CHAPTER XVI
INVESTIGATION
The motion picture chums stared at Albert, who, in turn, looked with wide eyes at the man he had accused. It was Royston, plainly enough, but he was unaware of the scrutiny turned upon him.
"Look out!" suddenly called Pep, and before he explained further he wheeled Albert about so that his back was toward the man, at the same time giving Frank a shove so that his chum's face was turned away.
"What does that mean?" asked Frank, almost thrown off his balance.
"He's looking this way," explained Pep in a low voice. "You don't want him to see us; do you? And especially Albert, after what he has just told us?"
"I should say not!" Frank answered. "I was so surprised I lost my wits, I guess."
"Down this way," suggested Pep, a moment later, as he pointed to a side path. "He hasn't caught on, yet, to who we are."
Frank and the others took advantage of the opportunity. Royston, sitting on the bench, had turned in a half-lazy fashion to gaze at the group of young men. But either he did not sense who they were, or his thoughts were so occupied with other matters, that he did not even see the group. Our friends, in their turn, made their escape in safety. For escape it might properly be called, since they were playing a desperate game—or were about to.
"Now then," said Frank, when they were behind a screen of shrubbery, "let's hear the straight of this, Albert. You say that man is the one your uncle went to New York to see?"
"That's the man. He had some important connection with my uncle's business—I don't know just what. But you spoke as though you knew him."
"I do—in a way," replied Frank. "At one time I'd have given a good deal if I had never met him—at least in the way I did," and he thought of his sore arm, the result of the encounter with Royston.
"Is that all you know about him?" Albert wanted to know, when Frank had related the episode at the bank.
"Gracious, no!" was the reply. "We've been on that man's trail for some time, Pep and I, but we haven't been able to clinch anything yet."
"Maybe we can now," suggested Randy.
"How?" asked Frank.
"Why, Albert said this man was the one who put his uncle in the insane asylum."
"Yes, he was the one mainly responsible," went on the boy whom the chums had befriended. "But I don't see how that is going to help you boys any, or me either. My uncle was certainly insane. I never saw a man act as he did."
"Was he, really?" asked Frank, and there was a note of regret in his voice.
"Yes, I am sorry to say I believe his mind has left him," went on Albert.
"I had hopes," said Frank, seeing his chums looking at him for an explanation, "that perhaps it was all a scheme on the part of this man to put your uncle in some institution without warrant in law. In that case we sure would have a hold on Royston."
"Oh, I don't think there was anything like that," Albert said. "Of course I don't know much about insane persons, but my uncle certainly wasn't right in his mind. I think his losses made him so. And doctors certified to the fact that he was insane. The law requires that, you see."
"Yes, I see, and I don't see," returned Frank. "I guess we'll have to go about it some other way. I sure would like to get a hold on this Royston, if not for my own sake, to please Mr. Bullard."
"Does someone else want him, too?" asked Albert.
Frank explained about the suspicions of the government Secret Service man, and how futile, thus far, had been his efforts and those of the chum volunteers.
"But perhaps if you were to explain to Mr. Bullard what sort of business dealings your uncle had with Royston, we might discover something," suggested Frank. "We might even be able to get back some of the money you say your uncle lost, part of which was yours."
"I only wish we could!" exclaimed Albert. "Yes, part of the money my uncle invested in promoting his affairs was mine. That is, I had earned it from him, but I allowed him to keep it for me. That went with the rest, he said, when he came back from his trip to New York."
"I think we'll have a talk with Mr. Bullard," suggested Randy. "This may lead us to a new line of discovery."
"I wish it would lead to the discovery of some money for me," spoke Albert, whimsically. "I'm tired of living on you fellows."
"None of that!" cried Pep, with playful warning. "We're glad to have you live with us."
"That's what!" chimed in Randy.
"And you needn't worry but what you are paying your way," added Frank. "The typewriting work, and letter writing you do, is worth more than we pay you, really."
"And you needn't be at all afraid of taking the money," went on Pep. "Frank is hard-headed enough not to overpay anyone."
"Well, I'm glad to feel that I'm not living on charity," observed Albert, "and if I can do anything to help restore my uncle's fortune, or aid you in fastening guilt on this man, I'll do it."
"We'd better begin at the beginning and investigate," suggested Randy. "And, as a starter, we had better see Mr. Bullard. He may be able to start us on the right track."
"But we must keep out of the way of Royston," cautioned Pep, as he looked back over his shoulder, possibly to see if the suspect were following them. But the path was deserted.
"Yes, we don't want to run across him in company of Albert, or he sure would smell a rat," Randy agreed. "He must have some object in trying to be friendly with us."
But what that object was the motion picture chums could only guess.
Mr. Bullard was indeed surprised when the boys, calling on him, related their meeting with Albert, and the latter's recognition of Royston.
"And now, what's the first thing to be done?" asked Pep, when Albert had told his story.
"I think a good start, and at least a new one, would be to look into this matter of Mr. Jackson's being adjudged insane," replied the Secret Service man. "Of course we may find it all perfectly legal, but it may develop, as we go along, and it may disclose some new opening by which we can get hold of Royston.
"For I don't mind admitting," he said with a smile, "that, so far, he has fooled me completely. I know he is planning a big swindle, but I can't get hold of anything on which to convict him. It is very annoying, for the authorities in Washington are wondering why I don't show some results. So we'll start on a new tack."
To commit a person to an insane asylum is rather a formal proceeding, requiring action not only on the part of the state, or county, authorities, but also action by at least two physicians, who make separate examinations of the patient. Then, in many cases, must come an action on the part of some court, so that there is legal proof of every step.
There may be plots, by which sane persons are wrongfully sent to asylums, but those happen more often in novels than in real life. Though Pep rather hoped there would be a dramatic turn to the investigation started by his chums, it was not so fated—at least, not yet.
Mr. Bullard looked up the matter of the commitment of Mr. Jackson, and found that it was perfectly legal. The two doctors were interviewed, and each said there was no doubt about the insanity of Albert's uncle.
"So we can't do anything there," declared Randy.
"Well, I haven't given up," returned the government man. "If you noticed, those doctors were both very young. It was their first insane case outside of college, and they were both rather poor."
"What does that mean?" asked Albert, hopefully.
"I can't say—just yet. It may mean a whole lot, and, again it may mean nothing. It's worth looking into, however. But before we go into that I want to look up the business end of your uncle's affairs, and find out what he did in New York. Did he meet anyone else there except this Royston?"
"Not that I know of," Albert stated.
"Have you any papers belonging to your uncle?" was the next question.
"Yes, some, in my trunk, or in one of my uncle's."
"Then, if you have no objection, we'll take a look at them. We may be able to get a clue from them."
This investigation had occupied several days, during which Royston had not been encountered by the chums. Meanwhile they were exceedingly anxious to settle the matter of a motion picture theatre at the fair, but it did not seem that their wish would be gratified. The owners of the wonderful and expensive films were pressing the boys to either take up their option, or forfeit it, as another concern in San Francisco was after the pictures.
"I declare I don't know what to do," said Frank, and his chums saw that he was greatly worried.