| Show nhe blind BI d man M CHAPTER copter XVI Co nUd 14 it inell pit n i no kaw behind behina his hi pion wa wildly exultantly ble abed 1 now his hi of 01 leand hotly to his I 1 tpola Tp 18 a oln I 1 ll 11 is ristol he panted olt a lit I 1 for I 1 rath but though d t 1 through hie his head aulds J p his mill j n ax ricer and cool as a rec kchodl kone I 1 his situation It and nd film tl ances I 1 up le ii 1 crossed the tip hafid nd chimed and ked everta ing alth the mere hope rett liHt into 1 this room to disc discover 1 iti ith which to demand from world orld rioting righting of the wrong wron bad ila him lle as a savo fugitive tor for and 11 here le lie found the th man i years rear was tha hi aate of it all before a la the it to i room a e few PICC paces IT in tho the lark rl I 1 of it RAN n that thi this WM was gt tint that nitin D and inton knew now it this annl a ho he atho ho must hae haie been alfid and arranging and directing B ui n him enton had not hini him and hoard heard his voice but bad ad tilt his bl nip grasp I 1 that rudden in dive brou aro h before it charee charge and lb 11 and jacklo were the jdant at natural act acts of an old lines m As on a 1 team in the 9 of fot football ball aa as it was played MY yet before that lift of the ament off his til feet and tho the heavy hurling him back to fall on hie big LI we was tint hat one man in the anber abher more cruel day days of the col I 1 plue oe lind been fous tor for on it I 1 football field feld that throw leed knock a helmeted bel meted opponent ancon a ous here it waa was meant beyond bi to do nore rpm 80 much at t least eatone a d it at once was wa clear here woe wits his emy horn whom he must destroy if he be were not first destroyed ier thoughts though ta recasting of other re dooe dons altered or overturned in their dirtat hj by the discovery of tola this man everything very thing else could and must lit upon the mighty demand of that ment upon eaton to destroy this wj al now or be himself destroyed destroy edl etton raton shook in his passion yet billj he now realized that bis his left mider which had taken the shock IU W fall was numb ue he shifted his itol ol 01 over to cover a vague form feldt had bad seemed to move but if it i stirred ti it was still again now atoa to trained strained to anten certain that the noise now of i e hot shot if not the sound of the aa e which preceded IL it must have jed A in an alarm basil Sant olne as ton tm knew slept above a nurse at n be waiting on duty somewhere tr eaton had seen the row of but i which the blind man bad had within al Is length with which he be must be lie le to summon every servant in the its ul so it could not last much r now dow this deadlock in the dark ml one of the two twos at least seemed 1 have recognized that faton had moved warily and care abal but he had moved a revolver aued ed before him instantly and out consciousness that big a bid ed the trigger pistol aued shed back in front of him blim the e flashed again and another apart span in pat at one side eaton fired bach bark at this he was wu nitrate e on the floor now and diether er he be had been hit or not he 1 sot lot yet know or whether the od 1 I flowing down bis his face was only M A punter prayed sprayed from the table dd which he had hid he ile fired la Us his pistol far out cut to one ie I 1 to Coll confuse fuse the aim alm of the other others that they too were doing aae 14 tad and allowed for it in his aim polled pulled his trigger a ninth time bl had not counted his hi shots but he aw he had bad had even seven cartridges in 1 Ba lie and one no in the barrel A pistol clicked without dis liln Z ile rolled over farther larther from tle ile tl e spot where he be had last lag uil and pulled dulled an extra clip of car w estrom aroa bla his pocket blood was tits flowing hot over bis his aade made no effort to staunch r ten ell to feel with bla fingers to exactly artly tere where or how bow badly he be abeen been hit bil jerked eked the empty W e dip from hia his pistol butt and W la 14 the other he swept bis his his big face to clear the blood lils brows and arid eyes and stared 0 the dark with pistol at arms aras loaded and ready blood ell over his face again another V potha of his sleeve 1 cleared it and wed his pistol point back and 11 the dark ow low the oi of I 1 sound firing in oft ta must have reached the nan man room above surely he must be bi his servant coed eo ed there was still no aia anul the real res ot 0 the house dut but biow he heard hearil an almost im le pattering t the ile so and of a 1 he ht adew mad mill croes cross crossly lg the floora floor iw bedr that the bund blind man in wom fn above was getting up P CHAPTER lu under cavor of B 0 was OTer oversensitive sensitIve to MV ar most of 0 the e blind in sal r S adi ils of ir darkness lar kneM e in 1 which wall bibb he be vere at by far the most a be trad a imort the auly hai xa him of telling what went on I 1 he 6 passed sed his hit tor for or life list listen u ad I a dete riall I 1 ng 2 the nature of 1 the t kofl s struggle which ei ended t val 0 ash to tho floor w would S him without the pistol pi him following that vid awake immediately of ats 61 ewa sl own 1 0 condition on a nt t at ott once to tho beu WILLIAM Macl lARG V EDWIN CALMER BALMER C carm Cl rM br utu HM