“It’s hard to believe, isn’t it?” asked the magician.
“It sure is,” agreed Peter. “A quarter of a million dollars worth of jade buried under an old vault with nothing but a thin piece of glass for protection.”
“Why?” asked Judy, unable to understand the millionaire’s motives. “What good are they down here?”
CHAPTER XXI
Under the Vault
The magician’s reply was startling, to say the least.
“They are no good here to the living,” he replied, “and I doubt if they will do Paul Riker much good after he’s dead. But he’s determined to keep what is his. He would rather burn or bury anything than share it. I know him. Yes, I was the one who had the contents of his house removed. I saw that the forest fire was burning in this direction, and so I hired men to remove his treasures and put them in storage. Call it robbery if you like, but no one knew where he was, and how else could I save them? I noticed the jade collection was not in the house, and decided he must have hidden it somewhere before he went away. And here it is. Do you see that little figure there with the elephant’s head?”
“I see it!” cried Paul, standing on tiptoe. “That’s my favorite next to Rama.”
“Do you know his name, son? That’s Ganesha, the Remover of Obstacles. We’re going to need that little fellow to remove some of the obstacles your uncle Paul is up against. But never forget this. He put those obstacles in his own way. His relatives were welcome here only when he could bend them to his will. It angered him when his nephews refused to follow the Riker tradition and deal in tombstones. They preferred to raise monuments to the living. You two children are a monument to your father, and to your old uncle, too, if only he had the eyes to see it. But no! Everything had to be quiet. He had no use for a business like mine that provides fun and entertainment. Finally he became suspicious of everyone. He’s become a bitter, cruel old man. And yet in a way I loved him. Poor Uncle Paul!”
They stood there under the vault as if Paul Riker were already dead, mourning for him. But suddenly Peter sprang into action. He vaulted up the stairs, taking them three at a time. He was just too late. Judy heard a crash of stone falling against stone. They were imprisoned under the vault!