“I never recall meeting such a person, sir,” he said.
Stanley Wilberton laughed good-naturedly at the seriousness of his secretary. He turned again to Howard Griscom.
“This is a very trivial matter,” he said.
“No, Mr. Wilberton,” protested Griscom. “It can be very serious. Business has been badly hit at the Eagle Theater since the accident in the projection booth. We had been having capacity audiences — now the theater is only half filled.
“It has had a slight effect upon other theaters of our chain, and any similar occurrence would be disastrous. The Paladrome — our largest theater, you know — would be badly hit if any trouble started there.
“There is no doubt about it, Mr. Wilberton. We are being subjected to a systematized form of terrorism — and we are virtually helpless.”
“Have you been able to link the Theatrical Owners Cooperative Association with these disturbances?”
“No. It appears to be a one-man organization. The representative, Maurice Belden, is manager, also. He has a small office — we have had detectives watching it. He seems to be working alone — independent of the disturbers.
“He is too wise for us. He has made his position secure by actually signing up a few independent theaters. He is running what appears to be a legitimate business. We cannot touch him!”
“He must be controlling it all,” declared Wilberton. “He’s the man to watch.”