Show a GERALD BROWN ATUR C Duke Date detective It Is Ui- Ui the th murder ct of Curt court wh wee war boat about to W marry Veronica w U te thirty million dollars McCale McCal tome some dira damaging lions iloni from rom Shall Shirl Lynn Lyon linger and former former wife of 01 urt Liter Later Victoria Veronicas Veronica titter sister e calls caU Ui at al Ui ills once office and asks tiki hit his help belp la lei r tome some letters let- let letters from helm V urt's apartment Mc Me- McCale Cale Cal telli tells her bet that the letters letteri are sn not In the kit hints bini that Sharl Shari ShariLynn Lynn may my hire have them of clr clr- evidence the police believe bellev that Veronica Is It the murderer McCale McCabe does doe I not think 10 so 0 bat but hat bas not Dot yet formed a conclusion There are art many maDY contra contre contradictory dietary duel clues CHAPTER XI The telephone was wai ringing Insist Insist- McCale rolled over opened ono eye swore wore and nd finally grabbed the extra pillow bundling It under his head He IEe fumbled tumbled with the light snapped mapped It on an lifted the tho telephone off ofT Its cradle McCale McCole speaking he growled Rocky boss bogs Where are you Corner of at Aspinwall opposite the den Didn't you tell me to keep a lookout Oh yeah All quiet AU quiet now Listen boss bon long about five this morning morning- All right What happened at five Ave o'clock Sleep still lUll hugged him tightly and there was an unreasonable barb In his voice Okay okay Around five a girl showed up with a key to the Val Val- ron day Who was It Hold told on to your hat now It was Victoria Bigelow Victoria Bigelow Surprise jerked him wide awake Uh uh Sh She was Wal after alter some ome let letters ten s of at hers hen she ahe said Well well Victoria had certainly had hid a busy buy night he thought I The place was clean like you said No secret I panels either I 1 that is I la-I I finally helped her hunt for tor them Go home and grab yourself some lame grub and shuteye said Mc Mc- McCale Cale Get here about one Im I'm going to be busy this morn morn- Ing trig At eight forty five he called Ann on the telephone To her cool hello he said Good morning This is your four boss boas Oh good morning dar dar boss Anything important Im I'm on my way in about five minutes minute No hurry In fact tact this is just jurt to say gay you might shop hop for tor an hour If you want to and then do an errand for or me I want you to drop in on Shari Sharl Lynn Suite And pray what shall shaU I use ue as II an excuse for dropping in as a you say Dont Don't tell nie rrie youre you're sending me along to smooth the way for you youa a a more subtle approach 10 so to speak peak No and No and that's that comedy enough for now my girl He lie grew serious I saw her myself late last night for that matter You rat Id like a line Une on how she he Is I. this thi morning You know sad know sad gay lay ex ex- expectant expectant expectant Ask Ak her for her auto auto- graph Anything to get let In Talk about if It you can with without out being belna thrown out That aUf all 11 Yea Yes Just a check up to satisfy a point that's that been blen nagging me meShes meShes She's fairly transparent It ought to be easy Ob Oh yes Indeed It sounds too too easy euy All right Ill I'll do my best See you when About noon Here Bye Dye sweet lie He dressed leisurely and careful careful- ly Iy lie He felt like a twentieth century warrior going forth to civilized bat tie tle lie He knew that to solve this problem he had first to break down the buttresses of ot tradition that sur sur- surrounded surrounded rounded the lie He knew he was up against something that thiat even the overestimated awe or If you ou will majesty of the law could not upend lie He had to break down that tha t smug superiority which was war so 10 se st secure se- se secure cure in the tile belief bellet In its own 11 Intelli Intelligence gence Bence ence that It made Its own rules as asit asIt asit it went along He lie rather pitied them momentarily and smiled wryly at t the pure cynicism of his own thoughts Sybil Sy Becomes Implicated On Impulse he dialed police pollee head head- headquarters headQuarters quarters and asked for tor Donlevy After a slight delay the curt curl inci inci- incisive incisive sive voice of at the lieutenant came through Donlevy here McCale McCabe lieutenant Oh Oh sure Not out yet hunting the foul toul criminal On the way wa Id I'd like to know what hat the Bigelow women were wear wear- wearIng trig Ing when they came In yesterday yesterday- outside of at the green thingamajig Veronica sported Of course Didn't I mention that thaU No Well here it Is Victoria an n silk oiled affair yellow Karen a ablack ablack ablack black velvet suit black cape Sybil a light brown brO raincoat That help Uh uh fah