THERE was a lone clerk at the desk, and only two bell boys available. This
meant a delay in room assignments. The Shadow took advantage of it to note the
lobby. He saw no potential spies. It was possible that crooks had decided to
head for cover, after their fray. That was not surprising, since they had
carried away two wounded men.
As he lingered by the hotel desk, secure in his role of Arnaud, The Shadow
was rewarded for his courtesy in letting others register ahead of him. The hotel
manager came from a little office, spoke to the clerk in an undertone that The
Shadow caught.
"This man in 328," queried the manager. "You're sure that his luggage is
gone?"
"Positive, sir!" replied the clerk. "He's jumped his bill, all right! Looks
like he went out by the window."
"Three floors down?"
"Room 328 is over the kitchen roof, and that's two stories high, sir. The
window was open when the maid found the room vacated. I told her to leave
everything as it was."
"Humph! Let that room stay empty. I'll go up and look it over myself in the
morning. Give me that fellow's full name and a report on what he looks like. He
won't beat this hotel and get away with it!"
The Shadow thus learned new facts concerning his vanished agent. He had
already known Harry's room number: 328. He had not known, however, whether Harry
had left the hotel openly or been carried away a prisoner. Nor had The Shadow
cared to make inquiry. The chance conversation had saved him such a task.
The room to which The Shadow was assigned happened to be on the fourth
floor; but at a different side of the hotel than 328. The Shadow spent a short
while in his room; then turned out the lights. Any observer would have supposed
that he was either going down to the lobby or that he intended to retire. The
Shadow did neither.
From his suitcase, he removed black cloak and slouch hat. He tucked a brace
of .45 automatics under the folds of his cloak. After donning thin black gloves,
be added a tiny flashlight and a set of picks to his equipment. That done, The
Shadow opened the door of the room and squeezed out into the corridor, blocking
light from the hall.
There was a stairway leading down to the third floor. It was near Room 428,
therefore The Shadow knew that it would offer convenient access to Harry's
former room, just below. The stairway was but dimly lighted. The Shadow made a
fleeting shape as he descended. At this third floor, he peered along the nearest
corridor.
Crooks had captured Harry Vincent. There was a strong chance that they
suspected their prisoner to be an aide of The Shadow. That, in itself, could
have accounted for the ambush on the room. Crooks would also guess that The
Shadow knew Harry's room number at the Hampstead House. They would expect him to
visit it. This room might prove another ambush.
THE SHADOW eyed every visible door. From gloom, he had the advantage. The
slightest motion would have told him that crooks were keeping watch on 328. No
indication came. The Shadow deduced that crooks intended to keep clear of the
