THE . OREGON SUNDAY. JOURNAL, PORTLAND, SUNDAY MORNING, JUNE 13. 1911
ii""""a"ae,"p' i """a aa-aaaaosasBBi as-am oaaanaia- i mbmwi ii "'r,"1 ' " ' "W-"""-"" " , -
Til : FATE
,, (USE .TALE-; IF - A TOHTOE)
BY EKALID) v BUSS . : . : ' :- ' :
w .(Corrlkt, JMl, by Tha Kortfc jlmrlc Compaoi"
r w JLri ;
:STKOPSIS OF . PRECEDING .;
.. .,; INSTALLMENTS
ItllWl 4llCi
Jr-a4aaat tn-
Mm neve, .
ti t Um. ona la srat pain te '; . n0.
Til lh larft banaui-l, whlob I atun4a4 by "A aTenlv
MM- aa Indian Jid.i. -ha has obtained a leaner M
Kill-id anunria. la puatlml what d with It. and la
st iaiu af eaathtr af Ui party. e Kn"i m, '.-'
en5iundra4 and twant thaunaa pounds, ta te M the laet
UaMrr anil OuMoh, whs nra alto la tha T"ttn.
j r.Tr (halt aoaa matarteaallnn with I '"'""'l' A
r)lrl tnd a avarboara. CarnfariB ttnkt tha ht. jna
Atm. wh ha 4Wlm !. thai II hat bjawa . Thta
tiMii malnlr ar t annaraa.at wt. "'nl7""..v":.
lh i"Tt."! wht la down
taka anma.aaA1
mftit .tablet that d
tI that Camforth ifVa im, 44 armplf
Uavj
thri la t Tontma. -
4
(CONTWVED FROM LAST tUNDAT)
!
CHAPTER XXI
m thoct, with Br Upi
t- tight, n ib mi
holdlof Ldy OutndoUa'i
urn la trar, muu
irajr of fr. It m
ipok. ' '
"Utw-4i9w ta hr
lb Mk4 CABiihig bit
llftttM whlt No witi
nxlout Ta "I tpl It
frm Jftck until I taw yew
eomlbf.
' "U li not dftd." mI4
CmrefortB I A Ulck.
ytnpalhaU !, UjrtUg
a Ur hand ; J tout
' rm. VTbtra art lm
bonoa brkn, I'm afrl4.
tt la . auffaring from .
vtra ceaeuaalen. . Wa muat
M'what tba iaeUr baa
t Mr." t - ,:
"Hw It happtar
atk4 Jack in a ttran(l4
volca, aa tha ma tarrltd
. him ftntly lata tha library an! Ial4 him M Ua impravtali
bed in tba canter of tha room, ' " , ) 1
Ctrnforth shook hla heal ' . .
"I 4a't know." ho aald quldkly. ; 1' waa away at
Vpclyffa Farm, atelnc Farbam about aoma rtpalra. I
left your father la tha ejuarry plaautian, an 4 when t
4 went ta rejoin him. ta my harror I found htm hantlnt
(iover ledga halfway flown. Ha muat bare fona too '
.,nar the ode.' and hla foot muat have allpped. or ha
jjtnuat have auddanly turned 4 Uiy. But It can only b .
uiajiciuri.
Ta Jackvetandlh by tha bed with big dlattndad
,yea, which watohad tha motlonltaa body with a
strange, hungry fatelnaUon, Instinctively It teemed
(au,er, avlmeet Ineipllcabia. that he ahould have gone
near auck a place, aa thera came back to bar mind
mta rooted diversion ta 'approaching any great height
f She recalled tha almost bitter Way ha ttted to apeak
fof mountaineering, eaylng ihat jit mad him ilok ta
f t&lik f foola running euoh risks, and that It aught to
ta nut a atop to by lawt and aha remembered that la
T would never even go near a veranda, unlesa It had a
ihlh railing in front A thousand and one thoughta
f flashed through bar mind, but aha waa interrupted by
, tha sudden entrance of tha doetdr. hot with hurrying
j-Then followed 4 Ume of weary, analoua walUhg. gur.
lag which the sat with wide, staring eyea. allent and
motldnjeea;; with Lady Oueadolta beside her. aqually
silent in a great unspoken tympethy. " '' v; ,.
-At length, after what aoemed yoara bf waiUn. tha
verdict came. ,- ! ' ; Hi .
"Ho, ba la hot dead, but I don't think ha can possibly
puji through,", the doctor said la a quick, tow volcei "but -we'll
do , our best , There la a compound fracture of the
. left lag and the left arm and three tlba are broken, and
there la very severe concussion of the brain. Wo muat
Jvlf e for nurses and a specialist at once,- Mr, Carnforth, '
Tttl and MUs Vambery," he added, kindly., "we will do
but best, you may be aura.'-' ,
I JThe' famoua aurgeon,. who arrived lata that night.
