Читать книгу Hidden Foes; Or, A Fatal Miscalculation онлайн

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“I will do so presently,” Nick replied. “I first will tell you why Chief Gleason sent for me. It’s a rather remarkable story.”

“A mysterious crime, chief?”

“Quite a number of them, Patsy.”

“Gee whiz! We are booked for some hard work, then, if the local police cannot handle them.”

“Crimes of what kind, chief?” Chick inquired.

“The first was committed several months ago,” said Carter, disposing of the match with which he had been lighting a cigar. “It was the robbery of a prominent local banker, named Wagner, whose statements are entirely reliable.”

“What were the circumstances?”

“Briefly stated, he was going home from his club about nine o’clock one evening, after having dined there with a friend. He is a well-built, powerful man of forty, about the last whom a holdup man would venture to tackle. He wore some valuable jewelry, however, and he had nearly a thousand dollars in his pocket, which he wanted to use before banking hours the following morning.”

“The crook may have known about it.”