“When will that be?”
“Tomorrow night, before midnight.” Legira glanced shrewdly at Desmond. “That is why I have a car here in readiness.”
Desmond’s face was placid as he nodded.
“The touring car is in back of the house,” he said. “I drove it over here this afternoon, from the garage at the town.”
“About two miles?” questioned Legira.
“Just about,” replied Desmond. “I walked back to get the sedan.”
Legira leaned back in his chair. His cold stare traveled past Desmond and rested upon the bookcase at the side of the room.
It was an old-fashioned piece of furniture. Legira eyed it in an absentminded manner. He noticed the blackness at the far end, but took it only to be a long shadow cast by the corner of the bookcase.
“Unfortunately,” said Legira, in a thoughtful tone, “matters have taken a bad turn at my house. Tonight, Lopez discovered the wire of a dictograph running in from the window. Shortly afterward, an agent of my enemies called to deliver an ultimatum. Midnight, tomorrow, is the deadline.”
“For whom?”
“For me — so they think. But they delivered the ultimatum to Wallace. Lopez was with him at the time. Now, the situation is this. A false move by either of those two would ruin my plans. I can rely upon Lopez. As for Wallace—”
“You are paying him well—”
“Yes, but he had a row with Lopez tonight. As a result, Lopez is watching him. Therefore, Lopez may encounter difficulties. I think that Wallace is simply worried — that’s all. Nevertheless, some one must keep in contact with Lopez in order to inform me. It would be unwise for me to call that house again from here.”
“I understand. You want me to work in between.”
“Exactly. Tonight, I shall send a radiogram to a certain ship at sea. That is something I can do by telephone from here. The message will be picked up by the yacht — the Cordova. In return, I shall receive a reply which can easily be heard by our radio set here. It will give me, in code, the exact time to meet the Cordova’s boat when it comes ashore at the appointed place. You understand?”
“Certainly. But how does that concern me?”
“In a most important way,” declared Legira, emphatically. “I shall call you, to let you know the time at which I shall be leaving here. You will note that by coincidence, the limit of time given by my enemies is exactly the limit that I shall have to wait before leaving the country.”
“Tomorrow, midnight.”
“Yes. Wallace and Lopez must stay at their post until the limit. I have told Lopez not to go until ordered. But should I receive word that I shall be met at — say ten o’clock — it will be safe for Wallace and Lopez to leave at that time.”
“They will encounter danger?”
“Not necessarily. They can summon the police. I have made provision for that. A fake letter, threatening the consulate, is in the possession of Lopez. He can protect himself and Wallace. But they must not do anything until I am clear.”
“You make provision for everything,” said Desmond, in a tone of admiration.
“For all except treachery,” declared Legira. “That can be avoided only by careful choice of men.”
“Such as Lopez,” said Desmond.
“And yourself,” added Legira.
Desmond smiled in a pleased acknowledgment.
“That is all,” said Legira. “With your cooperation, all should go as I have intended. Be either at your office or your apartment. I shall communicate with you when necessary.”
The consul arose and Desmond followed his example. Legira extended his hand.
“Remember, Desmond,” he said in parting, “I rely upon you as my sure intermediary. My success depends upon your cooperation. I must keep all suspicion on the wrong spot until the last minute. Think of my safety; also that of Lopez and Wallace. Francisco, also” — Legira smiled in afterthought — “because he will be here with me.”
“You can depend upon me,” declared Desmond, in a positive tone.
Legira walked with the other man to the front door. Scarcely had they left the room before there was a motion by the end of the bookcase. The tall figure of The Shadow was visible as it came momentarily into the light. Then the being in black moved toward the window. The sash raised noiselessly and closed again.
THE sedan was pulling from the drive. Its lights threw a long beam upon the corner of the old house. They showed strange shadows there. Then Frank Desmond was speeding westward toward New York.
Whirling on at sixty miles an hour along the open road, Desmond was pondering over the new mission which had been given to him. He was thinking of the additional thousand dollars and the ease with which he had acquired it.
A horn sounded behind the sedan and Desmond inclined to the right as a swift coupe sped past him at a terrific rate. It must have been making nearly ninety miles an hour, for its tail light disappeared with amazing rapidity.
Little did Frank Desmond realize that the swift coupe was piloted by another man who knew his plans as well as he. The Shadow, hastening back to New York, was thinking, like Desmond, of a sum of money.
But his mind was concerned with more than a thousand dollars. The Shadow was thinking of the box which Legira possessed — the box that contained ten million!
A sound came above the roar of the coupe’s motor. That sound was a mocking laugh. Foreboding mirth, it spelled doom to those who resorted to crime. The Shadow, strange creature of the night, had learned the plans of Alvarez Legira.
He had been within reach of the ten million dollars, yet he had chosen to let the wealth remain, for the time, in the possession of the scheming man from Santander.
The Shadow had more work to do before tomorrow night. Lives, as well as money, were at stake!
What was The Shadow’s purpose? How did he intend to cope with the strange mixture of plans that surrounded the final fate of the hoard of wealth that Legira had obtained?
Only The Shadow knew!
CHAPTER XVI
THE SHADOW’S THEORY
IT was after midnight. Detective Joe Cardona was still in the office of John Hendrix. He was alone. The bodies had been removed and now the shrewd detective was examining the evidence.
There was a knock at the door. Cardona uttered a gruff command to enter. A policeman came into the room and announced that Lamont Cranston had arrived.
“Show him in,” ordered Cardona, “but keep the reporters out, until after I have talked with him.”
Lamont Cranston, tall and calm-faced, entered.
The man was faultlessly attired in evening clothes. He looked inquiringly at Cardona. The detective pointed to a chair beside the desk. Cranston sat down and Cardona leaned against the wall and began to speak.
“Glad you got here, Mr. Cranston,” he said. “I have been talking to a fellow named Roger Cody and he said that he had better discuss matters with you.”
“Certainly,” said Cranston, with a quick smile. “Cody could not very well discuss the subject of financial arrangements that Hendrix made. He was quite right to refer you to me. This is a terrible tragedy” — Cranston’s face became stern — “and I intend to do all in my power to aid in the capture of the murderer.”
“We should have had him,” said Cardona ruefully. “He didn’t get away until after I was here. Broke loose through a whole squad. They charged him, but he dodged them in a car.”
“I should like to know the details,” suggested Cranston. “Then I can tell you whatever facts may be of assistance to you in following this case.”
“Well,” said Cardona, “Hendrix was here in his apartment all afternoon. His man, Jermyn, was here also. There may have been some one else here, but they don’t seem to know about it downstairs. People go in and out of this apartment house pretty freely. We do know that Hendrix had some business with a man named Legira, but there is no telling if Legira was here or not.