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HOME AND FAItM MAGAZINE SECTION
The Mystery of the Phone Call
nit UK clock nntl tho telephone)
I sounded together and I looked
up from one of Wllklo Collins
ghostliest psycholoRles wilt n start
at the curious medley.
The clock said half-past cloven.
What tho telephone had to communi
cate remained to be seen.
"Hello!" , ...
"Oh, John! Is that you, John?"
The lolce was shrilly nervous, terror
stricken, wholly unfamiliar.
I essayed to reply that my namo
Is not John, hut tho voice, unheeding,
cut me short.
"Oh, John come quick!" It al
most shrieked. "Hurry! Hurry!
There's somebody In the next room
some thief. I heard him lircnk in
and I'm nil alone. Oh, John he's
coming in here, rolled Help!
J O II N' "
The last was n wall of abject fear
and horror. Thcro camo tho sound of
an oath, n scream broken sharply in
two then silence.
For n moment my brnln throbbed
with excited, futile queries. Then I
rattled the telephono hook and a
voico snapped out: "What Is It,
please?"
"What number did I have just
now?"
"I enn't toll. They've hung up."
"Find out? A woman Is being
murdered there. QUICK!"
At once I saw my mistake. Instead
of stimulating the operator to Intelli
gent action I contused her utterly.
Slip could only stammer, idiotically:
"I can't I don't know they've hung
up."
"Think hard," I urged. "Whnt
number did they call for when you
gave them mine?"
"Isn't this Brown J5S3?"
"No." I said, "get that numbor,
quick."
"The lines must havo crossed,
then," said Central perplexedly.
"Hold jour phono and I'll try."
For fle solid minutes she rang
Drown 45S3, Informing me tremulous
ly every 30 seconds that she was try
ing to get my "paity." Just as tho
case seemed hopeless n faint "hello"
camo over the line.
"Arc sou. John?" I bawled, my
words tumbling over each other. His
reply was unintelligible, but I waited
for no confirmation, "do homo ut
once," I told him. "Get a tuxlcau.
Meat it. Your wife's being killed by
burglars."
I could hear him gasp.
"Why I haven't any wife," ho
said in (stuttering bewilderment. "I'm
the night-watchman."
"Whnt placo is this?"
"Bradley & Jones' law office."
"Is either of them named John."
"I don't wait a minute. Yes
John r. Bradley."
"I don't know."
Bnng! went my receiver on the
hook. My fingers raced through the
telephone directory. Bradley, Brad
ley yes, thcro It was: "John r.
Biadley, residence, 19 rnclflc
Blreet."
Should I stop to notify tho police?
No, enough time had been wasted al
ready. I rushed out, gathering my
hat and coat In transit.
Only after nn almost empty car was
bearing mo toward my destination did
I icallzo tho difficulties of my tnsk.
I was going to rescue n lady from
burglars without even a walklng
stlck for n weapon. Oh, well, I hnd
never gone tinned and out of many
trying situations I had always
emerged the better for it.
About five minutes' wnllt brought
me to 19 rnclflc street. It wns in
a block whero tho wealthy and well-to-do
mingled in architectuial har
mony with scarcely a lino of demarca
tion. Ono might hnvo snld tho de
cline was gradual. A hugo brown
stone mansion with porte cochcre nnd
with carved IIoiih flunking tho mnrblo
steps, occupied about ono-thlrd of
the block. No. 19 , on tho opposite
end, wus extremely modest by com
parison, hut not without tho dignity
of established financial position.
As I stood thcro, cogitating, cast
ing a quick glauco about mo and try
ing to bIku up tho situntlon as my
friend Sherlock Holmes might hnvo
dono, I saw that the front door was
over so slightly ajar. A caroled and
almost successful attempt had been
mndo to shut It, but tho hitch had
caught and held It just beyond tho
locking point. A thread of light
showed dimly at lis edgos. I pushed
It open, softly nnd entered.
Not without hesitation I ndvnnccd
stealthily townrd tho light. Tho door
opened out toward mo and I found
thnt I could gel n fair view of tho
Interior through tho crack between
the hinges.
