuckle recurred to him, the gloating joy in hiseyes, the passionate tremble of his voice, a grim smile passed over hisface. The mystery was easy of solution--if he was willing to reasonalong certain lines. But he was not willing. He had formed his ownpicture of Strang's wife and it pleased him to keep it. At moments hehalf conceded himself a fool, but that did not trouble him. The longerhe smoked the more his old confidence and his old recklessness returnedto him. He had enjoyed his adventure. The next day he would end it. Hewould go openly into St. James and have done his business with Strang.Then he would return to his ship. What had he, Captain Plum, to do withStrang's wife?

  But even after he had determined on these things his brain refused torest. He paced back and forth across the narrow room, thinking of theman whom he was to meet to-morrow--of Strang, the one-time schoolmasterand temperance lecturer who had made himself a king, who for seven yearshad defied the state and nation, and who had made of his islandstronghold a hot-bed of polygamy, of licentiousness, of dissolute power.His blood grew hot as he thought again of the beautiful girl who hadappealed to him. Obadiah had said that she was the king's wife. Still--

  Thoughts flashed into his head which for a time made him forget hismission on the island. In spite of his resolution to keep to his ownscheme he found himself, after a little, thinking only of the Mormonking, and the lovely face he had seen through the castle window. He knewmuch about the man with whom he was to deal to-morrow. He knew that hehad been a rival of Brigham Young and that when the exodus of theMormons to the deserts of the west came he had led his own followersinto the North, and that each July, amid barbaric festivities, he wasrecrowned with a circlet of gold. But the girl! If she was the king'swife why had her eyes called to him for help?

  The question crowded Nathaniel's brain with a hundred thrillingpictures. With a shudder he thought of the terrible power the Mormonking held not only over his own people but over the Gentiles of themainlands as well. With these mainlanders, he regarded Beaver Island asa nest of pirates and murderers. He knew of the depredations of Strangand his people among the fishermen and settlers, of the piraticalexpeditions of his armed boats, of the dreaded raids of his sheriffs,and of the crimes that made the women of the shores tremble and turnwhite at the mere mention of his name.

  Was it possible that this girl--

  Captain Plum did not let himself finish the thought. With a powerfuleffort he brought himself back to his own business on the island, smokedanother pipe, and undressed. He went to bed with the withered lilacs onthe table close beside him. He fell asleep with their scent in hisnostrils. When he awoke they were gone. He started up in astonishmentwhen he saw what had taken their place. Obadiah had visited him while heslept. The table was spread with a white cloth and upon it was hisbreakfast, a pot of coffee still steaming, and the whole of a cold bakedfowl. Near-by, upon a chair, was a basin of water, soap and a towel.Nathaniel rolled from his bed with a healthy laugh of pleasure. Thecouncilor was at least a courteous host, and his liking for the curiousold man promptly increased. There was a sheet of paper on his plate uponwhich Obadiah had scribbled the following word
s:

  "My dear Nat:--Make yourself at home. I will be away to-day but will seeyou again to-night. Don't be surprised if somebody makes you a visit."

  The "somebody" was heavily underscored and Nathaniel's pulse quickenedand a sudden flush of excitement surged into his face as he read themeaning of it. The "somebody" was Strang's wife. There could be no otherinterpretation. He went to the trap and called down for Obadiah butthere was no answer. The councilor had already gone. Quickly eating hisbreakfast the master of the _Typhoon_ climbed down the ladder into theroom below. The remains of the councilor's breakfast were on a tablenear the door, and the door was open. Through it came a glory ofsunshine and the fresh breath of the forest laden with the perfume ofwild flowers and balsam. A thousand birds seemed caroling and twitteringin the sunlit solitude about the cabin. Beyond this there was no othersound or sign of life. For many minutes Nathaniel stood in the open, hiseyes on the path along which he knew that Strang's wife would come--ifshe came at all. Suddenly he began to examine the ground where the girlhad stood the previous night. The dainty imprints of her feet wereplainly discernible in the soft earth. Then he went to the path--andwith a laugh so loud that it startled the birds into silence he set offwith long strides in the direction of St. James. From the footprints inthat path it was quite evident that Strang's wife was a frequent visitorat Obadiah's.

