Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1907-05-11
CHAPTER XVI,

he said with his old smile.
1T was only by accident / learned
you were on board" / explained, as !
sat down. You're getting better?
II believe so; though this physician
is-what you call-an alarmist-most of
them are, indeed, the more desperate
the illness, the more renowned the cure.
+, Is it not so2 He has even forbidden
me cigarets, but / prefer 10 die than
to do without them VIII you not nave
one?" and he motioned TO the pile mat
lay beside min.
Thank you" ] said selected one ana
lighted it, Your cigarets are not TO
be resisted. But IL You are 50 III, why
did you attempt the voyage was y
not imrrudent2'
"A sudden call Of business he eE-
planned aiTily, unexpected but-What
you call-imperatiye Besides this bed
is the same as any other. You see
have week OF rest,
The duCtor-it was he who men
| toned your name 10 met was not on
the sailing list
No" He was looking az me sharply.
II came ON board az the last moment
the need WAS YER sudden. as ! have
SAID. / had not time TO engage a state
room -
THAT explains it, Wen, the doctor
told me that you were bedfast.'
"Yes--since the voyage began ! have
not left IT, I shall uot arise until we
reach Hayre tomorrow"
watched him as he went through
the familiar motion Of lighting sec
ond cigarat from the first one. In the
half-light OF the cabin / had rot AT
first perceived how III he looked now,
! saw the dark patches under the eyes,
the liYid and nabby face, the shaking
hand Aud for the first time, with a
little shock | realized how near he had
been TO death.
But you Mistair Lester" he was
saying, how does il occur that you
also are going 20 France? / did not
know you contemplated
No" | answered calmly, for | had
seen that the question was inevitable
and l even welcomed It, since it gave
me opportunity TO get my gums TO go-
ing. NO; the last time / saw you, |
didn't contemplate IT, but "A good deal
hes happened since then, Would you
care to hear? Are you strong enough
TO talk ?"
Oh, how | rclished tantalizng HIM
II should like very exceedingly to
| hear he assured me. and shifted his
position 4 little so that his face was I'm
the shadow. The beams OF light
through the shutter makes my eyes 10
hurt" he added
SO he mistrusted himself; so he was
not finding the part an easy one, either,
The thought gave me new courage
new audacity.
You may remember" began. that
j told you once that X | ever went to
work on the Hoiladay case I'd try first
to locate the murderess 1 succeeded in
doing II the very first day"
All" he brcathed And after The
police had failed! That was, indeed
remarkable. How did you accomplish
it?"
BY the merest chance--by great good
fortune. / was making a search of the
French quarter. house by house, when
on Houston street. | came to a rcstaur-
ant, the Cafe Jourdain. 4 bottle of
supereur set Jourdain's tongue to wag-
ging; ! pretended / wanted a room; he
dropped word. the merest hint: and
IN the end, | got the whole story. 1t
! seems there was not only one woman
there were two"
'Yes?"
"Yes-and q man whose name was
Betuny or Bethune, or something like
that. But | didn't pay much attention
70 him-he doesn't figure In the case
lie didn't even go away with the wom-
en-. The very day / set out on my
search, he was picked up on the streets
somewhere suffering with apopleXy and
taken TO hospital, so nearly dead thai
u was question whether ne would re-
cover. So he's out of 1t. The Jourdains
told me that the women had sailed for
France"
You will pardon me-" said my hear
err but i'm what way did you make
sure that they were the women you de-
gired:"
BY the younger ones resemblance tc
Miss Holladay," | answered, lying with
glibness which surprised myself
The Jourdains maintained that pho
"a gflt. Of
one OF their lodger"
heard him draw n deep breath. but
he kept mis- face under admirable con.
.rol.
"Ah. yes" he said. THAT was ex.
ceedingly clever. / should never have
thought OF that. That is worthy OF
Monsieur Lecoq. And so you follow
them 10 France-but, surely. you have
some more what you call-definite ad.
dress than that, Mistair Lesteri"
could feel his eyes burning out from
the shadows; l was thankful for the
cigaret--it helped me to preserve an ia.
different countenance.
NO" I said. 1T seems rather Z
wild goose chase doesn't il? But yoy
could advise me, Mr. Martigny Where
would II be best for me to search fol
them?"
He did not answer for a moment. ant
| took advantage of the opportunity e
select a second cigaret and light ii
/ dared not remain unoccupied:
dared not meet his eyes; | trembleC
to see that my hand was not wholly
steady.
That" he began slowly, at last,
seems to me a st-ah!-deeficuIt af
fair, Mistair Lester. To search 70,
three people through all France-thert
seems little hope of success Yet
should think it most likely that they
have gone to Paris
/ nodded. THAT was my own the
ory," / agreed. But to find them II
Paris seems almost impossible"
Not If one uses the police" he said
1T could, most probably, be soor
achieved, IL you requested the police K
assist YOU"
But, my dear sir" protested. .
can't use the police. Miss ffoiiaday a
least has committed no crime: she ha.
simply chosen to go away without in
forming us"
You will permit me to say then
Mistair Lester" he observed, with jus
q touch of irony, that ] fail to compre
hend your anxiety concerning her.
felt that l had made mis-step
that ] had need TO go carefully.
1t is not quite so simple as that
/ explained THE last time we saw
Miss Holiday. she told US that sh,
was i'll, and intended to go TO her coun
try home for a rest. Instead of goinl
there she called for France. without in
forming anyone-indeed. doing every
thing she could TO escape detection
That conduct seems so eccentric tina
we feel in duty bound TO investigat,
, IL. Besides, two days before she lef
she received from us a hundred thou
sand dollars in cash.
saw him move uneasily on his bed
atter all. this advantage of mine wal
no small one. No wonder he grew rest
less under this revelation of secret!
which were not secrets.
Ah.' he said softly; and again, "Ah
yes. that seems peculiar. Yet, perhaps
N you had waited for a letter."
suppose we had waited and Their
mad been no letter-suppose, in conse
] quence OF waiting, we should be to,
later"
! Too late? Too late for what, Mis-
tair Lester? What is II you fear 70
I herr"