CHAPTER XI
MORE MYSTERY
Police headquarters was thrown into a turmoil for the second time thatnight when the chief received the master criminal's telephone message.
Roger Verbeck and Muggs rushed for the roadster, sprang in, and drovelike mad through the streets toward the National Trust Company'sbuilding.
The chief shrieked his orders, officers tumbled into departmentautomobiles, and followed Verbeck. They reached their destination, andsprang out. Verbeck already had ascertained that the front doors of thebank were locked and bolted. He rushed around to the alley, followed byMuggs, the chief, and a dozen officers. A detective hurried to telephoneSheriff Kowen.
The basement door was open, and they rushed inside. They found thewatchman bound and gagged--he was a member of the Black Star's band, butthey needed him again, and so made the attempt to remove all suspicion.
"The Black Star!" he gasped when they had removed the gag and bonds. "Hewas here with his gang! They carried out gold--went away in autosand----"
Verbeck had rushed on to the vault room. The chief and some of theothers followed. They found the door of the vault standing open, moneyscattered on the floor, papers in confusion.
"He cleaned out all the big stuff!" the chief said. "One of you mentelephone the president of the trust company and tell him to hurry downhere."
"Here's the letter he mentioned, chief," Verbeck said.
The chief ripped it open and read it, then thrust it into one of hispockets. As he turned away, there was a sharp explosion in the street,then a bedlam of shrieks and cries. They rushed to a window and threw itopen.
"Bomb!" somebody in the street was shouting. "It came from the roof!"
"One of that crook's gas bombs!" the chief exclaimed. "On the roof, ishe?"
Verbeck already was running toward the stairs, with Muggs just behindhim, determined to be in the midst of the affair. Muggs had beencomplaining again that he was not playing a principal part in thisdrama, and that he felt he was entitled to one.
Half a dozen officers took after them, the chief bellowed orders andposted guards throughout the bank. He sent other men to the floors aboveto release the watchmen. And then he followed Roger Verbeck, running upthe stairs, puffing and panting, wishing that the elevator was running.
They came to the little steel stairs that led to the trapdoor and theroof. Verbeck tried to open the door, and found that it was fastened onthe outside.
"Either the Black Star or some of his men are up there!" Verbeck said."The door wouldn't be locked on the outside, otherwise."
One of the detectives had procured a fire ax from the hall on the floorbelow. He ran up the steel stairs and attacked the heavy doorvigorously. The chief sent a man for another ax.
More officers had come up the stairs now, and stood at the bottom of thesteel steps, waiting for the trapdoor to be opened.
"As soon as we get through, rush up there and go at them," the chiefdirected. "We don't know how many are up there, so be ready to mix it!Shoot, if you have to, but get him alive if you can. And look out forvapor guns and gas bombs!"
"Somebody on the roof is asking for you, chief!" the man with the axcalled down.
The chief hurried up the steps. "Well, who is it?" he demanded.
"This is the Black Star. Can't you recognize my voice? Still practicingviolence, I see, and this time on a door!"
"Well, what do you want?" the chief cried. "Do you want to give yourselfup?"
"Certainly not, my dear chief. I just wanted to let you know that I washere."
"And we're going to get you!" the chief cried. "If it is necessary we'llget you with a gun! If you start using that vapor stuff when we get thedoor open, my men will shoot. Understand that? I'll give you one minuteto surrender and open the door!"
"Why on earth should I do such a thing as that?" the Black Star wantedto know.
"Because you are at the end of your rope, that's why!" the chiefreplied. "If you try to go down a fire escape, you'll be plugged. Andthat's the only way you can get off the roof."
"I have no intention of going down a fire escape," the Black Starreplied. "I give you my word of honor--or dishonor, if you prefer itthat way--that I shall descend no fire escape to-night. Does thatsatisfy you?"
"Are you going to give yourself up?"
"Dear me, no! I couldn't think of it. I have had a very pleasantevening, chief--very pleasant indeed--and profitable, also. By the way,did you get your letter?"
