The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1905-12-29
The Kolladav
Case
A Mystery @ Two Continents
BY
BURTON E. STEVENSON
Copyrish,. 1903. by Henry IIol, and Company


! chGHccd TO look up and see that dark
fig" hca ling over them. and cried
out. rc;.,y. Iuro2e had time TO think"
IL N&S ;C;: thIt which saved them"
Yes; bU., Ch. could think after
ward. I'd only 10 close MY eyes last
night to see him there yet, pcering
down at us, waiting his opportunity.
And then. Of cou">c. puzzled more or
lo2s over the who.c thing"
You shan't puzzle any more, | said.
Then laid the ciSr before her. step by
step. She listened with claSped hands
and intent face. not speaking ill
Lad finished. Then she leaned back in
her chair with IL long sigh.
why. it's horrib!c,' she brcathcd.
But YOU haven't given me your eX-
planatiCn yet, Mr.. Lester
Il haven't any explanations" said
hen!cssly, I've built up half Il dozen
theor". but they've all been knocked
10 pieces. one after the other. don't
know what to think. unless Miss IIol-
laday il II victim OF hypnotsm or de-
men!ia OF some kind
'S1mptimoS shes nice and ut other
times she's horrid. 1t recalls Dr. Jekyll
anu MI. IL ue,' uO,Sn IL:
Yes, it does. Only. as say. such an
explanation seems absurd
There's one theory which might cx-
plain it-part Of it. Perhaps II wasn't
Miss Iiollahay at all who returned
from Washington square with the new
maid. Perhaps it was the other wonl-
an, and tho barred windows were real
ly to keep Miss Holladay Il priSonrr."
Put she wasn't there | protested
I'VE saw her when we gave her the
money"
Yes. il Il darkcncd room. with
bandagc about her forehead, so hoarsc
she could scarcely speak"
I stopped Il moment TO consider
"RemcmhCr, that would explain
something which admits OF no other
reasonable "Xplanation.' went OH my
compauioil-"th barred windows and
the behavior of the prisoner"
''lt would explain that certainly" !
admitted. though ut first thought the
theory did not appeal to me. You be-
lievc. then. that Miss Holiday was
iorcihly ahducted?"
.I'ndouhtcdly. If her mind ras GO
ing To give way at all it would have
done so ut once and not two weeks aft
cr tn" ira ragcdy."
"Rut if she had hroodcd over It,"
Cbj"ctcd.
She wasn't broodng-at least she
had ceased to brood. You have Mr.
Roycc's word and the butlcr's word
that she was getting better. brighter
quite like her old self again. Why
should she relapse"
81 don't know" l said helplessIy
That affair last night has upset mo 50
that I can't think clearly. / feel that
I was carelCsS-t!nt wasn't doing my
duty"
Il shouldn't worry about It: though,
OF course" she added a little severely,
"youvc realized by this time that you
alone are to blame for Martignys pres
cncc on The boat
But had to go to the Jourdains,"
| protested. and | couldn't help their
going TO him. TO have asked them not
10 g" would have made them suspect
me al once"
'Oh. yes: but at lenst you needn't
have sent them. They might not have
gone at all-certainly they wouldn't
have gone so prompty-if you hadn't
sent them"
Sent thcmt' / repeated. and stared
at her in amazcmcnt, doubling IL /
had heard Alright.
Yes, sent them." she said again en-
phatically. "Why do you suppose they
went To the hospital so early the next
morning.
II SUPPOSE they had become suspi-
cious of me-
NONSENSE. What possible reason
could they have for becoming sus-
picious OF YOU? On the contrary. they
went after the key to thusc padlocks
on the window shutters or course
Martigny had it,
For II moment | was too nonpluscd
10 speak ! could only stare ut her
We'll, was fool, wasn't l." dc.
manded finally. "To think that |
shouldn't have foresccn that. I WAS
so worked up over my discovery that
night that ] couldn't think Of anything
else. or course. when they asked for
the iKoy. the whole story came out"
Il shouldn't blame myself too severe
ly." laughed Miss Kcmbal aS she
looked at my rueful coumtcnancc. II
myself think It's rather fortunate that
he's on the boat"
Fortunate. You don't mean that"
Precisely that. Suppose the Jour
dains hadn't gone to him. He'd have
left the hospital anyway in two or
three days. IIe isn't the man TO lie
inactive when he knew you were
searching for the fugitivcs. He'd have
returned then to his apartment next
to yours; your landlady would lave
told him that YOU had sailed for Eu-
nd hn hn1