Show I f A Telegram Serial Serial S SI I Murder in Two Two Time Time By Frederick C C. C Davis Read a new mystery serial complete every week in The Telegram The story so go far Richard Vernon ernon screen tar star and hatband of 0 the beautiful ful Lane lADe Vernon Is le J oady hot hat during a press prell conference In to Inthe Inthe the offices of 01 hl hi has agents agent Darcy The only outsiders outsider prevent am era O. O Oal Waiter Wai- Wai wal walter ter tu Preston of nf Headliner Flies Files the rl narrator c disbarred of this d story private and detect defective t Thackeray tie ee and t pow now chief Interviewer lewer l After to Headliner Filet Files of flee Hackett call Pre Preston tons ton's attention to the fact ad that while chile only two Vo shots shot were Mere heard beard during the there thue were erp tw two bullet build hole holf In A wall and a third ballet aUtt hole lIole la In Vernon Sow Now ow to go on with the t story CHAPTER FOUR F ANGELINE really sneaked IF into town today I wondered aloud why the hell did she shedo shedo shedo do it 1 Hackett suggested quietly Maybe May be these reports are the real Tea Tea- ea- ea son Ion son r I Reports i He had several typewritten pages in his hands He also had that black traveling case open on his lap Without a your leave hed he'd snapped into it He showed me the envelope hed he'd found the 1 papers in It had mail air-mail stamps pasted on it Typewritten there were the name and Beverly Hills address of Angeline Lane Vernon again In red ink the word Personal Personal Personal Per Per- was printed big In the upper left-hand left corner was a re return return return re- re turn card consisting of an address without the senders sender's name Suite F 4 1430 Broadway New York City The reports were dated several several several sev sev- eral months ago and they all ran like this Picked up subject leaving previously previously pre pre- mentioned apartment 1020 arm am tailed subject to office 1520 Broadway Picked up subject again in company two men 1040 Tailed subject and companions to Hostlers Hostler's Hostlers Hostler's Hostlers Hostler's Host Host- lers ler's Court Picked up subject leaving there 1210 1210 My phone rang When I lifted the instrument a voice said Pres Pies kid Bob Bass callIng calling calling call- call Ing from the I IBS B S newsroom Can you give me the present address of Delia Alden We want to put Angeline on the air as soon as she hits town and Richard as soon as he can talk with this Alden dame coming in for an interview too Come on snap into it wheres where's she living Hold it a mo pal A S i S I recalled her Delia Alden had been an actress on the legitimate legitimate legitimate mate stage some five or six years ears ago She had starred in several hit plays but had switched to a career in matrimony and had faded F E out of the footlights I learned t that shed she'd been borne Bedelia Alminter Alminter Alminter Al- Al minter and had prettified this to tor r Della Delia Alden for professional purI pur pur- I poses Somewhere along the line i i she had acquired two husbands A Af quick glance through the folder showed no notes later than 1944 f when there was mention of her marriage to one Salvatore Lionni a wholesale grocer and later ater the same year ear a divorce action instituted instituted instituted in Reno by this same guy With all this however we had no address for her I next looked into the phone book She wasn't listed with any of the Aldens I turned to the Ls L's and discovered a listing for Lionni Mrs Bedelia A. A Dialling this I was wasE f E rewarded by a sweet-sounding sweet womans woman's voice I asked Mrs Lionni that Lionni-that that is Delia Alden I Oh no the voice said The phones phone's still sUll listed in her name I If f know but she hasn't lived here for months Could you give me her new address address ad ad- dress please P Palmerton a I mer ton Pen Pennsylvania That's in Bucks count county just north of Philadelphia I 1 RELAYED it to Bob Bass and took a deeper look into the Alden folder The last page in the folder was a long clipping from a syndicated syndicated syndi syndi- theatre column made up al almost almost al- al I ai-I most entirely of publicity releases I IDella Delia Della Alden has been widely credited with giving Richard Vernon Vernon Vernon Ver Ver- non his start as an actor As the story goes Miss Alden then 1940 t i about to star in a 3 new play Wedding Wedding Wed Wed- ding Night auditioned young Vernon Vernon Vernon Ver Ver- non and insisted he be given the juvenile lead Since Vernon had never before appeared in a Broadway Broadway Broadway Broad Broad- way production the producers wanted a known better-known name for forthe forthe forthe the part but Miss Alden had such faith in Vernons Vernon's talent that she threatened to walk out unless he f was chosen f This fiction has been repeated in inI I several se carelessly written profiles of Richard Vernon These say I II r r. that this was the turning point of I f his life that Vernon deeply discouraged discouraged disi dis dis- dis- dis i by many previous re rebuffs ref re- re j f buffs had made definite plans to togo togo go back to his old job in a department department depart depart- 11 t ment store in Cleveland the day r following the audition and that tI Miss Aldens Alden's enthusiastic support 10 was all that saved him from ion Miss Alden then at the peak of her own dramatic career was d amused to let this romantic story 1 4 circulate as publicity helpful to the II young man Actually it was the play producers who chose Vernon 1 r for the part in Miss Aldens Alden's fateful I E new play and actually her of him was never ne flattering al alt although although al- al t though she gracefully yielded to then their choice M My Y PHONE was ringing ring again and Bob