Show W V ea as ih 14 EMIE L A U F THE STORY THUS FAR adam bruce FBI operator on a trip to his old home borne tan can into his previous boss inspector toper lope and mrs tope tie he sent them out to an auto camp operated by bee dewain later that night tope phoned bruce broce asking him to come out ut to de aint at once and to bring state trooper quin quill the topes had been rented the faraway cottage where they found aund the with hands bands and feet acet body of a man bound he had been murdered and placed under the bed of the faraway cottage quill went after the district attorney and a medical officer while the topes and bruce discussed the case from what clues and facts they could find CHAPTER IV doctor medford had already made some examination twenty four hours anyway he said probably more he stripped off those bands of black tape that half concealed the dead mans countenance anybody know who he is he asked they came to look they saw an old small man with eyes twisted slightly upward at the corners a nose thick at the bridge and narrowing to a point which drooped above the upper lip chin small retiring a mouth framed in deep graved lines gray sparse wiry hair a gray stubble on cheek and chin they looked but no one spoke then cumberland said wistfully 1 I kind of wish joe was here but quill said you want anyone else to know about this right away inspector and he asked your idea well mat maybe better send for joe cumberland wiped his mouth with his hand 1 I dont know as joe could outdo you on a thing like this he admitted hes welcome to try tope v 7 UL insisted L cheerfully but hearers heres t the h e way I 1 see it we cant trail all the folks that might have done this but whoever put him here is waiting somewhere for the excitement to start in the dark well so are well we but were this much ahead of them tope argued we know the blodys been found and they dont mat if it was me id keep the whole thing quiet long as I 1 could be hard to keep this quiet some ones bound to find out ap young adam spoke 1 I think do well to let tope run this mat he urged of course ive no standing unless it turns out this was an interstate inter state job but if I 1 had any say id want tope in it and he add ed As for keeping it quiet amasa dewain talk much and his housekeepers away we can carry the body up there tonight let doctor medford do the autopsy up there then tomorrow night we can move it to town j cumberland nodded we could do it that way he agreed tope I 1 what do you say will you take it on 1 the inspector looked toward mrs toper tope standing by the fire were on a sort of honeymoon he reflected but I 1 dont know I 1 dont get stirred up often but im kind of mad tonight this looks to me like a sneaking cruel business bubines s id like to nail the man that did it 1 I know cumberland assented heavily it hits me that way too band and he reflected joe wont like your being in it but hell have to stand it if take it you can boss the whole job so tope agreed and made his dispositions he sent quill to awaken amasa dewain and enlist his cooperation adam and doctor medford ford improvised a stretcher for the removal of the body mat cumberland asked anything I 1 can be doing tonight tope shook his head have quill stay at amadas and keep his eyes open he decided adam adai n will come back and spend the night here in case anyone comes around doctor medford can do the autopsy at the farm tomorrow morning you and 1 I 1 will get a good nights sleep and ill meet you there around nine about all and a little later the inspector and i mrs tope said good night but once they were out of doors she grasped his arm with fingers like steel she whispered 1 I know him I 1 he stared at her know who the dead man 1 11 yes why you say so who is tw wa 1 I sure want to tell them yet its mr lefforge Led forge 1 the name tor for a moment woke no in him lefforge Led forge he repeated blankly yes the head of new england i utilities she insisted 1 I saw him once at a stockholders meet ing when I 1 worked on wall street he dead back there mrs topes identification of the dead man as lefforge Led forge seemed at first to tope impossible of belief it cant be he protested or have been a noise about it before now not necessarily she insisted if he was his family may have been warned to keep quiet or perhaps his business associates are planning how to support his stocks when the news comes out but it is certainly mr lefforge Led forge arent you going to tell mr cumberland not tonight tope decided boldly even if its true I 1 want a chance to think before this hullabaloo starts will you tell adam adams got a secret of his own the old man replied ill keep this to trade with him by and by tope that night lay not long awake but he roused at dawn and he began to wonder by what route rou te the dead man had been brought to faraway he got up and dressed A axa yi X 31 r V 11 f 1 I found this tope pointed to the footprint with rith quiet haste and left mrs tope sleep asleep and walked up the brookside toward award faraway where adam aluce was still asleep but he did not ot disturb the young man yonder on the knoll half concealed by intervening shrubbery one of the other cabins was visible it seemed the nearest to faraway and assuming for the moment that those who brought the dead man here had lodged in that cabin tope began to search the ground between he found