The Ordway new era., 1920-04-30
There were three low raps at my
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door. Or was 1t my dOorf
1 listened-I must have been mis-
taken-though I'd only barely closed 1t
and was turning out the hall electric
The elevator that was taking Claire
and Billy down was still on its way.
Could monsieur have walked up!
The raps were epeated-unques-
uonably on my door. Without walt
ing-or even thinking TO call through
and ask who was there-I threw the
door open.
Mrs. Delario whipped In and closed
1t behind her.
Her face was almost concealed by
a heavy black veil. but / recognized
her and cried out, why, Mrs. Della
| rio," in utter amazement. What un-
der the heavens had brought her there?
She laid black-gloved finger on
her lips to signify silence; she thrust
something in my hand; she opened the
door and whipped out as she came.
| shutting it in my face.
She hadn't uttered word-she had
barely caused a sound; even the door
| closed behind her noiselessly. tore
1t open as my first impulse-when 1
got my breath-1thinking she'd be wait
| ing for the elevator. In the few sec
onds of my astonishment she had gone.
I checked call to her-"Airs. Della
rlo"-and listened for descending foot
steps on the stairs but heard nothing.
l sank into a hall chair. quite un-
| nerved-coming on top of what I'd
been through that day, feel I'd hnve
had justifiabie cause for faint on
my own account; only didn't swoOn.
1 kept asking myself: II it weren't an
| apparition how did she know which
door to knock at? / have no door
plate and she'd evidently not asked
George-he was taking the car down
with Claire and Billy at the moment
Mrs. Delario popped in. 1t didn't oc-
cur to me at first that she'd probably
seen me, from the corner of the stair
way, close that door after saying
goOdby to the others. There had been
three raps-classic appari,ions always.
believe. rap thrice when they wish
to enter your abode-they do not con-
descend to push a button; and then
she'd noiselessly whipped in and put
something in my hand
1 became conscious of hard object
In my fist; opened the fist and be-
held-the fatal box.
You could have knocked me over
with a featherl Impossible that she'd
brought 1t back 1 dashed for the din
ing room where the light was and
pulled of the cover of the box There
lay the diamonds
With a sweeping gesture I flung
them on the table-in one fell swoop
I'd been tumbled OFF my lofty perch
and had become victim once more
Just a disconnected. worried victim, re-
sponsible for the fate of nations!
And having thrown them down-One
of them fell OFF the table, snatched
them up-monsieur would return Mt
any minute for that private interview
with me, and now what was I to tell
him? l no longer had the gem-free
conscience of an hour ago-I had the
diamonds!
But 1 might have saved my ago
nies-monsieur did not return that
night-he had other fish to fry.
The canny cleverness Of monsieur's
next move gave me when / knew 1t
such keen intellectual joy that for
gave him everything.
He had argued 1t out thus: Either
should succeed or should fail with
Mrs. Delario. If / failed 1t would be
for one of two reasons: either she de-
MED all knowledge Of the diamonds,
or she had confessed to me yet had
been able to bind me to secrecy. But
In either case he would read my sue
cess or failure in my face the moment
he greeted me.
My face was blank. He hadn't ex-
pected to find 1t that way, but so 1t
wns-not a hint did l give him, first
when I opened the door, or later while
I talked with Claire. In fact, inside
of fifteen minutes he became con-
vinced that SO far as was concerned
my mission was failure and 1 was
hedging for time and unwilling to con-
fess 1t.
He was prepared for my failure-his
chance OF trapping her lay in his see
ing her before / could communicate
with her after seeing him. With a
fake telegram. delivered by George at
preconcerted moment to serve as
monsieur's excuse to leave the house,
and also as pretext to leave Claire
in the house, keeping guard over Billy
and my self-none of the three of us
suspecting it-monsieur had taken his
waiting automobile and swooped down
on Mrs. Delario