CHAPTER XXIII
THE MISSING MODEL
Two notes were quickly written. One was left on the table in thegirls' apartment, telling their father that they were going out for alittle while, to try to locate Russ on a matter of some importanceconnected with the moving pictures.
"There's no use telling daddy what has happened," said Alice. "Hewould only worry, and really there's no danger. We are merely goingto warn Russ. He'll have to look after the men himself. But daddywould be sure to think we would get into some trouble. So we may aswell not bother him."
"All right!" agreed Ruth. She was entering into the spirit of theaffair now. Her eyes were shining and her cheeks vied in hue withthose of Alice.
The other note, marked "Urgent!" was thrust under the kitchen door ofthe Dalwood flat.
"They'll be sure to see that," remarked Alice. "And, no matter ifonly Billy comes home first, he'll know what to do," for the story ofthe men's talk in the restaurant had been briefly set down on thepaper.
Then, but not without many misgivings, the girls set out to try tofind Russ.
"We can call up the studio on the telephone," suggested Alice, as sheand her sister reached the street. "That will be the quickest way. IfRuss isn't there they may be able to tell us where he is, or Mr.Pertell may know where the model is--I mean the machine shop wherethe apparatus is being turned out."
"That's so," agreed Ruth. "Why, we could have used one of thetelephones in the apartment!"
"No, some of the neighbors would overhear us, and we don't wantthat."
"Why not?" Ruth wanted to know.
"Because you can't tell but one of those men may be watching thisplace, and some of the neighbors may be in league with them. Besides,all the telephones here are on party wires, and when you talk overone, some of the other subscribers on the same circuit may listen,for all we can tell. It isn't safe."
"My! You think of everything!" exclaimed Ruth, admiringly. "How doyou manage it?"
"Oh, it just seems to come to me," replied Alice, with a laugh. "Comeon," she added, after they had walked a little way. "There's a drugstore and there's a telephone booth in it. Do you want to talk toRuss, in case he's there?"
"Oh, no, you'd better," responded Ruth, blushing.
"I will not. I'll call up the studio, but if he's there I want you tobe the one to tell him. He'll appreciate it."
"All right," agreed Ruth, and the blush grew deeper.
Alice quickly got the number of the moving picture studio. There wasa private branch exchange there, and Alice knew the girl operator.
"I want to get Russ Dalwood in a hurry," Alice explained to MissMiller, who ran the switchboard. "You try the different departmentsuntil you find him. I'll be here, holding the wire."
"All right!" returned Miss Miller, in crisp, business-like tones.Perhaps she suspected that something was wrong.
Then ensued a nervous waiting. Alice opened the door of the booth andtold Ruth what she had done.
"I'll let you talk to Russ as soon as he answers," she said.
Ruth nodded understandingly. But it seemed that Russ was not to be soeasily found. Through her receiver Alice could hear Miss Millerringing the telephones in the different departments of the big studiobuilding. One after the other was tried, from the office to the darkdeveloping rooms, and then the printing rooms. Most of the employeeshad gone for the day, but such as were present evidently made answerthat the young moving picture operator was not there.
"I can't locate him," said Miss Miller to Alice, finally. "They sayhe was here about a half-hour ago, but has gone out."
"Don't they know where he went?" asked Alice. "It's very importantthat we find him."
"I'll see if anyone knows," came back the answer. Then ensued morewaiting, but at the end came a gleam of hope.
"Mr. Blackson, in the camera room, says he heard Russ say he wasgoing to the Odeon Theater," Miss Miller stated. "He is trying to getone of his attachments tried there."
"Where is the Odeon?" asked Alice, nervously drumming with herfingers on the telephone shelf.
"It's on Eightieth Street somewhere. Wait, I'll look up the telephonenumber for you. They take our service, you know."
In a few seconds Miss Miller had given the desired information, andthen Alice said "good-bye" to her, frantically working the receiverhook of her instrument up and down to call the attention of the maincentral operator.
"And give them a good, long ring!" Alice added, as she gave thenumber. "It's very important."
"Very well," answered central.
There came more waiting. It was a bad time to get anyone, for it wasnow shortly after six o'clock, just when most persons were leavingfor home or supper.
