“After the garden fête yesterday, Mr. Monroe and I came away in Mr. Impey’s motor car.” Phil saw the impatience in his captain’s face and decided to take the plunge. “Unfortunately, we ran over a Japanese messenger carrying an official letter from the navy department. The messenger was severely hurt and his letter lost. Later, during the ball at the prime minister’s, Lieutenant Takishima, hearing of a disturbance in a local theatre in which our sailors were involved, led us there. I became separated from Takishima and Sydney on the way, and by the merest accident I was able to save Mr. Impey from the assault of two Japanese who I thought were robbing him. It turned out they had traced the missing letter to his door and were bent upon regaining it. After rendering the two assailants unconscious, I took the letter from the hand of one of them and put it in my coat pocket, and then hurried away to join the others.”
“Where is this letter?” Captain Rodgers exclaimed anxiously.
“I intended giving it to Takishima, for I felt that I had no right to it even though it might hold information useful to the United States,” Phil stammered, “but it was again taken or dropped from my pocket. I didn’t miss it until we arrived at the Maple Club, after smoothing out the difficulty at the theatre.”
The captain had not read the morning papers, so Phil explained the theatre episode to him and the part Takishima had played.
“So Lieutenant Takishima also believes that the flag episode was arranged by some one for the purpose of starting this unpleasant encounter?” the captain asked quietly.
“Yes, sir, that’s what he said, and our men are sure that the man with the flag was not a Japanese. Marley said his eyes were round.”
“Could he have been a Filipino?” Captain Rodgers questioned thoughtfully. “There are many Filipinos in the East, who have been discredited in Manila and are quite willing to do anything to injure the United States.”
“This letter,” Phil wished to clear his mind of the fateful document, “was in Mr. Impey’s hands long enough for him to obtain from it the information he has given our ambassador.”
“You say it was taken again from you and perhaps by the Japanese?” Captain Rodgers asked, for he was just beginning to understand the seriousness of the situation. “Then they will know that the letter has been opened and read, if it has been, and having found it in your pocket will naturally suspect you of having opened it and read it.”
Phil could only nod his head in mortified silence. How much more culpable it sounded in the voice of his captain!