  At the edge of the forest, from where he could see the log housesituated across the opening, Nathaniel paused. He had made up his mindthat the girl whom he had seen through the king's window was in some wayassociated with it. Obadiah had hinted as much and she had come fromthere on her way to Strang's. But as the prophet's wives lived in hiscastle at St. James this surely could not be her home. More than ever hewas puzzled. As he looked he saw a figure suddenly appear from among themass of lilac bushes that almost concealed the cabin. An involuntaryexclamation of satisfaction escaped him and he drew back deeper amongthe trees. It was the councilor who had shown himself. For a few momentsthe old man stood gazing in the direction of St. James as if watchingfor the approach of other persons. Then he dodged cautiously along theedge of the bushes, keeping half within their cover, and moved swiftlyin the opposite direction toward the center of the island. Nathaniel'sblood leaped with a desire to follow. The night before he had guessedthat Obadiah with his gold and his smoldering passion was not a man toisolate himself in the heart of the forest. Here--across the open--wasevidence of another side of his life. In that great square-builtdomicile of logs, screened so perfectly by flowering lilac, livedObadiah's wives. Captain Plum laughed aloud and beat the bowl of hispipe on the tree beside him. And the _girl_ lived there--or came fromthere to the woodland cabin so frequently that her feet had beaten awell-worn path. Had the councilor lied to him? Was the girl he had seenthrough the King's window one of the seven wives of Strang--or was shethe wife of Obadiah Price?

  The thought was one that thrilled him. If the girl was the councilor'swife what was the motive of Obadiah's falsehood? And if she was Strang'swife why had her feet--and hers alone with the exception of the oldman's--worn this path from the lilac smothered house to the cabin in thewoods? The captain of the _Typhoon_ regretted now that he had given suchexplicit orders to Casey. Otherwise he would have followed the figurethat was already disappearing into the forest on the opposite side ofthe clearing. But now he must see Strang. There might be delay,necessary delay, and if it so happened that his own blundering curiositykept him on the island until sundown--well, he smiled as he thought ofwhat Casey would do.

  Refilling his pipe and leaving a trail of smoke behind him he set outboldly for St. James. When he came to the three graves he stopped,remembering that Obadiah had said they were his graves. A sort of grimhorror began to stir at his soul as he gazed on the grass-grownmounds--proofs that the old councilor would inherit a place in theMormon Heaven having obeyed the injunctions of his prophet on earth.Nathaniel now understood the meaning of his words of the night before.This was the family burying ground of the old councilor.

  He walked on, trying in vain to concentrate his mind solely upon thebusiness that was ahead of him. A few days before he would have countedthis walk to St. James one of the events of his life. Now it had lostits fascination. Despite his efforts to destroy the vision of thebeautiful face that had looked at him through the king's window itsmemory still haunted him. The eyes, soft with appeal; the red mouth,quivering, and with lips parted as if about to speak to him; the bowedhead with its tumbled glory of hair--all had burned themselves upon hissoul in a picture too deep to be eradicated. If St. James wasinteresting now it was because that face was a part of it, because thesecret of its life, of the misery that it had confessed to him, washidden somewhere down there among its scattered log homes.

  Slowly he made his way down the slope in the direction of Strang'scastle, the tower of which, surmounted by its great beacon, glistened inthe morning sun. He would find Strang there. And there would be onechance in a thousand of seeing the girl--if Obadiah had spoken thetruth. As he passed down he met men and boys coming up the slope andothers moving along at the bottom of it, all going toward the interiorof the island. They had shovels or rakes or hoes upon their shouldersand he guessed that the Mormon fields were in that direction; othersbore axes; and now and then wagons, many of them drawn by oxen, left thetown over the road that ran near the shore of the lake. Those whom hemet stared at him curiously, much interested evidently in the appearanceof a stranger. Nathaniel paid but small heed to them. As he entered thegrove through which the councilor had guided him the night before hiseagerness became almost excitement. He approached the great log houseswiftly but cautiously, keeping as much from view as possible. As hecame under the window through which he had looked upon the king and hiswives his heart leaped with anticipation, with hope that was strangelymingled with fear. For only a moment he paused to listen, andnotwithstanding the seriousness of his position he could not repress asmile as there came to his ears the crying of children and the highangry voice of a woman. He passed around to the front of the house. Thedoor of Strang's castle was wide open and unguarded. No one had seen hisapproach; no one accosted him as he mounted the low steps; there was noone in the room into which he gazed a moment later. It was the greathall into which he had spied a few hours previous. There was the longtable with the big book on it, the lamp whose light had bathed thegirl's head in a halo of glory, the very chair in which he had found hersitting! He was conscious of a throbbing in his breast, a longing tocall out--if he only knew her name.

