"
"Nonsense, man!" said Demorest impatiently. "You're letting your
prejudices go too far. Do you mean to say that you suspect his wife."
"D--n his wife!" said Stacy almost savagely. "Leave her out of this.
It's Van Loo that I suspect. It was Van Loo who I knew was behind it,
who expected to profit by it, and now we have lost him."
"But how?" said Demorest, astonished.
"How?" repeated Stacy impatiently. "You know what Barker said? Van Loo,
either through stupidity, fright, or the wish to get the lowest prices,
was too late to buy up the market. If he had, we might have openly
declared the forgery, and if it was known that he or his friends had
profited by it, even if we could not have proven his actual complicity,
we could at least have made it too hot for him in California. But," said
Stacy, looking intently at his friend, "do you know how the case stands
now?"
"Well," said Demorest, a little uneasily under his friend's keen eyes,
"we've lost that chance, but we've kept control of the stock."
"You think so? Well, let me tell you how the case stands and the price
we pay for it," said Stacy deliberately, as he folded his arms and gazed
at Demorest. "You and I, well known as old friends and former partners,
for no apparent reason--for we cannot prove the forgery now--have thrown
upon the market all our stock, with the usual effect of depreciating it.
Pages:
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169