The St. Charles herald., 1922-05-20

eXClteuIy uuStcduyS AS PosASN
beside the door.
The door opened almost instantly
so quickly after the ring, indeed, that
Alan, with leaping throb Of his heart'
knew that some one must have Deeh
awaiting him. But the door opened
only half way, and the man who stood
within, gazing out at Alan question
ingly, was obviously servant.
"What is it?" he asked, as Alan
stood looking at him and past him to
the narrow section of darkened nall
which was in sight.
Alan put his hand over the letter
in his pocket. "Tve come to see Mr..
Corvet," he said-"Mr. Benjamin
Corvet."
"What is your manner?
Alan gave his name; the man re-
peated it after him, in the manner of
a trained servant, quite without in
| Election. Alan, not familiar with such
tones, waited uncertainty. So far as
he could tell, the name was entirely
strange to the servant, awakening
neither welcome nor opposition, but
indifference. The man stepped back,
| but not in such q manner as to invite
/ Alan in: on the contrary, he half
| closed the door as he stepped back,
leaving it open only an inch or two;
but 1t was enough so that Alan heard
him say to some one within:
"He says he's him."
| "Ask him in; will speak to him."
1t was girls yoice-this second one,
| a voice such as Alan never had heard
before. 1t was low and soft but quite
clear and distinct, with youthful, i'm
pulsive modulations and the manner
of accent which Alan knew must go
with the sort Of people who lived IN
houses like those on this street.
The servant, obeying the voice, re-
turned and opened wide the door.
"Will you come in, sir?"
Alan put down his suitcase on the
stone porch; the man made no move
to pick 1t up and bring it in. Then
Alan stepped into the hall face to face
with the girl who had come from the
big room on the right.
She was quite young girl-not
over twenty-one or twenty-five, Alan
Judged; like girls brought up In
wealthy families, she seemed to Alan
to have gained young womanhood In
far greater degree in some respects
than the girls he knew, while, at the
same time, in other ways, she retained
more than they some characteristics
Of a child. Her slender figure had q
woman's assurance and grace; heI
soft brown hair was dressed like a
woman's; her gray eyes had the open
directness Of the girl. Her face
smoothly oval, with straight brows
and a skin so delicate that at the
, temples the veins showed dimly blue
J was at once womanly and youthful
, and there was something altogethei
likable and simple about her, as she
studied Alan now. She was slight!
pale, he noticed, and there were lines
of strain and trouble about her eyes
81 am Constance Sheriff." she an
nounced. Her tone implied quite evi
j.. dently that she expected him to hav'
some knowledge Of her, and she scenes
t surprised to see that her name did no
] mean more to him.
! "Mr. Corvet is not here this morn
j, Ing" she said.
q He hesitated, but persisted: Il wa
e to see him here today, Miss Sheriff.
D He wrote me, and I telegraphed him
would be here to-day"
! 81 know" she answered. I'VE ha
your telegram. Mr.. Corvet was no
here when 1t came, SO my fatne
opened it." Her voice broke oddl!
and he studied her in indecision, wor
dering who that father might be tha
opened Mr.. Corvet's kilograms.
"Mr. Corvet went away very sue
denly" she explained. She seemed, n
thought, to be trying to make som'
thing plain to him which might be
shock to him: yet herself to be III
: certain what the nature of that shoe
might be. Her look was scrutinizin
| questioning, anxious, but not III
friendly. "After he. had written 70
and something else had happened
think-to alarm my father abo,
i him, father came here to his house
look after him. He thought som
thing might have ;. happened to M
Corvet here in his house. But M
Corvet was not here"
"You mean he has-disappeared
Eyes; he has disappeared"
Alan gazed at her dizzily. Benz
min Corvet-whoever he might be
had disappeared; he had gone. D
any one else, then. know about ALI
Conrad?
"No one has seen Mr.. Corvet," 81
A. said. "since the day he wrote
:. you. We knew that-that he becar
so disturbed after doing that-writil
to you-that we thought you mu
e. bring with you information Of him. .
Information
IN $50 we have been waiting for y
,d to come here and tell us what y