“There is no one, Noy Dow, to whom I can entrust the task. None save yourself. I have the cards brought by the man who calls himself Dyke” — Tam was turning to Satsu as he spoke — “and I shall drive the truck to Scranton. You shall come with me, Satsu.
“To you, Hoy Dow, I entrust the keeping of the prisoners. See to their wants; but speak no words of comfort. The caged bird longs for the open; finding it not, he becomes tame. So it shall be with those men whom we have captured.
“Hours might fail to urge them should I demand their speech at present. After my return, minutes alone may suffice. Moreover, when I tell them that their mission has been completed, they will weaken, fearing that their master can never learn of their plight.”
With such philosophy completed, Doctor Roy Tam turned from the office. Satsu, a grin upon his face, was prompt to follow the departing physician. Alone, Noy Dow seated himself behind the desk. He waited until the troop of Chinese underlings reappeared. Four men stood ready to accept the secretary’s command.
“You may depart, Tuan,” declared Noy Dow. “You likewise, Leng.” Then, to the others: “You, Fong and Wook, shall take Doctor Tam’s car to the parking place where it belongs. He and Satsu have gone away in the truck.”
Perplexed looks showed that the four men were puzzled because none were required as guards. Noy Dow explained.
“None can enter through the tea shop where our watcher waits,” he stated. “Nor can any enter through the Hunan Cafe; for I shall descend thither and remain there. None will be needed here. Our captured guests can remain alone until the morrow; that is the time when all of you must return.”
Noy Dow watched the four minions depart. Alone, he gripped the telephone that rested beside him on the oak desk. His fingers were quick but nervous as they dialed a number. A voice responded; Noy Dow spoke in guarded but high-pitched Chinese.
His conversation ended, Noy Dow left the office and descended by the stairway toward the avenue. He opened a panel at the bottom and stepped into an alcove, from which he passed into a secluded portion of the second-story Hunan Cafe.
Agents of The Shadow had been trapped. Doctor Roy Tam, their clever captor, had departed with Satsu to fulfill the task given Harry Vincent and Cliff Marsland. Doctor Tam had learned their orders; he would dispatch the required telegram from Scranton to the Howland Garage. Burbank, phoning there as Middleton, would think that all was well. The Shadow would not know, before tomorrow night, that his aids were prisoners.
Such was the craft of Doctor Roy Tam. Though he preferred the ways of America, the Chinese physician still used the cunning of his native race. His secret headquarters unknown even to Yat Soon, Doctor Tam had left with the belief that his schemes were safe. Though his purpose was to gain the Fate Joss, he had deliberately decided to wait before he questioned the two men who knew where the idol had been taken.
Doctor Tam had given his shrewd reason for such delay. He believed that when time had passed, his cause would be more secure. He was confident that no one could counteract his moves. In that one assumption, Doctor Tam was wrong.
Soon a countermove would come from an unexpected quarter. It would be a stroke that Doctor Tam had no reason to expect. For its instrument was to be the man he trusted most — the Chinese student, Noy Dow!
CHAPTER XIII
BROUGHT FROM BONDAGE
“HOW long have we been here, Harry?”
“A couple of hours, I guess. I could tell you better, Cliff, if I could get a look at my watch.”
“Same here, Harry. I wound mine just before we started.”
“So did I. I noticed it was nine o’clock when—”
“Psst! Easy, Harry! There maybe snoopers! The less we say, the better. About certain matters.”
“A good point, Cliff. Let’s forget the past and stick to talk of the future.”
“The future looks black, Harry.”
Both men chuckled. Despite their plight, they found Cliff’s prediction a humorous one. For the two prisoners were surrounded by an inky darkness that betokened windowless walls and a thick door.
Gags had been removed; but both captives were still bound. The thongs had loosened slightly; but offered no more slack. Any effort to tug at the bonds brought cutting resistance to wrists and ankles.
Lying on straw mats upon the floor of the pitch-black room, Cliff and Harry found comfort only in shifting their positions from side to side. While they talked, they lay on their backs; but that position soon became uncomfortable, as it placed too much pressure on their bound wrists.
“I’ve been figuring something, Cliff,” remarked Harry, rolling on one side to speak directly to his companion. “That one fellow must have been Satsu, the Korean who slipped the police. If he—”
“Stick to the future, Harry,” interrupted Cliff. “I’ve been thinking about the truck. I’ll bet it’s on the way without us.”
“You think the head man of these bandits took it along?”
“Why not? His strong-arm boys were in the truck, weren’t they? It’s easy enough to guess that they wised up to where we were going.”
“You’re right, Cliff. That letter was lying in the office of the Howland Garage. Right on the desk—”
“Psst! Harry — listen—”
Footsteps were barely audible, apparently they came from beyond a door. Both men became silent; they heard a key click in a lock. A puff of air followed; but no illumination. Next, the door closed. Slight footsteps, whisperings, told that two persons had entered the inky-black room.
Tense moments; then the clicking sound of the chain on a hanging lamp. An instant later, a single bulb brought startling light that made both prisoners blink. Hazily, Harry and Cliff saw that the room was square-walled and windowless. Then they focussed their attention on those who had entered.
ONE was Noy Dow. He was recognizable, for he had been in the office when Cliff and Harry were carried through. The other was a young woman, and the light revealed her as an amazing beauty. Though clad in American clothes, the girl had all the semblance of an Oriental. Her charm was dazzling, for this was none other than Loy Ming, the niece of the mandarin, Shan Kwan.
Noy Dow was speaking to Loy Ming. His words were in Chinese; the prisoners saw the girl nod, then heard her speak in calm reply. Noy Dow became sober; his words were troubled. The girl laid a tiny hand upon the secretary’s arm and spoke in pleading tones. At last, Noy Dow sighed; then nodded.
Turning to the prisoners, he made an urging gesture with his hands. Understanding, Harry and Cliff managed to work themselves backward and reach seated positions, leaning against the wall. Reverting to English, which he spoke without an accent, Noy Dow introduced himself.
“My name,” he stated, “is Noy Dow. I am the secretary of Doctor Roy Tam. He is the man who captured you and brought you here. He performed that deed because he seeks the Fate Joss.”
No reply from The Shadow’s agents. Noy Dow seemed unperturbed as he resumed.
“Doctor Tam has left you in my charge” he explained. “He wishes to hold you prisoners, that he may question you, upon his return tomorrow night. I have long served Doctor Tam. Yet I am willing to aid you, at the request of this lady. She is Loy Ming, the niece of the mandarin, Shan Kwan.”
Neither of these names were familiar to the listening prisoners. Noting that fact, Noy Dow uttered more.
“Shan Kwan is honorable,” he stated. “He also sought the Fate Joss; but for it, he paid a price. His money was taken from the man to whom he paid it. Taken by Hoang Fu, the mighty killer, who had long been one of those who served Doctor Tam.