Daily Arizona silver belt., 1909-01-14
CHEAPER xIv-continuedl

w Cuu to tue iduucI, Dut NJ IuS moment of reaching it Daddy Jacques drew my attention to the half open door of the little semicircular room situated under the terrace at the ex- tremity of the right wing of the cha teau. having the terrace for it's roof Daddy Jacques pushed the door open a little farther and looked in.
 "'He's not therev he whispered. "'Who is not thereT
 "'The forest keeper
 ''With his lips once more to my ear he added
 "'DO you know that he has slept in the upper room of the donjon ever since it was restoredy And with the same gesture he pointed to the half open door, the ladder, the terrace and the window in the 'off turning gal lery, which little. while before I had reclosed.
 What were my thoughts then? I had no time to think. l felt more than thought.
 Evidently l felt if the forest keeper is up there in the chamber q say if because at this moment. apart from the presence of the ladder and his va cant room, there are no evidences which permit me even to suspect him If he is there he has been obliged to pass by the ladder. and the rooms which lie behind his in his new lodg- ing are occupied by the family of the steward and by the cook and by the kitchens. which bar the way by the vestibule to the interior of the cha teau. And if he had been there during the evening on any pretext 1t would have been easy for him to go into the gallery and see that tine window could be simply pushed open from the out side. This question of the unfastened window easily narrowed the field of search for the murderer. He must be- long to the house unless he had an ac- complice. which l do not believe he had; unless-unless Mile. Stangerson herself had seen that that window was not fastened from the inside. But, then, what could be the frightful se- cret which put her under the necessity of doing away with obstacles that sep arated her from the murderer?
 'I seized hold of the ladder. and we returned to the back of the chateau to see if the window of the chamber was still half open. The blind was drawn, but did not join and allowed bright stream of light to escape and fall upon the path at our feet. 1 planted the ladder under the window. l am al- most sure that l made no noise, and while Daddy Jacques remained at the foot of the ladder 1 mounted it very quietly, my stout stick in my hand. held my breath and lifted my feet with the greatest care. Suddenly a heavy cloud discharged itself at that moment in a fresh downpour of rain.
 "At the same instant the sinister cry of the Bete du Bon Dieu arrested me in my ascent. It seemed to me to have come from close by me, only a few yards away. Was the cry signal? Had some accomplice of the man seen me on the ladder? Would the cry bring the man to the window? Per 1 felt his head above me. heard the sound of his breath! I could not look up toward him. The least movement of my head and I might be lost. Would he see mel Would he peer into the darkness? No; he went away. He had seen nothing. l felt rather than heard him moving on tiptoe in the room, and I mounted few steps higher. My head reached to the level of the win dow sill; my forehead rose above it.; my eyes looked between the opening in the blinds, and l saw
 "A man seated at Mile. Stangerson's little desk writing. His back was turn cd toward mel A candle was lit before him, and he bent over the flame, the light from 1t projecting shapeless shad- ows. I saw nothing but mOnstrous, stooping back.
 Mile Stangerson herself was not there. Her bed had not been lain on! Where, then. was she sleeping that night? Doubtless in the side room with her women. Perhaps this was but a guess. l must content myself with the joy of finding the man alone. l must be calm to prepare my trap.
 But who, then. is this man writing there before my eyes. seated at the desk, as if he were in his own home? If there had not been that ladder un- der the window, if there had not been those footprints on the carpet in the gallery, If there had not been that open window. I might have been led to think that this man had right to be there and that he was there as a mat ter of course and for reasons about which as yet knew nothing. But there was no doubt that this nlysteri- ous unknown was the man of the yell low room, the man to whose murder ous assault Mile. Stangerson without denouncing him had had to submit. If I could but see his face! Surprise and capture him!
 If 1 spring into the room at this moment he will escape by the right hand door opening into the boudoir, or, crossing the drawing room, he will reach the gallery and I shall lose him.