There was no answer to his challenge, for from below came the sound of a
crash and the quick tread of many men racing up the stairs. One or two
of the gamblers turned white, and Foyle felt the tension of his nerves
relax. Half-a-dozen men, headed by Green and Penny, were rushing into
the room.
A little gurgling laugh burst from the superintendent, and he waved his
hand about the room. "You see, Penny, it could be done, single-handed.
That is Ivan over there. Take good care of him, Green. Keller is that
man knocked out down there." And, swaying, he crashed forward to the
floor in a dead faint.
When he came round he was lying on a couch with his injured face and
shoulder neatly bandaged. There were only two other persons in the room,
Green and one of the local detectives, who were systematically making an
inventory of everything in the room. The superintendent struggled to a
sitting position and the movement brought Green to his side.
"Hello, Green," said the superintendent cheerfully. "You've got 'em all
away, I see. How long have I been lying here?"
"Matter of half an hour. It's only a case of loss of blood, I think. You
must have been bleeding for some time before we broke in on the
tea-party. We put some first-aid bandages on."
"I'm all right," said Foyle, rising stiffly. "What happened? You were a
deuce of a time answering my whistle."
"We tried the wrong door first, and it's my belief that nothing short of
dynamite would move it. It's steel-lined, and with all the bolts pushed
home we stood no chance. We gave it up after awhile and tried the other.
Luckily that was not bolted."
"I know. I left it like that purposely."
"Well, we didn't know. By that time we got thirty uniform men down here,
and they followed us up. Once we got the door down and found the chap
you'd trussed behind it, we had no trouble worth mentioning except with
Master Ivan, who fought like a wild cat. We got the cuffs on him at
last, but even then it took four men to get him away. Penny is down at
the station waiting till you come before charging 'em. What is it to be?
Attempt to murder?"
"No, I don't think we can get a conviction on that," answered Foyle.
"There's plenty up against them--unlawful wounding, assaulting a police
officer in the execution of his duty, frequenting a gaming-house, and,
of course, Ivan could be charged with the Waverley affair if we find it
necessary now. I see you've started running over the house."
"Only just started. We are waiting for the divisional surgeon to see to
you and three men who are sleeping like logs in the opium-joint
upstairs. The Chinaman seems to have vanished--at any rate, he can't be
found. It's just about time this place was broken up. Keller took no
chances with the bank." He picked up the faro-box. "Now, in the States
this kind of thing would not go. It's a two-card needle-tell swindle."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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