Show j li r S WN U FEAT URE 5 to il TIlE TIIE STORY STOnY THUS TAUS FAR FAn Adam Bruce Druce 5 t FIJI FBI operator r Inspector Tope Topo and Mrs Tope met in the Maine woods Tope found a man m murdered at auto camp operated operate d by Dee Bee He lie was believed h to b be e l. l r.- r. Mr head bead of ot New Row England tics ties Ledfor es e's friend was found In tins hos- 1 pital with head hrad Injuries III Ills chauffeur M EcU ReU was located admitted that he hit on head upon Holdom's orders r. r R u claimed he ho was hunting for tor his wife y r Tope and Bruce Druce went out to ro lodge where Eberly another friend of I was us r 1 staying They knew by now that the tho murdered man was not They j i also knew that a 1 woman and man were present about the time the murder was committed it l C CHAPTER APTER XI Sure Sure even even if it I have to put ona on ona f a n song and dance danee to keep them amused He hurried away and the old man turned to watch the proceedings here Adam and Cumberland came k beside him The wrecking-crew wrecking must have t. t worked late last night to accomplish so much Two pines of good girth had been cut and trimmed to serve as shears their butts anchored on l the rim of the ledge against iron bars set in holes drilled in the solid soUd granite their tips crossed and lashed with chains from which aL aL a L I steel pulley and cable were suspend suspend- ed The shears were guyed with I. I wire cables carried back and anchored anchored an- an to trees in the fringe of the i wood behind Men were busy tightening tightening tight tight- v ening the cables tending the winch shouting questions and commands t At the edge of the precipice the r. r foreman on his hands and knees watched a man who swam nude in inthe inthe inthe the quarry pool below The fall faU from the pulley descended beside this man He floated on his back paddling paddling paddling pad pad- with his hands and called up More slack Mikel I must get a hitch around the axle I IOK OK said Mike and waved his hand In signal The winch creaked the ropes whirred the steel fall taU descended six inches a foot foo two feet deeper into the water Ill try it now the swimmer decided Dont take any strain onit on onIt onIt It while Im I'm down t He made a neat surface dive his heels gleamed in the sun He seemed to be out of sight for a long time but at length Ad Adam lm saw a I pale blur in the gray water and then the theman's theman's theman's mans man's head appeared He rolled on his back lay breathing deeply for fora a moment shouted Take up on it now I think Ive I've got it Dont Don't lift just lift just draw it tight The fall r d-r drew w taut and and stopped and the swimmer once more de- de When this time he broke the surface surface sur- sur tt face again Ig he swam a little away from the chain Now take it up he called Till TilI the front end is out of water so I can see if it the hook Is set all right The winch revolved and the fall began to climb laboriously upward The man swam aW away lY a rod or two and waited So out of that gray concealing water wheels appeared and a fender fender fender fen fen- der a mudguard the front of a streaming radiator Adams Adam's heart leaped driven by an intense excite excite- ment This was after all no more than a car which some one had wished to hide yet its resurrection from that hiding place where it might have lain forever had in it something dramatic almost oni oni- It was like the emergence of ofa a monster slowly from its lair I slow sIow and lethargic lethargic and ponderous with consequences Hold it called the man below The winch stopped while he swam toward the car Adam felt someone some someone someone one beside him Here was Tope on hands and Ind knees peering down the District Attorney just beyond OK shouted the swimmer tri tri- You can have it Take it away He began to swim toward the farther side of the quarry where his clothes lay on a rock in the sun Mike like Frame waited till the swimmer swimmer swimmer swim swim- mer was well clear before he gave the signal And at last it was here just below below below be be- low them It hung six feet beyond their reach its bottom toward them They all stared at the bottom of ot this car searching it with eyes absurdly absurdly absurdly ab ab- intent as though it might have some secret to reveal And then suddenly Tope stood up he spoke to Mike 1 In sharp Irritated Irritate d tones What are you going to d do dovith o with it he be demanded Eh said Mike Do with It t Why Why drag drag it out of there That's s what you wanted wasn't it t Topes