| Show THE HOUSE OF A THOUSAND CANDLES by MEREDITH NICHOLSON author 1 I 1 TUB THE WAIN MAIN CHANCE ZELDA DAMERON etc elc copyright IK by 6 to CHAPTER continued pickerings rings faco face grew white ant hia big eyes stained and when he tried slid end denly to speak lilg ills jaw twitched the room was so BO still that the breaking of 0 ft a blading log on the andirons and irons was a pleasant relief relict we stood the three of at us without eyes on ant in ray my own case I 1 must say any that roy my heart was pounding my elbs rt at an un comfortable speed for I 1 knew larry was not ing for time 1 ahe ho blood rushed into faco face and he tinned toward tarry larry stormily ilits 7 his Is i unwarrantable and I 1 in famous my aly relations with mr air glen arm are none of your business when you remember that afeei being dbert df sart ed by hla his own lenh flesh arid and bloo blood I 1 lie ho op ap peair to me going so far as to in trust all 1118 raffali s to my care at his deatti jour reflection Is lin an out outrageous ragou 1 insult I 1 am riot not accountable to you yon or 0 r any one else really theres there a a good deal in all that said larry we dont don t pretend to any judicial functions we are pei y illing to submit the whole busi ness and all roy my client is a acts to the auchoi atles 1 I would glie ele much it if I 1 could cepro duco some bome hint of the beauty of that word authorities as it rolled aiom larry Is tongue then in dod a 8 name to do it you blackguards black guards monred pickering stoddard seated on the table knocked his bocis together gently larry recio reci saed ossed ills legs arid and blew a cloud of 0 smoke then after a quarter of a minute in which lie he gazed at the coiling with hla his quiet blue eyes ho he said I 1 yeh yea certainly there are always alm ays tho the authorities and as I 1 have a bremen tromen dous respect for your Ameil can ansti I 1 shall at once act on your sug mr air picketing the estate to Is richer than you thought tt it was as it holds oi 01 will told hold your notes given to the decedent for flo 11 lie ile diew from ills his pocket a brown envelope walked to where I 1 stood and placed it in roy my hands at the same time stoddard a big linro irm croo nail 61 bf S J awl j eted that pickering had looped leaped tow aid the packet the executor was waa sitting bitting in a chair abere the he chaplain had bad thrown him lie he rallied promptly stuffing tits his necktie into ills his waistcoat Aalst coat lie he even lau laughed glied a little so 80 much old daperl paper you gentlemen RIO aie perfectly welcome to it I 1 thank you I 1 jerked lairy lu I 1 ry mr glenara glenarm Gle narni and I 1 had many trans actions together and lie ho must havu have for gotten to destroy those capeis con linued Vick cring quite likely I 1 remarked I 1 it la Is interesting to know that sister tho the resa wasn gasn t his anly debtor stepped to the door anti and called the sheriff 11 1 I will give you until tomorrow coining nt at nine to vacate tho the premises those thosa claims aie utterly worthless as aa I 1 am ready to prove the court understands tile the situation pr perfectly repeated the 1 I believe that la Is all said larry pointing to the door with hta his pipe tho the sheriff was waa lie garding him with particular attention what did I 1 understand bour our name to bo be to ho demanded laurance donovan larry replied cool coolly ly I 1 Ic kering seemed to notice tile maluo now and ills his eyes lighted disagreeably 1 I think I 1 have heaton of your friend before bufore lie said till aing to me I 1 congratulate you on oi the international intel national reputation oti oft our conniel hes 1161 d so BO highly in fa ireland that Mey loffer offer ir a large toward fui foi his re tui n sheriff I 1 think w 10 e have finished our business for today se elated anxious to kit the man ft ay and we gave them escott t to the outer gate gale where a horse and buggy wat was waiting now I 1 in in for it I 1 said larry as aa I 1 locked the th gate cate we ve spiked ona lie of his guns but ive given chen him a new one to us use against myself but coine find and I 1 will show you the door of Dewil dEw ment meat before I 1 kelp CHAPTER III A prowler of the night doaine plunged luto into the cellar trap and to the tha door of dont don t expert too loo much asbed larry jI cant promise