A quick glance
showed that the room had not been searched, or if it had, with greater
care than the last time. He ripped open the envelope and took out a
sheet of paper, the letterhead printed in Arabic except for the name
Fuad Moustafa.

"Fuad Moustafa," he said aloud. "Any relation to Ali, I wonder?"

"Read it," Scotty urged.

Rick did so. "'Dear Sir: You have brought to Cairo, I believe, a plastic
replica of a cat, which was given to you by Mr. Bartouki for delivery to
my brother, Ali. I deeply regret the inconvenience caused by your
failure to find my brother in his shop. Only today did I learn that his
chief clerk, an officious person, had attempted to take delivery of the
cat by pretending to be my brother. The clerk shall be discharged for
this offensive behavior.

"'Since my brother is absent from the city, on business to Beirut, which
was the reason for his absence from the shop, I shall be delighted to
serve in his stead. If you will call me, I shall come at your
convenience. Or, if you will do me the honor of breaking bread at my
home, I shall be at your service. Since my home is also my office, any
time that is convenient for you will be my pleasure. Sincerely, Fuad
Moustafa.'"

Rick jumped for the phone and called the desk, "See if Hassan is still
around, please. Tell him to wait, if he is."

The clerk asked him to wait and Rick put his hand over the mouthpiece
and turned to Scotty. "The first sensible suggestion we've had. Let's go
call on Fuad Moustafa. If there are lights, we'll pay him a visit. If
not, we'll come back. I'm anxious to get this settled."

"So am I," Scotty agreed, then added, "Only let's be sure this isn't a
trap."

The clerk came back on the line. "Hassan is here. He will wait."

"Thank you. Now, can you tell me anything about a Mr. Fuad Moustafa? Do
you know him?"

"Indeed, sir. He is a lawyer, from a well-known family. He has two
brothers who are also well known. One is Ali, who has a shop in El
Mouski, and the other is Kemel, who is a textile importer."

Rick thanked him and hung up. "It's our boy," he said. He repeated what
the clerk had told him.

"Sounds like pay dirt," Scotty agreed. "Only we'll still be careful.
Let's go."

Rick echoed him. "Let's go! If this is on the level, we can get the cat
in the morning and deliver it." At last, the secret of the Egyptian cat
might be unraveled!

CHAPTER IX

The Uninvited Visitor

As the boys hurried through t