It was Sybil then who walked away awa into the fog You think so She claims to have bave been b n at the drugstore Not for my money Of I II I kind of ef think not That fam tam family ily aryl Its It's It almost impossible to get I them to admit anything They're There I Il tU lu l protecting one another Whit What I Ive I've had a devil of a time and got nothing so 0 far tar get let less leu very likely now they've had a chance to compare notes There was a pause Then Don Don- Donlevy Donlevy levy said almost almos cheerfully I Iguess Iguess guess Veronicas Veronica's our girl You really think so o The Lynn LYM womans woman's evidence nce will put the finish on it Oh McCale pondered over that for tor a moment then decided to add Id keep a sharp watch on the Lynn woman Why Donlevy's Donlevy Interest was immediate I would That's all U all Now Duke you must have a reason Why be mysterious Ill IU drop In to see you later In Inthe Inthe inthe the day Okay By Dy all aU means McCale dropped the receiver onto its It cradle An emotion of at concern crowded his mind and he sighed a sigh of ot sheer heer desperation Ills His brain seemed dulled Inactive depressed There was something there some some- something something thing that would make It clear It was evading him Until he could grasp It he must blunder along without help without even the con can confidence confidence of at the ones he was trying to help Damn the medieval re re- reserve re- re servo serve of ot such uch people anyway t 10 1 IIII r t i 0 Ic r rI I want those letters letten Do Del I Iet get them T The police commissioner stoner had come and asked a few tew pertinent questions stayed barely an hour and departed At eight o'clock the district attorney had attempted to bully the police in charge as well as the suspects He had left at eleven in a hull buff The body had been removed to the morgue and laboratory tor for full full- fuller fuller fuller er examination Lieutenant Donlevy and his squad had finished with the preliminaries The hungry press had been thrown a bone to nibble oil ou Men had hid been sent rent to Valla Vallain Vallain- in- in incourt's courts court's apartment to look over pa papers pers per and belongings belonging for a possible clue The orderly hubbub of official procedure was Wal over for tor a time at least The night had been quiet quiet- the Ule quiet of at nervous exhaustion per perhaps haps hops but quiet Then at nine this morning a plainclothes man had interrupted breakfast with an urgent request requestor for tor or Veronica He lie was politely In Insistent In in- insistent that she must come at once to lo the office of ot Lieutenant Donlevy for tor or further questioning She was not Bot to be alarmed It was a matter of routine But But Dut- Miss Adelaide Agrees To 70 McCale's Plan Plait l The library was dim and still and only the sound of a piano being played In the drawing room up up- upstairs upstaIrs upstairs stairs came through the oppressing quiet as Adelaide Bigelow finished her recital of events and looked at McCale McCole sadly McCale did not speak for a minute The weight of ot othis his leis senses closed down dO on him like a stone lie He wondered Idly whether it was the gloom or the helpless helplessness ness in n the old ladys lady's voice that caused this feeling of futility Ho He wondered why Karen Bigelow was playing the Liszt Preludes so pas pa- passionately those those romantic things so 10 richly Interlaced with religious mysticism A strange woman Karen but merely more obviously strange than the others Only the woman before him resigned deter deter- determined determined mined with great courage seemed to t belong belon In that house Her Iler voice brought him awake again with a start What are we going to do she asked I 1 think he answered that I Imay Imay may 1113 be able to see a little further get Iet a little lithe more than the police were able to That is if I can CM gain their confidence It If you will ask them to come in In he he rose as she got up smiled and one one by byone byone one oce if it you ou please It might be l easier ier that way wa To trap them I 1 suppose she murmured surprisingly ly Why of course He lie bowed the smile smUt leaving his lips Ups He lie felt the subtle antagonism leap between them Then she came over o to him impulsively putting a aUlin athin thin Ulin patrician hand on his sleeve Ilet Forgive me she whispered l I Its It only that I am so to 0 upset I 1 know how things must be from tram now on I see ee a whole way of ot life Ufe dis disappearing appearing before my eyes eye an em em- empire empire pire slipping away I know know- That below the surface things have not been what hey they seemed for a long long time he inter interjected jested keeping the pity carefully from his tone of voice for he be knew that this