Chapter XVI IN BOB'S ROOM *
Bob stepped through the doorway, and stopped involuntarily. The interiorof his room looked like a young cyclone had been turned loose on a springafternoon. Every drawer in the dresser had been pulled out and itscontents dumped on the floor, the bedding was strewn about the room andthe mattress had been ripped open and even his clothes had been taken outof the closet and scattered about.
"Friends of yours must have been disappointed because you weren't athome," said his uncle.
Bob sat down in a chair and took another look around. Nothing in the roomhad been spared. Even the pictures had been taken off the walls and thebacks ripped out.
He looked down at a coat which had been dropped beside the chair. Thepockets had been turned inside out and the lining of the garment had beentorn and ripped. The coat was ruined and Bob felt hot tears of angerwelling into his eyes. His fists doubled up involuntarily. Someone wouldhave to pay for this, he told himself.
Merritt Hughes touched his shoulder.
"Keep your chin up, Bob. This is kind of tough and it looks plainmalicious to me, but your time will come. I'm just wondering why all ofthis attention is being centered on you. I can't make myself believe thatthey are trying to get even with you because you spoiled the game lastnight."
"But I didn't. The paper is missing."
"Yes, it's gone from the files, but they may not have their hands on ityet. Sure you made a thorough search down below the building last night?It couldn't have been caught in the shrubbery?"
"I'm sure about that. We went over every inch of space and found half ofthe gum wrappers in Washington," replied Bob.
"I wish I could feel sure that the paper has not gotten into the hands ofthe men who are after it. From what's gone on today I'm inclined tobelieve there has been a slip somewhere. We know the paper is missingfrom the files but we're not sure that the man who took it was able todeliver it outside before you caught him."
"I don't think he did. His only chance would have been to have dropped itfrom the window and that would have been too risky."
"He might have placed it in a marked container of some kind and have hada confederate waiting below," suggested the federal agent.
"That's possible, but when Arthur Jacobs and I searched last night wecouldn't even find fresh footprints under the windows. Of course therewere some near the window where the guard was trussed up, but if thepaper had been dropped in a container, there should have been footprintsdirectly below."
"The rain might have erased them."
"I doubt it. The ground under the shrubbery is unusually soft and Inoticed how deep our own prints were."
Merritt Hughes sat down on the bed and it was a long time before he askedBob another question.
"What do you think about Tully? Could he possibly have taken that paperout of the file?"
"Not unless he was a magician and I don't think Tully would do a thinglike that. He's wild and headstrong, but he wouldn't go that far. Whythat's working against Uncle Sam!"
"Certainly, but some people aren't bothered by scruples like that. Well,if we're sure the paper wasn't tossed out the window, it narrows down tothree people--the man you caught, Tully and yourself."
"But I wouldn't take that paper," smiled Bob.
"Of course not. I know that and so does Waldo Edgar, or he wouldn't havemade you a provisional agent. But Condon Adams is as anxious to solvethis case as I am and he may try to hang something around your neck.Remember, that only three of you were in the room and that paperdisappeared in some manner."
"I hadn't thought of it in that way," reflected Bob. "It does put me in apretty serious light."
"That's why I have been so anxious that you be assigned to work with meon this case. I had a long talk with Edgar this morning. I'd told him ofyour ambition to eventually join the service and pointed out that youmight well prove invaluable as an inside man on this case. He agreed withme and of course when Condon Adams put up about the same kind of aproposition in behalf of Tully, he couldn't say no."
"I'd like to know where Adams gets all his pull," said Bob.
"Part of it is due to ability and part of it to powerful politicalfriends," explained his uncle. "The senator from Adams' home state ishigh up in administration circles and in addition is a firm friend ofthis department. He's helped get us the additional appropriations we'veneeded to expand and equip the department properly and of course thechief can't ignore that when Adams puts the pressure on."
"I suppose not," admitted Bob, "but it seems unfair to the other men whohave no political friends."
"His is about the only case in the department in which that is true,"said his uncle. "But he's competent, too. Don't mistake that. I'll haveto keep on my toes if I run this radio mystery down before he does."
"All of which means that I am the inside man for you while Tully is toserve his uncle in whatever inside capacity he can in our department,"said Bob. "I can see where there is going to be some intense rivalry."
"Well, either Adams or myself should benefit by it," smiled the federalagent. "Only don't kill each other trying to dig out facts and get themto us first. Now we'd better find out what we can about the invasionhere. How about your landlords?"
"They're down in Virginia on a vacation. The only person likely to knowanything about this is the janitor," explained Bob.
"Take me down to him," directed his uncle.
Bob looked ruefully at the room. There wasn't a whole lot that could besalvaged, for his clothing was ruined and one of the suits had beenpractically new. He could see his savings account going down almost tothe vanishing point.
They stepped out into the hall and Bob started to lock the door.
"Wait a minute. I want a look at that doorknob," said his uncle. He tooka small but powerful glass from his coat pocket and examined thedoorknob. When he stood up he shook his head.
"Whoever opened that door was wearing gloves. That means if they werethat smart there isn't much use to check over the interior of the roomsfor fingerprints."
"Any sign of the door being forced?" asked Bob.
"No. A skeleton key must have been used. Lead on; we'll see the janitornow."
They found the janitor in the basement and when Bob explained theirmission he readily assented to answer their questions.
"Strangers?" he said, repeating the question the federal agent asked."Yes, a couple of them called about an hour ago. They wanted to knowwhere Mr. Houston lived and I took them up to the third floor back. Theysaid they had been sent to get some papers he had left at home."
"How did they get in?" the question shot from the lips of the federalagent.
"Why, they had a key," explained the janitor. "One of them said Mr.Houston had given them his key. It worked all right and I didn't thinkany more about it. I was having trouble with the furnace smoking, so Icame right back down here."
"And left them alone in Bob's room?" the agent pressed.
"That's right. They seemed to know what they were about."
"How long did they stay up there?"
"I don't rightly know. I went up to that floor a few minutes ago, but noone was in sight then. Maybe they were there half an hour; maybe onlyfive minutes."
"What did they look like?"
The janitor scratched his head.
"Well, now, I didn't pay a whole lot of attention to them. One of themwas a lot taller than the other one, though."
A premonition had been growing on Bob and he couldn't repress hisquestion.
"Did the taller one have red hair?" he asked.
"Come to think of it, he did," replied the janitor.
"And the shorter one; was there a scar on his forehead?"
"That's right. Friends of yours, of course?"
"Well, not exactly friends," said Bob.
"Remember anything else about them?" asked Merritt Hughes.
"Not right now, anyhow," said
the janitor and they left him to return tohis work while they went outdoors.
Merritt Hughes was the first to speak.
"I guess there is no question about the identity of your visitors. Theyare the same ones who attempted to kidnap you. What's the reason for allof your popularity?"
Bob shook his head.
"I only wish I knew," he said. "Believe me, it is no fun to have yourroom torn apart like that. Why they ruined my clothes and it's going tobe mighty costly getting them repaired."
"I'll help you out if you're pinched for money," volunteered his uncle,reaching for his billfold.
But Bob waved the offer aside.
"Thanks, but I'll get along all right. If I ever catch up with thosefellows they'll have to get their fists into action pretty fast if theywant to escape a thorough drubbing."
"I don't blame you a bit for feeling that way. But we've got to getalong. I have an appointment with one of the army's chief radio engineersin less than fifteen minutes and I want you to sit in."
They signalled for a cab and started for the meeting which was to revealsome startling information on Bob's first case.