Tope's temper flared The old man ma n was tired impatient How he in In- You cant can't reach out and an d pick it like an apple and youve you've go gono got dt t no way to lo swing these shears in Youve You've wasted all this time time and and it its it's s as t far r away now as it ever was l Man you you you-It Then abruptly he checked himself His eyes were fixed on the car hang ing now within ten feet of at them six ix feet out of reach He moved t tone to toone toone o one side approaching the edge o othe of ot f the precipice as closely as possible The men on the winch continued t to o wind the car rose higher And Tope Top e called sharply 1 Stop Stop it IU I. I 1 Mike ike lifted his hand in sl signal aJ Mat Ma t t j 1 Cumberland came to Topes Tope's side Asked What is It Tope r r T The old man was staring In n s A- A i lence at the car and Adam came cameto to see And then he felt the Inside of himself himsel suddenly slip away like wheat out of at a l bin from which the bottom is removed The windows of the coupe were closed dosed and they were somewhat lt clouded by a gray deposit of silt accumulated during the days the car had lain loi here submerged These windows were incredibly not broken broken broken bro bro- ken the car must must turning In the theair theair air as it fell have landed on its wheels The window toward them was that on the cars car's left side next to the wheeLAnd wheeL wheeLAnd wheeLAnd And ago against the glass of this window window window win win- dow from within a hand hond was pressed Four slender fingers touched the window from knuckle to first j joint int the backs of four fingers There was upon one of them a l ring a 0 goldband gold goldband goldband band a wedding ring The hand with the fingers pressed against the glass had moved a I little in a short arc that left a smeared quarter-circle quarter in the silt on the glass There was in inthis inthis inthis this mark a terrible suggestion that the hand had moved in signal In alast a alast alast last pitiful appeal The They could see sec the tile rest of this I r iJ l I I 1 y I Y v J Ji i J JI I You promised to tell me if Mrs Kell was found hand dimly the forearm faintly but nothing else at all save sav one thing about the wrist something like a black cord was knotted seen even thus dimly it seemed to have been knotted tightly to have cut t Into the soft flesh And this was clearly dearly a womans woman's hand and arm Cumberland muttered Tope i theres there's someone in the car I Tope nodded Its Mrs Kell he said briefly have to to- to He checked his thoughts absorbing him Lower the car again till its it's awash he directed absently Swim out or make a raft or something some some- thing thing get get her out of ot there quicks quick's you can Send for the ambulance Take her to the undertakers Ill I'll meet you there He turned and strode away Adam beside him they reached the car carand carand carand and started down the road They came to where Ned Quill held two cars of af newspaper men in restraint Adam turned of off the road crashing through the underbrush to pass them and Tope leaned out and I shouted Let them go on on up Ned Theres There's Theresa s a murdered woman in the car up there They've got a right to be o othe on n the spot Then as the newspaper cars started started started start start- ed up the hill he bade Adam stop called Quill Ned he said Ill be in town i at the undertakers Come up there when youve you've seen the Tennant girl Right Quill agreed and h he e said Doctor Medford's on his way down here I talked to him on th the e phone awhile ago Tope nodded Good Well We'll watch for him he agreed They went on When they turned turne d Into the main road Tope pointed t toan to toan o an approaching car cried sharply Hold up upi Theres There's Medford Doctor Medford alighted to spec speak k to them and his tone was respect respect- ful You were right Inspector he said Found a drug in him eh Tope Top e asked Gas In his lungs the medical medica I examiner replied And doped Chloral I think but morphine too Im I'm not an expert on such stuff V We dont don't have have much of it to do up here But after you'd told me what t to o look for for tor- Tope nodded getting a woman woman out dead out of ot the quarries S up here Doctor he said I wan wanto want t to know how she was was killed And If B shed she'd been given chloral or morphine mor morphine mar mor- phine phone I want to know that too Ill I'll I Ibe 1 1 be at Will And a moment later as the they y started on Tope touched Adams Adam's arm Pull up at that filling station