A tall, bearded workman dressed in overalls and derby who had been striding toward the railroad station carrying a large tool sack over his shoulder had been forced onto stop in front of a saloon to allow two bartenders to throw four drunks to the sidewalk. Hemmed in by the cheering crowd, the tall man was glancing around impatiently, raising his face out of the shadow of his derby.

The detectives looked at the drawing.

"Is that him?"

"Could be. But it looks like he's had that beard awhile."

"Unless it's rented."

"If it is, it's a good one," said Mack. "I don't like the ears either. They're nowhere near this big."

"If it's not him," Wally insisted, "it could be his brother."

"Why don't we ask him if he has a brother?"

Chapter 14.

"I'M FIRST, YOU WATCH."

Wally Kisley ran for the stairs.

The tall workman with the sack slung over his shoulder shoved through the crowd, stepped over one drunk and around another, and resumed his quick pace toward Union Depot. From the window, Mack Fulton traced the path he drove relentlessly through the pedestrians who were hurrying to and from the station.

Wally bounded down the stairs and out the building. When he got to the sidewalk, he looked up. Mack pointed him in the right direction. Wally sprinted ahead. A quick wave said he found their quarry, and Mack tore down the stairs after him, his heart pounding. He'd been feeling lousy for days, and now he was having trouble snatching a breath.

He caught up with Wally, who said, "You're white as a sheet. You O.K.?"

"Tip-top. Where'd he go?"

"Down that alley. I think he saw me."

"If he did and he ran, he's our man. Come on!"

Mack led the way, sucking air. The alley was muddy underfoot and stank. Instead of cutting through to Twenty-fourth Street, as the detectives assumed it would, it hooked left where the way was blocked by a steel-shuttered warehouse. There were barrels in front big enough to hide behind.

"We got him trapped," said Wally.

Mack gasped. Wally looked at him. His face was rigid with pain. He doubled over, clutching his chest, and fell hard in the mud. Wally knelt beside him. "Jesus, Mack!"

Mack's face was deathly pale, his eyes wide. He raised his head, staring over Wally's shoulder. "Behind you!" he muttered.

Wally whirled toward the rush of footfalls.