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Show The Return of Anthony Trent by Wyndham Martyn & Copyright by Earse ft Hopklni WNU Service STORY FROM THE START Anthony Trani returns to New York after nearly (our years' absence. ab-sence. Once known as the master mas-ter criminal, Trent Is going straight. The purser accuses Trent of Jumping overboard from the Poitlania at Liverpool, but Is disappointed when Trent shows no surprise. He learns his friend, Capt Frank Sutton, Is In Sing Sing. At New York Trent la startled to find somebody occupying oc-cupying his house. The stranger Is Sutton Campbell, the brother of his best friend, who Is serving ten years In prison. Trent Is asked by Campbell Sutton 10 force Payson Grant to a written confession, having crookedly obtained ob-tained all of Captain Sutton's possessions and later married his wife. CHAPTER II Continued "And I have looked upon him as one of my few friends I" "He Is your friend," the other said arnestly. "And It is because he thinks you are his friend that he expects ex-pects you to do this. He has enor-mous enor-mous faith In you. He remembers bow you outwitted them all. To one eo skilled as you, so resolute and highly trained, he believes It will be child's play. Have you thought what your success means to him?" Trent sat with, his elbows on his knees, bis face buried In his bands. It was one of the bitter moments. He . felt himself trapped. There was no reason to doubt Campbell Sutton's statements. And believing them, what scape was possible? Those good resolutions, res-olutions, founded not on fear, but a gradual spiritual rebirth, must be cast to the winds. He knew that Sutton, maddened by Injustice and three years a convict, would be In no mood to listen to what would seem only poor excuses born of temerity. "Well?" said Sutton after a long silence. "What is it to be?" "You win," Trent answered listlessly. list-lessly. "I shall expect to be consulted In what moves you take," Campbell Sutton Sut-ton said. Trent allowed his growing dislike ot the intruder to flame out. "Then you'll be disappointed," he snapped. "I'm forced Into this thing and I'll do It my own way. I'm not in the habit of being dictated to by anyone. You are Captain Sutton's brother. 1 owe you nothing at all, yet you presume to command me to do this, or that, as though It were for you I have had to alter my whole plan of life." "It is the same thing," Sutton's brother said carelessly. "Emphatically it Is not," Trent retorted, re-torted, "qnd I shall teil Captain Sutton Sut-ton so when I see him." "He doesn't want you to see him. We talked that over. Grant has a dread of what my brother may do; be lias not forgotten those threats uttered ut-tered in court. Without doubt he has bis spies there in the prison who report re-port to him what visitors my brother sees. Your value will be nullified II you first go to see Frank and then take action against Grant. It would never do to Incur the risk ; choose your own path In anything but this." Trent thought a minute; it was not necessary to see Captain Sutton If the visit entailed danger. "All right," he said. "I suppose you know everything about this Grant?" "As much as my brother," said Campbell. It was nearly midnight when Trent left Campbell Sutton in possession lie was now perfectly familiar with every detail of the trial. The Innumer able questions he had asked concern Ing Payson Grant bad been answered fully. There was no doubt but thai the prisoner had confided everything to his ouly brother. CHAPTER III The Game Begins Again When Trent bad sent a telegram to Mrs. Kinney bidding her remain In Cape Cod until he was ready for her he removed from the hotel to his apartment. Then at his bank, where the cashier shook hands with him heartily, he drew a large sum of money and took a new check hook. At an automobile mart on Broadway. In the Fifties, he purchased from a reliable concern a second-hand auto mobile of a make he had previously owned. F.e bought this make because there wire so many of lhera on the road and its color was not such as to make it remarkable. Trent was on bis way to see n man named David More whom he had frequently fre-quently employed. When Trent lirsi beheld him. More was a snuill dyspeptic dys-peptic man weighted down hy monetary mone-tary cares. In those days Mure was ; engaged in the credit and collection department of a furniture house which assured uililnus home furnishers thai i i their credit was good. It was More'B business to ferret oul details concern ing the life and babits of such as desired de-sired their furniture on the Installment Install-ment plan. When Trent had Invented his rich uncle and was living in Ceniral Park, West, he found himself once or twice handicapped by ignorance of the num hers and habits of the servants in some of the great bouses be planned to raid. Then It was be thought of David More. He found that More haf lost Ills position owing to a tire which wiped out his firm. Trent established More In a little detective agency of his own and was bis Hrst client. More had an Idea that Trent was one high up in the secret service. Just before the outbreak of the war, More suffered from varicose veins and was unable to make ends meet. Further, Fur-ther, his wife was ill and the small home sold up. Timidly he appealed to Anthony Trent, whom he had not seen for a year, to aid him. Trent dragged from bim that it had long been his ambitloi. to retire from a business which kept him s. much on bis feet and retire to the profitable ease of a store which dealt in tobacco, tobac-co, candy and magazines. Two brothers wh. owned such a scor in the main street of Fort Leo were selling out preparatory to going Trent Sat With His Elbows on His Knees. to France. Within an hour of bearing bear-ing of this Anthony Trent had bought Che place. Ere the Leviathan left her dock the More family was Install -d. The new car pulled up before More's little shop. Beholding his benefactor. More Jumped up with eagerness. He stammered out a desire de-sire to pay an Installment on the property. "Nonsens--," Trent said, smiting; "yon can't pay an Installment on a gift. Don't mention it again. I'v. come to take you for a ride if you'- c the tima." Trent drd not mention the subject that brought him until they were going go-ing down the hill Into Leonia. "I want your assistance," he began. "Can you go down Asbury way for a week?" "Glad to." More said eagerly. "Anything "Any-thing at all, Mr. Trent." "Fine," Trent ixclaimed. "The Gug-gensohn Gug-gensohn place at Deal Beach has recently re-cently been bought by Payson Grant. 