The Hydra Monster by Lee Falk Page B

modernizations."
    The Phantom, in trenchcoat and dark glasses
once again, glanced up at the fluorescent lights in the stone ceiling. "So I notice."
"Senor Sumter has been quite persistent," said the tall Captain of Police. "He's aware we've captured these five Vultures and is very anxious to get a look at them."
"I imagine he is."
They reached the bottom of the steps and Miranda led the Phantom along a stone corridor. "He has all the necessary papers of identification, all the proper permits. Plus, I have read his stories in the South American edition of N EWS often."
"That doesn't necessarily mean he's not passing information on to Hydra."
"Yes, admittedly."
"There wasn't a sign of the Vultures at any of the other possible raid locations yesterday, the places you had staked out," reminded the Phantom. "The place they hit was the one place not on your list when Sumter snatched a look at it."
Nodding, the Police Captain said, "Possibly this is only a coincidence, senor. Despite what you may have heard of justice in my country, I don't like to condemn a man without sufficient proof."
"I'll have proof, one way or the other," said the Phantom, "before I do anything about him. What I'm suggesting now is that you keep Sumter away from these captured Vultures, and away from any further information about the whole affair."
"Very well, I can see the wisdom of that." Halting, the captain pointed at a heavy glass window which was built into the grey stone wall. "One way glass."
The window looked onto a corridor. Across the corridor were three cells. There were two men each in the outer cells and one in the middle. All the men still wore their Vulture uniforms. The solitary prisoner had discarded his wig and the tattooed black V showed clearly.
"Since you brought them in yesterday, senor," said Captain Miranda, "they have steadfastly refused to talk. In recent years we have not been allowed to use the harsher forms of interrogation. I think that's for the best, and yet . . ."
"The man in the cell on our right, the one slouching against the bars," said the Phantom. "I'd like to talk to him."
"Ill have him brought to one of the questioning rooms," said Miranda. "Why this particular man?"
"He's known as V306. He was one of those who captured me and took me off to Lake LaPaz," replied the Phantom. "He's a great complainer, an injustice collector. I think he might be willing to give us information if I can promise him a deal."
"You can promise him a licjht sentence and protection if he talks," said the Police Captain. "Ill have him sent for."
V306 squinted over at the air conditioner. "They keep this damn prison too cold," he complained. "I got a stiff neck already from the chill."
The Phantom stood across the small, green room from the seated Vulture. "I can help you get out of here."
"Sure, and off to the gallows."
    "Santa Florenza still favors the firing squad."
V306 shrugged. "Were you the one who ambushed us down in Zurrapa? It sounded like you from what some of the other guys said. You hit me so hard I didn't wake up until . . ."
"It was I."
"Too bad you didn't drown in the lake," said V306. "How'd you get out of that sack?"
The Phantom didn't explain. He asked, "How long have you been working for Hydra?"
"For what?"
"I don't think you're satisfied with the Vultures."
"Maybe not. It doesn't much matter now."
"If you tell us what you know about the Vultures, and about Hydra," continued the Phantom, "their plans, their possible hideouts . . . you won't have to serve a very long sentence."
V306 didn't speak for several seconds. "They took my cigars away when they threw me in this hole. You got any smokes?"
"No."
The Vulture shifted in his chair. Then he gave a short barking laugh. "I'm better off in jail," he said. "If I finked on them . . . well, I'd probably end up in a sack full of rocks myself."
"South America is very large," said the Phantom. "The world is larger still and . . ."
"I don't need a geography lesson, Walker."
"If you