' hook hie bead gravely, and almost forbade hope by his
attitude; but Jack, would not let herself yield to despair
Eho spent hour after hour 1n the room, helping where
ahe could and holding the while, uninjured hand Jail
pusly between her little brown ones. :3,
Carnforth wandered about tha hous. like a man dos
aeesed. pale and restlesa, hla customary geniality thrown
.to the winds, and hla face grim and aet. ldv Uuenddlaai
ascribed It to his deep affection for the alck maj won"
dering aecretly. at the aatne ume. at his lack of eeit
joatrol and not divining the acuta state of worry ho waa
to j and. with his teeth blenched, he muttered to hlmaelf
iiaia alter me that vam ahould never leave the touaa
ailve, though for once he did not see his . way clearlv
before him. and waa groping for a solution. - " - aeriy ,
Meanwhile, no percepUblo change took place in Colo.,
be) yambery'a condition unUl the second venina aftei
" the kccldent. :' .
t t ? Jack, aa It happened, was alon with him In the dark.
r aiied room at the time Carnforth was at dinner w-lth
bis wife, end the nurse had gone Into the small adjolnini
be. wfnted.111 ' mXPP"' r"dy ' H M"ul!
- (Jack waa altting by the bed. watching her father's
r pale face with Intent eyea full of love and anxiety .S."
pb suddenly became aware that he wtffi'fiff "
' and a groan came through his teeth. 10 mov' i
v I f fiho started tip and bent over him before callin. tha ,
iiuree. and she became conscious that he- was mik?wt a2 V
. effort to speak. She remained motionieosrilataBiS-'
eagerly as one or two Inarticulate aound.?'n JJS11!1,! '.
TV,0! . ptl I'P"-' Then thy arew more "distinct
Pm word- Wng;soS
L.U'v'JI8!" !lf h5ar w,th PreternaturallV acute ears
Wjph Ood-Reggie-face of a devilruelJhOiTible-?vI
me. save me hj nnhrtr.i..hori r '. save
, i Then there was a paurVnd Jack YeTt lnP l?y" c
lojind her heart , and a sudden thrin e h-tILIC?.r
and a HiiHln ,hwii i ' ,l'.u""
' .win
.oi-drda.... So tlnrU art. 7 .w. v""" '."h rror . at MO
Peggie.' hid pushed her--f.ther SvTh. BK1. cPc'
q,T''tw lfl !" P'uiees face of a devil?
But eomehnw.
her! Xa ne;"hf; Tong'from itttTti
Instinct had revolts ?nm tui. -V toddling her
Instinct had revolted from thla great imilini man wh
evtryone else, loved, when be took her on . "3
fed her on; sweets. It was not logfe she had
felt? but she had no control over heFlnstinct ' Buf IK?
W ahould he wi-h to kill his dearert friend W
5 hen, e she sought for a reasoiTthV words beaan
to;ome again, falling weakly and disjointed v 1t 52
f:freaion!,P h" M '.
thrtr arav out with nmnl.i,. .i L .i" .wo.ra" forced
xiia woraa a led awav .anin a,wt t... . v
den resolve. - ; J ' ! " "T "".
oing to th door.' she called the nurse
( ii'r myf father has been , trying to sneak " aha '',
aald quietly.-; ; : ;- , " " "Pa. sne it
1 ( jiw.BiirH! enwrw me room quickly.
1 M'Ue ie sure to pe a bit delirious." she saM n.
. much? "-j.i . -?, .. j. .... 1. ? 5 . . .
t Jack shook her head. - : , . . .
''No." be said, "he only tried."-
t; llf chapteAxxii
say
' Jack Acta on Information
J
AC it wa vague In. her own mln aa
to what a
word was
Tontine exactly waa. although the
ramiuar; but aa soon aa Colonel Vambery had
Btiuaa oown again into a aute of coma, aha
rd the great darkened room softly and took out a
Volume e.f the Encyclopedia Biitannlca from Ha case
F rir" Tfara priy f
Mi I ' vradual. pt P
I A. t ftaauftl tfliiMf, which
tasj.h toe cooler Made ara .t wibTjr eiepoajd
t.iVrd It? One of th.m, kutt M lh toh,,,l-it I? aLJZ. ''
i.Ituaaf none Ii iMIUnr tc.nrt hlirJ" -,
lal'to mnrti.t- hie Mtata to tha limit ta raw hi" V .
ft Ihea S.r-lopa tnat Rleala Carnforth. a "'", - " .
n.ljrea; er.l4ea thai J. moat a "ot of Ij! h - at
h.it-ft lira.- hot Ions stterwerd. Claud MV,?f .iii.
p.e4 tha Teatlna. diet at mooting '; w" : v. ;.
fa'afarta's wlf- hesboon ehap.ronlne; e. A
mm
f
V lilt-
"only
divide-
Want your death-or you m!ne-let divide-? h-S?
tha settledwlrht off mv- . 1 myiae-ay right-;
'
.
