Show 0 0 GERALD BRO W N 11 A TURES duke bl eCale private detective li Is en 9 aged by wealthy liy old miss aces bigelow to g the presents tor for her nieces eddin g accepts only because he fie senses lenses that hat miss bigelow Is afraid of 0 f something so m ething more serious than a possible theft heft mccalf set iati his assistant rocky anil and his secretary ann marriot to hunting hunten up tip back ground data on the members of the families in involved vo ived in the wedding later mccale hecate inspects th the 0 rich presents one Is a deed to a n oden I 1 s lie ransa mansion 0 n A tall tali beautiful bt blonde on as woman playing the piano intrigues hla interest two other women and nd a man appear in the room they are re obviously me members eibers of the family appearing a ap pp aring art aristocratic s socratic and self lell satisfied Y CHAPTER in III lost in his reverie of 0 this neo gree grec v vision ision mccale hardly heard adelaide bigelow speak may I 1 present mr mccale sybil this Is mrs joel bigelow gelow Bl the brides mother she put her hand on his sleeve mr L Mc Ic Cales agency Is overseeing the wedding L gifts with an effort he brought himself back to the woman who faced him he was conscious of an impressive bust followed by about a hundred and luty fifty dollars worth of shaped and girdled figure expensively trained not to split the seams of a black afternoon dress she wore far too much gold costume jewelry just below the chin of an elizabeth arden face topped by a up hairdo hair do her manner was arrogant as she repeated his name in the cool detached tone she might use to a chauffeur she acknowledged the introduction that was all then moved majestically away following her bust to a low table in pursuit of 0 a glass of sherry A corner ot of macales Mc Cales mind was still at the piano where the white goddess now played something by gershwin in a real broken beat he caught an amused glance from miss bigelow before she presented ted him to the couple sitting ol 01 on the sofa victoria bigelow gelow Bl murmured miss adelaide and stephen the brides sister and brother I 1 the girl looked a little old around the eyes a little hard around the mouth she was somehow like a drawing in the slightly degenerate macabre style of beardsley all black and white with finely drawn eyebrows and smudged lashes lahe there was something in the he way she held her pointed ch chin her body sheathed in a dress styled tor for someone tar far beyond her age seemed too assured too relaxed too willing it was easy to see that stephen bigelow was victorias brother he had the same hard finish the white skin the narrow face in twenty years ears he would be lantern jawed awed and hollow eyed already there w was as a cr crease e ase of cruelty around his uneasy e a sy mouth from the way he attacked his highball mccale suspected c led his petulance was partly the aff e ct of a speedily s evanescing evanes cing liver he wolfed wilfed his drink while nodding to M mccale C cale but his eyes were wera fixed on the woman at the piano lovely veronica seems nervous mrs stephen bigelow gelow Bl said miss ss adelaide and left mccale looking down at a polite garbo ish mask a slow smile and slender cigarette stained fingers picking out a lush tone yet that sensual undercurrent der current that might have been purely chemical or even glandular was there he felt it as he knew stephen the womans comans husband felt it he sensed what slavery there must be in loving a woman like this could see that part ot of stephens restless restlessness nes a was a sickness ic kness and that he was living 11 v ing on the cocaine of her magic she resent his standing there as she played she speak or smile pr or make any effort to put him at his ease she knew ry was dazi dazzled led not quite sure of ern self b but t it even seem to amuse he her breaking off in the middle of a run and a d without speaking she reached d for or a coffee cup at al the tar far end of the keyboard karen had seated herself beside her husband and joined by sybil the small group was carrying on a desultory conversation about the wedding rehearsal the bridesmaids and the ushers it was the usual half catty postmortem post mortem ashes very beautiful she sald said miss bigelow catching mccale again with his eyes on karen mm mccale grunted smiling Is she always like this A nordic princess miss adelaide laide smiled slight distaste curling tb ehg corners of her mouth 1 I asari afraid not bank idali wank ali the descriptive swedish just so ashes very talented yes indeed miss bigelow was mcking him leel feel like paul pry why had she been giving him the impression in the last few ew minutes that karen was worth watching then he changed the subject will you want me to have my man on duty tonight he watched her closely all ali the tightness came back into her eyes il 1 I I 1 dont know suddenly he was wa like a man waiting in a dentists office wanting to tart start something go in there and get it over with he started to talk almost blurted out youre in some trouble ls miss bigelow you seed need help you ou do you came to me this morning with it written all over your face youre afraid of something something that has nothing to do with wedding gifts lie he made a gesture as if he were waving them away you are afraid I 1 know knoll 1 I 1 suppose you do but though her hand band trembled her eyes were vacant tell me what it Is give me your confidence it if you want my help I 1 must have it what do you tear fear who is making you afraid now ive done it he cursed to himself tor for she threw him a sharp halt angry glance and got up he stumbled to his feet blind with anger at himself but she was smiling at two people who were entering the room the girl was all gold her skin tones were coffee and cream in the liquid sense of a laurencin tau portrait she was not beautiful but tier her face had a depth and a glow that was curiously warming that was it she was warm and golden and you knew at once that she was intelligent and a 11 d nice as well as decorative her hair was long naturally curly and of a burnished bronze A j al 9 I 1 0 she resent his bis standing there as she played co color lor her head was set on a perfectly proportioned body dressed as s she he was in shades of beige and brown simply and in beautiful taste she was a at t once quietly charm charming ng assured thoroughbred thorough bied veronica dear miss bigelow I 1 touched bouc hed her kissed her there was in her voice a note of passionate concern of pride V ride of relief re ilef adelaide bigelow introduced