Show the MARCH R D E rn 01 lx alx lk MONTE wa W in s F X CO CHAPTER ill continued 6 lie ile worry me declared kilday its the world and globe that sound ugly it exactly what they say bay its how flow they say buy it the tha inference to Is that the murder was political and that wo we wont dare go after the man responsible tho the fact that jim franklin was wag expected to be the next governor going to help me any so far ns as the papers are concerned be ba on my neck and the district attorney will probably have me ino on the carpet in tho the morning walt wait mid and bee lie ile cant stand tills this und kind of pressure 11 1111 meaning leaning brills of course nobody else the fact eliat he was one of the last persons to see Uran franklin kiln alive has given the p a pers just the excuse they need peter what made jim franklin the logical candidate for governor at the next election the manner in ahl which ell lie han handled died the investigation of the magi magistrate magistral strat scandal of course no one thought gilt 43 he would go after huella brills the way lie did but buti exclaimed the detective the point nut but lie he did ile ho went after brills hammer anti and tongs no ona n thought le ha would it made him a popular idol end and it made brills tits his enemy well theres our me motive five if brills la Is guilty our next lend then you dont think callis shipley or idylle carmody 1 I dont want to think of them until I 1 have to declared the sergeant this Is our plainest trail if it pan out I 1 can call conie come back to the others brills waa was there wid tits motive was clear cut and so was idylle Car modys ile ho was deac rint ned to stop tile tho wed peter reminded him earnestly so was waa choo choo trains she was she had a motive tor for stopping the wedding and tho the woman in bille whoever stio site may liae have been had a motive mothe for stopping it if slie she loved franklin the queer tiling thing about this caso case 1 night ight or nine people that we know of had fit nn opportunity to commit the crime and it require much imagination to find a motive mothe for or any of them allday rose pose ill take em one at a tittle time lie he salt said and im go ing to start with Ilu llull ills ls coming coining lets go said peter daniel brills was unexpectedly easy to flud and A telephone call from the restaurant located him film at tits ills down downtown downto town club khero lie usually dined llo ile was still nt at table when interrupted by days call sure buro I 1 went to see him film the poll poil said after settling seating each of ills his guests a drink what will you iou have hae hos boys they both declined it was a matter of prInc principle lIlo with kilday cardigan thought there was a shade of too much breezy ness in the invitation it quite ring true well you dont mind if I 1 do said ringing for an attend ant ile wery one to tits his own tastes us as the widow said bald when she kissed tile the pig 11 the iho quantity of his hi booming laugh wivi via more than atoned for by its lack of mirth lie ile entertained his visitors with nn anecdote obviously intended to reveal ills his ow own n importance ns as lie he waited for Ms lil drink daniel bullis was a 11 huge man from roin the halry hairy hands had engulfed peters hiring during their introduction to tn the crown of tits head which seemed almost too ponderous for his massive frame it was that ponderous intend which dwarfed the avs ide shoulders that fascinated peter ita ir spite of its size or because of it cardigan was nut not sure which there was something almost there tin tile I 1 e a about olit the mans expression the lie short blond hair straight as a string grew low on oil his fits forehead anti vas unvaried it wai haq not res as though it had been combed long ago and forgotten so much ns as though it had never known a comb Hye eyebrows brows there were almost none and this heightened the wide tile tuno cence of the mans blue stare except when lie he laughed lauff heil then tell tale folds of flesh curled up beneath his eyes revealing nn tain maturity the mouth and chin were a direct negation of otner features for there wua wita strength written tit in the loan lean lips and wide vide sweep of jaw the drink arrived and tho the politician drained halt half the cool content tg a cf of the long glass before turning again to aliday yeah 11 he repeated 1 I went to see franklin Frnnk lin lie ile nodded toward a disorderly sor derly pile of newspapers by bl chair ive been rending reading about it soi so I 1 surprised when you phoned that you wanted to see me well ne lie twisted in his hla chair in order to face the detective lets go what do you want to knoerl know first I 1 want to know what you were so BO anxious to see bee franklin about air Bu brills Ills anxious the politician weighed eil the word well I 1 guess call calf it that I 1 had to see bee him I 1 wanted to tell him film what I 1 thought of him wily why I 1 helped make jim franklin and lie he knew it hed still bo be unknown it it been for far me why hy lie ho was afraid to see nio me after he turned on me afraid to see you peter interrupted what else would you say brills demanded contemptuously id been trying to get hold of him tor for three lays days at his office tits his home tits ills club