"Maxwell Grant - The Shadow - 019 - The Romanoff Jewels" - читать интересную книгу автора (Grant Maxwell)

As the limousine pulled away, Lamont Cranston and the footman ascended the steps. Inside the door of
the sumptuous residence, the servant went ahead to announce the visitor.

Beneath the mellow glow of the hall lights, Lamont Cranston made an imposing figure. He had removed
his coat, and now stood attired in immaculate evening clothes. The somber black of his garments
accentuated the tallness of his stature. His figure was both imposing and ominous.

Lamont Cranston possessed a remarkable face. His features were cold-chiseled, firm, and masklike. His
deepset eyes sparkled keenly; they, alone, added animation to that inscrutable countenance. Motionless
as a statue, silent as a phantom, he seemed a veritable figure of mystery.

Yet stranger even than the form itself was the shadow that it cast. Stretched across the rug-covered floor
lay a long patch of darkness that commenced from the feet of the man and terminated in an elongated
silhouetteтАФ the profile of Lamont Cranston. The very atmosphere seemed charged with the eerie silence
of a seance room. It betokened the presence of the unknown.

A MAN appeared at the other end of the hall. Short and stout, with a rolling gait, he made a ridiculous
figure as he hurried across the floor. This was Tobias Waddell, the millionaire host, who was coming to
welcome his guest, Lamont Cranston.

"Glad to see you, Cranston," was Waddell's greeting. "Sorry you were held up. Come right along with
meтАФright along. Want you to meet my friends."

The tall visitor joined the millionaire, and the two returned by the path over which Waddell had come.
They entered a large reception room, where a dozen men and women were gathered. Waddell
introduced the new arrival.

It was obvious that Lamont Cranston had arrived too late for the function which had taken place that
evening. The party had reached an informal stage. So, after the introduction, Waddell and Cranston
stood aside and chatted.

Noting the way in which Cranston's steady gaze turned and centered upon different persons present,
Waddell spoke in an undertone, acquainting his friend with facts concerning those individuals in whom
Cranston seemed to display a passing interest.

"Marcus Holtmann," informed Waddell, as Cranston observed a short, sour-visaged man who was the
center of a small group. "Gave us an interesting talk to-night on Russia. Just came back from there, you
know.

"Engineering contractingтАФthat is his line. Talked a lot about the Five Year Plan. Must have learned a
good bit over thereтАФmore than he tells -"

The speaker broke off as he saw Cranston watching a portly man who was listening to Holtmann.

"Parker Noyes is my attorney," remarked Waddell. "I believe you met him on your last visit here. Very
capable man, Noyes. It was he who introduced me to Holtmann."
As Cranston chanced to glance toward a corner of the room, Waddell nudged him and indicated a tall,
handsome man.