Show 1 M I 1 t COPYRIGHT DY BY 7 l M SERVICE CHAPTER XI Continued XI-Continued Continued 16 16 But nut you salt You shut your face said GeofFrey Geor frey Truth Is stranger than fie fic- every Uon-every every time The door to the turret was open and so were the doors to her r room om But her room had been used The thieves had escaped by the chimney entered her room by the fireplace cleaned themselves up In her ber bathroom and disappeared The IThe thing to do was to search the castle forthwith I ought to have ha said that long long- before I got back the switchboard had been repaired repaired re re- re paired and the lights had come on and while my lad lady was t talking the staff which had been scattered was trickling back Florin and I 1 In Induced some sort of or order before beginning the search I We W began with my ladys lady's bed bed- room One look at the hearth was enough There was soot all aU over the place But nothing and nobody else eise We left let the watchmen the there e and my lady and Florin and I went down clown to the secret roo room It was empty now we knew for Pharaoh and company were gone but thedoor thedoor the thedoor door to the cellar was open and my lady wanted It shut He took a deep breath Ill tell you yon what we found We found Pharaoh Dewdrop and Rush Rushall Rushall all all three of them d dead Go on said I Incredulously Fact said my cousin shortly Im I'm glad you weren't there to see it It It was a dreadful sight Bugle had done the three In l an then cleared out I fancy there'd been some scrap Pharaohs Pharaoh's ba back k was broken he had no wound And heres here's my Interpretation of this astounding find In Pharaohs Pharaoh's absence Bugle and andRush andRush andRush Rush between them let Lady Helena go fearful of the consequences consequences con sequences of or what they had done Rush and Bugle e quarrelled and Bugle killed Rush Afraid to face Pharaoh such Pharaoh such a dereliction of or duty meant almost certain death death Bugle Bugle de decided to kill 1111 him and Dewdrop too And so he did Then he escaped escaped es es- es by the chimney with Lady Helena's master ke key This l let t him out of the castle by the way by hy which he came In Why he lie waited to let her out I cannot conceive Possibly some twinge of conscience you you never know That's one of the points wl which ch we shall never clear up Then IThen everything's over said I. I IThe The terror Is laid The terror Is laid said Geoffrey Bu Bugle le remains of course Jut ut I Ivery Ivery Ivery very much doubt If we shall see Bu Bugle le again Th Thoughtfully I regarded my napkin nap nap- kin Was It five or six sir days before a corpse rose to the surface of ot the water In n which It lay Iny Then ever everything's over I 1 repeated re re- Except the Interment said Geoffrey which Is fixed for tor tomorrow tomorrow tomorrow to to- morrow evening as soon as Its It's de decently decently de- de dark As you seem to have had hat a night off I 1 think you might help with that Six days had gone gone by and my precious secret was as safe This was hardly surprising Only two beings knew that I 1 had approached approached ap ap- the castle that terrible night and of these one was a dog and the other was dead I 1 had bad not used Barleys Barley's pistol I had cleaned my cousins cousin's knife my filthy garments garments gar gar- ments lay hay hid In the Pluma Plumage e woods Nobody knew that In my notecase was Helena's master key But another secret was safe On tho Sunday night Pharaoh Dewdrop and Rush had been laid ina In Ina a common grave not far from the mouth of ot the tho tunnel that ran from the mon moat Though nobody knew It but I Bugle had yet to appear For some unaccountable reason the moat mont still sUII withheld Its Us dead My MS cousin was painting Plum Plumy age Twice a day he visited YorIck Yorick Tor Ick but hut I was not Invited and would not go up unasked Neither elther would I go to Plumage Plumage although although I longed to see gee her her because because I was sure that Helena sat with my cousin and watched him at work worl I 1 had made maele up my mind to leave Annabel and to go and stay at Innsbruck Innsbruck Inns Inns- bruck which was n a city I knew My cousin was to follow with Barley In four days' days time And so I was sitting at ot Annabel Anna bel be cursing life lire and regarding my ray packed halt trunks with a lI listless tl s. s stare stare- when the host of or the Inn Inn came bustling with a note In his hand Doer Dear John Your cousin tells tens mo me that you are leaving tonight Before Beroa you OU go 0 willU will you U bo ho no so Good as 38 to show me mo where tn D ti lorla lies lien I wolli not Dot auk aak you this favor but I 1 was fond of or 1 young Florin and you ou are tho the only being who knows the site elte of ot his I grave o I cannot believe bellove you OU will re refuse refuse te re- fuse fuso mo me and so If It It will suit you OU I will call for you today at a n Quarter quarter ter to three Please will you tell tho bearer yes or no HELENA I 1 went down to the door of The Reaping Hook to speak to the groom Tell her ladyship yes es I said As the coupe stole Into the forecourt forecourt fore rore cour court I descended descend el the steps of the inn Helena smiled and nodded and I took off orr my hat