Show Telegram Mystery ste Serial Th The Main Death By Dashiell Hammett Read a new mystery serial complete ete t every week in The Telegram Te n Tie e torr ao so tar far Jeffrey fr Mai a Baa elate sW m la h hw nil is I d home n rare br Jewelry burglar ad an niJ robbed et le r r In c. c HI HI employer to 10 w when I the m money monr hire a private fate vate t defective f tae f ft's t U. U thle dOFf etory t the t. t tj ter n ca If ts t's wife wes wae tb the Mir aly r of tile the ih crime eHme and ana the Ibe sole IOle Hue clue le Is a s which tiro ra oat emt to 10 be Mrs Oar learn i that Mrs fn Gun Ganem ae ten maid RHe Rao ji If I. s date datu with an convict ex-convict sad vw there are In IQ tit the l Main tout hie wife boat a bury lIti trip to 10 Ix 10 Los fiut prior I e V the M m Meanwhile our I detec rs 11 to a. toi aad d Me hi flint elart rl r U ei Le beT bor friend known to police i brewe-i r i a a. a Cou C ih er B Ben fo n Weel Ve e l. l Alt AI si ded le Is another flunky Bunk nall Our roe cae to 10 report POrt to his Oahe sate wh act MI n coy toI about aboa hi hi wife's N. N tf with witla tile the he to tory story 1 CHAPTER FOUR OUR I HAT AT Is not possible n I 11 Corrected c me eagerly M bf Mf My y f darling and Mrs Main are re no not t acquainted i But your wife ands and Main were e acquainted 1 f He giggled and brushed rushed his ti tie e With his whisker again s y How ow well wen acquainted He s I shrugged hr u g g e d his padded d shoulders up lip to his ears ear f I know not he said merrily I I I employ a detective l. l Yeah 1 I scowled at him You ou employ this one to find out who killed and robbed Main Main and and for tor n nothing thing else If you think youre you're employing him to dig up y your ur tam family 11 secrets youre you're as wio wrong g. g as prohibition why But why He w was flus flushed ed Have I not the right to know w There will be no trouble over Dyer it no scandal no divorce luing of that be assured Even Jeffrey is dead so it is what oneilia one cilia ilia ancient history While he lived I knew nothing was blind lifter Alter he died I saw certain things for oi my own satisfaction that satisfaction that is ill II I beg you to believe I believe I should ike to know with certainty kYou You wont won't get it out of me I mid laid bluntly I r dont don't know any- any Ung hing about It except what youve you've old me and you cant can't hire me too to tob 0 b o further into it Besides if It roure not going to do anything it why dont don't you keep your lands sands off oft off let it sleep N r io o o NO my friend He hade had e his eyed bright-eyed cheer- cheer ulness I III am not an old man ut I am 52 My dear wife wile is 18 nd a lovely person He giggled This thing happened May it ot of happen again And would Itt it ot of t b be the part of husbandly wis- wis om to have have shall shall I say say say-a a hold n n h her r A rein ItA A check Or f it t never never J happ happen n again still BUU tight light not ones one's dear wife be the theton ton lore docile for tor certain ton Ion on which her husband pos- pos esses Its It a your business I stood up But I dont don't want any allY art of it it itAh Ah do riot not let us WI quarrel He Limped up and took one of or my ands ands' in his If It you will not ou will not But there remains tie be ie criminal aspect of the situa- situa ion the ion the aspect that has engaged ou thus far You will not forake forake for for- ake that You will fulfill your there Surely Suppose Suppose just Just a s u p p o 08 s e it e-it it hould turn out that your wife ad d a hand in Mains Main's death What I hen That That he Tha t he he shrugged holding in is hands out palms up would up would e ea a matter for the law Good enough Ill I'll stick If sUck if you that youre you're entitled to too o information e except x c e p t what ouches your criminal aspect Excellent And if it so BO happ happens on ou cannot separate my darling rom that that-It I nodded He grabbed my hand gain patting it I took it away rom him and returned to the gency 1 MEMORANDUM on my desk I ked eked me to phone Detective Detective- I sergeant ergeant Hacken I did I Bunky Dahl wasn't in on the I lain aln Job the hatchet-faced hatchet man old me He and a pal named Ben Weel were putting na 1 party in a roadhouse near that night The They Y were here acre from a around round ten until they mere re thrown out after two in the owning for tor starting a row Its It's lit n Li the and up-and-up up and up The e g guy u y that hat rave u J ave SL It ito to me Is k rIght and and I got L checkup check UP on It t from two others I thanked thank d Hacken and P phoned honed r enc nce asking for tor lra asking her if K she he me it if lf I r came came a e out there rOh Oh yell yea she said aid It seemed d o 0 be her favorite orate expression ho hough ugh the way she ehe said Mid it didn't anything Putting the tho n photos hotos o of f Dahl DaW and anda feel