- V
-
' .
!? : -Mi uOTffift' -
' m s r , f j i u i 'i 1 1 i vw, nil ill i i i i i i r. arjfaw tk bw im iaeaw o- s ' . w : '
621 ft fcpji"
"Then there wti a pauta, and Jack fait aa icy chill round her heart ahd luddea thrill bt Jiorroi'
t . :at the word.w - . ; ' , '
la the corner and turned up the word. Carrying It
behind the screen which hid the liaht. she read the
article pa "Tontine," and aa aha read her quick In-,
atlaot grasped tha situation. The 81a must have
formed a Toatlna nmona- themselves, a large one In
, ovlBg elaty thouaand pounds, or 4wtca aa much aha
rtul4 not Judge the ataot turn- from, tha vagueness of
her father' a disjointed words: and Uncle Reggie and
ha were the latt two left in. That waa tha key to tha
situation, .tha reason of hla attempt to murder bar
'lather, j
Then another Idea struck" her. Inatlnctlva again and
lacking la proof, yet horribly real, in Its suggestion.
v Had ha been the tause of ail or any of the other recent '
'deathef Sha ran ever them in her mind one by one.
- Uncle Claude'tT That, waa natural beyond doubt ,
' Uncle FeteyaT the paused and shook her head.' ! '
the light b what aha now knew, probably it waa not
accidental. Probably It waa aotblhg more nor ieie
. than a leul, treacheroua murder, and aha could not
i rtpreae a ahudder at the thought Uncle John? Untie
WinnieT Their death a had seemed natural enough, but
f were they er notf She eould not Ualp feeling eua
plcloue, but there: waa nothing tangible. There waa, -however,
the extraordinary coincidence that Cam
forth waa always near at hand at each of the deaths.
And then, with a atranga Insistence, tha conviction
'-waa borne In on her that Carnforth would never Jet
"her father leave the house alive. If ha began to mendi
'and'lt must be her duty to circumvent him. to save
the Hfe'of her father who waa ao dear to her. She
had been" dependent upon him all her life long, and
now In his turn he, was dependent upon her, and she
.' mutt repay all hie love ana care, ttui ane mui u,
help; she felt, so Isolated and lonely right In the
enemy'a camp. But to whom could she tell her Weird,
fantastic almoBv incredible story T ' Not Idy Ouendo
i len, certainly. 4 he adored her husband and would
. never believe a word against hjm. And then the
. thought of Cyril came to her .with a great rush of
relief. Yes, she could lean on Squirrel. . He was big
and strong and true.
Jack abut up the encyclopedia decisively and re
', placed It In the case. She did not want Carnforth to
see her with It somehow, Mi case he might wonder
or suspect any knowledge on her part She would
wait till he had gone to bed, and than ahe would write
Squirrel a long letter, telling him everything,, and she
would not. leave the sickroom until , her father was
out f danger or
She did not dare to put the thought Into words, and
It seemed to send an icy chill of despair right through
' her heart. But she felt that ahe must bo strong, and
' think hard to save him from the unsuspected dangers
' which' lurked In the dark corners of the room. Day
-and night ahe must be at hla aide till help arrived.
! '..A few minutes later Carnforth entered the room In
hla aoft quiet way, with Lady Guendolen on hla arm;
and, after asking the nurse how her patient was, he
cam straight over to Jack. She had prepared herself
"for1 the meeting, and did not flinch or change her man-
1 km unfortunately forced to go to town tomorrow,
I'm aorry to say. Jack dear," he said In a low voice;
and, as he laid what was meant to be a sympathetic
hand on her arm, she could hardly repress a scream,
"it Is a piece of very urgent business, and Aunt Guen
is coming up with me, as she has some things to fix up -
before sue can settle down? here for a few weeks UU
your father is well again. We shall leave at 7 in tna
morning, and be back tomorrow night; so you won t be
alone very long. ..You quite understand, don t your
Jack nodded. She could not say what an Intense
relief it would be to be left alone; above all to have
i him out of the house. She would have time to tnlnK
out her plan of campaign, and perhaps to act- -
A few minutes later they both left the room, kiss
ing, her good-night and Jack felt a strange feeling or
sickness as Carnfortb'a Hps touched her cheek, but she
did not allow herself to- flinch. . '
... Then Bbe sat down to think. There would be no
need to write to Squirrel now. She would wire to him
In . the morning Instead to come to-her. He was in
London, she knew, staying at his club; and he would
be with her early In the afternoon. The thought of hla
presence exalted and thrilled her. and her spirits rose
instinctively at the prospect of an ally. .
