Show ae SR STORY T OR j e SIVE I 1 BE L by jAcQ JACQUES urs FUTRELLE RELLE ty HER IM by thi AH altel lr MJ by I 1 le 7 SYNOPSIS count di ai nosing ur the t sni mb bador to li at dinner with Alpio mito in pon hf na national capital when a messenger bribri note him to corns corn to the e anti tn bixBy at one once alere a beautiful rouff woman a eke that she h b be given a to t to the th embassy bill ball the tha tick t I 1 s male made out in the nam of miss I 1 abel abe i thorne thorn chief campbell of the secret service ervle erv lc and mr II 11 grimm hl his hod head detective are warned that plot tf of the th in race mee the h Fm illiah speak ld ln res r es is brewing in aid grimm goes troea to the th state bal half tor for information in a convere con verv his hi attention to ti culled to miss I 1 thorne thorn who ho with her ber companion soon oon dliah boari aa A ro revolver volver shot I 1 heard nd V lamb and grimm hasten down the V hll I 1 I 1 to find that senor benor alvarex of the th legation tit lon hm been shot hot A woman did it and grimm I 1 la aured it was idaj fan ala mla thor thoran lie he her demanding bowled ge of the affair and there arrest 1 m nan named pietro P h ho rae visits an old man ma i appier antly bomb maker anil a na thy hey t 0 ft a wonderful experiment CHAPTER vill VIII continued simultaneously tho the front aront door ot of the th house on m the corner where had been hiding tho the front door ot of the house near the corner where allair had been hiding opened and two heads peered out As an the car approached hastings hiding place he withdrew into the hallway but blair came out and hurried past the legation in the direction of the rapidly disappearing motor Ilu tings joined him they spoke together then turned the corner it was waa about ten that night when Ita stings reported to mr air campbell at ble hi i home we wa followed tol owed the tb car tn in fi a rented auto automobile obile from tho timo it turned the conier out through alexandria and along the old baltimore into the city ot of hl h explained jt it was dark by tho the time a reached alexandria but we atuck to to tho the car or ahead running without lights until we came in eight bight of maid th ald park and then we had bad to show how lights or be held up we coteral forty miles going in less than two hours atter after the car passed druid hill it slowed up a little and ran off the turnpike into north avenue then into north charles street and slowly along that as aa it they were looking ton toa for number at last it stopped and miss mima thorne got out and entered a house she was gone for or more than hait an hour leaving mr cadwallader with the car while she was waa rone gone I 1 i made torao inquiries and learned that the boure was aa occupied by a mr air thomas Q I 1 dont know anything else about him blair may navo have learned now romea comes the curious part dart ot of it and looked a little when mass came out ot of the house aho was as not net miss atlas thorne at all the she was wa Seo Drita inex ines It daughter of i the th venezuelan minister she wor eforo 1 the sams barne clothing all alai thorne had bad worn golm but hr her yell tell was lifted and all muffled up tip one would have taken anth it was the aino aade woman she and cadwallader Cadwal lador anre back in washington now or are coming thata all except blair I 1 1 still in fit baltimore awaiting orders 1 caught the train front from tho the charles street station and came back johnson Y you ou linow know P yes rye ITO seen johnson Joh nion int interrupted ep campbell are you ou absolu absolutes absolutely tel positive that the woman you saw get bet into the automobile with mr air madwid cadway alader iader was waa halsa Tb orneT absolutely replied Ila hastings stings without hesitation 1 I saw her in her own room with her wraps on then maw aw her pome down and get into nto tb the car that till all said the chief goodnight for an hour or more he oat bat in n a great corn tor table chair to in the ing room ot of his own home the guileless blue eyes vacant staring and baldery lines in tha benevolent fore bead on the morning of 0 the second day following sanor banor 11 the minister from venezuela reported report od to the S service ory fee bureau the disappear ince of ct fatty thousand dollars in gold from a safe in his bis private office at the legation CHAPT CHAPTER EFi IX fifty thousand dollars mr campbell was talking for several months past he b said the international investment corn com yany pany through its representative mr crenny ban baa been secretly negotiating with senor rodriguez for certain asphalt properties in venezuela three pays days nan ago these negotiations