Shadow 065 - The Chinese Disks 11-01-34, 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

CHAPTER XIII

FARROW’S VISITOR

SLADE FARROW was seated by his living room window. Comfortable in his secluded apartment, the sociologist was reading the morning newspaper. He was particularly interested in the latest story that concerned the robbery at Tatson’s.

Karl Joland was wanted for the murder of Gorwin and for the theft of his employer’s gems. The police had lost the secretary’s trail; but they appeared to be making a thorough investigation of his past. The sociologist studied a picture of Joland; one that Tatson had given to the newspapers. Farrow shook his head. He wondered why the law had centered on this one man. His lips moved as though framing a question.

Then, to Farrow’s astonishment, came a verbal answer to the very thought that was in his mind. From somewhere close beside him, a quiet voice responded:

“Because of the disk.”

Farrow dropped the newspaper and stared. A stranger was seated in a chair not five feet away. Farrow had never seen this personage before. The visitor was tall; that was apparent despite the fact that he was seated. He was quietly dressed; his features were steady, almost masklike.

A hawklike nose dominated the visage that Farrow studied. The sociologist also caught the glint of flashing eyes. Recovering quickly from his startlement, Slade Farrow felt a steady thought come drumming through his brain. He knew that this visitor was The Shadow.

Farrow was correct. Here, at ten o’clock in the morning, The Shadow had arrived to confer with him. But the disguising features which The Shadow had chosen were ones that he seldom used. He had not come here as Lamont Cranston; nor was he utilizing other physiognomies that he had worn frequently in the past. The Shadow had arrived as a nameless personage.

Farrow shifted mechanically in his chair. A flood of impressions gripped him. Dave had gone out a while before. That had paved the way for The Shadow to enter unseen. Yet Farrow, himself, was surprisingly alert. It seemed impossible that any one could have entered without discovery.

“You were wondering about Karl Joland.” The Shadow spoke in an even tone, his words slow, but clipped. “Your expression betrayed that fact. Therefore, I gave you the true reason why the police seek Joland. Because of the disk.”

“Joland had a disk?” inquired Farrow, finding his voice.

“You have read the newspaper report,” replied The Shadow. “It includes all the details except one. The newspaper states that Joland discarded one suit for another. It was in the pocket of the discarded suit that Detective Cardona found a Chinese disk.”

Farrow nodded. He had read the facts thoroughly. The arrival of the telegram. The time that Joland’s train departed. The fact that the secretary did not take the train. Even the point regarding the front light that Gorwin had failed to turn on before half past nine. The story had also included mention of Joland’s note, found in Gorwin’s pocket.

“I see,” said Farrow. “The secretary was a logical suspect. The only trouble is that he is a bit too logical. He might have planned things better, if he were naturally a crook.

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