Mystery of the Glowing Eye (13 page)

Nancy, George, and Professor Titus hurried to the desk where Bess was seated.

“I made a discovery,” she said. “After you asked me to look for the key, I thought I’d make a better search in the drawer and I found this!”

She showed the others a handwritten book of verses and began to read some of them.

“They’re weird!” Professor Titus remarked. “Who wrote these?”

In answer Bess opened the book to the first page. Written on it was:

BEATRICE WILKIN the aunt of Cyclops!

Everyone crowded around the small desk where Bess was seated and stared at the book she had found in the drawer.

“I can’t believe it!” George burst out. “That prim little woman the aunt of a criminal!”

Nancy suggested that they look inside the book for further information. Everyone was astounded at the contents and puzzled as to why Miss Wilkin had left the book there.

“You would think,” Professor Titus spoke up, “that she would want to conceal such information.”

Bess sighed. “She probably forgot to take it with her because she was in such a hurry to get away.”

As the group read on, there was only praise for the elderly custodian who had permitted Cyclops to sleep on the second floor of the museum and to carry on certain experiments in the building.

“This means Cyclops is one person,” Nancy deduced, “not a gang.”

“But what about his pals?” George spoke up. “How much did they know?”

“Read this!” Nancy said presently. “Cyclops actually experimented on the glowing eye project right here, and Miss Wilkin knew all about it!”

George asked, “Do you suppose she could have worked hand in hand with her nephew?”

“That seems incredible,” Professor Titus replied. “I’m more inclined to think that Miss Wilkin did not understand the invention. When several people inquired about it, she became suspicious herself. Then, after what happened to Nancy yesterday, the woman panicked and left suddenly.”

Nancy was not completely satisfied with this explanation. Did Miss Wilkin believe that Cyclops’ pals were Emerson College students? Or had she lied to Nancy and her friends when asked about them?

The discussion was interrupted by a knock on the front door. The professor opened it and admitted a man who said he was Ben Farley from the telephone company.

“We’ve received complaints from people who have tried to call here. Apparently your line’s out of order.”

Nancy pulled out the map of the museum’s first floor and looked carefully for the main telephone-box location. She found it and the repairman suggested that the incoming line was probably underground in a basement not shown on the directions. Professor Titus and the girls went with him. They found the box.

“Uh-uh,” the repairman said, “someone cut the line!”

After examining the break carefully, Farley asked, “Did you have a burglary?”

Professor Titus said he did not think so, but they had just discovered that an intruder had slept on the second floor.

The telephone man went out to his truck to get special wire and tools. The others returned to the lobby and continued to read the book of poems by Cyclops. There were many items which seemed to identify Cyclops as Zapp Crosson. One was a poem in which the words “cross” and “on” were used to describe an ill-tempered little boy with fiery red hair.

“He must have been describing himself as a child,” George declared.

Nancy said she was sure Crosson would return to the museum and perhaps bring his pals with him. “I feel this place should be guarded,” she said.

At once Professor Titus offered to stay.

“But not alone!” Nancy said. “I certainly think Bess and George and I should remain with you.”

Just then the telephone repairman came back to the lobby and reported that service on the line had been restored.

“That’s good,” said Bess. “It’s kind of eerie being in a place like this without a telephone.”

Ben Farley smiled and said if there was any further trouble to contact the company. He drove off.

“The first person I should call,” said Nancy, “is my dad.”

Professor Titus said he would like to let his wife know the change of plan and why he would not be home.

Bess spoke up. “I think Burt and Dave should be told, too.”

“Yes,” George agreed, “and besides, we should find out if they have had any news of Ned either from him or from the authorities.”

The calls were made. Burt and Dave were surprised and concerned for their friends’ safety but thought the girls’ plan to keep an overnight watch was a good one.

“We haven’t heard anything from or about Ned,” Burt added.

When all the phoning was finished, Bess glanced at her watch. “Do you know it’s dinner-time?” she asked. “Suppose I phone a restaurant in town and see if they’ll deliver some food to us?”

Hopefully she tried one place after another and was beginning to think the group would have to go all night without eating, when she found a roadside restaurant that did deliver meals. The food arrived within an hour. They sat on chairs in the main lobby to eat. After they finished, each one began to nod and close his eyes.

They took turns walking around, trying to stay awake. But by ten o’clock everyone was back in his chair and getting into a comfortable position for a nap.

All the lights had been turned out and the watchers remained silent until sleep overcame them.

No one knew how long they had dozed when suddenly the group was awakened by a strong, penetrating searchlight flashed in their faces. As the startled group concentrated on it, everyone realized that the light seemed to be emitted from a huge glowing eye.

Nancy’s first thought was to make a dash for the person holding the searchlight. To her amazement she found herself unable to get up. She stared stupefied at the others. Each one sat paralyzed!

Suddenly a voice that seemed to come from far away said, “Don’t try to follow me even after you can move again!”

At once the huge light went out and the immobile group could vaguely hear the front door open and close. The person with the glowing eye searchlight had left!

It was fully five minutes before anyone could move or speak. Slowly Nancy arose and made her way to the telephone on the desk. As she lifted the phone, a light went on showing up the numbers. She dialed the police emergency number and got headquarters. A sergeant on duty promised to send men out right away.

