Show ly balcolm copyright by I 1 ap vision ind and company fir service girvice vice SYNOPSIS in concern over the disappearance of the youna and beautiful wife of his ayoung wealthy em thy friend crandall white aaron OIa enzer engages motherwell P private investigator to find her A no note to fro rom m the m missing woman warns warna her hua bus bend ban d not to call in the police saying baying she he hoped t to 0 come back mrs mr write Is ie considerably younger than her nun hum band ills da devotion has hag been the talk or new naw york her leaving him Is 1 un she bhe is I 1 known to b have ave with her a a remarkable lewel w the medusas Me dusas a head 11 tha rho as 1 el n tact act f develops that she ehe has ha at all A her jewelry w with th her CHAPTER ill III continued 4 1 I dont know ill 1 the woman sobbed instinctively altering her manner even through her tears to something new in his tone they wont any of them tell me serl sir I 1 ile iia searched her pale gray eyes but they hardly wavered under his and yet and yet there wits was something ng lie io could swear there thera was cometh something I 1 ng sit up he said abruptly and listen to me they dont tell you Cogges coggeshall ball because they dont know why nobody knows and weve got to had find out it was quite clear to him that although she was not entirely unprepared for or some disagreeable news of her mistress she ehe was honestly ignorant of her whereabouts but happened to her air happened to her where would a she e go and why she send us word you mean theres been no word at all lie looked her straight in the eye yes there tins has he said but it do us much good she will come back if she can sha alto says but not it if the pollee police are noti notified fled she s swears ears sho she means it it you have any adert idea coggeshall the remotest ghost of an idea as to where she might have gone and could get any word to her your chance to help her she booked drearily back nt at him yes yea air nut but I 1 she said lie ite scowled all right he said shortly now these jewels ashes got them of course took them with her undoubtedly no sir said the mald maid definitely sho do that sir air that I 1 know I 1 went straight glit down to the front door with her and all she had was her beaded bag on her wrist and a square box with the big onyx paperweight that broke that id done up myself tho evening before she was to take it to the jewel jewelers irs herself anti talk it over I 1 knew the package for or id tied it myself i then she liml had them on lier her somewhere on her tho the maid repeated scornfully will you yon tell me where vIi ere sir air tile tho way the indies dress nowadays where would you sou put what came out of 0 those boxes hunched bunched out like that insert indeed I 1 Coul klat you sow sew them la in he began but slie she cut him short 1 I tell you I 1 dressed her ill 1 she cried and he gave way any well anyhow he be taid now nov see here elther either she wanted to run away or she rho if she wanted to well ant bat I 1 dont see sea that 4 theres ai erlos anything more to be said or done well know soon enough it if she bin which I 1 believe then she wants to get back and if she want to come back bach why did she write that way why pot not just go gc whitt what way str sir sho she said 1 I hope to come back and 1 I must leave you for a little but sho lie also said that she was frightened to derith 11 said mr air wells slowly frightened to death I 1 the worn wom nn an repeated frightened to death 1 oh dear me itle I 1 dear me I 1 and po poor 0 r mr white on the hat flat of his back I 1 hut but it if she shod shed come back sir air all very w well ell said the young man mall but suppose she cant she said she elie hoped to come back a different you see there may bo be some tunny funny business here you know when I 1 thought she had no jewels I 1 felt very different about it but with all that thai junk on lier her well she must have known all that when slie wrote ile he swung to the late gate door having tumbled the boxes back in it now where wag wa she sha going on Wednes wednesday Any lie asked wua was sho she upset nt at all allt sirs alra white had been worried for soma some weeks sir air but I 1 cant say why and its ita no good asking me she salt said facing him obstinately 1 I know youre your here mr Gla crizer ja and 1 d id help you all I 1 could it if this h had a d any ways to do with madams go going ing off air this that I 1 mean ill swear to it before anybody police or otherwise ladles have their worries mr wells and my lady has riot not been herself to say herself for some time but its got nothing to do with dreadful things like alk this and disappearing away and allx know nothing what ver TT about athla nut but my dear woman you cant pon poa slber judge excuse me air I 1 can judge about this salt the mald maid obstinately and you would agree with roe me directly you knew of that rm im sure eure its ite this way she went on 0 n almost pleadingly and quite honestly he was certain if she cha dont come back bach sir air ill tell you yon and ten to one laugh at it a gentleman would sho added bitterly but it if she does and you think she means meana to then shed never forgive me in gods world it id tell you sir air I 1 welt well I 1 linow know that you seel see its that kind hind ot of thing 1 but nothing like you think she ended looking keenly at him there ther I 1 was something convincing bout about a b her e r she was no fool this woman why did you tell me at all then he asked her because I 1 bo be honest and not she answered promptly and ashes forgot a lot of things lately air wells and let a lot of things go and and why she ehe m mention to me about those jewels now and where are they ifer her face worked painfully she drawn any checks he said watching her theres a big balance at the bank oh its not that I 1 she cried impatiently and then cant you do something sir air it was extraordinary the way she rho appealed to him seemed to trust him film A roan man she had supposed to be a jewelers clerk ten minutes agol lie ile realized in himself a distinct alteration of feeling that lair flair of his had shifted with the wind how much enuch did he really believe in clella white the glorious haired just now ilow how he had become all of a sudden sensitive as a clairvoyant he ha had experienced a real thrill of terror the terror of the writer oj that jumbled blotted letter when first he read it why did it seem to him now that she knew her own business best probably im afraid shell have to do a little something for us first coggeshall he answered dryly 1 I must telephone mr glaenzer Ola enzer 11 mr air