were careful to behave asordinary tourists "doing the sights" of Langengrad, the Rathaus, theMuseum, and the Opera House, and still buying piles of uselesssouvenirs. But they were soon to realise that a careful watch was kepton all strangers in Langengrad.
Just as they were finishing dinner that night they were approached by anofficious little black-moustached man who sent a waiter to call themaside. When they were in a small smoking-room he made a courteousrequest for their papers. These were, of course, in order, and Dick hadno misgivings on the point. But for some reason the shrewd,sallow-faced official seemed suspicious, and Dick noticed with anxietythat he spoke faultless French.
Would his own, he wondered, pass muster?
"Monsieur speaks French like an Englishman," the police officer suddenlyrapped out.
Luckily Dick was prepared.
"Yes," he answered readily, "I was brought up in England. I was atschool at Rugby. My friends in our French Air Force nicknamed me `TheEnglishman.'"
The officer, it appeared, had also been an airman and proceeded to talkinterestingly on the subject of aero engines. He was perfectlycourteous, but none the less Dick had an uncomfortable suspicion that hewas beneath a human microscope. Fortunately the subject was on onewhich he could not possibly be "stumped" and try as he would the policeofficial found he had met his match.
Dick was intensely interested and amused by his skill and courtesy.None the less the position was most dangerous. He realised fully that--as was indeed the fact--the officer might be one of Mestich'slieutenants, and unless he could be satisfied their chances of gettingaway from Langengrad were trifling.
At length he seemed satisfied that Dick was really what he pretended tobe, and finally left them with a courteous farewell, having accepted aglass of slivovitza--or plum gin--the liqueur of the Galdavians--andchatted for a time on ordinary topics.
"That man is dangerous, Dick," whispered Yvette when he had gone. "Weshall have to be most careful. I wish I knew how much he knows, orsuspects."
They were soon to learn how acute this visitor really was!
Shortly after, Dick, smoking an exquisite cigarette such as can only bebought in Langengrad, a dark coat thrown over his evening dress, leftthe hotel quite openly, but keenly on the alert. He suspected he mightbe followed, a premonition that was to prove useful.
He strolled idly through the broad Kossowska agog with evening life,gradually working his way towards the rendezvous, and keeping a sharplook out. Soon he picked out the figure of a man who always seemed tobe about fifty yards behind him. A few turns through side streetsconfirmed his suspicions; clearly, he was being "shadowed!"
Dick Manton's brain always worked rapidly in a crisis. Obviously theman must be got rid of. So he speedily formed a plan.
Strolling down the alley behind the old storehouse, Dick marked theexact locality of the clematis-grown doorway, passed it and then turned,so timing his movement that he and his pursuer met exactly outside thedoor. It was the agent of political police who had interrogated himafter dinner!
Further pretence was useless, and Dick came straight to the point.
"To what am I indebted for Monsieur's very polite attentions?" hedemanded bluntly.
The stranger shrugged his shoulders insolently.
"Langengrad at night is not too healthy for foreigners," he replied withan obvious sneer, "and of course we feel responsible for--"
He got no further. Dick's clenched fist jerked upward with every ounceof his strength and skill behind it. Taken utterly by surprise thepolice agent was caught squarely on the point of the jaw and went downlike a log.
Dick tapped at the door, which was instantly opened by Fedor, andtogether they dragged the unconscious officer inside. A moment later hewas securely bound, gagged and blindfolded.
Dick was now thoroughly alarmed about Yvette. Would she be followed,and if so, could she win clear?
Here fortune favoured them. Apparently the police official, whateverhis suspicions were, had meant to make sure of Dick, knowing that Yvettealone could not escape him. A few minutes later they heard her knock,and soon all three were in the house.
"Safe enough now," said Fedor laconically as he led the way throughpiles of stored goods to an upper room at the top of the building.
