“What luck!” thought Patsy. “It’s a good thing I took it into my head to come over here. I hope the chief will appreciate all I’ve done. Hanged if I can see how he thought he could handle this case alone.”
Assuring Miss Worth that he would let her know as soon as possible of his friend’s decision, he left the building. He was on tenterhooks now to pour out the whole story to his chief, and as soon as he was out of sight from the hospital windows, he hurried to the waiting car.
“Start something!” he urged the chauffeur. “Open her up and let’s see you burn up a little asphalt.”
CHAPTER XLI.
NICK HAS A PLAN.
Darkness had descended when Patsy sprang up the steps of Nick Carter’s house. He eagerly inquired for his chief, and learned, to his delight, that he had returned and was in his study. The young assistant fairly sprinted up the stairs, and burst into the room.
“Well!” he ejaculated. “I began to think I’d never see you again.”
“I usually bob up sooner or later,” was the answer. “What’s all this you’ve been up to? How did you break into this game, I’d like to know?”
“That’s just what I did—I broke in,” was the answer. “Chick put me up to it. He was itching to have a hand in the affair, and had a hunch that somebody ought to keep an eye on Follansbee. He couldn’t do it himself, because you had left him in charge of affairs, and so I’ve been losing my beauty sleep—and most of the rest—for several nights. Nothing happened until last night, but since then things have been coming so thick and fast that they’ve taken my breath away.”