Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1926-03-12

anu tnen steal quietly up from the root
OF the massive bedstead till II fell the
briefest moment upon pallld face,
and was then withdrawn before the
lightest sleeper could awake. He knew
Cyrus Holden perfectly well by sight.
The motionless figure lay in apparent
deep and quiet sleep, one arm thrown
above the head and the other extended
on the coverlet. But Mr.. Lynch had
known men, under similar circum-
stances, to feign sleep, and as he ad
vanced toward the bed with the velvet
tread Of cat, both revolver and Ian.
tern were in readiness As he bent
downward to study the bankers face
the burglar suddenly stood erect and
shrank back, crouching.
The open eyes were fixed in a CLASSY
stare upon the cellingi
During that moment Of awful sus.
pense the ray Of light was again al.
lowed for an instant to rest on the face.
A pennyweight's more pressure on the
trigger would have sent bullet Into
the body on the bed For the first time
In his professional career Mr.. Lynch
felt his nerve oozlng away. The un
canny stare of the open eyes unbnl-
anced him. Was II the frozen stare of
fear, or Of sleep, or Of death7 II death,
so much the better--but It was Mr..
Lynch's principle to take nothing for
granted until proven.
Placing his revolver on the carpet.
he drew a cleaning knife and again
crept toward the bed. The motiOnless
face did not culver an eyelash, Onl,
lay looking upward with that haunting.
damnable stare. When the light hal
moved within u foot Of the face, II
strong arm swung from the lnky back
ground and drove the knife hilt dee
Into the spot which to the robber b.
trained eye covered the sleeper's hear
As lie pulled upward, his finger.
slipped over the handle and the knit,
was left firmly fxed. The violence OF
the thrust turned the body on It's side
with the face away. A tremor ran
through It, and then the figure lay nj d.
tiOnless.
Mr.. Lynch reeled as he stopped Ia
pick up the revolver. Cold beads %
sweat stood out on his forehead, anG
his legs quivered under him. Turning
his back upon the bed, he worked with
feverish haste to finish and get awny.
From cabinet to dresser he hurried.
leaving the drawers open and their
contents strewn about the floor, but
he found nothing Of value. The library
then he would be through The door
was closed, but not latched. NoIs,
lessly but hastily pushing It open, lac
stepped from the haunting chamber In
to the food Of light
Good Godp
There before him, with q revolver
leveled full at him, stood the perfect
Image Of Cyrus Holdeni Mr.. Lynch's
nerve stretched and snapped He was
standing on the edge Of eternity He
only knew one thing to do--sho0t he
fore the other fellow Like a lightning
fash he swung his own weapon into
position and pulled the trlggsr-once I!
twice thrice i-all In a seconds
time. Through the smoke he saw the
figure yet standing In the same threat
ening posture-piercing him with that
stony stare from behind the leveied
revolver. 1t did not shoot---It did not
move! Was II man or devil7
The next instant the weapon dropped
from the burglars hand, and turning
he ran screaming and cursing through
the dark chambers, where the body lay
with the knife driven into it-thrOugh
the next room into tho c0rridor--hea1.
long down the steps and out into the
streets from the awful place-un-
manned and a temporary maniac.
The banker awoke ut the three shots
to hear the unearthly shrieks and hur-
ried flight Of some one through bis
secret chambers. A moment afterward
concealed panel door opened from n
wall Of the bed chamber where the
body lay, and Cyrus Holden timldly
emerged from his unknown sleeping
closet, bearing a light. He advanced
to the bed and rolled the wax counter
felt Of himself on Its back. A knife
was sticking In the cardiac region OF
the dummy double. Then the banker
crossed into the library. The wax
statue Of himself which stood there
holding the leveled revolver, presented
a most grotesque appearance. A por
ton Of Its lower jaw was shot away
and there we're two other bullet holes
In the body, either Of which would have
proved fatal II the dummy had been
man.
At his feet Mr.. Holden found MI
Lyncb's lighted bull's-eye and revolver
This suggested to him the probability
that the burglur would not tell the
secret Of the locked chambers, and he
hastily refastened the doors az he
heard the butler coming up. As the
banker again passed through the panel
door into his secret sleeping closet
there was look Of pleased triumph
on his face. The Disagreement Of the
wax dummies did not seem to annoy
him. They had proven valuable sub
stitutes, and he could order two more
from Paris.
The cool night air and the peaceful
suburban street brought Mr.. Lynch TO
himself with Jerk. He realized that
his conduct was unprofessional in the
extreme, and pulling or the black half
mask, he skunk into the darkness OF
convenient alley. An hour later he was
speeding from the city aboard the 1rs;
outbound train. That was his last
nights work In the CROOKED" line.
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