“Directly after the phone call,” the engineer went on, “I hurried to the restaurant and described Whaley to the owner. I learned that 94 COSMIC ASTRONAUTS
Whaley was a frequent customer at the Mandarin Gardens, and had posed as a Chinese under the name of Sam Wah.”
“You reported all this to Harlan Ames?” Tom asked.
“Yes, and he contacted the police,” Felix replied. “A search is on right now, but so far they’ve found no trace of Whaley. Ames thinks he probably guessed that I recognized his voice, so he disappeared on purpose.”
Tom mulled over this information. “You’ve given us a swell lead anyhow, Felix,” he said at last. “I’m sure it’ll prove a big help.”
“I certainly hope so,” the young Chinese-American said.
After Felix Wong had left, Tom telephoned the security department. Harlan Ames had no further report on the search for Whaley.
“But I did have a message from Interpol last night,” Ames went on. “The International Police Organization, headquartered in Paris, sent a cable saying that Li Ching had been glimpsed briefly in Marseilles. He had disappeared again, probably by sea or air, before his trail could be picked up.
“And I’m sorry,” Ames added, “that there’s no new word on the Sea Charger.”
“Thanks anyway, Harlan,” Tom said. “Keep me posted.”
By midafternoon, the space-kite assembly had been completed. Tom and Bud hurried over to
TELEPHONE THREAT 95
Hanson’s workshop to inspect it. Everything seemed in order.
“Have it flown to Fearing tonight, Arv,” Tom ordered. “We’ll give it a shakedown tomorrow morning.”