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."That's right," hesaid."I didn't know whether you were inside or not and-"Button gestured him to silence with a grimy hand.INVITATION BY FORCE 173"Am I to understand that you were peering through the window in the hope thatI was not inside?""No," Ken said."I didn't know whether you were or not and-""So you said before," Button interrupted."Perhaps you mean that you wanted todiscover whether I was here, and that you chose this method of finding out.Ifyou had knocked on the door, it would have been simpler, don't you think? Andperhaps more courteous?"Ken had been gathering his thoughts.This time he talked determinedly."We sawa man who had been handing out firecrackers to kids over on Main Street, Mr.Button.That's illegal in Brentwood and we followed him-but we lost himsomewhere around here.I thought maybe he'd taken cover in your garage-that hemight have broken in, thinking the place would be deserted on a holiday."Sandy unexpectedly backed him up."That's the way it was, Mr.Button.Wedidn't have any way of knowing you'd be here yourself on the Fourth of July,so we thought we'd better check up and see if everything was O.K.""I see." Button smiled suddenly and his bright eyes twinkled."That wasneighborly of you-very! I know you've always been friends of the Conners, andit makes me feel good to think you're carrying your sense of friendship overto the new owner of their garage.I don't think I can be harboring a fugitivefrom the anti-fireworks law without knowing it, but if you'd like to comeinside for a moment to check up for yourselves, I'd be glad to have you."Ken hesitated.He still wanted to see the inside of the174 THE CLUE OF THE PHANTOM CARgarage-to find out what was going on that had made it necessary to whiten thewindows so that they were no longer transparent.But he told himself that thesuspicions in his own mind couldn't possibly be correct, and that if theywere, he certainly had no right to involve Sandy in what would be a verydangerous situation."Thanks, Mr.Button," he said."As long as you say everything is all right, wePage 70 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlcertainly don't want to take up your time.""Of course not," Sandy said."It was just because we heard your door slam afew minutes ago that-""You heard it?" Button's voice had turned hard and the twinkle was gone fromhis eyes."Well, we thought we did," Sandy said.Ken could hear the uneasiness in hiswords."Of course we know this place pretty well-all the noises and all-so wenaturally-" He cleared his throat."But we'd better be getting back to theparade now.We're covering it for Pop and-""Just a minute!" Button had stepped backward until he was two feet inside thedoorway, invisible to anyone outside the garage except the two boys standingdirectly before him."You should have kept your eyes on the parade in thefirst place, if that was your job.Now I'm afraid you'll have to disappointyour readers for once.I think you'd better come inside after all.In fact, Iurge you to!"There was a smile on his face below the cold narrowed eyes.And there was agun in his hand, its muzzle pointed toward them.CHAPTER XVIIIGAS!the boys stared, hypnotized by the deadly weapon that swung in a slow arc,pointing first at Ken and then at Sandy and then back again."Inside!" Button repeated."You can't-I""Yes, I can!" Button snapped at Ken."And I will-in three seconds-if you don'tstart moving."Ken took a step then and Sandy followed him.Step by step they went forwarduntil they crossed the threshold, while Button retreated before them."Shut the door," the man ordered.Sandy reached back without looking around, groped until his fingers found thedoor, and pushed.It closed with a sharp final bang."And now march down to the back of the garage," Button said, stepping asideand motioning them past him.They could hear his footsteps behind them."Kennedy!" Button called out as he walked."Come on out of there-there's noneed to hide now."Ken was abreast of the light delivery truck when its175176 THE CLUE OF THE PHANTOM CARback door swung open and the man they had seen on the street-the man who hadgiven firecrackers to Terry Tuthill-jumped out.His small dark eyes flashedangrily at the boys."You two snoopers stuck your necks out too far this time!" he said.Dutton snapped at him."You shut up! If you'd been more careful they wouldn'thave seen you.""I'm not invisible," Kennedy began defensively."I-"Dutton cut him off."Never mind explaining yourself now.Get down there andsee how they're coming.And hurry up!""O.K." Kennedy went forward to where piled earth rimmed the excavation for theinspection pit.He climbed over the heap, slid down the other side, anddropped out of sight.Ken knew in that instant that his own wild suspicion, which had seemed sofarfetched and incredible only a few moments before, was actually correct.Inspite of himself, he spoke his conviction aloud."So that is what you're doing!" he said."You're tunneling into the bankvault!"Dutton came around, so that they could see his face and smiled deliberatelyinto Ken's startled eyes
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