With a maddened shout, Gifford Morton yanked open the door of the larger room. A new flood of illumination cast a cross-beam over the floor, toward the central chair, where Herbert Carpenter was seated.
A shot rang out. That spurt of flame was the forerunner of a grim and unequal conflict that was due. The pretended house detectives were the advance guard of Hooks Borglund’s mobsmen.
Police were on the way to this spot; every second was precious. Lives and wealth were at stake. Crime had locked with fair play.
The tables were turned on Gifford Morton!
CHAPTER X
THE BATTLE OF GLOOM
THE opening shot of the attacking gangsters was the sign of an outburst of heavy fire. The extinguishing of the lights had served these gunmen well. Skulking though the dark, they held an advantage that added to their strength in numbers.
At the precise moment when the switch turned, two gunmen were facing the private detectives. Gifford Morton was in the same portion of the room as his men. Only Gorman, the secretary, was in a protected spot — directly beyond the chair in which Herbert Carpenter was seated.
The men at the door were covering Morton and his sleuths. As the raiding forces swept into the room, they fired at random; but all their bullets were directed toward the same corner. The two men on either side of Carpenter joined in the shooting.
The only targets afforded the detectives were the chair in which Carpenter was located, and the door through which gangsters were flocking from the hall. Realizing that their lives were in jeopardy, the sleuths aimed for these spots.