“Wonder where that came from?” he mused. “I know they didn’t have it when they left the café. They may have picked it up from the hotel check room.”
The two men were heading in the direction of the Fenmore Warehouse, a significant fact which immediately registered upon Flash. Could it be that the third member of the party had driven past the building for the deliberate purpose of pointing it out to his companions? He had not forgotten the threats made against Mr. Fenmore, or the man’s belief that an attempt would be made to damage his warehouse.
Flash waited until the two men had turned the corner beyond the warehouse, before following them. He now believed they were returning to the building. He was certain of it when the men, after glancing carefully about, slipped down an alley leading to the rear of the warehouse.
“They’re up to something!” thought Flash, his pulse stepping up a pace.
He glanced about for a policeman. None was in sight. Evidently the man assigned to guard the warehouse had been withdrawn or else had taken himself elsewhere.
Stealthily, Flash entered the dark alley, keeping well out of the glare of a street lamp. Crouching in the angle of a building, he watched and waited.
The two men walked directly to a rear door of the warehouse. With no hesitation or delay they unlocked it with a key and entered.
Flash was puzzled.
“Maybe those fellows have a right to be here,” he thought. “They act that way. And they have a key.”
He moved closer, watching for lights to be turned on inside the warehouse. The building remained dark. Through a dirt-caked basement window, Flash caught the gleam of a flashlight. Instantly his suspicions took definite form. The two men had no business in the warehouse! They were bent upon mischief!