The Omaha morning bee., 1925-04-06

flung at him might as well have been
hung at bronze image. "All right
| oil right. Burke said at last. Hell
talk tonight at headquarters, and
he'll be glad of the chance"
As Chalfonte took a step forward
AS If he We're going to accompany
Ghopal, he Was halted by Burke 5
hand on his arm. you stay right
here, Mr.. Chalfonte. When we wani
you. We'll tell you.'
| Helen had pulled Howell into the
| music room. Listen" she said, ex
citedly, Il just know he killed Aunt
| Emily. too. Grant told you how ht
scared her at dinner the night before
she was killed. They'll all tell vol
the same thing. Now Grant will gel
Off without any question. won't he.
Won't he?" she pleaded. when
Howell did not answer Immediately.
| "Of course, he'll get off. They
| can't hold him." Howell left indefinite
the reasons for their not holding
| Grant. 1t WAS hard to explain te
the frantic hope in the dark eyes
watching him. Just why Grant might
not be Immediately released
| 1t may take q day or two, Miss
Barr. There's so much red tape, you
know Red tape. he thought on To
himself, of connecting the theft of a
| jewel two days after a murder with
the actual murder itself. IN go on
down town now he went on, "and
get Just as much done as | can. And
| probably Ill be out tomorrow. and
take you down to see Grant. Keep
u stiff upper lip and open eyes, and
don't lose heart. Everything's going
to come out all right So long a
moment later the lights of his road.
ster We're cutting a wide yellow swath
through the foggy November night.
Sobbing quietly with relief, her
fears drugged with hope, Helen
| watched from the window until the
small red tail-light of the car had
| disappeared from view.
The others, she found. had gone
to their rooms with surprisingly lit
| tie talk. and she decided to do like
wise. She must be at her best when
| she met Grant.
Homer Chalfonte alone remained
| behind. He sat in an armchair before
| the fire in the library. his head bowed
on his hands, thinking. Vague memo.
ries stirred drowsily in the back of his
mind But as he reached them, they
eluded him, diving down into the dark
waters of memory. reappearing far.
ther on, only to elude again his des.
perate pursuit.
Out In the hall, Soames hooked the
chain on the front door, quoting soft.
| ly to himself:
"A hairi perhaps. divides the false
and true.
Yes, and a single alif were the clue
CHAPTER TX.
Unseen Listeners.
On Monday, after lunch. Chalfonte
fretfully paced the library. smoking
his Drowned ealabash, knocking the
| ashes out of 1t, filling it nervously
smoking again. Occasionally he tried
to read, but the papers had nothing.
| now that was new to him. The theft
OF the jewel had superseded the muir
der in the public interest. but only a
garbled version of the fact appeared
in print. Two of the stories, by over
stressing his connection with Ghopal,
limited at himself, without definitely
linking him with either crime.
Curse IL all. what did Ghopal mean
by stealing in home where he was
a guest, If he had to steal? These
Hindus what did he mean by
| jewel. indeed! Caught red handed,
and still maintains that the emerald
| Is his? and what the deuce did
he do with the ring. And the mur-
der. :. Did he murder, too? | don t
see how and yet he got into
that safe, somehow. . But / was
with him every minute on Thanks
giving morning"
Three times in the long Saba tea
boredom of the day before. when there
had been no developments, as the pa.
pers called them-as If both murder
| ers and detectives were enjoying n
day of rest--chalfonte had persuaded
| Hardy to call headquarters for him,
requesting permission TO visit Ghopa1.
After a final and positive and rather
| nasty refusal, Hardy had declined 10
| call again. I'm sorry, Mr.. Chal
fonte," he said. but there's nothing
doing. I guess they're showing your
| friend the goldfish. all right like they
said they would"
Showing him the goldfish -
| Chalfonte queried.
Yeh-making him talk a little
| Persuading him. when they're do
ing that, YOU can bet. they don't want
you around You see. they'll want To
connect him with the murder some
how. and they haven't got any too
much to do on. Id like to help you
but there's none of you that's too
| clear and I can't let you leave with
out putting you under arrest"
Again Chalfonte knocked the glow
| ing tobacco from his pipe into the fire
| place, and without knowing what he
had done, filled the pipe again. Here
1t was Monday afternoon. and still no
word from Ghopal. Then he raised
his head to look quickly at the door.
Hardy stood there smiling.
"All right, Mr.. Chalfonte. Get your
hat and coat. Well be going down
now. Just got message from head.
quarters TO bring you down. No-fot
| under arrest. Want YOU down there
to interpret your Hindu pals gibber-
| ish Not that he's talked much, or
any, except when they first took him
| down. And Smith, the district attor-
| ney, who's taking the case In hand
now. thinks maybe you can get him
to open up. Ready TO go?"
Almost-Soames, my coat and hat,
and take this pipe to my room, and
| bring me a half dozen cigars out of
the box on the window sill. I'll tell
Miss Minty where I'm going so that
they won't get any fool notions into
! their heads.
once outside. they found the wind
was cold, but the invisible sun, for
the first time In a week. in a wide
| portion Of the heavens was lighting
the hazy clouds to silver flame.
There was bracing friendliness about
the earth which he had sadly missed
In the past few days, Chalfonte real
| lied. And he was going to see Gho.
pal-there was some satisfaction in
| that.
In an hour they we're approaching
the gray stone bulk OF the county
courthouse, winding their way
through the stream of traffic.
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