Show f l L BUT DIAMOND y Jane Bunker 1 Copyright Tho l Merrill Co THE MAN WAS MONSIEUR DE 7 Synopsis While Synopsis While In the little Swiss town of ot Vevay where the staid proper t- t t epi spinster ster who tells the story Is spending a a. a vacation she Is asked to allow a f S young girl Claire de to be her companion Jack back to the United States i All Although hough forming an attachment to the girl the 1 roine takes a to Monsieur de Claires Claire's father tather and declines On the boat she r met et I Cl lre In the care ot of a casual acquaintance Mrs Delano whom sho ah had while each was purchasing a pair ot of slippers exactly alike whIch figure was to have haves ve In subsequent events When they reach New York where ClaIre to s been met by her mother the latter does not appear and Claire perforce spinster PI B ce er goes goesl ca carries the I Mrs horne home In the contusion at the custom house later ahe s e learns earns a er ot one ot of Mrs slippers Through that happening Calling on Mrs Delano tr that someone unknown to her has been In her ber flat them to be rubles rubies but 7 believIng that lady shows some remarkable gems worth a million dollars Mrs IlY e and which are really red blood diamonds While but offers no explanation smuggled smuggle S S Delano admits the gems were them Into consternation The t throws they are talking a pounding on the door the law aw with a warrant for tor the arrest of ot of ot b caller asserts h ho Is an officer stealing the diamonds She outwits hm him and andS M Mrs 0 s soft SOI on O a charge ot of S S St the gems to her home for tor sate safe keeping Next take t pe peo persuades r the s spinster r to responsibility In her possession ot of the diamonds the morning spinster I takes realizing I them e the he back to Mrs l Delano but while there ther she l learns arns that that account the and ot of supposedly on gems agrees has haa been lads ladys son w lIe She hides them In a. a b ot hyacinths and has hast hasto tora the them t to keep chain bolt added Ov the ot of her door changed and a r telephone lock k t the e her Mrs has met with an accident and urges her herto to De can call at once once Hasten Hastening to her friend and and leaving ving le the gems the heroine Is met by De who claims the diamonds are his Is stolen from Claire on thE the boat He accuses Mrs 1 Delario Delano or our friend the spinster of ot the theft and demands their return She defies De who threatens her with a ar r revolver r and escapes Alarmed for tor her personal safety and almost believing De Ra enol the heroine fears ars to return to her flat and while uncertain what at yi Jf to do do m meets ts an time old-time friend Billy Rivers newspaper reporter They spend tL at a theater thea and Rivers accompanies her home There they find the flat has been thoroughly ly searched but nothing taken She does not confide InRI Next morning Mrs washwoman and general caretaker caretaker S- S comes tl to do dothe the weekly cleaning clea The spinster has not dared to look If It the r- r are sate safe s te and Mrs throws the faded bunch of ot hyacinths away They are rescued In time but be before ore the spinster can look to see see whether the diamOnds are safe sate a telegram comes comes from her brother asking herto her herto V to come to Philadelphia hll I r loti HI InI t I S 'S S i Y CHAPTER CHAPTER KAPTER IX ix continued Kt i 9 9 I The Th third queer quee thing was that there vhf was business of mine he could be needing to se see me about and If it were busl business ss of his hed he'd ask It as a favor or 1 It w was was' then that my eye slid up to the t. t date and I saw It had J been een sent from fJ Kew Kev York l Well Weil If r he he were re In New Nw NewYork 1 S S'S S 'S York why hadn't he telephoned me or come up to Co the house r I Istia say say It fiks flushed flashed 1 over oer me mer me met t- t r Instantly that this was was' a decoy designed de de- k 4 signed to get Dl me into monsieur's clutches but It didn't flash at all I nIl I t t thought It queer and I r was puzzled but I am free to confess that If It It had hads ben been an ordinary business mans man's message message mes mes- s i sage sage sage-I h sh uld have nave packed my suitcase suitcase suit sult- suit suit- 5 case p put t. t th the diamonds in my stocking f and ft l n the train Iraln specified But was ehI Iwas was still wondering what my brother could be wanting me for in n this peremptory pere way Mrs l brought me the time special delivery letter which with triumph and pleasure in fA her face she said she had found under under un uno der the set tubs 0 I pulled d it if out oat of t the the envelope and r read ad S Madame was s men en by two witnesses to curry carry away the package e containing J the je jewels wels referred to If madame dame desires desires de de- de- de t sires I to tb return them to their owner t t telephone Hotel Imperial at nt 9 a a. a m d. d i The owner gives madame this one op op- opportunity to rectify her mistake without without with with- out further trouble or publicity Failure Fan Fall ure to comply with the request to telephone telephone tele tele- r phone phon will prove madame's Intentions and necessitate active measures for forthe forthe the recovery of the Jewels r Oh you dont don't say J I sneered Well I wonder