Johnston McCulley

“ Richard Polland came from old Western stock. His ancestors had fought their way across the plains, and his father had belonged to the days when a man got justice for himself with a six-gun if he could not in any other way. Cranton came from that sort of stock, too, but it was evident that he had forgotten it.
So Richard Polland, his temper flaming, had hurried from the mine to the nearest telegraph office, riding his best horse like a madman, and to James Cranton in New York he had sent this message: “I am coming to get you, you crook.” ”

“ Men would say that he had shadowed Cranton, traced him to the restaurant, got into the private room with him, and killed him. Suppose the head waiter could be made to say that he himself had suggested the private room? That would avail Polland nothing. It would look then, possibly, as though their meeting had been an accident; and then men would think that, coming face to face with the man he had sworn to “get,” Polland simply had carried out his threat. ”

“ We have imagined you prowling through the city with a gun, trying to find him and shoot him down, and we have been searching for you, to tell you the truth.”
“But you—Cranton!” Polland exclaimed in astonishment. “You—alive and well! Tell me, in Heaven’s name—what is this truth of which you speak?”
“I’ll explain,” said the judge. “Some financial enemies of James attempted his downfall. They managed to find a poor dupe who was his double. That is not strange—scientists tell us that every human being has a perfect double. This dupe began going the pace, using the name of James Cranton. ”

“ Cranton made a gesture of disgust and spoke to the chauffeur. The two detectives got into the automobile, and the machine started to turn toward the open street. Polland dodged behind the pillar again. An instant later, the present danger was over. Polland breathed normally again and stepped out to the street. But he was as alert and on guard as before.
He reached the subway entrance, went down into the sub, and found himself in the midst of a throng waiting on the platform. He felt safer in the crowd, just as a city man would imagine himself safer out in the midst of an empty waste of land. ”

“ He would not have to recognize that the other man existed.
The waiter ushered him up the stairs to the room. His table was in a corner of the room, and in the corner opposite was the other, half hidden behind a mass of imitation palms. Polland could just see the back of the man sitting there, and he did not turn as Polland entered.
Polland was hungry, and he had an old-fashioned appetite. The waiter grinned behind his back at the large order he gave—a porterhouse steak, potatoes, salad, coffee and pie. Handing Polland an evening paper, the waiter closed the door and hurried away. ”

“ He did not know much about fashionable restaurant life of the metropolis, so he walked up the street intending to select a place, constantly alert, yet knowing that, aside from James Cranton himself, he would not recognize an enemy if he met one face to face.
In the crowded street he had a feeling of security. But he kept to the outer side of the walk and constantly watched the persons he passed. He glanced in several restaurants, and decided against them; he wanted a large one, where the crowd was so dense that a man would not be liable to attract much attention. ”

“ As Polland attacked his steak, he began thinking again of his predicament.
“I’ll not keep holed up,” he told himself. “To-morrow, and to-morrow evening, I’ll take in the town, only I’ll stay away from the neighborhood of Cranton’s residence and office. And when the judge returns, we’ll have things settled in short order.”
He ate with relish, for it was a delicious steak, even to a man who knew what a real steak was, and Polland anticipated an excellent meal. Then he found that the waiter had left a bottle of sauce, but no catchup. ”

“ Polland’s big chance in life was gone—he was being robbed of it by unscrupulous men. And James Cranton, his old friend, who had had the red blood of honesty changed to the water of iniquity in the big city, was at the bottom of it. Cranton had not been content, it appeared, to take an enormous percentage for himself and his financial friends ”

“ Polland began,
“Wait, my boy. These men knew you, and guessed that when you received that letter you would rush to New York and start shooting. But their game was discovered. The most of them, some of them men of prominence, will be in jail before night. Only our detectives have been unable to find their dupe, James’ double. Undoubtedly, he has become frightened and has run away.”
“Or facing prison, has killed himself,” Polland suggested.
For he understood it all now, of course. A sigh of relief came from him. He looked across at James Cranton, and found that Cranton was smiling at him. ”

“ They had suppressed news of the crime, and so hoped to catch the murderer off guard.
Perhaps they thought that he, not reading of the slaying, would think that Cranton had not died, and would show himself. Perhaps they were suppressing the news for business reasons, because Cranton’s business associates wanted it kept quiet for a few hours, so they could protect themselves on the market.
The fact that the crime was not mentioned at all frightened Polland more than if it had been mentioned and a full description of himself given. He always feared an enemy that fought from the dark. ”

“ He saw before him continually the dead man in the private dining room, and the stained tablecloth. He wondered again how James Cranton had met death, and at whose hands.
Polland often had laughed at the idea that a man absolutely innocent of a crime could be convicted of that crime by an honest jury. ”

“ So I slipped off the train, intending to get the judge and have him arrange a meeting. Then—things began to happen. I’ve got some story to tell you later.”
“As far as business is concerned,” Cranton said, “I can tell you that you’re due to be a millionaire, Dick, in short order. We’ll have to celebrate.”
“Let me make one stipulation,” Polland said. “We’ll celebrate at a certain restaurant I know, where I can get special rates. And I want to see the expression in the face of a certain waiter when I walk in with you. I’ll not be surprised if he throws a fit!” ”

“ A man had the right to defend himself. Cranton would not hesitate, either. Enough of the West remained in him for him to take matters into his own hands.
Again, James Cranton might have used his influence to have men watching for Polland, It would be easy for Cranton, perhaps, to have him taken from the train and put under arrest; perhaps Cranton even had power enough to have him rushed to prison to serve a long term. That telegram sent from the little station in Colorado was enough to form the basis for a serious charge. ”