uia banri nl nil I 1 lo 10 0 ran rang at it ali nine little time for the tile nurse cutill outi ille le lit door and for the tile ine if I 1 not conal ii r the tit III filly of rol I 1 rry pry of I 1 11 I 1 ito it or J iry loir iong to 0 o have hn oo 00 said to con aldr older it nt tit nil all ij 1 felt wan was ehlt lint tie the throat threat which alch lini dun hanging vaguely himself ar bin silt M nr ar dene dens murder vi A 0 all trine ping I 1 fulfill hut but it was as not Snut olao him if hut that UN all bellig attn cam it 0 unit o something run gan tolne colne posses ml there cutill only on ono sort of article for which aich no might enar tint room below and those article articles Sant olne nil all he the boll bells again and thin got ot up lie had hearl abao cutely no sound outside ae as must be made hy by anyone eit caping 1 from HIP tile room below but the tile battle seemed over ono one elde side must have destroyed the other the blind ronn man stood barefooted on the floor his hands clasping in one of the bitterest momina of his rebellion against and defiance of hie his helpless nees liess of blind ne icelow him all he believed belle veil lits servants eer rante had been flying life for him there in that room he held in trust that which affected the security the faith the honor of others hi tits guarding arding cu that trust involved his honor no lese less and partle I 1 now he knew be wae was bound at whatever cost to art act for he did not doubt now but that his hi half balf prial boned tuest whom Saat olae bad had not sufficiently guarded fuard ed was it at the hot torn tom of the attack the blind man believed therefore that it as because of his own retention here of baton eaton that the attack bad ben been made hie big s gen ante had been killed the private ile secrets of his associates were in dan ger undoubtedly there waa was danger below but that wae was why he did not call ca 11 again 1 at the other door for some one else to run a risk for him he ile put bis his hand on the rail and started to descend the stairs lie ile was almost steady in step and he had firm grasp on the rail he noticed that now to wonder at it when he had aroused at the sound of firing his blindness as always when something was happening about him was obtruded upon him he felt helpless because he was blind not because he had bad been in aured ue he had forgotten entirely that for almost two weeks he had not stirred from bed he had risen and stood and walked without staggering to the door and to the top of the stairs before now he remembered so what he already had done showed him that he had merely again to put his 13 injury from his mind and he could go on he went down the stairs al most steadily the blind count stairs and he be had bad gone down twenty one and realized fully his futility but now be he would j not retreat or merely call for help who Is herer he asked distinctly Is anyone here who Is berer one and now san tolne colne knew by the sense which let him feel in whether bether it was night or day that the room was wits really dark dark for other others as well as for himself the lights were not burning so an eral erell tation a sense of physical capability came ce to Sant oloe olne in the dark he was as fit as capable aa as any other man he ile stepped down on the floor and in his uncertainty as to the position of the furniture felt along the wall there were bookcases there but he felt and passed along siong them swiftly until he came come to the case which concealed the safe at the left side of the doors doom the books were gone from that case his big bare toes struck against them where they bad been thrown down on the floor door the blind man hie big pulse beating tumultuously put his hand through the case and felt the panel behind that was as slid back exposing the safe and the door of the safe stood open San hands felt within the safe the safe was empty he lie re recoiled colled from it it choking back an ejaculation the entry to this room had been made for the purpose which he supposed and the thieves must have sue succeeded ceedee in their errand the blind roan man la in bis his uselessness for pursuit could delay calling others to act for him no longer he lie started toward the bell when some scrape on the floor flo not of the sort to be accounted for by an object moved by the wind ind sounded behind him san toina swung toward the sound and stood listening again and then pop p op ing with his big hand blinds stretched out before him he left the wall and stepped toward the center of the room ile took two steps three four with no result then his foot trod into some fluid guld thick and sticky and not cold Sant olne stooped and land put a fingertip into the hull huld and brought it near bis big nos nose it wa was what he be supposed it must be blood lie ile could hear bear now breathing more than one person from the bc anse still shut off by its double sound proof doors door he coula hear bear nothing but someone outside the house was hurrying up to the open window at the south end of the room e that one came to or just inside the window parting the curtains 4 lie was breathing bard from exertion or from excitement who Is ar Sant olne challenged clearly aft ell ta A forda TO voice ice ex er claimed his recognition in amazement basil