"Where's the luggage car?" shouted Windomshire to the porter.
"The what?"
"I mean the baggage van."
"Way up front, sir. Where they're puttin' on the trunks, sir."
Swinging his travelling bag almost at arm's length, the long Englishman
raced forward. His own and Miss Courtenay's pieces had come over during
the afternoon, skilfully smuggled out of the Thursdale house. Just as
he reached the baggage truck a panting, mud-covered individual dashed
up from the opposite direction, madly rushing for the train. They tried
to avoid a collision, but failed. A second later the two men were
staring into each other's eyes, open-mouthed and dismayed.
"Hello!" gasped Dauntless, staggered.
"What the devil, sir, do--My word! It's Dauntless!" sputtered
Windomshire.
"Where is she?" shouted Joe, convinced that his rival had captured his
runaway fiancee and was now confronting him for explanation.
"Confound you, sir, it's none of your business," roared Windomshire,
confident that Dauntless had been sent by Mrs. Thursdale to intercept
him in his flight with the governess. "Damn your impudence!"
"Stand aside, Windomshire," exclaimed Joe, white with anger and dread.
"I'm going to find her. What have you done with her?"
"You sha'n't interfere, Dauntless," cried Windomshire, squaring
himself. "She's going to be my wife, and---"
"I guess NOT! Get out of my way, or---"
"She's on that train, confound you, and I'm going away with her whether
you like it or not--or anybody else, for that matter," said
Windomshire, refusing to budge an inch.
"Well, you'll have a damned hard time getting rid of me," roared Joe,
trying to break past his rival. A baggage-man leaped between them in
time to prevent blows. He held the angry, mistaken rivals
apart,--rivals no longer, if they only knew. "Let go of me! Hold this
fellow and I'll give you a hundred dollars--hold him till the train
goes!"
"Hold me, will you? My word! What is this? A highway robbery!"
Both men broke away from the baggage-man and rushed frantically down
the line of cars, each trying to hold the other back. Joe succeeded in
grasping the handrail of the first sleeping-car, but his adversary
pulled him away. An instant later they were struggling across the
station platform, clasped in savage and hysterical combat. The station
employees were rushing up to separate them when the train began to move
slowly away.
[Illustration: Eleanor was still sitting ... stiff and silent]
They came to their senses a moment later to find themselves held firmly
by brawny peacemakers, the black cars rushing swiftly by without them.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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