Charlevoix county herald., 1920-03-12

"Lets go then" she said disappoint-
eddy, and to my surprise on the way
out she renewed the subject of Mr..
CASTOR.
'You were asking If the old gentle
man left forwarding address. He
didntNleave any with me. If you find
out where he is. will you let me or Mr..
Wick know? Mr.. Wick wants to get
I'm touch with him"
Something told me then 1t must have
been Mr.. Wick she had telephOned 10.
Probably she had Informed him | had
been asking about the GastOns' adj
dress and had consulted him as to
what answer TO give. Putting the girl
into q taxi / paid her driver to take
her home and hurried back into the
hotel. | found the house detective
James German. | learned his name
was-waiting for me in the lobby.
WAS il TO the Granddeck she tele-
phoned?" asked eagerly.
at was 0909 Plaza. That's pri-
vate number | called up information,
and she wouldn't tell me where ii was.
I'll find out tomorrow though. There's
other ways besides through 'informa-
tion.'"
IF you find out yeah phone me
right away, won't your" asked him,
giving him my card.
"And have Lefty Moore's wife lis
tening in" he suggested. Nothing
doing. son. You'd better call me from
a public pay station"
"You're right about that" | replied,
"and say. look here. Why can't you
meet me somewhere tomorrow after
noon. There are lot of mysterious
things happening in the Granddeck.
Maybe you can help me in trying to
clear them up"
Its a date. I'll be in the back room
of jim Connor's place over on Third
avenue at three o'clock waiting for
YOU"
'T'll he there" said, as | babe him
+ good night.
Hold on a minute" he said. do
sOu hioW NHtIt Ltliy NIopiC wiz
lives now?"
recalled the number she had told
me TO give the taxi man and repeated
il to him, an address way over on
East Sixty-second street near the
river.
81 like to know them sort of things"
he explained. "In our business you
never know when you'll be needing
them"
On my way home, after left him. |
congratulated myself ~ having made
James Germans acquaintance. In
him had found man with police and
detective experience. The fact that
he held a responsible position with -
big hotel ought to be sufficient voucher
for his honesty. OF course Miss Brad
ford must he consulted before | met
German the next afternoon I could
hardly tell him my own almost unbe-
lievable experiences without bringing
in the attempts to blackmal her sister.
Surely Miss Bradford would not OBJ
ject to my plan. We were making
such poor Roadway in solving the mys-
terry ourselves that ! was certain she
would welcome Germans advice.
And would 1t not be a surprise to
Barbara Bradford to learn that a
criminal-or at least the wife of a
criminal-was employed as telephone
girl in the apartment house? ] was
hoping that she would be at home and
in her room when I arrived at the
house so that l might signal her and
tell her my great news at once.
let myself into the apartment and
without bothering to turn on the lights
made my way back toward my own
room. AS | reached the end of the
hall my ears detected a scufIling noise
that seemed to come from my quar-
tiers. | stopped stock-still and listened
breathlessly. UnquestiOnably there
was someone in my room.
tiptoed softly forward. AS / crept
along i'm the darkness, making no
sound, I found myself devoutly wish
: ing for some weapon. OF course it
might be Barbara, who had entered by
means Of the ledge to leave some mes
sage for me, but if it were not she, |
felt certain that I would discover who
was at the bottom of the plots
& against us.
! gained the door without my pres
ence having been discovered. In the
dim half-lght that came from the open
window / could detect figure stand
ing on a chair apparently feeling along
the wall near the ceiling. | recalled
with curiosity that it was from that
spot that the whispers had heard
had Seemed to come.
Inch by inch I edged noiselessly for
ward, my eyes on the intruder until at
last my fingers found the electric light
button. AS the light flooded the room
mn r#infHfiF ~. N