Show T he labad 11 lau IV IV CHAPTER XII continued 17 hawson reentered entered re lie he had bad heard them ns as he be came up lip the path anil and topped on the threshold looking tit at anne waiting to see if she would woud speak but she said nothing stand standing lul 1 hy by bassett bassem her hand braced against A const ft a table her glance on tile floor she knew clawson was watching her and willed her form to an upright immobility tier her face to a stony blankness it if she could hold bold herself tills this way not move or speak she ehe could bear the ten tan slon A touch a word end and she ehe felt that her body might inight break to pieces and her voice ascend in long hodg drawn sc rennis to tile the skies the screen under its white covering was set in the place rhine had bad indicated dica ted the projector put some distance buck back facing it to some of them these preparations had tile the hideous significance of those preceding 4 fin execution and nil all of then felt atlie deadly oppression of the approaching climax the room was very still ni ili it if an enchantment lay on it at intervals mrs M rs cornell drew tier her breath with a low moaning sound ws hands bands clenched and unclenched clenched un on tho linck and williams looked tit nt ills his watch lie he began a guttri guttural at mutter of impatience and stopped ns as the door opened and shine cattle came in ile he came quickly quick bringing an air of excitement to the lie already highly charged atmosphere there was a bewildered wil dered agitation in ills face and ills his words were broken and uncertain as be answered williams question oh yes I 1 got it something I 1 cant quite make out got me sort fort of flustered harrying so have to stand away there folks ile he turned to the projector project gr adjusting it it then held the negative out oat toward williams well probably lose this mr williams doltie it so quickly I 1 fix it likely melt with the heat beat in here wont last more than a few minutes you dont want to keep it 14 do you go ahead its only the picture all that concerns um all right its your say so get it in a minute now and by gum I 1 want to see fee he stopped his breath albreath caught his hands bands busy over ovee the machine mac bIne now then were ready some one please put out the lights pinkney pressed the button end and the room dropped into darkness A picture leap leaped A into being on the screen A doorframe door frame backed by solid indistinguishable black the edge of 1 1 door find and beyond it the outlines melting into the darkness darene is the suggestion of a head and shoulders only the fare face chewing clear looking at them with wide questioning eyes sybil saunders face the silence held for a moment then broke in an explosive volume of sound round the rose ni sly sybil 1 sybil I 1 the name rin ran about the room heat beat on oil the bagh riling and was buffeted from wall to wall the dead woman williams shook Ith Wil arm in ills his incredulous amazement it ls Is its her I 1 saw caw it when I 1 do de tat sloped loped it and I 1 dont know some iblings pone gone wrong A ran oua cry rose above the chorus choros of female voices stokes hail had dropped Us hold bolt orn on the chair his mortain n eyes fixed on the picture aroni ills lips curled back like an nn an pry dogs came a strangling rush of words hes dead ashes dead for I 1 killed tier ajer I 1 hot her ashes dead mie hie clint cant come back she never can ienir donw back I 1 shot be her r els eg tile the ran I 1 idled her 1 I saw tier her full ilond nd dead I 1 ilia lie words lied died in a groan lie he forward unit and lay a writhing with hands bands abut clawell und lus ing into the llie carpet burpet the men ii died sit lit him clustered about liim blin vp oe watching in ili dumb horror it lit the picture behind cheni slowly ld ded l d from the screen CHAPTER XIII when they carried stokes to his room thep thought blin dying a so kho illy was his hia appet appearance trance so deathlike ji ill ills collapse col lupse telephoned to for a dof doctor tor and before tile he man mail came caine flora singularly insularly cold unit collected now tile fight mas aas over told thein tier lier hubband hUH band was wag a morphia a adalet and showed tile abc a in lils itis bit bug with the empty lal fail in the two days detention on the llie island his supply ir d been hie elie greatest rt train of the many in iny that had ended edan in lis ills frantic confession in the excitement of tile stokes felt the men illen had forgotten all about the picture end and lit dow walking down the lal ial thy t ay iy back bach to it bassett nit binl acre cre battled bill led and con fount led by it it was waa one of tile alie startling 0 of the whole chain of startling circumstances rawson was vis bullied battled nor bur confounded having already at a solution shine litts hed played a trick doue done it on pur lins ose colece to ere if it not accomplish just what it lad lie ile was loud in lili hn praise ot of the 1 photographer it was a cleir ruse rose that lind brid bronga bron sl t things to lo a climax when they might inight linae gone on bungling for ln s V liaw ww son wa vas milling to admit liis ills enli binl tal i lied been bf en suro sure of elie boy anil and now it iipp tipp jred eared that Dussett brid ilisa v wei e right joe tracy hail evidently lit out oat sec secretly on bonto but builte inc of his own ue ife dismissed the company with a I 1 by GERALDINE BONNER service Copy copyright richt by the cobbal merrill co curt command and ns as they made their hurried exits jocularly congratulated shine ns as tile man inan who had pulled off a successful hont but the lie phot ogra pher looked rattier rather shamefaced oil kiil denied the charge hed field meant to tn take a picture no funny business or fooling about it hut but lie he rubbed lih ills hand blind over his tousled hahr and grinned sheepishly lie ile was sleepy what had been the matter just plain doped with sleep so lie he know what lie he was doing well how flow do you account for the picture said clawson are you one of these people who can take spirit photographs there was only one way of accounting for it lie he opened the shutter and the picture was one of ali those asu lie hod had taken of miss saunders the elie day of ills his arrival taken tier her like that coming colln through the doorway hed taken two or three like that tie he be sure how low many rue but tie be lid did remember posing tier her at a both the front and benr entrances of tile living room trying to get effects t of a lark dark background with tier her figure dimly suggested and the light on