Otherwise the town was dead. They rode until they were at the other extremity3 of the main street. Here, according to Denver, was the bank which had never in its entire history been the scene of an attempted raid. They threw the reins4 of their horses after drawing almost perilously5 close.
"Because if we get what we want," said Terry, "it will be too heavy to carry far."
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 adobe6 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 dwelling7 abutted8 on either side of the bank. The second stories of those dwellings9 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 watchfulness10 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 steadily11 back and forth12 and keeping sentry13 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 hush14, the stars, and the sense of something to be done stimulated15 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 delightful16 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 miser17.
"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 shrugged18 his shoulders. It was much in the method of famous old Black Jack19 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 perfectly20 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.
Luckily the ground was quite firm. It had once been planted with grass, and though the grass had died, its roots remained densely22 enough to form a firm matting, and there was no telltale crunching23 of the sand underfoot. Even so, some slight sound made the guard pause abruptly24 in the middle of his walk and whirl toward Terry. Instead of attempting to hide by dropping down to the ground, it came to Terry that the least motion in the dark would serve to make him visible. He simply halted at the same moment that the guard halted and trusted to the dark background of the house which was now beside him to make him invisible. Apparently25 he was justified26. After a moment the guard turned and resumed his pacing, and Terry slipped on into the narrow walk between the bank and the adjoining house on the right.
He had hoped for a side window. There was no sign of one. Nothing but the sheer, sloping adobe wall, probably of great thickness, and burned to the density27 of soft stone. So he came to the front of the building, and so doing, almost ran into a second guard, who paced down the front of the bank just as the first kept watch over the rear entrance. Terry flattened28 himself against the side wall and held his breath. But the guard had seen nothing and, turning again at the end of his beat, went back in the opposite direction, a tall, gaunt man—so much Terry could make out even in the dark, and his heel fell with the heaviness of age. Perhaps this was Lewison himself.
The moment he was turned, Terry peered around the corner at the front of the building. There were two windows, one close to his corner and one on the farther side of the door. Both were lighted, but the farther one so dimly that it was apparent the light came from one source, and that source directly behind the window nearest Terry. He ventured one long, stealthy pace, and peered into the window.
As he had suspected, the interior of the bank was one large room. Half of it was fenced off with steel bars that terminated in spikes29 at the top as though, ludicrously, they were meant to keep one from climbing over. Behind this steel fencing were the safes of the bank. Outside the fence at a table, with a lamp between them, two men were playing cards. And the lamplight glinted on the rusty30 old safe which stood a little at one side.
Certainly old Lewison was guarding his money well. The hopes of Terry
disappeared, and as Lewison was now approaching the far end of his beat,
He needed time and thought sadly.
As far as he could make out, the only two approaches to the bank, front and rear, were thoroughly33 guarded. Not only that, but once inside the bank, one would encounter the main obstacle, which consisted of two heavily armed men sitting in readiness at the table. If there were any solution to the problem, it must be found in another examination of the room.
Again the tall old man reached the end of his beat nearest Terry, turned with military precision and went back. Terry slipped out and was instantly at the window again. All was as before. One of the guards had laid down his cards to light a cigarette, and dense21 clouds of smoke floated above his head. That partial obscurity annoyed Terry. It seemed as if the luck were playing directly against him. However, the smoke began to clear rapidly. When it had mounted almost beyond the strongest inner circle of the lantern light, it rose with a sudden impetus34, as though drawn up by an electric fan. Terry wondered at it, and squinted35 toward the ceiling, but the ceiling was lost in shadow.
He returned to his harborage between the two buildings for a fresh session of thought. And then his idea came to him. Only one thing could have sucked that straight upward so rapidly, and that was either a fan— which was ridiculous—or else a draught36 of air passing through an opening in the ceiling.
Unquestionably that was the case. Two windows, small as they were, would never serve adequately to ventilate the big single room of the bank. No doubt there was a skylight in the roof of the building and another aperture37 in the floor of the loft38.
At least that was the supposition upon which he must act, or else not act at all. He went back as he had come, passed the rear guard easily, and found Denver unmoved beside the heads Of the horses.
"Denver," he said, "we've got to get to the roof of that bank, and the only way we can reach it is through the skylight."
"Skylight?" echoed Denver. "Didn't know there was one." "There has to be," said Terry, with surety. "Can you force a door in one of those houses so we can get to the second story of one of 'em and drop to the roof?"
"Force nothing," whispered Denver. "They don't know what locks on doors mean around here."
And he was right.
They circled in a broad detour39 and slipped onto the back porch of the blue house; the guard at the rear of the bank was whistling softly as he walked.
"Instead of watchdogs they keep doors with rusty hinges," said Denver as he turned the knob, and the door gave an inch inward. "And I dunno which is worst. But watch this, bo!"
And he began to push the door slowly inward. There was never a slackening or an increase in the speed with which his hand travelled. It took him a full five minutes to open the door a foot and a half. They slipped inside, but Denver called Terry back as the latter began to feel his way across the kitchen.
"Wait till I close this door."
"But why?" whispered Terry.
"Might make a draught—might wake up one of these birds. And there you are. That's the one rule of politeness for a burglar, Terry. Close the doors after you!"