Then an.-eveh better thought struck, her, No, aba .
would go. to" town with her host and hostess in the.
.'vn strain ir consult with Saulrrel. and Derhaps be -able .
to lake some action without delay, - It Carnforth were
out or the house her father, aha knew would be safe,
i,N(jrM ,r ,he Mke4 jn a low voice, - "how is n
my
father? la there any immediate danger?"
.Nurse shook her head. 1
,. No; so far as can be Judged, be is doing as well
as could be expected. He has not recovered conscious
ness yet; but he will probably be delirious first, per
haps for days. Then ft all depends upon his strength
and the healing of the-wounds. As a matter of fact,
he is bearing up remarkably well; and I hope that
there may be quite a chance of recovery- now."
The words In themselves, non-committal as they
were, seemed to lighten the weight on Jack's mind
and to give her a certain relief by increasing her right
to hope; but for the moment she was more engrossed
with the - ulterior-problem which ; she had , to solve
Inri, hanilnrf
EThen then,", she began with a natural hesitancy,
feeling that she Avould for the time, being be mis
understood, "there would be no harm, no danger in
my going up to town tomorrow for the day with Mr.
Carnforth? We should be back In the evening, and I
have something to do which will not wait"
The nurse looked at bar la aurprlta, obviously
disapproving. ; . v '
"Probably not" aha aald coldly, "but you muat
decide for yourself whether it la right lor you to
leave your father or net'' '
Jack bit her Up aa ahe turned away, but bar mind
area made up.' '' . ,V:'i ,',
"1 shall go to town,? aha aald abruptly. '
Seven o'clock the next morning found her in tha
hall In a fur motor coat and a toqua to match, await
Ing Carnforth and Lady Guendolen. Her father4 bad
passed a quiet night, only muttering once or twice
ahd uttering nothing .articulate or Intelligible; -end
ah
e felt relieved-that he had not been aufBclentlX'
L .1 :,V: .lV..V .1.-;. r - .
dollrlouB
unuua ,u -"' . ' . . ' ...
Lady Guendolen waa the first down ot the two.
"Jackr ahe exclaimed la frank aurprlae, "whatever
are you doing here, dressed up for a Journey r r .
"t am going up to town with you, if you will bar
me, Aunt Ouen." anewered tha tittle girt quItUy.
Nurse tay t that there la. no immediate danger t In
fact that daddy la going on very well, and,, like you,
I have ona or two important thlnga to aea to, both for
daddy vand myself. . I don't want to leave him tor a
minute after he recovera eonadouaneM. ; j .
She apoke In a matter-of-fact tone to eanooal bar
motion. .All the long night through ahe had knelt by
tha bed, kissing the dearly loved white band and pray.
Ing paaalonately for hla recovery, planning and plot-"
ting the whole tlnaeto save blm agalnat tha unknown
dangers she would have to ward off from hla uncon
scious head. Every nerve jn her body waa taut and'
tingling, and aha had braced bar weary little body lor
the flarbt. Her usually mobile, merry little face was
set and pale, and there were great, patheUo circles
round her dark eyea. From
a woman'a point of view
she looked ugly, but the consciousness of it la bar'
glass as she dressed did not worry her.
"I should hardly have thought It wise or neces
sary," f said Lady - Guendolen, a little reproachfully.
"But . I auppose you know beat la it nothing which
Uncle Reggie or I can do tor your ' ' . ,
-Jack shook her head, wondering what aha., would
think if she knew, :-)':'-, "'".. :
-"No. I'm afraid not aunty dear; but thank you '
very mueh for thinking of ll," tha Uttla' girl aald
gratefully. "Let me come, thera'a a dear. I -I really",
must; Uiat'a all abaift it" ' .w .:. - ii
i Carnforth at flret raised objections. Then suddenly
he changed front, the thought occurring to him that
pefhape, Jack would ba e well out of the alckroomy
while he was away In case of any delirium. In' a few,
houra there would be no rear of anything, he thought
grimly to himself. '"' 'St-i '"':','
I "Yea, come' by all meana, then, my dear, if you . ,
think It btt." ha aald kindly, and ha, asked no further ;
queeOons aa to the pressing business during tha Jour-
ney, tucking a "big rug round her and advialng her
to Bleep. V .-"' "' "; r-''"-
At Dorchester station, when they left the car, ehe
gave one of be portera half a crown and a telegram ,,,,
asking Cyril -to meet her,. Then In the train nature
asserted herself, and she fell asleep' in a Corner, glad
not to have to talk, anl slept nearly all the way to
Vewt3rlOO .':--.' -
At Vauxhall ahe woke with a start and a pleasant
consciousness ot Reeling rested. - She opened her eyea
and looked round, and it took her a- full minute to,
roc&ll tSvrytfaitiff "i
r-arnrnrrh. who was rivln un the tickets, smiled
acrosa at her reassuringly in his mosi genial faehion.
