The Man Who Fell Through the Earth

by Carolyn Wells

  CHAPTER XIV Where is Manning?

  "You're to stay for dinner," a voice said, speaking from the shadows atthe other end of the long room.

  As I looked toward it, Zizi's little white face gleamed between theportieres, and in another moment she slid through and was at my side.

  "Miss Raynor says so, and Mrs. Vail adds her invitation. They're going tokeep Penny Wise when he returns, and Miss Raynor----"

  "Miss Raynor wants to thank Mr. Rivers for his good work," and Oliveherself followed in Zizi's footsteps. She was smiling now, but her lipswere tremulous and her eyes showed unshed tears.

  "Nothing to thank me for," returned Case Rivers, quickly, "on thecontrary, I want to apologize for such an exhibition of wrath before alady. But I confess I lost all self-control when I saw that bruteintimidating you. If you absolve me of offense, I am thoroughly glad Idid him up! And you do?"

  "Indeed, yes!" and Olive's frank gaze was sincere but sad, too. "I wasterribly frightened,--and,--I am still."

  "Why?" cried Rivers, abruptly, and then added, "but I've no right toask."

  "Yes, you have," Olive assured him, "but--I've no right to tell you. Mr.Rodman holds a threat over my head, and--and----"

  Just then Wise arrived, and Mrs. Vail came into the room with him.

  Olive welcomed him gladly, and then, as dinner was announced, we all wentto the dining-room.

  "No discussion of our momentous affairs while we eat," Wise commanded,and so we enjoyed the occasion as if it were a social affair.

  The conversation was interesting, for Pennington Wise was a well-informedman and a good _raconteur_; Rivers proved to be most entertaining andclever at repartee; and though Olive was very quiet, Mrs. Vail kept up anamusing chatter, and Zizi was her own elfin self and flung out bits ofher odd talk at intervals.

  We returned to the big library for coffee, and then, almost abruptly,Wise began to question Olive as to her adventure that afternoon.

  "Mr. Rivers was quite right," he said, "in assuming the telephone callsent by Sadie Kent to her 'mother' was a trick. Mighty clever of you," heturned to Rivers, "and it led to the arrest of Rodman. The woman calledMrs. Kent is not Sadie's mother, but a companion in crime. For Sadie,'The Link,' is a criminal and a deep one! But first, Miss Raynor, let ushave your story."

  "When I answered the telephone call," Olive began, "a man's voice said,rather brusquely, 'We have Amory Manning here. If you want to see him,come here at once.' I said,--of course, I was terribly excited,--'Whereare you? who are you?' The voice replied, 'Never mind all that. You haveto make quick decision. If you want to see Manning, a taxi will call foryou in five minutes. Tell nobody, or you will queer the whole game. Doyou consent?' I may not give his exact words, but that was his generalmeaning. I had to think quickly; I _did_ want to see Mr. Manning, and Ifeared no harm. So I said I agreed to all the stipulations, I would tellno one, and I would go in the taxicab that would come for me."

  "But you told me," put in Mrs. Vail, who liked to feel her importance.

  "Yes," went on Olive, "I felt I must leave some word, for I had an uneasyfeeling that all was not right. If Amory Manning was there, why didn't hetelephone himself? But, I reasoned, he might be, well--in fact, I thoughthe was,--held for ransom, and in that case I was ready and willing to payit. So, I said nothing to Zizi, for I knew she would tell----"

  "Wow! Yes!" came from Zizi's corner, where she sat on a low ottoman.

  "And so, I went alone. The taxi was at the curb when I left this house. Igot in, and was taken to the house in Washington Square. I felt no fearuntil, after Mrs. Kent admitted me, she showed me into a room where Ifound myself confronted by Mr. Rodman. Mrs. Kent remained with me, but Isaw at once she was not friendly.

