“There is no occasion,” said Nick. “Do you know anything about the inside workings of this loan company?”
“What do you mean, sir, by inside workings?”
“The methods they employ.”
“I already have said, Carter, that I know nothing about them, aside from a personal acquaintance with the two managers,” Floyd stiffly asserted. “Mr. Garland is a gentleman. Mr. Hart is another. That is all I can tell you.”
“All that you will tell me, Mr. Floyd, is what you mean,” Nick said pointedly. “You should have learned, nevertheless, that reticence is equivalent to——”
“Stop a moment,” Floyd interrupted, with lips curling. “What’s the big idea? What’s it all about? Do you suspect the loan company of anything wrong?”
“Frankly, Mr. Floyd, I do,” Nick nodded.
“Of what?”
“Of having abducted, or caused to be abducted, a woman known as Mrs. Archie Waldron. Did you ever hear of her?”
“Never! Permit me to add, Carter, that I never heard of anything more absurd.”