The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1910-11-04
|IN)l|||||)l1l;9
CHAPTER XXX.
Between Two FIrepIaees.

Between Two Firepiaces.
What with the excitement of the dis
covery the walk home under the star:
In wet shoes and draggled skirts, ant
getting upstairs and undressed without
rousing Liddy, was completely used
up. What to do with my boots was
the greatest puzzle of all, there being
no place In the house safe from Lid
dy, until decided to slip upstairs the
next morning and drop them into the
hole the ghost" had made in the
trunkroom wall.
] went asleep as soon as reached
this decision, and in my dreams
lived over again the events of the
night. Again / saw the group around
the silent figure on the grass, and
again, as had happened at the grave,
heard Alexis voice, tense and tri
umphant:
Then we've got them" he said.
Only, in my dreams, he said 1t over
and over until he seemed to shrek ii
in my ears. ...
wakened early, in spite of my ia.
tigue, and lay there thinking. Who
was Alex? | no longer believed that
he was a gardener. Who was the
man whose body we had resurrected
And where was Paul Armstrong? Prob.
ably living safely in some extradition.
less country on the fortune he had
stolen. Did Louise and her mother
know of the shameful and wicked de.
ception? What had Thomas known,
and Mrs. Watson? Who was Nina
Darlington?
This last question, it seemed to me,
was answered. In some way the
woman had learned of the substitu-
tlon, and had tried to use her knowl-
edge for blackmail. Nina Carrington's
own story died with her, but, however
1t happened, it was clear that she had
carried her knowledge to Halsey the
afternoon Gertrude and | were look.
ing for clews to the man | had shot
on the east veranda. Halsey had been
half crazed by what he heard; it was
evident that Louise was marrying DR..
Walker to keep the shameful secret,
for her mothers sake Halsey, al
ways reckless, had gone at once to
DR.. Walker and denounced him. There
had been scene, and he left on his
way to the station to meet and notify
Mr.. Jameson of what he had learned.
The doctor was active mentally and
physically. Accompanied perhaps by
Riggs, who had shown himself not
prescriptions until he uuarreled
with his employer, he had gone across
to the railroad embankment, and, by
jumping In front of the car, had
caused Halsey to swerve. The rest
of the story we knew.
That was my reconstructed theory
OF that afternoon and evening; it was
almost correct-not quite.
There was telegram that morning
from Gertrude
Halsey conscious and improving. Prob
ably home in day or so.
GERTRUDE.
With Halsey found and improving
IN health, and with at last something
to work on, began that day, Thurs.
day, with fresh courage. AS Mr..
Jameson had said, the lines were
closing up. That | was to be caught
and almost finished in the closing was
happily unknown to us all
1t was late when got up. lay in
ny bed, looking around the four walls
IF the room, and trying to imagine be.
lind what one of them a secret cham.
'er might lie. Certainly, in daylight |
deserved it's name; never |
vas house more CHEEKY and open,
ess sinister in general appearance.
mere was not corner apparently
hat was not open and above-board.
md yet, somewhere behind it's hand.
omely papered walls believed firmly
hat there lay a hidden room. with
Ill the possibilities it would involve,
l made a mental note to have the
ouse measured during the day to dis.
over any discrepancy between the
utter and inner walls, and l tried to
ecall again the exact wording of the
aper Jameson had found.
CTO BE CONTINUED