And the door was closed with fully40 as much caution and slowness as had been used when it was opened. Then Denver took the lead again. He went across the kitchen as though he could see in the dark, and then among the tangle41 of chairs in the dining room beyond. Terry followed in his wake, taking care to step, as nearly as possible, in the same places. But for all that, Denver continually turned in an agony of anger and whispered curses at the noisy clumsiness of his companion—yet to Terry it seemed as though both of them were not making a sound.
The stairs to the second story presented a difficult climb. Denver showed him how to walk close to the wall, for there the weight of their bodies would act with less leverage42 on the boards and there would be far less chance of causing squeaks44. Even then the ascent45 was not noiseless. The dry air had warped46 the timber sadly, and there was a continual procession of murmurs47 underfoot as they stole to the top of the stairs.
To Terry, his senses growing superhumanly acute as they entered more and more into the heart of their danger, it seemed that those whispers of the stairs might serve to waken a hundred men out of sound sleep; in reality they were barely audible.
In the hall a fresh danger met them. A lamp hung from the ceiling, the flame turned down for the night. And by that uneasy light Terry made out the face of Denver, white, strained, eager, and the little bright eyes forever glinting back and forth. He passed a side mirror and his own face was dimly visible. It brought him erect48 with a squeak43 of the flooring that made Denver whirl and shake his fist.
For what Terry had seen was the same expression that had been on the face of his companion—the same animal alertness, the same hungry eagerness. But the fierce gesture of Denver brought him back to the work at hand.
There were three rooms on the side of the hall nearest the bank. And every door was closed. Denver tried the nearest door first, and the opening was done with the same caution and slowness which had marked the opening of the back door of the house. He did not even put his head through the opening, but presently the door was closed and Denver returned.
"Two," he whispered.
He could only have told by hearing the sounds of two breathing; Terry wondered quietly. The man seemed possessed49 of abnormal senses. It was strange to see that bulky, burly, awkward body become now a sensitive organism, possessed of a dangerous grace in the darkness.
The second door was opened in the same manner. Then the third, and in the midst of the last operation a man coughed. Instinctively50 Terry reached for the handle of his gun, but Denver went on gradually closing the door as if nothing had happened. He came back to Terry.
"Every room got sleepers51 in it," he said. "And the middle room has got a man who's awake. We'll have to beat it."
"We'll stay where we are," said Terry calmly, "for thirty minutes—by guess. That'll give him time to go asleep. Then we'll go through one of those rooms and drop to the roof of the bank."
"Sit down," said Terry. "It's easier to wait that way."
And they sat cross-legged on the floor of the hall. Once the springs of a bed creaked as someone turned in it heavily. Once there was a voice—one of the sleepers must have spoken without waking. Those two noises, and no more, and yet they remained for what seemed two hours to Terry, but what he knew could not be more than twenty minutes.
"Now," he said to Denver, "we start."
"Through one of them rooms and out the windows—without waking anybody up?"
"You can do it. And I'll do it because I have to. Go on."
He heard the teeth of Denver grit54, as though the yegg were being driven on into this madcap venture merely by a pride which would not allow him to show less courage—even rash courage—than his companion.
The door opened—Denver went inside and was soaked up—a shadow among shadows. Terry followed and stepped instantly into the presence of the sleeper52. He could tell it plainly. There was no sound of breathing, though no doubt that was plain to the keen ear of Denver—but it was something more than sound or sight. It was like feeling a soul—that impalpable presence in the night. A ghostly and a thrilling thing to Terry Hollis.
Now, against the window on the farther side of the room, he made out the dim outline of Denver's chunky shoulders and shapeless hat. Luckily the window was open to its full height. Presently Terry stood beside Denver and they looked down. The roof of the bank was only some four feet below them, but it was also a full three feet in distance from the side of the house. Terry motioned the yegg back and began to slip through the window. It was a long and painful process, for at any moment a button might catch or his gun scrape—and the least whisper would ruin everything. At length, he hung from his arms at full length. Glancing down, he faintly saw Lewison turn at the end of his beat. Why did not the fool look up?
With that thought he drew up his feet, secured a firm purchase against the side of the house, raised himself by the ledge55, and then flung himself out into the air with the united effort of arms and legs.
He let himself go loose and relaxed in the air, shot down, and felt the roof take his weight lightly, landing on his toes. He had not only made the leap, but he had landed a full foot and a half in from the edge of the roof.
Compared with the darkness of the interior of the house, everything on the outside was remarkably56 light now. He could see Denver at the window shaking his head. Then the professional slipped over the sill with practiced ease, dangled57 at arm's length, and flung himself out with a quick thrust of his feet against the wall.
The result was that while his feet were flung away far enough and to spare, the body of Denver inclined forward. He seemed bound to strike the roof with his feet and then drop head first into the alley58 below. Terry set his teeth with a groan59, but as he did so, Denver whirled in the air like a cat. His body straightened, his feet barely secured a toehold on the edge of the roof. The strong arm of Terry jerked him in to safety.
For a moment they stood close together, Denver panting.
Black Jack!"
That name came easily on his lips now.
