Macon beacon., 1922-12-29
The Case and The Girl
"But his partner7'

"Oh, Wen leave him somewhere
propped up against a door Likely
he'll never know what happened 70
him, or where. He amt nothing To
be afraid of-juSt a butler with a
cracked head. It's the other guy who
has got the brains. Come on; lets
take a look out in the alley"
Their shadows vanished M the
stairs, the glow Of light disappearing,
and leaving the cellar in impenetrable
darkness West did not venture to
move, however. content TO wait until
thoroughly assured the way for eS-
cape was clear He had not learned
much from this conversation, except
10 increase his convictions that a seri-
Gus crime was being conSummated
The full nature of this conspiracy was
as obscure as ever; rendered even
more doubtful indeed. by the active
participation of Natalie Coolidge
This was what puzzled and confused
him the most. He could no longer
question her direct interest in the
affair, or heG willingness to assist
in overcoming his efforts. Even with.
out the free testimony of the men
this fact was sufficiently clear. She
had deliberately lied to him, attempted
deceit and then, when he refused TO
yield to her efforts, had so reported
to Hobart, and left him to his fate.
1t was manifestly impossible for him
to believe In her any longer. Yet what
could it all mean? how could she hope
to benefit by such an association?
Why could she thus shield the mur-
derers OF Percival Coolidge? What
possible object could there be in the
commission Of this crime except TO
gain possession of her own fortune?
1t was all mystery to his mind; a new
unanswerable question arising wher-
ever he looked.
What strange influence could this
man Hobart exercise over the girl?
To Vests judgment he was In no
way the sort of man to appeal to Ma
talie Coolidge. He was of low, cum
ming order. with some degree Of out
ward polish, to be sure, yet inherently
tough, and exhibiting marks Of
hirthright which indeiby stamped
him of a social class far below her
own. Surely, she could not love the
fellow, yet unquestiouably he pos
GeSSed mysterious power over her
difficult to explain through any other
hypothesis. If West had not known
the young woman under different con
ditions, he might have accepted this
theory, and dismissed the whole mat.
ter from mind. But it was the haunt.
ing memory of that earlier Natalie
Coolidge, the mistress of Fairlawn.
which would not permit his complete
surrender. She had seemed all that
his .'"eam of womanhood called for.
Urc nsciously, he had given her his
hear. and he could not tear the re-
membrance from mind. There was
something wrong. terribly wrong:
what 1t was he had no means Of know
Ing, yet, there in the dark, he deter
mined he would know, would never be
content until he learned the whole
truth. All his hope all his future, de-
pended on the answer.
Hobart and Turner were absent for
some little while; the sound of their
voices ceased, but the distant flicker
Of the lantern enabled West to trace
their progress up the alley. and then
back again. They returned in no
pleasant humOr convinced that their
expected victim had escaped safely.
but made no flirther effort 10 search
the yard. West, confident at last that
the way was clear, wriggled out from
his place of cOncealmcnt behind the
barrel, and stood erect He felt
stronger now, and in less pain, con
ynced that his injuries were in no
degree serious. The darkness was SO
intense he had to grOpe his way for
ward, anxious to make no noise which
might betray his presence.
In the intensity of the gloom, his |
sense Of direction failed taking him
somewhat further back before he
finally located the exact position Of |
those outer steps. Then as he turned |
abruptly, his foot came In contact |
with an obstacle on the floor. For an
instant lie could not determine what |
ii was then. with a thrill of horror, |
he realized the presence of human |
body. There was no sound, no move !
ment. and West drew back from con
tact with the object. shrinking in |
horror. Then he grlppcd himself |
sternly-whOever, whatever this was, |
he must know. Alive or dead he must |
determine the truth. He bent over, |
feeling with hands In the darkness. |
The flesh was warm; II was no cold |
corpse he touched, but a living human |
being; ay! tied like mummy, I'M
able to move hand or foot. Then rs
suddenly, his cropping fingers, eager
enough now, discovered the cause Of |
silence-the man was gagged, cruelty |
gagged, helpless to utter sound.
The situation once realized. West |
worked rapidly. If this bound man
was Sexton, the quicker he could be
4 -.