An exasperated chief descended the steps and motioned for the detectiveto go to work with the ax again. The heavy blows began raining againstthe door. Between them, they could hear the Black Star laughing.
"Get through that door!" the chief shrieked. "We've got him in a trap!"
"I wouldn't be too sure of that," said Roger Verbeck. "He seemed tospeak with confidence."
"But how can he get away?"
"The Black Star used to be noted for doing some peculiar and seeminglyimpossible things," Verbeck reminded the chief.
"I want to be the second man through that door!" Muggs said. "I got itcomin' to me, boss. You ain't let me do a thing to-day, and I want toget my hands on that big crook!"
"That's what we all want to do," the chief remarked. "Get ready, men;that door will be open in a minute!"
The detective had succeeded in cutting a hole in it. Now he put his faceclose to the aperture and looked out. He could see nothing but darkness.Cautiously, he extended a hand and felt for the bolt, located it, shotit back. He whispered the news to those behind him. The officers crowdedthe steel stairs, and Muggs got well in the van. Muggs declined to besidetracked longer.
The detective threw the door open, and they stumbled up the steps and tothe roof, their weapons held ready, to dart to either side, expecting ashot, or a vapor bomb at least.
Their electric torches flashed, and the roof was bathed in light. Therewas nothing behind which a person could hide, except two chimneys. Theofficers approached the chimneys, carefully, ready for instant combat.They circled them--and found nobody.
"He's here--got to be here!" the chief cried.
They rushed to all the fire escapes and found that nobody was on them.They shouted to officers in the street below, and were told that thefire escapes had not been used. They searched every square foot of theroof, looked along the parapet, found nobody.
"I tell you that crook's got to be here!" the chief shouted. "How couldhe get away?"
"Airplane," one of the detectives suggested.
"Don't be an ass!" the chief shrieked. "An airplane makes a lot ofnoise. And it wouldn't be easy to pick up a man from a roof in the dark,you fool! The only way it could be done would be to trail a rope and lethim grab it, and that would mean a dead man on the pavement below. Youass, an airplane travels with speed!"
"Well, he doesn't seem to be here," Verbeck offered.
"But where could he have gone?" the chief cried. "Even the Black Starcan't make himself invisible at will!"
Then they heard the Black Star laugh derisively.
They flashed their torches and again searched the roof. Once more theyheard the laugh. Now it seemed to be to one side of them, and now toanother. Above them, behind them, in front of them they heard it.
"This thing will drive me crazy!" the chief cried. "Flash those torchesagain! That crook is somewhere right here on the roof! Look for anothertrapdoor!"
They searched the roof, and found nothing; but again they heard thelaugh, only it sounded far away now. Suddenly the roof was bathed inbright light that seemed to come out of the sky.
"He's up there--on something!" the chief shrieked.
They emptied their revolvers and automatics toward the sky. The lightdied out, flashed forth again and almost blinded them. Once more theyheard the sarcastic laugh of the Black Star, as if far in thedistance--and then the light was gone.
They stood silent, looking upward. Not the slightest sound came to theirears, except echoes of the shouts in the street below, wh
ere people werewondering about the peculiar, blinding light.
"What does it mean?" the chief cried. "Verbeck, what has that devildone?"
"I haven't the faintest idea," Roger Verbeck replied. "I don'tunderstand that laugh, and I can't imagine where that light comes from.I'd think naturally, that it was an airplane, but, as you said, it wouldbe almost impossible to pick a man off the roof at night--and anairplane makes a lot of noise. And we didn't hear a sound--rememberthat!"
Once more the voice of the Black Star reached their ears. He seemed tobe shouting to them, and to be not so very far away.
"Good night, gentlemen!" he called to them. "It has been a splendidevening of amusement and profit. Good night--and let me express the hopethat you'll have pleasant dreams!"
That was all. Though they waited on the roof for half an hour longer,they heard nothing more from him, saw nothing of him, and finally theyturned and went back down the stairs, puzzled, angry, but determined tomake the master rogue pay.
Black Star's Campaign: A Detective Story Page 11
