“But the discovery, Patsy?”
“Bryan had it in his hand,” said Patsy dryly. “The special-delivery letter and the disguise he had worn as Gus Dewitt.”
“Bryan and Dewitt are the same, eh?”
“Yes, and Dalton thrown in,” declared Patsy. “Bryan has been posing in all three characters. He’s a pretty slick gink at that, too, I judge, from the confidence with which he spoke when talking with Hanlon about it.”
“You could hear what they were saying?”
“Only for a few moments. Bryan showed him the letter and the telegrams, and they then hurried into the house. Out they came in about ten minutes, however, both with revolvers and shotguns, and then they mounted their horses and rode off to the north.”
“To join others of the gang, no doubt,” said Chick.
“That’s how I sized it up.”
“Surely.”
“Hanlon spoke of another crib, but he said nothing definite, and I knew only the direction they took,” Patsy went on. “I felt pretty sure that you and the chief would head off the robbery, you see, so I hiked back to Shelby to hunt you up and report. Now, hang it, I learn that the job has been pulled off, and you think the chief is in the hands of the rascals.”