Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-12-22
But they expected nothing from it.
absolutely nothing.
CHAPTER XVI.
Doubt.

CHAPTER XVI.
Doubt.
prayed uncle that we might be
driven home by the way Of Eighty.
| sixth Street. wanted to look at the
Fairbrother house. had seen 1t many
| times, but felt that I should see 1t
with new eyes after the story had
just heard In the inspectors office.
That an adventure Of this nature
could take place in a New York house
taxed my credulity. might have be-
lieved it Of Paris, wicked, mysterious
Paris, the home Of intrigue and every
redoubtable crime, but Of our own
homely, commonplace metropolis-the
house must be seen for me to be con-
vinced of the fact related.
Many of you know the building. 1t
is usually spoken of with a shrug, the
sole reason for which seems to be
that there is no other just like it In
| the city. myself have always con-
sidered 1t imposing and majestic; but
to the average man it is too sugges-
tive Of Old-World feudal life to be
pleasing. On this afternoon-a dull,
depressing one-it looked undeniably
heavy as we approached 1t, but inter
est1ng in very new way to me, be-
cause of the great turret at one angle,
the scene of that midnight descent of
two men, each in deadly fear Of the
other, yet quailing not in their pur.
pose,-the one of flight, the other of
pursuit.
| t,o t., 40 f1,r
house. 1t may have seemed an I'M
necessary safeguard to the audacious
owner. Consequently, the small door
In the turret opened directly upon the
street, making entrance and exit easy
enough for any one who had the key.
But the shaft and the small room at
the bottom where were they? Nat
urally in the center Of the great mass,
the room being without windows.
1t was, therefore, useless to look for
1t, and yet my eye ran along the
peaks and pinnacles of the roof,
searching for the skylight in which 1t
undoubtedly ended. At last I espied
1t, and, my curiosity satisfied on this
score, let my eyes run over the side
and face of the building for an open
window or lifted shade. But all
were tightly closed and gave no more
sign OF life than did the boardedtup
door. But was not deceived by this.
AS we drove away, thought how on
the morrow there would be regular
| procession passing through this street
to see just the little had seen today.
The detectives adventure as like to
make the house notorious. For sew
eral minutes after I had left it's
neighborhood my imagination pic
tured room after room shut up from
the light of day, but bearing within
them the impa]pable aura of those
two shadows fitting through them like
the ghosts Of ghosts, as the detective
had tellingly put it.
The heart has 1t strange surprise.
Through my whole ride and the in
diligence in these thoughts was con-
scious Of great inner revulsion
against all I had intimated and even
honestly felt while talking with the In
spector. Perhaps this is what this
wise old official expected. He had let
me talk, and the inevitable reaction
followed. could now see only Mr..
Grey's goodness and claims to respect,
and began to hate myself that I had
not been Immediately impressed by
the inspectors views, and shown my
self more willing to drop every sus-
picion against the august parsonage I
had presumed to associate with crime.
What had given me the strength to
persist? Loyalty to my lover? His
innocence had not been involved. In.
deed, every word uttered in the In
spector's office had gone to prove that
he no longer occupied leading place
| in police calculations: that their eyes
were turned elsewhere, and that had
only to be patient to see Mr.. Durand
| quite cleared in their minds.
But was this really so? Was he as
failed? What If they failed to find
Sears or lay hands on the doubtful
/ Wellgood? Would Mr.. Durand be re.
leased without a trial? Should we
hear nothing more Of the strange and
| to many the suspicious circumstances
which linked him to this crime? II
would be expecting too much from
either police or official discrimination
No; Mr.. Durand would never be
completely exonerated till the true cul
prlt was found and all explanations
made. I had therefore been simply
/ fighting his battles when pointed out
what thought to be the weak place
in their present theory, and, sore as
felt in contemplation of my seemingly
| heartless action, was not the unim
questionable, Anticipated nonentity
must have seemed to the Inspector.
/ Yet my comfort was small and the
effort it took to face Mr.. Grey and my
young patient was much greater thar
had anticipated. I blushed as I ap
preached to take my place at Miss
Grey's bedside, and, had her father
been as suspicious Of me at that mo
ment as was of him, am sure thai
/ should have Jared badly in hi.
thoughts.
j But he was not on the watch for m,
emotions. He was simply relieved tt
see me back. noticed this immed
4 lately, also that something had oc
CURED during my absence which alb
sorbed his thought and filled, him with