The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1921-01-18
HANDS
A BeUiIdering DetectiUe Story
 By Robert Orr Chipperfield
XXVII. SVNOPCVS

A-h u,
 SYNOPSIS
 Two strange deaths in the home
 Of Richard LOrne brings Barry
 Odell, a detective, to the house.
 are wayIaid by thugs hired by Farley Drew upon whom Sus-
 picion rests and taken to an old
 boathouse. They escape leav-
 ing one of their captOrs dead and Odelf reports to his chief going { carefully over all the data he has collected in the Lorne home. q. As the chief opened his lips to reply Ethe telephone rang and he took the freceiver.
 .'windermere? Sheriff Higgins kspeaking? This is police Eheaduuarters New York. Yes, Bout as quick as you can to a boat thouse the shore of the Sound tabout mile and a half from your Eyou on whose place it is, but there's fcanoe stored there with the name rMidinette' painted on it. You'll find ka dead man sitting in a chair and Eanother sleeping off jag. Hold him ko What? Nothing left? No trace of the bodies? You're sure it's the right l.. The Osgood Praye estate. Thanks sheriff. My men Eare on the way out to you now, and Fl will appreciate it if you will give Fdhem all particulars"
 He hung up the receiexcr slowly fand turned to Odell. d.
 That boathousc burned down to T0he concrete piles last night an hour batter you and Miller made your es- Ecape," he said soberly..
 ! s'tWhen the village fire depart1n ent EBot there they found nothing left but "a mass of charred timbers washing faround between the piles-and no trace EunF hn
 "The lamp Oden calculated ~"There wasn't enough oil in it to last tmore than an hour longer at most Irony must have walked up and 1urch- bed against 1t, for there wasn't any wind to blow it over. Cad! what a fdeath for hin!''t a,.r
 An hour later, after making him. sseIf presentabIe and with the data (which the chief had given him care ffully catalogued in his mind, the de- ttective set out for the Meade house. His first intention was to see Gene and force from him an explanation of tthat note which Drew had made an teXcuse for the interview in the room tback of the shop, and he anticipated ifhat the explanation would merely lconfirm his own later suspicion; but that would be a so much dead wood out of his path
 He had interviewed neither Lorne nor his youngest Stepdaughter as wet, and if they could furnish him
  ?tion was all that was left to him. The chief was even now honeycombing sthe city for Drew, but his apprehen- ssion was a matter of relative unim- portance to IOde1l; he was too deeply engrossed in the problem which the recent events in the Meade house pre- sented to give a thought stp1personal reprisal for his abductiqn; and he no longer believed that Farley Drew had any hand in the series of crimes he was investigating. x.-
 Peters, looking slightly better than sat their last meeting opened the door i. ito him, and Miss Meade met him with outstretched hand in the hall. "Oh, Sergeant Odell, I'm so glad that you have comet" There were tired lines under her eyes "Mr. Horne looked for you eagerly yester- tday, and I've were all anxious to see you" ~ Miss Meade?"
 much in the dark as before, but the Isuspense is horrible It has been a scomfort to know that your men were ; There to protect the children"
 '"The children alone, Miss Meade lThe next blow might have fallen on kyou; have you thought of that?" he asked her quietly.
 She shook her head.
 "I thought only of the others. Ii doesn't matter about me; you see. s-tI have no fear. But tell me, have lyou discovered anything Sergeant fOdell Although I shranSZ at frs , from a knowledge of the truth I fee now that any awakening, no mattel how bitter and sou l-crushing, swoulc be far better than this nightmare 1T which we are all living. Please 'bs frank with me; I must know"
 f My dear Miss Meade. when I have any news you may rest assured tha you shall be the first to hear it, h' Replied gently. 3 twill you go up to my. brother-in law now? Hes has beenS asking fol you ever since he woke up. Sh' paused and then added: But you Hook very tired, Sergeant Odel1; ma! not first offer you cup of coffee! 7 x He shook his head smilingly.
 'la Thank you, no. l tbreaN1astet < eadly. I will interview MT. Lorn nresently but first should like to SC ETaylor, one of my. operatives here