"Can't you get them?" asked Ruth, as Alice opened the 'phone boothdoor for a breath of air.
"I'm trying, dear. He'd left the studio, but may be at a movingpicture theater. There, they've answered at last!"
Alice pulled the door shut with her disengaged hand, and spokeeagerly into the transmitter.
"Is Mr. Russ Dalwood there? It's very important!"
Ruth saw the look of dismay that came over her sister's face. Thenthrough the double glass door she heard Alice say:
"He's gone! And you don't know where? Left ten minutes ago? Ohdear!"
Slowly she hung up the receiver. There seemed nothing else to do. Shecame out of the booth, her face showing her disappointment.
"He's gone, Ruth," she said. "What had we better do?"
"I think the only thing to do is to go back home and wait for him. Hemay be there now. Or his mother or Billy may. Come on home."
It was Ruth who was directing now, and Alice, after a moment ofthought, saw that this was the only thing to do. Quickly theyretraced their steps to the apartment house. Without stopping toenter their own flat they knocked on the Dalwood door. A few secondsof anxious waiting brought no answer.
"Not home yet!" exclaimed Alice. "Oh, what a shame."
Ruth turned to their own flat. Entering with a pass-key she saw at aglance that their father had not come home. The note for him wasstill on the table.
Then, as puzzled and disappointed, the two girls stood in the centerof the room, they heard someone coming up the stairs that led totheir flat. A second later and a merry whistle broke out.
"There he is--that's Russ!" cried Alice, joyfully. "I'll tell him;no--you go!" she added hastily, thrusting her sister before her intothe hallway.
The whistle broke off into a discord as Russ saw Ruth standingwaiting for him. Something in her face must have told him somethingwas the matter, for he came up the remaining steps three at a time.
"What is it? What has happened?" he asked. "Is someone hurt?"
"No, it's your patent--the model. Some men--Alice and I overheardthem in the restaurant--we've been trying to get you on the'phone--I--we----"
Then Alice broke in.
"They're after your moving picture machine patent, Russ! They'regoing to get it to-night--Simp Wolley! You've got to hurry!"
Between them the girls quickly told what they had overheard.
Russ's eyes snapped.
"So that's the game; is it?" he cried. "Well, I'll stop them! I'mmighty glad you told me. My patent model, the drawings and everythingare at Burton's machine shop. It isn't far from here. I'll go rightaway--in a taxicab. Do you----" he hesitated a moment. "Do you wantto come?"
"We might be able to help," suggested Alice to Ruth. "At any rate,we'll have to give evidence against those men if they get them. Shallwe go, Ruth?"
"I--I think so--yes."
"Bravo!" whispered Alice in her ear. "That note to daddy will answer.You'd better leave another in place of the one we wrote to you,Russ."
"I will," he exclaimed as he entered his own flat. "But mother andBilly won't be home until late, anyhow. They're going to stay tosupper with relatives. Still, I'll explain in case I should bedelayed."
Quickly he dashed off another note for his mother, and then, with thetwo girls, he hurried
down to the street. There was a taxicab standjust around the corner, and the three were quickly on their way tothe machine shop, while Ruth and Alice took turns giving more detailsof the scene in the restaurant.
"Here we are!" announced Russ, a little later, as the cab drew up,with a screeching of brakes, in front of a rather dingy building. "Ionly hope we're in time, and that Burton hasn't gone yet."
He jumped out of the cab, leaving Ruth and Alice sitting there.Frantically he threw open the door and rushed up the shop stairs.
"Oh, I do hope he is in time," breathed Ruth, softly.
"So do I," spoke Alice. "I wonder how men can be so mean as to wantto take what isn't theirs?"
"I don't know, dear. Oh, hasn't this been an exciting day?"
"I should say it had. If ever--there's Russ now!" she interruptedherself to exclaim. "Oh, Ruth. It looks as though we were too late!"
For Russ, with a dejected look on his face, was crossing the pavementtoward the cab.
"It--it's gone," he said brokenly. "Simp Wolley was here a half-hourago and got it!"
"But how could he?" asked Alice in surprise. "Who gave it to him?"
"Mr. Burton. There was a forged order, supposed to be from me, andthe machinist handed over the model," and Russ extended a crumpledand grimy bit of paper.