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Show sssj yP5JAvus Roy cohen vV1 ro xill Continued I censed speaking abrupt-vl abrupt-vl 2 were white, and oc- WffS ,. ? -sj ut out "ie g ' P1 i qn't any question that , 'h I eot more courage, ft pulse and It had Then a new Idea hit me I sudden. 1 wondered what '. peD If somebody found led In the woods with the 1. 4V of a man. Owed the satchel. It was I' and Jammed with money. noney. I don't know why I osis t;olJ,ht of such a thing, Mr. ; -Tbnt right then I did." peeping' that money. I was yjSpd worried. aSaon't think I'm bad, Mr. e never in my life done pil led thing, and 1 thought first of all to get at the bottom of I the bank robbery. Now that I've done that I don't see any use hold ing an Innocent man." He turned smilingly to Vernon. "As soon as 1 actually get the cash, Son, and fix things up with the Marland bank we'll send you out to make a good, useful citizen of yourself." Vernon's chubby face was glowing. glow-ing. Kengan sat shaking his head. "What I'd like to know,"' he growled, "Is who the devil killed Thayer?" CHAPTER XIV TT was an unusual spectacle that 1 meeting in the office of the presl dent of Marland university; a thing strangely grim and unacademic. At the door stood John Reagan, the muscular and decidedly efficient effi-cient policeman. Next to Reagan was Teddy Far rell, president of the student coun cil, president of PsI Tau Theta. Beside him, incongruously enough, was Mike Carmicino, janitor at the fraternity house. By his side was Rube Farnum, and beside Rube was Phil Gleason. Next to Phil was the trim little figure of Ivy Welch. Ivy, considerably older than she had been the week previously, looked unusually serious. Larry Welch occupied the seat next to his sister. Occasionally his eyes met the pair on the other side those of Tony Peyton. Jim Hanvey was standing beside the president's desk. Be did not appear particularly happy, and his first words were couched in an apologetic apol-ogetic tone. "Folks," he said gently, "I'll make things about as brief as I can, and I'll start with the most Important. Im-portant. Max Vernon didn't have no more to do with killing Pat Thay er than I did. "And now for Miss Peyton. I sup pose you've all heard that she was Pat Thayer's wife that is, that they went through a sort of ceremony cere-mony last year. She didn't want to say anything about that, but I ex plained it would be best because you-all were talking anyway, and you'd never have understood why she went to Thayer's room on May day. What she went for, folks, was to let him know that his hold over her was broken ; that is, that from then on the campus would have to know that she was legally, his wife. "What happened up there is nobody's no-body's business. Not even mine. But I'll tell you this much" and he grinned infectiously "Tony Peyton Pey-ton didn't kill Pat Thayer and that's a fact." There was a gasp. Larry Welch was sitting forward tensely, his eyes focused on Jim's placid face. The others stared at him in doubt and fear. Was it possible ... ? Impulsively Ivy reached for her brother's hand. It was ccld as Ice. And as though from a great distance dis-tance she heard Hanvey's words. "And now we'll discuss Larry Welch's part In this little affair. On Mav first. Larry Welch learned two fingerprints off that handle! I think we've got you, Mister Carmicino. But even that isn't all I've got against you. I have one more piece of evidence. Just one, but it will prove a great deal." He plunged a big fist into his bulging coat pocket and took therefrom there-from a diamond ring. He waddled across the room and came to a halt before Ivy Welch. "Ever seen that ring before, Miss Welch?" The girl's voice was trembling, but she answered without hesitation. hesita-tion. "Yes, sir. I put it on Mr. Thayer's Thay-er's finger myself several days before be-fore he before he died. It is my ring." "Mr. Thayer never returned it to you?" "No, sir. He promised never to take it off his finger." "Good!" Jim smiled genially. "You see, folks, that little ring is mighty important. It was not on Thayer's finger when the police got there. It was, in fact, stolen by whoever killed Pat Thayer. And that ring, folks, was found by me personally where Mister Mike Carmicino Car-micino had very carefully hidden it !" Carmicino was quivering. Something Some-thing like a howl of animal terror escaped from his lips. He leaped to his feet and broke forth into a torrent of words. His eyes rolled, his body twitched "Yes, I kill Thayer. I kill him, Meester Hanvey but 1 swear it was only after he attack' me." "That's all right, Mike." Hanvey's Han-vey's voice was gentle. "I'm glad you admit It was you. And if you can prove that It really was self-defense, self-defense, maybe you'll have .a chance." He turned to the others and bowed with elephantine grace. "I reckon that's all . . . and I'm much obliged to every one." They crowded about him and shook his hand. Reagan