The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1918-10-02
CHAPTER CXLIII.
Called BY One Who Knows.


Called BY One Who Knows.
News of Basil Fleetwood" cried
Esther. Then he is not dead!'
To herself she murmured. Thank
heaven!"
NO." returned the detective, ''he
Is not dead, but fear he is very I'll,
and unable to do anything on his
own behalf. Also. although I am
certain that my intelligence is cor
rect. 1 have not been able to verify
1t or to lend any assistance"
'T never believed that Basil Fleet
wood was dead" he went on, land
IN that my theories differed, as
usual from those OF the police.
The police had quite made
up their minds that Fleetwood
was either drowned or com
nitted suicide. They dragged the
lake and thoroughly searched the
wood-without any result. 1 believe
they are still searching the neigh
borhood. In the meantime the
gypsies were able quietly to move
away. There We're gypsies of the
Valenskis among them: l have as
certained that. On the night Of
Fleetwood's disappearance. lara end
her uncle were there, possibly Va
ienski himself. cara came up to
town early; you know she was seen
at the station. and the abduction of
the Meyer children followed that
same afternoon. II Valenski YVES
there that night he, too. must have
come to New York the following
morning. So much l learned, but
there was nothing to prove to me
that the gypsies had in any way in
terfered with Fleetwood.
well. they moved-as have said
quietly on from Helm, and then
came the alarm and the hue and the
cry after EaIenski. Immediately
they divided UP in that way that is
peculiar to them and practically dis
appeared We traced an individual
here and an individual there among
other Romany bands. but they were
of no assistance to us. There was
no sign OF the man or the woman
whom we particularly wanted to
ind"
1T was in a search OF this sort
that one OF my men came upon
traces of a stranger among the
eypsies whom l believe to have
been Basil Fleetwood Moreover,
il was in Westchester-not far
from CheImsford-which seems to
indicate that they were making
for" Adderley wood Ny man eN-
ercised his right OF search. though.
of course. the fellows Indignantly
denied that they knew anything OF
VaIenski. He found a van deco
rated in peculiarly sumptuous
STYLE, and within it lay a man i'll
of some fever, unconscious, and
wandering in his mind. From
fa1t that
This was Basil Fleetwood. and the
rvpsy in charge OF the vans to have
been Zara's uncle.
"Jones. unfortunately. took no
Immediate steps. but came back to
town and reported. I went with
him at once in search OF these
rypsies. but they had vanished from
the neighborhood. vans and all, and
have not been able TO trace them.
It is a rather remarkable thing that
they should do this, for in so short
a time 1t was not possible for them
10 travel very far"
Have you formed any theory to
explain it," said Esther. tremu-
lousy.
"Dr. French lives near Chelms-
ford" said Swan, thouEhtfuliy.
"And we know that he will do any
you think that French may be
conceaIing Basil?"
at is possible. An asylum Is
splendid place for such a purpose.
] have my suspicious, and l shall act
upon them"
But why-why-" Esther
cIasped her hands together in ques-
tioninE tribulation Of mind 81 can
not understand why Basil should be
treated in this manner. What have
they got against him? What in
terest can it serve that ne should be
detained and hidden away? What
III has he done to this Valenski-or
to anyone?'
II cannot say" said Swan, "but It
seems to me that events are work
ing together for a solution Of the
whole myster. We have on one side
NaIenski, the poisOncr. and his crew;
on the other the Borradale Curse.
When We have discovered the con
Meeting link between them there
will not be much left to solve. Let
me state the case briefly, so that
we may know where we stand.
THE whole trouble-whatever It
may be-arises from this connection
between Borradales and Valenskis."
$50 much is certain. The Valen-
skis are the root of the evil. II is
they who ordered the weird and
seemingly incomprehensibe doinEs
at Adderley. Zorslsa, the monster;
Cecil and Basil Clare now dead
and even Harold-all bore the mark
OF the Ealcnskis upon their wrists.
Therefore 1t is certain that they
the Borradales-are also in some
way Of the Valenskis-"
But Basil Fleetwood-he, too. is
marked" interrupted Esther.
yes, that is a point in the case
for which can offer no explana-
ton. We must be content for the
present simply to note that IL is
so"
Let us examine the case from
the point of view of a Borradale-
Harold Borradale, for instance.
Harold, then. is TO be kept in ignor-
ance, according to his fathers
wishes. of the family mystery until
such time as he marries or attains
the age OF thirty. He knows that
this has been the custom of his an
esstorB fer generations, and be u