  "'Where is Mr. Manning?' I asked. Mr. Rodman only laughed rudely and saidhe hadn't the slightest idea. And then I knew it was all a trap,--but Ididn't know _why_ I was tricked there. And then," Olive paused, and adeep blush came over her face, but she shook her head and went bravelyon, "then he tried to make love to me. I appealed to Mrs. Kent, but sheonly laughed scornfully at my distress. He said if I would marry him hewould protect me from all suspicion of being implicated in--in the deathof my guardian! Of course, that didn't scare me, and I told him I wasn'tsuspected now, by anybody. Then he dropped that line of argument and toldme if I didn't marry him,--he would--oh, that part I can't tell!"

  "Blackmail!" said Wise, looking at her intently.

  "Yes," she replied, "and it was an awful threat! Then, he saw I wasindignant and not to be intimidated--oh, I pretended to be much morecourageous than I really was,--and he began to talk more politely andvery seriously. He said, if I would call off Mr. Wise and make no furthereffort to run down my uncle's murderer, he would send me home safely, andmolest me no further. I wouldn't agree to this; and then he grew uglyagain, and lost his temper, and--oh, he talked dreadfully!" Oliveshuddered at the recollection, and her lips quivered.

  With quick sympathy, Zizi moved noiselessly from her place, and, kneelingat Olive's side, took her hand. With a grateful glance at the comfortinglittle fingers caressing her own, Olive went on:

  "He stormed and he threatened me, and that Kent woman joined in and saidterrible things! And I was so frightened I couldn't pretend I wasn't anylonger,--and I didn't know what to do! And then the bell rang, and Mrs.Kent went to the door, and as I looked hopeful,--I suppose, for Iwelcomed the thought of anybody's coming,--Mr. Rodman threw ahandkerchief around my mouth and tied it behind my head. 'There, mylady,' he said, 'you won't scream for help quite as quickly as youplanned to!' And I couldn't make a sound! Then, when I heard familiarvoices,--Zizi's and Mr. Wise's, I knew I _must_ make myself heard, andwith a desperate effort, I got out a groan or wail for help, though thatawful man stood over me with his hand raised to strike me!"

  "You poor darling!" exclaimed Mrs. Vail, putting her arm round Olive, "itwas fearful! Why, once I heard of a case like that--no, I read it in abook,--and the girl fainted!"

  "Well, I didn't faint, but I almost collapsed from sheer fright lest Icouldn't make a loud enough sound to be heard by you people."

  "Oh, we were coming!" said Zizi, "I saw by the old hen's face she had youboxed up in there, and I was going to do some ground and lofty yellingmyself, if Mr. Rivers hadn't smashed in the door just as he did."

  "I couldn't hold back," said Rivers, "I gave way to a blind impulse,--andI'm glad I did!"

  "I'm glad, too," and Olive gave him a grateful smile.

  "But then," cried Zizi, "he made you say you were engaged to him----"

  "Yes," and Olive paled as with fear. "I can't tell about that----"

  "You said you weren't, and then he whispered to you, and then you saidyou were," went on Zizi, remorselessly reviewing the scene.

  "I know it,--but--oh, don't ask me! Perhaps, I'll tell--later,--if I haveto,--but--I can't--I can't."

  Olive's head drooped on Zizi's shoulder, and the eerie little voice said,"There, there,--don't talk any more now, Miss Olive, dear. Penny Wise,you carry on the conversation from this point."

  "All right," said Wise, "I'll tell my story. George Rodman is in thehands of the police, but I doubt very much if they can prove anything onhim. He's a sly proposition, and covers his tracks mighty well. Moreover,as to the murder of Mr. Gately, Rodman has a perfect alibi."

  "Your First Lessons in Sleuthing always say, 'distrust the perfectalibi,'" murmured Zizi, without looking up from her occupation ofsmoothing Olive's softly banded hair.

  "Yes,--manufactured ones. But in this case there seems to be no question.A Federal detective, who has had his eye on Rodman for some time, was inRodman's office at the very time Mr. Gately was killed."

