The Shadow - The Shadow Laughs Part 19

Two men were seated in a small, luxuriously furnished room. One was Loo Look. The other Tiger Bronson.

They had disregarded the Oriental splendor of their surroundings, so deeply were they engaged in earnest conversation.

The big, grim-faced politician was a striking contrast to the proprietor of the opium den. Loo Look was a fat, squatty Chinaman, with pudgy face and puffy cheeks. He was clad in a Chinese robe, woven with threads of gold.

"Spotter was here last night," observed Loo Look. He peered at Tiger Bronson with eyes that seemed like round spots of ebony. "But no other came. I did not see this one you call The Shadow."

"He was at my house," replied Tiger Bronson, grimly. "A mob tried to get him; but he escaped. He is dangerous, Loo Look."

"He must be.""He cannot be attacked. He must be lured."

"We can do that here."

"Yes." Tiger Bronson's voice carried a tone of doubt. "The only thing is this. He may be too wise to come."

Loo Look laughed.

"You say that he is fearless," said the Chinaman. "If you speak truly, he will come."

"That's what I'm counting on, Loo Look."

"There is nothing here to warn him," said the Celestial. "I am too clever for that, Tiger. There are three entrances through which he may come.

"My guards are posted. They have been warned merely to deal quickly with any stranger. Perhaps others may fall into the trap. What of it?"

"It's all right if you can get The Shadow."

"The outer guard," explained Loo Look, "will let any man enter. But if he is suspicious, he leans against a spot on the wall of the pa.s.sage. That is a signal to the second guard behind the door. The instant that the stranger steps upon the threshold, the trap is released. Away he goes."

"Good."

"So The Shadow can never reach the inner den. I shall be notified within a few minutes after he falls into my snare."

"Only one thing," Tiger Bronson's voice was serious. "What about that pa.s.sage you and I use, Loo Look?"

The squat Chinaman laughed.

"I wish that he would enter there," he said.

"Why? There are no guards to stop him," interposed Tiger Bronson. "He would reach the hop joint if he came that way."

"You think so?" Loo Look's voice was sinister. "Listen, Tiger. You never come to this place except when I am here, do you?"

"No. I always send word when I am coming."

"I told you once that if your key failed to work in the door of the house across the street, you would have to go away and come later."

"Correct. I never bothered to ask you why."

"That door will only operate when I arrange it for you to enter. It is connected here." He pointed to a framework on the wall.

"When you come through the pa.s.sage," he continued, "everything is arranged for your safety. I am expecting you. But the moment that you arrive here, I change the plans."The pa.s.sage is filled with traps. Even The Shadow could not escape them."

"Suppose he followed after me."

Loo Look laughed. He pointed to a row of lights.

"Those showed me just where you were," he said. "After you had pa.s.sed a certain spot, I let a steel sheet slide down.

"If The Shadow came behind you, he must still be on the other side. But he is not there. Another light would have indicated his presence."

"Hm-m-m," said Tiger Bronson. "You've got it all fixed like a block-signal system on a railway."

"Exactly. Only more elaborate."

TIGER BRONSON stared in admiration at this ingenious Chinaman, who talked perfect English, and whose schemes left no room for chance.

"The way is clear now," remarked Loo Look. "Let The Shadow enter if he wishes. He will step upon hidden floor plates. He will be trapped between steel sheets. He will never escape."

"We should have tipped him off to the secret pa.s.sage," suggested Bronson.

"No," replied Loo Look. "I do not want any one to know of its existence, other than ourselves. I spent too much in its preparation.

"Let The Shadow come as others do-through the pa.s.sages where the guards await. They will attend to him."

"Suppose he gets through them-"

Loo Look shook his head.

"They are ready for him," he replied.

"He may come in disguise," objected Tiger Bronson. "He is clever in that method."

"The man in the inner room will know that the disguise is false. No one can deceive Woo Ting."

"You mean the thin bird that pa.s.ses out the pipes?"

"That is the one I mean."

"He looks shrewd, all right."

"He is shrewd. He is the only man who knows how to reach this room -the only one excepting you and me."

"That's good," observed Tiger Bronson. "You know this Shadow has me guessing, Loo Look. The way he moves around, he might pop in here any minute."

THE squat Chinaman laughed as though Bronson's last statement was a huge joke. Then suddenly his face became strained and tense. For once a look of surprise appeared upon Loo Look's expressionless features. His eyes were gla.s.sy and staring.Tiger Bronson was amazed at this unexpected change. He turned to look in the direction of the Chinaman's gaze. Then he, too, sat as though turned to stone.

The door of the room had opened while the two men were talking. They had not heard it. But now they saw a tall, black-clad figure at the other side of the room.

The sable form stood motionless. It loomed like a specter from the world beyond. It had come like a messenger of vengeance.

CHAPTER XXVI. THE SHADOW FAILS.

"THE SHADOW!".

The words burst from Tiger Bronson's twitching lips. The figure in black did not move.

For one full minute silence reigned. The three persons in the room formed a tableau of living statuary.

