The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1901-10-26

. NHtaes L1hgn4t. #s2.i-
was frozen with fear when he was II
the house. and triumphant when she
had got him safe out Of 1t. She loves
him-she loves him! :"
William Hantlin's heart sickened al
the thought, for he remembered the
mans wonderful beauty, and he felt,
with a cold chill Of misery creeping
over him. that he could not hope ia
win a woman whose heart was already
occupied by such a rival.
Though he is already false to her.
and has been, 10 doubt, a dozen times
besides, yet women are strange ,crea-
lures. They cling to a man who COM
mits a murder but If he. makes love
to another pretty woman, ho! no that
is quite another matter, and very much
worse than killing some n now and
then.
"Pshaw! I'm a fool. The handker-
chief means nothing. He may have
been visiting Mrs. Grayson, and put 1t
in his pocket by mistake"
But that evening he watched Mrs.
Grayson's house. and when Leonce
emerged from it-as she did about Z
o'clock-he logged her footsteps for
two hours, and had the satisfaction of
seeing her match some lace at a. cross
town store and buy several spools of
sewing silk.
And though he watched the house
after she returned until every light was
On the next day Humpy Jack in
turned to his hotel, late in the even-
ing, alone.
For the rest Of the evening and late
into the night Hantlin then Swallowed
Castellani, and learned nothing more
than that the man was a desperate
gambler,i and, when the mood was on
him, would have wagered his soul on q
cast-if it had not been. lost already:
Several days passed thus, n Hant-
lin was still without evidence of a ma
ture to warrant him in causing the ar
rest Of the Marquis del Castellani, al
though his moral conviction on the
subject amounted to certainty.
He managed to follow the man about
almost everywhere nov He had con-
ceived a bitter personal hate against
this foreigner, augmented for the jeal-
ousy he felt for the man asa rival, and
this had so sharpened his. naturally
keen faculties that he was enabled to
invent a dozen new ways OF logging
and watching.
But on occasion had he managed
to find Castellani and Leonce together.
This gave him both pleasure and dis
appointment-the latter, because it
lessened his chance of securing evil
dence of guilt; and the former be-
cause 1t spared him the jealous agony
Of seeing n exhibition Of Leonce's
love for the marquis.
More than once he had watched the
meetings with Lefty Martin. They
were always in public, and the couple
always parted, at the end of their IN
terview, in the same place where they
met; and once he. had been near
enough to hear the girl address the
man as her husband.
Her husband! Could it be true?
And how would Leonce bear such
t~reachery? he asked himself.
But a wild hope took possession OF
him at the same moment, and his
thoughts turned longingly toward the
| woman he now loved with q resistless
passions passion that fed On itself.
and was increased by the mystery and
uncertainty surrounding it.
That day he was obliged to go@sto4a
neighboring city, on an imperative or
der from his chief. to whom he had
his return he found that there was an
not yet conided his suspicious In re-
gard to the Italian marquis, and upon
urgent message from Mrs. Graysons In
regard to a discovery h had made
concerning the recent tragedy in the
house.
Hantlin had little enough confidence
in the Importance Of any discovery that
Mrs. Grayson had made. Sometimes
he was inclined to doubt whether She
wished to make dny such discovery.
but he understood in a moment that
such q call would bring him face to
face with Leonce, and give MIN an OPP
rortunity to speak with the French
maid and gaze into her eyes, and this
he had not dared to do in all his spy
| ing and watching upon her.
He was speedily on his way to Mrs.
Grayson's and.he was the visitor whom
susan admitted at the moment she
was about to open the door for Mrs:
Martin.
They looked at each other sharply.
the detective and the lady. and then,
with a slight bow, proceeded on their
separate ways, Mrs. Martin to return
to her own home, with plentygt to think
of. by the way, and Detective Hantltn
to wait in the room the other visitor
had Just left until the appearance q
Mrs. Gravson.
Clarice did not keep him long wait
ing. She entered the room almost im-
smeciately, and the detective was IA.
stantly struck with the change in her,
both as to manner and appearance.
She was no longer bowed beneath
the weight Of anxiety regarding shir-
ley Austin. She was now possessed o.
proof OF his innocence. which in hef
heart she had never doubted, notwith.
standing her fathers language ND
other circumstantial evidence. and she
felt assured that he still loved her, FOL
otherwise he would not have soueh
her out. -.
She was still1 In heavy mourning, b ,al
lat was the only sign Of woe shout h sst.
Her face wa radisnt; excitement and
hope had brought the brightest rosea
to her. cheeks, and her eyes were bright
and blowing with the determination g
free her lover from all shadow ofsale-
ldpicion, and then reward him for M
LONG and constant devotion to her, s
she closed the door carefully, greeted
Hantlln and seated herself ut 2 littAs
distance. 8as