CHAPTER IX
A RENEWED SEARCH
"They 're coming back! They 're right here!" exclaimed Mrs. Nott excitedly.
"Where? Who?" demanded Hannah.
"Claud and his men."
Robert instantly entered the room and ran to the window, and peering out could see three men who were swiftly approaching. There was no question as to who they were, for Claud Brown himself was in the van, and his actions betrayed the eagerness with which he was leading his followers. Whether or not he himself had been seen and his presence in the house was known Robert could not perceive, but the approach of the cowboys was sufficient of itself to inform him of the fresh peril that now threatened. A glance had been enough to convince him that Mrs. Nott had spoken truly, but as he turned hastily away from the window his consternation was increased when Hannah suddenly exclaimed,—
"There are some coming up on the other side, too."
Darting to the door in the rear of the house, Robert could see that two men were indeed approaching from the woods on that side, and instantly he understood what it all meant. Not satisfied with the result of their search, and convinced, in spite of their apparent failure, that the man for whom they had been searching was still hidden somewhere about the premises, the cowboys had in reality only pretended to depart from the place. As soon as they had gone sufficiently far to conceal their movements from the sight of the people in the house, they evidently had divided their force into two parties, and by their sudden and unexpected return were hoping to discover their man at a time when, confident in their success, the inmates would be less guarded and consequently would be more easily forced to disclose the hiding-place.
"They 'll see me if I go out of the house," exclaimed Robert, aghast at the sight.
"Yes, yes. You can't hide in the ash-heap again," replied Hannah, as excited as he.
"What shall I do? Where shall I go? Give me that gun," demanded Robert, hastening toward one of the rifles which were in the room.
"No, no. Not that!" said Mrs. Nott hastily. "There would be no use in that now."
"What shall I do, then? I 'll not stand here and let them tie me up like a winded sheep." The young man's eyes flashed as he spoke, and yet he knew how utterly useless any attempt to defend himself would be. He glanced again at the approaching men, and could see that they would be in the house in a very brief time.
"You must hide!" exclaimed Mrs. Nott.
"Where? Where? They 'll search every cranny in the house, and if I try to go out they 'll see me." Robert groaned in his excitement, and the vision of the sugar-house in New York, with all its helpless, suffering in- mates, was before him. Again his eyes flashed, and he made as if he would seize the rifle, come what might.
"In the cellar! In the garret! Somewhere! Be quick! Be quick, or it 'll be too late!" said Mrs. Nott.
"Here! Come with me!" said Hannah, who had not spoken for a brief time. "Come with me! I 'll hide you!"
Instantly Robert followed the intrepid girl as she ran swiftly up the steps of the rude stairway to the room above. There was no plan in his own mind, only his blind confidence that Hannah, who had succeeded so completely in her former scheme, would now be better able to find a hiding-place for him than he could himself. His plight was desperate, and already he fancied that he could hear the voices of the men in the yard.
Without faltering a moment Hannah ran swiftly to a side of the room, and instantly turning a button, opened a door that seemed to be a part of the wall.
"Here! In here!" she exclaimed in a low voice. As Robert faltered a moment, she said more eagerly, "What are you waiting for? Go in! Go in! Get close up to the wall! Pull the clothes over you! Don't you dare to breathe!"
Almost thrusting him in, she placed him in the farther corner of what Robert could see was evidently a clothes-press. On pegs on the wall various garments were hanging, and behind these he took his stand, while Hannah, working in desperate haste, arranged the garments so that they completely concealed his presence. The task had barely been completed when the sound of voices in the room below was heard, and Robert knew that the crisis had come.
Hannah quickly departed from the closet, closed the door and turned the button, and was on the stairway when the voice of Claudius Brown broke in upon the stillness, as the cowboy harshly said,—
"We 've come back for the rebel. We know he is here, Mistress Nott, and it will be better for every one if you give him up peaceably."
"You back here?" demanded Hannah boldly, as she stopped for a moment on the stairway. "I thought we were rid of you for good and all."
"‘A bad penny always returns,' laughed the leader. "What were you doing upstairs? Have you hidden him again?"
"I thought you found once that he was n't here," she replied quietly.
"We 've come back to try it again."
"Well, try it, then!" she exclaimed, her eyes flashing as she spoke.
"That's just what we 're going to do." Turning quickly, he ordered one man to take a position in the yard in front of the house and another to take a similar position in the rear. As soon as his orders had been obeyed he bade two go down into the cellar. "Stick your knives into everything there," he said sharply. "Don't let any place escape you. The rascal is here somewhere, I know he is, and we must n't let him get away with that let"—Brown stopped abruptly, as his men instantly began to do his bidding.
Not a word was spoken by Hannah or her mother while the search was being made, though the excitement was intense. Hannah's confidence in the success of her present scheme was not so strong as when she had hidden Robert in the ashes, and the confidence and determination of the leader of the cowboys were both more alarming now. She glanced at the brutal face of the man, and her fears for her guest increased. If Robert should be discovered she was fearful of what might befall him, for there was something in the very bearing of the young soldier that convinced her that he could not be taken without a struggle. In such an event there could be but one outcome, and she trembled, even in her excitement, as she pictured to herself what that would be. The anger of Claudius Brown and his comrades already was keen, and if it should be increased by anything which Robert Dorlon was only too likely to do in the event of his discovery, she trembled as she thought of the fate of Washington's express. Still she was doing her utmost to appear unconcerned, and her scornful smile as she silently watched the man in the room was intended to be doubly irritating.
