| Show aff E JJ I 1 NIG M A R C TH copyright 2033 by the th bobar merrelt meri all co by MONTE BARRETT sic S ic CHAPTER V continued Contin ved 9 1 I just want to make sure the detective detect ve retorted over ills shoulder na as he disappeared toward the living room when ho he returned he nodded toward peter it fits thata six of them yu you sound di disappointed ante observed choo choo cleoo 1 I had hoped that key would help rne me flail fantl some one else tho the detective commented no matter well play the hand just as it la 14 dealt peter ieter frowned thoughtfully at his lean brown hands handa bielss train he be put tho the question deliberately how low did you feel fee about this marriage of franklins you were in love with him you choo choo moistened tier her lips yes yea I 1 loved him what of it what did you think of this mn marriage r cardigan repeated she lingered over tier her answer tier her head bant so that it was impossible to read the expression of tier her face what does docs it matter what 1 I 1 thought the girl answered anally finall nn ally Y ile he was getting married lie your answer no peter wished that it were answer enough and that he fie need no longer probe this girls wound no that was ills his answer miss train jm im asking how low you felt there are times said tho the girl distinctly when your feelings dont doat count I 1 exactly happy over tho the marriage you cant expect me to say that eliat still tier lier glance faltered before tho the novelists unwavering scrutiny 1 I figured that taut id get over oye r it other people have then when you left franklin there in III tile the study you know knew you were tolling telling him goodby good by tor for good you kilday questioned for tile tho first time 1 I say that the actress replied quickly she tumbled on tile the table by the stand and found a i cigarette cardigan held it i match for her for a minute she puffed deeply na as though keenly enjoying tile tho smoke tier her glance traveled slowly from one lna man to tl alother other what ma made da you ask me that she inquired of aliday finally tire sergeant shrugged lie ile was getting married he bol A half curled about the girls lips momentarily and was gone us its quickly aw as it had and come lie ile was marrying a position she s said aid quickly jim never loved voris doris carmody Cur mody ile he loved me lie did love you kilday allday conceded kut but that was finished yesterday it by the wedding I 1 mean the tha wed wedding dlug said the girl slowly going to mako make any difference between jim and me we had bad been all over that you mean you worn going vr the same as before the debee detectives tone tona was incredulous choo choo exhaled a cloud of smoke th rt taa exactly what I 1 nican mean she declared per for a detective you can be terribly dense sometimes you can call flay any that now allday aliday objected franklins dead im only tolling telling you what jim and I 1 had decided the girl leaned forward angrily theres one thing you dont seem to understand jim lavoil wel n el he love lora that carmody mody girl but ho fie was marrying tier her the sergeant declared with finality marrying tier her I 1 choo choo tossed tier her head ile he marrying a girl ile he was marrying a social position sit iori jim was going to be the next governor of new york kilday could cope with tile the wom ans anger where her sorrow a short time almo before had silenced him and i suppose you were going to albany with him oil eh i 1 I have been so eo tar far a way awny retorted the actress if lie he loved you so much why ho he marry you the sergeant insisted dont be ba silly the actress scoffed fled IN where liere would jim have been if hod hed married an actress that would have been murder it would have finished alra I 1 A As it turned out replied allday dryly it was murder anyway 11 the girl shivered iourtc youre wasting time here she a quieter voice why dont you talk to dan brills maybe lie can tell you what happened yesterday afternoon lie was waa sore at jim and hedl hed beer been trying to see him nullis called me here yesterday wanting to see it jim when I 1 said ho he here he be swore lie ile said jim was hiding from him and that I 1 was helping him hut but lie ho said hed find end him it if you really want to find w who ho killed jim franklin talk to dan balles weve talked to brills peter ieter informed her quietly weve welve come here to find out what you know miss train im only telling you where to so go if you want information about the murder sall sah the actress tient ly do you think id 11 kill the man I 1 love dan bullis la Is your man mail I 1 toll tell you yes youve said that before the novelist nodded well take care of mr bir brills but some people dont think franklin was killed by a man miss bliss train they believe a woman killed him and that the motive was jealousy youre crazy I 1 choo choo stared at him angrily that means me of course how do you figure id have done a thing like ilka that lu in tho the first place I 1 get gei away with it everybody knew