Show v r Y 1 f 5 I OP rui r S 8 g Sk SY SYNOPSIS SIS I Lauren Lawren c lawyer goes to Pittsburg with tim tho for forged d notes notes In the tho I Bronson Case to get the deposition of John ohn Gilmore millionaire In the latter's house ouse he is attracted by the picture o of t girl whom Gilmore explains m Is hi his Allson West S He says say her to friend father Is a a. rascal and a of the lie he forger A lady requests Blakeley to tom buy uy her Cr a Pullman ticket Ho to gives her lower m ower eleven and retains lower ten He finds a man in n drunken a stupor In lower ten and goes to bed In lower nine He awakens in lower seven an and 1 finds finds finds' that his nis hag bag ag and clothes are missing The m man n In lo lower e t ten n Is found murdered His name name It develops Is Simon Harrington Th The ine man who ho disappeared with Blake Blake- leys ley's ley eys s clothes Is suspected Blakeley becomes be be- comes interested in Itt a girl In blue Circumstantial Circumstantial Cir Cir- evidence places Blakeley under un- un Jer der suspicion of murder The train Is wrecked Blakeley Is rescued from the burning car by the girl In blue His arm ann Is s broken Together they go to the Carter Carer Car- Car ter er farm for breakfast Tho The girl rl proves to o bo Alison West Yest his partners partner's sweet- sweet heart Alison's peculiar actions mystify the he the lawyer She drops her gold bag and Blakeley unnoticed puts It In his pocket poc n Ile returns home and learns from his landlady an of stra strange happenings g. CHA CHAPTER TER XI XI Continued Is she talking still sUll or again he asked just before the door closed There was wa a seconds second's Indecision with the knob then judging discretion the better part Mrs went away Now then McKnight said settlIng settling settling set set- himself in a chair beside the b bd bed dj spit it out Not the wreck I wreck I know all I want about about that But nut the theft I can tell you beforehand that It was a woman I had crawled painfully out of bed and was in the act of pouring the eggnog egg egg- nog down the pipe of the tho washstand I paused with the glass in the airA airA air A woman I repeated startled What makes you think that You dont don't know the first ies of a good detective yarn he said scornfully Of course It was the woman in the empty house next door You said it was wass brass pipes you will remember Well Well Well-on on with the dare dance let joy be unconfined So So-I So I told the story I had told It so many times Umes that day that I did it au au- And I told about the girl with the br bronze half hale and my suspicions ions But I did not mention Alison AUson West McKnight listened to the end without interruption When I I 1 had finished he drew a long breath Well he said something of a mess isn't it If you can only prove your mild and childlike disposition disposition disposition dispo dispo- they couldn't hold you for the murder which murder which is a regular ten crime anyhow But the notes notes notes- that's different They are not burned anyhow Your man wasn't on the train train therefore therefore he wasn't in the wreck If he be didn't know what he was taking as you seem to think he probably probably probably ably reads the papers and unless heis he heIs heis is a fathead hes he's awake by this timeto time timeto to what hes he's got Hell He'll tI try to sell them to Bronson probably Or to us I put in We said nothing for a few minutes McKnight smoked a cigarette and stared at a photograph ph of Candida over the mantel Candida Is the best pony for a heavy mount in seven states I 1 didn't gg go to Richmond he observed observed observed ob ob- served finally The remark followed my own thoughts so closely that I started Miss West Vest Is not home yet from Seal Harbor Receiving no r response he lapsed again into thoughtful silence Mrs came in just as the clock struck one and made preparation forthe for forthe forthe the night by putting a large gaudy comfortable into an arm chair in the dressing room with a a smaller stiff stiff- backed chair for far her feet She was wonderfully attired in a dressing gown that was reminiscent in parts of all the ones she had given me for a half dozen Christmases and she had hud a purple purple pur pur- pie veil wrapped around her head to hide heaven knows what deficiency She examined the empty egg nog glass Inquired what the evening paper had said about the weather and then stalked into the dressing room and with much ostentatious creaking to sit up all night We Ve fell silent again while McKnight McKnight Mc Mc- Knight traced a rough outline of the berths bertha on the white and puzzled It out slowly It was something somethIng something some some- thing like this 12 10 6 iLL r II 11 i s 9 1 7 i tt I t r tl tI i t t e he e changed change d th the e t tags on I. I i even eyen ar I lino Ino so that when you went b bed you thought you I I z I nine when It t was wasI I TJi that Art r ih hoort I I Y Entry t. t i rl t for th thO f I g Jg when every every- ID C i W il V leery Is s that t i of i arvin arvn Broo 9 1 S again and d Ina I to 1 I lays days to do RegIl c iM r t c nt r t n c else lse I T desert esert Clai l r. r 1911 1011 I H ya Dart Dart bridge that 11 1 ii nt- nt i t.