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Show RED HOUSE ijjiirf MYSTErlYg BEGJN IIEUK TODAY Lunch was over and the houeo party guests worn away on the golf links. CJtilet reigned n th" Kcd House while i MAR K A B LETT, the bachelor owner, I and MATT CAY LEY. his companion, awaited the arrival of Mark's brother. broth-er. ROBERT, who w'is returning from Australia, after a 15 years' absenc e Startled by Robert's rough appearance. appear-ance. AUDREY STEVENS, th maid, ushered ush-ered him Into Mark's office on his arrival. After an unsuccessful attempt at-tempt to find Mark In ho garden, Audre returned to the house to find the ut her servants frightened by the sound of a rovolver shot and to heat Cayly pounding on the office, door, demanding admittance. GO ON WITH THE STORY CHAPTER 11 Whether Mark Ablett was a bore or not depended on the point of view, but It may be said, at once that h never borod his company on too subject sub-ject of his early life. However, itorlea get about. There is always somebody who knows. It wu.s said that as a boy, Mark had attracted the notice, anil patronage, oi aome rich old spinster of the neighborhood, who had paid lor hlu education both .it school and university uni-versity At about the tlm when b WBS coming down from Cambridge, his father had died. Mark went to London, with an advance ad-vance from his patron, and made eu -qualntance witn the moncy-li nd ra He was BUpposed, by hla patr.'ii and any others who inquired to be ' writing"; writ-ing"; but what in wrote other than letters asking for more time to pay. hus never been discovered. Fortunately (from Marks point of view, his putron died during his third year ln London, and b-rt htm all the money he want.-. I He settled accounts with the money lenders, abandon, d his crop ot wild oats to the harvesting ! others, and became in hla turn a patron pat-ron He patronized the Arts Editors were now offered free contributions con-tributions as well as free lunches, promising young painters and poetl dlmd with him, and he even took a theatrical company on tour, playing host and "lead" with equal lavlshness. His patronage Included Matthew Cay ley, a small cousin of thirteen He sent the Cayky cousin to school and Cambridge. Caylcy at 23, looked after his cousin's cou-sin's affair By this time. Mark had bought The R.,-d House. Cayley superintended sup-erintended the necessary staff. Ho was not null, r.-tary not quite landagent not nulte business-adviser, not quit, companion, but something of all lour. Cayley was now '8, but had all the appearance ot 40. which was his patron's age Spasmodically they entertained en-tertained a good deal at The Red House. Lut us have a look at them as they came down to that breakfast, of which Stevens, the parlormaid, has al-ready al-ready given us u glimpse The llrst to appear was Major Rum-bold, Rum-bold, a tall, gray-haired, gray-mus-tached, silent man, who lived on his retired pay H had got to work on a sausage by the time of the next arrival ar-rival This was Hill Beverley, a cheerful cheer-ful young man ln white flannel trousers trous-ers and a blazer. "Hallo, Major." he said, as he camo ln. "how's the gout?" "It is nt gout, ' said the Major gruff- "Well, whatever it Is. The Major grunted. 1 make a point of being polite at breakfast. ' said Bill, helping himself largely to porridge, "Well, we've got a good day lor our game. It's going to be dashed hot. but that's where Betty and I score. Hallo; good morning. Miss Norrls. Do you want any assistance, or do you prefer choosing your own breakfast "" "Please don t get up." said Miss I NorrlS. "I'll help myself Good morning. morn-ing. Major." She smiled Pleasantly at him "As I was lulling nun. uegan dim, "that's where Hullo, here's Betty Morning. Cayley." Betty Calladine and Cayley had corne in together. Betty was the 18-. 18-. ir-old daughter of Mr? Juhn Calladine, Calla-dine, widow of the painter, who was acting hostess on this occasion for Mark. Ruth Noirls took herself serl-loUSl! serl-loUSl! as an actress, and, on her holidays, holi-days, seriously as a golfer. She wao quite competent as either. I ' B the way, the cur will be round lat 10.30," Bald Cayley. looking up from i his letters "You're lunching there, land driving back directly afterward i Isn't that right?" Murk came ln He was generally the last. He greet-d them ODd set down to toast and. L a. breakfast was not his meal. The others chattered gently while he read his letters ' Good God." said Mark sudd- Dlj There was an instinctive turning of heads toward him "I Bay, Cay'" He was frowning He held up a letter and shook It. Who do you think this is from-''' Cayley shrugged his shoulders. How could he possibly guess ' "Robert," Bald Mark "I thought he was ln Australia or somewhere." "Of course. So did L He looked across at Rurnbold. "Got any brothers Major? "No." Well, taks my advice and don't have any." "Not likely to now " p-ild the Major. Bill laughed. Miss Norrls said politely po-litely "But you haven't any brothers Mr. Ablett?" 