Show T HT E URD LR 11 R I 1 J D I 1 N G MARCH L copyright 1111 1933 by arvle the dobbs dobb merrill co by MONTE BARRETT CHAPTER vil VII continued 13 possibly I 1 really answer yes yea or no the mans manner had grown less leas reluctant now have you ever seen this before fletcher in his palm cardigan extended the revolver found in the rectory garden the servant made no move to touch it no sir air I 1 dont know much about guns guna hut but this one belonged to mr franklin I 1 surely youve seen it before 1 I know he had a gun sir air I 1 had never seen it I 1 think there must be some mistake lie ile probably kept it in a drawer in the bedroom or in his desk peter suggested it if he had I 1 should have known it mr cardigan the man insisted ive never seen it t before im sure theres been some mistake peter ieter rose abruptly all I 1 think he be said bald but he paused with one hand ou or fit the door ter for a final question who has been here since yesterday evening anyone no sir not since you left last night lies iles not telling us all he fie knows growled kilday after the door had closed behind them im sure of that the novelist agreed but why I 1 dont think fletcher had anything to do with franklins murder after all hes only a servant where would the motive bo be 1 I see a motive for webster spears at first declared the sergeant then he shook his shoulders wearily this case Is giving me the wll willies lles he fie complained ill be suspecting you next well what do Y you ou think now there were no new lends there and ive got to see the district attorney right after lunch it if I 1 dont have something be just too bad and yet the novelist answered slowly we know that the murderer carried franklins revolver to the hurch church yesterday afternoon that Is certain the simplest sort ot of logic convinces us that it must have been one of his intimate friends no one else could have had access to it the gun roust must have been taken within the past few days preferably yesterday if the crime had been planned far in advance I 1 find it hard to believe that the murderer would have chosen the church as the scene for his crime it seems clear that no one could have taken it without fletcherd fletchers Flet chera chers knowledge and we ve find him reluctant to talk ue he had no motive so it must have been some one for whom lie he has a feeling of sympathy or regard sonie some one lie he la Is willing to talce take some risk to shield who could that be another woman ell eh kilday paused on the steps A former mistress that the servant liked better than lie he did choo choo that sounds reasonable peter agreed or else it was a new mistress franklin never had the reputation of being exceptionally constant in his loves getting back to your woman in blue muttered the sergeant ja everything V ery ory thing leads back to her but then what about young spears what do you think of my theory concerning him now its your question you answer it peter ieter declared wearily ill admit you youve youe e built up a very convincing 1 lisp casp dinst him it has J just u st one law aza aliat hat could he have been doing with jim franklins revolver they intimate friends how could he have obtained t a tried possession of it that so BO hard as you seem to think callis shipley probably obtained it and passed it on to him I 1 agree with you on one point I 1 dont think the blow that killed franklin have been delivered by a woman but that let this girl out nor the woman in blue either if they were two different persons persona it if we can only prove this girl passed that gun on to spears well have a case pinned on him that will convince any jury but the only man who can help us find her Is fletcher and he wont talk added the sergeant grimly theres one other chance cardigan disagreed with him the fellow was positive hed never seen the revolver before if he was telling us the truth perhaps franklin kept it at his office lets go and see mile dunbar admitted thern them to his private ollice without delay 1 I hope you gentlemen have some progress to report lie he began after seating them according to the papers its beginning to look like a political crime if tim jim was killed over this magistrate investigation then the governor govern nv ile he sergeant kilday allday interrupted him bluntly 1 I dont think dan bullis had anything to do with it t possibly to shield alie wom a in the case ile he obi abl has to do that because that wom woman all overheard eard his conversation with franklin if he fie identifies her PRECEDING EVENTS IN THE STORY waiting in the ministers study for his wedding to doris carmody Carra ody jim franklin lawyer and politician clan Is stabbed to death while waiting he h had many visitors among them his mistress an actress choo choo train his intended cifes father ambrose carmody her brother brylle daniel bul dullas 11 s politician and an unknown woman in a blue frock sergeant lC lIday with peter cardigan begins an investigation brylle carmody admits its trying to stop the wedding after being informed by webster spears th that afra franklin n klin was still friendly with choo choo despite his approaching ng n marriage a r r lage X biday secures the dead mans keys callis shipley ahl pley a bridesmaid whose actions have appeared furtive lc Is questioned unavailingly an