Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1921-05-05
CHAPTER XIV
The Lure of Chance

'he Lure O1 thanCe
NN THEIR way to breakfast the
~ next morning McCarty bought
sheat of newspapers and when the mod
cSt little restaurant was reached he
handed all but one of them to his COM
punion.
"Iicre. Denny. Have a look at what
ihc boys. say about the release Of Hill.
J u bet they've put up howl you could
hear IN the next world if SO be you were
there"
(which I'm not yet but there's no
telling after tonight, Dennis said
Garkly. You'd no call TO be letting
me III for another dose Of the black art
of that Terhunc. Have you no inter
est Yourself in the news Of the dny?"
"l'm looking for a certain ad." Me-
Carly replied. "IIere It is. Lost. On
Thursday night. black Russian sable
scarf. five skins. private seal engraved
on small gold clasp. Liberal reward
Address Y. Daily Bulletin.
Whatever" Dennis gave little
start. oh. remember And is ~
Mrs: Kip"
"No. 'Ts nc. said McCarty mod.
cStIy. after ! phoned you last night
to meet mo for dinner stopped at The
Bulletin Office and put that in I'd Ike
!" ''H' Mp i"'c ~ NV I"uuS u
but what's the matter with your
! own? You look as if something had
bit you 80
Mac" The newspaper shook in
Dennis excited hand. What was 1t
that you heard Ford say 70 his wife in
! the hall yesterday ay?-That he was done
for. wasn't it,
YES. WHAT"
well. guess he was, all right
Give look at that
Dennis passed over tho paper and
McCarty read in ilaring headlines:
Failure on Stock Exchange. Ions
dale Ford & Co. Go to Wall. Many
Small Investors and Spectators Hard
| Hit in Crash"
Below in smaller type appeared the
glanced through it. lie was working
against time now: against the time
when the inspectors dragnct might
bring in the girl. lisa. or he might tire
of waiting and arraign lfil formally
before a magistrate on n murder charge.
\ sudden inspiration had come TO the
CN- -rOundSman and charaCtcristiCally he
determined TO put it at once to the test
so that was what Ford meant. "
McCarty commented. Come on. let =
order; III go over and h2-.s a little in =
| tcrvicw with him before hr leaves the
house. I'm thinking hc'll be NOR" ready
(" talk now that it's all come out than
he wuS yesterday.
TEoy ntc quick breakfast and Nc
Carly left Dennis to proceed to the
fire house with the understanding that
tho latter was to call for him nt his
rooms at that nj -. In the cross
town car he studied tho Bulletin once
more. but not for the satisfaction of re-
reading his advertisement the repro
duCtiOn of photograph on the second
page had cnught his eye.
1t was that of broad. .shouldcred
man Of about forty, undcniably hand ,
some AT Il casual glance. although
closer inspection revealed slight but
telltalc fuIlncsS Of the lips and hcavi-
ness Of jowl. and the eyes with their
almost feminine sweep of lashcs did not
seem to meet the gaze quite Sluarcly.
! There wCrr tn"ipiCnt pouches beneath
them. too. aud tho smile which was in g.
tended to Uc dn>!ing held the suggrs =.
ton Of lcrr Under the picture was
the name "EuG"uc ChrislOphcr Crcvc-
I ling.
Where hud he soon that face before /:
lie had known il on sight for that OF
the man stretched upon tho floor Of the
study two nights ago. and yet MctartN
roH peculiar haunting sense OF ia
milarity as "F u living presence.
lie was still pondcrinG over il when
he rrachcd the st. Maur Apartments.
The sam" servant admitted him ne
on tho day before. but tho smile was
gone from his Asiatir Countcnnnr", and
| although the drawing room presented as
braycly luxurious an air. there was an
atmosphere ~ fOrlorn bravado about 1t
which pcrmcatrd even McCariy's mat
ter -Of fact scnSibilitiCS.
"Wcll. what can DO for you now:
\ tonclcsS. indc9cribably weary voice
spoke just behind him and McCarty
whrricd. an unrontrollablr gasp c,rau.
ing him AS his eyes met those of Ions
dnIr Ford. Could this broken creature
with his twisted, bitter. tragic smile be
tho same man who had so coolly and ar
rogautly ordered him from his prCscn""
on the previous day?
"Mr. Ford, II hope you'll not
think I'd have intruded on you now II
| could have helped it, sir, but we're
still working on the Crevcling matter
and I've got to obey orders.
"Oh. thnl's all right. my man. One
thing moro or less doesn't make any
difference now" Ford mOtioncd toward
chair aud then sank into another op-
positc, rs though his legs would no
longer support him. yet hc added with
touch Of the old ssvagcncSs in his
tone: ~ didn't shoot CrCvciug, il it
will do you any good 10 know It, but
wish | had, and then put bullet
through my own brain He's dead, but
he was n damned eur, The papers are
saying lot Of rotten things about me
this morning; that | played my Gus