'One " aald Mark grimly "If you're bsU k in time you'll see him this afternoon after-noon He'll probably ask you to lend him five pounds Don't " Everybody felt a llttlo uncomfortable. uncomfort-able. "All the same." said Betty, a little daringly. "It must be rather fun having a skeleton ln the cupboard." Mark Idbked up. frowning "If you think It's fun. I'll hand him over to you, Betty If he'e anything like lie used to be. and like his few-letters few-letters have been well Cay knows." Cayley grunted. "All I knew was that one didn't ask questions about him." It may have been meant as a hint to any too curious guest not to ask more; questions, or a reminder to his host not to talk too freely In front of strangers although ho gave It the sound of a mere statement of fact. But the subject sub-ject dropped. At about tho time when Mark and his cousin were at their business at The Red House, an attractive gentleman gentle-man of the name of Antony Gllling-harn Gllling-harn was handing up his ticket at the Woodham station and asking the way to tho village. He is an important person per-son to this Btory, so that It Is as well wo should know something about him at the top of the hill on some excuse, and have a good look at him. The first thing we realize Is that he Is doing more of the looking than we arc. Above a clean-cut clean-shaven face, he carries a patr of gray eyes, which seem to be absorbing every detail de-tail of our person. To strongers this look is almost alarming at first, until they discover that hla mind is very often of-ten elsewhere, that he has, so to I speak, left hln eyes on guard, while, he himself, follows a train of thought In another direction. Ho had seen a good deal of tho world with those eyes. When at tho age of 21 lie came into his mother's i money, 400 pounds a year, old GHUng-ham GHUng-ham looked up from the " Stockbreeders' Stockbreed-ers' Gazette" to ask him what he was going to do. "See the world," said Antony "Well, send me a line from America, or wherever you get to." "Right," said Antony. Old Gilllngham returned to his pa-I pa-I per Antony, however had no Intention of going further away than London His Idea of seeing the world was to HI. s VOW THIRTY see, not countries, but people! and to BSC them from as many angles as possible pos-sible There are all sorts If you know ' how to look at them So Antony look- d at them from various strange corners, cor-ners, from the viewpoint of the valet, the newspaper reporter, t h waiter, the shop assistant. With the Independence I of his 400 pounds a yrur behind him. he enjoyed it Imraenaeiy. He was now thirty. He had come to Woodham for a holiday, because he j liked the look of the station. His tlrk-! tlrk-! et entitled him to travel further, but Woodham attracted him Why not get out? The landlady of "The George" was only too glad to put him up. While ho was finishing his lunch, the landlord came In to ask him about the luggage Antony ordered another plnl ..i beer, ami soon had him talking "It must be rather fun to keep a. country Inn." h. aald, thinking that it (was about time he started another pro-i pro-i fes.slon "You oiitrht to take a holl- day " 1 I "Funny thing you're saying that ' BOld the landlord with a smile. 'Another 'An-other gentleman over from The Red House, wns saying that on'y yesterday. iffered to take my place an all." He laughed rumbllngly. "The Red House? Not the i. d House, Stanton 7" , "That's right sir Stanton's the next HtnUon to Woodham. Tho Rod House la n.out a mile from here Mr. Ab- lett's." Antony took a letter from his pock-It pock-It as addressed from The Red I House, Stanton." and signed ' Rill ' I Antony had met Bin Beverley two years before In a tabacconlst's shop . Gilllngham was on one side of the Icounter and Mr Beverley on the other Something about Bill, his youth and freshness, perhaps, attracted Antony; md when cigarettes had been ordered land an address given to which they I were to be sent, h' remembered that Ihe had come across an aunt of Beverley's Bever-ley's once at a country' house. He and Antony quickly became Intimate. But Bill generally addressed him OS Dear Madman. ' when he happened to write. Antony decided to stroll over to The I Red House after lunch and call upon I bis friend As he came down the drive and np-Iproarhed np-Iproarhed the house, there was a lazy 'murmur of bees ln the flower-borders. IS gentle cooing of pigeons ln the tops ,of the elms, and from distant lawns. Ithe whir of a mowing machine that most restful of all country sounds. I And In the hall a man was hanging at a locked door ana .i.TTfl that d.,or , say'oSlSjjl "alio1 wild ntonyia3i (Continued In OuxmSI |