many thoughts occupied larry’s mind. for some time he had been suspicious of the men on the floor below him. that they were up to no good seemed evident, yet he felt that it was wrong to say, without more proof, that they were up to something bad. they were seldom seen in the daytime, and, though they moved about rather lively at night, larry could see nothing through the crack that he could say was criminal, or that would bring the men under the law.
now, however, that the pawnbroker had told him the money one of the men had given mrs. dexter was bad, larry began to have new suspicions.
they were hardly definite enough to warrant his speaking to anyone concerning them, so he resolved to keep a closer watch.
“maybe they have friends who make counterfeit money,” thought larry, “and they are trying to dispose of it for them. maybe—” then he stopped in his train of thought suddenly.
“i’ll bet they’re the counterfeiters themselves!”198 he exclaimed. “that’s what that strange light meant. that’s what they were doing the night i watched them. they melt the metal up and pour it into moulds. then they try to pass it off for good coins.”
larry was so excited by his idea that he walked faster than usual, and, the first thing he knew, he was nearly two blocks past his house. he retraced his steps, and found his mother awaiting his return.
“well?” asked mrs. dexter, “is the money bad?”
“i’m afraid so,” replied larry.
“then we’ll have to lose it,” said mrs. dexter. “i don’t want to ask the man to take it back. he might say i got it somewhere else.”
“that’s right, mother,” spoke larry. “say nothing about it to the man. if he offers you any more money, or asks for change, don’t take any or give any.”
“why, larry? what’s the matter?”
“i can’t say yet,” replied the boy. “i’ve had my suspicions for some time, but i want to be sure. i’ll speak to mr. newton about it.”
that night larry kept a close watch, through the crack in the floor, on the men below, but their place remained in darkness. none of them seemed to be at home, and larry was wishing there was some way of getting into their apartments so he could see what they were making.
199 “never mind, my chance may come yet,” the boy thought, as he went to bed, to dream of being captured by a band of counterfeiters who were about to melt him into a big half-dollar to get rid of him, when he awoke with a start.
the sun was shining in his eyes through his window and it was time to get up and go to work. he found plenty of things to do at the office that day, and so had no chance to speak to mr. newton about the money matter. he was somewhat surprised to read an item in the paper bearing on the very subject that was uppermost in his mind.
there was an account of an investigation that the united states authorities had started, to discover the source whence a number of bad coins seemed to be circulating about new york.
a number of detectives had been detailed on the work of running the counterfeiters to earth, the article said, and, in the meanwhile, the public was cautioned to be careful what money was accepted in change. bad half-dollars were especially numerous, it was stated.
larry felt sure that the men, in the room below his, were the counterfeiters. he was confirmed in this belief that same day when he had gone on an errand for mr. emberg to police headquarters.
as he was standing in the main room, waiting for mr. newton, to whom he had been sent with a note, he saw two detectives, whom he knew by sight, talking earnestly together in a corner.
200 larry did not want to listen to a private conversation, but he could not help overhearing what the men were saying. he caught the words, “counterfeiters,” “bad half-dollars,” and then the men mentioned the number of the house and the street where larry lived.
“they’re after the men below our apartment!” thought larry. “those men are counterfeiters, just as i suspected. this will make a fine story for the paper. i hope it will be a beat!”
he saw that the detectives were two who were in the habit of figuring rather prominently in the police reports of the papers. larry recollected that mr. newton had once said that both the officers were not as good as some others who did not get half the publicity they deserved.
“and they’re the same ones that treated mr. newton so mean on that robbery story,” reflected larry, referring to the officers in conversation. “they wouldn’t give him the story. i wish they were not going to capture the counterfeiters. it’s too good a job for them. they don’t deserve it.”
he hardly knew how to act. he knew he must not interfere with the course of the law, yet he would have been glad to see some other detectives, who were more friendly to the newspaper men than the two he heard conversing were, make the capture. larry realized that to catch the counterfeiters would mean quite a feather in the caps of the officers.
