"Ees!" and again the Jap grinned. Phelan read the grin as a distinct insult to his intelligence and he pounced upon the little brown man in an even more caustic tone: "If yez're are Mr. Gladwin's valley, what are ye doin' here an' him thousands o' miles away across the ocean in Agypt an' Jerusalem an' the like?" Now it was Phelan's turn to grin as he saw the Jap shrink and turn upon him a pair of wildly alarmed eyes. "Come! Come! I'm waitin' fer an answer," The cat had his mouse backed into a corner and mentally licked his chops. "I no can tell," stammered the Jap, desperately. "That's enough!" ripped out Officer 666, grabbing the Jap by the shoulder and yanking him toward the doorway. "No--no--wait!" gasped the struggling prisoner. "You no say if I tell you, plees?" "Tell me first," grunted Phelan, releasing his grip. The Jap ducked his head in every direction as if fearful that the walls had ears, then said in an impressive whisper: "My boss--Mr. Gladwin--home!" "Misther Gladwin home! Here in New York!" There was both incredulity and amazement in Phelan's voice. "Ees!" bleated the Jap and his grin returned. "Well, why didn't you say so before?" said Phelan angrily, at which the fidgety little brown son of Nippon hastened to explain: "No one should know. He come all in much secret. He go boat to Boston. No use name. No one know he Mr. Gladwin. He say, 'Bateato'--me Bateato--'Bateato,' he say, 'no tell I come home--sure,' he say, and Bateato he no tell." Officer Phelan yielded to the grip of the mystery and his attitude toward the Jap changed. "What did he want to snake home that away fer?" "I no know," nodded Bateato. "Yez no know, eh? Well, is he comin' here?--do yez no know that?" "He tell me--come here and wait--feex thees room--he come here or telephone." The straightforward manner of the little Jap had almost completely disarmed the policeman's suspicion, but he surrendered reluctantly. "Did he give yez a key to get in here?" Phelan fired as his last shot. "Ees--he give me all bunch keys--look!" and Bateato produced a gold key ring with a gold tag and a number of keys attached. Phelan examined it and read aloud the name Travers Gladwin engraved on the tag. Handing them back to the Jap, he addressed him impressively, gesturing his emphasis with his baton: "I guess yez're all right, but I'll have me eye on yez from the outside, mind that--and if yez're foolin' me or tryin' to get away with anythin'"---- Phelan snapped his lips together and with a mighty lunge plucked an imaginary prisoner out of the atmosphere and shook it ferociously. Then stepping back to the doorway he shut one eye with a fierce wink and jerked out: "Are yez wise?" The profound pantomime was too much for Bateato, who stared after the vanishing officer in open-mouthed amazement. CHAPTER VIII. ART, MYSTERY AND LOVE.