she would not have Yes Yes yes You wont won't need me again She spoke as If U that would be abhorrent to her herNo No It is better that I do my mf dirty dirty work alone He smiled once more as he watched her leave the room He lie stood by the fireplace staring moodily into the ashes of last nights night's fire tire until he heard hea rd the door open and close behind him When he turned he saw Stephen Bigelow standing irresolute and nervous in inthe Inthe inthe the gray morning light It was clear as he sat down in inthe inthe inthe the chair opposite McCale that he was completely shaken Although it was wag no doubt partly hangover McCabe McCale Intuitively ly sensed that not nota a little of ot It was due to the fact that he was on his own A complex lad thi this one one he thought riddled by complexes He had seen enough of Stephen to know that In spite of his nosed high-nosed arrogance he was lost lot without the support of his wife wite and silly lUy mother He lie pondered as asto asto asto to which one of ot them had been clever clev clev- clever er enough to send lend him In first so ao that either or both could expertly deny any break he might make In a business like lice way McCale said laid I am willing to take the po po- police police lice report of at your actions action yester yester- yesterday yesterday day afternoon verbatim However Im I'm more interested in something that may not seem leem relevant to the murder If It you will only have con con- confidence confidence in me I can assure you It will probably go no further I ask it entirely In the hope of helping your foster taster sister Veronica out of ot ofa ota a ticklish situation I know of course that you are eager eRger to be of any assistance possible to her Oh Ob quite The answer came readily enough McCale studiously ignored the contemptuous curve of the lips that accompanied the re reo mark Very well then Id I'd like to know it if you had known Curt before he became engaged to Veron Veron- ica What you know of ot him What you thought of him to be exact How Itow for tor Instance did it tt happen that he came so 10 suddenly to this city elty to be taken up Immediately by your our family Id I'd welcome anything you OU can tell teU me He lie saw law relief come over Ste Ste. Stephens Stephen's Stephen Stephens phen's phen face relief that the question was not the one he had feared Ste Ste- Stephen Stephen phen smiled smiled smiled-a a thin lipped uneasy smile I met him Mm in Chicago he said calmly about six years ago Vic Vic- Victoria Victoria toria torla was running around with him I had gone one there for tor a couple of ot months just to renew a few tew old acquaintances Anyone in particular Stephen Tells Tens of o ohis His ITis Chicago Trip No His hands bands shook a little as he fumbled for a cigarette and lighted It Just a couple of ot fellows tellow I had known In the navy At one onetime onetime time Ume you see aee things were not very well well pleasant at home I ran away and Joined up I made a few friends while I was in the service I corresponded with them from tram time to time Ume after I got rot out We Weare Weare Weare are not a particularly happy group McCale en famille so 0 to speak So when things got boring again and andr andra andera er a r r-a r a little squawky I decided to hop out to Chicago and visit vIsit a chap who had since married and done quite well for himself Sort of run away again is 11 that it McCale's McCale grin was sardonic He thought thought thought-as as youve you've run out on everything unpleasant since you were a kid I can bet Well I suppose you ou could call caU it Ii that You took Victoria with you No uNo she he came to fetch tetch me ma back as It were AU All is forgiven forgive you know That sort of thing Victoria had met Curt in some ome of at her wan wan- I had met Karen by then and didn't want to leave until there was an understanding of some lome sort ort between us We stayed almost a year until I married her Vicky corresponded with ith for fora a while after she came home It was she who finally got him here hen Ran Into him by accident in New NewYork NewYork York York or something and she brought him hint along for a visit He lie just I stayed that's that all au alL He settled back in the chair a little less jangled as If U a job had bad been done and rather well done McCale settled back In his chair and looked at Stephen Bigelow with th unconcealed disgust Then he de de- decided decided de- de decided to try a shot in the dark and see what It U would hit Of course you know that Curt was married at some lome sometime sometime time in his lively career Oh yes He was Stephen ad admitted completely oft off guard To Shari Lynn Sarah Linsky Uns to you Bigelow blurted then bit his lip hp realizing the trap You knew her too toof TO BE TED CONTINUED |