"O, guilt will stare innocence out of countenance any day," returned Murray, carelessly. "Remember, now, that if he makes another attempt on the safe, we must be on hand to catch him; if he doesn't, we must keep the affair secret. It would hurt us, you know, if it should become known."
Murray took the next day to rest in, and to screw up his courage sufficiently to enable him to carry out the next step in his programme. Everything he had done up to this time, was simply preparatory, and now, that he had got matters arranged to suit him, he was ready to strike his blow. On the morning of the second day, Walker worked at his desk until nine o'clock, and then, after pressing his hand to his forehead several times, he descended from his high stool and proceeded to shut up the office. He put down and hooked the window, that looked out into the cabin; closed and bolted the door that opened out on the guard, as well as the blinds that protected that door, and went out into the cabin, taking pains to satisfy himself that the spring lock on that door did its full duty. Seeing his fellow clerk seated at one of the tables reading a newspaper, he walked up and held out the key to him. There was but one key between them, Walker having managed to lose his own.
"I have a bad headache," said he, "and I am going up in Texas to take a nap. Call me at noon, will you? Here's the key."
"Keep it yourself," replied Murray. "I shall not go near the office until you come down. There's not much to be done, and we can straighten the business up in an hour. Sleep all day if you want to. I'll call you when I want you."
Half an hour after this, Murray laid aside his paper, and arose to his feet. He went out of the cabin, and about fifteen minutes later ascended the stairs that led to the hurricane-deck. He went into Texas, and, after looking all around to make sure that there was nobody in sight, stepped cautiously into George Ackerman's room, and taking his pillow off the bunk thrust something into it. He flattered himself, that this action was entirely unobserved, but such was not the case. No sooner had he gone out, than a black face, which was pressed close against a transom over the door that gave entrance into a stateroom on the other side of the little cabin, was withdrawn; and a moment later, the door was opened, and one of the numerous darkies employed on the boat stepped out. He crept to the door on tip-toe, glanced up and down the deck, and after making sure that the chief clerk had gone below, he ran into George's room, pulled down the pillow and looked into it. Between the pillow and the case, he discovered two articles, one of which, after a moment's hesitation, he put into his pocket. The other he left where he found it; and the pillow he put back in its place on the head of the bunk.
During the rest of the day, the chief clerk could scarcely control himself, so nervous and excited was he. There was something hanging over him, a trying ordeal to be gone through with, and he knew that he would be in the greatest suspense until it was all over. If he succeeded, he would be well out of the last scrape he ever meant to get into; if he failed—but that was something he did not like to think about; and besides, he would not allow himself to believe that there was any chance for failure. His situation was too desperate for that. He must succeed. He did not call the second clerk at noon, and the latter did not get up until three o'clock. Murray saw him when he came down, and went into the barber shop; and as soon as he could do so, without being seen by his assistant, he ran to the lower deck and went back into the engineer's room. He had been there perhaps a quarter of an hour, when Walker, pale and agitated, suddenly made his appearance and seized him by the arm.
"Good, gracious!" exclaimed Murray, while the engineers looked on in amazement. "What's the matter?"
"Say nothing to nobody, but come with me," answered Walker, in a low tone. "You were right when you said that he would make another attempt. He's done it; and more than that, he has been successful. Didn't I tell you that he might blunder on to that combination? Well, he did."
This startling announcement seemed to take away the chief clerk's power of speech. Without saying a word, he allowed Walker to lead him to the boiler-deck and around the guard to the outer door of the office. The room certainly looked as though somebody had been there. The clothing in Murray's bunk was tumbled up, the high stool was overturned, the safe was wide open, the key was gone, one of the panes in the glass door was missing, and the fragments were scattered about over the floor. Murray seemed to be utterly confounded. After standing motionless for a moment, he rushed up to the safe, jerked open a little drawer, and then staggered back to his bunk and fell upon it.
"This is the condition in which I found the room when I entered it a moment ago," said Walker, taking possession of the high stool. "I haven't touched a thing. Before I went to bed this morning, I took particular pains to see that everything was secure. The key of the safe was under your pillow then, for I saw it there."