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Page 99
"As a matter of fact, Craig, why should the finding of that
cigarette case be a cause for suspicion at all? That's what I
didn't understand before."
"Ordinarily it wouldn't be. But those open inner doors, the
absence of the man in charge--isn't it possible that we
interrupted an attempt not only to search for the particular
damaging pieces of film, but perhaps to destroy the whole? If
some one acted between the time I asked Manton. about the snake
film and the moment we arrived in the basement to get it, that
some one had to move very fast."
"In which case it might have been Gordon, after all. The
cigarette stub may have been thrown in lighted to start a fire.
He may not have had time to pick up the case, not knowing just
where he dropped it."
Kennedy shrugged his shoulders. "It all shows the futility of
trying to arrive at a conclusion without definite facts. That is
where science is superior to deduction."
"It's all a maze to me just now," I agreed.
We made our way to the vaults in silence, and, to our surprise,
found that they were closed and that even the boy was gone now.
The cellar, as a whole, probably for the purpose of fire
protection on a larger scale, was divided into sections
corresponding to the units of the buildings above, and this time
I noticed that the door through which we had arrived before was
closed also. Had Manton taken fright in earnest at the
possibility of fire, or had he given his employees a genuine
scare?
We retraced our steps to the yard, and there the alert eye of
Kennedy detected a slinking figure just as a man darted into the
protection of a doorway. It was Shirley. Had he been watching us?
Was he connected in some way with the vague mystery Kennedy
seemed to sense in connection with the basement and the film
vaults?
Kennedy led the way to the entrance where Shirley had
disappeared. Here there was no sign of him; only steps leading up
and down and the open door to a huge developing room. Returning
to the yard, we caught a gesture from the chauffeur of a car
standing near by and recognized McGroarty, the driver who had
found the ampulla a few days previously.
"Excuse me, Mr. Kennedy," he apologized, as we approached. "I
should have come to you instead of making you two walk over to
me, but it's less suspicious this way."
"What do you mean?"
"You recognize me, McGroarty, the chauffeur as found the little
bottle?"
Kennedy nodded.
"Well, I says to myself I ought to tell you, but I don't like to
because it might be nothing, you know!"
"It might prove very valuable, McGroarty." Kennedy wanted to
encourage him.
"Well, I've been sitting here for an hour, I guess. One of the
other directors is going out to-day and his people are late and
so here I am. Well, I don't like the way the heavy man Mr. Werner
had--"
"Shirley? Merle Shirley?" I spoke up.
"That's him! Well, he's been, hanging and snooping around that
building over there, where you just saw him, for twenty minutes
or more. I guess he's gone in and out of that basement a dozen
times. I says to myself, maybe he's up to something. You know how
it is?"
Kennedy glanced at me significantly. Then he extended his hand to
the chauffeur. "Again I thank you, McGroarty. As I said before, I
won't forget you."
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