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Show aSTEPonihoSTAlRS Isabel A DdtKK&frmr 1 SfA? ill HERE iodxy I Tho report of u revolver, follow 'I by hurrylnsj footsteps on tho talr.. j ' Interrupts the social evening Whii h ;ictoctlvc Earry had planned to tpt ml with hl friend. Professor' mmyonOV, In the Inter'w room on' the fifth floor of n Now York apart-j nient houne. Barry and the I ru-: fessor rush down stnlrs and discover tluit bfj&utfful Miriam Van, society' portrait painter, bus been murdered In her Mtudlo apatiimcnt on the third' floor. Gordon l.idd. a young Artist on the second floor und llfnry Grin-, wold, an Irascible baohelor from the fourth, enter the studio after belng-i belng-i told of t he murder. go x with Tiir: ffTORl Sergeant Dany bru;Ked. When a oaM of tills sort occurs, i professor. thereV little Unit for diplomacy. di-plomacy. We'Ve got to get the dope, ind get It quick. So you, too. heard I that step on the salrn directly after the ehot was flrod?" Professor Scmyono- laid a quiclc bend "ti hl arrrv I ' Wo will dieCUS that later. my I friond. His keen eye beneath their nhiiggy brows rested for a momont I on the crabbed face of Henry Grle-vMold Grle-vMold and then drifted to Gordon Ladd. who had once mor dropped his head , In his hevndB. "Let us have a little talk together In my rOOrns, i soon as the official formalities have been com-' com-' plied with, which will fjrnnt us teni-i teni-i porary privacy." Policemen Boyi deecended with un- expected haste, i "Thai' s one of lho.se nuttv artistic dames up there, with hair like d !;. terrier and the nerve of a mouse!", I he confided in a quick undertone to Berry. In the shabby, comfortable llvlrig j room once more, the professor lov -ered the light and raised the window shades with a sigh of relief, then turn- to his oungcr companion "AVhar. do you inak. of It nil, Sergeant? Ser-geant? Who do you think killed tb Vane woman, and why?-' Harry shrugged. "The last part of your nusstion would explain much, professor und probably answer tho first part as woll. i i haven't had time to draw any def-' def-' Inlie conclusions as yet, hay j'ou?" Professor SVniyonov sank once niore I Into his own chnlr and mo'.loncd to the I ono opposite. "Only some very oMious minor ! ones," he responded "Sho was shot ' by no stranKer, but by someone whoso I presence In her studio at tho moment' was known to her. Remember she whs .'landing or sitting directly before her oael and evidently painting or tH:ri-Ing tH:ri-Ing to pulnt when tho end came. No i Intruder could have got so close to her, or practically between her and the I easel In order to flro directly Into her heart without her knowledge. It Is i possible that she turn-d to speak to thl person and thus unwi'tmjrly avo' lapportunlty for an unimpedod aim. 1 (think It Is fairly certain fhat .-he did not anticipate what was coming Barry nodded. "That seems clear. But about those footsteps that we both hea.'d going down t.ho stnlrs when v." opened our dou here Just after the ot start loJ us'"' ; "Going up, my friend, not dOWItt 1 ill professor Interrupted. I ) I "Up?" repeated Harry "Why re ! passed nobody on the StAlH and there are only two o'her apartments -Gil-wold's below yuu, und the wonia. , above In the attic! According to Of-' floer Boyle Ho- women went Into hysteric hys-teric when she heard the news and you know yourself how you had to pound upon QrUrWold's floor to uroUSO nire and how leiBitrely and reluctantly ho came down finally to investigate There did not seem to be anywhere In the hallway, badly lighted as It was. where anyone eould have bidden himself." him-self." Professor Seniyono smiled and hi.s whito whiskers lifted slightly. "I am not thinking Of the woman." he said. "Nor do L Imagine that we i passed anyone unobserved In our dc-, Mcent, hurried as It was. 'Who was Miriam Vane" From! whence did she come? If the ex-1 eellent organization of which you are a part should In the next few days! learn anything of Mrs. Vine's antecedents ante-cedents or previous hlstorv and nfso-' elates which Is not given out gencrall.-to gencrall.-to tho press, would it be too groat a breach of professional oilquet to put me Into strictly confidential poisos-l sion of it?" "fly no means, professor. In view not only of your standing but of 'he splendid servlees yon hars rendered! voluntarily to the homicide bureau In the past." Barry responded. "I shall be gruteful," the professor declared. '1 know nothing, absolutely absolute-ly nothing more than you and yei f have formed a 'heory which I should I like to test nnd which I think only Mrc Vane's past will prove or disprove dis-prove ' Sergeant Barry smiled to himself, though not a muscle of his countenance counten-ance betrayed his Inward amusement. He thought that he knew what that theory , engendered by an almost childish chil-dish personal animosity, consisted of nnd he was glad to humor tho foibles f ihe old nvan, so great In his own. line. "Just what Is generally known! ahout Mrs Vane, beyond the promln-enoe promln-enoe her odd rtyle of portrsitur hna brought her lately0" ho asked "I know only what I have seen casually In tho papors about her and what Mrs. McOrnth, entirely without encouragement, has voluntoerod," replied re-plied tho professor. ".Mrs. Vane arrlv- j fed lest OCtOber from France, I be-! llcve. It was some two months later that her vogue began and spread like' wildfire, so that by spring she was quite famous." There can be no doubt of lier strange, whlmiscal talent.' Barry remarked. re-marked. ' That unfinished portrait before be-fore whleh she lies dead, for Instance,! It Is as unmistabably recognizable ai' a photograph. 