  "But Mr. Rodman went down on the same elevator I did, soon after theshooting," I exclaimed.

  "How soon after?"

  "Less than half an hour. And Rodman got on at the seventh floor."

  "That's all right, the Federal Office man knows that. They
went downtogether from the tenth,--Rodman's floor,--to the seventh, and then afterthey looked after something there, Rodman went on down alone."

  "All right," I said, for I knew that Wise and the Federal Detective werenot being hoodwinked by any George Rodman!

  "And here's the situation," Wise went on; "Sadie Kent is a Germantelegraph spy. She is called 'The Link,' because she has been animportant link in the German spy system. A trusted employee and an expertoperator of long experience, she has stolen information from hundreds oftelegrams and turned it over to a man who transmitted it to Berlin by asecret avenue of communication. A telegram has been sent to Washingtonasking for a presidential warrant to hold her until the case can beinvestigated. She is also one large and emphatic wildcat! She bites andscratches with feline ferocity, and is under strong and carefulrestrictions."

  "And she is the one," I said, "whose identity we learned fromJenny--and,--oh, yes, whose identity you guessed, Mr. Wise, from somecigarette stubs, and----"

  "Oh, I say," Wise interrupted me, shortly, "we must get the truth fromher by quizzing, not by clews. We've arrested her, now, and----"

  Olive stirred uneasily, and Zizi, after a quick, intelligent glance atWise, which he answered by a nod, rose to her feet, and urged Olive torise and go with her.

  "You're all in, Miss Olive," she said, gently, "and I'm going to take youoff to sleepy-by. Tell the nice gentlemen good-night, and come along withyour Zizi-zoo. Upsy-diddy, now," and smilingly, Zizi persuaded Olive togo with her. "You come, too, Mrs. Vail," Zizi added, because, I noticed,of an almost imperceptible nod from Wise in the elder lady's direction."We just simpully can't get along without you."

  Pleased at the flattering necessity for her presence, Mrs. Vail went fromthe room with the two girls. "I'll be back," she called out to us, as sheleft the room.

  "She won't," said Wise, decidedly, after the sound of footsteps diedaway, "Zizi'll look out for that. Now, Brice, I've important newinformation. I didn't want to divulge it before Miss Raynor, tonight, forshe has had about all she can bear today. But it begins to look as ifSadie Kent sold her stolen telegrams to Rodman, and he--can't you guess?"

  "No," I said, blankly, and Rivers said, "Tell us."

  "Why, I believe he turned them over to Gately."

  "Gately! Amos Gately mixed up in spy business! Man, you're crazy!"

  "Crazy does it, then! Haven't we positive proof that Sadie Kent was inGately's office the day he was killed?"

  "How?" I said, wonderingly. "Did she kill him?"

  "Lord, no! But didn't I size her up from the hatpin? and didn't your girltrace the powder-paper? and didn't we see cigarette stubs with the S.K.monogram,--in Mr. Gately's private office,--and his own cigar stubsthere, too, as if she had been there in intimate chat!"

  "Are you sure about the powder-paper?" I cried, impressed by therealization of Norah's hand in the discovery.

  "Yes; we know, at least, that she has bought them from that shop. Yousee, she has lots of money beside her salary from the telegraph company."

  "Rather!" said Rivers, "if she's selling Government secrets!"

  "Well," I said, after the whole disclosure began to sink into my brain,"if Sadie Kent sat around in Mr. Gately's office, smoking and chatting,with her hat off, and her powder-papers in evidence, she was prettyfriendly with him!"

  "Of course she was," and Wise looked grave. "That's what I dread to tellMiss Raynor. For it implicates Amos Gately in some way; either he ismixed up in the spy racket,--or--Miss Kent was his friend--socially!"

  "Oh, come now," I said, "don't let's say that sort of thing."

