Page:Arthur Stringer - The Door of Dread.djvu/184

 Japanese officer has possession of our Wheel Code—"

"I have said no such thing," cut in Andelman, with his slightly puzzled eyes on the other man's face.

"But the Department has just said so," maintained Kestner.

Sadie, realizing that her chief had at last committed himself to a positive statement, endeavored to kick at his shins under the table. But he was beyond her reach. Wilsnach, wincing visibly, stopped eating to stare at her in silent reproach.

Andelman, for the fraction of a second, seemed to be at sea. But before he could speak again Kestner was facing him with an earnestness even more marked than before.

"My own belief is that Washington is taking an exaggerated view of this whole situation. There's been a leak or two, but that is no excuse for getting hysterical over it. And if this Japanese officer boasted that he had our Silberton Code, I don't even believe he's stolen it. You know as well as I do that the Japanese are the trickiest code-makers on earth. This code expert of theirs probably got hold of a number of our messages, months or even