what next I l And by f that letter I knew I still had the diamonds dia din monds ponds 1 l u. u So So- SoI I I Iwas was to telephone at nine i o'clock 1 I By rights rights and and monsieur's calculations I I should have received the l letter before the the first delivery int instead in In- Ii t stead it had come after and by accident accident acci acci- dent I hadn't read it till noon The telegram was timed nine forty 1 It was then that I began to see 11 through a L hole in a stone I had not telephoned which telephoned which proved I meant to tor r keep the diamonds My next move obviously would be to get them out of ot f the tile city city to to my brothers brother's of or course The telegram gave me the excuse f M doing it also told him by what train and station station I should leave for he lie had hadt t set them himself But why had he set seta K a n day train Why not one at night It jJ f puzzled me rue at first until I sa saw v his reason rea rea- I son son son-I I could disappear out of a daylight daylight day day- r light crowd about four times easier mgr than out of f a night crowd Who Vho would notice among hundreds of women going goIng goIng go- go Ing through the Penn Pennsylvania station a woman as simply dressed as I carrying carry ing a common suitcase Probably no one i I confess I was as so much disturbed as asI asI asI I thought what might so easily have happened had I acted on the telegram i that It was ws some time before I got m gym wits together One thing was clear to toJ tome tome J me however was monsieur monsieur was going gong t tI to tb act with great reat rapidity rapidity- and secrecy secrecy- r secrecy that secrecy that was the main point for fOrI I If he were sure I had the stones atones he be ha f t to get et a search warrant and hed he'd have the stones 11 s. N-s. s. jiin son came m to my st stady r while e I 1 was pondering all an this and asked mo up What about lunch I sent enl hl r lu-r I round tl to the delicatessen en and z told mold r lu-r r iw buy ery thing she thought sli chel M 11 to have Imi f 11 TI cant noil r ip le p W na na P out of ot the ther r I place I tore open the bunch of or hya hya- I s. s The diamonds were there Good Lord J I said as I saw them The things were a calamity I rolled them up again but I must get a new bunch of hyacinths I must do something I I must act act I I must get the stones home to Mrs I Delario I must at least ask her what she wanted done with and tell teIl her ho how un un 1 I Isaf safe they were with me I tried the tM telephone but ut got no answer answer answer an an- and while I was clacking at It It Mrs came home Mime from the delicatessen and I had to hang up While I ate my mind went like a hammer How could I get the dia dla diamonds diamonds dia- dia monds out of ot the house To whom could I entrust them Not a a- a living sou sour soul so so far as I could see see unless see unless ss I l' l could get them back to Mrs Delario l herself herselt which didn't seem likely In the present state of the case You see just how tho the man had meat me meat meat at his mercy If Id I'd been a person accustomed accustomed accustomed ac ac- ac- ac to sneaking round and makIng making mak 1 Ing quick getaw getaways ys Id I'd have known what to do and how to do it t. t In the next place I hadn't tho the least Idea of the number of people I was pitted against the agaInst the strength ot or the opposing forces At that time I hadn't the dimmest dimmest suspicion th that t he was playing practically a lone hand in the game and had only one hired detective and he didn't know what he was watching Mrs Delario Delano and me for But as a result result re re- sult suit of my thinking the Idea came tome tome to tome me to find out If I were now watched and followed Telling Mrs to watt walt till I came back and though It was raining hard I went out for an walk around the block A A man sat in tn the lower hall han as I stepped out of the elevator His back was toward the light of the front door I think the devil himself must have got Into me then for without looking at Mr Man except the glance I gave him himas himas himas as I left the car I walked straight Int Into him and stepped on his toe hard lIe He said Ouch I II I said Oh I beg your pardon DidI Did DidI I hurt you very much No not No not very much he lie replied and looked glum Now I had calculated this way way way-to to pass him in n the act of stepping on him and make him turn when he answerer me so the light would fall on his face I got the look at him I wanted and went out I walked half a block and turned sharply in my tracks Mr Man Sian Ian was about twenty feet In the time rear followIng following following follow follow- ing me me He lIe began to limp the moment he saw me noticing him I walked past my house to the end nd of the block As I turned north I Ilaw saw law Mr Man ambling along In my direction direr tion I stepped into tuto a florists florist's arid and bought a fresh bunch of hyacinths By the time I had them paid for Mr Ir Man had reached the store and was looking In the window pretending not notto notto notto to see me Did I hurt you very much Z I J I asked ked I sweetly No not No not very He touched his hat and and andI I thought he ho looked annoyed I sprinted along ahead of him and turned at One Hundred and Forty