glancing toward the tapestries.

"The fellow's beat it for good. Landlady says he owes her one week's
rent. He cleaned out with a suit-case and left this." The operative
reached in his pocket and brought forth a single drill of quarter-inch
diameter. He held it out. "All I could find, Chief, after a quick
frisk. This was in the mattress."

"Regulation lineman's wood-bit," said Drew as he examined the size
number on the shank. "This might have been the one used in boring the
hole between the slot-booths at Grand Central Station."

"Then Albert is the lad, Chief?"

"We don't know, yet. There's lots of bits like this one. Did you try it
for fingerprints?"

"They're all rubbed off! I had to pull it from the mattress. It was
stuck in a hole near the foot of the bed."

"Hold it!" said Drew. "Hold it for evidence. Put it with your plaster
casts. Now----"

"Well, Chief?"

Drew glanced at his watch. "I'm going out to that drug-store," he said.
"I want to phone. I can't use the phones of this house. The wires may
be tapped. You stay right by this door and wait till I get back. It
won't be more than ten minutes. Go get my hat when you're putting the
bit away. It's in the corner by Loris and Nichols. Tell them I'm
stepping out and that you will stand guard. They might hold me. She is
very nervous."

Delaney was back at the detective's side, after a clumsy stride through
the tapestries. "Cute couple," he said, jerking his thumb over-shoulder
toward the inner room. "They're sittin' there so close you couldn't get
a sheet of paper between them. I like that colleen, Chief! She's the
kind you see on them magazine covers--only prettier."

"A cat can look at a queen," quoted Drew, pulling down his hat and
opening the door wide. "Be sure and lock this after me," he warned.
"Lock and bolt it. Stand guard and don't let anybody in at all. I'm
only going round the block."

Delaney shut the door and turned the key. He followed this action by
twisting the butterfly. Then he drew his gun and waited, grimly alert.

Drew reached the drug-store after a brisk, lung-cleansing walk through
the down-driving snow. He dropped a coin in the slot and first called
up his office. Harrigan, who had remained at his post, answered for
most of the operatives who were out on the case and who had 'phoned in
at every opportunity.

"Get Frick at the prison," Drew shot back, after making a few notes.
"Get him and tell him to call up this 'phone," Dre