At n tabic In what was cvldontly
tho btudy sat a large, good-looking
man with a young it not youthful
face. He wore an overcoat and ono
hand was gloved as though he had
Just come In. There was In his face
and manner a befuddled and desper
ate amazement, a look of urbane in
toxication suddenly confronted with
a crisis a shock that is -like a slap
in the face. , , ,
Ho read and reread, with a silent
movement of the lips, a sheet of writ
ing paper. It looked like a woman a
note. When ho hnd finished tho in
ner page reading it at right angles,
as ono must with such epistles ho
would turn back to tho beginning and
tnrt nil over acaln. And thon, with
sudden spasmodic force tho fingers
of his ungloved hnnd closed ovor the
shoot, crushing It inlo a ball. Ills
head sank forwnrd on the crook of
his arm nnd something like a sob
escaped him. He was quite sober,
now. .
For a minute or so he remnineu
thus. Then ho sprang to his feet anil
pulled himself together. I could fce
his Jaw set nnd his hands clench
themselves. Ho walked quite steadily
to tho buffet and poured himself n
glass of liquor. Iteturnlng to the
tnblo, he rummaged about In tho
drawers Impatiently, found what he
sought, and laid It on the tabic a
revolver.
Next he brought a decanter and
glass, which ho set down besldo tho
weanon. and resumed his chnlr. Very
deliberately ho romoved his glovo, felt
In his left trousers pocicet nnu pro
duced n silver coin. For the first
tlmo he spoke.
Heads for him and tails for mo,"
he crlod with n sort of nervous ex
uberance. "Heads for him and tails
for mo."
Ho tossed the coin. It foil with a
musical tinkle against the decanter,
wobbled n moment, and then fell flat.
"Heads," ho said. I saw him look
at tho revolver with n savage rollsh
that seemed to bodo 111 for some ono,
Ho took another drink.
Again he flipped the coin. It fell
with n solid thwack and ho grimaced
n bit as he read Its meaning.
"Tails!" ho exclaimed. "Tails
that's me."
Once muie he refilled his glass nnd
gulped It. This time ho held tho coin
on tho ond of his finger as though
loath to let It go. Ho laid it down
finally and picked up tho ball of
paper. Carefully he straightened nut
tho sheet and rcperuscd It. Once
mora he picked up tho coin.
"Best two out of three," he said
with a wry llttlo laugh. "Here goes."
He spun the coin and for an Intol
erable time It seemed to rotate, dying
down gradually In lta motion nnd bot
tling Itself with an odd little flap
Just beyond tho muzzle of the re
volver. The man did not speak, but
I saw from his faco tho verdict. It
was death.
I edged around the door at that
and jumped for him just as he got
tho gun to his head. Wo scuffled a
bit and tho bullet went Into the cell
Ing. Tho nolso of It startled us both.
Ills fingers relaxed and I took the
gun from him easily enough. Or
dinarily ho could have thrown me
out of tho window without much
trouble, but tho Inertia of reaction
was upon htm. He leaned half list
lessly against tho mantel and sur
veyed me In astonishment.
"Who tho devil nrc you?" ho asked.
"My nnmo Is of no consequence,"
I told him. "My presence I shall try
to explain. I assume that you nro
John Bradley."
"Yes," ho said, gravely, "I am
John Bradley. But I'm not In tho
hnblt of receiving unknown callers at
midnight"
"Nor are J on In the habit of at
tempting suicide, I dare say."
"Whoever you nrc," he said, "you
havo saved my life. Thnt It Is worth
less docs not lessen the decency of
your action. I thank jou aud beg
your pardon."
"Whatever I did you aro welcome
to," I told him. "I qamo here to res
cuo a woman In dnnger "
Ills eyes narrowed. "A woman In
danger," he ropeated slowly. "What
nro you an evangelist?"
I stared at him. Was his mind un
settled? "Well, no matter," he continued,
"In any event you'ro too late."
"Do you meant that she's dead?"
I cried, aghast.
"I wish it might havo been that,"
ho answered unsteadily. "Read tho
letter thcro on tho table. I owe you
an explanation, an how."
A glance was sufficient. She had
left him. She had gone with a friend
and "all was over."
"Porliaps," I said and I rather ex
pected him to lilt me for It "perhaps
she wasn't worth It."
"She wasn't to blame," ho said
gently. "It was my cursed drinking
nnd neglect of her that nnd tho
other man. lie; used to Jovo her bo
fore she married nio."
