Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1907-05-16
CHAPTER XVI.
L A II LION.

ne sdlu WIN ms Oiu smile.
1T was only BY accident ! learned
you We're on board" ! explained, as
sat down. You're getting better??'
II believe SO: though this physician
is-what you call-an alarmlSt--most OF
them are. indeed; the more desperate
shc illness. the more renowned the cure.
Is ii no so? He has ven forbidden
me cisarsts. but 1 prefer To die than
L" do without them. Will you not have
one and he inotioned to the pile hat
lag beside him.
Thank you" i said. selected one and
lighted it. Your cigarets are not to
be resisted. But if you are so i'll. why
did you attempt the voyage? Was it
not im%prudent?"
"A sudden call of business" he ex-
planned airily. unexpected put-what
you call-imperative. Besides this bed
is the same as any other. You see,
1 have Il week OF rest"
The doctor-it was he who men
toned your name to met was not on
the sailing list"
No" He was looking at me sharply.
Il came on board at the last moment
the need was YER sudden. as i have
said. | had not time to engage Il state
room"
THAT explains 1t. Well. the doctor
old me that you We're belfast"
"Yes-since the voyage began l have
not left 1t. l shall not arise NIL We
reach tiavre tomorrow"
l watched him us he went through
the familiar motion of lighting Il sec
ond ciGaret from the first oae. In the
half-light of the cabin ! had not at
first perceived how i'll he looked; now
l saw the dark patches under the eyes.
.Ae-Atid and tabby face. the shaking
hand And for the first time. with "a
little shock. l realized how near III had
been to death.
But you, Mistair Lester he was
Swing. how does 1t occur that you
also are going to France? l did not
know YOU contemplated"
NO.. L answered calmly. for | had
seen that the question was inevitable
and l even welcomed it. since it gave
me opportunity to get my guns to go
Ing. No; the last time | saw you, l
didn't contemplate it. but Il good deal
has happened since then. Would you
care to hear? Are you strong enough
to talk?"
oh. how l -elished tantalizing him,
Il should like very exceedingly to
hear" he assured me. and shifted his
position Il little 80 that his face was In
The shadow. The beams of light
through the shutter makes my eyes to
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" I began, that
1 told you once that IL l ever went to
work on the Holiday case, I'd try first
TO locate m murderess. l succeeded in
doing 1t the very first day"
"Ah!" he breathed. And after the
police had failed, That was. indeed.
remarkable. How did you accomplish
Ky II merest chance-by great good
fortune. l was making Il search of the
french quarter, house by house. when,
on Houston street. l came to Il restaur-
ant. the Cafe J%ourdain. A bottle of
supereur set J~ourdain's tongue to wag-
glng: 1 pretended 1 wanted n room; he
dropped a word. the merest hint, and.
IN the end. l got the whole story. 1t
seems there was not only one woman,
there were two"
"Ycs?"
'Yes-and n mar whose name vas
BetUny or Bethune. or something like
that. But l didn't pay much attention
to him-he doesn't figure IN the case.
He dtdn'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 a hospital. so nearly iead that
IL was a question whether he would re-
cover. So he's out Of II. Tire J%ourdafns
told me that the women had sailed for
France"
You will pardon me-" said my hear
er. but In what way did YOU make
sure that they were the women YOU de-
sired?'
by n younger ones resemblance to
Miss Holiday" l answered. lying with
a glibness which surprised myself.
THE Jourdains maintained hat a mo
tosraph of Miss Holiday was really
n of their lodger."
l a him draw a deep breath. but
he kept mis- face under admirable con-
troll.
All. yes" he said. THAT was ex-
ceedtngly clever. / should never have
thought of that. That Is worthy Of
Monsieur Lecoq. And so you follow
them to ~France-but. surely. you have
some more-what o call-defnite ad-
dress than that. Mistair Lester"
I could feel his eyes burning out from
the shadows: 1 was thankful for the
cigaret-it helped me to preserve an in
different c~ountenance.
NO." l said. 1T seems rather a
wild goose chase. doesn't 1t? But Won
could advise me. Mr.. Martigny. Where
would it be best for ME to search for
them?"
He did not answer for a moment and
I took advantage Of the opportunity ia
select a second cigaret and iight It.
I dared not remain u~noccupied. I
dared not meet his eyes; l trembled
to see that my hand was not wholly
steady.
That" he began slowly. at last.
seems to me n most-ah.-deefcult nj.
fair. Mistair Lester. To search for
three people through all France-there
GEMS little hope Of success. Yet i
should think It most likely that they
have gone to Paris"
nodded. THAT was my own the.
CRY" I agreed. But to find them in
Paris seems almost impossible"
Not Il one uses the police" he said.
~ could. nos probably, be eoon
assist YOU" 7 "
but. NV dear sir as