and in the light of all she knew the charm of it Bent a
shiver througn ner. .1 nis emice, wmcn muw u,
love hlm.jwas, after all. only a mask worn to cover the
pitiless race of the devil. Her overwrought Imagina
tion smoothed the creases and llnea out of the face,
and she could see the heartleseness, the caliousnasa,
the cruel sensuality -of It ;; Bat for the. present it waa
ber part to act.
VOI V VVT vu ' m . " mS lv 'eaa-,
She yawned latily and threw off the rug. .
'You've had a nice sleep, dear, . saia .carnrortn.
unwrapping her In hla fatherly way, and It haa done
you a' lot or gooa. xou woro v-. uiwimiwi, ,.:
white-faced little mortal when we started. Now, , can
Aunt Guen or I drop you anywoeroi . , .
jack snooK ner neao. , . . , : .
it s very xina 01 tum, ..j..B y
appear formal, "but I am going nomo nret, ana inaj
il) t-eut or ootn your wy,
She thought It politic to suppress , the fact of Cyril
altogether at the moment. - ' ' , ' ' . , ,
"All right," said Carnforth carelessly, unsuspicious
of danger? ai the train ran, slowly Into the platform ,
at Waterloo. "Meet ua here at the 4.10 train or come
round to Portman square any time before 1.30. I. am
anxious to get back as aoon as possible, and I am sure
you are." , . t -
CHAPTER XXIir,
. At Headquarter .
G
YRIL was waiting anxiously at "Eaton place, and
Jack could hardly keep from throwing her arms
round his neck la the relief and Joy of seeing :
him as - he came to tha door and opened It in
m vv . ...... . v . ... .. .
person.. .-,. " , - - . , . .' -
""What's up, dear?" be asked eagerly.: -1. got your.;
wire and came along at once. -Why didn't .you let mi
meet the train?" - p
"Because I did not want the Carntorths to know:
that I bad come up to aee you, that's -why." she an-
V
, n i
'. swered gravely, and' he looked up In aurprlae. J Tre
been through an awful let alnce I aaw yau laat and
, I'm, oh, ao tired!" - ,-.' t-; ,' f s
"Poor little girl!" aald Squirrel gently, allpptng bla
,arm round her unresisting Bgura and drawing bar ea
to the couch near tha lira. ."Tell ma all about It and .
Jet me have a chance ol balplag you, It I eaav You
.know, bow rd love It" 1 ' -'
. ,But for a minute Jacqueline could riot apeak. The.,
tears would eome, forcing their way from bar aching,
burning eyea down the pala cheeka of bewaa little .
- facet - Cyril eat beside her in silence, stroking bar
'hand aympathetlcally and letting bar bave ber.ory
' out at a loss for words, aa a man alwaya It la tile .
' face of a woman'a.teara. ;, ' ".v;
. Oradually aha recovered herself and', amlled up at ,
blm a little- plteoutly, meeting a reassuring amlla ia '
bla eyea. .,. ; ' ,; . :. .':.,-..- ; ?.. ;
' "How ailly lor me to cry, ahe aald pathetically,
and t have been ao brave, too, up till now I Mew I'll
... tell you axaetly what baa happened."' - '''" - -; '
Making av brave effort, ana eiariea at wo Beginning,
telling about bar fathtWa accident, and emitting nothing.
Making av brave effort aha started at the beginning,
....... M ..V . . V,. ... 4- v.. 4
V7ru llBteneu wuuuui cviaiaaui, wa mvm ii.wi", ww
and atarn. '-:,' - .' ' -' '
. 'J have bean wondering about things tor tome time,"
the concluded, quite herself again; "and my instinct baa
- bean straining after tomething. No Z understand. Poor
eld dad la hla delirium made the situation; clear all In a
flash; and now I see It all tha Tontine. Uncle Keggle a
determination to win it and bla deliberate attempt to kill,
father And I believe now, that be killed Uncle pater, too,
and perhaps Uncle Winnie and your father aa well: but
that'B' only inatlnct end we can't prove It I've alweye
hated him, you know, Squirrel, though I bever eould give
a reason for it; and Z especially nated that amlla of bla.