two things he found on a slanting ledge a scratch which have been made by a nail in so heel but the scratch was broader than the nail would readily have made and tope reflected that some men have set into the heels of their shoes a small triangular plate to retard the wear such a plate might have made that scratch and he found a womans comans footprint the small french heel had sunk to a depth of a quarter inch or so leaving its imprint plain tope stooped to look more closely and then adam bruce came up the slope to join him it was still early but the sun had grisim and now laid level lances through the trees adam lifted his hand in silent greeting found anything 1 I found this tope pointed to the he footprint 1 I judge whoever brought him here lodged in this cabin in this is named little bear adam told him it if they did bee will remember them tope hesitated well later he decided you keep out of sight for now go up to debains Dew ains farm wait there doctor medford will be doing the autopsy there this morning well come up he added now lets go up on the knoll and see if there are tire tracks in the drive bee dewain fresh as dawn greeted them cheerfully rest well 1 I never do the first night in a strange place mrs tope admitted but I 1 will tonight weve decided to stay on awhile so mr tope can try the fishing mrs murrell entering in time to hear this last word said volubly well now mrs toper tope I 1 call that sensible isaac hes always want ing to move on and move on some people say its hard on the twins not going to school but isaac gives them their lessons right along she laughed proudly donnie does all willies lessons if we dont watch him their handwritings so much alike you cant tell the difference they write alike mrs tope echoed in polite indifference they look exactly alike of course but I 1 know twins wrote alike too yes they do mrs murrell insisted I 1 1 I asked a doctor once and he told me but bee interrupted her people were apt to interrupt mrs murrell mr tope earl priddy tells me your friend adam bruce dame came back last night so tope echoed why W illy he told us in middleford Midd leford that he was taking the midnight train changed 1 his mind I 1 bee laughed adams always an uncertain quantity he roust must be sleeping late ill have mrs priddy keep some coffee hot for him after breakfast tope and mrs tope returned to cascade tope rummaged boots and fishing garb out of the rumble of the car and put them on well make fishing an excuse he explained well drive away out of sight and get to amasa debains Dew ains without the folks here knowing she nodded and presently they came out to the car tope brave in rubber boots and an old felt hat adorned with flies stuck in the band and crown earl priddy passing by along the drive paused to ask in an interested tone coln fi shin tope admitted this git y any worms tope shook his head ill dig you some fust chance I 1 git priddy promised fellow come through her last summer hired me to take him fishing englishman he was and a great one for flies 1 man he could handle rem em too tope was always willing to listen liste n he had heard sometimes surprisingly useful things dont see many englishmen here I 1 expect he suggested at random well some priddy declared fellow come here friday night late 1 I guess he was english by the way he talked had that kind of a deef mans voice that they have I 1 can tell rem em fur as I 1 can hear rem em he had a woman with him miss dewain have took rem em in if shed been up case they want respectable but shed gone to bed and I 1 aint so pati clar I 1 put rem em in little bear they lit out before I 1 was up in the morning tope nodded indifferently and he got into the car when they approached pro ached amasa debains Dew ains farmhouse they saw adam on the porch cumberland and the doctor are inside he reported want to go in tope said im wondering how long that man has been dead earl priddy just told me that a man and a woman came late friday night and stayed in little bear and left early in the morning braces eyes lighted but before he could speak mat cumberland came out of the house and when he saw toper tope he drew from his pocket something wrapped in a handkerchief want to see these things inspector ns he suggested they were in the pocket of those overalls ever see a knife like that before A car came toward them along the road from the highway bee dewain whirled into the yard and alighted full of surprised questions happened she demanded what are you all doing here no one spoke and she turned to adam earl told me you came back last night why adam said laughingly bear to go away without seeing you again she colored angrily dont treat me like a child why some one say something mrs tope spoke ill tell you miss dewain and she made the matter briefly clear she turned pale but her head did not droop 1 I see she said through stiff lips terrible it she caught adams eye this was why you came back she guessed di 1 I suppose mr tope telephoned you yes I 1 doctor medford spoke know him miss dewain no no but but what he has something on his hair said bee some sort of musky smelling stuff ive smelled emelle d it before and she cried suddenly 1 I remembert rem emberl where tope asked sharply friday night or rather satur day morning she answered some people stayed friday night in little bear and left before daylight TO RE FIE CONTINI IRM |