An important feature of Fleming Stone’s efficiency was his ability to
make use of the services of others. In the present case, he skilfully
utilized both Shane and Driscoll’s energies, and received their
reports--diplomatically concealing the fact that he was making tools of
them, and letting them infer that he was merely their co-worker.
Also, he depended greatly on Fibsy’s assistance. The boy was
indefatigable, and he did errands intelligently, and made investigations
with a minute attention to details, that delighted the heart of his
master.
Young McGuire had all the natural attributes of a detective, and under
the tuition of Fleming Stone was advancing rapidly.
When assisting Stone on a case, the two usually lived together at some
hotel, Stone going back and forth between there and his own home, which
was now in a Westchester suburb.
It was part of the routine that the two should breakfast together and
plan the day’s work. These breakfasts were carefully arranged meals,
with correct appointments, for Stone had the boy’s good at heart,
and was glad to train him in deportment for his own sake; but also, he
desired that Fibsy should be presentable in any society, as the pursuit
of the detective calling made it often necessary that the boy should
visit in well-conducted homes.
Fibsy was, therefore, eating his breakfast after the most approved
formula, when Stone said, “Well, Fibs, how about Sykes and Barton? Now
for the tale of your call on Willy Hanlon yesterday.”
“I went down there, Mr. Stone, but I didn’t see Hanlon. He was out.
But I did a lot better. I saw Mr. Barton, of Sykes and Barton, and I got
an earful! It seems friend Willy has ambitions.”
“In what line?”
“Upward! Like the gentleman in the poetry-book, he wants to go higher,
higher, ever higher--”
“Aeroplane?”
“No, not that way--steeplejack.”
“Painting spires?”
“Not only spires, but signs in high places--dangerous places-and,
you know, Mr. Stone, he told us--that day at the Embury house--that he
didn’t climb--that he painted signs, and let other people put them
up.”
“Yes; well? What of it?”
“Only this: why did he try to deceive us? Why, Mr. Barton says he’s
a most daring climber--he’s practicing to be a human fly.”
“A human fly? Is that a new circus stunt?”
“You know what I mean. You’ve seen a human fly perform, haven’t
you?”
“Oh, that chap who stood on his head on the coping of the Woolworth
Building to get contributions for the Red Cross work? Yes, I remember.
He wasn’t Hanlon, was he?”
“No, sir; he was the original--or one of the first ones. There are
lots of human flies, now. They cut up tricks all over the country. And
Willy Hanlon is practicing for that but he doesn’t want it known.”
“All right, I won’t tell. His guilty secret is safe with me!”
“Now, you’re laughing at me, Mr. Stone! All right just you wait--and
Hanlon goes around on a motor-cycle, too!”
“He does! Then we are undone! What a revelation! And, now, Fibs, if
you’ll explain to me the significance of Hanlon’s aspiring ambitions
and his weird taste for motor-cycles, I’ll be obliged.”
Fibsy was extremely, even absurdly, sensitive to irony. Sometimes it
didn’t affect him seriously, and then, again, he would be so hurt and
embarrassed by it, that it fairly made him unable to talk.
In this instance, it overcame him utterly, and his funny little freckled
face turned red, and his eyes lost their eagerness and showed only
chagrin.
“Come, come,” said Stone, regretting his teasing, but determined to
help the boy overcome his sensitiveness to it, “brace up, Fibs; you
know I meant no harm. Forgive a chap, can’t you--and begin all
over again. I know you have something in your noddle--and doubtless,
something jolly well worth while.”
“Well--I--oh, wait a minute, Mr. Stone--I’m a fool, but I can’t
help it. When you come at me like that, I lose all faith in my notions.
For it’s only a notion--and a crazy one at that, and--well, sir,
you wait till I’ve worked it up a little further--and if there’s
anything to it--I’ll expound. Now, what’s my orders for to-day?”
Fibsy had an obstinate streak in his make-up, and Fleming Stone was too
wise to insist on the boy’s “expounding” just then.
Instead, he said, pleasantly: “To-day, Fibs, I want you to make a
round of the drug stores. It’s not a hopeful job--indeed, I can’t
think it can amount to anything--but have a try at it. You remember, Mr.
