Omaha daily bee., 1919-10-01
My HEART and
NV HUSBAND
Adele Garrison's New Phase of
Revelations
of a Wife
What Madge Determined to do.


haven't any such thing. Mr.. Stock
bridge entrusted those papers tc
you, and he expected you'd honor
any request of his for them"
His voice was truculent, threaten
ing. / felt my anger rise at him.
Perhaps / would, any request O
his / said coldly, meaningly.
"a request from his attorneys i.
the same thing he said in more
conciliating manner. Evidently he
cid not wish to quarrel with me
That meant that /, not he, held the
winning cards in the game of wits.
Il agree with you l answered
coolly.
Then what are you waiting for?'
he demanded turning on me.
don't see any use in delaying the
game"
There was a greediness in his eyes
which made me more determined
than ever to give him no satisfaction
concerning Mr.. Stockbridge's papers
until l have investigated the history
of Mr.. George Bridgeham.
! rose to my feet with decision.
"You are wasting your time, Mr.
Bridgeham," | said curtfy. II have
told you that | hold nothing but
| school records of Mr.. Stockbridge
and those | will deliver only to an
accredited representative of my prin,
cipal who holds written order in
Mr.. Stockbridge's own handwriting
He thrust his jaw forward with
an ugly gesture.
Dye mean that?" he snarled.
Il most certainly do" | returned
well, you've got a nerveP he
began roughly, but | stepped to the
door, flung it wide open, and bowed
stiffy.
"You will pardon me, ! am sure,
Mr.. Bridgeham. for | am too busy
to be detained longer"
you'll Regret This"
His face flushed, and saw Wis
ible struggle with himself taking
place. His thwarted vanity urged
him to unpleasantness, his prudence
counselled acquiescence in my dis
missal. AS compromise he stalk
ed out of the door, pausing only to
say savagely:
You'll deeply regret this, young
woman before many days"
sank into chair as soon as the
door closed behind him, completely
unnerved. For not only then had |
realized that his demand meant if
he were not in truth one of Kenneth
Stockbridge's attorneys. g.t
| looked at it from every angle,
there were but two explanations of
his call on me. Either he really was
an accredited representative of Mr..
Stockbridge-in which case had
failed my principal greviously-or
else, most terrifying prospect for
me, he belonged to the enemy camp,
and had discovered the fact that the
accused man had telephoned me at
the schoolhouse but few minutes
before his wife's death.
The first alternative, much as 4
preferred to believe it, was put out of
my mental court by my common
sense. No man who had displayed
as much anxiety over the secret
safe-keeping of his personal papers
as had Kenneth Stockbridge, would
dream of sending a messenger with
no credentials for them. No, "Mr.
Bridgeham" must be in the employ
either of the state or of Milly
Stockbridge's family.
Madge Makes a Decision.
There was but two ways that he
could have discovered my posses
sion of the private papers from the
principals desk by the admission Of
the principal himself, or by the trac-
ing of the telephone calls, the
probability that the operators
had "listencd in" on the day of
Milly Stockbridge's mysterious
death. ! knew that unless Kenneth
Stockbridge himself had lost his
reason he would never had betrayed
the existence of the secret he had
kept SO long, the evidence of which
he had entrusted to my care. Cen
tral must have listened in," had
overheard the principals call, in all
probability she had heard the wild
raucous TRADE Of his wife a few
minutes earlier.
Two or three days before had
seen a rat that had been troubling
the chicken house, and which Jim
had caught in trap. The sight OF
the terrible creatures futile circling
of tn. walls of the trap, and his
savage biting of the wires had
affected me most unpleasantly at the
time. The memory fairly sickened
me now, for l felt that I. too, was in
a trap from which there was no es-
cape.
Katie's voice recalled me to my
self. -.
"Vot matter, Meesis Graham?"
sshe said with alarm in her voice, as
she came down the stairs. "You
vite as vun sheet. Vot dot man
saw? He want to rob you?"
I pulled myself together with an
effort. This was no way to face an
emergency, l thought with grim
contempt for my own tremors. And
above all, Katie must suspect moth
ing
"No indeed, Katie" l said. spring
ing to my feet. THE man was only
a troublesome book agent. | soon
got rid of him, but | guess the heat
has affected me. | felt little
dizzy all of sudden"
dot cakew Katie exclaimed in
remorse. dot kitchen too hot Ter
you. l ought to feex table in din
ing room"
"What nonsense! l exclaimed.
81 shall be all right in moment
But will you please look after my
cake? | must do some telephoning
right away"
For | knew thatI must find out at
once if possible the names of the
associates of Horace Kent, the emf
r.u< ,ttorpay eno,oed for the de-