| Show THREE SHUTTERED HOUSES HOUSE S by BEN AMES WILLIAMS SERVICE CHAPTER XVI continued 15 Is rab dead lissa asked pleadingly rab hab miss moss echoed you mean asa lissa straightened quick hope in her eyes no no she protested rab is mine Is he all right miss moss tried to collect her wits rab is hurt but he will get well she said then and she felt new life flow into this girl but asa is dead oh ch im glad im glad lissa tied cried and she demanded to know what had happened miss moss told her swiftly as much as she knew and having done so she ventured a question in her turn so lissa clinging close to the older woman poured out all her story rab and I 1 were married over a year ago she confessed father and mother knew but we tell anyone else because people would disown him 1 I knew asa too and he used to make love to me so finally to make him stop I 1 told him rab and I 1 were ere married but it do any good he kept after me just the same and when I 1 threatened to tell rab he said if I 1 did hed tell old mrs bowdon we were married so I 1 tell rab but last night asa kissed me and rab saw him and was furious with me so I 1 had to tell him then he was wild at asa she broke off for they were come suddenly to the top of kenesaw hill to the taine house inspector tope hurried across the lawn miss moss saw how tired he was and held him hard for a moment there she whispered dear man and she asked where is clint where is june he pointed to the bowdon house a little way off where there was a lighted window on the second floor asleep up there miss leaford is in bed with a blanket over her clint in a chair beside her holding her hand there was a deep exhilaration in her then turning to tope she said so it was asa you know I 1 picked rab all the time tope shook his head he was in providence last night when the fire S started he reminded her 1 I thought he might have gone down there and registered and then come back to set the fire raced back to providence again there was time no hed put his car up for the night tope insisted he was there all right ile he added awkwardly 1 I tell you but he had a girl with him they registered as man and wife she remembered suddenly lissa thayer and turned back to the car lissa and her father were no longer there so tope and miss moss went toward the house they met doctor cabler with mrs taine in in the hall doctor cabler explained im sending mrs taine to bed she must rest mrs taine protested wearily rab needs me hes all right the doctor assured her his wife is with him and he and mrs taine went on upstairs his wife tope echoed incredulously of course lissa she was the one with him in providence she whispered tope and miss moss withdrew unnoticed they went out on the front porch together and tope sat down he shook his head helplessly well one on me he confessed 1 I guess im getting old I 1 was sure she was married to asa so was L I 1 she admitted eager to comfort him now till she told me the truth on the way up here now tell me about tonight and she listened while he recited the tale 1 I blame my myself self he declared at last for holding off waiting to be sure and he said in a somber tone asa was mad drunk with killing he had a ladder ready over there he must have meant to come back tonight climb to junes room kill her and old mr hurder too and he explained mrs taine gave june milk tonight I 1 think asa had drugged that but I 1 spilled it like a clumsy fool 11 cabler says rab can talk now heale told them a little later rab had a twisted frown between his eyes lissa bent over him and miss moss saw his fingers tighten on her hand wheres mother I 1 dont want her to hear asleep doctor cabler assured him the hurt man nodded wheres asa he asked then no one answered him but he seemed not to notice this neglect it was about lissa he repeated you see she and I 1 were married we kept it secret because asa and june and I 1 supposed to get married without permission it was in grandpa bogdons Bow dons will and grandpa harders Hur ders too that if any of us married without grandma bogdons Bow dons consent we were outcasts disinherited and he said but asa was making love to lissa whenever he caught her alone I 1 know it J till I 1 saw him kiss her last night shed been in providence with me we used to go away together whenever I 1 had business out of town he looked up at the girl beside him with a deep fondness 1 I saw him kiss her he explained and she slipped away and I 1 found her crying in the woods behind the barn hed hurt her his hands on her arms so she told me how hed persecuted her for months and I 1 came back to do something to him his eyes met inspector heales and then you boid me someone had killed aunt kitty and set that fire and I 1 forgot about asa for a 41 e I 1 7 to arouse clint and I 1 june while but tonight I 1 meant to have it out with him so on the way home I 1 made him stop and we went into the garage out of the rain 1 I told him hed got to ro leave lissa alone and he laughed at me said if I 1 made a row hed tell the fo folks lk s we were married he hesitated continued grimly but I 1 found out last week that asa had been stealing trust funds in the office I 1 told grandpa bowdon about it the day he died it upset him terribly may have killed him but I 1 told asa last night that I 1 knew about that and that if he leave lissa alone id send him