CHAPTER XXXIII
THE TRAP
Joyous was the crowd of Yale players as they trooped off the field. Thefreshmen had opened their season well by defeating Princeton, and thewearers of the orange and black gave their victors a hearty cheer, whichwas repaid in kind.
"It's good to be on the winning side," exulted Andy, as he walked alongwith Dunk.
"It sure is, old man."
Someone touched Andy on the shoulder. He looked around to see Ikeyholding out a package. One in the other hand was offered to Dunk.
"The socks," spoke the student salesman, simply.
"Say, give us time to get into our clothes!" demanded Andy. "Do youthink we carry cash in our uniforms?"
"I didn't want you to forget," said Ikey, with a grin. "There is anotherfellow taking up my business now, and I've got to hustle if I want thetrade. Going to your room?"
"Sure."
"I'll go on ahead and wait for you," said Ikey. "I need the money."
"Say, you're the limit! You're as bad as a sheriff with an attachment,"complained Dunk. But he could not help laughing at the other'spersistence.
Andy and Dunk were a little late getting back to Wright Hill, and whenthey entered their room they found a note on the table. It was fromIkey, and read:
"I found your door open, and waited a while, but I just heard of abargain lot of suspenders I can buy, so I went off to see about them. Iwill be back with the socks in a little while."
"He found our door open!" exclaimed Dunk. "Didn't we lock it?"
"We sure did!" declared Andy. "I wonder----" He paused, and looked athis chum wonderingly. Then they both began a hasty search among theirpossessions. The same thought had come to each.
"Did you have my amethyst cuff buttons?" asked Andy of Dunk, who wasrummaging among his effects.
"I did not. Why?"
"They're gone!"
"Another robbery! Say, we've got to report this right away, and letLink's lawyer know!" Dunk cried. "This may clear him!"
They paused, trying to map out a line of procedure, when a messengercame in to say that either Dunk or Andy was wanted on the telephone in ahurry.
"You go," suggested Andy. "As long as either of us will answer I'll stayhere and take another look for my buttons. But I'm sure I left them inmy collar box, and they aren't there now."
Dunk hurried off, while Andy conducted a careful but ineffectual search.
"It was Link's lawyer," Dunk reported when he came back. "His case comesup to-morrow, and he wants to know if we have any evidence that willhelp to prove Link innocent."
"Not an awful lot," said Andy, ruefully, "unless this latest robbery is.We'd better go see that lawyer. Did he say anything about the mysterioushundred dollars Link got by mail?"
"He mentioned it. There's no explanation of it yet, and he says it willlook queer if it comes out, and if that's the only explanation Link cangive."
"Why need it come out?"
"Oh, it seems that Link showed the bills to several helpers aroundcollege, and some of them have been subpoenaed to testify. The detectivewill be sure to bring it out. Then there's that story about the bookfound in Link's room."
"Hello!--" exclaimed Andy, looking around the apartment in order tocollect his thoughts. "There's another note someone left for us. It musthave been knocked off the table." He picked it up off the floor. It wasaddressed to him, and proved to be from Charley Taylor. It read:
"DEAR ANDY. I watched you play to-day. You did well. I've got a peach of a mushroom bat that I don't want, for I'm going in for rowing instead of baseball this season. I left the bat in the storeroom on your corridor when I moved out of Wright Hall. You can have it if you like. I gave it to Mortimer Gaffington once, but he said he never could find it. I don't believe he cared much about it, anyhow. Take it and good luck."
"By jinks!" cried Andy, as he read the missive and passed it to Dunk."Do you remember that time Mortimer was hunting for Charley's bat in thecloset?"
"I should say I did! That was the time we were looking for the thief whotook Frank Carr's silver cup and his book."
"Sure. Well, I'm just going to have a look for that bat now. Maybe I'llhave better luck than Mortimer did."
"Go ahead. I'll stay here in case Ikey comes in with the socks. No usehaving him bother us. Might as well pay him so he'll quit running in."
"Sure. Well, I'm going to rummage for the bat," and Andy, thinking ofmany things, went down the corridor to the large closet that was used asa store room by the students.
It was more filled than before with many things, and Andy had somedifficulty in locating the bat. Finally he found it away down in acorner, under an old football suit, and drew it out. As he did sosomething fell to the closet floor with a clang of metal.
"I wonder what that was?" mused Andy. "It sounded like----" He did notfinish the thought, but made his way to the far end of the closet. Itwas dark there, but, groping around, his fingers touched something hard,round, smooth and cold. With trembling hand Andy drew it out, and whenthe single electric light in the center of the storeroom fell upon itAndy uttered a cry of surprise.
"Frank's silver cup!" he cried. "The thief hid it in there! I wonder ifthe book's here, too?"
