| Show rc y z r-z r o 0 r 1 f U UI r h E I if SEE ROHMER ey sAx A U orb orbS S COPYRIGHT ay SAX ROM MER SERVICE SEA SYNOPSIS Matt Kearney Ke-arney young American JI In London says aya good by to his sIster liter Eileen on board the tho Wat Wal Wall laroo roo The ship Is la conveying 2000 2000 In gold to Australia Australla On his way home Kearney meets meeta Inspector Daw Daw- lion on Halg of Scotland Yard very much In n love with Eileen Halg Haig Is Ison Ison laon on th the trail of opium which he ho la Is convInced Is concealed In Jo Lungs Lung's warehouse Culled Caned to other duty Haig delegates Kearney with Do t De-t De- De o Norwich to visit laU the place and find and out what h he can cnn While Inthe In Inthe Inthe the warehouse war hou e Kearney picks up and carries away a notebook which he turns turn over to Hale Halg CHAPTER Continued il-Continued 11 Continued 3 Her IIer blue-black blue hair gleamed like a 11 ravens raven's wing Her lIer long lone dark eyes were ever er so go slightly oblique and she had a petulant red mouth small and delicately chiseled features and ond held her head disdainfully disdainfully high Her complexion was peach like peach like Uke but dark and clad silk clad ankles and tiny shoes slices peeping beneath the fringe of a black lace frock had a dainty and patrician elegance She was Imperially petite allurIng alluring ing lag yet menacing The fIle Greek and Jo Lung stepped aside deferential deferential- deferentially ly as Yuan Yunn she said sah and the voIce of this cold woman had a deep warm caressing note who were those men I saw them from the stair Come Corne In and shut the door the Chinaman replied Did eIther of them see sec you No I dont don't think so Do you suspect you suspect them solicitously passed her a acard acard acard card This Is the Introduction they brought my lady Indy and Mr had advised us that they were coming The woman took the card glanced at It and tossed It onto a 8 side elde table O Are you ready to leave Yuan V I have a telephone call to make to the Wallaroo he replied There has been much bungling I must speak to the doctor lIe He stooped dipping his hand n a plump waxen s hand with taperIng fingers Into an Inside pocket of the heavy fur coat which lay at his feet Suddenly he glanced up the china chinn white of his e eyes es glaring I removed my Boat as I entered the warehouse he said and car car- carried carried ried It here I have dropped my notebook Something In those words broke through the high dis disdain damn dain of the woman watching him Your notebook Yuan clutching the arms of the chair continued to watch her his drooping lids slowly slowly cover cover- covering covering ing those ominous eyes The oth oth- others others others ers were watching her also I said so It contains our death warrants 1 l The woman clasped her slender throat throat-a a curious gesture Ail Ah I she I cried cried I am blind 1 I It must be bel I 1 I saw saV sa V one of those men pIck pIckup pickup pickup up a small notebook 1 I It was like yours yours-It It must have been yours I IOn On the steps from the Silver Sliver room You saw this Yuan whispered In like flute tones The Greek was very pale I had stepped back I r turnIng up the light on OD the stair Yuan his eyes now apparently quite closed turned In the womans woman's woman direction Open the door go down downto downto downto to those stairs quickly quickly and tell me It f you deceived yourself Some but not all her disdain de- de deserting de deserting e her the woman turned opened the door and swept out of the office Jo Jo Lung Yuan continued low Ol low her Your life lICe and mine de depend do- do e- e pend upon what I tell you If It those pigs have hare found and taken that notebook our necks are arc hung upon a silken thread There Is but fog fog they must be overtaken That book must be back here upon this table within an hour Jo Lung moved silently toward the door Two men Yuan added All shall go- go go And Antl send for the Adder AlMer J As As Jo Lung disappeared Yuan turned his apparently closed eyes ces In the direction of At men men- mention mention tion lion of that name the name the Adder Adder Adder- the Greeks Greek's face had grown crown clammy with perspiration It lI trickled down from hIs hia hair Into his thick eye eye- eyebrows eyebrows brows bros And AntI Yu Yuan an bl began n to laugh laush lie He did not show V h his bis teeth In laughter ills ret lips merely seemed to thick thick- thicken tn closed ed as he en- en enand tn 11 and 1 his Ills eyes clo laughed laughed- bish h hideous squeals like the ami nood note of a n bat hat hate e f V le v ruy felt relt ft a tremendouS sense nse himself elf out r hen he lie found round of reile r again p In the narrow lane Even the fog fo seemed friendly l It was wa good to 10 to be free of ot that strange building with Its silence out of which the breathing of hid hid- hidden hidden hidden den watchers seemed to come Its ghostly ghastly emptiness as of a place un un- unoccupied unoccupied occupied deserted yet which he knew by virtue of some extra sense gense to be Illusive The Arab doorkeeper er the Greek and Greek and that strange woman had had not been the only oc occupants o oc- oc occupants of Jo Lungs Lung's emporium that night There were others others many many others watching