That was the way Irving managed to induce sleep an hour or two beforemidnight. He adopted the method very systematically and determinedly,and it worked. But his slumber was not as undisturbed as he would havehad it, for he dreamed the most violent and mysterious of dreamsenlivened and peopled with aeroplanes and booming cannon andminnenwerfers and parachutes and rubber-heeled secret service men whofollowed him so softly, gently, stealthily that it seemed as if even thethunder of battle was being toned down to zephyrs of inconsequentialghostly conflict.
*CHAPTER XXVII*
*THE SPY'S DECISION*
Irving arose at daybreak next morning. In spite of his uneasy night, hewas much refreshed and felt confident that he had good command of hisnerves. This was an important reassurance, and the young spy decidedthat he would not let it get away from him.
"I'll tie it down with a string of self-confidence and a knot ofdetermination," he told himself resolutely.
This way of putting the idea amused him a little and added to hisstrength of purpose.
"First of all, how about breakfast?" he asked himself as he combed hishair with a pocket comb which he carried with him and regarded thepuzzled wrinkling of his brow in the wash-room mirror.
"Well," he added, as he returned the comb to its case-and the case tohis pocket, "I guess I'll have to go without breakfast. Not a verycomfortable idea, either, but there seems to be no way out of it. Thatfellow Vollmer seemed to take a malicious delight in forgetting everyone of my comforts. I wish I had something to do between now and 9 or10 o'clock. I don't like to stroll around any more than is necessary inthis uniform."
But there seemed to be nothing for him to do except remain in his roomand wait for his wristwatch to tick several thousand seconds. It seemed,too, as if all of these ticks hammered away right in the center of hisbrain, always striking on the same pin-point spot and irritating hisnervous system almost beyond endurance. At 8:30 o'clock he decided towait no longer and grabbed his hat and hastened from the hotel. Withoutmaking particular note of his surroundings, he set out at a brisk pacefor the building that contained the intelligence offices which he hadvisited the day before.
Meanwhile he had forgotten all about the middle-aged man in civilianclothes who had followed him through the streets. It had not occurredto him that the fellow might return to the hotel and continue hisespionage next day. He had presumed that the man would make a report tohis superiors and the affair would be taken up again in some othermanner if, indeed, there should be any resumption at all of theinvestigation.
"If I'm suspected of being a British spy, they'll probably arrest mewhen I report back at the baron's office," he mused before leaving thehotel.
After walking a square or two, Irving slowed his pace considerably,realizing that it was still early and that he probably would have towait an hour or more for "the baron" after his arrival at the latter'soffice if he continued to walk as rapidly as he had started. To "kill"a little of the surplus time ahead of him, therefore, he stopped andlooked into several shop windows, the last being an "eat shop," whichteased his appetite not a little and caused him to feel that he couldchew a piece of army meat of the consistency of leather, or rubber, witha good deal of relish at that moment.
The suggestion contained in the word rubber, for which there seemed tobe no appropriate reason in connection with a steaming breakfast,revived his burlesque musings of the night before as he was driftingaway into a nervous slumber. The semi-dream pictures in his mind of agovernment sleuth on rubber heels brought him back to his startlingexperience of the previous day so suddenly that he turned almostinvoluntarily and gazed in the direction from which he had come.
If he had been a person of superstitious susceptibility wanderingthrough a country cemetery in the ghostly moonlight, he could not havebeen more apprehensively thrilled by what he saw. Half a square up thestreet was the mysterious middle-aged man in civilian clothes who hadfollowed him from the intelligence building to the hotel.
"Gee! I must hustle along and get to the baron's office as soon aspossible," he decided as he quickened his steps. "I must bluff thisthing through as I never bluffed before. I must put the matter up tohim and find out what it means."
He hurried on more rapidly than the pace with which he started from thehotel and did not slow up again until he reached the building inWilhelmstrasse for which he was headed.
He decided not to pretend to be ignorant of the fact that he was beingfollowed; indeed, he would have retraced his steps and accosted hisshadower if it had not seemed probable that such a course would havebeen futile. So, just as he was passing through the pillared entrance,he turned and looked again up the street.
Yes, there he was, 150 feet away, sauntering along as if his greatestobject in life was the sniffing of the damp April ozone. One look wasenough, and the shadowed spy entered the building and walked up theflagstone stairway.
"I'm going to find out who that fellow is and what he's up to if such athing is possible," he resolved. "I'm going to put it up to the baronright now and if I'm under suspicion I'll soon find out and, I hope,drive the suspicion away."
The young spy was now exhibiting real qualities necessary to make asuccessful army secret service man.
