Show I 1 I 1 CI I 1 10 1 ah ow vi Blud ralian C 1 caodes t it 1914 sy DODO MEAD 41 ty SYNOPSIS A arcurious crowd of 0 neighbors invade the mysterious homo home of judge ostrander Oat rander county judge anil and eccentric recluse fol ft a veiled woman nho ho proves to be ba t lie d ow of a man tried before tile tha judge n annl nd electrocuted for murder years before iler her daughter to Is engaged to the he judges judge won tion from whom he Is estranged but the burder in im between the lovers she bho plans plan to clear her husbands memory lind and risks asks the judges aid deborah ille reads read the news newspaper clippings telling telling tha ilia story of lit the murder of algernon etheridge Etherl dge by john 1 0 hn in dark li hollow ollow tw twelve year wears before tho the judge and mrs villa meet at spencers folly and she callows allows him it how 0 on 1 1 t alie day y 0 of f ta the ae m mur u row alfr she bhe baw tho th aindow 8 h a of 0 a man M a n whittling w h lt t IL a stick rind wearing a long peaked cap the judge engaged her and her laughter to enrages live ive with him in ills hla mysterious home deborah ind and tier her lawyer bilack KO go to the police station and kee ee ilia lie stick slick used to murder etherly etheridge Etherl dge ge r she he d in ci I 1 a broken broke n anif blade point in it deborah and reuther so 90 to llva H with ith the he judge deborah sees seen a port portrait ve all wr 0 of oliver the tha judges son on with a illek blick band painted across tho the eyes that night oho lio nold flings in olivers room a cap IVIL with ha a peak ak ll 11 like e the 11 a shadowed one and a knifa IA pal with t 11 a broken broken blade point anon non ym ous letters letter and a talk with alss weeks week a increase her suspicions and fears site bhe finds that oliver wn was in the tha ravine on oil the tha murder night lalack Ill atit warns tier her anil and shows her other anonymous 11 1 1 ers n q nt at juvers OI Ivera guilt in the court room ron tile the J judge u dge to Is handed an anonymous note the note la in picked up and read aloud A mob follows follow the judge to hla his hume home deborah tells tella him why suspicion liaa has been aroused against oliver i CHAPTER XIII continued once withla the room ho he became his courteous self once more ile he seat pd d lie ho begged indicating a chair in tho the halt hall gloom As she bho took it the room sprang into sudden light ile he had pulled tho ilia string which regulated tho the curtains curt alna over tile the glazer glazed panes in the ahe belling cel ling then as quickly all was bloom again lie he had lot let tho the string es cs faro capo from ills hla hand hall half light la Is better he mutt muttered fred in vague apology it was it weird beginning to an in n whose object was as yet in to her one a bli blinding ailing glimpse of the room whose details acro era so varied that many of them still remained unknown to her tho ilia next everything swept ngali into shadow through which tile the tall form of the genius of the place loomed with ii alq anchovy sy suggest suggestion lon va when he 11 mrs scoville not deborah now have you tiny confidence in olivers word lias ilas there ever been anything in his conversation as you knew it in detroit to make inako you hesitate to to re the tha judge persisted as aa she bhe con can speechless no nothing I 1 have every con can in lila ills assertions I 1 should have yet it it were not for this horror porsel forget it tor for it a moment recall his bis ernect effect upon you as a man a prospective son eon in ln law tor for you meant him to marry reuther ne uther 1 I trusted him I 1 would trust him in ciany ways yet would you trust him enough to believe that he would tell you the truth it you asked him point blank whether lita ills hands were clean of crime yes tile tho word came in a whisper but thero there was waa no wavering in it she had felt tile the conviction dart like nn an arrow through her mind that oliver might slay a man tn in hla his hate might oven conceal his guilt for years but that lie could not llo ile about it when brought face to taco face with tin an accuser like herself then I 1 will let you read something lio ila wrote at my request these man mail years ago an the tale of one awful night tile the horrors of which locked within tits his mind and mine havo have never been revealed to a third person that you should share u our r secret now nov Is not cot only necessary but hut fitting it becomes tho widow of at john scoville to know what sort of a man mail the she 1 0 stats in regarding innocent walt fir me with a quick step tie ho wound ills hla way tway among the various encumbering alecea of furni furniture turo to hla his bedroom idere ho he lingered so long that lint without tiny tenacious volition of liar hor own she lound herself on liar her feet but she ball not had time to reseat herself v she beheld him approaching with the thel bundle of loose sheets clutched in ills hand 1 I want you sit here and read said lie be laying the manuscript down on a small manull table near the ilia wall under a gas jet which ho he immediately lighted 1 I am going back to my own desk it if you want to speak you may I 1 shall ishall not be working and she hoard heard hla his foot retreating again in and out among