“Could you let us know in case any one does call?” Frank went on, giving his reasons for the request. “We’ll pay you for your trouble.”
“I s’pose I could. Where’ll you be?”
“We ought to stop at some hotel near here,” Frank suggested. “Then we can come here quickly if we get a message.”
“Do you know of a good hotel near here?” asked Bart of the agent.
“There’s the Imperial a few blocks up the street. It’s not especially good, but it’s respectable. I guess you could stop there.”
“That will do,” Frank said. “We’ll get rooms there. We will send for our trunks, and you can telephone us in case that other one is called for.”
He gave the man a couple of dollars to pay for his trouble, and for any telephone messages he might have to send, and then the three chums went to the same hotel where Ned had stopped.
The same clerk was on duty who had been there when Ned registered, and he seemed rather surprised at the three well dressed youths who entered. Usually the Imperial, in spite of its name, did not attract such a class of patrons. The boys bargained for three connecting rooms, and, as they had plenty of money were given good apartments on the second floor.
“Register,” the clerk said, swinging the book around to them.
As Bart took the pen to write his name, he looked at the book and gave a start.