The room was faintly illuminated by a gleam of moonlight which camethrough a skylight in the roof, and when a small lamp was turned on Dicklooked around him with keen interest. Filthily dirty, and apparentlyunused for years, the room was crammed with a heterogeneous mass ofcanvas packages and wooden boxes. The only window was covered withshutters through which circular holes had been bored to admit light, butthese were covered over with flaps of felt. The dust of years lay thickeverywhere.
Dick's attention was instantly centred on a large, square table in themiddle of the room.
Upon the table stood what appeared to be a big camera, its lens pointingto the window, with a screen of ground glass at the back of the cameraexposed. A few feet behind, on a tripod, stood a small cinema apparatuswith the lens aperture directed at the ground glass plate of the camera.To each ran electric wires from a bracket on the wall of the room. Thewhole of the electrical apparatus was weird and complicated.
There were also on the table two head telephones connected by wires tothe horn of what looked like a large phonograph.
"Now, Mr Manton," said Fedor in a low, intense voice, "I will show youmy new apparatus. Mademoiselle Pasquet knows about it."
Dick was breathless with excitement. Yvette's story of Fedor'swonderful invention had filled him with keenest curiosity.
"If you will look through one of the holes in this shutter," Fedor wenton, "you will see, directly opposite, the window of Mestich'sdining-room. The curtains are drawn, but you will see the room islighted inside. He and his friends have been there for some time;apparently they have been awaiting Horst." Dick looked through the holeand saw the lighted window. "Now, come and look at the screen," urgedthe Count.
As he spoke he touched an electric switch. Immediately a soft purringnoise came from the camera and on the screen there showed a vividwell-focused picture of a room with about a dozen men seated round along table. The interior of the closed room was revealed by the newinvention. At the head of the table, facing the camera, sat a big,soldierly man whom Dick at once recognised, from his publishedphotographs, as General Mestich.
Fedor rapidly named the others--Bausch, Horst, Colonel Federvany, leaderof the Parliamentary Opposition, several officials of the GaldavianGovernment and War Office, and two or three Jew financiers, one of whomnamed Mendelssohn Dick knew to be of international reputation.
The marvellous picture was framed in a solid black outline. It gave acurious effect, just as though one were looking from the darkness into afiercely lighted cave.
Dick was almost stupefied with astonishment.
"Do you mean to say that that is the room in the house on the oppositeside of the road?" he asked.
"Certainly I do," said Fedor with a grim smile.
"But how is it done?" demanded Dick, aghast. "The shutters are closedhere and the curtains drawn on the other side."
"It's a new electric ray I stumbled upon quite by accident," Fedorexplained. "I was experimenting, and found it. It passes quite readilythrough wood, fibre and fabric, in fact through almost anything exceptstone, mica, and metal. That is why you see only part of the room; thewalls cut off everything except the space directly behind the window.If the table were in the corner of the room they would be safe enough--if they only knew!"
"Marvellous!" Dick ejaculated.
"This new ray is projected from these two rods of silenium," the Countwent on, "and for some reason which I cannot explain it follows thedirection of the longitudinal axis of the metal. Thus any object atwhich the rods are pointed is rendered luminous by the ray on thescreen, which is coated with the barium sulphate used in X-ray work. Itcan be photographed by the cinema and we shall have evidence enough tohang the lot."<
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Then he paused for a few seconds.
"Now we must begin," he said suddenly. "They are just about to start.Hold the telephone receivers to your ear. Mademoiselle will look afterthe cinema."
Picking up the receiver, Dick heard a voice speaking clearly andearnestly. It was evidently that of General Mestich, who, as he saw bythe screen, was on his feet and speaking. The language, of course, hedid not understand, but Fedor, who was also listening, became excitedand snapped on a switch which started the phonograph. In the meantimeYvette was turning the handle of the cinema camera.
"Here it comes," Fedor ejaculated a moment later, and Dick saw GeneralMestich take from his pocket a big blue document which he unfolded andspread on the table before him. Bausch at the same time produced asimilar paper.
Then Bausch got to his feet