Hendricks had the earache--”
“I do, indeed! He had it a month ago--and what’s more, he denied
it--at first.”
“Yes; well, use your discretion for all it’s worth--but get a line
on the doctor that prescribed for him--it was a bad case, you know--and
find out what he got to relieve him and where he got it.”
“Yessir. Say, Mr. Stone, is Mr. Hendricks implicated, do you think?”
“In the murder? Why, he was in Boston at the time--a man can’t be in
two places at once, can he?”
“He cannot! He has a perfect alibi--hasn’t he, Mr. Stone?”
“He sure has, Fibsy. And yet--he was in the party that discussed the
possibilities of killing people by the henbane route.”
“Yessir--but so was Mr. Patterson--Mis’ Desternay said so.”
“The Patterson business must be looked into. I’ll attend to that
to-day--I’ll also see Mr. Elliott about that matter of personal loans
that Mr. Embury seemed to be conducting as a side business.”
“Yes, do, please. Mr. Stone, it would be a first-class motive, if
Mr. Embury had a strangle-hold on somebody who owed him a whole lot and
couldn’t pay, and--”
“Fine motive, my boy--but how about opportunity? You forget those
bolted doors.”
“And Mr. Patterson had borrowed money of Mr. Embury--”
“How do you know that?”
“I heard it--oh, well, I got it from one of the footmen of the
apartment house--”
“Footmen! What do you mean?”
“You know there’s a lot of employees--porters, rubbish men, doormen,
hallmen, pages and Lord knows what! I lump ‘em all under the title of
footmen. Anyway, one of those persons told me--for a consideration--a
lot about the private affairs of the tenants. You know, Mr. Stone, those
footmen pick up a lot of information--overhearing here and there--and
from the private servants kept by the tenants.”
“That’s true, Fibs; there must be a mine of information available in
that way.”
“There is, sir. And I caught onto a good deal--and specially, I
learned that Mr. Patterson is in the faction--or whatever you call
it--that didn’t want Mr. Embury to be president of that club.”
“And so you think Mr. Patterson had a hand in the murder?”
Stone’s face was grave, and there was no hint of banter in his tone,
so Fibsy replied, earnestly, “Well, he is the man who has lots of
empty jam jars go down in the garbage pails.”
“But he has lots of children.”
“Yes, sir--four. Oh, well, I suppose a good many people like raspberry
jam.”
“Go on, Fibsy; don’t be discouraged. As I’ve often told you,
one scrap of evidence is worth considering. A second, against the same
man--is important--and a third, is decidedly valuable.”
“Yessir, that’s what I’m bankin’ on. You see, Mr. Patterson,
now--he’s over head and ears in debt to Embury. He was against
Embury for club president. He was present at the henbane discussion.
And--he’s an habitual buyer of raspberry jam.”
“Some counts,” and Fleming Stone looked thoughtful. “But not
entirely convincing. How’d he get in?”
“You know his apartment is directly beneath the Embury apartment--but
two floors below.”
“Might as well be ten floors below. How could he get in?”
“Somebody got in, Mr. Stone. You know as well as I do, that neither
Mrs. Embury nor Miss Ames committed that murder. We must face that.”
“Nor did Ferdinand do it. I’ll go you all those assumptions.”
“All right, sir; then somebody got in from the outside.”
“How?”
“Mr. Stone, haven’t you ever read detective stories where a murder
was committed in a room that was locked and double-locked and yet
somebody did get in--and the fun of the story is guessing how he got
in.”
“Fiction, my boy, is one thing--fact is another.”
“No, sir; they’re one and the same thing!”
“All right, son; have it your own way. Now, if you’re ready to get
ready, skittle off to your chain of drug stores, and run down a
henbane purchase by any citizen of this little old town, or adjacent
boroughs.”
Fibsy went off. He had recovered from the sense of annoyance at being
chaffed by Stone, but it made him more resolved than ever to prove the
strange theory he had formed. He didn’t dignify his idea by the name
of theory, but he was doggedly sticking to a notion which, he hoped,
would bring forth some strange developments and speedily.