interview with brills Is in also fruitless webster spears admits informing brylle carmody of franklins relations with choo choo for doris Car modys sake in the hope of preventing the wedding pletcher fletcher franklins manservant man servant Is reticent and billo dunbar the dead mans law partner can shed no light on the tha murder choo choo admits her relations with franklin were to continue after his marriage six of the seven keys franklin carried are traced callis shipley pley again interviewed confesses previous deception she admits being in love lova with gylte carmody she can tell what she knows and its probably plenty but we think maybe we can find the woman without any help from brills good As I 1 told you yesterday if theres any way I 1 can help you there Is mr dunbar we want you to identify the revolver that sir air franklin kept in his desk drawer amilo dunbar took the weapon kilday extended and examined it carefully caie fully im afraid I 1 cant be of much help on that score sergeant I 1 even know jim had a gun ile he bought that two years ago kilday pointed to the serial number stamped on the weapon we keep the registration of all guns sold there cant be any doubt about that being his were anxious to find out where he kept it of course dunbar agreed jim could have kept a dozen guns in his office without my knowledge perhaps his secretary could help us ill sep sea before he could touch the button on his desk peter interrupted him not yet he cautioned 1 I want to inov something about his secretary first la Is she young attractive the attorney shrugged passably so I 1 noticed ill call her and let you judge for yourself dont tell her who we are the novelist cautioned make some rome excuse to talk to her without meo dioning the revolver it Is barely possible she may be the lady in ill blue no we are looking for she certainly would have had an excellent opportunity to remove the weapon it if it was kept in his desk the girl was called 1 I wish get me sir mr franklins file of unanswered mall mail miss wilson said dunbar 1 I shall need it in straightening out his affairs not the girl in blue obviously declared cardigan after she had left miss wilson was attractive and in her early twenties but was waa decidedly a brunette call herback her back mr dunbar lets ask her about the revolver but the girl could not remember ever having seen the gun although she was familiar with franklins affairs and had frequent access to hla his desk when he Is out of the city she explained it Is often necessary for me to find papers in his desk im sure I 1 would have noticed it if the gun had been there it how about the safe only mr air franklin and mr dunbar had access to the private see VT fa I 1 I 1 11 1 1 1 1 it but the girl could not remember ever having seen the gun tion of the safe it might have been there without my knowledge of course she admitted ile he might have kept it in his private drawer there dunbar volunteered the one you examined last night but he was the only person who could have taken it from there and your point is that some one else procured the gun without his knowledge that being true it have been there ile he must have kept it at his apartment cardigan that seemed to he be tile the logical answer then fletcher fletchir cr must have seen the gun before must have recognized it but refused to admit it who was he protecting how was the servant involved in the murder of his master the more he revolved the question in his mind the mote more certain peter became that the woman in blue was the key to the crime and that fletcher if he cot could id be made to talk could reveal her identity lie ile could not share Kil days conviction that the case against webster spears lacked only substantiating proof just like every other trail weve lilt hit kilday complained as they headed back 0 to o his office A blind alley dan bullis and fletcher are the only who can identify that woman for or us but neither one of them w talk well find her peter reassured him weve got to find her it seems to me that one way or another she supplied the motive tor for this crime kilday stopped and laughed aloud why I 1 think of that before he asked and then not waiting for the question on peters lips continued that sedan parked in front of spears last night was a cadillac and it belonged to cailis shipley pley did you notice its color was waa it green N no 0 good declared peter 1 I had thought of that but unless brills was deliberately trying to throw us off the track the woman in blue could not have hn ve been callis shipley pley you forget she never left the church at that time she returned to the front she was one of the bridesmaids and was in the church when the crime was discovered only a few minutes later tho the sergeant meditated on this right of course but did hullis bullis tell us the truth was there a green cadillac at nil all that may be a detail out of his own imagination simply to throw us off the track possible of course peter admitted kilday returned to his former theory of the crime after all he declared with much earnestness after all who do we know tried to stop this wedding webster spears rylie carmody too of course but his action was instigated by spears both doctor abernathy and nick royce talked with franklin after the senior carmody left the