glaenzer Gln enzer listened in rather noticeable ti silence to his young friends communication the articles that were wanted for repair sir air dont seem to be in the chosei clos eryou you suggested no sir air nothing whatever absolutely certain yes yea sir air lady must have taken them herself yes sir air obviously of course that alters the situation I 1 imagine the lady I 1 met this morning could be of a little more help than ashes willing to be at present but I 1 dont despair of her of course I 1 understand that money la Is no object I 1 advertised to that effect this morning yes teg I 1 think we ye shall hear again myself goodby good by sir ile iio came back to the bedroom was sitting just us ns he had bad left her 1 I must get along now he said kindly picking up hla his bag ill look fool in later ot course it depends on you you know whether this gets out or not very well sir air she said listlessly you may depend get noth nothing ng out of me ln sir jr ill be here her there might be a message for me sir air wells went lightly down do wn the stairs bag in hand bo be here will you he muttered to himself now I 1 wonder 1 CHAPTER IV at the door of the next nest house housa ile he met nn an idle looking youth with a hat box who whistled ns as lie he watched a ganie game of marbles therell be a lady ladr coming out fairly soon I 1 think dally he said dont lose her no sir air said tile the messenger boy still whistling air Mr wells stopped at a newsstand and bought an eleven special sitting in a corner drug store he swam through the sea of advertisements it offered him stopping suddenly with a by georgel george 1 founder Foun dr wednesday green brooch with womans comans head returned to owner on proper identification cho he read mr air wells jumped into a taxi but lie he ditl did not drive to the address given tri in the paper instead he got out at a decent it if rather second rate hotel on the west slue side and emerged from its washroom without spectacles or mustache which made a vast difference in his appearance when he came down from a room to which he owned the key apparently his bis hat stick all and d neck scarf were by no means those of a young man who would carry a bag in the street the address led him to a dingy but perfectly neat little office where a typewritten sign announced that tha t mul of the highest quality would be executed promptly and with especial accuracy A brisk young old lady answered his knock and sent cent a keen gray bray eyed glance elance through him can you describe the pin pleaser please she asked 1 I can do better than that said mr motherwell pleasantly ill show it to you and he took from a billfold a colored disk cut from some illustration tra tr tion atlon Is that it by any chance he inquired the young ladys features relaxed well im glad to get that oft off my mind slie she said and going to a black dispatch box on her worktable work table desk she opened it and came back with a pin the size alze of a dollar 1 I told muther id hear from it she h said with some satisfaction but she he said I 1 was crazy I 1 knew it worth such a lot 0 of course but it was so unusual I 1 was sure it was waa in the family or something AV motherwell gazed calmly at the head of medusa in his palm ile he even tossed it lightly and the womans comans carven face jeered at his terror as he did so the idea exactly he said aid a my sister will be too delighted for words I 1 cant thank you enough when did you find it she missed it wednesday about noon it I 1 it I 1 the multi grapher cried 1 I told mother that just because whoever took it got mad and threw it away when she found what it was that say it valuable to somebody I 1 I 1 suppose you yon see she thought it was real he stammered emerald or something the idea that sizel size I 1 what I 1 always eay sa ir about that im imitation citation stuff they ma maka ke it too big dont they not that a lot of 0 f it get sold all the same at the department stores there seems to be ba a regular craze for it those queer ugly oriental things especially bially 11 department stores oh ob yes mr motherwell repeated and the writhing writ liing wondrous snakes that were medusas Me dusas hair laughed wickedly at him chinese it she asked 1 I mean of 0 course its meant for that 1 yes teg he answered 1 I believe it la but my sister throw it away she lost it oh yes your slater sister lost it all right but the one that stole it threw it away she corrected him 1 I was sitting in the window watching out tor for mother and a woman cume came out from over there somewhere I 1 notice an ana d jumped into a taxi tax that hardly stopped I 1 sort of watched her for a moment adment and what did she do but take something out of a bag and throw it right out of 0 the window it tell fell in the mud that was left in the gutter on this side I 1 have thought much about it you know but she sha looked so mad it struck me at the time perfectly furious she looked I 1 and just then I 1 saw mother coming along and I 1 ran down to help her over so just as we stepped on this side I 1 remembered the green button and I 1 looked down and there it was wast I 1 1 I thought it was quite pretty at first im dreadfully shortsighted short sighted without my glasses till I 1 saw those dreadful snakes so real looking ugh I 1 mother wanted to throw it away on account of germs and everything and then as she says it have hava been worth much for a woman to throw it away like that but all the same I 1 do think its worth more than she paused and blushed ills his sister had liked it anyway 1 I told mother I 1 thought it was waa worth nearer twenty five than five she said look at all the work on it 1 im sure it Is he agreed its worth that to my sister to get it back I 1 she wanted me to oh ob I 1 think of it pl please easell cried the embarrassed 11 1 I toli told mother be glad to pay tor for the three thre 1 e insertions and it cost me any anything tiling I 1 was sure it etwas was a family piece I 1 lie bowed politely As it happens he said my firm has haa quiet a bit of multi graphing to do every now and then you may be sure I 1 shall remember this atsa miss fleshman she said gratefully ive always satisfied I 1 think tie paid for the three insertions briskly what did this thief look like by the way lie he asked 1 I my glasses glas sest 1 all I 1 could say eay was that she was white as a sheet and had a green ribbon round around her a head and sho she looked dread dreadful full lie ile took out of his pocketbook a little photogravure ph oto gravure of a popular actress whose resemblance to clella white was well known in new york did she look like that lie he asked TO BM BE CONTIN VIND |