*CHAPTER XXVIII*
*MAKING PROGRESS WITH THE BARON*
Irving entered "the baron's" outer office and asked to see the bigintelligence official. To his surprise, that secret service dignitarywas in, and the caller was requested to wait a few minutes until he wasat leisure.
"Even the nobility are getting up early to help win the war," Irvingruminated as he waited. "Well, that shows a good trait of character--ifthey only had a good cause to fight for. I wonder if they really thinkthey have. I don't see how they can."
Presently he was informed by an office girl that "the baron" would seehim, and he entered the latter's private office. The big, usuallymild-eyed official looked at him rather sharply, he thought, but heresolved not to be overawed by his dominating personality.
"I am here," he began, rather abruptly, but with a bow of seemingrespect, "to find out what is to become of me. I feel lost in this bigcity. Lieut. Vollmer left me last night and informed me that if I wantedanything, I should apply to you. In the first place, I should like tohave some breakfast."
"The baron" seemed to be amused by this speech. He did not, however,indicate any particular concern over the hungry condition of the spy,who had proved himself a daring and spectacular hero "in the service ofthe fatherland." But he smiled and answered in reassuring tones:
"No breakfast? Ach himmel! You shall have all you can eat, and by thetime you have finished your breakfast, you'll realize how futile is theEnglish blockade."
"What kind of plans have you for me?" Irving asked, deeming it of noadvantage to enter into a discussion of conditions in Germany with a manwho undoubtedly would express only the most optimistic views. "I'mgetting impatient, I can't stand it to be idle. I want something to do."
"What do you want to do?" asked "the baron."
"Whatever I'm best fitted for. I hoped I'd been successful enough inthe venture just completed to warrant your keeping me in something ofthe same line."
"Do you want to go back to Canada?"
"I'd thought some of that, but it doesn't seem practicable," Irvingreplied. "You see, I'm an enlisted soldier now and would be sent backto the front if I returned. But it seems to me that I might do somegood work in the United States."
"Yes, that's true, you might," "the baron" admitted, meditatively."I'll think that over."
"Meanwhile," Irving continued, "I'd like to get rid of this uniform. Itcauses me no end of inconvenience. I'm constantly expecting to bestopped on the street and questioned."
"Have you been stopped yet?"
"No, but I've been followed. I'd have gone out and walked around somelast evening, but was followed all the way from here
to the hotel. Thesame man followed me from the hotel here this morning."
"The baron" appeared to be genuinely surprised at this statement.
"I don't understand that," he said. "What kind of looking man was itthat followed you?"
"He was middle-aged and dressed in civilian clothes."
"I'll find out about this," "the baron" announced, pressing a button onhis desk.
An office messenger between 60 and 70 years old entered.
"Is Schoensiegel or Blau out there?" inquired "the baron."
"Blau is," replied the messenger.
"Send him in."
The messenger went out and a minute later an individual who might havepassed for an ordinary plain-clothes man of the police force entered.
"Blau," said the intelligence official, "this is Mr. Hessenburg, one ofour friends from America--Canada. He was with the Canadian army at thefront and broke away to bring us some important information. He's beenhere only a couple of days, but has been followed on the street bysomeone, not under orders from this office. I want you to go outsideand wait until he leaves, and then find out who it is that's followinghim and why he's doing it. Maybe some other department or the policeare laboring under a misapprehension as to our friend's identity."
"Gans gewiss, Herr Hauptmann," said Blau, bowing himself out of the roomand indicating acceptance of his commission. The conversation wasresumed between the spy and "the baron."
"I'll provide you with a uniform and make you an attache of this officefor the present," the latter announced. "Later I'll take up yoursuggestion for keeping you in this branch of the service and see what Ican do. The skill and daring of your achievements thus far deservesrecognition, I can say that much at least."
Irving was reassured and encouraged by these words. He was convincedthat "the baron" entertained no doubt regarding the genuineness of hisrepresentations.
"Why not give me employment that will enable me to advance my efficiencyfor further spy work?" the boy suggested.
"That's a good idea," declared the intelligence official with a look ofprofessional animation in his eyes. "I think I'll do that. As soon asyou get your uniform, report at this office and I'll have you assignedto your new duties. Meanwhile I'll put you on the payroll and give youan order for a month's salary in advance. Your bill at the hotel hasbeen taken care of, but from now on you'll pay that yourself. Lieut.Vollmer was guilty of an inexcusable oversight when he left you withoutmoney for your meals and other incidentals. I thought that was beingtaken care of."
Irving thanked "the baron" for the interest shown in his welfare. Thenhe took up the subject on which he had expected to make his strongestplay with the intelligence official.
