The Secret of the Haunted Mirror - M. V. Carey [37]
“It is you who are the fool, Gómez,” said Santora. “It is you who led us to the mirror. That is where the secret is hidden, isn’t it? All these years. That is the secret of Manolos’ power — the Chiavo glass. It will be destroyed!”
“It is mine,” insisted Gómez. “It was promised to me. All those years, I worked for him, and he promised the glass would be mine. Only, when he died, that fool of a woman, she sent it out of the country and I was not there because …”
“Because you were in jail,” said Santora. He seated himself on a packing case.
“Poor Juan Gómez. You were in jail when your master died because you tried to pick the pocket of an English tourist. Poor Gómez. You lose, You always lose. The mirror will be destroyed for the good of the republic.”
“No!” shouted Gómez. “It is mine! It was promised.”
“Manolos lied,” Santora announced. “He lied to you. Why did you think he would not lie to you when he lied to everyone else? Did you think you were different? But there is an end to it now. I will destroy the glass.”
“You will not!” cried Gómez. “You soft one. I know you. You do not frighten me!
You with your smooth face and your smooth manners! You do not frighten me! You will not shed blood!”
The frantic Gómez suddenly hurled himself at the man with the gun.
There was an explosion. A bullet ricocheted off a steel beam and thudded into wood somewhere high above. Santora shouted and tried to fling the smaller man away as one might fling away a loathsome animal. The gun flew out of his grip and slid across the floor.
Santora and Gómez spun round, both
intent on the gun. Gómez gave a cry of
rage as it slid through an open trap-door
and dropped out of sight. There was a
splash, and the gun was gone.
Santora pulled himself erect. “So,” he
said. “Perhaps you are right. Perhaps I
would prefer not to shoot you. But you will
not leave here with the glass.”
He picked up a piece of wood that lay
nearby and faced the mirror. “I will do
what I came to do,” he said. “I will smash
this.”
Jupiter Jones stepped through the doors
from the office into the warehouse. “Before
you do that,” he said quietly, “there are
some questions I’d like to ask.”
The man named Juan Gómez turned
and looked in amazement at the boys. His
eyes lighted on Jeff Parkinson, so recently
his hostage. He let out a shout — and
charged towards The Investigators.
“Hold it!” shouted Pete. He dodged
past Jupiter and hurled himself at the kidnapper’s midriff. Gómez went down on the floor, howling, and Pete quickly sat on him. “This is getting to be a habit,” said Pete.
“Let me help,” offered Jeff, and he sat on Gómez too.
“Now,” said Jupiter Jones to the astonished Santora, we may not be adults but we are two to one, and nobody leaves here until we find out a few things.”
Chapter 17
The Mirror Yields Its Secret
JUAN GÓMEZ STOPPED STRUGGLING and began muttering under his breath. He sounded as if he might be cursing.
“Don’t smash the mirror, Señor Santora,” said Jeff. “Whether it belongs to you or not, don’t smash the mirror. My grandmother would have a fit!”
“Also,” said Jupiter Jones. “if you do smash it, you might reveal the secret to Juan Gómez, mightn’t you? And I believe he doesn’t know what the secret is.”
“I know,” said Gómez. “Always I have known. But it is the proof I must have.”
“Well, then,” said Jupiter, “I can put it another way. Gómez does not know where in the mirror the proof is hidden. I don’t think that you know either, Señor Santora.
As for your tale of being a descendant of Chiavo the magician, I think we can dismiss that as pure fiction.”
“I will say nothing,” said Santora.
“At this point you need to say very little,” Jupiter told him. “We know, for example, that you are acting on the orders of the president of the Republic of Ruffino.
Far from being a descendant of Chiavo’s, you could very well be, what? Are you President García’s son?”
Santora sat down on the packing case. “You!” he said. “It was you who broke into my hotel room. You went through my papers!”
“No, it wasn’t Jupe,