Ugh, It makee ma ahlver." - - :. s r v
"I have alwaya been awfully fond of Uncle Reggie
myself," said Cyril slowly "awfully fond of him; and I
can hardly bring myself to believe It of him." .
Jack'a face fell. It aeemed for a moment aa though .
aha were losing her only ally, aa though the ground were
slipping from under her feet and ahd were being left to
fight tha battle alone against frightful odds. - i,
She gave a sharp' little cry of bewildered protest " It
an Fnetant Cyril'a strong fingers closed round her little
brown hand reassuringly. . -
, 1 don't mean 'that I don't believe it" he went on
quickly; "I only mean that it s all ao horrible that I can
hardly credit auch appalling villainy,"' There 4a other cir-,
cumatantlal evidence, too, which you don't know. Why,
the Tontine accounts for the last mortgage on With am
only a few montha ago twenty thousand pounds and
nothing to show for it! I waa going jo ask Vnal Reggie,
if be -could explaift-Jt to me.. Besides, your father In his
delirium couldri't have made up such a atory, 'and you
couldn't have imagined it Good God, it ttaktg ma feel
alckl" : I i -
.' A feeling of renewed security crept over Jaok as he
Bpoko, and for a moment botl) were allent thinking
deeply. '.'.''"r.f.S.r.V-'r.i- -.f'v :-i.'': ': 'i-'. -'M :' ,
"He'll never jet dad leave, the-house alive,' If be 'can
help it" said Jack in a low voice. ."That'd ,wby I waa
going to wire for you today. But when he aad ha waa
coming to town, I grasped tha opportunity to come, too, '
although' Z hated leaving dad. But I felt that nothing
could happen to dad while he waa away, ao I came up
With blm and mean to return with him. Meanwhile, wo'
can plan what la best to be done; and, of course, when I
get back. I'll never,-never leave dad'a room or sleep or
let any one gtt near him till he'a well again And I'm
aura he'll get quite wall now," ehe concluded, pathetically.!
Cyril nodded gravely. ..;.- :, 1 .'
. - "Yea. We'll have to watch over blm very : carefully";
and, of course,' I shall be' there somehow or another to
help yoU. ? But we ehall'have to think out the best way
10 arrange tnmgs. . x couia go to tne station witn you, or
course, and ask pblntblank If I may go down, too, as I
am so anxious; ana wncie ifttgie couia naraiy retuse.
But I wonder if we can't manage something better, aa '
that would -create a rather awkward .position; and I am
sure that he doesn't mean to stick at anything now. He
doesn't Intend the colonel to leave Hlnton Magna alive,"
that's certain 1 and what's more, he doesn't want him.
aJdBt f. MnntiaK nnnonlnuoriiiiia On ItA , la aa, aA aa
gVV VVHOVJUUDIICOII, w SaV ' wUi0 W
promptly whatever he does, as soon as It ia certain tha
your tather is likely to recover It was awfully clever of
you not to mention the deUrlum to a soul." - . .
jbck nusnea wnn pleasure at his praise as m got up
from the. couch and began walking up and down the room.
He lit a cla-aretta and ranar the bell
ix"You'd better bave a glass of. wine and something
to eat, Jack dear," he said in a masterly toney whioM
gh did not resent in the least aa he gave the neces
eary orderNto the butler. "You n
eed it after your lour-.
ney, and we have no time to waste. vWJiiie yon eat, :
..I'll.thlnk.":vr. ,-...; -:-. :-, t..:-y
Jack took the glass of wine and ate a. biscuit out .
of obedience, but without appetite, watching Cyril the. :
whole time. ' . . '- --
"I'm afraid I'm not much of a chap at plans, dear.'
he said at last, with a little smile; "eo we'll put some
one else on to it for us. X know one of tbe boss men.,
at Scotland Yard: and we'll Just drive round at once
and lay the facts before him. He'll be able to advise
us." ' ''. . .
Jack'a face brightened. s
"That's splendid," she said eagrerly. "You are a
brick, Squirrel, if we can, get some one who has
experience of these things to. take charge, of every
thing, or even to advise us, it will be such a weight
off my mlntt. I'm afraid .Undo Reggie is too clever for
either of us."" t;- ;. -
In the cab she nestled very close to Cyril with a
big, happy feeling of dependence and -relief, yielding
herself and giving her vfliance with the readiness-of
a woman in love. Cyril looked down at her tenderly
as she sat by his side; bur he felt that anv word about
themselves, any hopt .of future hapr.n wii'.ti ;
might Buggest would be out of keeping with the
anxiety of the . occasion, and strike a Jarring note. - S-i
- i .