Nancy turned on the lights in the lobby and asked the others how they were feeling. Fortunately no one had suffered any bad effects.

“That was a strange experience,” Professor Titus remarked.

“Have you any explanation for it?” Nancy asked him.

“Not exactly,” he replied, “but it reminds me of something I read about medical students studying the brain waves of a person who had been put to sleep under hypnosis. It was discovered that his wave pattern could be imprinted upon another brain by using a laser beam of a certain wavelength. Of course the original brain waves had to be programmed in order to be modulated. This in turn produced a ‘paralyzing’ sleep.”

Nancy was thoughtful. “What happened to us must have been done some other way because nobody hypnotized us and the programming would have had to be different for each individual in the group.”

“That’s right,” Professor Titus agreed. “The phenomenon we experienced will take a good deal of study.”

Bess’s eyes were wide open. “Who would ever think of such a horrible invention?”

Professor Titus smiled. “Criminals conjure up many things that ordinarily seem beyond their capabilities. I think I’ve made a discovery. The person who gave us the warning a few minutes ago sounded exactly like Zapp Crosson.”

“Maybe he has been on the third floor all this time,” George suggested. “I’ll run up and see if that door leading to it is unlocked.” In a couple of minutes she reported that the door was still tightly locked.

Bess looked frightened. “Are you saying that Zapp Crosson is up there with his paralyzing searchlight and may come back any time to use it on us again?”

Nancy said she doubted this because they had heard the front door close. “I don’t think he’ll return here for a while.”

She picked up the phone once more and contacted police headquarters. This time she asked them to send out a detective, who was also a locksmith.

Ten minutes later a car with several officers reached the museum. One of them was Dr. Marcus, the police surgeon. He insisted upon examining each victim of the paralyzing searchlight.

He tested their responses and announced that the whole group was in good health. He asked them how they had felt during the immobile period. Professor Titus and the girls said they had had no unusual sensations except being unable to move.

“May we please go upstairs and watch you open the door?” Nancy asked the locksmith detective.

“Certainly,” he answered. “My name is Tim Rooney.”

The whole group trooped up the stairway and watched as the detective tried one key after another. Finally he was able to unlock the door.

The girls wanted to rush up to the top floor but Dr. Marcus said, “No, not until we find it’s safe.”

A few minutes later he came down. “It’s okay. You’re in for a surprise,” he remarked. “There’s a fully equipped electrical and electronic lab up there.”

“How amazing!” said Professor Titus.

By this time Nancy had surmised as much. She led the way up the steps. What particularly drew her attention in the spacious attic room were a series of pictures on the walls. They depicted gruesome scenes of battles, both between individuals and groups, and the slaughter of animals.

“How ghastly!” Bess exclaimed.

By now everyone was staring at the pictures of persons and animals about to have one eye gouged out with various kinds of hand weapons.

Bess covered her eyes with her hands just as Dr. Marcus said, “The man who owns these pictures is an unusual and dangerous killer type.”

Nancy’s heart jumped. “And he is holding Ned—” She could not finish the sentence.

“WHY, Nancy, you’re white as a sheet!” Bess exclaimed. “What’s the matter?”

“I was just thinking about what Crosson could do to Ned!”

George put an arm around her friend. “Please don’t think the worst. I’m sure we’ll capture that villain before he has a chance to do anything drastic.” She went on to say that if Crosson were trying to get information out of Ned, he was not likely to kill him.

“But he might maim him,” Nancy said with tears in her eyes. She buried her face in her hands and took a long, deep breath.

A few seconds later she raised her head and said, “You’re absolutely right, George. I mustn’t let my feelings overshadow my good sense.”

She changed the subject by turning to Tim Rooney and asking if he would supply her with a key to the door leading to the attic.

He smiled and said, “You hope to trap the kidnapper right here in his own laboratory?”

Nancy nodded and Detective Rooney told her he would have a duplicate key made at once and bring it to her.

One of the other officers now asked Professor Titus and the girls to leave the attic. “We want to search this place thoroughly for the glowing eye searchlight,” he said. “Also, there may be other dangerous gadgets here which we should remove.”

Nancy and the others went to the main lobby. George asked Nancy, “What’s our next assignment?”

The young detective replied, “I’d like to do some old-fashioned sleuthing. While Professor Titus guards the museum, how about the rest of us taking flashlights and magnifying glasses outdoors to search? We’re pretty sure that Crosson was here tonight. Perhaps he left footprints.”

The professor agreed. The girls took sleuthing equipment from pockets and handbags, then went outside to examine the grounds.

A few minutes later Nancy’s eyes were fastened on a trail of footprints which her flashlight and magnifying glass had revealed.

“Look!” she cried out.

The cousins came to her side. They saw the prints and presently found an identical one deep in a soft spot.

“The heel mark is a copy of Cyclops’ glowing eye!” Nancy exclaimed as she pointed to it.

Clearly pictured was the ugly face of a Cyclops, with an eye in the center of his forehead.

George asked, “Do you think this is a mark Crosson uses just for himself or is it the insignia for his pals, too?”

Nancy admitted she did not know. “But I’m going to tell the police about this mark.”

The girls went back into the museum. They were just in time to meet the police officers coming from the attic.