THE SUNDAY FICTION MAGAZINE, SEPTEMBER 1 1916 J
A deep cat in the shoulder.
It looked as if it had been done
with a razor.
CiSSwt-jv.'. - J ills W vSk. V i''Jifc'f'"- . ' -CX1?'- V
maybo, so when I get ono I Ijate to let
it go. Well, anyhow, I had a hunch that
the three things belonged together. Did
events prove me right or not? Well, you
know I haven't exactly hated' my miud
since then.
To go back to Miss Hazeltine. She was
looking better. She put the mirror back
with a quick glance at me to see it I'd
seen anything. But, of course, I hadn't.
"Now see here." I said,-the way 1 talk
to Sis, "you're in trouble and what it Is
is none of my business. I don't want to
fcnaw well, that's not quite the truth.
I do want to know, awfully. But I'll go
away and forget about It if you'll say
the word. Only, of course, I'd a good
bit rather hang around and help."
"Something has gone wrong," she con
fessed. "But nobody can help, Mr. Oliver.
It's too late."
"Let me try," I urged. "I only play
when there's nothing else to do. You
give me half a chance and I'll show you
a hundred and sixty pounds of uselaa
ness getting useful."
Gee, sh was pretty. If she had only
smiled!
Th whole thing was queer. A fellow
couldn't look at her and connect her,
0Tcn remotely, with crime, and yet
suddenly it occurred to me that she
might have had a larer mixed up in last
night's business. It took the snap out
' am
of me for a minute But it was uniike'y.
She'd hardly hare been looking for him
In a tree!
Old Bolsseau ambled back, and he was
groaning. He held out the morning pa
pers. The whole thing was there, and
he was seeing ruin in letters a foot high.
I gave one paper to Miss Hazeltine and
took another. The heading was "Mil- -lion
Dollar Bobbery," and the mater's
pearls were there, ia good company.
Poor mater!
Boisseau stood muttering over my
shoulder. I could hear him gulp now
and then. He was on the verge of hys
terics. Suddenly he stopped and took
a quick step around the table.
Little Miss vHaz?ltine was in a dead
faint in her chair.
What do you think of it now? Some
mizup, eh, what?
She was a long time coming around.
What with fatigue and worry, the poor
kid was about all in. It gave me a turn.
I'd never seen a girl faint. J It was when
I was dabbingr ice water on her temples,
which I'd read somewhere was the thing
to do, that I happened to look up and
the N. C. was standing by, watching.
"How doth the little busy bee Impro e
each shining hour!'' he said with a grin.
"Ton start your days early, Mr. OUte.
Or don't you go to bed?"
"You go to the dickens," I said.
He glanced at Miss Hazeltine.
"Better get that girl away," he said.
In a nasty voice. "She's only drunk,
Boisseau has his hands full now, with
out "
I couldn't help It. The swine! I'd had
my eyes on that Jaw of his from the
time he began to vt&g It- I caught him
on the very tip of it. It was like hitting
the edge of a marble table. I spoiled a
perfectly good tennis hand on him. But
it was worth all it cost.
SAY, for a minute that place looked like
a morgue, with the N. C. on his back
and Miss Hazeltine fiat on three chairs.
And at that they brought the police
man through the lobby on a hospital
stretcher. Honest, it was almost funny.
He got up, and 111 say this for him, he
was mad. but he was game.
"I didn't think you had It In you, Mr.
I scarcely saw him again unttl the night '
father sent for him, and he nearly
dropped that lower Jaw of his when Tio
saw ire suitcase on me tacio and every
missing thing in it but Olive Thomas'
sapphire bracelet. But that belongs
further on.
I took Miss Hazeltine home. It was
after 8 by that time. The taxi went
along the street where the thing had
happened to Martin and me, and al
though It was late to expect to pick up
any clews I stopped the" car and got out.
The ' taxi was still jammed against a
building with a policeman on guard and
J 'f-"--.- 04.MWA
books standing-around.
The only thing I got out of my exam!,
nation I'd known before. The engine had
tftfArt Hilt tYlA ttaaw Iavta Tn m ...til a. Ik.
high speed. That and the taximeter
registering 50 cents was all I made JUt
of It There was another clew there, &
clear as daylight Afterward, when I
knew the whole story. I went Over that
taxi cab and there it was. But I never
even saw it, and If I had I suppose I'd
not have attached any significance tailit.
Tt wasn't fhlimh rWnt T - 1 -A
more odvious than that But the police
didn't notice It either, so we started
even.
No, I'm not going to tell tt. That wpu'd "
blow the whole show. The way to write
this sort of thing la to tell only part of
What von lennur unA arvrlnv tha
um Ana. iz kmm ruwmut ihta.!!
As I was about to so back, to M't '
It
Gray," he said. "And If I made a mis
take about th young lady. I'm sorry. x Hazeltine in the taxi X saw Martin,
But that's not an apology to you. It's was too late to sidestep him.
to her. - Now Martin liked Miss Ilaeeltlrv
He went out after the policeman, and pretty well. I'd nerer thought about U'