The leader, however, apparently was giving but slight heed to either of the women, for he was listening intently for some sound to come from the cellar to indicate the discovery which he was so eager to make. Occasionally he stepped to each door and glanced out, to convince himself that his orders were being obeyed by the men whom he had placed on guard there, but every time he returned to his place in the room and stood impatiently waiting for a report from the men who had gone down into the cellar.
At last the heavy tread of the returning men was heard and the leader ran quickly to the cellar-way. "Did you find anything?" he demanded gruffly.
"Not a thing, Claud."
"Stay here, and I 'll go down myself," retorted the leader, instantly starting down the stairway. In a brief time he too returned, and though he evidently was satisfied that the man was not concealed in the cellar, his anger was every moment becoming greater.
"Shall we toast the toes of the women?" he demanded of his men, as he came up into the room. "The rascal is here somewhere, there is n't any question about that, and the women know where he is, too!"
At his words Hannah and her mother quickly seized the guns that were leaning against the wall of the room, and though their faces were deadly pale, there was an expression on each that betrayed a determination that apparently was not without its effect on the visitors.
"Not yet, Claud," said one of the men. "We have n't gone through the house yet. The girl was coming down the stairs when we came in. It may be she has put the young rascal somewhere up there. Let's take a look upstairs before we do anything more."
"All right. You stay here, Jim," replied the leader, "and I 'll go up and help a bit there. Come on," he added, turning to the others as he spoke.
The men passed quickly up the stairs and were heard moving about in the room above. With her gun still in her hands, Hannah suddenly darted up the stairway, and standing near the top, watched the men as they proceeded with their search. Chairs were overturned and the few articles in the room were wantonly smashed as the angry men moved about. The bed was ripped open and the geese feathers sent fluttering about the room. Too fearful to utter the indignant protest that rose to her lips, Hannah watched the wanton destruction in speechless rage. A bright red spot appeared in each of her pale cheeks, and her lips were tightly pressed together, but she had not advanced from her position at the head of the stairway, for she was aware that at any moment it might be necessary for her to turn and flee.
"Hello! Here's the girl watching us," said one of the men, aware for the first time of Hannah's presence. "Come up to show us where he is?" he added with a brutal laugh.
"We 're hot on the trail now," said Claudius Brown. "She's getting anxious or she would n't come up to see what we 're doing."
Bitterly Hannah regretted that she had given way to the impulse to come up the stairs, but to return now would only confirm the men in their conviction, and besides she was almost fascinated by the fear that possessed her. If Robert should be discovered, she wanted to cry out, to warn him against attempting a resistance worse than useless.
"Here's something worth looking into," exclaimed one of the men.
He had perceived the button on the panel, and at once turned it and opened the door. With a shout his companions turned and joined him, while one of them entered the press.
Hannah's heart was beating furiously, and it required all her strength of will to keep back the tears that threatened to pour from her eyes. Robert was certain to be found now, she was convinced, and all her attempts to hide him had been vain. She watched the men, expecting every moment to hear the shout, or the sound of a struggle that would announce the end of the search. Her mother was speaking in the room below, but her voice sounded faint and far away. The sunbeams that danced in the air where a shaft of light came in through a small hole in the roof almost seemed to be mocking her. As the men stood peering into the closet she was tempted to rush upon them and push them inside and close and button the door upon them, but she was aware how foolish such a move would be and wisely restrained the impulse.
"Here's something for you, Claud," called one of the men, as he tossed out a gown which was almost the sole piece of finery of which Hannah boasted. The sight was more than she could bear, and instantly rushing upon the men she snatched away the garment, and with flashing eyes faced them and said,—
"You may search the house all you please for the man you profess to believe is hidden here, but you are to leave my things alone. I don't believe you ever thought there was a man here. You just made that an excuse to come here and steal everything you could lay your hands on! Go on with your search, but you leave my gown alone!"
For a moment the men were so startled by the unexpected outburst that they were speechless, but recovering in a moment, when the angry girl ceased, one of them laughed as he said, "There, Claud, you 've stirred up a hornet's nest. Never try to rob a woman of her finery. She's worse than a bear robbed of her cubs. You don't want the gown anyway, do you?"
"No. I want the man," he replied.
"Well, look for your man, then, and much good may it do you," said Hannah; "but don't you touch my gowns."
"Hear the vixen!" laughed one of the men, as he turned to resume the search. Whether or not it was the presence of Hannah and her own daring in protecting her precious possessions, or whether it was because of their belief that there was nothing in the closet except a few garments hanging on the walls, that caused the men to make only a hasty and superficial search, she never knew. At all events, they only thrust their hands behind a part of the clothing and then carefully searched the floor for a possible trap door. The trembling young soldier pressed tightly against the wall in the farther corner of the closet, and concealed from sight by the garments behind which he had taken his stand, was not discovered, and when a few minutes had elapsed Claudius Brown called to his followers and returned to the room below. But the expression on his face was by no means reassuring, and the fears in Hannah Nott's heart when she, too, came into the lower room had not departed.