  "But, my dear man, unpleasant though it be to assume an intimacy betweenthe bank president and the handsome telegraph girl,--yet, isn't thatpreferable,--to----"

  "To brand him with the shameful suspicion of receiving spy secrets!"Rivers completed the sentence. "Yes, it is! The most disgracefulrevelations of a liaison would be as nothing compared with the ignominyof spy work!"

  "I know that," I hastened to explain myself, "but I can't connect eitherdisgrace with Amos Gately! You didn't know him, Wise, and you, Rivers,didn't either. Nor did I know him personally,--but I did know,--and doknow, that no breath of suspicion can be attached to Amos Gately's wholecareer! Why, he was a synonym for all that is best in finance, inpolitics, in society! I'm glad you didn't hint this before Olive Raynor!It would have crushed the poor child."

  "She'll have to learn it sooner or later," and Wise shook his head."There's no doubt about it in my mind. You see, 'The Link' usually tookher news to Rodman and he secretly, and by means of the secret elevator,carried it to Gately who gave it over to the agents of the GermanGovernment."

  "Do you know this?" asked Rivers.

  "I couldn't get Rodman to admit it, but when I taxed him with somethingof the sort, he flew into such a rage that I'm sure I struck the truth."

  "Where's Rodman now?"

  "The Department of Justice has his case in hand. They'll look after him.But I don't see how we can connect him with the murder of Gately. I don'tfor a minute doubt he'd be quite capable of it, but he wasn't there atthe time."

  "Was Sadie Kent?" and Rivers frowned thoughtfully.

  "Not at the time of the shooting. Brice, here, can testify to that."

  "Not unless she was in hiding," I said, "and she wasn't, for I looked inthe cupboards and all that. We seem to have proved Sadie there before themurderer was, but I don't suspect her of shooting Gately."

  "Nor I," agreed Wise, "but it was unusual for her to go to Mr. Gately'soffice. It must be that she had grown more daring of late, and had somehold over Gately, so that she felt safe in going there."

  "Can't they get all that out of Sadie?"

  "She's a slippery sort. She pretends to speak frankly, but what she tellsmeans little and is misleading."

  "Where is she?"

  "For the moment, down at Kenilworth House. Detained there till they'resure of the persons working with her."

  "She'll get away," said Rivers, "she ought to be in jail."

  Now it was a strange thing, but this casual prophecy of Rivers' wasfulfilled the very next day!

  I was in my office, absorbedly conversing with Norah on theall-engrossing subject of the Gately case, when Zizi dashed in.

  "Alone I did it!" she exclaimed, and tossing the folds of her voluminousblack cape over her shoulder, she folded her arms and assumed theattitude of Napoleon; scowling from under her heavy black brows, thoughher eyes were dancing.

  "What have you done?" I asked, while Norah gazed enchanted at thedramatic little figure.

  "Returned the missing 'Link' to her rightful owners!"

  "What! Sadie?"

  "The same. You know, Mr. Rivers said she'd break loose from thatWhatchacallit House, and make trouble--also, which she done!"

  "Tell us about it," I urged.

  "That's what I'm here for. Mr. Wise sent me to tell you that,--and a lotof other messages. Well," and Zizi's black eyes snapped withsatisfaction, "somebody called this morning to see Miss Raynor. And thatsomebody was none other than Sadie, 'The Link!' She sent up a differentname,--I forget what, now,--and Miss Olive went down to see her. And sheblackmailed Miss Olive good and plenty! You see, little Ziz was listeningfrom behind a convenient portiere, and I heard it all. The whole idea wasthat if Miss Olive would quit all investigations, there would be no talestold. But if she kept up her detective work,--that is, if she kept Mr.Wise on the job, then revelations would be made about her guardian, Mr.Gately, that Sadie said would blast his name forever. Olive seemed tounderstand just what these revelations were, for she didn't ask, but shewas scared to pieces, and was about ready to give in when I slid into thegame. But,--before I joined the confab I called up Penny Wise on anupstairs telephone and invited him to come along hastily and bring asquad of policemen or something that could hold that 'Link'!