"If I'd beert half a man I'd havo
held her," ho said. "She never cared
much for him nnd she loved mo.
But I worked too hard and left them
too much alone. I wanted to bo
rich."
In a sudden paroxysm of finger ho
picked up tho decaliter nnd hurled It
Into tho fireplace. It shivered, mu
sically, Into fragments nnd tho liquor
sputtered and flared.
"Whatever happens I'm through
with that," said John Bradley. "You
hear It? So help me God!"
In the meantime I had been think
ing. A queer, impossible Idea had
popped Into my head as I thought of
the telephone call for aid. I walked
over nnd put a hand on Bradley's
shoulder.
"Havo you looked through the
house?" 1 asked.
Ho stared. "Looked through tno
house? For what?"
"Your wife."
"Why, no," he answered, uncom
prehending. "Slic's gone gone ior
good. Sho's loft me. Didn't you read
tho note?"
"Yes," I said, "but It's barely pos
sible that sho was prevented that
she wrote the letter In anticipation of
her departure and then "
"And then whnt?" In Heaven's
name!"
"Where is tho telephone?" I
snapped.
"Thero's ono In tho corner, behind
you," ho replied dn7cdly, "and nu
other in her boudoir, upstairs."
'l gripped his arm. "Show mo tho
other phone," I said, excitedly.
"There's Just a chance "
"Of what?" ho asked, but I did not
answer. He led the way into the
front hnll and switched on tho lights.
Up tho Malrway he went, two stops
at n time, and I followed closo be
hind around n turn and through nn
open door. It was dark thoro und ho
struck a match to look for the chan
delier switch. But as the tiny finme
flared up I heard him cry out and go
down on his knccB, muttering frantic
endearments. I felt around for tho
switch and found it, flooding the
room with n hoft radiance that fil
tered through rose-colored shades.
Flat on the floor luy n woman
garbed for the street. Evidently sho
had swooned from fright or some
other emotion, for thorc was no sign
of Injury. The room wns In disorder.
Drawers wero pulled out, some of
their contents hanging over tho edgo
or tumbled on tho floor. A Jowel
case lay Inverted on tho writing desk,
ns though hastily emptied. Near tho
door was a small brooch, broken, evi
dently trampled on.
' Bradley was working over his wlfo
with frantic energy, chafing her
wrists, loosening her collar and call
ing her name aloud. I got a glass of
water at the washstand nnd let n
small stream trickle on her forehead.
Almost Immediately her eyelids flut
tered nnd a moment lator sho w.ih In
her husband's arms, sobbing. "Oh, I'm
so glad you camo. I'm so glad, bo
glad."
I tried to get away without being
seeu, but before I reached tho door
she noticed mo nnd cried out,
startled, "Who's that, John? "Who's
that?"
"A friend of mine," he said sooth
ingly. "Ho came along to help."
"Wo didn't know how many burg
lars thoro wero, jou see," I put in.
"Oh, yes," Blie said. "You wero at
John's offlco when I called up,
weren't you? You nnswered tno
phono. I thought It didn't sound Jllcc
John's voico but I wbb too fright
ened." Sho lay In an easy chair whero
John had put her, ulmost dreamily
relaxed. But suddenly a new terror
sprang Into her eyes. Her glance met
her husband's, tensely searching.
"John," she cried, "havo you been
In the study?"
He did not falter n moment. "No,"
ho said, "I camo right up. But Jones
had quite an adventure with tho
burglar down there." Ho looked hard
at me.
"Yes," I said, "we scuffled In tho
dark and he fired a shot. Wo broko
tho decanter and spilled Ink all ovor
n letter or something. I hopo It
wasn't valuable, for It was quite ob
literated. I throw it Into tho fire."
She flashed mo n look of keen In
quiry, but I was looking at John.
"Probably a bill," ho said caro
lessly. "Well, goodnight, -old man.
I'll never forget this. Never!"
Ho held out his hand aud I pressed
it warmly.
"Good night, Mrs. Bradley," I said.
Sho did not hoar mo. Her eyes, lum
inous with tenderness nnd mute
thanksgiving, wero fixed upon Brad
ley. I was no longer In her schemo of
things. Louis J. Stellmanu, In tho
Argonaut.
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