were sue suc cew fully concluded and yesterday afternoon mr cressy in secrete secret paid to t peter benor rodriguez Il fifty thousand dollars in american gold the first ot of ism it payments of similar sums sum this gold was waa to have been shipped to philadelphia la by express today to day to catch a steamer earner for venezuela Vene iuela mr air grimm nodded the fact act that this tb gold was w in se senor n or possession could not cot have been known to MOTO mom than half a dozen persons as the negotiation throughout have b ben pen in strict tract ao 0 o C crecy r ecy abid a nd mr campbell smiled maled benignly so much I 1 now senor hod has ba just asking that I 1 send a man to the legation at once the gold was waa kept there over night or perhaps I 1 should say that the tenor senor intended to leop it there over night mr campbell campball stared at mr orlum for a moment then miss thorne thorna you know li in a guest at the legation that Is I 1 why I 1 am ain referring the mattor matt or to you 1 I understand said mr grimm and ten minutes later mr grimm presented himself to senor the minister from venezuela bubbling with excitement was waa pacing forth and bock back across hla his dace rut fling his gray black hair with nervous twining fingers mr air grimm sat down senor he inquired placidly fifty thousand dollars in gold cold would weigh nearly two hundred pounds it ur senor benor rodriguez stared at him blankly st sl senor be agreed absently and then in english yen yea I 1 should imagine no 0 o well was waa all ot of it tolen stolen or only apart a part of it mr grimm went on the minister gazed into the listless eyes for a time then apparently bewildered wil dered walked forth and back across the room again finally he sat out down adall all of it he admitted 1 I cant understand der stand it no one not a soul in this house except myself know knew it was here in addition to this weight of say two hundred pounds fifty thousand dollars would make considerable bulk mused mr grimm very welli therefore it would appear that the person or persons who got it must have bavo g gone one away from here heavily laden senor rodrigues nodded and now senor mr grimm continued if bod you will kindly state the circumstances immediately preceding and following follow lne the theft A slight frown which had been I 1 k 4 no one not a soul in this house except myself knew it was here hem I 1 growing upon brow of the diplomatist was lt antly dissipated the money filly fifty thousand dollars in gold coin wu paid to mo me yesterday afternoon about four he begin began slowly in explanation by mr cressy of the international investment company supplemented mr grimm yes go on tho the diplomatist favored the young man with one sharp inqui inquiring riU glance and continued the gentleman who paid the money remained here from four until nine while 1 I personally amounted it As AB I 1 counted it I 1 placed it in canvas bugs bags and when he had gono gone I 1 took these bags from this room into that he indicated a closed door to iris right and personally stowed them away in the safe I 1 cloned and locked the door of the safe ante myself I 1 know that it was locked and all 11 II except this morning the tha money was gone bone every dollar of it sate safe blown bloant inquired mr aar grittini Grit tint no fenorl exclaimed the diplo matlat with sudden violence no the bate afo a was wag not blown it wits closed and locked exactly as aa I 1 had left I 1 it t mr grimm was idly twisting tho tha anal seal ring on an ills his little finger just as aa I 1 left it senor rodriguez repeated excitedly last night nigh after I 1 1 locked taw sate safe door I 1 tried it to make certain that it was waa loel locked ced I 1 happened to then that the pointer on thecial the dial had stopped pac ceely nt number forty live five this morning when I 1 unlocked the safe bate and nd of course I 1 know then that the monea lind bad been taken the pointer was still belll nt at number forty fiva lie ile paused with one oco hand in the air mr air grimm continued to twist the seat seal ring it was all like like some trick on the skage the minister went sent on like the migi magicians clans disappearing lady or orl or l it was its as though I 1 had not put tho the money into the safe at all did you inquired mr grimm amiably did 1 IT blazed senor rodriguez why senora senor I I 1 did he concluded meekly mr grimm bell believed eved him who else knows the combination of the safet he be queried no one senor not a living soul your secretary for instance T not even my secretary gome 9 errant some bome member of your f tanil tir lyT 1 I tell you senor not one person I 1 in id all the tha world know that