201 that night larry kept a closer watch than usual. he could not see enough to enable him to tell exactly what the men were doing, but he noticed the golden glow flood the apartment, and he knew the men were melting something, for he could hear them talking about whether or not it was hot enough.
the number of counterfeit coins continued to increase, and the government inspectors redoubled their efforts to land the gang they were convinced was working in new york.
one afternoon, as he was coming from the office, larry was met in the hall, just outside the apartment of the men under suspicion, by one of them. the man regarded larry for a few seconds and then said:
“would you mind doing me a favor?”
“what is it?” asked larry, thinking the man might want some more money changed. in such an event the lad was prepared to refuse. he did not propose to have bad coins passed on him.
“will you come in here and give me your opinion?” asked the man, holding the door open.
for a few seconds larry hesitated. he thought the man might be one of the counterfeiters who had discovered he was being watched and who had determined to capture the spy. in such an event larry felt he would be safer on the outside.
yet he had a boy’s curiosity to see what was in202 the room about which the men were so secretive. if he could get a look he felt it might help him to know what to do.
the man noticed larry’s hesitation.
“you needn’t be afraid,” the stranger remarked. “i know some of the neighbors regard us a little suspiciously, but our work is such that it has to be done where no one can see us.”
“what do you want me to do?” asked larry.
“merely give us your opinion,” spoke the man. “we have an article we want you to look at and tell us if you think it is good, and will be generally acceptable.”
larry was just going to remark that he was not a very good judge of counterfeit money, when he happened to think that would not be a wise remark to make. he saw that the man held the door wide open. there did not seem to be any other persons in the apartment. larry resolved to risk going in. he thought if the men attempted to harm him he could call loudly enough to bring help.
“we want to get the idea of a real american boy on the quality of the work we have done,” the man went on. “will you please come in?”
then larry resolved to enter. he nerved himself for an ordeal as he crossed the threshold.
“this way,” remarked the man, preceding him, and, going into an inner room, larry saw before him a pile of bright shining objects.
203 he gave a sudden start. the man noticed it and said quickly:
“now don’t say a word about it. we don’t want anyone to know we are doing this. what do you think of them?”
larry was much surprised at what he saw. he talked for some time with the man, and, when he emerged from the apartment, the boy’s face bore a queer look.
“i must tell mr. newton about this,” he said. “he will be glad to know of it, and then it will be a chance to do those detectives a turn.”
mr. newton was much excited over what larry told him next day.
“are you sure detectives jones and douglass are on the case?” he asked.
larry told what he had overheard at police headquarters.
“then i guess they are,” remarked the reporter. “well, this will be quite a surprise for them. it will kill two birds with one stone.”
“what do you mean?” asked larry.
“we’ll get a story for the paper out of it and fool the officers besides.”
“it will be a queer story,” said larry, and mr. newton nodded.
for several days after that, the men in the rooms below the dexter apartment were busily engaged. larry no longer kept watch of them. instead he kept a careful lookout on persons who204 loitered about in the street near the house. one evening at dusk he saw two rather poorly dressed men who walked up and down several times, and then ventured into the hallway of the house.
“i guess they are the detectives in disguise,” thought larry. “it is almost time to spring the trap.”
in accordance with an arrangement he had made he telephoned to mr. newton.
“so you think it’s time, eh?” asked the reporter. “i’ll come right over.”
mr. newton joined larry half an hour later, and the pair went to the boy’s room, above where the strange men had been working for some time.
“are they downstairs?” whispered mr. newton.
“yes,” said larry, “and the detectives are hidden in a room across the hall. i guess they’ll break in any minute now. we can hear them through the crack. i have made it bigger so we can see well.”
larry and the reporter knelt down and applied their eyes to the hole in the floor. they could observe the men moving about, and could see the golden glow that filled the apartment.
suddenly, as they watched, they heard the sound of crashing wood.
“they are breaking in the door!” exclaimed larry. “the detectives are after them!”
