"Maxwell Grant - The Shadow - 123 - Washington Crime" - читать интересную книгу автора (Grant Maxwell)

cane by mistake."
Sudden anticipation dawned on the pale face of Agent F-3. Eagerly, the
straight-lipped man listened to The Shadow's next statement:
"Senator Releston called on Colonel Follingsby," resumed The Shadow.
"With
the senator was Frederick Bryland, an ex-major in the army. Bryland was alone
for a short time, while Follingsby talked with Releston. Bryland saw the cane;
chanced to examine it and saw -"
"Darson's initials!" broke in F-3. "He knew that Follingsby must have
visited the chief of staff! Bryland knew enough about Follingsby to guess that
he had been entrusted with the National Emergency Code!"
"Exactly," smiled The Shadow. "Particularly because it was a known fact
that Follingsby had revised army codes while stationed in the Canal Zone. That
is why Bryland faked the call to draw away Follingsby. During the colonel's
absence, Bryland entered and stole the code."
"What about the general's cane?"
"Bryland poked it out of sight, so Follingsby would not find it when he
hurried away. When Bryland stole the code, he took the cane. If it had been
found at Follingsby's, it would have proven that Bryland had guessed that the
colonel had visited the war department."
After a pause, The Shadow added:
"Bryland knew that Darson would summon him. When he went to the war
department, he took the cane with him. He simply placed it in the anteroom,
along with the cane that Follingsby had left there."
Agent F-3 showed complete admiration. The Shadow had accounted for
Darson's finding of the cane. Even Follingsby had believed that he, himself,
had left it in Darson's anteroom.
"Bryland probably arranged a telephonic hook-up," remarked The Shadow,
"to
make calls from Washington, but fake them as coming from Virginia. I doubt
that
he had an accomplice, to handle that false call to Follingsby. An accomplice
could not have served Bryland to-night.
"Bryland suspected that I knew too much. He tried to murder me at my
hotel. I knew the attacker to be Bryland; his attempt was made at twenty
minutes past eight. You will find that Bryland called Senator Releston, soon
afterward; presumably from Fairfax, Virginia."


AGENT F-3 picked up a telephone from a corner. He dialed Releston's
number; announced himself as F-3. He held a brief conversation and hung up
promptly.
"You are right," the pale man told The Shadow. "Bryland called the
senator
at half past eight. The call came from Fairfax. Bryland could not have reached
there before nine o'clock. His call was an alibi, to serve him after Senator
Releston learns of the trouble at your hotel."
With that agreement, the pale man stalked toward the fireplace; turned
about to face The Shadow. Warming his hands behind him, Agent F-3 spoke in his
choppy fashion: