New Britain herald., 1926-09-20
BEGIN HERE TODAY

I land, is agog over the murder O Myra Heath and the disappearance
 of her husband, Perry.
 House guests of the Heaths are
 Lawrence Inman, heir to Myra's
 fortune, and beautiful Bunny Moore
 to whom suspicion points because oi
 her queer actions.
 Myra Heath never used cosmetics | yet when her body was found she
 was heavily rouged. A rare old bot
 tie from her collection of glass has
 been used by the murderer to kill
 her. Candles were burning at her
 head and feet.
 At the Country club the murder
 is discussed by Sam Anderson, Heaths rival for the club presi- dency; Al Cunningham, who is try ing 10 solve the crime, and others.
 Bunny is amazed to get a phone call from Heath, saying Inman is the murderer Inman confides to | Todhunter Buck, who Is in love with | Bunny. that he saw her ascending the stairs after the murder. One of the Heath servants says the same thing.
 i Cunningham goes to Anderson's s house, and there, while waiting for his host, is suddenly confronted by Perry Heath, who then vanishes in the darkness. Anderson arrives soon after and upbraids Cunningham for | letting Heath get away. Todhunter Buck, puzzling as to | the best way 10 clear Bunny, is sit l ting in the dark when Bunny slips | out of the house of his aunt, where she is now a guest, and joins a man at the edge of a wood. When Bunny leaves. Buck trails the man and recognizes Perry Heath. Heath gets away and the next day Buck pleads with Bunny to tell him all she knows.
 NOW GO ON WITH THE STORY
 CHAPTER XL
 Such considerations, dear, must be set aside in the cause of law and order"
 "H'm. I don't think a lawyer could talk any more priggishly than that. But, you know, Tod, you'd be suspected of anything, rather than tell something that might involve a friend, and-might after all involve him falsely"
 The girl looked so earnest, so worried, and so sincere in her ar guments, that Buck, though his heart gave a bound of delight at this tacit proof of her own inno- cence, realized it would be a hard job to persuade her to bear witness, which, as she said, might lead to discrimination of the wrong person.
 Well" he said, litle hopelessly, If you keep mum, you'll make more trouble all around"
 T don't care. I mean, l can't help it. I didn't kill Myra.-"
 But you made up her face"
 "Oh, you horrible, dreadful thing! I'll never speak to you again! Go away. How can you say such an awful thing to mel"
 Her eyes grew big with horror and she looked at Tod as if at some noisome reptile, and indeed, he felt as if he were one.
 I'm no good as a detective" he | thought to himself, I'm no good as an adviser or assistant to the girl l love;--in fact, I'm no good as lov- er,-she doesn't seem to see me In | that light. But I must get one more thing off my chest. must find 1 out whether she really said putty | last night, or some other word of | similar sound"
 So he rose to go away, then paused. and in tone he tried to 1 make casual. he said:
 What about putty?"
 He was both amazed and alarm ed at the effect of this speech.
 Bunny turned white, and her hands gripped the chair arms.
 How did you know" she whis- pered, staring at him as one might at a suddenly materialized ogre.
 Now, Tod had a strong inclination to say, "Oh, know all about 1t, and thus probably find out lot.
 But the girl looked so helpless and pathetic, so shorn of all her bravado and jaunty independence, that it semed to him unfair to deceive her.
 Moreover. whatever the putty was or meant, 1t was quite evidently an factor in the case, and he had no right to wrest the secret from her. If she chose to tell him, we'll and good. If not, he felt un- willing to force her hand.
 Do you know what I'm going to do, Bunny? I'm going to get a friend of mine. who's first-rate de- tective, to come here and look into things"
 "All right" she responded, but she spoke listlessly, as if she had all at once lost interest in the whole matter.
 "You're willing?"
 "Of course. Why not?"
 And, Bunny,-darling won't you smile at me-iust once? At me, mean, me, Tod Buck"
 Bunny smiled involuntarily, more at his whimsical pleading than in to his plea.
 That's better" he said. T sup pose you wouldn't-wouldn't-er, let me kiss you?"
 Leave the room," said Bunny with the dignity of an imperial kit ten, and grinning, Tod left.
 The day wore on, and at luncheon time, Bunny came downstairs, fresh and sweet in her white sports gown with it's narrow string belt of black.
 Though not in gay spirits, she was calm and kindly, and in response to Mrs. Prentiss' solicitous urging, she ate a goodly amount of the dishes that had been prepared with special reference to her tastes.
 "No," she said in answer to a question, mo, I just can't go over to the funeral this afternoon. I don't like funerals anyway, and 1t l