firth h street I fancy Mr Man Ian had to do a little sprinting himself on his lame foot I ha had vanished into a toy toyshop toy shop and was as buying baring ing a doll for n my niece when ered lie he discovered me and me-and and pretended pro pre tended he didn't see me He lie walked on ahead but I caught up with him Did I hurt you very much I 1 asked No not No not very He fie was wa l vm ng to look astonished nov nor I sprinted awn away and turned south on Amsterdam There Therel I went into a stationery stationery sta sta- store and bought an Ink eraser Mr Mann passed the door and glan glanced ed In I motioned him to wait walt but he pretended pre tended not to see He lie was some distance dis- dis tance ahead when I 1 came out 1 ran after him and caught up Did I hurt hutt you very badly I asked No not No not very he answered eying me narrowly Im afraid you youre you're re giving givIng givIng Ing yourself yourself- too much concern over oer a little little- accident He fie was I saw beginning beginning beginning be be- beI I ginning to wonder which of us was following following following fol fol- fol- fol lowing which 1 No said I quietly Tm tIm not g giving vl g myself the least concern over yo your you H stepped-on stepped toe toe toe-I'm Im I'm simply using It Itan t an excuse to get a good look at r u t r various lights so Ill I'll know know S Oil fis s- s in n an any y possible disguise y yoU ou rn may y sume tha that c t episode ep 1 so d e I have always re reg n stroke ot of otamI and amI those last t as i it If d do say it I part ort on m P genius to tome me on Pl t the l lIP pur of the moment carne h about it lt and nearly W ut bowled V d il over over Before he had decided what to say or what to do to tillay allay my suspicion of him I bolted across across the street diagonally ducked I two trolley cars one of which I Ito hid me from view long enough for me meo meto to o get Into the corner drug store where I dashed into the telephone booth and called up Mrs Delario Delano I 1 had considerable considerable difficulty In getting get getting ting her and I felt felt every second was precious My detective e man man was lurk- lurk Ing ng about somewhere looking for me and I rather guessed she had one watching her My suspicions seemed confirmed for the time mom moment nt she recognized recognized recognized my voice she said I cant can't talk to o you in a tragic determined sort of way and I felt her In the act of hang hang- Ing ng up Walt Wait I 1 I shouted peremptorily Why cant can't you talk to me Are you watched Is everything y you u say ov overheard overheard over over- r- r heard Yes All AIl right then right then m Ill I'll do the talking You Toll can an answer yes and no cant can't you YO YO Yes es Well Nell were we're both In the same boat boat boat- Im I'm watched too too followed followed by a detec detec- five tive This Is the first chance Ive I've had to get you and I dont don't know how soon Ill I'll be able to get you again Is your our house hawse watched Y Yes es Could I run the run the blockade No Nol No I This TIlls was fairly shouted at atme atme me t I 4 Is there any way I could get those articles back to you today day No none No none whatever now N No not No-not not not s under any consideration you come up and and get them I No of No of course not you send up Whom could could I send Impossible Impossible Impossible- totally Impossible Her tone was wasso so emphatic that I knew there was nothIng noth- noth lug Ing ng to be hOP hoped d for In that quarter I felt she was about to ring off oft and leave lea eave me with that and shoot shouted d at t her hold Here Here hold on on I dont don't know what to do you'll do-you'll you'll have to advise me But I cant can't I You must do as you think best you best you understand ij IF I d dont don't nt I That's just the trouble Listen There are some things Ive I've got goto gotto gotto to o know about You keep on answerIng answering answer- answer Ing ng yes and no that no-that that Isn't going to give anything away at your end and Im I'm In Ina Ina ina a drug store and I dont don't think anything anything anything any any- thing will get out from this end You knew I was at your house yesterday yesterday yesterday yester yester- day Yes Yes after after you had left left- You knew I was accused And that I denied everything I 1 thought It happened that way way way-I I wasn't sure Were V ere you accused too Yes Of f the same thing timing I presume so You denied everything Absolutely this this did did Now I really must know you bring those Articles In hi yourself Yes You said a friend did Well i Well I didn't feel I co could ld explain at the time time There were circumstances es wit It t- t tAt At the time we crossed together tog ther- ther this last trip Yes Cant Can't you see how timings things s have been worked If It Id I'd followed my Intuitions Intuitions intuitions In In- I shouldn't have allowed allowed- The Time girl to come with you ou Yes It was planned Walt Wait I Theres There's another thing I want to know Ill tell you later No No Ko now How did they get through the the the- I cant can't tell you But I must know know Its Its It's a matter of great importance to me One of those slippers we bought In Paris is lost No Ko it isn't Isn't-I Isn't I have ha it it |