Laying aside his own plans for the moment, he went about Stone’s
business, and had little difficulty in finding the nearby druggist whom
Hendricks frequently patronized.
“Alvord Hendricks? Sure he trades here,” said the dapper young
clerk. “He buys mostly shaving-cream and tooth-paste, but here’s
where he buys it.”
“Righto! And, say, a month or so ago, he bought some hyoscine--”
“Oh, no, excuse me, he did not! That’s not sold hit or miss. But
maybe you mean hyoscyamine. That’s another thing.”
“Why, maybe I do. Look up the sale, can’t you, and make sure.”
“Why should I?”
Fibsy explained that in the interests of a police investigation it might
be better to acquiesce than to question why, and the young man proved
obliging.
So Terence McGuire learned that Alvord Hendricks bought some
hyoscyamine, on a doctor’s prescription, about a month ago--the same
to be used to relieve a serious case of earache.
But there was no record of his having bought hyoscyarnus, which was
the deadly henbane used in the medicine dropper-nor was there any other
record of hyoscyamine against him.
Satisfied that he had learned all he could, Fibsy continued his round of
drug-store visits, in an ever-widening circle, but got no information on
any henbane sales whatever.
“Nothin’ doin’,” he told himself. “Whoever squirted that
henbane from that squirter into that ear--brought said henbane from
a distance, which, to my mind, indicates a far-seeing and intelligent
reasoning power.”
His present duty done, he started forth on his own tour of
investigation. He went to a small boarding house, in an inconspicuous
street, the address of which had been given him by Mr. Barton, and asked
for Mr. Hanlon.
“He ain’t home,” declared the frowning landlady who opened the
door.
“I know it,” returned Fibsy, nonchalantly, “but I gotta go up to
his room a minute. He sent me.”
“How do I know that?”
“That’s so, how do you?” Fibsy’s grin was sociable. “Well,
look here, I guess this’ll fix it. I’m errand boy to--you know
who--” he winked mysteriously, “to the man he takes his acrobat
lessons off of.”
“Oh,” the woman looked frightened. “Hush up--it’s all right.
Only don’t mention no names. Go on upstairs--third floor front.”
“Yep,” and Fibsy went quietly up the stairs.
Hanlon’s room was not locked, but a big wardrobe inside was--and
nothing else was of interest to the visitor. He picked at the lock with
his knife, but to no avail.
As he stood looking wistfully at the wardrobe door, a cheerful voice
sounded behind him:
“I’ll open it for you--what do you want out of it?”
Fibsy looked up quickly, to see Hanlon himself, smiling at him. Quick to
take a cue, the boy didn’t show any embarrassment, but putting out his
hand said, “How do you do, Mr. Hanlon?”
“Fine. How’s yourself? And why the sneak visit, my boy?”
Fibsy looked his questioner square in the eye, and then said, “Oh,
well, I s’pose I may as well speak right out.”
“You sure may. Either tell the truth, or put up such a convincing lie
that I’ll think it’s the truth. Go ahead.”
“Here goes, then,” Fibsy made a quick decision, that Hanlon was
too keen to stand for any lie. “I’m engaged on the Embury murder
case.”
“I know that’s true--though it’s hard to believe.”
Fibsy chose to ignore this dig, and went on. “I’m here because I
want to see how you’re mixed up in it.”
“Oh, you do! Why not ask me?”
“All right, I ask you. How are you connected with the murder of
Sanford Embury?”
“Will anything I say be used against me?” Hanlon’s tone was
jocular, but he was staring hard at Fibsy’s face.
“If it’s usable,” was the nonchalant reply.
“Well, use it if you can. I’m mixed up in the matter, as you put it,
because I’m trying to find the murderer on my own account.”
“Why do you want the murderer on your own account?”
“I didn’t agree to answer more than one question. But I will. I
don’t want the murderer particularly--but I’m interested in the
case. I’ve the detective instinct myself--and I thought if I could
track down the villain--I might get a reward--”
“Is there one offered?”
