“I’ll go to the Patch to-morrow morning. I’ll find him throughthe operator. He can locate him, I guess. Well, then I’ll tell himthat I’m a Freeman myself. I’ll offer him all the secrets of the lodgefor a price. You bet he’ll tumble to it. I’ll tell him the papers are atmy house, and that it’s as much as my life would be worth to lethim come while folk were about. He’ll see that that’s horse sense.
Let him come at ten o’clock at night, and he shall see everything.
That will fetch him sure.”
“Well?”
“You can plan the rest for yourselves. Widow MacNamara’s isa lonely house. She’s as true as steel and as deaf as a post. There’sonly Scanlan and me in the house. If I get his promise—and I’ll letyou know if I do—I’d have the whole seven of you come to me bynine o’clock. We’ll get him in. If ever he gets out alive—well, hecan talk of Birdy Edwards’s luck for the rest of his days!”
“There’s going to be a vacancy at Pinkerton’s or I’m mistaken.
Leave it at that, McMurdo. At nine to-morrow we’ll be with you.
You once get the door shut behind him, and you can leave the restwith us.”
The Trapping of Birdy Edwards
As McMurdo had said, the house in which he lived was a lonelyone and very well suited for such a crime as they had planned.
It was on the extreme fringe of the town and stood well backfrom the road. In any other case the conspirators would havesimply called out their man, as they had many a time before, andemptied their pistols into his body; but in this instance it was verynecessary to find out how much he knew, how he knew it, andwhat had been passed on to his employers.
It was possible that they were already too late and that the workhad been done. If that was indeed so, they could at least have theirrevenge upon the man who had done it. But they were hopefulthat nothing of great importance had yet come to the detective’sknowledge, as otherwise, they argued, he would not have troubledto write down and forward such trivial information as McMurdoclaimed to have given him. However, all this they would learnfrom his own lips. Once in their power, they would find a way tomake him speak. It was not the first time that they had handled anunwilling witness.
McMurdo went to Hobson’s Patch as agreed. The police seemedto take particular interest in him that morning, and CaptainMarvin—he who had claimed the old acquaintance with him atChicago—actually addressed him as he waited at the station.
McMurdo turned away and refused to speak with him. He wasback from his mission in the afternoon, and saw McGinty at theUnion House.
“He is coming,” he said.
“Good!” said McGinty. The giant was in his shirt sleeves, withchains and seals gleaming athwart his ample waistcoat and adiamond twinkling through the fringe of his bristling beard. Drinkand politics had made the Boss a very rich as well as powerful man.
The more terrible, therefore, seemed that glimpse of the prison orthe gallows which had risen before him the night before.
“Do you reckon he knows much?” he asked anxiously.
McMurdo shook his head gloomily. “He’s been here sometime—six weeks at the least. I guess he didn’t come into theseparts to look at the prospect. If he has been working among usall that time with the railroad money at his back, I should expectthat he has got results, and that he has passed them on.”
“There’s not a weak man in the lodge,” cried McGinty. “True assteel, every man of them. And yet, by the Lord! there is that skunkMorris. What about him? If any man gives us away, it would be he.
I’ve a mind to send a couple of the boys round before evening togive him a beating up and see what they can get from him.”
“Well, there would be no harm in that,” McMurdo answered. “Iwon’t deny that I have a liking for Morris and would be sorry tosee him come to harm. He has spoken to me once or twice overlodge matters, and though he may not see them the same as you orI, he never seemed the sort that squeals. But still it is not for meto stand between him and you.”
“I’ll fix the old devil!” said McGinty with an oath. “I’ve had myeye on him this year past.”
“Well, you know best about that,” McMurdo answered. “Butwhatever you do must be to-morrow; for we must lie low untilthe Pinkerton affair is settled up. We can’t afford to set the policebuzzing, to-day of all days.”
“True for you,” said McGinty. “And we’ll learn from BirdyEdwards himself where he got his news if we have to cut his heartout first. Did he seem to scent a trap?”
McMurdo laughed. “I guess I took him on his weak point,” hesaid. “If he could get on a good trail of the Scowrers, he’s readyto follow it into hell. I took his money,” McMurdo grinned as heproduced a wad of dollar notes, “and as much more when he hasseen all my papers.”
“What papers?”
“Well, there are no papers. But I filled him up about constitutionsand books of rules and forms of membership. He expects to getright down to the end of everything before he leaves.”
“Faith, he’s right there,” said McGinty grimly. “Didn’t he ask youwhy you didn’t bring him the papers?”
“As if I would carry such things, and me a suspected man, andCaptain Marvin after speaking to me this very day at the depot!”
“Ay, I heard of that,” said McGinty. “I guess the heavy end of thisbusiness is coming on to you. We could put him down an old shaftwhen we’ve done with him; but however we work it we can’t getpast the man living at Hobson’s Patch and you being there to-day.”
McMurdo shrugged his shoulders. “If we handle it right, theycan never prove the killing,” said he. “No one can see him come tothe house after dark, and I’ll lay to it that no one will see him go.
Now see here, Councillor, I’ll show you my plan and I’ll ask you tofit the others into it. You will all come in good time. Very well. Hecomes at ten. He is to tap three times, and me to open the doorfor him. Then I’ll get behind him and shut it. He’s our man then.”
“That’s all easy and plain.”