The Earth-Shaker by Lin Carter

Author:Lin Carter [Carter, Lin]
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Publisher: Thunderchild Publishing
Published: 2017-11-11T07:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 15 — Joey Thinks Quick

When the little newsboy kicked Ching, Scorchy Muldoon was able to catch sight of the act, because his head was turned to one side and he could see the Oriental out of the corner of his eye. The Irishman scrambled to his feet, as did Nick Naldini.

“Fooey, your arrival was in the proverbial nick of time!” drawled Nick, looking down annoyed at his soiled clothing. He ambled over to remove Ching’s pistol and to frisk the little man for any concealed weapons.

Scorchy beamed a cheerful grin in Phoenicia’s direction, but reserved his attention for the boy, who stood grinning. The redhead slung one arm around the lad’s shoulders and gave him a comradely hug.

“That wuz quick thinkin’, kid,” he said warmly. “You ain’t hurt or nothin’, are ya?”

Joey Weston shook his head. “Nossir,” he said gamely. “The lug never laid a finger on me.”

By this time, the workmen were beginning to recover from the effects of the gas gun and were sitting up and staring about them in bewildered fashion, shaking their groggy heads and trying to clear their wits. Scorchy and Nick wasted no time in checking them out for weapons. Then they began tying them up with a coil of rope found in one of the packing cases.

Scorchy tossed the handcuffs he generally carried in the inner pockets of his coat, and the newsboy caught them neatly.

“You git the honor of puttin’ the cuffs on Ching,” grinned the Irishman, and the boy delightedly snapped the cuffs on the Asian, who regarded him inscrutably, his expression bland and noncommittal. But there was cold murder in his slitted eyes.

“Looks like you boys been going down manholes!” quipped the blond heiress with a glance at their garments, which had absorbed considerable grime and oil from the dirty floor.

Nick gave her a frosty glance which didn’t quite come off. “If you had arrived on the scene two minutes earlier ...,” he began, but gave it up with a rueful shrug. Actually, her appearance had been timely, and he knew it.

“So this is the famous van!” remarked Fooey, looking it over. “Guess they were busy repainting it when you mugs jumped them.”

“That’s why I hadda get in here, Mr. Muldoon,” declared Joey Weston guiltily, “even though I promised you I’d stay outa trouble. I peeked in one of the windows and saw them disguising it —”

“Aw, don’t worry about it,” said Scorchy. “Ivverthin’ worked out fer th’ best —”

“Yeah, and my sawed-off colleague here is famous for rushing into trouble himself,” remarked Naldini.

Zarkon’s arrival on the scene at that moment probably nipped in the bud the loud quarrel which would inevitably have resulted from the vaudevillian’s quip. The Nemesis of Evil took in the scene with a rapid but all-encompassing glance.

“Good work,” he said quietly. Words of praise came seldom from his lips, and were rarely fulsome. But both men, and the young woman, swelled visibly. As for Joey, he was staring at the Man of Mystery with hero worship in his shining eyes.

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