that Is you yoni what are you doine down t spir oti r itin tellford I 1 fora n ra alint hat i i here Sont olne apil id f rila ri 1 ay iou ou wre vote iu tl lill wb all fill iou ou noot SP 1 I dilan t P the In liv lerp oapl or 1 I 1 cattle tip tit hut I 1 linard hol lentil U blat list lin I 1 lall nii nl enod hen sam halll in ino falt cit 1 he the nt at hi his feet three or four persons fi f light in III this till ro rin pin tillara borne s olno or ne ans hurt there blaul on the alof hoir r thero arc are t tw lit litre rp I 1 pan hear arf nit I 1 hurt irol prof ably the rest oot let help I 1 think those uhn mho hunt arrit hurt are rm g no they ie I 1 0 1 u no hugget bilut get help dext failure ani atil loan u I 1 lent ere li latchford rejoined lie III hal ha I 1 nt tilt halted a pin the mind blind man heard film cousin still aming III 1 ng the wall the electric baitch clicked and Sant olne ino knew that the norn rom nas a flooded witta with light santwine Sant nine n t 41 strained turn ine ing hie his hrad head a allt little tl e bettor better to listen balth uh the flash ing on of the light tie he had heard the harp sharp involuntary start of ni Watch atchford ford ai as he saw the room ind and besides that Sant olne heard movement movel nent now elsewhere in uie the room then the blind man heard hl his friend friends 1 cry good godl what li is Bant Sant olne cried good godl basil I 1 who ie is it it wallacer wai incer the blind man knew know now that his friend a incoherence came from a recognition of 0 someone eom cone not alone from tome some eight sight of horror basil I 1 it beit tt must bei boi bo I know him I 1 it 1 A ahot roared in front of Sent Sant olne the ito blind man starting back at the tb shock of it drew in the pen poder dew p 9 ii 1 1 A shot roared in front of Sant oln olne with hie his breath but the bullet was not for him instead he heard his friend scream and choke and half call half cough wallace I 1 Sant olne cried out but his voice was lost in the roar of another hot shot this was not fired by the same one who had bad just fired at least let it wa was not from the some part of the room and instantly froni from another side aide a third shot came then them in the midst of rush and confusion another shot hot roared the light was out again then all as gone the noise was out side the room was still except for a cough and choke as blatchford somewhere on the floor in front of the blind man manfried tried again to speak basil bull Sant olne groping with his hands found him lie ile was still coo COD clone Sant Santo olne irle knew that he was trying his best to speak to eay say just one word a name to tell whom he be had seen and aiho ho had shot hiro him but he be could not Sant olne put hie big hand band over a hard of bis big cousin blatchford Blatch fords s fingers closed tightly on Sant San olne s they did not relax but now remained closed though without strength the blind man bowed and then lifted hie his head bond ills friend ft dead and others were rushing into the room the butler one of the chauffeurs avery more me men secants sen ants the light was on again and amid the tumult and alarms of the discoveries shown by the light ame me rushed to the window windows to the south in pursuit of those who had escaped from the room avery and one or two other others rushed up to Sant SAD olne toine now the blind man beard heard above their cries caes and alarms the voice of his daughter she was beside him where be knelt next the body of blatchford and she the put back others who crowded about aboul father Fil therl what has happened why are you here oh father cousin wallace I 1 lie ile Is dead Sant ant olne raid rail they shot him I 1 they were 0 three at lt one wits wa not with the othera others they alred red a at t each other I 1 believe after one shot him Sant San olne band hand ineil still in 1 heard them below he ile told shortly how be had gone me down d 0 bow blatchford bad had entered and been hot shot tho the blind man still knee kneeling ling heard the ordering and organizing of others for the pursuit nw dow women servants eer rants froia from the other paa part of R tha thea how house were viere taking char charge ge of affairs affair in the room there ther had neu no DO rignal signal wn uns told upon any nf f the tile t tell ollia u fifth I 1 tc 0 find hii trie to ring from ills lil mom enton uni uns the only person froni front the house who wee ike mir miss ing they ennie nt at lit not nnie lle of hern them plinio and rutn fighting ilin 1 I jv n tits grief over til tila cousin a for what uno tn lit your afe safe liar alet 11 I 1 know I 1 won ann it open vant I 1 at li Is gannt gobie Sant olne de do ile 11 timins her tier picking tip up tho th con eon genix of the ho anti nf arm if the floor end and anming them to th the table und and ex anif ning IN thain tit uli nil all the hp formal p pors seem to I 1 te P gi eibie tie alwa and agreci llenos relating to it different things none of the he 0 no o that all to le ile here sati lItle win breathing quickly the h trust for which he lie lind been rady to dl fur for which aich Il latchford had aled refills afo safe f r dant don t know he rot got it then or i antl it wa as abrys voice 1 dillich broke in upon hira him SAnt olne merely listened biet mior 1 he lie |