ou on a spanish coin A Per leh the ambition 1 we have blocked rickert ricke rings nea game eanie and nothing elbo matters I 1 bald we vet crawled through the hole in the r k wall andi lighted candioa the room ow as bout iseicz tet square at the 4 oblong wooden v door clue boyl the cell ing and larry tm pd at toning until it camo dowal bringing with it a mass masa of snow and leaves 4 1 wo are at the tha of dilyou beetho see tho f i S i f V lo 10 1 aci 1 blue sky atul and it if you will twist your necks necha a bit Is the boat house well let the scenic effects feo bo and show us ua where you found those pa pers I 1 urged speaking ot at m rl berles that la Is where I 1 throw up my hands lads lada it its a quickly told heie la Is a table and here la is an old despatch box which lies iles just where I 1 found it it was cloried cloned and the key wits was in the look loik I 1 took out that hat packet it wasn gasn t even sealed sow saw the character of the contents and couldn coulden t aalst the acm temptation p tation to try tile the effect of an announcement of its discovery on your friend pickering ng now that is IB neair all I 1 found this piece of paper dundei tho the tapo tape with which the envoy envoi en velpe apo was tied and I 1 don t hsi tate to say that when I 1 read it I 1 laughed until I 1 thought I 1 should shake do down doan an the cellar road read it john Gle ile iio handed me it a fragment fra Kment of lesal legal cap paper on which was written in the he unmistakable han twitting of jolin marshall clenard Cl these molds III HE TALon 3 no LA i I 1 laar whit what do you think la is so BO funny in this I 1 demanded who wrote it do you think asked stoddard anbo aho vho wrote arote it do aou ou ask aak why jacks grandfather ciote it john marshall glenarm glenara Gl the cleverest gron grandest dest old man that ever llotd wrote I 1 declaimed lairy hla his voice baoni ing loudly in tho the room it a all a great big game fixed up to try you and Pic pickering hering but principally you you blockhead oh its giand deliciously grand and to think it should be my good luck to share in idill it I 1 im I 1 m glad youre you re ani amused used 4 f j J A lantern flashed flashe blandi blinding bigly in my face but it doesn doean t strike me amri as aa being so awfully funny suppose those had fallen into hands bands then where would the joke have been I 1 should like to knowl know I 1 on you my lad jac to bo be sure the old gentleman wanted you to study architect ine he be ft wanted anted you to study his its house he be even left a little pointer in an old book oh ch its too good to be true thata all clear enough observed stoddard knocking upon the deR despatch patch bol with his dut but why to do bok yo yoi suppo suppose sebe he dug dag thI hole heie bete with Us on the rai ine oh it was the wiy way of dimill him ex pla inid lairy ho to liked the idea of queer chineis and underground pas sages this la Is a bully hiding place for pian nan or tie tte asuro asare and that outlet into the lavino makes tt it possible to got get out of the house with nobody the wiser it its a in keeping ith tile the I 1 pat lest of 0 tits his scheme ile he gay comrades tomorrow will likely find us its with plenty of oe business on hinda hands at present we hold the fort and let us hane hae st a care lest we lose it no ve closed the ravine door restored the wall as aa best beat 0 ake o could and returned to the librae vve e made a list of the pickering notes and blent an hour discussing tah new feature of the situation and speculating as to tho the hitting hiding place ot of tile the ot or 1115 in grandfathers fortune larry and stoddard both declared their intention intent on of ionia laing until my troubles tro ahles were vere ended in spite of if protests nard dard stayed for dinner and afterward we ne began agam again our eternal quest for the treasure our hopes high from larrys lucky strike ot of the afternoon and with a new on gerness hot bom a of the knowledge that the mairow would certainly bring us its face to face with the real olaes we ranged the house from tower to cellar we the tunnel for it seemed to me the hun dreith time it was my watch and at midnight after stoddard and larry had recon loitered noite red the grounds and pates bates and I 1 had made sure of all the Int intel eilor tor fas ten jenings ings