“Not that I know of--but I daresay either Mr. Elliott or Mr. Hendricks
would willingly pay to have the murderer found.”
“Why those two? Why not Mrs. Embury?”
“Innocent child! Those two are deeply, desperately, darkly in love
with the--the widow.”
“Let’s leave her out of this!”
“Ha, ha! a squire of dames, eh? and at your age! All right--leave the
lady’s name out. But I’ve confessed my hidden purpose. Now tell me
what brings you to my domicile, on false pretenses, and why do I find
you on the point of breaking into my wardrobe?”
“Truth does it! I wanted to see if I could find a false beard and a
white turban.”
“Oh, you did! And what good would that do you? You have cleverly
discerned that I assumed an innocent disguise, in order to give aid and
comfort to a most worthy dame of advanced years.”
“You did but why?”
“Are you Paul Pry? You’ll drive me crazy with your eternal
‘why?’“
“All right, go crazy, then--but, why?”
“The same old reason,” and Hanlon spoke seriously. “I’m trying,
as I said, to find the Embury murderer, and I contrived that session
with the old lady in hopes of learning something to help me in finding
him.”
“And did you?”
“I learned that she is a harmless, but none the less, positively
demented woman. I learned that she deceives herself--in a way,
hypnotizes herself, and she believes she sees and hears things that she
does not see and hear.”
“And tastes them? and smells them?”
“There, too, she deceives herself. Surely, you don’t take in that
story of her ‘vision’?”
“I believe she believes it.”
“Yes, so do I. Now, look here, McGuire; I’m a good-natured sort, and
I’m willing to overlook this raid of yours, if you’ll join forces. I
can help you, but only if you’re frank and honest in whacking up with
whatever info you have. I know something--you know something--will you
go in cahoots?”
“I would, Mr. Hanlon,” and Fibsy looked regretful, “if I was
my own boss. But, you see, I’m under orders. I’m F. Stone’s
helper--and I’ll tell you what he says I may--and that’s all.”
“That goes. I don’t want any more than your boss lets you spill. And
now, honest, what did you come here for?”
“To look in that wardrobe, as I said.”
“Why, bless your heart, child, you’re welcome to do that.”
Hanlon drew a key from his pocket, and flung the wardrobe door wide.
“There you are--go to it!”
Swiftly, but methodically, Fibsy took down every article of wearing
apparel the wardrobe contained, glanced at it and returned it, Hanlon
looking on with an amused expression on his face.
“Any incriminating evidence?” he said at last, as Fibsy hung up the
final piece of clothing.
“Not a scrap,” was the hearty reply. “If I don’t get more
evidence offen somebody else than I do from you, I’ll go home
empty-handed!”
“Let me help you,” and Hanlon spoke kindly; “I’ll hunt evidence
with you.”
“Some day, maybe. I’ve got to-day all dated up. And, say, why did
you tell me you wasn’t a steeplejack painter, when you are?”
“You’re right, I am. But I don’t want it known, because I’m
going to branch out in a new field soon, and I don’t want that
advertised at present.”
“I know, Mr. Barton told me. You’re going to be a human fly, and cut
up pranks on the edges of roofs of skyscrapers--”
“Hush, not so loud. Yes, I am, but the goal is far distant. But I’m
going to have a whack at it--and I know I can succeed, in time.”
Hanlon’s eyes had a faraway, hopeful look, as if gazing into a future
of marvelous achievement in his chosen field. “Oh, I say, boy, it’s
glorious, this becoming expert in something difficult. It pays for all
the work and training and practice!”
The true artist ambition rang in his voice, and Fibsy gazed at him
fascinated, for the boy was a hero-worshipper, and adored proficiency in
any art.
“When you going to exhibit?” he asked eagerly.
“A little try at it next week. Want’a come?”
“Don’t I. Where?”
“Hush! I’ll whisper. Philadelphia.”
“I’ll be there! Lemme ‘no the date and all.”
“Yes, I will. Must you go? Here’s your hat.”
Fibsy laughed, took the hint and departed.
“What a feller!” he marveled to himself, as he went on his way.
“Oh, gee! what a feller!”