. he eontented hlmaelf with UklnV her hand allently ta
r "' hla and preaalnc it reaaiurlngTy from time to'tlme.
They bad not lona: to wait at Scotland Yard before
. . ny were abown up to Chief Inepector Frowde a room.
- na jbck xouna nereeit wng introduced. In a dream,
; a It were, to tig, gnll-lookIn man with a pointed
. brown beard , and merry blue eyeat unlike the typt
cat . cnminei catcner aa a man could Well, be. Hla
heartlaeia of manner and bier, kind voice cava hat
confidence; and before aha realised It aho waa well
Into her atory. ; T; - : v, .,....'."
- 1 Frowda listened with tap attention, taklnr a note
here and-there. -but paased no comment. His face,
however, grew grave, and hla ayea keen, changing tha
whole expression of tha man. r ; "J- .
When Jack had finished he atill offered iio
" whittling aoftiy to himself the air of a Bonuiar m.i.
, t4! lony. Unconscious of Its InacaroDMatanaaa '.th.i
ha JumpeeT bp hastily from hla chair and left the room
, vnmoui a-word of t teuaei and Jack and Cyril sat aUU
aiience awaiting hle rtturn.. ' r-.
-He was not gone Jong, and whan be. came baek hla
v - M Jon
' auai geniality teemed all to- have
raturnal . '
'. r vw-Jtma ,Um .U..'
" .-Ceme along please. Allia Vambery. and voil too.
Mr. Gurdon. ol course." he said. f'Tva Juat Been the
ehlef, and he fsela that lt It auch an.lmportdnt maf
. tar that ba would Ilka te bear your story from yeur
ewn Hps, Follow ras, pleaser
' They followed him down' a labyrinth of passagee
and up wide staircase to the chief commissloner'fl
'room. The bead ot Scotland Yard was busy at a big
table covered 'with methodically arranged ptlas of
papere; but he rose aa they entered 'and" placed a
thalr for Jaoqueliaa hear him. t. ' -
1 n waat te bear your atory for myaalf. pU4se. Mlit
Vambery, from atart to flnlthW ba aald 1 tnclaively.
"If Intereeta me particularly, aa Z knew most of those
concerned, except your lather and the late - Mr. Our
dea. Petere Chalmara waa a very 014 friend, ot mine,
aad Mr. Carnforth Z know welL" 1 , ... , : ' .. ; 1
. Jack aeemed to have loat all trace af nervoueneia
In the excitement ol the moment and began at once
to repeat ber atory in tte proper sequence. laying
treea on the verloue ' polnu which ,lad. lunk. Into her
mind, especially tha question of tha Toatlna and the
fact that Carnforth bad been on the tpot onjtbo occa
sion of each death. She repeated ber -father's few
dellrioue phrases, which bad served ba the key to the
ettuatlen to her, and bed burnt thetnsalvea into ber
receptive memory,, word by word. . i ' .
. "But." aha concluded, "tha only thing I eaaaot un.
deratand la why Uncle Reggie ahould waat tha money,
whoa be la ao rich. . It aeeme Incredible that be ahould
murder bla oldest frtenda one by ana tor tha aaka of
money be doea not want"
.: While ahe had been talking the chlet eommlsaloner
bad liettntd gravely to every word, obvloukly very in
ttreeted, and both Be and the Inspector, bad J made
eoploua aotea. the latter taking ber atateratnt'down
almost word tor word. - , ' - , ,
. "You have put everything mott admirably. Mist
Vambery said the bead of the Yard, when aha had
flnlahed and he had Asked ber a few questions, -."and
Z muat congratulate you UpoaMhe lucidity o( your
tatement Aa to the one point which puatlea you. Z
believe that Z hold the key thera myaelt Z have every
reason to believe that Mr. .Carnforth It-tn the .most
desperate atralta for money. In fact Z 'may tell you
la confidence that a warrant haa actually been applied
for lor bla arrest which we are only waiting to axe
1 cute pending aa Interview to be bald thla morning,
which may or may not clear thlnga up: but they look
Very fiihy all round from my iourcea of Information.
But" be went on tnclaively, "tha other matter, merely
a question ot misappropriation, sinks Into absolute
Icalgnlflcanoe In tha face of what you tell me. What
thla chance haa revealed . la tha most terrible, cold
blooded plot ia the whole annale of criminology, and I
teal wo are dealing with one of the greatest criminals
who baa over lived, it not the greatest of ail,.' But wo
must go warily, very warily, aa we have nothing at
present te convict on, or even to Juatify an arrest - In
tha event df your fathefe death thera would be no
proof whatever. A few worde ta delirium overheard
by ana ptrton would; not atand agalnat , a man of Mr.