the lie furniture till lie he reached hla his own chaurand cha chair irand and sat before hla his own stable this ended all sound in the room excepting the beating of tier her own hearth heart which had become tumultuous thank godl the manuscript waa belble lel llo olivers handwriting possessed the tha clearness of print she bad begun to before she know knew it and having begun she never paused till she reached the end 1 I 1 was fifteen it was waa my birthday and I 1 bad my own ideas ideal of how flow I 1 want cd to spend it my aly hobby bobby was model my father had no sympathy alth this to him film at it was a waste of adrile better spent tn stuby r SLIM sports as would fat ma e for ai PO jon the ahe dy 4 I 1 had a few hours of freedom I 1 decided to begin the remodeling in clay of an exquisite statue which bad greatly aroused my admiration this statue stood in a forbidden P altce ioe I oe it was one of the art treasures of the great house on the bluff corn cam conly called spencers roily folly I 1 had sien seen this marble once when dining thre with father and was waa so impressed by its beauty that it haunted me night and day the boy of fifteen would attempt the impossible I 1 procured my clay and then awaited my opportunity it came as 03 I 1 have said on my birthday there was wag no one living in the house at this time mr air spencer had bad gone W west 0 st for or the winter the servants had been dismissed and the place closed what to every other person in town would have seemed an insuperable ob to this ibis undertaking was no ob stacle to ne jio I 1 know knew how to get in one day in my restless wanderings about a place which had something of the nature of a shrine to me I 1 had noticed that one of the windows a swinging one overlooking the ravine moved as aa the wind took it either the lock had given way or it had not been properly fastened it if I 1 could only bring myself to disregard the narrow nose of the ledge separating the house from the pre apice beneath I 1 felt that I 1 could reach this window and sever the vines sufficiently for my body to press in anil and this I 1 did that night I 1 lot let myself go I 1 had bad to and imme found myself standing upright in a space so narrow I 1 could touch the walls on either side it was a closet I 1 had entered opening into the huge dining hall where I 1 had once sat beside my father at the one formal meal of my 1110 11 fo I 1 remembered that room it had made a great impression upon me and some light finding its way through the panes of glass which topped each of the three windows overlooking the ravine I 1 soon was able to find tho the door lea leading dinn into the tha dra drawing vying room I 1 had brought a small lantern in the tag b shoulders shou but abad 1 had it ia V 1 I want you to sit here and read said he rat hitherto dared to io uso ilso it on account of ilia transparency of tho the panes I 1 have mentioned bul bu once in the tha per factly dark recesses jt it the room bo be yond I 1 drew it out and without the least roar fear of detection boldly turned it upon the small alcove where stood the object of my adorn adoration tion I 1 knelt before the glimmering marble and un rolled my bundle of wet clay I 1 began my work then I 1 began to realize a little tho the nature of tho the task I 1 had undertaken ant am to ask ash myself whether if I 1 stayed all night I 1 could finish it to my mind it was during one of at these moments of hesitation that I 1 heard tile the first growl of distant thunder out but the thunder growled again and my head rose this time in real alarm A man two men were entering by the ilia great front door I 1 heard a loud laugh and the tipsy exclamation or of a voice I 1 knows know thorel there shut the door cant you before its blown from its hinges find i i ter pr thing jolly I 1 ere era wine alno lights solitude in which to finish our game and a roaring good opportunity to sleep afterwards the answer I 1 failed to catch I 1 was simply paralyzed by terror As the door of 0 tho the room opened to admit them I 1 succeeded in shutting that of the tha closet into which I 1 unit flung my self bolt or almont a acut so go I 1 did not no daro dare to latch tt it for they were alre ady in a the room and ogel hear bear me this L lt them the spot for us came cam Is in acers rB most moat jovial tones nig big I 1 table handy kati ey cards right here 1 in my pocket walt wait till I 1 strike a lichtl A gas jet shot up then two then all that the room contained hows that a flash more or less lees bowl now I 1 I 1 heard no answer only the slap of the cards as an they were flung bung onto the table then the clatter of a key as it turned in some distant lock the bo bottles it ties were brought forward and they sat eat down an ono on each side of the tha dusty mahogany table the 1 man I facing me a was spencer the athor sa sat with his bis back my way well wall play till tile the hands point to three announced spencer taking gout out ills his watch and laying it down where both could see beo it do you agree to that unless I 1 win and your funds go a begging before that hour 1 I agree the tone toile was harsh harah it was almost smothered the man was staring at tile the watch there was a strange set bet look to hit hie figure a pausing as of thought of sinister thought I 