slipped a pair of handcuffs over Carmicino's wrists. Alone with Hanvey John Reagan Rea-gan turned to stare. "I'll be everlastingly d d," he said slowly. "There wasn't hardly a minute, Jim, that I didn't think you were just plain blundering dumb." "Shuh 1 John J ain't so smart." "Like thunder you ain't. Man, I'm grateful. Only for you I'd have sent Max Vernon up for that thing, and even if I am a cop, I ain't keen about convicting an innocent person." per-son." "I figured that, John. . . . Well. I'm hot and tired. Let's beat it." Reagan continued to display his astonishment. Then his eye fell upon a scintillating something which Jim was holding between thumb and forefinger. "Gosh, Jim," said Reagan, "you forgot to give Ivy Welch her ring." "No-o ... 1 didn't forget. This ain't her ring." "What?" "Naw. I had to run a bluff, Reagan. Rea-gan. You see, the kid Is a good ' "Yes, sir." "Have you ever paid either Pat Thayer or Mike Carmicino the two hundred dollars that the liquor was supposed to cost?" "No, sir. I still have the money. It was never paid to either of them." There was just the faintest hint of iron In Jim's voice. "You lied about that, Carmicino!" he accused. "And I want to know why !" All eyes were bent now upon the figure of Mike Carmicino. It was obvious to even the most Inexperienced Inexperi-enced that he was desperately seeking to escape from a net which he felt was being tightened about him. "I told you lie about Meester Thayer," he suggested suavely, "because "be-cause he was good friend of mine. Meester Thayer he always pay me as soon he gets the money when the fellers they have parties. This time he has not got the money when he is killed and so I think it is not nice that I should tell about how he owed me the money when he is dead. I was only protect' my friend, you see, Meester Hanvey." "Good for you, Mike. Mighty fine of you." Hanvey thought for a moment and then : "But isn't it true that Thayer announced he wasn't going to pay you at all and would turn you over to the police for bootlegging if you dared squawk? Isn't it true that you and he were partners in the criminal occupation of obtaining and selling liquor and that when he threatened to turn you over to the police you very rightly considered that he was double-crossing you?" "That is entirely not true, Meester Mees-ter Hanvey." "Maybe you're right about that, Mike. But how about the knife with which Thayer was killed?" Carmicino's smile was dissipated for a moment, and when it reappeared, reap-peared, seemed rather forced. "What about it?" Carmicino asked softly. "Just this," said Hanvey in a calmly conversational tone. "Thayer "Thay-er double-crossed you. He didn't have the money then but he told you flatly that he intended to keep it, and you could go whistle or else. You were sore as a goat and you said he couldn't get away with any such stuff." Hanvey was now making statements rather than asking ask-ing questions. "You saw him go to his room on May first and you decided de-cided to have it out with him. But you knew you were dealing with a larger man than yourself and one who evidently wouldn't scare worth soup. So you remembered the collection col-lection of weapons in Max Vernon's room and borrowed the likeliest one which happened to be that Sicilian dagger. "You saw Miss Peyton go to Thayer's room and waited until she had left the house. Then you went in. You had a quarrel and finally a fight You killed Thayer because he threatened to squeal and also, perhaps, because he attacked you. You had sense enough not to make jj.'.'ll Crammed and Jammed ,3i-; With Money." mall :: ' jroold. But it seemed as tliis money was just mirac- :uctE gven to me. I should have to the bank and told S J . . anyway, I'm telling the Qjjpi the truth is that I didn't" fd, then went on bravely. "1 money. I intended to beep onos k The man in the back of rAK ''I was dead. He had been , idobblng a bank. I was afraid jji-lg found with him, anyway. I fljjt - eighted his body with some rer, r 'ope I had in the car and sr'eJ ( slones and threw it in the nd fe'Ihe floor rug was stained lood. I threw that In, too. jjipesl had intended to take . jailor were also covered with K;I:H they were thrown in the revet- .unit: bgnjliess yon know the rest. 1 tena:J Steel City and looked at a ' 1 felt as though I'd be driving the old one, on ac-Wm ac-Wm what had happened. Then jjlldkt morning 1 bought the car lid the difference in cash. 1 MA few hundred dollars in my ft-:. and then hired a safe deposit al ct the name of William T. Ara m figured the money would be latere. Then I came back to Jf'l-and they arrested me." 