Fearing betrayal by Cowry, Gray Fist had obtained Snakes Blakey. Through the sneaky mobster, he had gained the services of Ruff Shefflin and attendant gangsters. They had put Seth Cowry on the spot. Ruggles Preston had also served as a worker to keep the victims in line — but Preston had never known the true identity of Gray Fist.
With total ignorance of whom it was he served, Ruggles Preston had kept the name of Landis Glascomb on the list of victims. He had unwittingly watched his own chief all the while he watched the others!
Snakes Blakey had been the only go-between; with Ruff Shefflin at his bidding, the sneak had done his work well. The death of Preston, however, had been a blow to Gray Fist. The fiend had feared that Joe Cardona had uncovered the list. He had sent his victims out of town; but he, himself, had remained, playing a pitiful part to lure Cardona!
By learning that Cardona alone held the list, Gray Fist had been free to act. Snakes Blakey had been watching. He had posted mobsters. They had seized Cardona. Yet even had they failed, Gray Fist, as Landis Glascomb, could have proven his innocence of all wrongdoing. He would have appeared as the most unfortunate of all his own victims!
Wild thoughts ran through Cardona’s mind. His helplessness was the final one. The arch fiend stood free, proud of his villainy, so sure of his success that he made no further effort to conceal his identity.
Nothing could thwart Gray Fist now. Only vague hope seared through Joe Cardona’s brain. Then, the fantastic belief in some salvation ended as the detective heard the demand which Gray Fist made of Yat Soon.
“I have come,” sneered Gray Fist, “to hold you to your promise, Yat Soon. I have come for the prisoner you hold.”
“He is here,” came the Chinaman’s solemn reply.
A harsh chortle came from Gray Fist’s throat. This villain who was Landis Glascomb raised his right hand and clutched the air with a tightening gray-gloved hand.
“None can thwart me now!” he cried, for all the listeners to hear. “None! Gray Fist holds the master of them all! Gray Fist holds The Shadow!”
CHAPTER XXIII
GRAY FIST’S TREACHERY
“YOUR prisoner awaits you.”
The declaration came from Yat Soon as the Chinaman made a bow to Gray Fist.
“Where is his prison?” queried Landis Glascomb. “Where have you kept him?”
Yat Soon made a gesture toward the rear panel.
“You are sure—” began Glascomb.
“He will make no trouble,” interposed Yat Soon. “I shall keep my promise to place him in your hands.”
“After that—”
“All will be well, Gray Fist. The Shadow will be yours to take. I have spoken with him, and he has asked only that you abide by your agreement. The prisoners must be released.”
A fierce snort came from Gray Fist’s nostrils. The fiend waved his hand toward the prisoners and laughed.
“Why should I release them?” he queried. “I tricked The Shadow once, but he escaped me. I can trick him surely, now that he is my prisoner.”
“Your promise,” came the solemn tones of Yat Soon.
“What are promises?” sneered Gray Fist. “They are made to be broken.”
“My promise to you?”
Gray Fist stared at the blinking yellow face. His challenge was a menace.
“You have kept it!” snarled the villain. “You cannot change it now. I have means to back the promises that I exact. Look about you and see!”
Yat Soon stared at the toughened faces of Ruff Shefflin and his mobsters. All had drawn their revolvers. They awaited any order that Gray Fist might give.
“Forget your guards, Yat Soon,” chuckled Gray Fist. “My men are stronger. I have others, below. They will aid if necessary. At the same time, you have nothing to fear, provided that you do as I command. Bring forth The Shadow!”
Yat Soon paused beside the wall. Gray Fist saw the Chinaman’s hesitation. He scowled.
“I have promised The Shadow,” protested Yat Soon, “that you would abide by your terms. These men” — he indicated Cliff and Harry — “are his. You brought them here to release them—”
“I brought them here to deceive you!” interrupted Gray Fist. “That purpose has been served. Any promise that you made to The Shadow is nothing. Come! Bring him from his prison!”
With these words, Landis Glascomb drew his own revolver. He clenched it in his gray fist, and turned the muzzle toward the figure of Yat Soon. He motioned to the mobsters. They trained their guns on the panel beyond which lay The Shadow’s prison.
“We want him alive,” asserted Gray Fist. “But if he makes a move, he must die! Be ready — all of you. Come, Yat Soon! Open the panel, before I shoot you where you stand!”
Feebly, Yat Soon pressed the switch. He stepped back by the wall. Gray Fist and all his mobsters were covering the opened panel. Their guns sank; their faces showed amazement. Even Gray Fist was astonished by what he saw.
Seated in a thronelike chair, in the center of the prison room, was Yat Soon! The very Chinaman who had opened the paneled door was now before them! His eyes were staring with a strange wrath. His commanding gaze brooked all attention!
THE throned man spoke. His words came in stern, unanswerable terms, that rang out in bitter accusation. Not one of the invaders moved. They were like listening statues as they heard the statement of Yat Soon.
“I am Yat Soon,” announced the Chinaman. “You came to me, Gray Fist, to exact a promise. I agreed to do your bidding. I promised you The Shadow as your prisoner.
“That was an honorable task — the keeping of a promise. I learned that you had made a promise to The Shadow. Therefore, I expected you to keep it. You have shown that you lied. You have no honor. Moreover, you do not trust the ones who treat you with the honor which is not your due.
“You have brought henchmen here to make sure that I would keep my promise. That action releases me from my oath to you. I repudiate all friendship. Nevertheless, I shall keep my promise.
“I shall give you what I promised. I shall give you The Shadow. Had you come here alone, you could have had him as your prisoner, unarmed. You chose to come with men prepared for battle. You yourself have made your choice. You have the armed strength that you need. The Shadow is there” — Yat Soon extended a pointing finger — “where you can take him. You have your opportunity!”
All eyes turned from the prison room. As they did, the panel began to slide down. It dropped so rapidly that not a mobster could turn back to prevent it. Yat Soon, beyond the door, was safe.
But he was only one Yat Soon! He was the second whom the invaders had encountered. Again eyes turned across the room, to the spot where the first Yat Soon had moved the moment that he had released the panel.
Gray Fist and his henchmen faced the yellow-visaged Mongol who was the duplicate of the one upon the throne beyond the panel. Their eyes were ahead of their guns, for their astonishment had not yet left them. The first Yat Soon had taken all attention by revealing the second; the second had turned attention from himself by pointing to the first.
Doubt and bewilderment swept every brain within that room, until the actions came that proved the secret of this amazing duplication. The hands of the first Yat Soon were rising. From the folds of the maroon robe, they were drawing two automatics!
The golden dragons shimmered on the reddened cloth as the tones of a sinister merriment burst through the room. That mockery revealed the truth. From the lips of the first Yat Soon — the false Yat Soon — came the weird laugh of The Shadow!
The chilling tones were the explanation of the terms on which The Shadow and Yat Soon had worked. The Shadow, as Yat Soon, had proposed to give himself up to Gray Fist. He had allowed the fiend fair opportunity to keep the promise which The Shadow had been given.