Bright Eyes of Danger

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVII, Issue 23809, 9 November 1940, Page 5 (Supplement)

Bright Eyes of Danger

EERRICK knew that dinner on the train would not be good, so he went across to the Majestic. His heavy Gladstone bag he,left behind, but he carried with him a small, square, metal case and kept it next to him. Even without his big Sikh, Kerrick felt reasonably safe. But it, was odd about Bhan Singh.

When he returned, his Gladstone had been moved into a sleeper. He followed l *i and the train started. After a while he yawned and went out into the corridor, carrying the case. He saw no porter or guard. The other compartments seemed empty. Kerrick leaned against the flimsy iron gate of the rear platform and watched the track skitter away. The jungle W been, cleared for twenty-five or thirty yards on each side of the track, out it. pressed- close in the darkness.

Kerrick went back to his compartment, closed, the door behind him, Sna pped on the light, and then said: "Oh!"

The niaif wore plain white drill and * , ' a rge.. white topee. He sat riding Backward. His legs were crossed, and 0n the upper knee rested a small ® llJ omatic pistol. The muzzle faced Kerrick. . % name is..Thorne. In case you're Turn your back, please, . 'l® 1 pat"you." He removed the revolver from Kerrick's pocket. "Now sit down. Lock the door first, an r l ea ve case here." .Kerrick obeyed. Then he lighted a Cl garette. friltip" I '*'- 011 this is all pretty thj .necessarily; "I'm: not even on f. s - train', as far as anybody knows, att, J° second-class, and when they this'sleeping car I slipped in" under a seat."

SHORT STORY By DONALD BARR. CHIDSEY

"What do you want?" demanded Kerrick. Thorne smiled. "You work for the American jewellery firm of Spitz Brothers, and a certain Siamese prince in. that firm's office in San Francisco recently picked out twenty enormous uncut grass-greens. He left orders how he wanted them cut. You're delivering them now."

Nervousness jerked at the corners of the man's mouth. His eyes flicked to Kerrick's case.

"I'd estimate they are worth twenty thousand pounds." "The price his Highness is paying," Kerrick said suavely.

"You've been jolly careful to keep this case by you. In Singapore you even hired a Sikh bodyguard." "What happened to him, by the way?" "I didn't do it," Thorne shrugged. "Merely arranged for it." The train rocked back and forth. "Do you plan to steal my case and jump off?" inquired Kerrick, smoking. "You'd be in a pretty wild neighbourhood."

"No, I'm not planning to do tliat." "The porter will come soon to make up the berth." "But when he comes you won't be here. My topee is just about the same as yours, and so is my suit. I'll have your ticket and passport. "When we get into Penang, I'll go to the Runnymode for breakfast, carrying the case. I'll leave the bag. Before the train starts again I'll bo at sea in a fishing prau. Day after to-morrow I'll be back in Singapore." Kerrick said slowly: "And me?" "You," said Thorne, "I shall shoot. Afterward I'll toss your body off the back platform. No train is scheduled to pass here for two days. A bodyguard will undoubtedly be waiting for you at the border, but your bag will still be here, and they'll assume from the porter's story that you missed the train in Penang.'Thorne needed to talk, to justify himself to himself.'

"The pleasantest part is that before any investigation can get under way

I shall be on a P. and 0. ship headed back for home. Departing by request. I've been warned I'm to be declared an undesirable British subject. Alleged to have been consorting with Asiatics and that sort of thing." "Opium?"

Thorne shrugged. "I'm not going back a poor man, I can tell you !" He looked at his watch. "In three and a-half minutes we'll whistle for a small native village. And if you've ever heard this whistle you'll know that a pistol shot couldn't possiblv compete with it."

With his left hand he patted the K uuill metal case.

"Toss mo the key; I want to look at these emeralds."

Using his left hand, watching* Keriick all the while, the Englishman put the case flat on the seat by his side. He inserted the key Kerrick handed him. and turned it

"You be careful," he warned, lifting the automatic a little from his knee. "The safety catch is off." •Thorne threw back the lid of the case.

"What he saw caused him to scream in high fright, springing to his feet, stumbling toward the window. Kerrick hounded out of his seat. Thorue swung the automatic toward hiyi, and fired point-blank into Kerrick's body. But before Thorne could firo again, Kerrick had his right wrist and was forcing it high. Thorne tell back. Kerrick humped his shoulder twice, very hard, into Thome's face, so that Thome's head was banged against the wall. The automatic clattered to the floor. .Thorne slid into a heap. The whistle was blowing. » * # • •

A Siamese officer met Kerrick at the border.

"your baggage, of course, will not bo examined.'' Ho nodded at the metal case. "And that is for his Highness?" "It is, but it's not what you think. Another man made that mistake, and he's in jail in Penang now." Kerrick opened the case. "I had heard that his Highness was. interested in these, and I brought one as a personal gift." "Ah! ' The officer's dark eyes shone. "A bounty! The: biggest kongrang nuoe I've ever seen!"

He lilted the brilliant green snake from the case, handling it like a connoisseur. He knew it was non-poisonous. "I kept it wit-li me all the while," said Kerrick. "I didn't want it tossed around and possibly getting bruised. The emeralds," ho added, slipping a curved metal case from under his shirt, "I kept even closer to me. The stones are -all right, but the ease got a bit nicked." There was a groove on its outer surface. "I shall keep'it, though. It's i been very good to me." v _.