Evening star., 1937-10-13
CHAPTER XXI

Adaptation and ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Corp, 1887.
AS he dressed for dinner, in the
bridal suite he now occupied alone
although the charade of Mr. and Mrs.
Banks" had been kept up we'll all day
Charlie felt that things were going
well.
! Irene was boiling mad at Waldo.
Waldo was taking her rage calmly
and retaliating by making a public
spectacle of his behavior with Felice.
The more chummy he appeared with
the blond secretary the more indig-
nant Irene became, and the more in
dignant she became, the chummier
Waldo's behavior. Margit was over
whelmed by the whole adventure and,
Charlie realized, so completely preoc-
cupied that she seemed to have for
gotten her business in New York.
A good sign, Charlie thought.
Charlie made only one error in his
summary of the situation.
He had been afraid Keough would
not accept the elaborate criminal rec
ord he had arranged with Roger Weed.
But Keough had accepted it 50 whole
heartedly that Mr.. Asquith had ap-
parently disappeared from the hotel
and new bellboy had come into ex-
istence. That means that Keough had
contrived to some degree with the
management-but Charlie felt that If
the worst came to the worst he could
always explode his canard. What he
had failed to reckon with was the in
tensity of Keoughs sleuthing powers.
AS he dressed he decided to ring for
q bellboy. He was pretty sure he
would get Keough in his new disguise.
He thought he ought to do something
or other to increase Keough's suspi-
cions of him and he looked around the
room for suitable activity. Finally
he noticed that a corner of the WALL
paper curled up just above the base
board. He took key from his pocket
and scraped at the plaster over the
wallpaper. Presently he had q nice
semi-circle OF white dust on the dark
red carpet. He stuck back the paper
with a little water. Then he rang.
When the boy came 1t was indeed
Keough.
Charlie looked at his glasses. Weak
syes?"
Keoush used his disguised voice.
VERY sensitive to light, sir"
Charlie nodded sympathetically.
I'D advise a cocktail. What do you
advised"
The allegedly weak eyes were dart
ing around the room from the ambush
OF smoked lenses. Charlie watched
them come to rest on the plaster
dust and then move to the dampened
wallpaper. He observed Keough's
finch and the quaver in his voice as
he said. "A daiquiri would be nice,
sir
Keough was thinking just what
Charlie had anticipated-thatC Charlie
had worked loose q corner of the wall
paper, bored a hole in the plaster,
hidden something behind it and put
back the wallpaper. Charlie said, Eek
cellent, young man! A daiquiri."
Keough hurried out.
What Charlie had failed to reckon
on was the lengths to which Keoueh
was prepared to 60 to meet emergen-
cies
Not that Keough sent out a call to
the police for aid. Such a step was
against the grain of his tempera-
ment. He wanted to land the CONT
mental criminal single-handed.
He had obtained his bellboy position
with the help of Bailey by assuring
the hotel manager that certain peo-
ple' had to be watched. He knew
Charles trailer was full of guns. He
knew Charles record abroad. He was
now pretty sure that the Romanoff
emeralds were hidden in the wall of
the bridal suite. He was sure that
Margit and Irene were in great dan
ger. He decided that the best ma
neuver would be to clear the stage.
Hence. as soon as he had delivered
Charles daiquiri, he called Mrs. Ke-
ough and gave her a long list of in
structions to be carried out imme-
diately.
Thus it was that Immediately after
dinner a number OF things happened.
AT 1880 Felice received a telegram
saying that her mother was danger
ously i'll and urging her to come to
New York at once.
At S:02 Waldo received a wire from
q firm Of New York engineers which
asked him to be at their office at 10
on the following morning to discuss
the sale OF his peat-burning furnace.
The telegram suggested that there
might be million dollars in it for
Waldo. At 1885 Margit was informed
by wire that one Of her most important
clients had decided to go to the coro-
nation after all and wanted 30 new
dresses to be designed and made in
the following 10 days.
Afourth telegram instructed IreAe
TO appear on the next day at the ofYices
OF law flrm where, according to the