The Washington times., 1911-07-08
THE TIMES DAILY SERIAL STORY
T1''HE GRAY WOLF
y Ey F.
Copyright 1911, The Frank A Munsey Company.
Ey r. x. SCRLBNER

, sound in the hall-the creaking OF
hinge sadly in need of oil.
| A figure issued into the light cast
by the lamp burning in the braGket
at the head of the stairs. 1t was Won
Holleun-fully dressed.
| Two things struck me as worthy OF
consideration. The dragoon had taken
| the room at the head of the stairs,
from which vantage-point he could
! keep an eye on any one who Ventureo
to leave the hall That he had been
on watch, and was prepared to act
/ quickly, was evident from the fact
he was fully clothed at that hour OF
| the night.
l saw Morgan's suspicious confirm
ed. Our every move was being
watched, and would be so long as we
! remained in proximity to the Coun-
| tess Valerie Won Holleun. The game
| had begun.
| l did not propose to retire to bed;
| leaving Morgan to be followed ana
spied upon. Pausing but for an m
stant to see th9t Won Holleun le1t
his room and took the first step 10,
ward the stairs. bolted oack INTO my
| chamber, got into my clothes In rec
ord time. and, minus collar and neck
tie ana with shoes nlaced, hurrieu
back to the half-open door
Won Holleun had paused Tor seVeFdI
moments at the head of the stairs,
| for he was disappearing down them
| just as l regained the door; SIP
| ped down the hall quietly. taxing care
not to appear in the glare OF the llght.
l heard his footsteps in the lower
hall, then a faint noise upon the YER
anda without. 1t was my cue was
down the stairs and cropping through
the gloom below to the front door OF
the villa.
1t was open, and I peered out into
the night. Through the openings In
the branches of the trees l could see
a cloudless sky sprinkled by myriad
md Iva fINF
me was family lighted, but beyond
was darker than the deepest pocket.
Then. suddenly, as / paused, unde-
termjned as to the wisest course. 4
yellow glare famed unexpectedly up
in the blackness. Morgan's face, re-
vealed by the light OF the match h.
was holding, was silhouetted against
the dim trunks of trees beyond. l
saw him light his cigar slowly and
carefully; then the match went out,
and the blackness became denser than
before.
I understood; he suspected he was
being watched. and he proposed to
prove his suspicious. The old reck
lessness was upon him, the inaction
of remaining in his room. thinking
some one was playing the spy a few
rods away. had become intolerable. A
stroll through the park, boldly and
without concealment--else he had not
lighted the match-would end the un-
certainty. He had told me 1t was
probable that we would be molested If
We held secret communication with
the countess. And at that moment
the countess was sleeping in her bed.
A movement, not a dozen yards from
me, told me Won Holleun was some
where near the veranda. l began to
feel amused. He would follow Morgan;
perhaps others would follow. dodg
ing behind trees and creeping in the
shadows. The cigar would be smok-
ed out. Morgan would stroll back TO
his room. and the sDies of the gov
ernor of Brescia would have
trouble for their pains, having show
ed their hand. as Morgan intended
they should show II.
The red point of the cigar moved
off in the darkness, down the drive
toward the gate which oDened onto
the public road l heard Won Holleun
the gravel, and then silence. l crept
down the steps and trailed along in
the rear. SLOWLY and cautiously: for
Morgan was taking his time. and
red end of the cigar stopped frequent
The situation began to lose inter-
est; I could see absolutely nothing
except an occasional gleam Of the
red point ahead. A certain nervous
ness began even to lay hold OF me;
might come suddenly upon Won Hol-
leun or a stranger. and. despite all l
could do, the picture of the man ly-
ing on the bed in the Paris hotel kept
coming up in nv mind. ] might as
well have remained in bed and per-
mitted Morgan to carry out his =
without my thrusting myself into
them. In the comedy which was be-
ing enacted I was plainly playing the
part of chief buffoon.
We trailed down the drive to
the gate; the red glow had
grown dim, and I could only guess
where Won HoIleun might be.
Thoroughly disgusted, leaned against
a tree trunk, resolved to take no further
part in a game which promised to end
so tamely
Continuation of This Story VIII
BE Found In Tomorrow
Issue of The Times.