1 fancy Mr. Theodore1 Vanslttart would give something to! hnvo his wife's picture removed before' the notoriety of tomorrow." Professor Semyono nodded slowly You observed the most prominent thing Jn the pon rait, did you not"" he asked 'The Vunslttart emerald? It has figured In more than one unsavory episode In the traditions of Its history, his-tory, yet it Is the pride of the fumlly Perhaps that Is the reason why Mrs. Vane has. one might say. maliciously I emphasized it. Tho portrait was to hove been that of a Jewel, not a lady.' And the critics will fall upon that fact like dog upon a bone'" Parry , laughed nnd then his face sobered. "HOW long have the other tenants I been In the house, Professor Semy - onov?" "The thin, little creature In the alti-studio alti-studio was hero when I came, two I vears ago next uetohor. and heaven knows how long before that. 1 he re-Mpnndd. re-Mpnndd. "The young man. Mr. Lndd moved in only three months ngo. on the first of May, and my morose neighbor, neigh-bor, just below, look possession a year before that after 1 myself hud beer here six or seven month. The Janitor I or superintendent, looks as though he might have been the furnace man foi the original householders nnd his name I believe to be Kedge." As he spoke thote came a respectful respect-ful but authoritative knock upon his door and he arose with a sigh and One of thoso natty urtlstlr clnnie with tho ncrvo of a mouse,'' saddled over to admit a long-aimed, wiry young man whose blue eyes were as keen aa Hurry own. "Hello. Craig! " tho latter rrlcd before be-fore either of tho others could speak "Did tho chief send you over from headquarters to take charge of the case? Mr. Semyonov, tlur; is Sergeant Ser-geant Craig, from the homicide bureau bur-eau " "I guess we al! know whrv Professor Pro-fessor Semyonov has done for us in times past.' The newcomer laughed ns he shook hands, ihm turned frank ly to Barn". "I don t know why the hief assigned me to this job when you 11 were already on the ground. John, but II: ordei i ., orders and ill be thankful i!9? tor u Hale cooperation." Bpr "I've k'oi to Interview the other ten ints of thd house.' said Craig. "Are there any pointers you could give nic "You haven I - zn?" B "No. I read tho statements they )flB Hide to the precinct dicks and then Csame straight for you. They're each LH in ih ili o.sn apartments with n g""i 1 -jfl 1 1 i inding and two on the stref JB ; below, one at the entrance door and H one where the "re escnpe comes dew i outside the studios, by that vacant ejjH rip ol land rhore's no other w., fjn ol can net out for Boyli and the other two wont straight over Lj the roof thoroughl Craig replied 1S ii looks like .in Inside loh nil rig I 1 tor Boyle was right outside tho house li . When he heard the shot fired and 3u J d....n, oijid b.-ivi .-ome out of the I '3 j .loor or down the fire ei-cape without , J his seeing them. ' K 1 "What did the medical examiner I I Say " Barn asked after S pause, in I J a cautious undettone. A A "i much, you know he s always: like u clam until he gets his repon WM in at headquarters, nnd ho has stlil H the autopsy to make. ' the other re-poAdSd re-poAdSd "It was a bullet from a i -in. ill plStOl 'hat killed her. though. ijB ind It wa .rvd trom a considerniiW distanoe tor there were no powde i marks on the body nor anywheio uw !eig0 that we could find. Come do BSfesr to th studio where the murder We on, milled yourself and hSVS another look around, the tenures ran wait." L li.ury agreed With a nod and to-gether to-gether they desosndsd past Grlo-WOld'S Grlo-WOld'S door where a grinning policeman police-man saluted them and from behln i Which cam a defiant series of snort.-. On the landing below another officer -s. stood on guard, but the door swung idle on its hinges the body had been lB removed and the lurid, counterfeit Be JH daylight had been extinguished. leuv- Ing only th Soft OpalSSoSttt glow of LV ihe lamps in (he luxurious, dcoertf I i ! Ing room. 1 Did oU notice nf.-er nu smashe.i In that thin H a spring lock?'1 Craig had paused at the entrant 'Anj one oould have run out alter firing 1 that ncx ind pulled the door slim behind him and It would hav loci , d of itself. It's the only one of Its I kind In the hovisc too; the Janitor'JI hav to explain that, an.l If he floii LdB Com back bl morning We'll get the dragnet out after him " j (Oonilnued In Our Next Issue I (Copyright, nka service) |