"Just a minute, please. I will connect you with him."
An instant later the telephone at Penny's elbow jangled.
She took the receiver from its hook intending to explain to the caller that Mr. Nichols had left the office. Before she could speak, a cold, precise masculine voice came to her over the wire.
"Just a little warning, Mr. Nichols!" the words clipped into her ear. "Lay off the Molberg gang or else——"
Penny heard a receiver click. The wire had gone dead.
CHAPTER IV
The Molberg Gang
Penny signaled frantically for the operator's attention. It seemed minutes before the telephone girl responded mechanically: "Number please."
"I was disconnected with my party," Penny informed tensely. "See if you can trace the call. It is very important."