hoai liow I 1 felt about jiin ilin but youre overlooking a bagger bet than that I 1 loved him why would I 1 murder the man I 1 loved that make sense if you thought you were losing him it would make sense all right kilday interjected nut but ive ie told you I 1 losing him forget about the wedding tor for a minute cardigan invited lie ile rose and strode about the room aimlessly but hla his eyes never left the who sat upon the bed have another cigarette silsa miss train the th sergeant offered ills his case a smooth silver one cardigan watching knew this waa Kil days ruso ruse to obtain the comans womans fingerprints finger prints thanks the actress lighted it from tho the ember in the ashtray ash tray beside her youve been reading these accounts of the murder cardigan indicated the newspapers beside the bed did you notice anything there ali ere that sounded strange miss train plenty replied the actress it looked like hall half of new york came around there to see jim just before the wedding they make it sound like he be was quarreling with all of them too including yourself said dilday yes the actress admitted including mo me it seems to me you have overlooked one of those callers peter continued 1 I mean the woman in the blue dress choo chod choo looked at him through narrowed eyes who was she what im asking you said peter sho she shrugged silk ellk clad shoulders how should I 1 know I 1 see anybody there in a blue dress nobody else knows who she was either cither miss train declared tho the novelist we cant find anyone who ever saw tier her before wo we only know that she sha was jealous of jim franklin that she 1 jealous then the actress leaned back more calmly what Is this are you trying to trick me some way peter shook lits his head theres no trick to it lie he replied at simply apparently this was another woman that loved franklin frankil n she thought she had some claim on him evidently in tact fact peter was waa remembering the story daniel brills had told of the scene in the study she threatened to ruin him it if ho it went ahead with the wedding are you still sure you dont know who that woman was choo choo studied tho the novelists fa face cc are ara you telling me the truth she sha demanded Is that what sh she 0 S said a 1 I believe that Is exactly what she sald said and then what did jim say tile the actress questioned eagerly did he let tier her get away with it peter shrugged lit promised her that everything was going to be nil all right I 1 believe say choo choo was wag sitting 9 erect tier eyes stormy why don dont t you question tier her if this Is straight ashes tile tho one you are looking tor for then she relaxed against the pillows but that on tho the level iler her voice had gone hat it it was you bo be wasting your time here perhaps it wasted said peter perhaps you are the very person who can toll tell us where we may find tills this woman in blue i tho the actress did not answer but her eyes watched the novelists guardedly pose you have told us the truth as tar far as you have gitte ewe peter ieter continued suppose you jealous of doris carmody and care whether franklin married her or not choo choo winced even granting that everything was vas just as you have said that would not have kept you from being madly jealous of franklin if you had discovered there was still a third woman tills woman in blue that he fie loved there anybody else the actress interrupted shrilly and im just as sure that there was replied peter ieter there la Is no doubt of it I 1 cant help but wonder miss train if the discovery that tills this woman existed be a better explanation of your visit to the church yesterday than tile the one you have given us cut but I 1 tell you I 1 know there was such a woman choo choo raised clenched hands above tier her head 1 I still dont believe it jim have done that to me I 1 loved him and he loved mel cant you understand mel ale I 1 she beat tier her breast with her fists peter waited quietly until the actress storm of emotion had passed perhaps lie he suggested this other woman heard of you yon yester yesterday arty for the first time that being the case she might have been the one who went to see franklin with vengeance in tier her heart there was waa hatred in the glance choo choo turned on him youre mighty sure there was another woman arent you was all she said in spite of ills his certainty that there had been another woman and that she had played a dra dramatic matle probably fatal part in the tha slaying of jim franklin peter felt that he was making no headway ile he had succeeded only in antagonizing a witness from which lie he had expected much assistance like every other trail they had follo followed weil this too seemed to lead nowhere and yet choo choo train had been the last person as far as they could determine who had seen franklin alive according to the testimony of nick and doctor abernathy she had been in the study with jim franklin after daniel cullis and the woman in blue had left and her motive too was apparent it she had known of the