"Kenneth Robeson - Doc Savage 155 - Measures For a Coffin" - читать интересную книгу автора (Robeson Kenneth)

He got up and ran cold water in the basin, buried his head therein so the sleep would be driven away,
toweled his homely countenance vigorously, after which he went to the telephone.

тАЬI want to talk to Doc Savage in New York,тАЭ he told the telephone operator.

An argument followed with the Signal Corps operator, for this was an AMG line and a civilian call
couldn't just be put through without preliminaries. But eventually Monk was informed by the New York
operator that Doc Savage was in a hospital, and that the hospital refused to permit a call to go through.

Monk was quite alarmed. If Doc Savage was in a state where the hospital wouldn't allow him to take a
call, it wasn't good. It must be serious.

Furthermore Monk realized he was the only one of Doc's group of five aides in a position to do much
about it, although being in Germany didn't put him in a very favorable position. But he was handier than
the others. Renny Renwick was in China, Long Tom Roberts was Heaven-knew-where in the Pacific,
Johnny Littlejohn was in Sweden, Ham Brooks was in Jugoslavia. Ham was, in a pinch, available. At
least Monk knew where he could be reached. He had no idea exactly where the others were.

Monk dressed, his concern increasing. He tried to think of whom he could call in New York, and wished
Patricia Savage was available. Pat was Doc's cousin, a young lady who liked excitement and
occasionally helped them, but the catch there was that Pat was herself in England somewhere, trying to
hire a high-powered Frenchman for her string of beauty salons.

A knock on the door sounded the second time before he heard it and he asked, тАЬWho's there?тАЭ

It was the pretty Angele.

тАЬCome in,тАЭ Monk said.

Angele had thought of several other things she thought he was, and she expressed herself. тАЬHere, you
scurvy ape,тАЭ she finished, тАЬis another cablegram which just came for you.тАЭ

This message said:

DISREGARD SERIOUS TONE EARLIER CABLEGRAM DOC IS IN HOSPITAL SLIGHTLY
BURNED BE OUT TOMORROW DOCTOR BENSON WAS JUST EXCITABLE.

тАЬThat's a relief,тАЭ Monk remarked.



SOME three or four seconds later, a red light flashed in his subconscious. He became suspicious. He did
not immediately know why, but he knew he was suspicious, and he eyed the cablegram speculatively.

It was a little funny, he decided, that the superintendent of their office building would be so cryptic in the
first cablegram, then use plenty of words in the second one. In fact, the second message didn't sound as if
the same fellow had sent it.

He got on the telephone again. тАЬA cablegram was just delivered to me, and I want to check back on the
thing to see who sent it. Where would I start?тАЭ