"Maxwell Grant - The Shadow - 275 - The Crystal Skull" - читать интересную книгу автора (Grant Maxwell)

treasures when you see them. For example -"

Pausing, Wade reached into the desk drawer and brought out the crystal skull. Turning it so the hollow
eyes were toward his visitor, he passed the skull across the desk to Cranston.
"As a test, Cranston," remarked Wade, "give me your opinion on this curio."

"It is rock crystal," returned Cranston, holding the skull into the sunlight, "and flawless. An exquisite piece
of workmanship. Tell me, Wade, where did you acquire such a fine specimen?"

"I know real treasures," assured Wade. "The Amsterdam collection is worth ten times the asking price.
Do you believe me, Cranston?"

There was no reply from Cranston. His gaze was probing further into the sockets that represented the
eyes of the crystal skull.

"Here are the documents, Cranston" - Wade rustled the papers that his visitor had replaced upon the
desk. "Have you finished with them?"

Again, Cranston did not reply. His eyes were fixed hard upon the skull. They had widened and their firm
focus pleased Wade as much as Cranston's silence. Wade's face took on its uglier aspect as he raised
from his chair and demanded in a sharp, penetrating tone:

"You knew Culver, didn't you, Cranston?"

In response to the stabbed question, Cranston spoke in a mechanical monotone.

"Yes. I knew Culver quite well."

"Answer this question," jabbed Wade. "What was the cause of Culver's death?"

"A heart attack," replied Cranston. "Such was the official verdict."

"I mean the real cause?"

"I know only the official verdict."

On his feet, Wade came around the desk. His hands were twitching murderously as though he planned to
tighten them about Cranston's neck. Riveted, Cranston saw nothing of the approaching menace. He was
gripped by the hypnotic influence of the crystal skull.

Restraining himself, Wade lowered his voice, but his tone became savage as he spoke close to
Cranston's ear.

"Guy Culver was murdered," declared Wade, emphatically. "I want you to name the man who killed
him."

"A heart attack," spoke Cranston. His voice, though it maintained the monotone, seemed like an echo
from the past. "No evidence of murder."

"Did you kill Culver?" rasped Wade. "Come, Cranston, speak!"