1 should now say then I 1 never stopped to characterize it it was followed too quickly by a loud laugh and a sudden grab at the ilia cards wint win I 1 I 1 feel it in my bones came in encouraging tones from the rich man it you do hero here the storm lulled and his voice sank to an encouraging cou raging you can buy the old tavern up the road its going for a song and then well be neighbors and can play play the bills ilja had bad all gone one way they fell within spencers grasp suddenly hard upon a rattling peal which seemed to unito unite heaven and earth I 1 heard shouted out half past two the gamu gamo stops at three damn your greedy eyell came back in a growl then ah was still fearfully still both in the atmosphere outside and in that within during which I 1 caught sight eight of the strangers hand moving slowly around to his back and returning as slowly forward all under cover of the tabletop table top and a stack of halt half empty bottles 1 I can buy the claymore tavern can I 1 17 well im going to rang out into the air as the speaker leaped to his feet take that you cheadl and thail and that and tho the shots rang out one two three spencer was dead in his folly I 1 had seen him rise throw up his hands handa and then tall fall in a heap among the cards and glasses then the man who stood there alono alone turned slightly and I 1 saw his bis face I 1 have seen it many times since I 1 have seen it at claymore tavern lie ile put the weapon back in his pocket and began gathering up the money when every bill was in his pockets lie he reached out his hand for the watch then I 1 saw him smile ile ho smiled as ho he shut the case he smiled as he plunged it in alter after the bills Next moment I 1 woke to a realization of myself and all the dan danger gerof of my own position I 1 had tho the instinct to make a leap for the window over my head and clutch at its ita narrow sill in a wild attempt at estape escape out but tho the effort ended precipitately ile he was coming toward me a straining panting figure half carrying halt half dragging the dead man who flopped aside from his arms my ary senses blurred and I 1 knew nothing till on a sudden they cleared again and I 1 woke to the blessed realization that the door had been pushed against my slender figure hiding it completely from ills his sight and that this door was now closed again and this time tightly and I 1 was sate safe safe tile the relief sent cent the perspiration lit in a reek from every pore but the ley icy revulsion came quickly As I 1 drew up knees to got get a better purchase on the call all heavens torch was suddenly lit up the closet became a pit of dazzling whiteness amid which I 1 saw the blot of that dead body with head propped against the wall and eyes remember Ro I 1 was but fifteen the legs were hunched up and almost touched mine the door the door there was my way the only way which would rid mo me instantly of at any proximity to this hideous object I 1 flung ung boysel f al ai rt Ft round the knob turned it and yelled aloud alou my foot had brushed against him I 1 know the ho difference and it sent me palpitating tating over be threshold but kaj p no ferth barthy far thy X lo 10 love V a of life had returned with my iby 41 escape from that thai athil prison house and I 1 in the semidarkness into which I 1 had bad plunged thank thanking ilig heaven for the thunder peal which had drowned my loud cry for I 1 was vas not yet sate safe lie ile was waa still there lie he had turned out all lights but one ile he had not seen me and was going I 1 could hear bear the sound of at his feet as he wont stumbling in ills his zigzag course towards tho the door then every sound both on his part and on mine was lost in a swoop of down falling failing rain and I 1 remember nothing more iiii tl out of the blackness before me ho he started again into view within the tha open doorway where in the glare of what he called heavens candles candies ho he stood poising himself to meet the gale which lemed ready to catch him up and whirl him with other inconsequent things into the void of nothingness then darkness settled again and I 1 was waa left alono alone with mur der all the innocence of at 1117 youth gone and my soul a very enamel charnel house I 1 had to reenter re ro enter that closet had bad to take the only means meana of 0 escape prof fored feted but I 1 went through it as aa we go through tho the horror of nightmare I 1 simply did it and escaped all lightning flash and falling ailing limb and the lasso of swirling to ild find myself at last lying my full loneta along the bridge amid P shock of elo ela ments menta suck such as nature seldom sports with 11 clung tor for I 1 was breathless wal wall tic I 1 raith head buried burica in my iny arm aria to for or thac i nin iata to abate betor efort i s attempted a further escape escape from ram the th place which held such euch horror for mot out but no abatement came and feeling the bridge shaking under me almost to cracking I 1 began to crawl inch by inch along its gaping boards till I 1 reached its middle there god stopped me for with a clangor as of rending worlds a bolt hot from the zenith sped aped down upon the bluff behind me throwing me down again upon my face and engulfing sense and understanding for one wild moment then I 1 |