g for some sound within, but made no
attempt to enter, passing on to the door beyond, which was unlocked.
He must have come to the upper deck on some special mission, for he was
out of my sight scarcely a moment, returning immediately to the deck
below. This occurrence merely served to make clearer in my mind the
probable situation--the after-cabin was undoubtedly occupied by Kirby,
perhaps in company with the deputy; while next to them, securely locked
away, and helpless to escape, were confined the two slave women. In
order to reach them I must operate under the cover of darkness, and my
only hope of being free to work, even then, lay in the faith that the
gambler might become so involved in a card game below as to forget his
caution. So far as Tim was concerned I felt perfectly capable of
outwitting him; but Kirby was dangerous.

CHAPTER XX

THE STORY OF ELSIE CLARK

The next two hours dragged dreadfully slow, in spite of my pretense at
steady work, and the fact that my thoughts were continuously occupied.
The shores past which we glided were low and monotonous, while the
river was but a tawny sweep of unoccupied water. We were already well
above the region of white settlements, in a land beautiful, but
uncultivated. The upper deck remained practically deserted, and I was
encouraged to observe, by glancing through the skylight, that a
stubborn game of poker was being indulged in at the cabin table below.
The amount of stakes visible, as well as some of the language reaching
me, accounted for the absence of passengers outside, even those not
playing circling the table in interest. The deputy, however, was not
among these, and occasionally he wandered up the ladder, and patrolled
the deck, although making no effort to invade the locked stateroom.
Apparently he was merely performing a duty assigned him by Kirby, but
possessed no fear that his prisoners would escape. The last time he
appeared more at ease, and sat down on a stool close to the rail,
smoking his pipe, and staring out glumly at the water. His position
was within a foot or two of the closed door, and I ventured to work my
passage along the front of the cabin, hoping to attract his attention.
Perhaps he was lonely, for he finally observed me in my humble
capacity, and broke the silence with a question.

"Hav' yer ever bin up this way afore?"

I paused in my work, and straightened up stiffly.

"Onct," making the fault in pronunciation prom