old pistols, and a number of
long-arms.

Rand pawed among the pistols; they were, as the State Police corporal had
said, all junk. The sort of things a dealer has to buy, at times, in
order to get something really good. Many of them had been partially
dismantled for parts. When he was certain that the heap of junk-weapons
didn't conceal anything of value, he returned to the shop. Pierre was
waiting for him by Rivers's desk.

He shook his head. "Not a thing," he reported. "I found a couple of
out-and-out fakes, and about ten or fifteen that had been altered in one
way or another, and a lot of reblued stuff, but nothing from Fleming's
collection. What did you find?"

Rand laughed. "I found Rivers's scrap-heap, and some pistols that
probably contributed parts to some of the stuff you found," he said. "Of
course, all we can say is that the stuff isn't here; Rivers could have
bought it, and stored it outside somewhere. But even so, I'm not taking
the Fleming butler too seriously as a suspect for the murder."

"What's this about Fleming's butler?" a voice broke in. "Have you been
withholding information from me?"

Rand turned, to find that Farnsworth had left the press conference in
front and crepe-soled up on him from behind.

"I withheld a theory, which seems to have come to nothing," he replied.

Kavaalen told the D.A. who Rand was. "He's cooperating with us," he
added. "Sergeant McKenna instructed us to give him every consideration."

"It seems that a number of valuable pistols were stolen from the
collection of the late Lane Fleming," Rand said. "We suspected that
the butler had stolen them and sold them to Rivers; I thought it
possible that he might also have killed Rivers to silence him about the
transaction." He shrugged. "None of the stolen items have turned up here,
so there's nothing to connect the thefts with the death of Rivers."

"Good heavens, you certainly didn't suspect a prominent and respected
citizen like Mr. Rivers of receiving stolen goods?" Farnsworth demanded,
aghast.

"Who respects him?" Rand hooted. "Rivers was a notorious swindler; he
had that reputation among arms-collectors all over the country. He was
expelled from membership in the National Rifle Association for
misrepresentation and fraud. Why, he even swindled Lane Fleming on a pair
of fake pistols, a week or so before Fleming's death. And the very reason
why your man Olsen was inclined to suspect Stephen Gresham was that he
had ha