hrit hatWill Will you yon drive please 7 With a n pounding ing- ing heart I took my seat by her side perceived the glow of her ber presence discovered her faint perfume The spot to which we were goIng go- go o- o Ing lag lay 12 miles off orr and after leaving leaving leav leav- ing the car we must walk half a n amile amile mile through the forest to come to the tho den dell Be sure I 1 drove slowly 8 enough But though half an hour went by before we left the coupe In all aU that time we never neer exchanged one word Again and again I sought to make some remark but I t feared that my my voice would tremble and so betray an an emotion I 1 did not wish her to see To sit thus by her side as I 1 had sat so often orten was stirring the I depths of my ray being as ns though b with witha a sword Though I kept my gaze fast on the road with the toll tall of t my eye 1 could see her peerless feat features res and the gentle steadfast look on her lovely face She was neither grave nor smiling but something betwixt the two her air w was was the air of one whose day Is over o who has hns of ot choice withdrawn from the lists of life and Is now content to sit and watch the tourney tourney tour tour- ney In which she will ride no more I had never seen her like this n and d at first I could not discover discover dIscover dis cover what It was that I found unfamiliar unfamiliar un un- familiar in tn the thc beauty I 1 knew so sowell sowell well an and then I saw the eagerness eagerness eager eager- ness was out of her face When I brought the car to rest Helena was out In the road before 1 I could open the door Then we entered the forest together as we seemed to have done so often orten in other days In silence we came to the glade where Geoffrey had been painting when I first set eyes on the thieves and In silence we passed passerI to the coverts which might have been planted on purpose to keep the delL deli And then at last we came out out not not quite as ns I had Intended intended in In- tended above the bluff but lower down between the bluff and theater the water ater at the edge of ot a n sloping lawn H Helena caught her breath Oh John how lovely she ehe said Though I knew the spot was handsome handsom when I bad had seen it before be before before be be- fore I had been too much distracted distract distract- ed to consider the features that went to make It so so rare Its finer than I thought I 1 Isaid Isaid said quietly I III never saw It from here For a moment we stood together looking down on young oung Florins Florin's gra grave veI ve I must bring old Florin said Helena I 11 think It would help him hima a little Helena sat Bat herself hersel down with her back to the rippling brook Id iId like to stay friends she said I know youre you're going away and I 1 think youre you're right But Id I'd like to think that though our our our-our our moments are over over we still sUll were friends If lIt you please said I dully and andI I sat down a little apart Ive so much to thank you for tor I dont don't know that you have But that's neither here nor nor there Weve We've peered at big things together together you you and I. I Weve We've eaten of ot strange sweet fruits like fruits like two children hand band In hand And now were we're back baek where we the were where were where we were when you came to Plumage and 1 I told you about the gold We can cango cango cango go farther ba back k perhaps we have But Id I'd like to stop there If It you can I mean one can always be friends I can cnn stop there I said thickly rl right bt said Helena elena gently I thought you yon could For a moment she looked at the palms of her ber little hands as though to consult commit those pretty pages es before proceeding with Ith a dl discourse course that was making my heart cold Then Then Then- When I say fr friends I mean menn It Ill I'll always have n a feeling that 1 I Ican Ican can depend upon you I shant shan't attempt attempt at at- tempt to you know But I shall be bevery bevery very glad ot of the feeling You know When things s go wrong li It it makes a world of or difference If tf you youcan youcan youcan can say pay y to yourself If U So So and aud So wore were here they would understand understand under under- standI stand staneL I nodded You can count on me me mt I said You let to to- to know me come w you as as-as as aa Ill I'll never know anyone else Will It help John I dont don't know Ill I'll write and tell you right And Ill I'll always answer You see my dear we must never meet again Weve We've looked ed at glory to together together and ether and and turned away It wasn't our fault you know We rather rushed our fences But down In that valley of ot sha shadow ow we gave aye each ench other Judgment e and antl the were good I could not speak I sat t ns as though turned to stone My heart in my breast was teas ice The blow which had fallen already had fallen again I 1 had nothing to lose and had lost It From him that hath not shall be tal taken cn away even that which he hath I I I dont don't know that mine was I said desperately Im lIm afraid it was said Helena Helenn I put my love above honor honor and and you mustn't do that And in any I event mine was You took my love lo and you put it back bad in Its place I dont don't say you weren't rl right ht to do It