That much was done, and now came the most difficult part of the whole operation. Tom had no doubt thought over all the details of his plan; for after shutting up the knife and putting it into his pocket, he seized the valise with both hands, and slowly and cautiously raised it from the floor. The sinewy arm that clasped it slipped easily over its glossy leathern surface, and presently rested at full length on the blanket, while Tom lifted his prize above his head in triumph.
Our luck, which had thus far been all that we could have desired, now began to change. The robber suddenly stirred in his sleep, and probably from the force of habit, threw out his arm as if to embrace some object. He expected, no doubt, to feel the weight of the valise, but his arm passed through the empty air and fell upon the floor again. This aroused him at once. Opening his eyes and discovering Tom kneeling at his side, he comprehended the situation in an instant.
“Hallo, here!” he shouted, in his stentorian voice; “drop that ar’ carpet-sack.”
As quick as thought, Tom started to his feet, and made an effort to leap over the robber; but it so happened that the latter arose to a sitting posture at the same moment, and this brought his head and Tom’s feet in violent contact. The result was that one fell heavily back upon his blanket, while the other flew headlong through the air and out at the door as if he had been thrown from a catapult. It was plain that Luke Redman had the worst of it, for he lay motionless where he had fallen, while Tom, who had clung manfully to the valise, was on his feet again almost as soon as he touched the ground.
“Now, Joe, we’ve got work before us,” said he, hurriedly. “We can’t get our horses, and consequently we must trust to our heels.”
While Tom was putting on his boots—I never saw a boy get into a pair in less time than he did on that occasion—I looked toward the camp-fire and saw that he was right when he said that we must abandon the idea of escaping by the aid of our horses. The Indians had been awakened by Luke Redman’s voice, and were hurrying toward us. In order to reach our nags, we would be obliged to pass directly through their ranks, and that was something we were not foolish enough to attempt.