This was the domain of Loo Look, but The Shadow had made himself master of the situation.

A low, hollow laugh came from beneath the brim of the turned-down hat. Tiger Bronson shuddered inwardly. Loo Look's face retained its strained expression.

"Tiger Bronson," declared The Shadow, in a voice that seemed the p.r.o.nunciation of a judgment, "you sought to lure me to this place. I am here."

The bluff-faced politician s.h.i.+fted uncomfortably.

"You have twice sought to injure me," said The Shadow in his solemn, horrifying voice. "Twice before.

This is the third time. Your efforts are impotent. Those who have thrice sought to injure me invariably suffer."

Loo Look suddenly regained his composure. The Chinaman had been amazed and startled by the sudden arrival of The Shadow. Now his wits were at work.

His traps had been avoided; hence he had been surprised. But the wily Oriental possessed other threats.

He leaned backward slightly in his chair, and his elbow pressed a spot on the wall. So sly was his motion that it apparently escaped those eyes that were hidden beneath the black-rimmed hat.

"So you are The Shadow," said Loo Look. "Who are you? How did you come here?"

The figure did not reply for a moment. Then came its words, in a low, quiet voice. They carried accusation.

"Three years ago, Loo Look," said The Shadow, "you employed a clever man to design your pa.s.sage from the house across the street. That man was an American. When he had completed his work, you murdered him."

The Chinaman moved uneasily as the voice ceased.

The Shadow's words were true. This mysterious avenger had revealed facts which Loo Look believed he alone possessed.

"I possessed that man's secret," resumed The Shadow. "I could have entered here at will. But I chose to remain away until the proper time had arrived."Slowly the black-cloaked figure moved forward until it hovered above the two cowering men. Then came a sinister laugh, as though The Shadow was mocking the helpless creatures who were before him.

He moved back toward the door, and remained in the center of the room.

Tiger Bronson was shaking; but Loo Look had regained his calm when The Shadow stepped back. The cunning Chinese was expecting something to happen. A trace of eagerness appeared upon his face.

THEN it came. On both sides of the room, panels burst inward, and two groups of rescuing Chinese precipitated themselves into the room.

They had come in response to Loo Look's secret signal. Knives flashed in their hands as they hurled themselves at the figure of The Shadow.

But at the instant of the attack, the man in the black cloak had stooped toward the floor. With amazing skill and speed he slipped backward as he flung his cloak from above his head.

Loo Look, rising, saw him-a thin dark-clad figure with a black silk mask-as he slipped through the opening of the door and disappeared in the darkness of the pa.s.sage beyond.

The Shadow had been too quick for his attackers. They had failed to cut off his retreat.

Das.h.i.+ng forward, Loo Look pulled the door open, and his men followed his pointing finger. They rushed into the pa.s.sage, one after another, and plunged in mad pursuit.

Tiger Bronson rose unsteadily as he saw the grin on Loo Look's face. The Chinaman went to a taboret, lifted the top, and produced a flashlight.

"Come," he said to Tiger Bronson. "He cannot escape them. Only Woo Ting can open that panel-when he hears the signal. He will not open it now. He received the warning sign which I sent."

Cries were coming from the pa.s.sage as they reached the door. Then the staccato of rapid pistol shots burst from the gloom. Groans followed.

Loo Look stood stock-still, surprise upon his face.

"What does this mean!" he exclaimed. "My men had knives. Can it be -"

A Chinaman toppled through the door. His arm was bleeding as he fell at Loo Look's feet. He uttered words in the Chinese tongue.

"He says the man is a demon," called Loo Look. "A devil who lies in darkness, and is part of the night."

One by one the remaining warriors of Loo Look staggered in from the pa.s.sage. All had been wounded by The Shadow's shots. From their garbled exclamations, Loo Look knew that they had failed in their quest.

The squatty Celestial counted his fallen men. a.s.sured that they had all returned, he quickly bolted the door.

"He cannot escape this way," he said, calmly. "The door is too strong."

"But the panel at the other end-" objected Bronson.

"He may break through there," admitted Loo Look. "That is where we shall wait for him."His men had been examining their wounds. Two of them, who had only been clipped by bullets, were bandaging their fellows. Loo Look motioned to them.

"Come," he said.

Followed by Tiger Bronson and the two Chinamen, Loo Look led the way through the open panel at the right.

After pa.s.sing through several small rooms, Loo Look pressed against a movable portion of the wall. A secret spring clicked, and they entered the opium den, where the thin Woo Ting stood, listening by the panel that was the entrance to Loo Look's sanctuary.

The sound of thumping came from the other side. The blows became more violent. Tiger Bronson looked at Loo Look with a worried expression.

"He'll break through," he said.

LOO LOOK motioned the big politician back to a corner of the room, away from danger. He stationed his two men on either side of the panel. He drew a huge revolver from his robe.

He pointed to the bunks with an expressive gesture, as though asking Woo Ting if the opium smokers had been ejected from the premises. Woo Ting nodded.