"Maxwell Grant - The Shadow - 105 - The Yellow Door" - читать интересную книгу автора (Grant Maxwell)

"It's just as the police commissioner described it," declared the G-man. "I saw Commissioner Weston this
morning. I agreed with him that it was a Federal case."

"Of course," rejoined Birklam. "It is liable to carry to any part of the country. It may prove international."

"Exactly," decided Marquette. "Before we proceed further, let me summarize the information just as you
have given it to me. I want to be sure that I have every detail."

Birklam nodded his willingness.

"Ten days ago," stated Marquette, "you were approached by a man named Ferris Krode. He is medium
height, forty years of age, has a pointed nose and eyes that are wide apart."

"And lips that have an ugly curve," inserted Birklam. "It was their expression that made me mistrust the
man."

"Ugly lips," added Marquette. "Krode, in his talk with you, showed considerable knowledge of the
shipping business. He advised you that it would be a mistake for your company to buy out the
Pan-Europa line."

A nod from Birklam.
"Krode intimated," resumed the G-man, "that any announcement of intended purchase would stir up ill
feeling among the crews aboard Pan-Europa vessels. He added that there might be sabotage committed
on those ships as soon as the deal was settled. If that happened, the World Wide Shipping Corporation
would suffer immense loss."

"So great a loss," put in Birklam, "that all advantage gained by the merger would be offset. Our own
company would suffer because shippers would fear that the trouble would spread to the ships already
owned by the World Wide."

Vic Marquette leaned back in his chair.

"That much is settled," he asserted. "Tell me: what do you think is behind Krode's game?"

"I have two theories," replied Birklam, "It is either blackmail or a racket. Perhaps, in a sense, the two
might be called one. I think that if I had offered Krode money, he would have changed his tune. But he
made no demand."

"How did you forestall it?"

"By simply stating that my company was not intending to purchase the Pan-Europa line. I thanked Krode
for his advice, but added that it was unnecessary."

"Do you intend to buy the Pan-Europa?"

"Absolutely! Moreover, I am sure that Krode knows it."

"Both theories are good," mused Marquette. "They are similar, of course. In straight blackmail, Krode
would have simply threatened to produce the trouble himself. In a racket, he would have covered it under
the pretense of giving you protection. He would have claimed the ability to prevent the impending trouble,