the golden girl in the doorway to and he was surprised at the creatures throaty me mellow ilow voice voice it ise lacked ked the superficiality 0 of I 1 the deb debutante u drawl but there something a trifle nervy a bit disquieting about the edges of that voice there was she pecked at her aunt smiled at mccale made a few quick nervous laughing jibes at her family and said in that modulated too well controlled tone anything new come present I 1 mean anything exciting miss adelaide turned abruptly as she was about to introduce mccale to the young man who had come in with her she made a futile gesture as if t to ward the girl oft off but veronica was out of the room before the movement was even completed mccale found himself hanging in the air so to speak pumping the hand of a man whose name he heard the Coli conquering hero comes storm christopher storm the young man said youre duke mccale and ive heard of you mccale stifled the impulse to say shush he said well and let go the hand of this big fellow who had designed and built a house called the nest christopher storm was tall and lean and athletic his face missed being handsome by way of a rather square jaw and a gene generous rous mouth he had candid blue ey eyes es and curly hair of a nond nondescript pt shade christopher maneuvered mccale toward the bottled liquids mixed them both a drink he motioned t to 0 a seat b eside beside himself saying without preliminary heard about you in that dyehouse racket pretty keen deduction what brings you here wedding presents not really know you went in tor for small stuff 1 I faveto make a living cases like the dyehouse murders are few and tar far between storms blue eyes narrowed well it just dian didn 1 t seem to me that the array of f bric a brac downstairs warranted your special talents mccale answer too true my bright young fellow he thought but if I 1 told you that all day ive been coddling a tingle the tha now and then raises the hair on my head who called you in family to himself he continued darn this fellow Is too inquisitive suddenly mccale caught a glimpse of something something ugly behind that hall hail fellow attitude that mantel of jauntia jauntiness ess something he did not like not sybil christopher prodded not darling sybil surely mccale was saved from making a reply by a peal of light laughter outside the room A door banged somewhere there was another ripple rippie of merriment mingled with a deeper one running feet on the stairs and veronica ran into the room followed by a man they might have been preceded by a fanfare of trumpets everyone stopped talking everyone turned toward the door as to a stage it was as if a spotlight had been turned on startling the audience to quickening anticipation of 0 the stars entrance it was sudden and complete even mccale was checked in the act ol of raising his glass to his lips something both electric and animal came into the room with curt Vallain court even if there had not been the little piping ecstatic thrill of sybila curt dearl the quick fire that lighted victorias glistening t enang eyes the husky overtones of karen saying behold the bridegroom cometh mccale would have known the identity of this physical rhapsody here was a consciously beautiful young manin a great big way tall and wide dark and strong virile and violent he had a large curly black head dark eyes that held ta la passionate promise he was a dynamic person the kind to whom things were bound to happen he acknowledged the introduction to the detective in a deep strong voice with a handshake that made mccale almost buckle at the knees it was three or tour four minutes before the blitzkrieg of his arrival settled into a steady slow app appreciation of him mccale himself was rarely impressed by mere sensual attraction and was loath to admit the catalyst lc ic effects of it here if ever was its complete manifestation t caward tion however he backed away toward the piano the better to take the th e scene apart As unobtrusively as possible he let his dark hard stare sweep around the circle afterward he was to come back to that short scene many times trying to put together the pieces of the riddle as they presented themselves in the next few moments it was all there had he known it the wheels within wheels the red thread of danger the shadow of death each intimate gesture the shading of a phrase each bit of conversation overheard held portents deep and inevitable more puzzles developing As it was the things that remained in his mind to puzzle him were these conversation be became ame general gl though the atmosphere still contained a peculiar effluvium ot of underlying der lying edginess he noticed that adelaide bigelow seemed as overcome by the positively theatrical charm of curt agthe as the rest and that even stephen had pulled ou out t of his alo de depression allu and was w watching curt with an almost physical worship karen glowed sliver silver and white victorias eyes were slits sybil was watchful storm was veronica was chatting nervously the same note of strain in n her golden diction she was like a gilded fragment tossed in a glittering vortex it was when curt said in that compelling voice of his very magnanimous nani of you chris to give us the nest that a warning signal flashed in macales Mc Cales brain it was spoken with such charming as if thought mccale the one thing he really lacked was manners ma lie he was making a studied conscious efort effort f storm only smiled steadily he shrugged retorting veronica always gets everything she wants oh chris veronica put out her hand to him started to say something stopped chris turned to her tor for a oriel briel in moment a blank look coming over his face there was a lost world in h his s eyes victoria laughed shrilly she made a quick nervous gesture bit her lower lip and looked a sudden significant pleading question to curt curt seemed to square off to her he shook his head as it if he were saying no everyone was concentrating upon storm and veron veronica ica at that moment and mccale thought no one else saw that exchange of glances between those other two afterward he was to wonder VallaIn court were went over to his future stepmother in law almost as if in apology tor for neglecting her she was a little high on too much sherry and was quite crushing to him in a bad tempered manner she shook off his attempted coddling without her fixed cosmetic smile her face was an unbecoming mask her makeup make up unable to disguise her mid dle age there was a puzzle there in the coolness between curt and sybil TO BE CONTINUED |