to jail he grinned ruefully asa say anything I 1 thought id stumped him and I 1 was fool enough to turn my back on him and the next thing I 1 knew my light went out this crack on the head all I 1 remember what does he have to say inspector heale was about to speak but tope touched his arm quickly restraining him and doctor cabler said gravely youve talked enough rab get some rest now he cleared the others briskly out of the room tope and heale moved on through the hall to the front veranda and as they emerged there tope said briskly ive had my eye on asa ever since he produced that bottle what reason had he to go looking for it in the cellar in the laundry chute the answer is there any reason unless he had some other business in the cellar you think he did find the bottle there heale asked tope said explicitly yes justus taine dropped it down the chute he left the hurder front door unbolted that night slipped back over there to get some of mrs Lea fords sleeping tablets there were only two in the bottle so he took them and dropped the bottle out of sight in the handiest place with so few tablets in the bottle shed miss them in the morning but if the whole bottle was gone shed just think it was mislaid millaid mi ile he added honestly part of this is guessing part I 1 know and he went on so heres what weve got asa taine was a thief and he needed money you heard what rab hab said that if any of the young ones married they were to be disinherited well rab was married and asa knew it and asa bought june new clothes encouraged cou raged her to marry clint it if she did with the old gentleman dead and kitty leaford dead and june married or dead and rab married and so disqualified under the will asad have all bogdons Bow dons money and harders Hur ders too heale listened grimly and tope went on there are three elements in ev ery murder duider he said motive a and rid opportunity and capacity money was motive enough tor for asa As for opportunity he had plenty of chances to steal some of kitty Lea Lee fords pius pills and he ha had a chance to drop some of them into her milk that night when he went to the kitchen tor for a glass of 0 water and he had a chance to dope the milk the harders drank too he came for acup of tea in the kitchen that night ight n got himself some milk out of 0 the bottle could have drugged the milk then 1 I dont know whether he did that or not it matter but I 1 know he started the fire he was alone on the ground floor of the bowdon house his mother and mrs bowdon upstairs he slipped out and came over here theres an electric light above the back door find the bulb is broken and the edge of the socket is fused asa made a short circuit there and then he raced back and got into the bowdon dining WOM room again before mrs taine came downstairs and he proved tonight that he was insanely ready to kill that he had murder in him he tried to kill rab and hed made his plans to kiu kill june and mr hurder too asa convicted himself tonight he added sternly and executed himself too saved you the trouble heale heale stood silent awhile the day brightened and the sun began to burn away the clouds the man said at last you know I 1 kind of hate this im sorry for these folks up here four of them dead in less than a month had about enough it looks to me tope smiled faintly yes he agreed and he said gravely outside of a few people who wont talk this thing tonight might pass as an abc acc accident ident inspector cars have smashed into trees before As heale considered this tope added youve never charged mr leaford have you nothing in the newspapers no just held him heale replied he was willing to stand for that wait till something happened tope nodded and then he looked toward the road and chuckled A car had stopped in front of the house young doctor derrie gwun swung g to the ground and came briskly toward them across the lawn the medical examiner greeted them cheerfully wrong heale he asked more trouble up here heale hesitated why they had a smashup smash up car piled into a tree he explained asa dead and rab got a crack in the head derrie nodded bad he said gravely then he looked at tope and grinned 1 I suppose youre trying to make a murder out of this too he suggested in amused derision but tope shook his head why no doc he said mildly no it was an accident I 1 guess matter of 0 fact he added ive come around to your way of thinking on mrs leaford too guess you were right guess it was an accident just the way you said the young doctor chuckled sure he agreed triumphantly 1 I told you so youve been seeing goblins in the dark old man he said well IU ill go in and take a look at them he turned into the house and inspector heale looked at tope what do you aim to do now heale asked and tope hesitated but miss moss said cheerfully why I 1 think well wake clint and june and go down and get her father out of your jail and go home heale chuckled ill telephone down fix that tor for you about mr leaford he agreed he went into the house to do so tope stood still suddenly tired but miss moss hugged tight to his arm and she smiled proudly up at him and her eyes were shining you know my dear she said youre a grand man he grinned uncomfortably wiped his mouth with his hand and she rose on tiptoe to kiss him then they went together across the lawn to rouse clint and june THE END |
