Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-10-07

~ AROLINE'S scream was q lamp
that lighted me down through
whirling darkness until it went
~ out in the gale whistling past
my ears. Just how long lay
on the floor I never knew. Half an
hour, perhaps. A swarm Of bees dron-
ing in my ears presently told me was
still alive.
My head was a ring Of agony, my
stomach was crawling into my throat
The supremely vital thing was that my
torch had revealed to me the livid face
of LIE Balafre and that Caroline had
been with him. 1t was not the crooked
scar on the mans right cheekbone, nor
yet the features Of his face which had
startled me into thinking Of him as
being of neither the living nor the
dead, but the look of a man who has
lived too long in the shadow of his own
hatred. 1t was CHASTITY. Caroline had
been with him, and my own incom-
potency had left her with himl A
launch had come In. Bee would have
been in it. They'd be gone now. What
was to do? What could I do?
Where are they talking her?"
cried. why are they taking her2'
head"
Climbing unsteadily to my feet,
switched on the light. The bodies OF
Granger and Parados lay side by side
An undertaken had prepared them for
burial.
The closet door was open. 1t had
been shut and locked, the key gone
when Miss JahrieS and had come into
the room half an hour before. I had
hammered on the door and felt like an
idiot for doing so. The garments in the
closet were thrown about in confusion
A key was in the lock inside the door
Evidently lie Balafre had locked Caro-
line and himself in the closet and
threatened to kill her II she made their
presence known.
reeled onto the roof, where the cool
air revived me. A short distance Oh
shore a light was visible. 1t was trav-
cling north at fast clip. A small
craft, I decided. Was it the one had
seen putting into the cove? Perhaps
needed. There were two fast cruisers
at the jetty.
Nothing beats a forlorn hope for put
ting starch into q man. new down
the outside stair and along the cliff
to the cove trail. Three minutes brought
me on to the jetty.
Dropping into the cockpit Of the Par
ADDS cruiser, felt my way to the en-
CINE and fumbled for the starter
found IL. Inc mechanism WnlrreQ, pul
the engine did not fire. felt fol
matches. Mine were wet, and
stumbled into the cabin. Matches lay
on the table. Shivering, made my way
back to the engine and bent over It
striking a match. The sparkplug wires
had been wrenched out and the gaso-
line feed line broken.
threw myself aboard the police
launch. Its engine had been disabled
in precisely the same way.
Sick with despair, I fell back against
the rail. I wanted to fling myself over
board. Why hadn't done this?-
that?-the other thing?
But after a minute or so I was able
to think with some conference. Caro-
line had run into lie Barafre as she set
out to meet FIique and me. supposed
and he had had either to kill her or
keep her quiet until he could get away
But why had he taken her aboard
their launch when Bee put into the
cove? definite motive, something to
do with their revenge scheme, perhaps
was behind the abduction.
LIE Balafre's reason for being near
the house at all looked equally mex
plicable. Parados was Lacote and La