everywhere why ive even been paging him over at choo obbo trains but ho he was dodging we me well I 1 know knew there was one place lie dodge me the e church so I 1 went there and I 1 s saw aw him what was it you were so an anxious X to see him about aliday repented repeated ills his quest question lon bullis compressed his lips into a thin hard line huh ho he grunted and you call yourself a detec detective e well ill tell you jim franklin fit 1 I 1 I 1 t t i P sure said bullis A peach thought 6 he was going to climb into the governors chair by sacrificing a few old friends who put him where he was I 1 went there to tell him hed had never neier get near albany until lie he was willing to listen to me and I 1 told liaro lie he was in a tough spot had to listen to me and lie he agreed with me ine too you yota mean to say peter leaned forward intently that you and franklin came caino to an agreement there to in the church study did you part friends sure brills grinned with his mouth but tits his eyes remained palely expressionless jim saw raw his mistake and wo we parted the best ot of friends just how did that come about the novelist inquired curiously you in a very friendly frame of wind mind alien you went there the politician leaned back tn in hta his ell a fr 11 1 1 I 1 have ways was of making people agree with me so I 1 see im trying to find out just what you had to say to franklin and what he said to you that caused such a sudden change of feeling between you never know that replied brills shortly again lie picked up his fits highball glass his attention ap patently riveted solely on oil the drink then perhaps 9 tell us about the woman you saw there suggested cardigan there was rl a woman there there sure said brills A pen peach ch jim always w was a better hand with women than lie he was with will phil politics ties radl you know the woman had you over ever seen her he before forel the politician shook his head id never ever seen e her before lio lie said T im sure of that she the kind you forget did sho she have on a blue dress dressy inquired the sergeant 1 I believe so im not sure reter peter picked up the topics crum pled lea beside the politicians chair ant and held up the page of pictures choo choo train was pictured there so was callis shipley among the he other bridesmaids could you pick her out of that group mr Bu brills Ills brills hesitated over the ilc turpa lures 1 I dont think sties there lie ho replied finally if she Is I 1 dont recognize her the novelist had hardly hoped it would be as easy to identify the woman in blue as that yet lie he was disappointed lie continued the questioning was franklin quarreling with tills this woman when you entered the room yes do you know what they were quarreling about in a way I 1 do it seems that the woman was in love with jim and she like this wedding business what did she bile say bay 1 I 1 dont remember everythIng ever thing that was said I 1 only remember that she was hysterical and jim was trying to quiet tier her tile only words I 1 remember member le are that she kept saying you cant do this jim you cant to do it ill ruin both of us before I 1 let you iou jim was glad to see me right then he quieted the woman and I 1 told him I 1 wanted to see him alone alo ne she want to leave and finally jim said go ahead and talk sties all right later when I 1 was ready to leave jim turned to the tha woman again cant you see how much trouble im in honey he asked tier her ill 1111 keep my word to you this time sure just as soon as I 1 get back the v woman oman started to c cry ry if I 1 could only believe you jim she said everything would be all right its going to be all right honey h one 0 he told tier her and he motioned me t to o hel help hi him in listen I 1 says to her give him a break abream iles hes going to be married in five minutes 1 1 I dont remember all we said but sho she finally dually agreed to go ga and site she left with me we went out the back door I 1 my illy carts cars here I 1 told tier her TU ill take you home but she let me she had her own cir car a green sedan I 1 know because I 1 watched her get in what make was the car demanded kilday it was a cadillac I 1 think the sergeant gro groaned abed it won would id be there are only ten thousand green cadillacs in tills this town peter studied bullis thoughtfully you could identify that woman if you saw tier lier again mr brills Bu llla Ills 1 I 1 dont know maybe the po politician 11 returned his stare coolly she made quite an impression on you she this time it was galday speaking the politician turned the battery of his expressionless eyes upon him 1 I said she was easy to look tit at he replied hut but still you iou identify her picture in tile the paper the detective grunted his fits disbelief brills once oine moro more examined the pictures spread out across the front page of topics you seem mighty sure lt it was one of these girls he said what do you iou think newspaper pictures arent always such good likenesses the politician suavely replied CHAPTER CHAP TER IV seeking a woman in blue TT IT WAS still early when allday and cardigan quitted quilted hunts club what do you think aliday demanded as they waited for cor their car ca r peter shrugged iles hes only telling what he wants to tell theres po wily way of knowing when