He made a hasty but unsuccessful search and then, with the bat and cup,he hurried to the room where Dunk awaited him.
"What's up?" demanded Dunk, as Andy fairly burst into the room.
"Lots! Look here!"
"Frank Carr's silver cup! Where'd you get it?"
"In the closet where Mortimer Gaffington hid it!"
"Mortimer Gaffington?" gasped Dunk. "You mean----"
"I mean that I'm sure now of what I've suspected for some time--thatMortimer is the quadrangle thief!"
"You don't say so! How do you figure it out?"
"Just think and you'll see it for yourself," went on Andy. "When we hadthe chase after the thief down this corridor that time, the trail seemedto lead right to this closet, didn't it?"
"Sure," agreed Dunk.
"And who did we find in there?"
"Why, Mort, of course. But he said he was looking for Charley Taylor'sbat."
"Well, he may have been, but that was only an excuse. Mortimer didn'twant that bat, but he was almost caught and he did want a place to hidethe stuff. The book he could slip in his pocket, but he couldn't do thatwith the cup. So he threw it back in a corner, and it's been there eversince. Probably he was afraid to come for it."
"Andy, I believe you're right!" cried Dunk. "But one thing more--did youfind a pair of rubber shoes? You know Frank said the fellow that wentout of his room in such a hurry wore rubber shoes."
"I forgot about that. I'll have another look."
"I'll go with you. Ikey was here and I paid him for your socks and mine.So we can lock up."
"And be sure you do lock," warned Andy. "I don't want to lose any morestuff. Say, Mortimer must have my sleeve links, all right."
"All wrong, you mean. And my watch, too! I wonder if we're on the vergeof a discovery?"
"It looks so," said Andy, grimly.
Quickly and silently they went to the storeroom. They were notdisturbed, for there were several class dinners on that night, and mostof the occupants of Wright Hall were out. Andy and Dunk intended goinglater.
They rummaged in the closet and, when about to give up, not having foundwhat they sought, Andy unearthed a pair of rubbers.
"These might be what the fellow wore," said Dunk, as he looked at them."He could easily have slipped them off. See if there are any marksinside."
Andy looked and uttered a startled cry. For there, on the inner canvasof the rubber, printed in ink, were the initials "M. G."
"They're his, all right!" spoke Andy, in a low tone.
"Then he's the quadrangle thief," went on Dunk. "Come on back to ourroom, and we'll talk this over. Something's has got to be done."
"That's right," agreed Andy. "But what?"
"We must set a trap,"
suggested Dunk.
"A trap?"
"Yes, do something to catch this mean thief--Mortimer or whoever heis--in the act."
"Hadn't we better tell the Dean--or someone."
"No," said Dunk, after thinking over the matter. "Let's see if we can'tdo this on our own hook. Then if we make a mistake we won't be laughedat."
"But when can we do it?" Andy asked.
"This very night. It couldn't happen better. Nearly all the fellows willbe out of Wright Hall in a little while. We're booked to go, andMortimer knows it, for I was making arrangements with Bert Foley aboutour seats, and Mortimer was standing near me. He came to borrow tendollars, but I didn't let him have it. So he will be sure to figure thatwe'll be out to-night."
"But how do you know he'll come to our room?"
"I don't know it. I've got to take a chance there. But we can hide downin the lower corridor, and watch to see if he comes in this dormitory.If he does, knowing that 'most all the fellows are out, it will looksuspicious. We can watch for him to go out and then tackle him. If hehas the goods on him the jig is up."
"Well, I guess that is a good plan," agreed Andy. "I hate to have to doit, but we owe it to ourselves, to the college and to poor Link todiscover this thief. I only hope it doesn't prove to be Mortimer, but itlooks very bad for him."
"We can go farther than that," went on Dunk. "We can leave some markedmoney on our table, leave our door open and see what happens."
"It sounds sort of mean," spoke Andy, doubtfully; "but I suppose if wehave to have a trap that would be the best way to do it."
"Then let's get busy," suggested Dunk. "He may not come to-night afterall. We may have to watch for several nights. Meanwhile we'd bettertelephone the lawyer that we're on a new lead."
This was done, and the man in charge of Link's case agreed to see Andyand Dunk early the next day to learn what success they had.
Then the trap was laid. The two who were doing this, not so much toprove Mortimer guilty as to free Link and others upon whom suspicion hadfallen, went about their work.
As Dunk had surmised, Wright Hall was almost deserted. They found ahiding place in the lower corridor where they could see whoever came in.Their own door they left ajar, with a light burning. On the table wherethey had been put, as if dropped by accident, were a couple of markedbills.
"If he takes those, we'll have him with the goods," said Dunk, grimly.
Then he and Andy began their vigil.