The Arrow of Fire

by Roy J. Snell

  CHAPTER VI WHO? AND WHY?

  Half an hour later Johnny and Drew were back at the shack. The squad carwith its load of burly policemen was gone.

  For a long time nothing was said. Johnny's head hurt. It also ached in amost extraordinary manner. He felt sick at the stomach. Life for him hadgone suddenly very strange.

  "Drew," he said at last, "that man, whoever he was, didn't give me achance, not a single fighting chance."

  "Of course not. They never do, those gangsters."

  "Drew," said Johnny, "I was hunting in the Arctic once, stalking a polarbear all alone; following his track. He turned the tables and startedstalking me. But, Drew, before he struck at me with that great paw ofhis, he hissed like a goose."

  "Gave you a warning," Drew said quietly. "Rattlesnake'd do that, too; butnot a gangster.

  "Johnny," he said, suddenly wheeling about, "you've been believing inthat old saw, 'honor among thieves.' Forget it. There isn't any. Not abit.

  "I've known them to run over a little family car, smash it in bits with apowerful truck they were using to carry illicit goods. Did they stop? Notmuch. Fired shots in the air, and left little children to perish in thewreckage. Honor! Not a bit. I tell you it's war! Pitiless war waged bymonsters. And this land will not be free until they are all safely lodgedin jail."

  Again for a time there was silence.

  "Drew," Johnny spoke again, "I used to say that if a man picked mypockets or held me up and got my money, I'd say, 'You are a smart guy,'and let it go at that, but that if he hit me on the head I'd spend therest of my life hunting him. And when I found him I'd kill him. That manhit me, Drew, hit almost hard enough to kill, and without warning!"

  "He did," said Drew, "and we are going to get him, you and I. But afterwe get him, I guess we'd better let the courts deal with him. Justice,Johnny, is an arrow, a keen pointed arrow that goes straight and fair.Sometimes I think it is an arrow of fire that burns as it strikes."

  Johnny thought that a strange expression. He was to learn more of it asthe days passed.

  "First thing we've got to do to-morrow," said Drew, "is to work out theprobabilities?"

  "The probabilities?"

  "Sure. You've read detective stories?"

  "Sometimes."

  "Know how most of 'em go? A murder. One of six men may have done thekilling. This one might have, or that one. This one probably did. Andthis one, well, you hardly consider him at all. But in the end, it'salways the one you did not suspect. It's the bunk. Real life is not likethat at all. You have to figure out what is probably true, and try toprove that it is true. It usually is.

  "Take this case of yours. You are to be a kingpin witness in my caseagainst two pickpockets. Your testimony will convict them. No doubt aboutit. Do they belong to a well organized gang? Did a member of the gang tryto do away with you so you could not testify? It's been done many times.

  "Another possibility. You were about to put through a squad call. Whatwas that call? Was it important? Was a big burglary in progress? Was thisman sent up to silence the radio and prevent the squad call? If that wasthe angle, was more than one major crime committed in that half hour? Ifso, which one was connected with the attack upon you?

  "Once again; many a gang's activities have been interrupted, theirpurpose thwarted, by radio squad calls. The leader of one of these gangsmay have decided to take revenge; hence the raid to-night.

  "So you see," he said, rising, "there are several possibilities to workout. The probability must be reached. Herman McCarthey will have all thedope in the morning. He will help us work it out. He is a seasonedtrooper and has a wise old head on his shoulders. Meantime, you must tryto recall every incident connected with the affair."

  "I remember one thing," said Johnny. "It came to me at this very instant.I didn't see the man's face, but I saw his hand, a large dark hand, andit was deeply scarred. It had a hole in the middle of the palm."

  "Good!" exclaimed Drew. "Couldn't be better. Take us a long way, thatwill.

  "And now we must catch three winks. To-morrow is a big day. To-morrow youare to be our star witness."