Chapter VI: A Strange Meeting

When Patsy returned to the place he had appointed to meet Bally Morris he was surprised to find that person waiting for him with Spike Thomas.

So warm was their greeting of him that Patsy began to think that they regarded him as one of their pals.

As the proper way to open up the business of such importance, Spike asked Patsy to join him in a drink, and when they were ranged at the bar, Spike said:

“I say, Patsy, was youse on the dead level or was youse givin’ Bally a stiff about dat case?”

“No,” said Patsy, soberly, “I was on the dead level about it. Say, I’m givin’ it to you straight when I’m tellin’ you me boss is only in the case for to get that leather case with the papers in it. He’s got to git it some way, and he’s sizin’ it up that it’s got to be got by comin’ down wid de dust.”

“Dat’s straight talk,” said Spike.

“Of course it’s straight,” said Patsy. “It’s one of the cases where you play your cards wid the faces up. Somebody swiped the papers. The man from whom the papers was swiped wants ’em bad and they’re wuth more to him than to anybody else. To get ’em back he’d forget in a minute that his crib was cracked. Now that’s all there is in it.”

“Does youse know for sure dat de leather case was swiped?” asked Spike, earnestly.

“Sure.”

“Does youse know who did the swiping?” asked Spike.

“No; I don’t know anything about it,” said Patsy. “But you do.”

“I think I do, but I don’t know for sure.”

“Oh, come off,” said Patsy. “You know that Lannigan and another fellow did the job.”

“Dat’s just what I think,” said Spike, earnestly. “I’m dead certain of it, but not knowin’ it for sure. Dey won’t say so.”

“Say,” asked Patsy, “didn’t they come back as they agreed to from the other side of the river?”

“Yep, dey come back all right, all right, but dey wouldn’t talk.”

“What did they go across the river for?”

“I’m blessed if I know.”

“Then I’ll tell you what for,” said Patsy. “They went across there to stow the sparklers and the tin. The fence, you know.”

Spike started up with great interest.

“Oh, come now,” said Patsy, “you don’t want me to t’ink, Spike, that you’re so far behind that you don’t know that the safest fence around here is across de river.”

“Oh, I heard so,” said Spike, humbly. “But, honest, Patsy, I ain’t never been dere, for there ain’t been nothin’ doin’ wid me so long dat I’m parched back to the roots of me tongue.”

“Well,” said Patsy, “that’s what they went across the river for. But I ain’t got nothin’ to do about that. My peepers are on that leather case.”

“Well, anyhow,” said Spike, “when dey come back dey wouldn’t talk any more than before dey went.”

“You mean,” said Patsy, “that they wouldn’t say whether they were in that job in Thirty-fifth Street or not.”

“Dat’s what I mean,” said Spike.

“But, say,” said Bally Morris, speaking for the first time, “Spike put it at ’em anyhow.”

“Put what at them?” asked Patsy.

“Oh, I put up de story as to dat case and wot there was into it if dey held on,” said Spike.

“How did they take it?” asked Patsy.

“Dat’s just it,” said Spike. “Dey took it all in and dey swallowed it for gospel truth. Den de two culls looked at each other and I seed dey meant to freeze on it, but was goin’ to freeze me out. Say, Patsy, it was a clean trow down. Dey’s goin’ to play dere own hands on de tip I give dem and freeze us out.”

“Are you goin’ to let ’em?” asked Patsy.

“Not on yer solid nut,” said Spike. “You stand by and see what de next shuffle of de cards turns up for trumps.”

Spike and Bally Morris winked at each other and laughed.

“We ought to take Patsy in,” said Bally Morris.

“No, no,” said Spike. “Patsy don’t want to be in on dis game. He don’t want to know nothin’ about it, but all de same we’re on de dead level with him. You don’t want to be in dis shuffle, Patsy, but you’ll be in all de same on de scoring.”

Patsy understood by this that something was going forward that, in the opinion of the two, it was best for him to know nothing about until it was all over, but that it was in the line of his wishes.

Spike drew himself up, and, with a wink and a leer, said:

“I’m a little of a fly-cop meself and we ain’t doin’ so bad after all; are we, Bally?”

“Not on your life,” said Bally.

The two toughs laughed heartily, and Spike added:

“I give Lannigan de glad hand and put him on to de boys when he landed here. But he’s trowed me down. Maybe he’ll want to know who trowed him up.”

To this Patsy made no remark.

He was anxious to get away in order that he might follow the two toughs, for he knew that they had entered into some sort of a scheme in connection with this matter.

“Well, Spike,” he said, “if you don’t want to let me in to what you’re up to, all right. I’ve been on the dead level wid you and, anyhow, you ought to be with me.”

The tough made the strongest protest in his own language that he had no idea of going back on Patsy, and the young detective slipped away.

He did not go far, however, but, concealing himself in a place where he could not be observed, watched to see the two toughs come from the drinking place where he had left them.

They came out in a short time and went in the direction of Thirty-fourth Street, turning to the east.

Patsy slipped after them and cautiously followed down the block in Thirty-fourth Street to see them meet, on the next corner, a young lad of their own kind, not more than sixteen or seventeen, who told something to Spike which gratified him to such an extent that he grasped Bally Morris’ hand and shook it hard as he capered a clumsy dance on the sidewalk.

The two then turned on their heels, walking in the direction whence they had come.

