"He's a liar!" Don shouted. "Watch him! He might be armed--don't let
him get away from you!"
The law surrounded us. "Here's my weapon," said Don. "Bob, give up
your revolver."
In the turmoil Don plucked the policeman aside.
"I'm nephew of the Honorable Arthur Dorrance. Take us to your chief.
I made that uproar to catch that big fellow."
The name of the Honorable Arthur Dorrance was magic. The policeman
stared at our giant captive who now was surrounded by the soldiers.
"But I say--"
"Take us all in and send for Mr. Dorrance. He's at the Government
House."
"But I say--That big blighter--"
"We think he's one of the ghosts!" Don whispered.
"Oh, my Gawd!"
With the crowd following us we were hurried away to the police
station nearby.
* * * * *
The sergeant said, "The Chief will be here in a few minutes. And
we've sent for Mr. Dorrance."
"Good enough, Brown." It chanced that Don knew this sergeant very
well. "Did you search the fellow?"
"Yes. No weapon in his clothes."
I whispered, "I saw a wire under his collar."
"Sh! No use telling that now, Bob."
I realized it. These policemen were frightened enough at our
captive. Don added, "Before my uncle and the Chief arrive, let me
have a talk with that fellow, will you?"
They had locked him up; and in the excitement of our arrival at the
station both Don and I had completely forgotten the wire we had seen
at his collar. But we remembered it now, and the same thought
occurred to both of us. We had locked up this mysterious enemy, but
would the prison bars hold him?
"Good Lord!" Don exclaimed. "Bob, those wires--Sergeant, we
shouldn't have left that fellow alone! Is he alone! Come on!"
With the frightened mystified sergeant leading us we dashed along
the little white corridor to the windowless cell in which the giant
was confined. At the cell-door a group of soldiers lounged in the
corridor.
"Smooth talker, that fellow."
"Gor blime me, who is he?"
We arrived with a rush. "Is he in there?" Don shouted. "Open the
door, you fellows! See here, you watch him--we've got to get his
clothes off. He's got some mechanism--wires and things underneath
his clothes!"
"Get out of the way!" ordered the sergeant. "I'll open it!"
There was silence from behind the door. The prisoner had been in the
cell no more than a minute or two.
* * * * *
We burst open the door. The cell was dimly illumined. The figure of
the giant stood backed in its further corner. But at the sight of
him we all stood transfixed with horror. His shoes, trousers, shirt,
jacket and cap lay in a little pile at his feet. He stood revealed
in the short tight-fitting silvery garments. The wires were looped
about his arms and legs and he had pulled a mesh of them over his
head in lieu of a helmet.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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