veel in my POcket I g got of a taxi Md set let out fo tor r Westwood Park lain Ising g cigarette smoke on m my y i ni while I rode rod e eI I concocted a vend e r of tics lies to be told fly y clIents clIent's wife wife-a series that tha t I hought w would Quid g t me the l i a P A the hundred and fifty ty y vard yards or so 80 drive from the toe house I saw lck ick saw Poley's Foley's car standi standing sending JL f A thin h he G pasty faced P ant y faced maid mald aid opened nto lIto door and t took k me l a R sItting room wom on t the he second leer r w where here OWn Mrs Mrs- P put ut a co COpy PY of f The Snake P Pit waved v a c cigarette at ly IY chair t a near near- nearly She was waa ve very much th the e doll dol l this afternoon in a sot oat dress dres 1 al sitting g wit with to hone one tuck tucked ed under her in n a broaded b bat broaded bro bro- chair at her while I li lighted loci g ar ln remembering my first with her husband nd nv nY ande and second on one e with Rith him I x decided the tale of Woe 1 I had my iny ride 6 You ve a t Rose maid maid Rose I began I 1 d dont don't nt want her to hear what's said Mid She s said Very we well 1 without the lc least leant l sign sigh of surprise added Excuse me a moment and lefther left lefther lefther her chair and the room Presently she was back sitting down with both feet tucked under her now 4 1 She will be awa away away 0 for at least half an hour That will be long enough This Rose is friendly with an ex convict named Weel The doll face frowned and the plump painted lips pressed them them- sel selves es together I wait waited d giving I her her time to say s something She r didn't say Bay it it- itI I took Weel's and Dahl's DaMs pictures out and held then them out to herThe her The f thin faced ced one Is s your Roses Rose's friend The others other's a 3 pal of or his also a crook She took the photographs with witha a tiny hand that was as steady as mine and looked a at them care care- fully Her mouth bec became me smaller and tighter her brown eyes darker Then slowly lowly her face cleared she murmured Oh yes and returned the pictures to me When I told your husband about it I it I spoke deliberately deliberately- he said my wife's maid and laughed Enid said nothing Well I asked What did he mean by that How should T Ii know She sighed Y v 1 OU know your handkerchief was found with Mains Main's empty wallet I dropped this in a bytheway bythe by by- the way the way tone pretending to be chiefly occupied putting cig cigarette rette ash in a Jasper tray that was carved in the form of a a. lidless coffin coflin Oh yes she said wearily Ive been told that How do you t think h i ink n k it happened T r cant can't nn r imagine r I I can can I s said but id hut but Id I'd rather know positively Mrs it would save a lot of time if we could talk plain language Why not 1 she asked listlessly listless listless- ly You are in my husbands husband's confidence have his permission to question me If it happens to be humiliating to me w me-w me well ll after all I am only his wife And it Is hardly likely that any new in indignities indignities in- in I dignities either of you ou can devise devis will be worse than those to which I h have ve already submitted I grunted at this theatrical speech and went vent ent ahead Mrs Im I'm only Interested Interested Interested Inter Inter- Inter Inter- ested in learning who robbed and killed Main Anything that points in that direction is valuable to tome tome tome me but only ip in so far as it points in that direction Do you understand understand under under- stand what I mean 7 Certainly she said I 1 understand understand understand under under- stand you ou are in my husbands husband's employ TH T THAT HAT AT got us nowhere I tried again What impression do you suppose suppose sup sup- pose I got the other evening when I was here 1 I 1 cant can't imagine Please try Doubtless she Doubtless sh smiled n faintly n A AyoU yoU you the got impression that my husband thought I had been Jeffreys Jeffrey's Jeffrey's Jeffreys Jeffreys Jeffrey's Jef Jef- freys frey's girl friend Well 1 Arc Are you you her her dimples showed she seemed amused asking amused asking me if I really was his girl friend No though No though of course Id I'd like to know Naturally you would she said pleasantly What impression did you get that evening 1 I asked I 11 She wrinkled her fore fore- head Oh that my husband had hired you to prove that I had been Jeffreys Jeffrey's girl friend You were wrong Knowing my husband I find that hard to believe Knowing myself Im I'm sure of ot it I insisted Theres no uncertainty uncertainty uncertainty un un- certainty about It between your husband and me Mrs It is understood that my job is to find who stole and killed nothing killed nothing else Really It was a polite ending ending end end- ing of an argument of which she had grown tired Continued Tomorrow Copyright by Hammett |