cobbins I 1 tion except myself senor benor ruea insisted 7 your secretary secret itry a servant som atae e tn of your family might have hav seen you unlock the sate bare some time and thus thui learned tho the combination 7 senor rodriguez did not quite kanovi whether to be annoyed at mr grimms grimm persistence or to admire the tenacity with which he ha held to thle chic we point you must understand senor honor grimm that many state docu document are kept in the safe he said ald finally therefore it Is not advisable that liny any one should know the combination I 1 have hare made it an absolute rule a a did my predecessors here never to un lock the he safo safe in the presence ot another persona person state documents mr grimms grimm lips silently repeated tho the words then aloud perhaps theres theren a record of the zombi combination nation somewhere it had died dated suddenly and denly for instance how would the safe have been open opened edt V there would have been bean only one way set dr blow it open there li Is tic no record well it 1 we accept all that as tails true observed mr grimm musingly it would seem that you either dlan put ut the money into the safe at all OT or please sit elt down theres nothing pet per bonal in this or ar else the money wits w taken out of the safe eafe without it baini unlocked this thin last would w 0 u id have been a nit miracle and this to la n not ot the day of miracles therefore I 1 mr grimms well modulated voice trailed off into silence senor sanor noarl guez came to his feet with a blaze of anger in his eyes mr air grimm ww was watching mm curiously 1 I understand senor benor said bald tile the mt minister that yow believe that I 1 VI 1 I believe that you have told the truth interrupted mr grimm placidly that Is the truth no 0 far as a you know it but you have stated one thins thing in error somebody besides your self does know tho the combination whether they knew it or not at this time yester yesterday dar I 1 cant say but some J body knows it now senor benor drew a deep breath of relief the implied accusation had bad been withdrawn as aa pleasantly and frankly as a it had bai been put forward 1 I ran across A chap in N new york once for instance Ins mr grieci grimm mm took the trouble to explain who could unlock any safe bate that la Is any safe of the kind used at that alme or fourteen years ago so you see I 1 doubt it if he would be so BO successful with tho the new models mod elswith with all their improvements but then you know ho he would have made an ideal burglar that chap now senor who lives here her in the legation with you my secretary senor diaz my mir daughter inez and lust just at the moment a miss thorne alas isabel thorne the senor informed him also four Per servants two men and two women 1 ivo ive had the tha pleasure of meeting your daughter and blam thorne mr grimm informed him now suppose we take a look at the safe certainly benor rodriguez started toward the closed door juit ju it as aa thora there came a tim 1 j id knock front rom the hall lie glanc edl at mr grimm who nodded then hol hal called come jul in the door opened and aless thorn ei entered she wao waa clad in some filmy gossamer inie efte morning gown gawn with he her radiant hair caught upon her white neck at sight eight 0 of sir mr grimm ill the whit blue au I 1 gray eyes opened as it if in surprise and she ehe paused irresolutely 1 I beg your pardon senor she said addressing the diplomatist did not know you were engaged and I 1 mr air Grim grimail nil sho she extended a slim i white hand and the young loung man bowed 1 low over it we are old friends a ho hol explained smilingly to the minister then 1 I think I 1 must have dropped dropped my handkerchief when nhen I 1 was wan in her yesterday yeat erday with inez merhi perhaps you found it SI senorita replied senor rod ariguen gallantly it li Is on an my thy desk dek in here just ft a moment lie ile opened the door and passed into the tha adjoining room mr grimms eyes met those of alias isabel thorne and there was wag no listlessness in them now only interest she smiled at bilm tauntingly and lowered her llda lids senor rodriguez appeared from the other room with the handkerchief mil alit gracyas gra claa clas senor she thanked hin him no hy boy do que senorita he return returns turns as he opened the tha door for her I 1 monsieur fons leur G grimm nu au revoir sli shi 4 dropped a little curtsey anti anil still srol ing went out she bho la Is charming bellor Se llor tho diplo ra AM assured him enthusiastically albeit irrelevantly such vivacity such allty such su such chahe abs t Is the safe please mr air G grimm re minded him TO nr CONT continere INUrE |