n Adam he directed Theres There bound boun d to be a phone there Ca Cali up New Nei dv v I York Tell Ten them to find out whether er Bob Flint that young oung pilot had been given chloral or some other knockout drops Adam went to obey and Tope sat deep In thought His eyes were closed so that he did not see sec young Joe Joc Dane at the wheel of a car that presently went racing by Adam returned from the tele tele- phone get it he said brie briefly He put the tile car In motion then asked Why do you want that Tope lope Tope said abstractedly I figure he had Flint fly him up here and back bacle to New York in the morning He could give Flint a drink of doped whisky say Flint would take off offin offin all in the plane pass out after he got I into the air and Ind crash Then he couldn't testify testify testify-It Adam uttered an on ejaculation awful I know it Tope agreed But who Tope Adam insisted Who Is he Tope said impatiently Oh let Iet me alone son And he said no further word till they came into the borders ot of North 1 Then at last he spoke Go to the jail Adam he direct direct- ed cd Well get something out of Kell KeU now now enough enough so well we'll know how to go goat goat goat at Holdom Adam nodded Something happened happened happened hap hap- on their trip up here Friday all an right he agreed But I dont don't see what It was Tope said briefly It was a plant a I game a play somebody tried to stage How do you figure that Because Holdom told Kell to hit him over the head Adam nodded right He asked eagerly That was to make Holdom look like a I victim too Then you OU think he he- he Tope said grimly I think some someone someone someone one made a sucker out of Holdom Used him Holdom's a crook Adam Always has been in little ways You heard Mat 1 at the quarry heard what he said about filing charges against Holdom with the Stock Exchange authorities You figure Holdom was double- double crossing and knew he would be found out and killed theold the theold theold old man Tope said quizzically filed those charges himself yesterday yesterday yesterday yester yester- day Adam How could he do that If Holdom killed him Friday They reached the jail behind the courthouse and when barriers had been removed they came to Kell They found the big man inan man sitting on the cot in his cell his head between I his hands He did not look up at atthe atthe atthe the sound of ot their steps nor when they paused before his cell door I IThe The guard who had led them thus far knew Adam of old and at the young m mans man's ln's word left them here and Tope spoke gently Kell he said Kell roused and he came slowly to his feet the bars between them He stared and then he seemed to remember themI them I know you sir he muttered You promised to tell me if Mrs Kell was found Yes Kell Tope assented and he added harshly She is found I Where Is she sir Tope said pitilessly The coupe was in the quarry Kel Kell We got it out today She had been murdered and tied In n it tied to the wheel before it was run over the precipice precipice preci preci- pice into the quarry Dead Kell whispered holding his breath Yes dead said Tope a and d the breath came out of Kell in a long Iong sigh and the big man shivered like a stricken animal He backed away his hands up before his face he slumped down on the cot again Tope added harshly I think you killed her just as you tried to kill Holdom I didn't sir he protested I didn't Mr Holdom says you did Tope Tape declared You tried to kill him Because he was chasing your wife wite Kell KeIl No sir I didn't sir sirl Kell Ken mumbled Dead She's dead Of course Tope insisted You killed her hero No sir No Nol Then did Holdom Was that why you tried to toNo to- to No it w wasn't Mr Holdom Kell answered I took him back left him by the road But when I came home she was gone cone And the big men cried suddenly starting to his feet I meant to hit him easy the way he told me to but when the wrench started down I thought about the way he be had had had- bothered her and I hit harder than I IId Id I'd meant to He caught himself Where Is she sir bringing her to town Tope told him What did you do to Mr Kell Or did Holdom Hoi Hal domAnd domAnd dom dom dom- And Kell cried piteously Let me alone sir I Wait Walt Let me see her first I cant can't believe ft it Let me see her Then Ill I'll tell you an anything thing I He collapsed sobbing l tike like ke a child his head in his tits hands Tope hesitated ed but In the end he said Well all Ill right Kell Ill I'll wait Ill I'll come com for tor you you later later I 1 TO BE CONTINUED |