Show attoa novel from rom the play by MARY ROBERTS RINEHART ML and narl AVERY A I HOPWOOD the bat copyright uta by roberts Kl and abery hopwood STORY FROM THE START defying all efforts to capture him after a ions series of mur ars and robberies a super crook known only as the bat baa brought about a veritable reign of terror the chief of police his best operative anderson to set on the trail of the bat with her niece dale ogden miss cornelia van gorder Is living in the country home of the late fleming who until his recent death had been president of the union bank wrecked because of the theft of a large sum of currency miss van gorder receives a note warning her to vacate the place at once on pain of death dale returns from the city where she had been to hire a gardener the gardener arrives giving his name as brooka he admits be Is not a gardener but needs work miss cornelia tells doctor wells of the threatening note they are interrupted by the smashing of a window in the house they find another warning note the detective anderson arrives Is told of the situation and announces be will stay on watch that night miss van gorder tells anderson she has an idea courtleigh Courtl elgh fleming robbed his own bank and concealed the money in the house but the detective believes the bank a cashier bailey who Is missing Is the guilty one brooks who Is really bailey the sought tor cashier and dale a fiance tells the girl he knows there Is a hid den room in the house dale telephones richard fleming court leagh s nephew asking him to come over CHAPTER V continued she had only reached the table and was preparing to deposit her tray and beat a shameful retreat when a sound behind her made her turn the ley in the door from the terrace to the alcove had clicked paralyzed with fright she stared and waited and the next moment a formless thing a blacker shadow in a world of shad aws pissed swiftly in andrup the email staircase but not only a shadow to tizzies Liz terrified eyes it bore an ei e a single gleaming eye just above the level of the and this eye was turned on her U was too much she dropped the tray on the table with a crash and gave vent to a piercing shriek that would have shamed the siren of a fire engine cornelia and anderson rush ang in from the hall and the billiard room respectively each with a lighted candle found her gasping and clutch ing at the table for support tor the love of heaven wrong cried miss cornelia irritated ly ahe coffee pot she was carrying in her other hand spilled a portion of its boiling contents on lizzie a shoe nod lizzie screamed anew and began to dance up and down on the unan aured toot oh my foot my foot I 1 she squealed hysterically my foot I 1 miss cornelia tried to shake her back to her senses my patience did you yell ahle eliat because you stubbed your toe you scalded cried lizzie wild ly it went up the staircase I 1 your toe went up the yo not an eye an ee as big as a saucer it ran right up that staircase she indicated the alcoe ft ath a trembling forefinger miss cornelia put her coffee pot and her candle down on the table and opened her mouth to express her frank opan lo 10 of her factotums facto tums sanity but here alie detective took chairge ow see here he said with some sternness to the quaking I 1 izle stop this racket and tell me what you A ghost I 1 persisted still hopping around on one log it came right through that door and ran up the stairs oh and she seemed prepared to scream again as dale white faced came in from the hall followed by billy and broils the latter hold ing itell another candle ho screamed said dale tensely 1 I dudl walled 1 I saw a khoste she turned to miss cornelia I 1 begged you not to come here she vociferated 1 I begged iou on my bended knees theres a graveyard not a quarter of a mile away les and one more scare like that lizzie alien and you ll 11 have me lying in it said her mistress ah moved up to examine the scene of alza ghostly rolaad venture while anderson began to in ter rogate its heroine now lizzie he said forcing him belt to urbanity A hat did you real ly deec I 1 told you what I 1 saw his manner grew somewhat threat you re not try to frighten miss I 1 anto tells se and going back to tha city if i am said lizzie with ealm unconscious humor tin rn awful good scare 00 two glared at each other as ta nha ha have got in here mr anderson she said annoy edly that terrace doors been unbolted from the inside the detective recovered his poise 1 I think I 1 see the answer to your ale miss van gorder he said with a scornful glance a lizzie A hysteric cal and not very reliable woman anxious to go back to the city and fied over and over by the shutting off of the electric light miss van gorder considered his theory I 1 wonder she said the detective robbed his hands together more cheerfully A good nights sleep and he began but the irrepressible lizzie inter erupted him my god were not going to bed are we she said with her eyes as big as saucers he gave her a kindly pat on the shoulder which she obviously resented you II 11 feel better in the morning he said lock your door and say your prayers and leave the rest to me lizzie muttered something inaudi ble and rebellious but now miss cornelia added her protestations to his very good advice she said decisively you take her dale reluctantly