listening lie He knew t- t ithe It-he It the he had felt It all the time Ume By ny virtue of some mutual under under- understanding understanding understanding standing Kearney and the Scotland Yard man paced along to the neigh neigh- boring neighboring street In unbroken silence nut But the corner turned Those opals 1 I Kearney be began an I knew you OU had spotted some some- something something thing there I I had Youve You've got your case clearl clearly enough If they dont don't dispose of them before tomorrow Those opals belonged to Lady who was lost at sea ten months ago 1 How In the name of all that's wonderful did Jo Lung get hold of them I 1 said the Scotland Yard Yardman Yardman Yardman man and his tone betokened disappointment disappointment Theres no case In that sir I 1 suppose they must ha have e been washed ashore Where dId the accident happen In the Red ned sea or the tile Persian gulf gul I Detective Sergeant Norwich lau laughed hed Outside our beat beat I he said Then you mean theres there's nothIng you can act upon Im afraid there Isn't Norwich confessed E Everything er In the place Is of number one quality But nut there was nothing that I definitely recognized recognized In fact tact If It you ask me we were spotted 1 1 Do you OU think so Im positive ve I Yes Kearney murmured Im afraid we have wasted our time Somewhat annoying In view of the unless fact unless we can get hold of a wandering taxi that taxI that I have bave a long foggy journey ahead Norwich lau laughed bed a again aln Hard Hardluck luck sir he said Theres a cozy fire an nn armchair and a n pair parr of ot slip slip- slippers slippers slippers pers waiting for me at Stockwell nut But my orders are to report back to Leman Street That being the case said Kear Kear- Kearney Kearney Kearney ney cheerfully as they groped out onto Commercial Road Hoad East East we part company I shall head hend toward the station Im I'm calling Haig as soon as I get back I Kearney peered through swirling mIst along perhaps the thoroughfare In all London Not a figure moved as far tar as his ills sight could pierce the fog lie He glanced back Norwich had disappeared lie Ill had bad gone ten or fifteen paces when suddenly he pulled up again A sound had hod reached him n him short muffled scream lie he stood and listened Dim distant noises reached him the rumble of remote lorries that muted booming which Is the life blood life lite- lifeblood blood of the port of London pump pump- pumping pumping ing In through h Its many arteries fog signals lie He could detect no foot foot- footstep step step step-no no other sound It was close upon midnight lIe He pulled up again as a he saw aw two things s of Interest one definite the theother theother theother other perhaps chimerical Either unpleasant memories of the establishment establishment establishment of Jo Lung still haunted him or he had seen a curiously small active figure dart Into the shadow v of a n doorway not twenty I paces behind 1 I Ills heart beat faster The imos head of what looked like a n taxi taxi- cab dimly visible through fog tog I In Indeed In- In Indeed deed perhaps the sound of the mo mo- motor motor tor although he had not recognized the fact had prompted him to pause to turn The little notebook In his pocket I Ilie lie He had meant to speak to Nor Nor- Norwich Norwich about It but changing his mind had determined to examine It t hImself and then to hand It over to when he met him him Ills His Idea that It might prove to contain some piece of evidence of or value to Scot Scot- Scotland Scotland Scotland land Yard assumed a new DeW and Importance grave e Coming Comins upon It after the discovery discovery i ery of the opals he had I appropriated It without scruple Now watching slowly approaching head d lamps nod and d questioning the reality of that figure which with he be be- believed he had hod seen cen D dart Into hiding lie he remembered that he was unarmed un- un unarmed un unarmed armed And ADd he wondered Nearer r and nearer came the lamps lamp Ill He II stepped out onto the Ule edge of the curb and raIsed his hl arm The man roan pulled up Kearney opened ort ned th the door uttered an n audible gasp of relief reHer Jumped In and aud banged It shut hut behind him Twisting about Matt Malt Iatt looked through the rear window Baleful HaJdul eyes glared In nt nt at him himl Some one Indistinguishable except for his eyes e es was clinging to the back of the cob cab cabs I My ly G G-d G d I Kearney whispered Suddenly those weird eyes which seemed to belong to no tangible body disappeared The taxi was well under way now Kearney craned through tire the open window looking back Fog Fo desolation noth- noth Doth noth nothing In tag ing Rut But one or two belated pedestrians pedestrians notably a constable as the taxI passed Into Fleet street street ob- ob observed ob observed served upon the luggage rack sur- sur surmounting sur surmounting mounting Its roof what looked like a rolled up blanket or as another thought a very dilapidated kithas kit kitbag ba bag g C Dawson Haig hurried across the little court In which Kearney's rooms were situated The Tile old man man- manservant manservant servant who looked after the place opened the door at once ne lIe knew Halg Haig well Im sure Its It's very ery Important sir lie