ace," he said to himself, as he reached a
dilapidated residence, located in what had once been a fine flower
garden, but which was now a tangle of rank bushes and weeds. The gate
was off, and leaping from his wheel, he trundled his bicycle along the
choked-up garden path to the front piazza. Then leaving his wheel
against a tree, he mounted the steps and rang the old-fashioned turn
bell.

Dave had approached the house boldly, thinking that possibly somebody
might be watching him from behind the blinds of the windows, all of
which were closed. Yet he was on his guard, and in the lining of his
overcoat he carried a stout stick, with which to defend himself should
such a course be necessary.

No one answered his first summons, and he rang the rusty bell a second
time. Then the front door was opened, and Doctor Montgomery showed
himself.

"Ah, how do you do!" he said, with a bland smile. "Walk right in, Mr.
Porter. I see you are on time."

Dave hesitated for a moment, and then entered the broad hallway of the
house. In front of him was a long flight of stairs leading to the second
floor, and on either side were doors leading to the parlor and to a
dining-room.

"Mrs. Dunn isn't feeling very well, so I had to come to the door
myself," explained Hooker Montgomery, smoothly. "She used to take some
drug-store medicine and it did her no good. Now she is taking my
remedies, and she will soon be herself." He said this so naturally that
Dave was thrown a little off his guard. As a matter of fact, Mrs. Dunn
was not at home, having gone away to visit a sister in Albany. It was
because of her absence that the tricky doctor had invited Dave to come
to the house. Had she been at home his schemes would have necessitated
meeting Dave somewhere else.

"Doctor, I haven't much time to spare, so I hope you will get at the
bottom of what you want without delay," said Dave, after the door had
been closed and locked by the physician. It was so dark in the hall he
could hardly see.

"I'll not take much of your time, sir,--not over half an hour at the
most," was the reply from Hooker Montgomery. "But all of the documents
and letters and photographs are in my room, on the second floor. Kindly
come up there and look at them." And the man started up the stairs. Dave
hesitated for a moment, wondering if it would be best to go up, and then
followed.

CHAPTER XXV

IN THE HANDS OF THE ENEMY

At the head of the stairs the doctor pau