AFTER the young man had gone Noyes hastened to the bookcase and opened it. Frederick Froman stepped forth and gripped the old attorney eagerly.
“Wonderful!” he exclaimed. “Wonderful! You have solved our only problem. I see it all shaping perfectly!”
Froman’s eyes were glowing with enthusiasm. Noyes merely smiled in his usual manner.
“We can have him watched,” declared Froman, “but our men will be in the offing. Some one might suspect Tholbin, but no one would suspect Waddell. You are a genius, Noyes!”
“The final touch was important,” said the lawyer. “I could see his face, Froman. You could not. I impressed him with the thought that I am ready to bestow a fortune upon some deserving young man who can show his ability to follow instructions to the letter. I shall preserve that thought. He is ours. He will stake all for that quarter million.”
“A trifle!” exclaimed Froman. “A paltry trifle! My men are working for sentiment” — he laughed coldly — “and you even managed Helmsworth through helping him get the backing that he needed. We can afford to pay that trivial price. Think of it, Noyes! You and I, with the wealth of—”
“Let us consider that later,” interrupted Noyes dryly. “There is one detail that you have overlooked. Tobias Waddell, influential though he may be, must meet the customs officials.”
A smile froze on Froman’s face. In his enthusiasm he had forgotten that all-important detail that concerned the delivery of the mysterious baggage that Tholbin was to handle.
“Of course,” said Froman. “Of course. I had forgotten—”
“But I did not forget,” interposed Noyes. “Think a moment. You will have the solution.”