"Maxwell Grant - The Shadow - 249 - Five Ivory Boxes" - читать интересную книгу автора (Grant Maxwell)

FIVE IVORY BOXES
Maxwell Grant
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? CHAPTER I. THE IVORY BOXES
? CHAPTER II. CREEPS IN THE NIGHT
? CHAPTER III. DOUBLE CRIME
? CHAPTER IV. A MURDERER'S RETURN
? CHAPTER V. FOUR MINUS ONE
? CHAPTER VI. THREE PARTNERS MEET
? CHAPTER VII. DEATH MOVES AHEAD
? CHAPTER VIII. VANISHED BY NIGHT
? CHAPTER IX. LINK TO THE PAST
? CHAPTER X. REPORT UNFINISHED
? CHAPTER XI. CROSSED BATTLE
? CHAPTER XII. LURK OF DEATH
? CHAPTER XIII. TRAILS ROUND ABOUT
? CHAPTER XIV. A QUESTION OF KILLERS
? CHAPTER XV. CRIME WITHOUT FRUIT
? CHAPTER XVI. TWO OF A KIND
? CHAPTER XVII. LOST AND FOUND
? CHAPTER XVIII. WHERE RIVALS MET
? CHAPTER XIX. DEATH'S DESTINATION
? CHAPTER XX. CRIME'S ULTIMATE
? CHAPTER XXI. THE FIVE BOXES

CHAPTER I. THE IVORY BOXES
THERE were five men gathered around the table; five whose faces were intent as they gazed at the
object that rested in the center—an ivory box, its surface carved in an intricate pattern of harmonious
design. The box was a perfect cube, measuring nearly a foot on each side, and it seemed to invite the
grasp of eager hands.

However, such hands were restraining themselves. Four of the men present were leaving all handling of
the box to Alexander Talbor, the man who could claim its ownership by right of present possession.

He was an odd creature, Talbor. His deep-lined face, his thin gray hair and stooped shoulders,
evidenced the weight of age. In contrast, Talbor, by action, showed himself spry and energetic.
Experience had aged him, but with it Alexander Talbor had lost none of the driving force that had carried
him through strange adventures in distant lands.

Not the least of those adventures was the one that had resulted in Talbor's acquisition of the ivory box
and its contents, which all the rest were so eager to see. Talbor recognized their impatience, when he
looked about the group.
"Five ivory boxes," chuckled Talbor. "One for each of us. Rare boxes, obtained at a high price—that of
many lives!"

The listeners stared. Talbor was speaking of five boxes, whereas they saw only one. Their curiosity about
the other four was soon to be satisfied. Picking up the box between his quick, nervous hands, Talbor