"I want to speak to you now," he said, "about a matter that perhaps Ishould have brought to your attention sooner. It's about the message onmy arm. I don't know what's in that message, but it may be thatCanadian officials have taken steps to render worthless the informationI brought to you. Would it be possible for them to render it of novalue to you if they knew the contents of the message I brought?"
The keen interest that "the baron" manifested instantly in thesesuggestions indicated to Irving that he could hardly have broached asubject that would command closer attention.
*CHAPTER XXIX*
*ORDERS FOR MONEY AND CLOTHES*
"It would not only be possible for the Canadian officials to nullify thevalue to us of the message you brought, but that is exactly what theywould do if they found out the contents of that message."
This is the reply "the baron" gave to the question put to him by Irvingat the close of the preceding chapter. The spy put the question inaccord with a suggestion made by Col. Evans in the course of hisinstructions behind the Canadian lines. The intent of this move was toobviate suspicion that he had delivered a fake message when discoverywas made that the information it contained did not answer its professedpurpose.
"Have you any reason to believe that they discovered the nature of theinformation you brought in that message?" asked the high Prussianofficial after he had answered the spy's question.
"I'm afraid I have," the latter replied. "Why didn't they arrest you?"
"Because they didn't know where to find me. I was lost somewhere in theCanadian army. They probably had no way of identifying me. However, theymust have made a search for me when they learned what had been goingon--maybe they're searching yet."
"Do you know what they learned that a message of this kind was beingbrought over here?"
"I know enough to feel that there is grave danger that they made such adiscovery."
"How did you find that out?"
"This way: One of the boys in the company to which I belonged received aletter from his cousin in Canada that told almost the whole story, and Iread the letter. That cousin told a long story about his going toToronto to visit some friends and getting sick while there. He wastaken to a hospital--_our_ hospital, by the way--and while he wasconvalescing, he strolled out in the hall and saw the tattooingoperation on my arm. The two men who were doing the work saw himstanding there and gazing through the glass door, and they rushed out,collared him, and dragged him into the laboratory. But he satisfied themthat he was merely a curious onlooker and they let him go.
"However, they had him watched, and after he left the hospital he wasfollowed everywhere he went. He communicated with government officialsand a week or two later the hospital was raided. This is all theinformation the letter contained, but it is possible that they compelledsomebody to reveal the contents of the message that was tattooed on myarm."
"Very possible," agreed "the baron," leaning forward with a look of hardand harsh concern in his eyes. "And where were you in the meantime?"
"On my way on a transport for England. The spy in the hospital, Isuppose, did not observe me very closely. Fortunately I had my coat offand perhaps he did not identify me as a soldier. At any rate, I was notinterfered with, and I am here."
"No doubt of that," returned the intelligence official rather absently;"and you brought the message. Well, all we can do is remember thecircumstances you have just related and take them into consideration ifdevelopments don't prove satisfactory. I'm glad you told me about this,for it may prevent a lot of confusion. It wouldn't be well for you toventure back into Canada with that picture on your arm. You'd be pickedup as a deserter, and the intelligence officers wouldn't be very slowfinding out that you were the fellow they've been hunting for ever sincethe raid on that Toronto hospital. As a matter of fact, I doubt if youcan be of much use to us in any of the countries of our allied enemieswith that thing on your arm."
"I have an idea to remedy that," said Irving with a smile that suggestedsomething of a novelty in his mind.
"What is that?" asked "the baron."
"Peel this picture off and graft some new skin in its place."
The intelligence official laughed, but he was interested as well asamused.
"That isn't a bad idea at all," he said. "On the whole I am inclined totake you seriously. You seem to have a scientific turn of mind, and thatalways appeals to an intelligent German. I'm going to put you to workunder the direction of a man who will give you a thorough tryout, andwe'll find out what you're good for. You seem to be ambitious andintelligent and have a good record behind you. Go ahead now and show uswhat you're worth."
This announcement and the accompanying instruction delighted the spybeyond measure. If his recent experiences had not schooled him in thevery wise habit of self-restraint, his first joyful impulse might havegot him into trouble.
"Just wait a minute and I'll fix you up with an order for some money andsome clothes," said "the baron" after a few moments of silence.
He picked up a pen and busied himself filling out a form and writing anote on a letterhead of the department. These he folded and placed hiseparate envelopes. The envelopes he addressed and handed to the spy.
"There, that's al
l today, I think," he said. "Whatever you needhereafter will be taken care of by Mr. Herrmann. Inquire outside andyou'll be directed where to go to have this order cashed."
Irving thanked him and left the office. Ten minutes later he wasoutside the building with a comfortable roll of bank-bills in hispocket. As he started up the street with directions in his mind forreaching the quartermaster's office, he saw Blau on the oppositesidewalk and was reminded of the instruction given that intelligenceoperative to shadow the young spy's shadower.