Once on the roof it was simple enough to find what they wanted. There was a broad skylight of dark green glass propped61 up a foot or more above the level of the rest of the flat roof. Beside it Terry dropped upon his knees and pushed his head under the glass. All below was pitchy-black, but he distinctly caught the odor of Durham tobacco smoke.
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1
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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silhouette
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| n.黑色半身侧面影，影子，轮廓；v.描绘成侧面影，照出影子来，仅仅显出轮廓 | |
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3
extremity
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| n.末端，尽头；尽力；终极；极度 | |
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4
reins
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| 感情，激情； 缰( rein的名词复数 )； 控制手段； 掌管； （成人带着幼儿走路以防其走失时用的）保护带 | |
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5
perilously
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| adv.充满危险地，危机四伏地 | |
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adobe
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| n.泥砖，土坯，美国Adobe公司 | |
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7
dwelling
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| n.住宅，住所，寓所 | |
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8
abutted
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| v.（与…）邻接( abut的过去式和过去分词 )；（与…）毗连；接触；倚靠 | |
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dwellings
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| n.住处，处所( dwelling的名词复数 ) | |
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10
watchfulness
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| 警惕，留心； 警觉（性） | |
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11
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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13
sentry
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| n.哨兵，警卫 | |
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14
hush
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| int.嘘，别出声；n.沉默，静寂；v.使安静 | |
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15
stimulated
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| a.刺激的 | |
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16
delightful
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| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
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17
miser
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| n.守财奴，吝啬鬼 (adj.miserly) | |
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18
shrugged
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| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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19
jack
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| n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克 | |
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20
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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21
dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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22
densely
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| ad.密集地；浓厚地 | |
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23
crunching
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| v.嘎吱嘎吱地咬嚼( crunch的现在分词 )；嘎吱作响；（快速大量地）处理信息；数字捣弄 | |
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24
abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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25
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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26
justified
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| a.正当的，有理的 | |
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27
density
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| n.密集，密度，浓度 | |
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28
flattened
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| [医]（水）平扁的，弄平的 | |
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29
spikes
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| n.穗( spike的名词复数 )；跑鞋；（防滑）鞋钉；尖状物v.加烈酒于( spike的第三人称单数 )；偷偷地给某人的饮料加入（更多）酒精（ 或药物）；把尖状物钉入；打乱某人的计划 | |
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30
rusty
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| adj.生锈的；锈色的；荒废了的 | |
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31
glided
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| v.滑动( glide的过去式和过去分词 )；掠过；（鸟或飞机 ） 滑翔 | |
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32
crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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33
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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34
impetus
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| n.推动，促进，刺激；推动力 | |
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35
squinted
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| 斜视( squint的过去式和过去分词 )； 眯着眼睛； 瞟； 从小孔或缝隙里看 | |
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36
draught
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| n.拉，牵引，拖；一网（饮，吸，阵)；顿服药量，通风；v.起草，设计 | |
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37
aperture
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| n.孔，隙，窄的缺口 | |
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38
loft
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| n.阁楼，顶楼 | |
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39
detour
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| n.绕行的路，迂回路；v.迂回，绕道 | |
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40
fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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41
tangle
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| n.纠缠；缠结；混乱；v.(使)缠绕；变乱 | |
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42
leverage
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| n.力量，影响；杠杆作用，杠杆的力量 | |
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43
squeak
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| n.吱吱声，逃脱；v.（发出）吱吱叫，侥幸通过；（俚）告密 | |
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44
squeaks
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| n.短促的尖叫声，吱吱声( squeak的名词复数 )v.短促地尖叫( squeak的第三人称单数 )；吱吱叫；告密；充当告密者 | |
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45
ascent
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| n.(声望或地位)提高；上升，升高；登高 | |
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46
warped
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| adj.反常的；乖戾的；（变）弯曲的；变形的v.弄弯，变歪( warp的过去式和过去分词 )；使（行为等）不合情理，使乖戾， | |
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47
murmurs
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| n.低沉、连续而不清的声音( murmur的名词复数 )；低语声；怨言；嘀咕 | |
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48
erect
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| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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49
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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50
instinctively
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| adv.本能地 | |
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51
sleepers
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| n.卧铺（通常以复数形式出现）；卧车( sleeper的名词复数 )；轨枕；睡觉（呈某种状态）的人；小耳环 | |
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52
sleeper
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| n.睡眠者，卧车，卧铺 | |
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53
gasped
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| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
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54
grit
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| n.沙粒，决心，勇气；v.下定决心，咬紧牙关 | |
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55
ledge
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| n.壁架，架状突出物；岩架，岩礁 | |
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56
remarkably
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| ad.不同寻常地，相当地 | |
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57
dangled
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| 悬吊着( dangle的过去式和过去分词 )； 摆动不定； 用某事物诱惑…； 吊胃口 | |
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58
alley
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| n.小巷，胡同；小径，小路 | |
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59
groan
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| vi./n.呻吟，抱怨；(发出)呻吟般的声音 | |
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60
acrobat
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| n.特技演员，杂技演员 | |
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61
propped
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| 支撑，支持，维持( prop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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