Страница 22 из 38
"Bien!"
ejaculated Joh
"Vat yo' do?" inquired the swamp man suspiciously. "Why dey want yo?"
Joh
"Me—I grab dis white pickani
"Dam'! Why yo' do dat?"
Here Joh
The swamp man was impressed. He furtively produced a charm which looked suspiciously like it was carved out of a human arm bone.
"Yo' want white pickani
"Yo' got de idea," said Joh
Meantime, the bloodhounds were rapidly drawing nearer. The beasts set up a fearsome baying and yipping. Frightened owls and other birds flashed over the clearing in flight, resembling darksome, big, wind-blown leaves.
"
Sacrй!"the swamp man swore softly. "Yo' have to leave white pickani
"Non!"
growled Joh
"Yo' gotta leave heem!" insisted the swamp man.
"Non!"
Joh
The real reason for leaving the little boy behind now came out—not that Joh
The Gray Spider did not want the attention of the law drawn to his clan of swamp devils. To kidnap the white boy would do just that. Therefore, either Joh
Joh
Covering only a couple of rods, Joh
They shot away.
Behind them, they heard shouts.
"Here he is!" the father called, finding his son safe. "The voodoo devil had to leave him!"
Joh
And Joh
JOHNNY was amazed at the speed they were making. On other occasions he had seen natives go swiftly through a jungle that seemed impenetrable. But never anything quite like this!
At times his escort propelled the pirogue straight for a seemingly solid bank. But water always materialized under the keel. Sometimes the watery trail was completely concealed by cane and reeds growing out of it.
"Yo' sure know de way!" he flattered his guide.
"Oui!
I oughta! Me—I live all my life here."
"What yo' name?"
"Buck Boontown," replied the swamp man.
"Buck" Boontown, Joh
Nevertheless, the fellow was a vicious character. His belonging to the voodoo cult showed that.
"Where yo' come from?" demanded Buck Boontown.
Joh
This vaguely missed being an outright fib. Buck Boontown ate it up. Joh
We got plenty big voodoo man in dese swamps," Buck Boontown said impressively. "Yo' ever hear of de Gray Spider?"
"Me—I t'ink so," Joh
"
Bien!"ejaculated Buck Boontown. "Maybe Gray Spider take yo' into his i
Joh
"Ees yo' in de i
"I sure is!"
Here was luck!
"Right out of the hat, I picked a guy who is on the inside of the Cult of the Moccasin!" Joh
"Can yo' guide to where Gray Spider ees hang out, non?"he asked aloud.
"Hees hangout at Castle of de Moccasin," retorted Buck Boontown. "Me—I can sure guide yo' dere. But first, I gotta find out if de Gray Spider want yo'!"
Buck Boontown was on the inside, Joh
THE night was about gone before they reached their destination. Buck Boontown, Joh
As a matter of fact, Joh
Their journey ended at a small hill in the swamp. This was populated by hordes of dogs, only a few less children, and a number of evil-looking men and women. There was an even dozen ramshackle huts.
A long shed held crudely baled moss. Evidently it awaited transport to a trade boat. Muskrat traps, seines, and fish lines festooned from the shack eaves.
Joh
"Yo' can sleep in de moss shed," suggested Buck Boontown.
And there Joh
A tremendous dog fight, punctuated with the howls of pickani
Soon after this, a series of piercing shrieks came from one of the largest shacks. The sounds were inhuman, terrible. They gave Joh
"What is de racket?" he asked a swamp man.
"Eet is Sill Boontown," explained the fellow. He tapped his head, then made a corkscrew movement in the air with his finger. "Hees got bats in de head!"