Chapter Five: Stolen Plans
"Turn off the lights..." Pat murmured softly to herself as she slowly regained consciousness. Her head throbbed, and the world seemed to be entirely composed of the blinding glare of the desert sun. As she shook her head, wincing with the pain caused by the movement, the bright light that had at first filled her field of vision slowly dissolved as her eyes focused, revealing itself as coming from a solitary lightbulb suspended from the ceiling.
Lifting her chin, Pat looked around at her new surroundings. She appeared to be in an interior office, presumably in the warehouse, with no windows and only one door. Trying to get up, Pat discovered that she was bound securely to a chair and that her utility vest had been removed. Her shirt was torn slightly from the fight outside, with the first few buttons undone, revealing the ample tops of her bronzed globes.
If Pat had not been tied to the chair, she would probably have set a new world record for the standing high jump when a voice behind her asked, "How are you feeling, Miss?"
Her startled gasp caused the speaker to apologetically say, "I'm sorry Miss, I didn't mean to spook you like that."
"That's OK," replied the bronzed beauty, as she turned her head to face the owner of the voice. It was the grayhaired elderly man she had seen abducted near her salon who, though no longer handcuffed, shared her misfortune in being bound to a chair. The two of them were the only occupants of the small office. "You were the one they kidnapped. Who are you?"
The old man smiled sadly. "My name is Howard Murray...Doctor Howard Murray. Yes, I was kidnapped...and my office blown up. There's no telling how many people died in that explosion...or how many more people will die because of me. Better for the world, far better, that I had never begun my research."
"What are you talking about?" Pat asked, firing off questions. "What research? Why will people die? Who are these crooks and why did they grab you?" As she spoke, her fingers probed at the knots in the rope imprisoning her, but her spirits fell as she quickly realized they'd been tied by someone who knew what he was doing and she had little hope of undoing them. She was able to move her chair a little, to be able to look at her fellow captive as they spoke.
Dr. Murray sighed. "I'll tell you what I can, before our captors come back to check on us. I am a scientist who has concentrated his career in the field of radio. Many years ago, I thought of an idea which I felt was sure to save lives and be a boon to mankind. Each year, hundreds of people die, on ships and on planes, due to inadequate guidance systems. I believe that many of these lives could be saved, if a better way of guiding ships and planes could be devised, one that would work in fog and other adverse whether conditions which make it difficult for pilots to navigate safely.
"I have spent nearly the last dozen years of my life devising such a system...a radio controlled guidance system. I took under my wing a young man, Cartwright, as my lab assistant. What a fool I was!
"The system is now nearly completed. A few months ago, Cartwright began to suggest that the system might be able to be modified to have military applications. Just as it could be used to guide planes or ships, it might be modified to guide torpedoes, or rockets carrying a bomb. With the accuracy my system could provide, the devastation could be awesome. Cartwright was convinced that we could sell it for a fortune."
"So you modified it for military purposes!" Pat exclaimed.
"No, no, I would have nothing to do with it!" Dr. Murray protested. "My goal is to help mankind, not aid in his destruction! I soundly denounced such an idea and told Cartwright that if he brought it up again, I'd fire him! At first Cartwright seemed to acquiesce in my decision, but then I caught him stealing plans from the laboratory. I threw him out, but was too softhearted to call the police. I was an idiot to think he'd go on his way and forget about it.
"These men work for Cartwright. They broke into my office today and kidnapped me, stealing my plans and prototypes. On the ride here, Cartwright gloated. 'You could have shared millions with me,' he sneered, 'but you were so tied up in trying to help people you couldn't see the golden opportunity you had.' He took delight in telling me that he's sold the plans--and me!--to a European power, whose representatives are arriving tomorrow night by submarine to take delivery."
"Which one is Cartwright?" asked Pat, trying to remember all of the men she'd seen in the warehouse.