Carnforth'a potltlon, and it would ba useless to at
tempt to take any aetloa ea auch fllraty grounds. So Z
muat decide what la beat to be done," -.
; 'The great man thought for a moment In alienee.
Then be apoke again la bla uaual decisive manner.
' ."It the warrant for misappropriation U terved to
day, all welt and good, but I cannot ba aura ot that in
the meantime. There again : It la a question at respon
sibility and evidence. . If not, we mutt focua ourselves
for the present upon circumventing any further at--tempt
on your father 1n hla present helpless Condition.
Frowda bere shall take charge of the case In person.
He than go down by the next train to the local doctor
With a letter from me explaining everything, And he
aa male nuree before you get back.
, " " ' " .
In thla capacity he can fulflll the dual role of protecting ,
your lather and of collecting evidence In event of
more delirium; and he win be on hand to take down
any staiement m uiuui.m jruui ui . vv . - .w..- -eciouanees.
Ha ehalt take with him a warrant for Mr, A
Carnforth'a arrest and axecuto K at nia own oiaoreuon,
and I will arrange to have two or three experienced
men' from the Yard at handMf he should aeed them.
Now you,' Mlaa Vambery, must return by tha 44d this
afternoon with Mr. Carnforth, If he la'atill at liberty,
and) yen. Mr. Gurdon, must accompany them by hook
or by crook, even t the expense of giving offense.
But don't let him suspect anytliiofei ou will ba" able
to help Frowde; and you wllrIva Mlail Vambery confl.
dence. I will put ovei'tbing In train at Oiea; but we
muat not show our hand precipitately. We ara deal
ing with too clever a man to risk a falsa atep."
CHAePTER XXIV,
' 1 " - Back to the Wall ' '
'ARNFORTH put -Jiia wife into a cab aa soon aa
, they had dispatched Jacqueline to Eaton place.
.."I'll he round at Portman square by S o'clock
to take you-to the station, if all goes well" he
aald with hla moot brilliant smile, aa he raised hla hat
and turned away., "There should ba nothing to pre-
.vent"-meif-v:;''f:'?;4'' .;
. He seemed altogether in a lighter mood than he
bad been since the failure' of. his attempt to .klll
Coioher Vambery. ..
r He waa accustomed to facing dlfflcultles;. and they
alwaya acted as a, fillip to hla character,. It waa at
ttmee of inactivity that he was apt to brood and grow
irritable, worrying because he Was doing nothing.
However, the moment he got started again, he would
face the difficulties '..'with reddubled energy and revel
In brushing them out of his path.
And on the crisp December morning he was opti
.;'mlstic In contrast to-the pessimism of the1 past two
-' days. Everything' which appeared so Ulincuit -in': the "
country as to be practically insurmountable seemed to
smooth itself out and . become wvuuarfully simplified '
,- as he drew nearer town;' and it felt that he waa very
.'close to bla goal, burying In this thought the annoy.
, ance he had at flret felt at his failure to rlnlsb things
11 off- completely and finally, three days bef ore. - :
-. So far aa Vam waa concerned, that would not be a
very difficult matter now, although It was partly the
cause of his visit to town. All that would be required
. was p-i hypodermic ,.yringe, " together with a, little
; poison, which he. had all ready, locked up In fats writing 1
- table in the library . at i'ortman square. In Vam a
.. present condition no suspicion would - be aroused if he
wra to nass away auletly without recovering rm.
sciousnessi and be had only to make an opportunity.
lia vinM -iillv aanit Jbcouellne out wllh hla
1 get the nurse out-of the -room for a moment on soma
' pretext .or other; and the thlng would be done in a
' second. jOnca or -twice, that morning be bad wondered
whether Jac-K had any suspicion of the truth, when ho
'' had caught her eyeing him with a queer, intent look,
"and her manner had appeared a-Jtttle strained. But 1
''he dismissed the Idea ,as quickly as It came, with, a
shrug of -the Bheulders, as ridiculous," ascribing -it to'i
the overwrought' state of ' his- nerves during the last
three days. As they began to recover tone under the
" Influence of action, he-, was more and " more inclined '
to make light of It; and-, besides, he nuked himeit,
where waa there a single shred ot evidence against
himself? But the fact remained that the sooner Vara
was permanently silenced the better., - , ,
(CONCLUDED NEXT SUNDAY)
i
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