The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1917-01-31

where are you now? Cold Stream.
That Is about twelve miles from Rock
ledge-not on the New York road
the other road. I see. All right. We
will be there. Yes. wait for US"
AS Craig hung up the receiver, we
crowded forward. Have they found
herr" asked Lockwood hoarsely.
1T was from Burke" replied Ken
nedy deliberately. "He is at a place
called Cold Stream, twelve miles from
here. He tells me that we can find
it easily-on state road, at sharp
curve that has been widened out, just
this side of the town. There has been
an Whitney's car is
wrecked"
Lockwood seized his elbow. "My
God" he exclaimed, tell me-she is
not-hurt, is she? Quick"
$50 far Burke has not been able to
discover trace of thing, except
the wrecked car" replied Kennedy.
II told him / would be over directly.
Lockwood, you may take Jameson
and Alfonso. | will go with the Sen
ora and their driver"
I saw instantly why he had divided
the party Neither mother nor son
was to have chance to slip away
from us. Surely both Lockwood and
should be match for Alfonso. Sen
ora de Moche he would trust to none
but himself.
Eagerly now we prepared for the
journey. late though it was. No one
now had thought of rest. There
could be no rest with that mystery
Of Inez challenging US
We were off at last, Lockwood's car
leading, Tor although he did not know
the roads exactly, he had driven much
about the country. / should have
liked to have sat in front with him,
but it seemed safer to stay in the
back with Alfonso. In fact, ! don't
think Lockwood would have consent
ed, otherwise, to have his rival back
of him.
Kennedy and the Sonora made a
strange pair, the ancient order and
the ultra-modern. There was pecul-
lar light in her eyes that cleaned
forth at the mere mention of the word
wreck" Though she said nothing,
! knew that through her mind was
running the one tenacious thought.
1t was the working out of the curse!
AS for Craig, he was always seeking
the plausible, natural reason for what
10 the rest of us was ineXplicable,
often supernatural. To him she was
q fascinating study.
On we sped. for Lockwood was a
good driver and now was spUrred on
by an anxiety that he could not con-
ceal. Yet his hand never faltered at
the wheel He seemed to read the
signs at the crossroads without slack
ening speed. In spite of all that
knew, found myself compelled to ad-
mire him. Alfonso sat back, for the
most part silent. The melancholy in
his face seemed to have dcepened.
He seemed to feel that he was but
toy in the hands of fate. Yet | knew
that underneath must shoulder the
embers of bitter resentment.
IL seemed an interminable ride even
at the speed which we were making.
Twelve miles in the blackness of a
country night can seem like a hun
Gred. At last as we turned curve,
and Lockwood's headlights shone on
the white fence that skirted the out
er edge of the road as it swung
around a hill that rose sharply to our
left and dropped off in sort of ra-
vine at the right beyond the fence,
felt the car tremble as he put on
the brakes.
A man was waving his arms for us
to stop, and as we did, he ran for
ward. He peered in at us and recog
nized Burke.
"Whe-wheres Kennedy" he asked,
disappointed, for the moment fearing
he had made mistake and signalled
the wrong car.
Coming" ] replied, as we heard