“ Richard Polland showed his astonishment in his face now. Here was no detective come to arrest him for the murder of James Cranton. The man before him was the waiter who had served him in that private dining room of the restaurant.
CHAPTER IV.
THE UNEXPECTED. RICHARD POLLAND stared at him in surprise a moment, and then dropped his hands to his sides.
“Who are you, and what do you want?” he asked.
“I want to see you on business, sir,” the waiter said.
“Business? What business can you have with me? What sort of business.” ”

“ Polland asked.
“Because you share the secret, sir, and the manager wishes to—er—do the right thing by you, trusting to your honor that you will forget what you saw. If the story got out, sir, it would ruin the place, and there are thousands of dollars invested, of course. Our trade would drop off immediately. Persons could not listen to the music and dance and eat with the thought always in their minds that perhaps that poor devil had been sitting at their table.” ”

“ The judge would go to James Cranton and carry an apology for the telegram, and then the three of them would arrange a meeting, and get down to facts. Then, if James Cranton was proved a swindler, Polland would know how to deal with him.
A few years before, Polland had been in New York, and he knew enough of the city to get around without much assistance. The first thing to do would be to dodge Cranton and his men at the station, if they happened to be there. Safe in a room in some hotel, he could open negotiations with the judge by telephone, and then he would feel more secure. ”

“ Remaining in a small hotel room, laboring under a mental strain, is not the easiest thing in the world. Polland glanced at his watch every few minutes, surprised to find that so little time had passed. His nervousness was increasing now, and he began to feel afraid again. ”

“ The hotel was filled, and Polland was obliged to go out upon the street again. The experience had increased his nervousness and fear, for he felt that he had attracted attention to himself.
At the second hotel he met with the same sort of reception. He was almost in a panic now. He wondered whether it would not be better to check his bag and suit case until he found a place, but he decided against that. He wanted them with him, wanted to get into a room and stay there until Judge Samble could reach him. ”

“ His only hope, it seemed, was that the real murderer would be arrested quickly, and would confess.
When the dawn came, Polland got up, walked to the window, and looked down upon the street. A few men were hurrying back and forth, like rats scurrying to their holes. Here and there a motor truck rumbled. Polland found himself wondering how many men had discovered their conditions of life entirely changed in the last twenty-four hours. He dressed quickly and went into the hall. ”

“ Although he had registered under an assumed name, he remembered with a shock that he had centered his mind upon writing his new name, so that he had given his address as Denver, Colorado.
However, that might not injure him, Thousands of persons registered from Denver during the year, and it was unlikely that James Cranton would have every man so registering investigated.
“I’ve been an ass to act as I have,” Polland told himself now. “I’ll simply go my way and enjoy myself until the day after to-morrow, when the judge will be back, and then I’ll call him and have him attend to the affair. ”

“ Stopping just inside the hotel to look around, he saw Judge Samble at the desk, speaking to one of the clerks.
Polland went straight across the lobby toward him. The judge turned, saw him, and hastened in his direction, There was a smile on the judge’s face, and his hand was outstretched.
Polland took the hand, scarcely knowing what he was doing, not even wondering that it was offered.
“Richard, we must talk!” the judge said. “I am glad that you came back after running away from me. I know that your blood is hot, my boy. I knew your father well, and I know his son.” ”

“ James Cranton had had a dozen photographs of him, many of them snapshots, in which he was shown in all sorts of costumes. Polland often had read how New York was the easiest place in the world in which to hide, and the most difficult to leave. The New York police had a way of watching every possible avenue of escape. ”

“ Not one had the story of the crime. The only local violence chronicled was the assault on a sailor in Brooklyn.
Polland folded the papers carefully and put them before him on the table. Here was a peculiar state of affairs. Could a man like James Cranton be foully slain and not a newspaper mention the fact? And then Polland thought that he understood. The police were playing their little game. ”

“ It was possible that officers were listening in the hall. Or there might be a dictaphone in the room—Polland had heard of such things.
“Go ahead with your story,” he directed.
“The waiter rushed away to notify the manager, of course, sir,” the waiter continued, speaking in a lower tone. “Such things are kept quiet around a hotel or big restaurant, you understand. People go to a restaurant to enjoy themselves, and they cannot do that with the thought of violent death in their minds. ”

“ An hour later, Polland had boarded a transcontinental train and was being rushed eastward. He had taken time to pack a suit case and a bag. Some streak of cunning in his make-up had told him that it might not be an easy thing to approach James Cranton now, that he would have to dress the part. ”

“ He read the waiter’s meaning clearly; in plain words, there would be no corpse to embarrass anybody.
“And we merely want you satisfied,” the waiter said, “so that you’ll have a friendly feeling toward us and keep quiet about the affair. Men who have been going the pace and getting into difficulties are always committing suicide in restaurants and such places, causing annoyance and expense. What is your answer, sir?”
“Suppose I do not fall in with your plan?” Polland said. “Suppose that I carry the story to the police?” ”

“ He locked his door, left the key with the room clerk, and rang for the elevator. Outwardly, he was an ordinary business man going out for dinner. There was nothing in his appearance or manner to cause a suspicious individual to give him a second glance.
The elevator was almost filled when it stopped at his floor, and Polland squeezed into it and descended to the lobby, which was thronged, too. Polland decided against purchasing his show ticket at the hotel; if anybody was searching for him, he might be traced by it. He would get one after he had had dinner, he told himself. ”