he said but Mr Kearney had to go across to the onIce the moment he arrived home But what's this about some book The book Is lying on the desk upstairs sir with a note and my orders are for you to go up Two minutes later he sat at Kearney's s 's table reading rending the note which his friend had left Halg Haig had hadnot hadnot hadnot not removed remo his white raincoat A Yard car was waiting and waiting and and a ghast ghast- ghastly ghastly ly duty uty called But nut as he be read his expression changed grew grew puzzled and puzzled and then Indicated sudden excitement The lIttle leather-bound leather memo book to which Kearney's Kearnes note chiefly re related re- re re- re related lay upon the table beside him It was really an advertisement Is Issued Is- Is Issued issued sued by one of the shipping com com- companies companies containing a 8 calendar and andall andall andall all sorts of odds odd and ends of In- In Information information In Information formation about tides and such lIke material He lie picked It up again glanced at the curious penciled entries It d a rr r o And Yuan Began to Laugh contained The book was newly Issued and these were few Some were unintelligible being written In what looked like a combination of cipher and Chinese But nut others opposite to certain dates set sot him furIously thinking Suddenly he stood up shed his raIncoat and dropped It with his list hat on the floor By heavens 1 I he might be better employed here than down In Limehouse The first of these Intriguing notes appeared against a the date the the day which had just passed It read as ns follows r D oio 32 25 21 r 32 oo r 7 n rT L 1 n The last number number-B number B had 4 4 had been wrItten on the margin of the opposite opposite opposite site page as though It were an afterthought aft aft- afterthought aft afterthought but a delta and pencil line indicated that It should be added to the others Under the date of the was Paris Suleiman Beyl ney's For the following three days the diary contained no notes but under un- un under un under der date the lith the following ap appeared ap- ap appeared I D 41 II A gap until the d d and then oc occurred o oc- oc occurred the entry Mohammed On the following day the the wrIter had scribbled something which Haig was unable to read But Buton Buton Buton on the came this curious Item IS 34 N and 14 Ii 5 E Finally a against date the th ap ap- appeared ap- ap appeared appeared n a cross In red Ink Ink Tills This was the last entry Dawson son Haig reread Kearney's note Dote and looked for and found a leaflet referred to It was one Is Issued s sued by the steamship company and It gave e the dates at which the Walla Walla- Wallaroo Wallaroo Wallaroo roo touched ports en route to Bris Drs- Brisbane bane bane Australia Very deliberately although h hIs braIn was on fire he compared d er certain tamp tain entries in the memo book with this leaflet The date the lith cor- cor corr corresponded cor r responded to that at which the ship reached Marseille the n the next next th to to d-to to that when she abe he arrived at Port SaId I The final dates date meant nothing to him except that he h es es- e estimated estimated them to correspond to the position petition at some place south of Suez 1 I And II n 4 wa was WIl the number of l I Eileen's stateroom I What What the devil does it mean menD he be said aloud He lie t turned the leaves leases back Ir If only he could read those hieroglyph hieroglyph- hieroglyphic ic Ie notes 1 I But nut they the were mean mean- meaningless meaningless ingless lie He stared again a lIln at the en entries tries In the diary Then a n possible explanation presented Itself Of course I lie should have thought of It before I These notes related to Jo Lungs Lung's abandoned running dope enterprise 1 This theory almost covered the facts but left him uneasy about the entry B R 4 until sitting back In Kearney's Kearnes chair and smoking fu- fu furiously fu furiously a possible explanation came of this also The cabins of all suspected persona person who ml might ht be revenue or police agents a had been marked by the plotters and for some reason Eileen Elleen had fallen under suspicion I It I he muttered At which moment the phone bell ran rang and Is Ie that you Haig Kearney Kearnes speaking ng Im I'm hung up at the of office flee fice nave Have you grasped the facts about the memo book I pinched from Jo Lun Lungs Lung's s 's Some of them It needs a good many hours work and a n man who knows Chinese But nut I think It does the hanging trick Good for you I 1 IShall Shall you be long I may be an hour Cant Can't say Then I shall have to push off orr Ill I'll take the book with me Im I'm on my way back to Limehouse Limehouse- Limehouse I Wh Why at nt this hour An awful thing has happened Norwich Matt Norwich has been mur- mur murdered mur murdered dered I 1 I What hat I The words had a stupefying effect upon Kearney Norwich murdered That cry In the ro I The shadowy figure In the doorway the the unmistakable figure fi ure which hail had looked In at the tl e back of the taxi cab taxi cab 1 You left him somewhere at the corner of Three Colt Street Daw- Daw Dawson Dason son Daw-son son Halg Haig went on rapidly that's rl ht Yes that's Yes yes right lie ne was found some time later dead In the door of a |