  In the room there were four closed doors and it was from beyond thesethat there came to him the wailing of children. A fifth door was openand through it he saw a cradle gently rocking. Here at last was visiblelife, or motion at least, and he knocked loudly. Very gradually thecradle ceased its movement. Then it stopped, and a woman came out intothe larger room. In a moment Nathaniel recognized her as the one who hadplaced a caressing hand upon the bowed head of the sobbing girl thenight before. Her face was of pathetic beauty. Its whiteness wasstartling. Her eyes shone with an unhealthy luster, and her dark hair,falling in heavy curls over her shoulder, added to the wonderful pallorof her cheeks.

  Nathaniel bowed. "I beg your pardon, madam; I came to see Mr. Strang,"he said.

  "You will find the king at his office," she replied.

  The woman's voice was low, but so sweet that it was like music to theear. As she spoke she came nearer and a faint flush appeared in thetransparency of her cheek.

  "Why do you wish to see the king?" she asked.

  Was there a tremble of fear in her voice? Even as he looked Nathanielsaw the flush deepen in her cheeks and her eyes light with nervouseagerness.

  "I am sent by Obadiah Price," he hazarded.

  A flash of relief shot into the woman's face.

  "The king is at his office," she repeated. "His office is near thetemple."

  Nathaniel retired with another bow.

  "By thunder, Strang, old boy, you've certainly got an eye for beauty!"he laugh
ed as he hurried through the grove.

  "And Obadiah Price must be somebody, after all!"

  The Mormon temple was the largest structure in St. James, a huge squarebuilding of hewn logs, and Nathaniel did not need to make inquiry tofind it. On one side was a two-story building with an outside stairwayleading to the upper floor, and a painted sign announced that on thissecond floor was situated the office of James Jesse Strang, priest, kingand prophet of the Mormons. It was still very early and the generalmerchandise store below was not open. Congratulating himself on thisfact, and with the fingers of his right hand reaching instinctively forhis pistol butt, Captain Plum mounted the stair. When half way up heheard voices. As he reached the landing at the top he caught the quickswish of a skirt. Another step and he was in the open door. He was notsoon enough to see the person who had just disappeared through anopposite door but he knew that it was a woman. Directly in front of himas if she had been expecting his arrival was a young girl, and no soonerhad he put a foot over the threshold than she hurried toward him, themost acute anxiety and fear written in her face.

  "You are Captain Plum?" she asked breathlessly.

  Nathaniel stopped in astonishment.

  "Yes, I'm--"

  "Then you must hurry--hurry!" cried the girl excitedly. "You have not amoment to lose! Go back to your ship before it is too late! She saysthey will kill you--"

  "Who says so?" thundered Captain Plum. He sprang to the girl's side andcaught her by the arm. "Who says that I will be killed? Tell me--whogave you this warning for me?"

  "I--I--tell you so!" stammered the young girl. "I--I--heard theking--they will kill you--" Her lips trembled. Nathaniel saw that hereyes were already red from crying. "You will go?" she pleaded.

  Nathaniel had taken her hand and now he held it tightly in his own. Hishead was thrown back, his eyes were upon the door across the room. Whenhe looked again into the girlish face there was flashing joyous defiancein his eyes, and in his voice there was confession of the truth that hadsuddenly come to overwhelm whatever law of self preservation he mighthave held unto himself.

  "No, my dear, I am not going back to my ship," he spoke softly. "Notunless she who is in that room comes out and bids me go herself!"