1 want to know his habits, diversions, ."rlends and how and where he passes his fir .. Also, how many servants sleep indoors and their names. Verify their references and craw on me for what money you need. Here's a hun dred as a starter. Before you go down there look in the offices of Suttoi. and Jlerton. 23 Broad street. Capt. Frank Sutton was my adjutant ; at present he's In Sing Sing. Get some old employee to talk about him and his brother Campbell. Let me know what you find ou' concerning them before you go down to Deal. I'm anxious anx-ious for accurate information about Frank Sutton's Intimate friends. If he had any. Learn it' the office what they think about his guilt." He dropped More at his store very well satisfied. More would bring him a clearly written report in which nothing was Incorporated that had not been learned from some source outside himself. When Anthony Trent had aban doned journalism for magazine writing be resided for two years in the board Ing house of a Mrs Sauer. whose main weakness was poor Judgment in the selection of her cooks, and ,i too narrow range in her hills of fare. Trent had seen hei struggling against fate and had been urwible to help net except In pnying hid bills promptly nnd occasionally .setlllEg those of Mr. and Mrs. Clarke. Clarke had been a celebrated Park Row character whose last position was that of city editor on the paper Trent had abandoned for fiction writing. The demon rum bud been Clarke's undJlng. It was after he had been gone for some years from the Sauer abode that he learned she was at last to lose her house. This he found out a little time before be enlisted, and this, too, was one of those sudden charities which meant little enough t him but spelled salvation to Mrs. Sauer. He settled her debts In full, installed ber In a better bouse, and made the suggestion, sug-gestion, whlcb the grateful woman followed, that she should take Mrs. Clarke Into partnership. He had been told since that the scheme had been successful. Mrs. Clarke was a natural-born cook for whom ovens ran true to form and culinary marvels happened as matters of course. It was to this boarding house in the old Chelsea district that Trent took his way after having seen More. His old landlady Insisted that be take coffee cof-fee nnd cake with her and Mrs. Clarke after the first greeting was over. She assumed that he had come to talk about some form of repayment. "Forget it," he said, smiling. "Yon and the Clarkes were always kind to me, and It was fortunate fiat I discovered dis-covered a way of proving my gratitude. grati-tude. I have been in America less than a week, and I only came in tc see how you all were." He rose as Mrs. Clarke, flushed from the heat of the kitchen range, entered the room. She was a large, dignified woman, now completely happy for the first time in twenty years. Prohibition Prohibi-tion had aided her. Her husband was always at home now. No more haunting haunt-ing visions of seeing bim (-rushed by trolleys or automobiles. No more humiliating moments of Inquiry at saloons for him. "He's writing a book," she assured Trent "It's about old Park Row." "Fine," said Trent. "I'd like to see him. ( Is he in?" ' "He's absolutely engrossed in the book," said his wife. "There are tirac3 when he won't leave his room." Trent followed Mrs. Clarke to the top floor. Clarke literally fell upon his old reporter's neck and dragged him in. "I want this boy for an hour, mother," moth-er," he said. His wife smiled and left tliem. The Clarkes bad not always al-ways been on such amicable terms. Prosperity has much to do with conjugal con-jugal happiness. "It was my adjutant who got ten years for attempted murder and embezzlement.. em-bezzlement.. Sutton was the name. It was almost three years ago. I suppose sup-pose you read it?" Trent began. "Every line." Clarke returned, "from the editorials on it to the slush sisters' sis-ters' sob stuff." "What did you think cf the verdict?" ver-dict?" "Sutton accused the judge of unfairness; un-fairness; that was bad. This accusation accusa-tion of cruelty to his wife hurt him. Hooked up with wild women in gay Paree while his wife was knitting him socks. The Judge ruled that out, but it sticks." "Clarke," said Trent Impressively, "Sutton was absolutely devoted to his wife. He had no thought for any one else. There's nothing In that wild woman stuff, believe me. It was invented in-vented by Payson Grant, who has since married Mrs. Sutton. Sutton's wife urged him to go to France he-cause he-cause she was in love with a slacker who had one of the fifty-seven varieties varie-ties of flat feet that were invented In 1917. He threatened Grant, as any red-blooded man would. Grant's afraid of him, but be has seven more years to enjoy stolen property. He's got a superb mansion down on Ocean drive at Deal Beach, and the woman's he's been hankering for. Seven years Is a long time. One of them may be dead by then." "One of 'em will be dead before that," said Clarke, "or I miss my guess. Didn't you know that Sutton swore he'd break Jail and kill Grant 7" "That hurt his chance," Trent said. "1 suppose they'll put him under extra guard or something?" Clarke looked at the younger man with a slight frown. "Where do you suppose your friend, Sutton, is?" "Ossinitig on the Hudson." "Like b 11 he is," Clarke retorted. "He escaped two weeks back." Trent stnreo at him for a moment without speaking. If Clarke wer right why had Campbell Sutton persisted per-sisted in the deception? a dislike be had formed for the man seemed to him now some Intuitional sense which had warned him, and not merely a prejudice. prej-udice. . (TO BE CONTINUED.) |