And Denver agreed, though they had come so close that from the back of
the bank it must have been possible to make out the outlines of the
horses. The bank itself was a broad, dumpy building with adobe walls,
whose corners had been washed and rounded by time to shapelessness. The
walls angled in as they rose; the roof was flat. As for the position, it
could not have been worse. A dwelling abutted on either side of the bank.
The second stories of those dwellings commanded the roof of the bank; and
the front and back porches commanded the front and back entrances of the
building.
The moment they had dismounted, Terry and Denver stood a while
motionless. There was no doubt, even before they approached nearer, about
the activity and watchfulness of the guards who took care of the new
deposit in the bank. Across the back wall of the building drifted a
shadowy outline--a guard marching steadily back and forth and keeping
sentry watch.
"A stiff job, son," muttered Denver. "I told you these birds wouldn't
sleep with more'n one eye; and they's a few that's got 'em both open."
But there was no wavering in Terry. The black stillness of the night; the
soundless, slowly moving figure across the wall of the building; the
hush, the stars, and the sense of something to be done stimulated him,
filled him with a giddy happiness such as he had never known before.
Crime? It was no crime to Terry Hollis, but a great and delightful game.
Suddenly he regretted the very presence of Denver Pete. He wanted to be
alone with this adventure, match his cunning and his strength against
whoever guarded the money of old Lewison, the miser.
"Stay here," he whispered in the ear of Denver. "Keep quiet. I'm going to
slip over there and see what's what. Be patient. It may take a long
time."
Denver nodded.
"Better let me come along. In case--"
"Your job is opening that safe; my job is to get you to it in safety and
get you away again with the stuff." Denver shrugged his shoulders. It was
much in the method of famous old Black Jack himself. There were so many
features of similarity between the methods of the boy and his father that
it seemed to Denver that the ghost of the former man had stepped into the
body of his son.
In the meantime Terry faded into the dark. His plan of approach was
perfectly simple. The house to the right of the bank was painted blue.
Against that dark background no figure stood out clearly. Instead of
creeping close to the ground to get past the guard at the rear of the
building, he chose his time when the watcher had turned from the nearest
end of his beat and was walking in the opposite direction. The moment
that happened, Terry strode forward as lightly and rapidly as possible.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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