Shadow 035 - The Black Hush 08-01-33, The by Maxwell Grant

Author:Maxwell Grant [Grant, Maxwell]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Street and Smith
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

IT was not long before a creeping splotch of blackness appeared upon the floor beside the window. Once again The Shadow was paying a secret visit to Goldy Tancred’s abode. The blackness stretched and wavered; above it, materializing beside the curtain, appeared the tall, phantom form in black.

Silently, The Shadow moved toward the wall beside the bookcase. His sharp eyes spied the improvised rubber cap. His hidden lips emitted a sibilant, whispered laugh.

Turning, The Shadow noted a radiator on the opposite side of the window ledge. Going to that spot, The Shadow stooped and attached another microphone. He ran a thin, invisible wire along the base of the wall, then up behind the draped curtain near the bookcase.

Wedging the original wire into a crack beside the window ledge, The Shadow connected the new one, guiding his operation by occasional flashes of his tiny light. When he had finished, he stepped back toward the radiator and spoke in a low, hushed voice.

“Connection completed,” announced The Shadow’s monotone. “Burke off duty until recalled.”

Those words went to Burbank. They were followed by The Shadow’s laugh.

The Shadow had come here a second time, to cunningly counteract Goldy Tancred’s accidental discovery of the original microphone. The first connection was ended. Goldy, confident with his capping device, would never suspect the new installation.

But The Shadow, by a simple rearrangement of the circuit, had planted a new listening apparatus. Goldy, when he talked, would be heard. Even if the big shot again went over the line, clear to the apartment below, he would not discover that neat connecting wire that came in at the crack beside the window ledge.

Nevertheless, desired contact had been lost temporarily. What had happened during the interim? Did any evidence exist that would aid The Shadow in his quest?

The tall figure glided across the room. Searching eyes missed no spot that might furnish a clew. The Shadow’s gaze rested upon the wastebasket. The charred remainders of Goldy Tancred’s written instructions showed within the metal container.

A black-gloved hand dipped into the wastebasket. It brought out a tiny fragment of scorched paper. The eyes spotted a portion of a written word. The same hand carefully gathered ashes while the other hand produced a sheet of paper.

Working upon a convenient table, The Shadow laid out these remainders of Goldy Tancred’s message. The ashes rested upon The Shadow’s sheet. The tiny flashlight clicked. A spotted glare showed traces of writing in the ashes.

The inspection went on amid complete silence. At last, the hand of The Shadow raised the sheet of paper, and let the fragments of Goldy’s instructions drift back into the wastebasket. The tall figure swung toward the window. The blank paper that had served as a background slipped out of sight beneath the cloak.

A sibilant, whispered laugh - scarcely audible; yet it brought eerie echoes. That was the token of The Shadow’s departure. The phantom shape merged with the darkness of the window.

Several minutes afterward, Curry entered the room. The servant noted the wastebasket and took it out for emptying.

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