The Washington herald., 1912-06-09
CHAPTER XXI.
Ruby Is Disappointed.

/
motioned his two visitors to
\ seats, and took his accustomed
place in front of his writing table q
am afraid" he said, turning toward Mr..
SarSby; but in reality addressing his
niece, that your~yisit to town has been,
in some respects, aNdisappointmenta \ to
you, especially" he continued, bearing
in mind the letter which You, my dear
young lady, have just shown me- Still,
there is no getting away from. facts,
We have carefully examined every
paper and every portion of the personal
belongings of the deceased, and ] am
afraid we must come to the decisisH
that there is nothing in those effects
worth taking away"
1T certainly seems not" Mr.. Sarsby
assented Il must say that from the
first l have discouraged my niece in
her expectations. l never knew Sim
clair, but everyone spoke of him as be-
ing a shiftless and impossible sort OF
person"
The lawyer nodded. From the state
of his effects" he remarked, that
seems very possible, and yet one cannot
help wondering what it was that he had
/ in his mind when he wrote to your niece
what it was, too, that induced him
to take rooms in a hotel like the Uni
versal."
Ruby Sinclair rose slowly TO her feet.
She came to the table before which the
solicitor was seated, and she looked
down at him with blazing eyes. Can't
you see, you two" she exclaimed
cant you understand that the man has
been robbed of something? He would
never have written me in that strain
if he had not believed that he possessed
something which was al any rate worth
money, and a great deal of money. He
would never, with only twenty pounds
in his pocket. have gone to hotel like
the Universal, drunk champagne there,
and lived as though his means were un-
limited. These things are ridiculous !!
But, my dear young lady,, the law
yer commenced.
Cant you see the truth?" she ex-
claimed My uncle was murdered.
Why? What was the motive? Rob
berry! Do you think that it was for the
sake of the twenty pounds or so that
he had on him, and which were found
untouched? The man Rowan was in
South Africa with my uncle-he knew
his business. 1t was no ordinary quar-
rel, this. tell you that Rowan robbed
my uncle of something-l don't know
what-but something which was the
! backbone of this letter." she exclaimed,
dashing it upon the table-."something
which justified him in staying at the
Universal, something which must be
! foundp
The lawyer nodded. "The point ot
view" he admitted, has occurred to
me, must confess. And yet, you must
remember that the man Rowan was ar
rested upon the premises. He had moth
! ing with him which could by any
chance have belonged to the dead man.
The girl stamped her foot impatient
| ly. Have you read the evidence at the
trial?" she asked. 1t is very clear that
! this man Rowan was no fool. What
ever he wanted from my uncle, he Sc
cured and disposed of before he was
arrested. The last thing he would dc
would BE- to carry about with him on
his person anything which he had taken
from my uncle"
What you suggest may be possible
of course" the lawyer remarked, but
unfortunately, we have not the slightest
! indication Of it. The man Rowan. was
not seen. to speak TO anyone in the
hotel, and it is known that ne did moi
leave it after the quarrel until his ar
rest"
"And you are content to leave it like
| that?" the girl asked.
The lawyer shrugged his shoulders
! 1T is not that we are content," he said
little stiffiy but there certainly Seems
to be no cause for any further action
The girl turned to Mr.. Sarsby. 1--WE
had better CO." she said abruptly
There is nothing to be gained by stay,
ing here"
The solicitor accompanied them to tht
door, Miss Sinclair" he said, Il car
sympathize with your disappointment
but l do beg of you not to 60 looking
for a mares nest. 1t is disappointing
of course, to find that your uncle wa:
practically a pauper, especially after tha
letter of his, but, on the other hand
men IN his position, l am afraid, arC
proverbially given to exaggeration-"
Thank you" the girl said sharply
q think that we will not talk about
this any more"
Mr.. Sarsby and his niece walked slow.
| ly up little side street which led into
] the Strand. The former, who was shar-
! ing to some extent his niece's disap-
pointment, found compensation in the
thought of a speedy return to Ralney.
Il am afraid, Ruby" he said, "thai
you are very much disappointed, and i
seems to me that we have wasted oul
railway fares to Londan. 1t can't bt
helped. We may as well make the best
of It and get back at once can SCI
no reason why we should not catch the
4 o'clock train. shall be able to play
my match, then, with Col Forsitt to,
morrow morning"
you can go and play your match il
YOU want to," the girl answered. 81 an
going to stay in London"
'To stay IN London!" Mr.. SaEsby re-
peated.
"I mean it." the girl answered. a
don't mean to be robbed. l mean tc
stay here and find out why this mar
Rowan quarreled with my uncle, anc
what my uncle meant when he wrote tc
me about fortune You 60 back, Il
you like" she continued. Give me five
| pounds to stay here with, and III come
back when I'ye found out the truth"
Mr.. Sarsby was aghast He looked a
his niece with wide-open eyes Whaf
had come to her that she should speaI
of such a sum as FIVE pounds almos
carelessly!
'T shall do nothing Of the sort" h,
answered decidedly, NOR shall I allow
you to stay up here alone most i'm.
i nroDer OrOreedfuu I ehostid -afl IL