existence of that other woman or even it if she could lie he belleve believe frer h cr statement that franklins wedding was to have mode made no difference in her relationship with him lie ile wondered too t oo 00 at the womans comans apparent lack of grief to be sure there were moments when she appeared grief stricken but they were only moments she seemed to turn her emotions on and on off like a faucet almost at will opposed to these arguments of course were webster spears activities daniel bullas reticence concerning his conversation with franklin italie Car modys efforts to halt the wedding the suspicions aroused by callis ship leys movements and of course the woman in blue still unexplained and as aa mysterious as ever miss train the novelist inquired qui red suddenly how well do you k know now webster spears Sp eara webster spears ive never heard ot of him are you sure a man by that name telephone you yesterday 11 it ho he had id have heard of him choo choos manner was con outside of jim and dan brills the only man who phoned me yesterday was fletcher she he declared ive already told you about that peter frowned what was frank tins llna number he demanded curtly she told litin him do you mind it if we use your telephone certainly not choo choo handed him tile instrument from the table at her bedside fietcher Ff etcher answered the call this Is peter cardigan pletcher Fletch cr I 1 called with sergeant kilday to ask you some questions last night remember yes sir I 1 rem remember ethber 1 I forgot to ask you about your telephone call to sitsa train yesterday fletcher peter explained allow did you happen to telephone her there must be some mistake sir I 1 never telephoned miss bliss train the novelist hesitated his hand over tho the transmitter what time did you say you received that call miss aliss train it must have been about halt half past two replied the actress think again said reter peter into the telephone you call miss train about two thirty yesterday afternoon fletcherd fletchers Flet chers tone was positive im quite sure sir I 1 have never telephoned miss train here let me talk to him 1 sensing the tenor of the servants replies from peters conversation she snatched the instrument from the novelists hanl hand what did you say F letcher fietcher you never called me I 1 dont be a tool fool man I 1 she slammed the receiver in place and faced the two tivo men just the same he did call she declared stormily storm lly iio told me jim jim love her ho he loved met mel cant you understand met mel wanted me to come to the church I 1 dont know why he should lie ile about it CHAPTER vt VI cross crosa examination ra ano YOU think choo choo la is A lying flying about that phone call kilday inquired as the two men started back downtown down town 1 I cant figure her out peter puffed his bis cigarette meditatively she received a telephone telephony tele phona call im satisfied of that he replied finally why else would she aho have changed her mind about going to the wedding and she did change her mind franklin was surprised to see tier her however Ifo wever it pletcher who called I 1 can see no reason why he tell the truth about IL what I 1 am trying to determine Is whether choo choo really believed it was franklins servant or la is only trying to make us think so in order to conceal the identity of the person who really did call she seemed mighty surprised ed that pletcher fletcher remember it allday volunteered doubt doubtfully full Y 1 I cant forget that ashes an it actress it peter confessed 1 I find in myself y wondering how much of f what she said and did was sincere and how much was only for our ben benefit e fl t what it if it were the woman in blue that would provide a m motive 0 tive tor for cleoo choos visit and for fl alie ie crime I 1 dont think she was acting when sho she told us she loved jim franklin it must have been that or else the murderer know knew of choo choos relationship lation ship with franklin and telephoned her in an effort to bring her to tile the church it if that Is the case of course this actress had nothing to do with the crime and was only drawn in by the real culprit in an effort to contuse confuse the trail peter shrugged it if what happened were farther from a solution than ever tho the car had reached police headquarters and the novelist followed allday up tile the battered steps on the Ferge sergeants ants desk lay the revolver discovered in the rectory garden the dagger with which the crime had been commuted committed and the stained curtain on which the murderer r had wiped the blood fro from uia the weapon every blessed thing we have to go on complained the sergeant dl disconsolately S consola tely except of course the tha thumbprint thumb print on the gun n the keys wont be much help now the only one wo we identified Is obviously not a door key it fit the apartment of our woman in blue just jum because the pieces of the puzzle dont fit the first time we t try ry them Is no sign wo we dont don have all A the piece retorted peter TO BB TIN urD |
