The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1901-09-19
Copyright. fsse. by J. n. Lipp,nco,t Com
pany. All rights reserved
CHAPTER yJ.-Cosr,x,yn.


The appointments OF this room were
few. but tasteful. IL abounded in the
little belongings Of n young girl. To-
day there were many evidences of a
scene which had defeated good order.
A jaunty hat and bright ribbons were
hastily thrown aside. and the open bu-
reau drawers revealed dainty laces
and lingerie. But the eyes of the in
quisitive intruder took notice OF none
Of these things; they were riveted in
stantly TO an object that lay beside
a book upon the comfortable, near
which stood an armchair. That OBJ
ject was a slender cigar. He took IL
up--answered. He knew that in the
Brookin household he was the only
smoker-snd he did not smoke slender
cigars. To the mind OF this man, ever
open TO suspicious and suggestions Of
evil. that strange cigar was testimony
unimpeachable. II was the knife in
the heart Of jealous love. With in
eSpressible rage and with n fierce
hatred Of every living thing. he placed
the weed in his own case. Here, then,
he reasoned. had the man described
by Louise been sitting before the
dawn OF that fatal day: here had the
little saint kneeled 10 place her arms
about him and say farewell! Yonder
was the window. straight ahead from
which Louise had fired. Brave. faith
ful Louise! His heart warmed towards
her. despite the fact that she had fired
10 kill him. Somewhere in that Grim
son carpet was the blood OF her vic
tim IL her aim had been true. Was
IL true? He glanced back over his
shoulder; the ball would have struck
the wall behind him had she missed
her aim. And there in the wall. a
little out Of line, IL is true. was a
small hole. Amazed. he hurriedly ex-
amined IL. The shot, after all, had
missed.
Then this doubt came TO the active
mind: Why had the man been car
ried away " the shot failed?
Holbin went quickly to his own
room. where he secured a candle and
a powerful sun glass. Holding the
latter over the perforation in the plas-
tering. he discovered a slight red
stain.
Blood" he whispered: "she did not
miss opening his penknife, he care
fully cut n section from the broken
plaster. Whoever the man was. he
was struck in the head. Here is the
hair"
For few moments Holbin was deep
In thought. Then he drew from his
pocket the pistol which he had taken
from Louise and examined Il with the
eye OF an army expert. Apparently
puzzled. he tried the depth of the hole
In the plastering with pencil and
found that the perforation was COM
pleie. He seated himself in the arm
chair facing the window. II Frances
had been kneeling with her back to
the window. the face OF the unknown
man must have been fully exposed.
The weapon did not have power
enough to fire a bullet through the
head Of a man, an inch OF plaster and
a lath. and To carry away hair and
blood-the bullet must have glanced
from the side of the head. The posi-
tion Of the hole indicated that the
right side OF the mans head had been
struck.
Holbin's final conclusions were that
the stranger had been only stunned.
His friends could not have concealed
his death, for no common man would
have won the privileges of the room,
nor would II have been possible for
Frances TO have borne herself so calm
~ with the memory of murder fresh
In her mind. "A society man is miss
ing from his club in Richmond to-
day" he said aloud. "The mystery
Is half solved. As for You. my lovely
bridc!"-hc finished the sentence with
a smoi hered oath.