with a dragging of feet and scared glances cast back over her shoulder lizzie allowed herself to be drawn toward the door and the main staircase by dale but she did not depart without one parthian shot im not going to bed she walled as dale s strong young arm helped her out into the ball do you think I 1 want to wake up in the morning with my throat cut then the creaking of the stairs and dales soothing voice reassuring her as she painfully clam bared toward the third floor announced that for some time at least had been removed as an active factor from the puzzling equation of cedar crest anderson confronted miss cornelia with certain relief there are certain things I 1 want to discuss with YOU miss van dorfler Gor fler he said but they can wait until tomorrow morning you go upstairs and go to bed comfortably make a careful search of the house before I 1 settle down and if I 1 find anything at all suspicious promise to let you know she agreed to that and after send ing the jap out for more coffee prepared to go upstairs hever had the thought of her own comfortable bed appealed to her so much but in spite of her weariness she could not quite resign herself to take tizzies story as lightly as the detective seemed to if what lizzie says Is true she said taking her candle the upper floors of the house are even less safe than this one 1 I imagine tizzies Liz account just now is about as reliable as her grevl ous one as to her age andorson as her I 1 m certain you need not worry just go on up and get your beauty sleep I 1 m sure you need it on which ambiguous remark miss van gorder took her leave rather grimly smiling it was after she bad gone that an dersons glance tell on brooks stand ing warily in the doorway what are you the gardener but brooks wag prepared for him ordinarily I 1 drive a car he said just now im working on the place here anderson was observing him close ly with the eves of a man ransacking ills memory tor a name a picture I 1 ve seen j ou somei here he vi ent on slowly and place you before long there was a little threat in his shrewd scrutiny ue took a step towards brooks not in the portrait gallery at head quarters are you not vet brooks voice was re then he remembered his pose and his back grew supple his whole attitude that of the respectful servant well we slip up now and then said the detective slowly then apparently parent ly he gave up his search for the name the pictured fice but his manner was still suspicious all right brooks he said tersely if you re needed in the night be called brooks bowed very well sir lie closed the floor softly behind him glad to have escaped us well as he had but that ho had not entirely lulled the detectives watchfulness to rest was evident as soon as he had gone anderson walled fc tew seconds then moved noiselessly over to the hall door listened opened it suddenly closed it again then he proceeded to examine the alcove the stairs where the gleaming eve bad wavered like a corpse candle before lizzie a at ed vision he alie ter race door and bolted it how much truth had there been in her story he could not decide but he drew out his revolver nevertheless and gave 1 a quick inspection to see it it were in working order A smile crept avei bla face the smile of a man who has dangerous work to do and does not shrink from the prospect he put the revolver back in his pocket and tak ing the one lighted candle remaining went out by the hall door as the storm burst forth in fresh fury and the window panes of the living room rattled before a new reverberation of thunder for a moment in the living room expect for the thunder all was silence then the creak of surreptitious foot steps broke the stillness light foot steps descending the alcove stairs where the gleaming eye had passed it was dale slipping out of the house to keep her appointment with bichard fleming hc carried a rain coat over her arm and a pair of rub bers in one hand her other hand held a candle by the terrace dooc she paused unbolted it glanced out into the streaming night a shiver then she came into the room and sat down to put on her rubbers hardly had she begun to do so when she started up again A muffled knocking sounded at the terrace door it was ominous and determined and in a panic of terror she rose to her feet it it was the law come after what are you the gardener jack what would she dot or again suppose it was the unknown who had threatened them with death biot coherent thoughts these but chaotic bringing panic with them almost unconscious of what she was doing she reached into the drawer beside her secured the revolver there and leveled it at the door CHAPTER VI A shot in the dark A key clicked in the terrace door a voice swore muffled ly at the rain dale lowered her revolver slowly it was richard fleming come to meet her here instead of down by the drive she had telephoned him on an am pulse but now as she looked at him in the light of hr single candle she wondered if this rather dissipated rather foppish oung man about town in his early thirties could possibly understand and appreciate the motives that had driven her to seek his aid still it was tor jack I 1 she clenched her teeth and resolved to go through with the plan mapped out in her mind it might be a desperate expedient but she had nowhere else to turn 1 fleming