Show t ANJI Y By Elenore Eleno e Meher I CHAPTER 96 Tho cv pap papers iS i'S a diagram of Ramons Ramon's office The prostrate figure of a man showed where here the body lay a An Mi arr arrow w pointed paInted to a dark daik spot in Lbs opposite op op- corner labeled blood stains A second secand arrow called attention to toa toa toa a section of the wall consi considerably behind Ramon where a bullet was Imbedded The headline asked Murder or Su Suicide id de r The story indicated convincingly murder had been done dane Alarming unsuspected facts bolstered this thear theory Frightening facts that drew drewa a net with choking tightness Some time between 8 o'clock when Worth was seen by the elevator elevator elevator ele ele- ele- ele vator operator to have entered his office some office some time between that hauland hour haul and midnight he had been shot No one heard the shots But a aman man a mah-a a young man between 20 and 25 that 25 that waited wafted nervously In the cigar ogar store stare at the corner comer from 9 20 until 1045 Ha lla had bad oad then entered the tIle building studIed building studied the office di dl- dl rector rectory He had asked If such a party as Ramon namon Worth was vas as a tenant And Ad immediately learning that he hc was he e became 10 so excited excited excited ed that on leaving the elevator he went in the wron wrong direction The elevator operator gave this detailed and colorful information Who was this man Was Vas it he be Whose blood made a small pool poal on the floor faor Someone had been present when Ramon was shot someone shot someone besides the dead man was wounded Who Vho was this Other ther How Haw could he have ha I escaped unaided Had Ramon shot him and then turned the pistol on himself If It so how account for that bullet Im Imbedded Imbedded lm- lm bedded in the wall wali The dead man from his position could not have fired this Nor r-or could the pistol have hare c curved half halt across the ro room roam m had it dropped from Worth's lifeless hand band It appeared appeared ap ap- ap- ap to have been flung down dawn In Ina Ina Ina a hup hurry By whom 7 How had the murderer escaped A man mall had been known to enter entel Worth's office No one had seen an anyone one leave The Tile police were working on clues T They ley had taken fingerprints found faund on n a chair and on the panels of ot the door A mystifying feature of the tragedy tragedy tragedy trag trag- edy was was its apparent absence of af motive Worth Vort had Woith-had had been a tenant o of this building for five years He was well vell connected and very pop pop- ular Despite a years year's absence he no newa nowa wa was immediately remembered and welcomed even by the elevator op- op and janitress Robbery had plainly not been the motive A wallet containing In currency a n. Jade ring and a very fine watch were wele all untouched on the person Of f the dead man manS supposing Vh supposing that Ramon was murdered had murdered had the crime been committed The last edition of the paper an answered answered an- an were were-d the question in a headline that flashed flashe on the eyes ejes of or Douglas Keith with a shivering violence Mystery Woman and ate Sought in iii Worth Woith Shooting The unforeseen circumstance beads eads silver and blue had blue had been found scattered on the floor Extremely Extremely Ex- Ex remely small beads beads' that have been ripped from a purse These beads were found halfway between where the bullet was Imbedded imbedded im- im bedded and the corner where the bloOd lood stains were fount found The rho newspaper per made a graphic picture reca picture reconstructing the whole scene of ot the night from froni these ten I or twenty microscopic beads as a a J Js s scientist reconstructs reconstruct the skeleton of a at primitive animal from a single sin gb gle tooth tooth- Had a woman waman been shot shat at b by Ramon Iamon Worth and in return had bad she killed him Had a woman waman come came to his office on this fatal evening Evidence pointed scuffle a scuffle to a a chair pushed against the wall the rug kicked aside Had this girl 0 or woman oman come came to plead or thi eaten And he had shot her Was Vas that hex her blood in the corner corner If so then she h had d stumbled to toward toward toward to- to ward the he do da door r and fallen tallen before reaching it t. t How then could she have dohe the shooting How then thoen could see have escaped escaped escaped es No woman had gone downin down dawn downIn In the elevator between 10 and 11 11 And no no woman grievously wounded wound wound- ed could h have ve walked down three flights of steps unaided The in inference inference In- In ference was obvious Someone had aided her Douglas DaUglas' stood in the kitchen of af Hal Hume's Humes flat fiat and read lead this ac ac- ac- ac count caunt Little beads Cr from froni m her purse tipped ripped off aft when she tried to seize the pistol pistol pistol pis pis- pis- pis tol from fram Ramon's Ramons hand TIn Tiny beads glittering on the floor He hadn't noticed th them And now naw they were searching the theoffice office tl this is of office co Ramon had lead occupied occupied oc ac- oc- oc for fOl five years ears They were t taking fingerprints looking through papers They might come upon letters let let- letters letters Sand Sandy had written to Ramon Then they would woul know then know then they ther would come to her lIe He became hot He walked to the wall and struck his fist against it Almighty God God God- what a thing this was to happen Ho fancied the whole world now v visualized Sandy in n Ramons Ramon's office the the whole world now heard those bitter moans of hers hers hers- And they saw him shaking the tile knob of ot this door saw door saw him carryIng carrying carryIng carry- carry Ing her down dawn the steps Im going to take tale her hel awa away to tonight to- to nl night ht he lee said to Judith not Hal Hume answered coming coining in quietly the quietly the the band bland serenity seren seren- serenity ity of his face gone Shell not be moved from hero unless you send her to a g hospital Douglas Dauglas stood with his b back ck turned Then they'll find us both And the they might even try tn to pI It Iton iton iton on her her her- as safe sare here as anywhere If Ie there are letters signed with her name you cant can't hide her Most lost likely likely like lIke- ly Iy she didn't sign the letters She wont won't be connected with It It Neither will you yau He didn't even know you rou Have sense enough to keep quiet qui qui- et 1 No one comes here lere except the wom woman n who cleans the place Ill I'll tell her not nat to bother for this week By that time we may be able to move her You cant can't t e move her hel one day ay sooner For five days the mystery death occupied the front page But a a. search earch of Ramons Ramon's office re reI revealed re- re nothing After a 1 years year's absenCe absence absence ab ab- ab- ab I sence he had lead returned this Monday for the first time The same night ho had died leaving not n a single wor word ord to Indicate he had an n enemy in the tile Wor world d or the slightest slight slight- est esl wish to die The Tho papers papers concluded he had been shot by a burglar glar who had been scared away before accomplishing his object The story was losing Interest when two incidents again brought raught it to the headlines A blood stained handkerchief was found round on the stairs In some Inexplicable In Inexplicable explicable way It had been kicked Into a corner carner and Was found under undera a fire bucket This handkerchief had ada a laun laundry mark marlc and the Initial K IC Secondly the downtown hotel where Worth had taken a room reported reported reported re re- re- re ported that he had not occupied the room on Sunday night that he he- had bad left early Sunday morning and had bad never returned Almost Immediately after this a friend of Ramon's Ramons advised the tho po police police po po- lice that Ramon had a cottage In Carmel and also a studio flat on the Lombard street hill And this flat was visited Here Ramon had spent all of Sunday night Here he had spent Monday ronday from fram the time he had dashed away awa from Sandys Sandy's house until ho he had had gone to his office at 8 o'clock that same evening And here scattered all allover over the tho room v were ere torn fragments of letters letters letters let let let- snatches snatches' of despondent L I phrases threats phrases threats against I an an unknown un un- known foe Here Heie were scraps scraps of a letter writ written I ten to Shady SUndy |