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

Gloating, Creelon stepped forward; he plucked the big envelope that
projected plainly from Bryland's inside pocket. Harshly, Creelon hissed:
"You fool! If you had named a reasonable price, I would have paid you! A
million dollars! Bah! You will be content with nothing! You can have your
life,
because your death would be of no consequence to me.
"Go! Denounce me if you dare! Your statement that I hold the National
Emergency Code will be a confession of your own theft. No one will believe
that
I, the guest of a great embassy, could be an international spy."
The strong-arm squad was ready to drag Bryland away. Creelon restrained
them. To complete his triumph, he wanted to flaunt the stolen NEC in the face
of the tricked thief who had lost it. The envelope in Creelon's hands was a
prize that Bryland could not hope to reclaim.
Nor could The Shadow gain it. He had passed his opportunity.
Nevertheless,
he waited behind the mirror. Creelon's elation might have changed to
puzzlement
had he seen The Shadow. The spy's look would have altered, too, had he
bothered
to look at Bryland, for the ex-major still showed a grim smile.
Creelon, however, was thinking of nothing but the envelope. He ripped it
open; hissed his triumph as he tugged thick-folded papers from within. With
hands that showed eagerness, Creelon spread the folds to gain his first gaze
at
the stolen NEC.
It was then that the master-spy stood rigid; his demoniac features
soured.
Even from the mirror, The Shadow could see the cause of Creelon's suppressed
rage, for the firelight's glow showed the papers that Creelon held.
Frederick Bryland had tricked Hugo Creelon; the thief had made the spy
overplay his game. The tight-packed papers from the envelopes were blanks!
Bryland had not brought the precious NEC to Creelon's lair!


CHAPTER IX

THE WAY OUT

BRYLAND'S ruse had worked with Creelon, but not with The Shadow. Watching
the events that had preceded the climax, The Shadow had pictured the surprise
that was due, and with it, he gained new opinions of the two crooks.
Bryland, to date, had seemed more of an opportunist than a conniver.
Creelon had more or less established himself as a master of intrigue. That
situation was changed. Comparing the pair, The Shadow conceded that Bryland
could be the more dangerous.
The ex-major was a lone worker; one who relied on his own wits. He would
dare anything. His attack on The Shadow at the Hotel Halcyon had not been
sheer
madness. Bryland had calculated the consequences before making the attempt. He