Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1919-03-01
CHAPTER N.
A Note From Vicky.

. n NOUO +AGa-5EE
Nor was it. I had cur Isssal
key to the house, Ir0m fnr ne "a
who W. Har POSSIBLE clues, rs I had told
thenl the;r Wits end to locate ytcky
a. .hay welcomed my help ana fele
van' az =. friend Of hers, I might learn
ma than a disinterested poncefaan
could. -,a,ivht catching
~ chance when the patrolman 9
my my nassed on his regular round, !
vent across Ii street.
MATED a quantity of letters.
Quietly. then, I opened the mouse
doqr ha ad provided myself with a peck
Of Aashlight. as I didn't Ran6 Y "
Illuminate the house, and ! weht AT
once to the music footh' ~ peiAoil.
my errand. M. ,o,,.,,,
roono. with dainty white n gold
furnishings, reminded me SO lorcipiy
~ the bewitching girl who owned It
ai, A thousand questions rose IN my
mind. What would become OF that
hiiou residence? The bric-a-brac ana
nictures, the rug and furniture, Wnlle
not magnificent, were Ct n best, ana
,,onv Of them costly. The great Chi
nese vase, into which I was to drop
the letters was a gem OF its KIND,
though not anything a connolsseur
I raised the dragon>topped lid, and
LOT the letters fall in. Replacing the,
lid, l still fingered. My errand was
! done, but l felt an p 10 stay.
Where was she now? Making sure
that the opaque blinds were drawn. I
dared to turn on n tiny electric
lamp. The faint light made the
Swallowed room l~ovelier than ever.
, Could a girl of such cultivated tastes
and such refinement of character be
"a wrong-doer? l couldn't say MUIR
dered even to myself. Then my COM
mon sense flared up, and told me
that crime is NO %respecter Of persons.
That women who had slain human
beings were not necessarily OF this or
that walk of life. Granted a woman
had a motive to kill a man, that mo-
tive lay in the impulses of her femi-
nine nature, and revenge, Jealousy,
fear, love or hate-whatever the mo-
tive, it wa of deep and over-power-
likeliness in the breast Of queen or
beggarmaid. I could not say Vicky
was incapable Of crime-indeed, her
gay, volatile might hide a
deeply %perturbed spirit. She was an
enigma. and IL must solve the rid
die. I felt I should never rest, until
I knew the truth, and If Vicky were a
martyr to circumstances, OF "a victim
to Fate, I must know all about it.
Alone there, in the midnight hours.
1 resolved to devote my time. all 1
could spare, my energies, all I could
command, and my life, so far as I
might. to the discovery Of the truth,
and I might or might not reveal my
findings as seemed to me best.
Leaving the music room, I went
back through the long hall, and
passed the door of 'Vicky's bedroom.
Reverently I looked inside. The very
walls seemed crying for her to come
back. Would she ever so do? I wan
dered on through the bedroom, and
even looked in the dressing room. T
felt no conjunction. 1t was not from
idle curiosity, rather. I walked as one
at a shrine. The exquisitely feminine
boudoir was a mute witness to a love
Of beauty and art. I used only my
1ashlight, but on an impulse, I turned
on one light by the side of the long
mirror. / looked in it, as vicky must
often have done when dressing for
her parties, as. indeed, she must have
done, when dressing that last fatal
night, and seeing my own grim refec-
ton, l gravely nodded my head at
myself, and whispered, we'll find the
TRUTH, old man. You see if we don't!"