Лестер Дент - Death in Silver

Back to the treasure room, Doc walked. Under a light, he opened the packet which had been inside the silver man's garment.

The package held a large, well-made black theatrical beard. Doc replaced the set of dark whiskers in his pocket.

The bronze man left the treasure room, stooping, bending his knees, and hanging his head in order to make himself appear smaller.

He sighted a guard down the passage and made for the fellow. But before he reached the watchman, another silver figure appeared and attempted to pass.

The lookout challenged, snarling, "Get that rig off! I wanta see your face!"

Instead of complying with the command, the silver man held up an arm and exposed a wristwatch. The guard compared its reading with the expensive timepiece on his own wrist.

"Sure," he said. "Go ahead."

Doc paused … and for a brief moment his fantastic trilling sound was audible but not loud enough to penetrate to the guard. Doc had just discovered the significance of the expensive wristwatches which all of the gang wore. They were used in place of passwords.

The bronze man still wore the wristwatch which he had taken from the man who had kicked the beggar in New York City — the man who had discovered his mistake and later fled, only to be shot to death by a policeman. Its underwater bath had evidently not hurt the watch.

Advancing, Doc was challenged. He showed the watch as the other had done. It got him past.

A few yards beyond the guard, he turned and in a voice greatly different from his own — a harsh, cruel tone — asked, "Where are the prisoners being held?"

"Right ahead of you," he was told. "You can't miss it."

Doc went on. He saw the room in which the prisoners were being questioned. But instead of pausing, he went on as if he were uninterested.

He had seen that Monk, Ham, and the 2 girls were safe for the time-being. They would be safe until they talked, providing they did not hold out until Ull was exasperated.

Working deep into the old tramp steamer, Doc carefully avoided the engine rooms. The craft was an oil burner. He found the fuel tanks, got a cap unscrewed, and learned they were almost full.

He left the cap off, scooped up oil in his hands, and spilled it along the tanks and down the sides, thence to the nearest bulkhead door. He carried the trail beyond that for some distance.

At the end of the oil trail, he sank to a knee and felt through the pockets of the silver frock until he found the matches. With a quick scrape, he struck one … then dropped it.

The bronze man was running furiously when the match hit the fuel oil. There was a sizzling . The stuff did not burn like gasoline. But it flamed, nevertheless, and the fire ran along until it reached the bulkhead, passed through, and went on.

That was all Doc saw. He was still running. He mounted a companionway.

There was a loud roarand a rush of superheated air as the fuel tank took fire. There had been enough gas inside it to explode and split the container.

Ull was yelling threats at Monk and Ham when the explosion came. The cherub-faced man rocked on his feet, brought up against a bulkhead, and looked very surprised.

"What the … " he began … then a mad shout apprised him of what was wrong.

"Fire! Fire!" was the yell.

Ull wheeled and plunged out of the steel cell, rapping over his shoulder, "Watch these prisoners!"

He disappeared down the passage. Other men — some in silver frocks and some in shirtsleeves — followed. They streamed past the door.

But one did not pass. He whipped into the cell. The guard stared wonderingly at him.

"I'm taking your place!" snapped the newcomer. "Give me your gun and go help fight that fire."

The guard hesitated … then passed over his weapon and plunged outside. He had little hankering to be left below on sentry duty where he might be trapped if the ship sank.

The replacement wrenched down his hood.

"Doc!" Monk squawked and looked as if he were going to faint.

Doc Savage snapped, "Come on! We've got to get out of here fast!"

The bronze man replaced his hood, concealing his features, and waved his gun prominently as he herded Monk, Ham, and the 2 girls down the passage. Other silver men passing him thought — if they took time to think at all — that he was merely one of their number moving the prisoners.

Doc stopped one of them.

"Where is the other captive?" he demanded.

The silver man pointed. "Third door," he said.

Doc ran to the designated panel, wrenched at the heavy hasp which secured it, got it open … and Rapid Pacecame stumbling out. He lunged fiercely at Doc and tried to strike with his fists.

"Stop it!" Doc rapped.

"Bless me!" Pace gulped. "I thought you were dead. Yes sir, I thought you were dead!"

Doc herded his party on, still pretending to be escorting them to another prison cell.

They came to the room which held the treasure table. Monk stared at the assembled wealth, then made a growling sound and plunged to the left. Sacks lay there. Stout rubberized canvas bags in which the loot had no doubt been brought aboard. He seized upon some of the bags and with sweeps of his great arms, he began stuffing the sacks.

"Gimme a hand!" he snapped at Ham. "I don't want to see these guys get away with this stuff!"

Ham leaped to aid. To expedite matters, Doc also lent a hand.

Rapid Pace dashed forward, opened a door, yelled over his shoulder, "I'm gonna see if the coast is clear," then disappeared. He had entered the passage in which Doc had overpowered the Master of the Silver Death's-Heads .

A moment later were grunts, blows, and painful exclamations.

Pace yelled, "Ouch! There's somebody on the floor here! Say, he's tying a handkerchief over his face!"

"Watch it!" Doc shouted. "He is the man behind all of this!"

Pace shouted "Ouch!" again after which there were more blows. Heels kicked steel plates. Grunts came from between clenched teeth. The thumping and tearing of clothing indicated a terrific fight.

Doc leaped forward and plunged into the passage. It was very dark.

The fight had worked farther down the corridor. The Master of the Silver Death's-Heads seemed to be in flight with Pace close on his heels.

"I licked 'im!" Pace howled. "But he's getting away!"

An instant later, Doc bumped into Pace. The efficiency expert stood in the brilliant sunlight outside. An open hatch nearby indicated where the quarry had gone.

Pace's face was blank. He tried to speak twice before he could manufacture words.

"T-that was the mastermind?" be stuttered.

"It was," Doc told him. "Did you see his face?"

"I s-sure d-did!" Pace gulped. "And am I s-surprised!"'

- — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

Doc gave Rapid Pace a shove. They headed for the nearest lifeboat with the 2 girls immediately behind and Monk and Ham — heavily burdened — bringing up the rear.

The lifeboat was an unusual craft for a tramp steamer of this sort. It was more of a fast seagoing launch. Evidently it was a provision against the necessity of a getaway sometime when the submarine was not at hand.

Doc wrenched the tarpaulin off. Then he and Monk threw their weight against the levers which swung the davits out. Ham heaved sacks of loot into the craft. They loaded aboard.