bullas left that hint room when ambrose oar roody rapped franklin made him wait ault before admitting him there must have been some one there who had time to leave by the rear door before carmody entered jf it it was huells he could have waited until carmody left and then come brack back or of course it may have been the woman in blue who returned it Is possible it was wag both I 1 am only sure of one tiling thing some one was there or have kept mr fr carmody waiting and how about choo choo train and callis shipley pley T they 11 ey goth both visited the vestry arter after car in inbody 0 17 1 I 1 dont know about choo choo replied the novelist wearily As for the other girl she never entered the study royce declares lie ho rapped on the door and franklin replied that young carmody there As A far as we know nil all miss shipley had to do with it kilday paused in the lighting of a new cigar that she drove home with kyllo carmody and lied to us about it and knew that jim franklin was waa killed hut but cant explain how site she knew it it and he be brandished brandishes bran dished tile the stogy for further emphasis why did she run around there looking for itolle carmody in the first place im not so sure he added that she the blond woman in the blue dress that doctor abernathy saw lie ile may not bei be telling the truth about that it if he knows this girl so BO well he may havo have a mistaken idea of 0 ell chivalry and be trying to protect tier her hut but peter still was waa not convinced if it had been cailis shipley brills have identified tier her from the picture in the newspaper maybe maybe not I 1 think you answered that question yourself a bit ago perhaps brills want to identify the woman he saw in tile the study because she heard all that passed between him and franklin its entirely possible she knows too much no o o peter were not through with this girl yet by anny means nor with brills either because both callis sh shapley apley ipley and hylle brylle carmody had referred to webster spears as the man who had been the source of information regarding choo choo train it was decided that they would question him next and here a surprise awaited them the spears home was a private house the last to linger in aneldh a neighborhood of apartment buildings which towered around it at the curb before it two cars were parked a roadster and a sedan this particularly attracted their attention because it was necessary for them to park in front of tile tha apartment house next door we want to see mr air webster spears kilday informed the butler alio a answered the ring im m very sorry stir sir mr air spears la Is busy lie he cannot bo be disturbed im sorry too said the detective tl exhibiting hla his badge in the palm of his hand this Is once oace hell have to be disturbed af after ter a wait of several minutes during which kladar tersely summarized the evidence as it touch touched this s man spears entered the room not more than twenty five he was of that slender build which emphasized the nicety of his grooming ills features molded too fin finely ply were almost sharp particularly now a ai lie he glanced inquiringly first at cardigan then at the detective peter noticed how hla his hair prematurely receding at the temples directed attention to the sleekness of the man you wanted to see me spears began abruptly ue he did not offer to shake hands we want to know why you were so anxious to stop doris Car Carm odya modys wedding this afternoon inquired bitingly the question caught the young man oft off balance 1 I stop the wedding lie Ile smiled briefly as though he found the idea absurd why else dilyou did you tell brylle carmody about choo choo train today the sergeant demanded abu sou did tell him you spears drew up a chair and sat down deliberately before replying peter felt that it was his method of sparring tor for time yes he admitted finally 1 I informed ryle about this actress of course it seemed the only thing to do how do you happen to know about her it seemed to be common knowledge I 1 heard gossip of it at the club after that I 1 made some inquiries which substantiated what I 1 had haa heard so I 1 informed brylle 11 when was it you heard this gossip sip peter interjected spears glanced at him quickly only this morning two chaps at the next table were discussing the wedding feeling sorry for tho the car modys they mentioned this actress that angered me of course you see he be shrugged dapper shoulders itolle and doris have been almost brother and sister to me we have grown up together I 1 felt tho the same ebbie interest in this wedding aa though hough it had been my own sister why I 1 made inquiries everyone seemed to know that choo choo train was franklins mistress it was the most natural thing in the world for me to inform itolle and you wanted to be sure you why you called up his father too it axll day demanded demand d 1 I dont know what you mean defensively oh yes ica you do the sergeant persisted you telephoned ambrose carmody and gave him the bit same ta formation just this afternoon did he say that the young mans voice was incredulous peter found himself wondering whether or not the tone was assumed the detective studied the glow ing ash of his fits cigar you give him film your name he continued but you must realize that |