Captain March spoke up. “May I ask a question, sir?”
The FBI man looked up curiously. “Certainly. Of course!”
“What security precautions were taken here last night, between the time we landed the crate of coins and the time they were picked up this morning?”
“That’s a fair question,” Mr. Quayle said. “And since you were the crew that flew it down, I see no reason why you shouldn’t know. As I have told you, Mr. Jones, the private detective who flew down with you, stayed in the warehouse with the shipment all night. So did the foreman of the warehouse crew—a Mr. Van Lasher. He’s an old and trusted employee and I believe he’s been with Federal for quite some time. In any case, the coin shipment was moved into a small room within the warehouse where valuable cargo is often kept under lock and key. No flights were due in that night, and no night crew was on duty; so Jones and Lasher stayed with the shipment until the morning work crews reported, keeping awake with coffee and cigarettes. It was a lonely watch and pretty dull. Lasher admitted that he had dozed off lightly once or twice. And then Jones sheepishly admitted that he might have done the same thing. But they were both on guard all night, and one or the other was awake and alert at all times.”
“And nothing happened?”
“Only one thing. Shortly before midnight, Lasher had gone to an all-night lunch counter to refill the coffee jug, and Jones was in the warehouse by himself. The warehouse was dark, lighted only by a few scattered light bulbs.”
“Then the warehouse wasn’t locked?” Captain March asked.
“Oh, yes, the warehouse is always locked, unless a night crew is working. The only people who had keys were the foreman, Van Lasher, and the night watchman. The watchman made his regular rounds that night, but he saw nothing unusual.
“Well, as I said, Jones was by himself when he heard a sound, as though someone had stumbled into a pile of packages or crates that were stacked on the warehouse floor. He jumped to his feet and shouted, whereupon the intruder dashed across the warehouse and out the door that leads to the loading ramp. Lasher had left the door unlocked when he went to get the coffee. Jones could hear feet pounding over the concrete floor and tried to catch the intruder in the beam of his flashlight. Just as the man dashed out the door, he seemed to drop something.”
Mr. Quayle paused a moment, and Johnny Baker said, “Then you do have a suspect?”