Thrust half under his door he found an envelope with a special delivery stamp; Jimmie Ballard had kept his word and returned the silver leaf. McCarty slipped it into his pocket and went out into the downpour, but his thoughts were almost immediately diverted from it by the Italian news-vendor on the corner, an acquaintance of many years’ standing.
“You on da job again!” White teeth gleamed in the swarthy countenance. “Diss-a pape’ say you gonna fin’ da guy w’at murd’ da French-a girl!”
It was the Bulletin and Jimmie Ballard’s idea of a joke was to announce the rumor that former Roundsman Timothy McCarty, whose achievements in the department had been unique and notable, had been reattached to the detective bureau for special investigation in connection with the crime wave in the New Queen’s Mall and important developments might be expected shortly.
McCarty passed it by with a grunt. His eye was caught by a brief paragraph, lower on the page, and he stood still, unheeding the rain which streamed down his neck from his tilted umbrella. It was a bald statement that George Radley, the poisoner who escaped from Sing Sing a month before, had been found wandering in a hopelessly demented condition on the upper East Side and would undoubtedly be committed to Matteawan. The clothing he wore was being traced, in an effort to locate the possible accomplices to his escape.
With a nod to the news-vendor McCarty hurried on at last, and while he awaited his order at the little restaurant he gave himself up to reflection. Was that why Parsons had sent for him? Had he learned that the escaped prisoner received aid from beneath his roof?
He ate hastily and then made all speed to the New Queen’s Mall, where just within the gate he ran into Inspector Druet.
“You’ve heard from Parsons?” the latter asked.
McCarty nodded.
“He said you told him to send for me. Whatever for, sir?” His tone was blandly innocent. “What can I tell the old gentleman about his lost papers?”
“It’s what he’ll tell you, if you can get it out of him; I can’t,” confessed his superior. “He’s got something up his sleeve, all right, and if he weren’t such a well-known character I’d think he guessed more about that robbery than he was willing to say! The other one who was holding out on us came across last night but it isn’t going to help any except to remove one more possibility.”