I 1 sent them ot off to bed and made myself comfortable comfor table with a pipe la in the library I 1 was glad of the respite glad to to te y 4 tal 1121 1 alone to to consider my talk with 11 amz rian descieux leux at st agatha a and her let turn urn with flickering could she not always have been olivia oil via ranging tile tho woodland or the girl in atay or that woman so HO sweet in her dignity who came down the stalls stall a at the arm at 9 her own attitude altitude toward me was so BO full of contradictions she had bad appeared to me in so many moods nal dulses that my spirit ranged tho the whole gamut of feeling as I 1 thought of her but it was the recollection of illeker ing a infamous moua conduct that col oice all my doubts of her picketing had always been in my way and here but tor for the chante chance by which larry had found the notes I 1 should have had no wealon beai on to use against him the wind rose and drove shrilly around tho the house A bit of scaffold ing on the outer walls tattled loose somewhere and crashed down on thi the tereace ten are I 1 gica diew restless my mind in tent upon the many chances of the morrow and running forward to the furuie fetui e 1 liven yan it I 1 won in my with pickering I 1 had yet my way tc ft make in the world ills notes were vere probably worthless I 1 did not doubt that I 1 might use them to procure his hie removal ai a executor but I 1 did not look forward with any pit asure to a legal fight ovet a property pio perty that N had tol brought me only tio trouble tible something impelled me to go below and taking a lantern I 1 tramped som hom berly thion gli the cellar glanced at tho the h abing apparatus appah abug and remember ing that the chapel enhance tiance en to the tunnel was unguarded followed the to the and opened it tho the cold air blew up sharply and I 1 thrust my hlad head down to listen A sound at ono once ari ariestea ested in me e I 1 thought at first it must be the suction of the air but glenarm Gle narin house was no place for conjecture uie and I 1 put t the he lanstein lira tein aside and jumped down into the A gleam of light showed tar far away for an instant then the dark ness and silence bere complete I 1 ran rapidly over the smooth floor door which I 1 had traversed so BO often that I 1 knew its ita every line my aly weapon was a heavy hickory club near tile the door of bewilderment I 1 paused and listened 1 ahe I he tunnel was pe pc quiet I 1 took a step fol and bled over a nick illicit fumbled on the wall for the opening which we had closed carefully that afternoon and at the instant I 1 found it a lantern lanter a flashed ila 8 h ed 1 I blind blindingly in my face and I 1 drew bark back crouching involuntarily and clenching the tha club leady to strike good evening mr air glenara glenarm Gl nill maikai Devere uxa voice broke the silence and marian devereux s face with the full light of the lantern aroa it was waa bent gravely upon tile me lift iler voice as I 1 heard it there her face as I 1 saw it are the things that I 1 shall remember last when ray my hour colnes to go hence front from this wot id itei hot slim allm lingers fingers as they clasped the wire nire alieen of the lantern held my gaze for a second the red tamo tam o that I 1 had associated with her youth and beauty was tilted rakishly on one side of her pretty head tc find her here sep socking iding like ilke a thief in tile the night for some means of helping arthur pickering was tho the bitterest drop la in tho the cu cui I 1 felt as though I 1 had been with a bludgeon 1 I 1 beg your pardon 5 she said ana laughed there dohnt seem beem to be anything to say does there well wel wg we do enita meet under tinder the most un usual not to say unconventional dr cir cum stances squire glenara glenarm Gl please pleas go away or turn our back I 1 want to get out cut of this athla donjon keep she took my hand band coolly enough and stopped stepped down into the passage ihen I 1 broke broka out stormily storm lly you dont seem to understand the gravity of what you sou are doing don t you know that sou are risking your ufa life in crawling through this house at midnight that oven even to serve arthur flickering a life la Is it a pretty big thing to throw away your infatuation for that blackguard seems seema to carry you far miss devereux t k TO AIE CONTINUED id |
