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Latterman was somewhere out in the store, helping them; Claire had lunch for herself and Prestonby sent up from the restaurant, and for a while they ate in silence, broken by occasional spatters of small-talk. Then she returned to the question she had raised and he had not yet answered. "You say Frank Cardon's a Literate?" she asked. "Then what's he doing managing the Senator's campaign?
They led him to one side. Latterman looked from one to the other apprehensively, licking his lips. "It's all right; we're not going to hurt you, Russ," Cardon assured him. "We just want a few facts. Beside rigging that business with Bayne, and almost killing Chet Pelton, and forcing Claire to blow her cover, how much did you have to do with this business?" "And who put you up to it?"
Graves knew about it, enough to advise Latterman to get all the Literates out of the store before noon, which Latterman did, with trimmings. "Then, there was another riot, masterminded by a couple of Illiterates' Organization Action Committee people named Joe West and Horace Yingling, both deceased. That was the result of Latterman's bright idea to trap Claire and/or me into betraying Literacy.
Better than any one, M. Latterman knows for what purpose are purchased the valueless securities which he sells; and he actually advises his customers which to take in preference, in order that their purchase at the time of their issue may appear more natural, and more likely.
"Get another officer, and go down to Pelton's office. Show it to Miss Pelton, and tell her I sent you. There's been an attempt on Chester Pelton's life; you're to stay with him. Use your own judgment, but don't let anybody, and that definitely includes Russell Latterman, get at him. If you see anything suspicious, shoot first and ask questions afterwards. What's your name, sergeant?"
"Stinks like a glue factory of a put-up job. Something's going to happen to Russ Latterman, one of these days." "I think you'd better let Frank Cardon take care of him, Ray," Prestonby advised. "I think there are more angles to this than he told me. Now, I'm going over to the store. Somebody's got to stay with Claire. I want you to stay here, in this room.
A fourth victim, in ordinary business clothes, tattered and disheveled, came flying out after them, to land in a heap, stunned for an instant, and then pick himself up. Prestonby laughed heartily when he recognized Literate undercover First Class Russell M. Latterman. "I ought to have anticipated that," he said. "Any time there's a riot, the liquor stores are the first things looted.
"Coccozello has a barricade thrown up across the store end of the tunnel, and they have a barricade about fifty yards down the tunnel. That's where I was fighting when you called me up." "Anything being done about gold-berging up a radio sending-set?" Prestonby asked. "Yes. I just called Coccozello," Latterman said. "Fortunately, the inter-department telephone is still working.
I've been working a little hard, but " "You've been working too hard. And today, with the sale at the store, and the last day of the campaign " "Why the devil did that idiot of a Latterman have the sale advertised for today, anyhow?" he fumed. "Doesn't he know I'm running for the Senate?" "I doubt it," Claire said.
Pelton, himself, is the owner of a huge department store, employing over a thousand Illiterates; he must at all times have the services of at least fifty Literates." "And pays through the nose for them, too!" Pelton growled. It was more than fifty; and Russ Latterman had been forced to get twenty extras sent in for the sale.
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