study choo choo train was the last person we know of that saw franklin alive royce saw her step into the study with him a few minutes before the crime was committed and yet it seem possible that she could have delivered the death blow added to that we liae have the fact which she herself point pointed d 0 out u t she was known to be his als mistress and she knew royce had seen her enter that room with him it seem reasonable to believe that she would have committed the crime under these circumstances cum stances she was too openly inviting suspicion to be contemplating a crime 1 doctor abernathy was in tb the e church we know that danle daniel 1 bullis had a motive but he evidently had left before ambrose carmody was admitted to the study of course the detective admitted he might have returned later but I 1 hardly think so ile he too had walked in there openly and every one knew lie he and franklin were enemies that the way IVRY he would have gone about it if lie he had had franklins revolver in his pocket and was planning a murder of all those we know to have been back there that leaves only nick royce cailis shipley and the woman in blue whether we want to or not well have to leave the he woman in blue out of our present calculations because we dout dont know who site she Is As for royce what t motive did he be have and ca callas Is S phlp 14 ley the detective shrugged you know what I 1 think about her ashes lying why to protect some one then it must be idylle carmody whom she admits she loves or webster spears who she says Is only a good friend nevertheless we know that she visited him at his house last night although site she denies deales it peter the detective continued earnestly your theory in regard to the fingerprints finger prints Is a good one to follow concerning young spears you declared that the man who left fingerprints finger prints either cither know a erline crime was about to be committed or else he was a fool the same thing goes for or the people who visited that room the person who visited franklin openly certainly know that a crime was about to be committed to do so only invited suspicion the man who killed franklin FrEin klin slipped in the rear door unseen and no one saw webster spears enter that study no one even saw him in the sacristy but we know he left the church just before the crime why im going to have him arrested without any further delay he had the motive he had the opportunity and he was trying his utmost to stop that wedding weve been blind not to see it from the first and callis shipley pley you cant arrest anyone for telling a lie ile all ive got on her so far first she tried to protect kylle carmody the then webster 8 spears pears but ive been n thinking about that angle if this girl knows so much maybe young carmody ts Is in on the secret too from now on im going to have him shadowed CHA CHAPTER PTER vill VIII an unexpected appeal aster ASIDE SIDE from the artest anest of webster spears there were no new developments that afternoon the newspapers of course made much of the arrest whatever else tie he had done the sergeant had placated the press and there seemed to be no doubt in his mind concerning spears guilt with peter cardigan it was different lets go back to st matthews he suggested as he and kilday were returning downtown its only a few blocks out of our way weve been over that place with a alne toothed comb the sergeant demurred theres nothing more to find there nevertheless he accompanied his friend for another visit to the scene of the crime ex except c ept for one circumstance cum stance he had been correct that was the empty scabbard which chic h had contained the knife with which franklin had been killed hilled it still hung where peter had first seen it 0 on n the west wall of the rectors rectors study just to the right of the door loading leading into the file sacristy and about eight feet high on the wall peter whistled tunelessly as he surveyed the room his eyes finally coming to rest on the scabbard hm said peter then turning to his friend if spears Is guilty he said he be entered through the rear door we know that because there was some one in fit the sacristy all the time and we have been able to account for every one who came in the other way let us try to reconstruct the scene you move over to the rear door there now im jim franklin standing here in the door leading into the sacristy nick royce was standing out there this door Is open and my back Is to you pm im looking toward royce now open the door sergeant just as quietly as you can the detective cautiously turned the knob there was no sound hut but as the door swung slowly back it creaked mournfully cardigan smiled at least we know the murderer surprise franklin he declared but we thought thou glit so all along all right I 1 turn and see you standing in the doorway I 1 recognize you dont I 1 you dont think franklin was alarmed by the sight of his visitor do you franklin knew webster spears was 1111 days laconic rejoinder 1 I dont think the sight of him would have frightened him regardless of who it was peter declared emphatically franklin alarmed we know that because nick royce hla his best man was only a few feet away in the sacristy and the door between was ajar all right kilday agreed neither of us believes franklin |