shut the terrace door behind him and moved down from alie alcove trying to shake the rain from his coat did I 1 frighten you oh mr fleming yes 1 dale laid her aunts revolver down on the table fleming perceived her nervousness and made a gesture 0 apology I 1 m sorry he said I 1 rapped but nobody seemed to hear me so I 1 used my key you re wet through I 1 m sorry said dale with mechanical politeness he smiled ah no he stripped off his cap and raincoat and placed them on a chair brushing himself off as he did so with finicky little movements of his hands reggie beresford brought me over in his car he said lies waiting down the drive dale decided not to waste words in the usual commonplaces of social greeting mr fleming I 1 m in dreadful trouble she said facing him squarely with a courageous appeal la her eyes ue made a polite movement oh I 1 bayt too bad she plunged on you know the union bank closed today he laughed yes I 1 know it 1 I 1 dlan t have anything in it or any other bank for that matter he admitted ruefully but I 1 hate to see the old thing go to smash dale wondered which angle was best from which to present her appeal well even if you lost anything in this bank failure a lot of your friends have surely she went on say sol said fleming debon airey airly beresford Is sitting down the road in his rolls royce now writhing with dale hesitated flemings lightness seemed so incorrigible a mo ment she was on the verge of giving her project up entirely then wast er or not bes the only man who can help us I 1 she told herself and con lots of awfully poor people are going to suffer too she said wistfully fleming chuckled dismissing the poor with a wave of his hand oh well the poor are always in trouble he said with airy heartless ness they specialize in suffering he extracted a monogrammed alg arette from a gold case but look here he went on moving closer to dale you send tor me to discuss this hypothetical poor depositor did you mind it I 1 smoke 0 o he lit bis cigarette and puffed at it with enjoyment while dale paused summoning up her courage finally the words came in a rush mr fleming im going to say something rather brutal please don t mandl im merely desperate I 1 lou see I 1 happen to be engaged to the cashier jack bailey fleming whistled 1 I seel and hes beat it dale blazed with indignation lie has hotl im going to tell you something he s here now in house she continued fierily fieri lv all her defenses thrown aside my aunt thinks hes a new gardener he Is here mr fleming because he knows he take the money and the only person who could have done it was your uncle 1 dick fleming dropped his cigarette in a convenient ash tray and crushed it out there absently not seeming to notice whether it scorched his fingers or not he rose and took a turn about the room then he came back to dale a pretty strong indictment to bring against a dead man he said slowly seriously its true I 1 dale insisted stubbornly giving him glance top glance fleming nodded all right he smiled a smile that dale dlan t like suppose its true where do I 1 come in he said you dont think I 1 know where the money Is no admitted dale but I 1 think you might help to find it she went swiftly over to the hall door and listened tensely tor an in stant then she came back to flem ang if anybody comes in youve just come to get something of yours she said in a low voice he nodded understandingly she dropped her alce fitall lower do you know anything about a hidden room in house she said dick fleming stared at her for a moment then he burst into laughter A hidden room that 3 rich I 1 he said still laughing Is ever heard of isow let me get this the idea Is a hidden room and the money is in it is that it dale nodded a les the architect who built this house told jack bailey that he had built a hidden room lu it she persisted for a moment dick fleming stared at her as if he could not believe his cars then slowly his expression changed beneath the well fed debonair mask of the clubman about town other lines appeared lines 0 avarice and calculation wolf marks betokening the craft and petty ruthlessness of the small soul within the gentlemanly shell his eyes took on a chitty uncertain stare they no longer looked at dale their gaze seemed turned inward beholding a treasure a glittering pile of gold and yet the change in his look was not so pronounced as to give dale pause she felt a vague uneasiness steal over her true but it would have taken a shrewd and long experienced woman of the world to read the secret behind flemings eyes at first glance and dale for all her courage and common sense was a and headstrong girl she watched him puzzled wonder ang why he made no comment on her last statement do you know where there are any blue prints of the house she asked at last an odd light glittered in flemings eyes for a moment then it vanished he held himself in check the casual idler again blueprints blue prints he seemed to it over why may be some have you looked in the old secretary in the library ay iy uncle used tc keep all sorts of papers there h said with apparent helpfulness why dont yon remember you locked it when we took the house so I 1 did fleming took out hit key ring selected a key suppose you go and look he said don t you think I 1 d better stay here oh yes said dale blinded to |