  "Then I sauntered into the library, where the blackmailing session wasbeing held, and I stood by. We had a war of words,--'The Link' andI,--but it didn't
amount to much, for I was really only sparring for timetill Penny Wise blew in. But I kept Miss Olive quiet, and I gave 'TheLink' a song and dance that made her think some! I told her we knew shewrote the blackmailing letter to Miss Olive, signed 'A Friend,' and thatshe could be jailed for that! She wilted some, but carried it off with ahigh hand and soon Penny came and he had his little helpers along. Theywere in uniform, and they seemed mighty glad to get back their long-lostfriend and comrade, 'The Link'!"

  "You clever little piece!" cried Norah, "to think of your getting thatgirl again, after she had broken loose! Didn't they appreciate it?"

  "Yes," and Zizi smiled, modestly; "but it's all in the day's work. Idon't care much about appreciation, except from Mr. Wise."

  She had thrown off her long cloak, and her slender, lithe little figureleaned over the back of a chair. "But," she cried, twirling roundsuddenly to me, "I did do one more little trick! When they were takingSadie away, I sidled up to her, and--oh, well, I s'pose I am a directdescendant of some light-fingered gentry,--I picked her pocket!"

  "What did you get?"

  "Her pocket,--by which I mean her little leather hand-bag, was never outof her hand for a minute! The way she hung on to it,--fairly clutchedit,--made me think it contained something of interest to our side. So Ijust picked it on general principles. And I got the goods!"

  "What?" cried Norah and I together.

  "Some stuff in code, or in cipher,--I dunno just what it was. But Pennytook it, and he's tickled to death to get it. Gibberish, of course, buthe'll make it out. He's clever at ciphers, and it will likely be thefinal proof of 'The Link's' perfidy,--and,--" here Zizi's head drooped,and her eyes saddened,--"maybe it will show up Mr. Gately or----"

  "Or whom?"

  "You know! But," she brightened again, "here's something else yet! I'm onthe job day and night, you know, and, if you inquire of me, I'd just aslief spill it to you, that Miss Olive is a whole lot interested in thatfascinating Mr. Rivers!"

  "Oh, now," and Norah looked reproof at the saucy, smiling girl, "MissRaynor is the _fiancee_ of Amory Manning."

  "Nixy! she told me she never was engaged to Mr. Manning. And when I teaseher about Mr. Rivers, she blushes the loveliest pink you ever saw, andsays, 'Oh, Zizi, don't be a silly!' but then she sits and waits for me tobe a silly again!"

  "But she hasn't seen Rivers half a dozen times," I said, smiling atZizi's flight of imagination.

  "That's nothing," she scoffed; "if ever there was a case of love at firstsight, those two have got it! They don't really know it themselves yet,but if Amory Manning wants Miss Olive, he'd better come out of hiding andwin her while the winning's good! And it's my belief he'd be too latenow! And here's a straw to show which way that wind blows. The picture ofMr. Manning that was on Miss Olive's dresser has disappeared!"

  "That may not mean anything," I said, for I didn't think it right toencourage Zizi's romancing.

  "But I asked Miss Olive about it, and she hesitated and stammered, andnever did say why she had put it away. And, too, you ought to see hereyes smile when she expects Mr. Rivers to call! He's making a lacepattern for her, and they have to discuss it a lot! Ohe, oho!"

  The mischievous little face took on a gentle, tender look and Norahsmiled with the sympathy of one who, like all the rest of the world,loves a lover.

  "But," I said, musingly, "none of this brings us any nearer to thediscovery of Amos Gately's murderer, or to the discovery of AmoryManning,--which are the two ends and aims of our present existence."

  "Did it ever occur to you, Mr. Brice,"--Zizi's face grew veryserious,--"that those two quests will lead you to the same man?"

  I looked at her,--stunned to silence.

  Then, as suddenly shocked into speech, "No!" I fairly shouted, "it neverdid!"