because you were But there are some flowers my dear that you cant can't transplant I mean mean mean-It If you move them they die Blow upon blow Couldn't she see I that the thing she was striking was dead There was a long long silence By the time It was over I 1 ha had bad myself myself my my- self In hand hanel At len length length- th- th Poor Bugle said Helena slowly He He did me n a very good turn By dropping the torch 1 said I II II I. I I suppose he dropped It 14 she said ead Taut But Rush was bullying me and sometimes I think that Bugle Bug was going to stop him I dont don't know of course When It fell feU I Just flew for the door And In la any event he waited to set me free I 1 think he was the best of the lot I think youre you're right said I. I I Ihn hn had a n weakness for Bugle to tell you the truth Of Ot course Rush showed him off I know I know But he had a spark of feeling More than a spark I think Very few tew men placed as ashe ashe he was would woul have ha troubled to let me out I There was another silence With her eyes on young oung Florins Florin's grave Helena spoke again That wasn't the only reason why I 1 wanted to see you before you went 1 want your our help In a mat mat- ter Your cousin Is painting my picture pic plc- ture ture-he's ture he's hes nearly done It Is the most lovely portrait portrait- And as he wont won't bear hear of or- or ora a fee tee I wl want nt to make maIe him a present Well Ive I've got a cup at Yorick an old gold cup with a n curious his his- tory Years a ago o in the Sixteenth century the Yorick of that day was painted A young painter came from Vienna a man called Latz Leta Had he lived he would have been famous famus for the picture is terribly good Your cousin picket picked it out ont In Inan Inan inan an Instant as being the best of the lot Well when the painter had finished fin Ish d the count caunt was so pleased with his work that he called for wine ant and drank the young mans man's health and when he had drained the cup h he called for tor gold I 1 suppose his treasurer treasurer treas trens brought it Then he filled the cup with gold pieces and gave the painter the lot I 1 hope It was adequate adequate ade ade- qua quate e payment In those days It probably was The next nest morning the painter left Yorick to make his way vay home On h his hie s lonely ride to Salzburg the poor man was robbed and murdered murdered his his body was found by the road rondo Now the thieves thle didn't break up the cup but six months later they tried to sell It at Innsbruck Innsbruck Inns Inns- bruck where Yorick then had a ho ho- tel But as It happened they took It to the very goldsmith that Yorick himself employed The moment he saw the arms he knew that the cur cup had been stolen and to cut ait a long story short the thieves were taken and hanged and the cup came back to the castle because the poor painter paint paint- er was dead So you see that cup will make maken a n a most appropriate gift But Im I'm so afraid that your cousin may refuse to accept It that before I 1 ask ash him to do so I want to have It en engraved raved with his crest And that's where you can help me I 1 must must have have something some something thing of his that bears his leis cr crest t to give to the engraver er to copy A cigarette-case cigarette or a flask Per Perhaps l ps Its It's on the backs of his brushes You see without that Im I'm stuck At Atthe Atthe Atthe the present moment I 1 dont don't even know what his crest Is Strangely enough sal said I Its the same as y your ur own own own-a a leopard But that doesn't mean mean- What The word flamed As the saying goes I almost leapt out of my skin and turned to fluid her staring tense starIng tense wide eyed and anc staring white to the lips Ups And then I knew I 1 was lost I had learned her crest from Pharaoh and anel Pharaoh was wrong and I hoc had had repeated the error which Pharaoh bad made I I-I T I thought I I stammered I 1 bad bod an Idea Idea Idea- The badge of yort k Is 18 an oaktree oak oak- tree She She whispered rather than spoke I. I Weve We've never never displayed ed the leopard for more than OO years The sibilant accusation struck me dumb She was round now and was kneeling with her arms held close to her breast and her hands to b her r throat Her breath Wa wan waa whistling S In n her nostrils and her het eyes seemed to pierce my brain Helplessly I shrugged my shoulder der I suppose I must have r My God GOel she site breathed you were wert there As my ray e eyes es went down dawn she clapped her hands to her head hend lI My y God I 1 she cried It w was s you I You John YOU and not Bugle that I pulled out my ray case notecase and took tool out her master key As I laid it down clown by her side side side- Sabre killed Bugle Bug I said His body's down In the moat None of them saw it happen so I walked into the castle and anel took his place Helena sat back on her heels fingers ners to lip Her eyes were still wide still staring starIng- she seemed to tobe he be murmuring something I 1 could not hear hrar Im Tm sorry I said I didn't mean you to know At that thata a tremor ran through her then with a sudden movement she flung herself down on her face and burst Into tears For a moment I 1 sat hesitant Tit Then en something snapped within me I lifted her up and |