her face it was evidently one of those pictures must have been the last one hed done but he trust his memory on any small points hed been more in ore shocked than he had bad any idea of but lie knew it now so that was thail Nob odys brains 1 nob odys deductive powers or perspicacity or psychological insight had he had seen the tha revolver in the drawer of the desk brought them to the goal the bun ung of bf a sleepy man had done the trick they were talking it over when the sound round of floras voice stopped them thein she was standing in ID the doorway very white ond and very calm stokes was asking for them yes slie she in answer to lawsons Raw sons took look lie was quite himself the doctor had bad wanted jilin him to anit till he was stronger but lie he had insisted ile he says lie must speak now dow while lils ills mind Is clear lie he seems to know it wont avont lust last and lie he cant rest till lies hes told everything they found jilin bolstered up in led bed a haggard lia peard spectacle ills eyes sunk in darkened hollows holloN ss seemed to hold all the life left in ills his body they huns hung on tile entering men then awer ted to ills his wife unit und lie made a motion for tier her to sit bit beside him im glad you ve conie come lie whispered gla gin I 1 its over ove it im ill goffig on oil now it cant be to Hily thing worse lhnn this last thirty six hours the desire alef lre to free arft ills his mind poi sensed film resti hest ike ho suld rest was till nil lie wanted end it was not for jilin him till 1111 lie had unloaded the lie intolerable burden ile he had cairned ditico sibil saunders death ile he bad never intended to kill her let that was the title one point of exculpation lie hi insisted bIsted cu ills toe love had anad blin mad carried liim him beyond the inhibiting hi forces of honor feeling clinK fe reason that it was kleen seemed led to increase its ob power and she biart liart noer forone forona moment led litta tn t think it was wag anything but hop clesi m unwaveringly from tile the first tier lier altitude had been dislike aversion a horror of ills hl state of mind and himself ills knoAl knowledge edge of the coming separation had been the igniting motive vint caused the inner explosion after their stay on the island she would go tier her way keep tier her whereabouts hidden lip lilen front from him and lie might never see tier her again the thought became unbearable and led jilin to a resolution of wild desperation lie he would get fret her alone once more confess ills passion and if she file mot met it with tile the old scorn and abhorrence kill himself before tier her eyes ile he had seen the ra revolver in tile drawer of the desk an binl ani I on the day of the performance taken it to prevail upon her to grant him the interview was the problem and ami the evil inspiration came to jilin him to tell tier her lie had news of dallas tier her lover it was a lie he knew nothing of the man but truth decency self respect no louger longer existed for him rie ite described the interview in the living room tier lier roused interest and demand for hie elie information the intrusion of ills his wife worked with his plan ond and lie had insisted on a rendezvous where here they would ile ho free from froin interruption they started for tile summer house op 01 the point saw shins shine there and ninde made the arrangement to meet in the place at seven then them she had gone upstairs to her room and he to the balcony to wait for tier lier when he be saw tier her pass the balcony he h e had risen and followed her she had moved rapidly dot cot Nv waiting alting for bilm and he bad biad not dot tried to catch up with her as lie arnew site she did not want avant anyone to see them together when he entered the summer cummer house she was sitting bitting on the bench close to the table on atrich her elbows rested ills his hysterical state accelerated during the long wait had bad reached a climax of distraction and lie he burst into a stream of words he had lied to her he be knew nothing but lie he had to see her he had lured her there for a last interview a final clearing up and he be drew out the pistol the eight bight of it his mud mad babble of disconnected sentences evidently terrified her she leaped to her feet and made a rush like a frightened animal for the opening before lie he could speak or catch tier her she bhe had bad brushed past him and fled from the place then something had gone wrong in his head lie he explain a breaking of some pressure a stoppage of all mental processes in the vacuum one fact stayed that she had bad got go away from him and ile he never would see tier her again A blind fury seized him and he be shot lit at her hs ste run ran she was at the summit of the cliff 1 staggered threw up tip her arms ani went over oer when he saw tier her body lurch and topple forward the darkness dark nesa lifted from his brain ue ne came back to himself its as it if from a period of unconsciousness and realized what lie he had done ile he described his state as curiously lucid and farseeing far tar seeing the insane outbreak seemed to have freed his intelligence and temporarily suspended the torment of his nerves the situation presented itself with a vision like clarity and all the forces of his mind and will sprang into action combining com lAnIng to achieve liia its safety from the shadow of the vines lie he looked at the house saw bassett come to the living room entrance glance about and go back the round bound of the ahot had evidently roused no forebodings and when no face appeared at window or door lie ran to the pine grove there ho he was safe and slipped unobserved to the balcony tie ne waited here for a lit nn anent to pet get his breath and com compos ills his manner ile he was wag the actor playing it a part with a lit high I keyed heady confidence when he entered the room ills wife that had and been the unforeseen retribution lie ile had not dot realized that suspicion would turn on lier ter and thin saw unit that it might saw that it did ills hell bell began when lie he grasped tile the danger site she was in ili listened to raw sous sons questions ou on tile night of their arrival sensed willaims Will hims line 0 of thought when the scone scene vas rehearsed on the shore lie ile hud had tried to turn them to joe tracy snatching at anything to 10 gala gain time but t he be would bave told lie was ready to tell lie he kept reiterating the words ills his bur burnena eyes iti moving front one face to the other lie he had broken tier her heart beart ruined tier lier life but lie he was nut not so utterly lost ns that TO BE di CONTINUED |