“We’re interested in all your dealings with Raymond Turnbull.”
He expected the mention of the name to surprise the bank robber. Instead, Tom was the surprised one.
“Are you crazy?” Slick Steck snarled. “I haven’t been working with Raymond Turnbull. You’ve got your names mixed. I’ve been-er-conducting business arrangements with the professor himself, Robert Turnbull.”
The disclosure electrified his listeners. Before they recovered their composure, Steck continued.
“Sure I worked with the prof. It was a two-way venture. He was going to make bank robbing a safe and easy proposition for us-a sure thing. In return, the gang would take care of a few little matters for him, here in Shopton, while he was out of town on some other business.”
168 TOM SWIFT AND HIS GIANT ROBOT
“At the atom plant, no doubt,” thought Tom.
Radnor prodded Steck with another question. “Just how would these holdups be accomplished?”
“With a robot,” he replied. “It was going to be great. He promised to get us one of Tom Swift’s robots. It would have a machine gun mounted on the end of one arm.” Steck laughed hollowly. “The thing would have been rigged up like a walking tank. No bank-guard’s bullets or tear-gas bombs could have stopped it.
The robot would just walk right out with the money.”
Tom, although enraged at this scheme, was intrigued by its ingenious idea.
“Where was the robot going to be controlled from?”
Steck replied, “The whole operation would have been worked from an innocent-looking car.”
“What about after the robbery?” said Bud. “Wouldn’t the robot be followed?”