"Maxwell Grant - The Shadow - 004 - The Red Menace" - читать интересную книгу автора (Grant Maxwell)

It was one of those strange episodes which occur nightly in New York. The taxi driver shrugged his
shoulders as he pocketed the ten-dollar bill.

As the cab drew away from the brightly lighted corner, a sedan pulled up alongside of it. The two
vehicles ran along together, while unseen eyes from the sedan peered into the cab, as though seeking
some one.

Then the large automobile stopped; and as the cab went on, the driver of the sedan turned his car down
the street where the stranger had gone.

The block was a long one. The sedan had arrived in less than a minute after the passenger had left the
cab. There was little chance that the pedestrian could reach the next corner before the pursuing car
overtook him.

BUT the man had chosen a closer destination. At the very moment that the sedan had begun its chase,
the man on foot stopped at a house midway in the block.

He heard the approach of the sedan as he waited for admittance to the house. Instinctively he drew his
body into the protecting shadows of the doorway.

The effort to gain concealment was a failure. The eyes that peered from the sedan were too keen. An
exclamation came from the car; it stopped suddenly as the driver applied the brakes.

But as the sedan's momentum ceased, the door of the house was opened, and the man on the steps was
admitted.

Within the house, the hunted man gasped breathlessly as he stood in the dimly lighted hallway. He had
been admitted by a dull-faced, brutal-looking servant, and this individual now studied him in a rather
antagonistic manner.

"What do you want?" demanded the servant, in guttural tones.

"I must see Mr. Albion. At once!" The visitor's reply was urgent. "Tell him it is important."

"What is your name?"

"Berchik."

The servant turned and went up the stairs.

The visitor stared anxiously at the closed door. He was a heavy-set man, dark in complexion, and with a
stern yet expressive face. His features showed the marks of worry.

The servant returned.

"Follow me," he said.

He led the way upstairs. They came to a front room on the second floor. The visitor was admitted, and
the servant retired, closing the door behind him.
THE man called Berchik found himself in a most luxurious apartment. The decorations of the room were