Bass was back on m my wire this time sounding sore Listen Pres Pies we count on you people at Headliner Files for or acI accurate accurate ac ac- I curate information The Long Long- distance operator swears Delia Ali Alden Alden Al- Al i den is not living in Pennsylvania in i a town called Palmerton be be- I cause there is no such place asI as I 1 Palmerton Pennsylvania Q Quit Qui u i t wasting our time w will 11 you and give ghe us the dope w we need 1 I blinked in chagrin muttered apologies and promised to call back Better Belter make it a personal visit Pres Hackett suggested Why Notice the address he said pointing to that listing It was Hostlers Hostler's Court I recalled a mention of Hostlers Hostler's Court in those peculiar song sing-song reports that Hackett had found Inthe Inthe in inthe the traveling case that belonged or didn't belong to Angeline Lane Vernon Hackett was on his feet and was heading out with a purposefulness purposefulness purposefulness pur- pur that warned me Id I'd better trail along with him Just Justas as we reached the door the little radio in office gave out with an It was Bob Bass From the I IBS B S news room ladies and gentlemen we bring you this special bulletin concerning Richard Vernon the world-famous world star who this afternoon was the victim of an attempt at murder Norman Millard Vernons Vernon's agent and oldest friend reports the actors actor's actors actor's actors actor's ac ac- tors tor's tors tor's condition improved following an emergency emergency operation performed by Doctor Elliot Winslow Vernons Vernon's physician Meanwhile V Vernon's Vernons e r no n n s wife Angeline Lane is reported traveling by plane to New York to tobe tobe tobe be with her husband She is expected expected expected ted to arrive at LaGuardia Field early tomorrow morning I FOLLOWED Hackett out and we clambered into a cab and went whizzing down Madison ave Presently Presently Presently Pres Pres- our taxi was snaking us deep into those twisted regions of old Greenwich Village Just south of Washington Square Soon Hackett directed the driver to stop and we went off afoot About to cross a narrow lane of ofa ofa ofa a street Hackett checked himself listened and peered deep into the gloom In a murmur Hackett said In there there Hostlers Hostlers Hostler's Court but buthe buthe buthe he kept going and passed it Evidently Evidently Evidently Evi Evi- dently it was one of those nooks which few New Yorkers have ever seen like MacDoUgal McDougal AIle Alley and Patchin Place How goes it Hackett addressed addressed addressed ad ad- dressed this quiet question to a vacant doorway A match-flame match flared up I saw the face of a ayoung ayoung ayoung young man with keen dark eyes and a town man-about-town mustache He lit a cigarette before stepping out of the doorway Not bad he answered Hackett inquired pretty late to be on a tail isn't it 1 The man shook his head pokerfaced poker- poker faced Just putting a drunken friend to bed here With a a. fraternal wag of his hand this guy walked on past us Bert Seaver Hackett told told 7 me He was lancing free-lancing when I had my agency and I sometimes sometimes sometimes some some- times hired him Now hes he's the junior partner in a small agency of his own with Charlie Roark another another another an an- other ex Hes He's been casing Hostlers Hostler's Court tonight H HACKETT ACKETT led the way back to that gap in the house-fronts house which was Hostlers Hostler's Court As we were about to enter the court foot-falls foot started quickly toward us A shadowy figure appeared appeared-a a flabby flabby flabby flab flab- by woman with gray looking dead-looking skin and defiant eyes sharpened to pin Her cheap coat hung open over a shoddy dress Whore you a and n d want want and and and with her rasping words came fumes of rot rot- rot ut Hackett lowered his light To see Mrs Lionni This blowsy gestured broadly into the court lifting her head in regal hauteur Gwan and find her ladyship for I Imay Imay Imay may be only a cook but I aint getting out of my warm bed bedin bedin in the middle of the night to scramble eggs for nobody Im I'm Get outa my way you She thumped Hackett with the heavy handbag and tramped past us into the street Hackett gazed after her with lifted eyebrows then led me quietly into Hostlers Hostler's Court It was entirely dark until he sent th the beam of f his his' little his little flashlight flashlight flashlight flash flash- light into a window Instantly I Iwas Iwas Iwas was chilled by th tip the sight of what seemed to be a corpses corpse's disembodied disembodied disembodied bodied head floating in space and staring with bleached eyeballs straight at me I saw immediately Immediately immediately immedi immedi- however that is was an unI unfinished unfinished un un- finished portrait in fine I marble Other heads busts and nude figures stood about on pede pede- This was a sculptors sculptor's studio When Hackett turned to toa toa toa a door we found the occupants occupant's name printed on a card tacked there Julia A. A Winslow H HEY EY I said quietly Winslow the name of Dick Vernons Vernon's Vernons Vernon's Ver- Ver non's nona doctor Is Dick Vernons Vernon's doctor also aiso the husband of ot a a. sculptress 1 Hackett countered Hackett strode to its door and clacked its brass knocker The Thedoor Thedoor Thedoor door was opened by Norman Mil- Mil lard He squinted at us looking nervous Let me handle this Thack I put in q quickly Good evening Norm I hope Dicks Dick's coming along fine 1 I realize were we're calling at atan atan atan an odd hour but the circumstances ces ar are a little out of the ordin ordin- ary Were We're here to find out what Mrs Bedelia Bedella A. A Lionni's address s really reany is I Continued Tomorrow Copyright Frederick Davis DavisA A A. |