Patsy was put at some difficulty to get out of sight in time, and only did so by hiding behind a signboard leaning against a grocery store.

The two passed on to Third Avenue, Patsy in fairly close pursuit.

Reaching Third Avenue, Bally Morris made an inspection of the drinking saloon on the corner and soon came out shaking his head at Spike.

The two then walked up Third Avenue rather leisurely, followed by Patsy, until Forty-second Street was reached. Here again Bally Morris went into the liquor saloons on the corner and came back to report to Spike standing on the upper corner.

The place was not an easy one for Patsy to keep the two in sight.

For a time the two manifested no disposition to leave that corner and, while Patsy was wondering what their purpose was, he caught sight of Chick coming down Forty-second Street rather stealthily. Patsy looked around to see whom he was following, and finally hit upon a low-sized, broad-shouldered man, dressed in the extreme of fashion, who was walking down the street in a vigorous and self-satisfied way.

Patsy at once put himself in a position where he could signal Chick that he was nearby.

Chick caught the signal and immediately returned one which meant that Patsy should come to him if he could.

As the man Chick was following reached the corner of Forty-second Street and Third Avenue--that is to say, the northeast corner--he stopped and looked about in every direction.

Apparently he did not see the person he was looking for, because he settled himself for a wait. This gave Chick an opportunity to cross the street to where Patsy stood.

As he came up he asked:

“Shadowing?”

“Yes,” replied Patsy.

“Who?”

Patsy grinned and replied:

“My two assistants.”

“What are they doing?”

“I don’t know, but they are up to some game that I can’t see through. Who is your man?”

“Seaman.”

“The deuce!” replied Patsy. “What is he here for?”

“I don’t know,” replied Chick, “but I followed him here from Broad Street.”

“He is waiting for somebody?” asked Patsy.

“It looks that way,” said Chick, “and I think it’s Lannigan.”

At this moment Patsy caught the arm of Chick, and giving it a hard grip, nodded his head up the street.

Chick turned to see Nick Carter coming down on the same side of the street on which he had followed Seaman.

“He’s on the shadow,” said Patsy.

“Yes; but who?”

“I ain’t sure,” said Patsy, “but I’ll bet that it’s that man with the black frock coat, black hat and full beard.”

Chick and Patsy both separated in order that they might give the signal to Nick that they were in the neighborhood.

But each kept their eyes upon those they were following.

Spike Thomas and Bally Morris were still standing on the corner they had selected, and Seaman was on the corner opposite them.

As Nick neared the corner he made a rapid signal which showed that he had received theirs, but made no effort to join them.

In the meantime the man Chick and Patsy had selected as the one followed by Nick went on to the corner, where he went to Seaman, touching him on the shoulder and shaking hands with him.

“I’ll bet,” said Chick, “that the man is the lawyer, Elwell.”

“How do you know?” asked Patsy.

“I don’t know,” said Chick, “I am only guessing.”

In the meantime, Nick Carter had concealed himself at a point from which he could watch the man he had followed.

Seeing that he was in conversation with some one on the corner, he called Chick and Patsy to him.

“Elwell?” asked Chick, as he came up.

“Yes,” said Nick. “Do you know who he is talking with?”

“Yes,” said Chick. “It is my man Seaman.”

“Seaman?” repeated Nick. “That is strange. They have met here by arrangement.”

“To meet some one else,” said Chick.

“And why are you here, Patsy?” asked Nick.

“I followed my two assistants here,” said Patsy, “from the foot of Thirty-fourth Street.”

“It is very strange that following men from different parts of the city we should all meet here,” said Nick. “But we must separate. It won’t do for us to bunch together here. But keep in touch with each other, boys.”

Chick slipped across the street, closely followed by Patsy, but on the other side Chick took up a station near the elevated railroad pillar, while Patsy, going further, crossed Third Avenue and took a station there, where he could more easily watch the two who were his especial charge.

He had been there but a moment or two when he saw signs of excitement in Spike Thomas and Bally Morris.

They evidently were trying to conceal themselves from the view of some one on the opposite side of the avenue.

Patsy made an effort to see if he could determine who or what was the cause of this excitement, and saw Lannigan coming down the avenue with the same man he had seen in the saloon in Thirty-fourth Street.

It struck him at once that Chick and Nick did not know Lannigan, and so he slipped across the avenue again, using a passing street car for a cover, and reaching Chick, said to him:

“Lannigan and his pal are coming down the street.”

At this moment, Lannigan came into view and immediately went up to Elwell and spoke to him.

“That’s him,” said Patsy, “speaking to Elwell. Let the chief know who it is.”

He stepped back to look at his own men and saw that they were hastening up Third Avenue at a rapid gait.

Without waiting further, he darted after the two, well satisfied that the one they had concealed themselves from, and from whom they were now running, was Lannigan.

In the meantime, the four men on the corner had exchanged a few words, and then Lannigan and his companion turning, followed by Seaman and Elwell, led the way into the saloon on the corner near them.

Chick crossed Forty-second Street to Nick, saying:

“The two who met our men were Lannigan and his pal.”

“Does Seaman know you?” asked Nick.

“I do not think so,” replied Chick.

“Then slip into that saloon and see if you can get near enough to hear what their talk is about.”

Chick walked away hurriedly and entered the saloon.

Nick took up a position on the street, where he could watch both entrances, and waited for developments.