'voice trailed off. "That's the JjjJ he said with a note of des ' !lreal in his voice. "I swear 4 fCf H !s." ;cEprT 8 bulbous head inclined slowly slow-ly 'ou had a pretty tough time, oiiw J'ou, Son? How much did RLli'Mout of the stolen money?" tjjt sixteen hundred dollars, H what I paid on the car." I's f all the rest is In the Ara At s. sir. Every cent." M-1 detached his golden toothpick o; ie hawser which held it. He P" " speculatively and seemed to 'J to it rather than to Max Ver- at;r; "e said, "I sort of think ,a talked mighty straight with jlS:.:( not a regular dick, you $;'' 'm down here on this bank list; Ss and it sure makes me feel that sort of straightened tw ni make a deal with you: : say tl,nt I'm to return rland bank all the money ''" th. TlleyM1 tal!e yor note $wmiMlnS sixteen hundred's1' hundred-'s1' ftn re t0 get 8 Jb and work , 'J W U back. Maybe they'll tut : T.new cnr nnd ca" lt yn n, return for tllnt- Max j,fl ' 111 turn you loose. What "lajsa7yl Yo" mean' " .j pinoss T was raiiant with eneokiv Rea-!,D'S 5rl Llf T6' Hanvey. That's bt ti. out t,,e rol,1,ery stu x" ThJ abom the murder of Shu,;mvcllckled softly. ' ) inn. ln1 wild have told kin t tllat "as Vernon ln'' tun, , ,nay,er- 0ny reson 1 'us fi7rxhat ci,nrge i( m' Job down here was .1' important things. The first was that Fat Thayer was the husband of the girl he was crazy about The second sec-ond was that the man his sister was going with was a married man. And as soon as he found out those two things he went to see that man. "Just what might have happened between Welch and Thayer nobody will ever know. Because when Larry Welch got to that room, folks Pat Thayer was already dead I" There was a nerve-racking hush: then a buzz of conjecture. It wasn't Max Vernon; it wasn't Tony Peyton; Pey-ton; It wasn't Larry Welch . . -but Pat Thayer was dead !" They were too astonished to do more than stare. "It's a cinch Thayer didn't kill himself. And if neither Vernon nor Miss Peyton killed him and he was dead when Larry Welch got there-then there-then somebody killed him between times." Hanvey surveyed the group in his quiet, friendly manner. His som nolent eyes lighted on the face ot Mike Carmicino, the janitor, and even though he did not call the man's name, every person in the room knew to whom he was speak- "You and Mr. Thayer were pretty pret-ty good friends, weren't you?' Carmicino's eyes Hashed. Yes. sir. Meester Hanvey.' You told me that you did bootlegging boot-legging Jobs together: that he would get the orders and you would supply the liquor. The last lime you worked together that way. Mike, was a few days before the killing. You told Mr. Reagan and myself that Mr. Thayer had paid you for the liquor furnished on that last party. Is that true?" "Yes sir " Jim ' turned to Teddy Farrell. president of the fraternity. "You were in charge of the finances fi-nances of that particular party, weren't you, Mr. Farrell? your discovery of the body until some one else entered the room. Larry Welch found the body. As soon as he left you let out a howl. It was real slick of you, Mike, because be-cause no one ever thought that the man who found the body was the murderer. "Later on," continued Hanvey smoothly, "when the whole fraternity fra-ternity house was buzzing with comment about the murder, you heard the name of Max Vernon frequently mentioned. You also knew that he had disappeared. You thought of the knife. Mr. Reagan, yonder, had already searched that room thoroughly. And after his search you planted the knife in Vernon's Ver-non's clothes closet, knowing that it would be a mighty strong piece of evidence against him. So you see, I've got you kind of hog-tied, Mike." Carmicino's face was stony. "You can't prove none of that, Meester Hanvey." Jim smiled triumphantly. "Oh, yes, I can." "How?" "Because," announced Hanvey quietly, "your fingerprints are on the handle of the knife." Carmicino leaped to his feet. That is a lie!" be shouted. "Ihere were not any fingerprints on that knife!" . f And now the Gargantuan detective detec-tive became positively friendly. His words dripped honey. How did you know that, Mike?" The spectators did not quite un-erstand un-erstand the byplay ; but they knew from Carmicino's flash of terror nnt something vital had occurred. "You see." explained Hanvey smoothlv "nobody but Reagan and mvse knew anything about whet i-er i-er the knife had fingerprints on it. lust onrselves-and the murderer But he knew! Oh. yes. he knew I You knew Mike, because you verj, very crefuli.v polled .11 the 'I Told You Lie About Meester Thayer," He Suggested Suavely. scout She wanted the guilty man caught and was willing to help me. She went to the city with me and helped me select an imitation which looked pretty much like the one she had given Thayer and which had disappeared. Of course, the blurt happened to work, and it yanked a confession out of Carmicino. 1 always was lucky. John." "Lucky? You're a wonder!" The mammoth detective sighed deeply and started for the door. "We've got Just one more Job John." he said, "and then I'll hop the rattler for cooler weather." "What's the Job. Jim?" And Hanvey grinned like a schoolboy. "We'll have to search through Mike Carmicino's things until we really find Ivy's ring." he said "Let's go!" THE KND.) |