- t. d t- t was like MeS D' D Dry I I t I'd ld d winning out I i k y 9 have doubted 1 been rever reversed in r tb left loft you you a in I a bad way Not a Jury In the tho country would stand out against the stains the stiletto and the murdered mans man's pocket book In your possession Then you think Sullivan did it I asked Of course said McKnight con con- Unless you did it In your sleep Look at the stains on his pillow pillow pillow pil pil- low and the dirk stuck into it And didn't he have the man Harrington's pocket-book pocket 1 But why did he go off oft without the money I persisted And where does the bronz haired bronze girl come in Search me met ted flip filp- Inflammation ot of the imagination imagination nation on your part Then there is the piece of tel telex tele gram It said lower ten car seven Its It's extremely likely that she had it That telegram was about me Richey Rl hey Im getting a headache he said putting out his cigarette against the sole of his shoe All Im I'm certain of just now Is that If there hadn't been beena a wreck by this time you'd be sitting in an eight by ten cell and feeling like the rhyme fo for it But listen to this I contended as ashe ashe ashe he picked up his hat this fellow Sulivan Sullivan Sul Sul- ivan livan is a fugitive and hes he's a lot more likely to make advances to Bronson than to us We could have the case continued release Bronson on bail ball bailand bailand balland and s set t a watch on him Not my watch McKnight protested protest protest- ed Its a family heirloom better go home I s said ld firm firm- firmly ly Go home and go to bed Youre You're sleepy You can have Sullivans Sullivan's red necktie to dream over if you think it will wUl help any Mrs voice came drowsily from the next room punctuated by a yawn Oh I forgot to tell you she I called with the suspicious lisp which characterizes her at night somebody called up about noon Mr It was long distance and he said he would call cali again The name dame was was sh she yawned yawned Sullivan Sullivan CH CHAPTER PTER XII The Gold Bag I have always smiled at those cases of spontaneous combustion which like Ilke fusing the component parts of a seid seid- litz powder unite two people in a bubbling bubbling bub bub- bling ecstasy But sure- sure surely there is possible with but a single meeting an attraction so great a community of mind and Interest so so str strong ng that between that first meeting meetIng meetIng meet- meet Ing and the next the bond may grow into something stronger This ahls Is especially especially es es- es- es true I fancy of people with temperament the modern substitute for for- Imagination It is a nice question question ques tion whether lovers begin to love when they are together or when wilen they are apart Not that I followed any such line lino of reasoning at the time I would not even admit my folly to myself But during tho the restless hours of or that first night flight after the accident when my back ached with lying on It It and any other position was torture I found my thoughts constantly going back to Allson All All- son West I dropped into a doze to dream of touching her fingers lingers again to comfort her and a awoke woke to find I had haa patted a t teaspoonful of medicine rut out of Mrs Indignant hand band What What was was it McKnight had bad said about making an egregious ass of myself II i r And And that brought me back to Richey and I fancy I groaned There is no use expatiating on the friendship between between between be be- I tween two men who have gone together to gether gather through college have quarreled quarreled quare and made it up hp fussed together over politics and debated creeds for years men dont don't need to be told and women cannot understand NevertheleSs Nevertheless less I groaned If it t had been any anyone any anyone anyone one but Rich Riehl Some things were mine however and I would hold them The halcyon breakfast the queer hat the pebble In her small shoe the gold bag with the broken chain the chain the bag Why It was in my poc pocket et at that moment I got up painfully and found my coat Yes there was the purse bulging bulging bul bul- bul ging with an opulent suggestion of wealth Inside I went back bacle to bed again somewhat dizzy between effort and the touch of the trinket so lately hers I held It up by its broken chain and gloated over it By careful attention attention attention atten atten- tion to orders I 1 ought to be out in aday aday a aday day or so Then Then Then-I I could return it to her I really ought to do that it was valuable and I wouldn't care to trust it to the mall mail I could run down to Richmond and see her once once there there was no no- no disloyalty to Rich In that I had no intention of opening the little bag I put it under my pillow pUlow- which was my reason for lor refusing to toha ha have ve the tho linen slips changed to Mrs dismay And sometimes during durIng during dur dur- ing the morning while I lay under a virgin field of ot white ornamented with strange flowers my cigarettes hidden beyond discovery and Science and Health on a table by my elbow as if by the merest accident I slip my hand under my pillow and touch It rev- rev McKnight came In about 11 I heard his car at the curb followed almost immediately by his slam at the front door and his usual clamor on the stairs He had a bottle under his arm rightly surmising that I had been forbidden stimulant and a large box of cigar cigarettes in his pocket suspecting my deprivation Well Nell he said cheerfully How Haw did you sleep aft after r keeping me up half the night I slipped my hand around the purse w was s well covered Have Haye it now or wait walt till I get the cork corle out he rattled onI onI onI on I dont don't want anything I protested I wish you wouldn't be so darned cheerful Richey He stopped whittling whittling whit whit- to stare at me I am saddest when I sing he S r i J. J t Y- Y j sl ti if L f I K Knew new That BJ Bit t of Chain quoted unctuously Its pure reaction reaction reaction tion Lollie Yesterday the sky waslow waslow was was- waslow low I was digging for my best friend he Today To day he lies before me his peevish self Yesterday I 1 thought the notes were burned day to-day I today I look forward to a good cross-country cross chase and with luck we will draw His voice cl changed suddenly Yesterday Yesterday she she was in Seal Harbor day To-day she Today she Is here Here In Washington 7 I asked as naturally as I could Yes Going to stay a week or two Oh I had a little hen and she had a wooden leg legAnd legAnd legAnd And nearly every morning she used used to lay lar an egg egg egg- Will you stop that racket Rich Its It's the real thing this time I I suppose sup pose Well he said Judicially since you drag It from me I think perhaps It Is You You youre youre you're such a confirmed woman-hater woman that I hardly knew how you would take It It Nothing of or the sort I denied test ly lYe Because a man reaches the age of 30 without making maudlin love loye to every every- x Ive taken to long country rides he went on reflectively without listening listening listen listen- ing to me and yesterday I ran over overa a sheep nearly went into the ditch But theres there's a Providence that watches over fools foals and lovers and just now I know darned well that Im I'm one and I have a sneaking idea Im I'm both You are both I said with disgust If It If you can bo be rational for one moment moment mo mo- meat ment I wish you would tell me why that man Sullivan called me over the i telephone yesterday morning I Probably hadn't yet discovered tho the I Bronson notes providing notes providing you hold to I your theory that the theft was Incidental incidental in tn- tb to the murder May have wanted his own clothes a again ain or to thank you for yours S Search trio me me I cant can't think of anything else The doctor came in just then Pretty good shape he said How did you sleep Oh occasionally I replied I I would like to sit up doctor Nonsense Take a rest while you have an excuse for It I wish to thunder thun thunder der I could stay In bed for a day or so I was up all aU night Have a drink McKnight said pushing over the bottle Twins The doctor grinned Have Havo two drinks But the medical man refused I wouldn't even wear a champagne champagne- colored necktie during business hours he explained By the way I bad had another case from Crom your accident accident acci dent Mr Blakeley last yesterday aft aft- Under the tongue please He Ho stuck a thermometer In my mouth I had a sudden terrible vision of ot the amateur detective coming to light notebook note cheerful impertinence and incriminating da data a. a A small man I demanded gray hair hair hair- Keep your mouth closed the doctor doctor doc doe tor said peremptorily No A woman woman wom an with a fractured skull Beautiful case Van Kirk was up to his eyes and sent for me Hemorrhage right right- sided paralysis Irregular pupils pupils all all the trimmings Worked for two hours Did she recover McKnight put In Ho He was examining the doctor with a anew anew anew new awe She lifted her right arm before 1 left the doctor finished cheerily so the e operation was a success even II it If she should die Good heavens McKnight broke in and I thought you ou were just an ordinary mortal like the rest of us Let me touch you for luck Was she pretty I Yes and young Had a wealth of colored bronze-colored hair Upon my soul I hated to cut it it I McKnight and I exchanged glances Do you know her name doctor I asked No The nurses said her clothes came from a Pitts Pittsburg burg tailor She Is not conscious I suppose No she may be t morrow to-morrow tomorrow morrow or in ina ina a week He looked at the thermometer murmured something about l liquid diet avoiding my eye eye Mrs was broiling a chop at the time time and and took his departure humming cheerfully as ashe ashe ashe he went downstairs McKnight looked after him him wistfully lly Jove I wish I had his constitution constitution tion he exclaimed Neither nerves nor heart What a chauffeur he would make nu But I was serious I have an Idea idea I said grimly that this small matter of the murder is going to come up again and that your uncle w will be In the deuce of a fix if it it does If that woman is going to die somebody ought to be around to take her deposition She knows a alot alot alot lot i 1 if she didn't do it herself I 1 wish you would go down to the telephone and get the hospital Find out aut her name and if she is conscious McKnight went under protest I 1 haven't much time he said looking at his watch Im to meet Mrs West Nest and Alison at one I want you to know them Lollie You would like Uka the |