Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1930-02-05
|E6RIHEIQyEdP&r

1leSu Oh tIc Bull LlIOuku
clouds IN a storm-cracked sky had
driven the fright from the girls
eyes. Madame Leclerc, whose chair
rubbed arms with that Of her one
time prisoner. reached over and
patted her shoulder.
Cheer up. my dear" she said
with a smile that lent a wonderful
charm to her handsome face. we
are going TO help you and your
brother. Herbert Maxwell Is very
cunning. a very tricky Scoundrel,
but without Jean Bouchard 10 help
him he cannot hold the fortune he
has sto' ri"
II most certainly hope you are
right, Madame Leclerc," she said
earnestly. But I cannot help feel
ing skeptical when anyone speaks
Of defeating Herbert Maxwc2zS
carefully planned schemes. For as
long as I can remember I've heard
him spoken Of as a wizard and
now. with my own experiences 70
war; me, I freely confess that I'm
afraid OF himi"
Hes a fox sure enough and as
crooked as any corkscrewl" de-
| clared the crooked ones late S
| sistant, the rasp Of a grievance in
his tones. When Old Maxy wants
something from you he's the grand
est promiSer in seventeen Statesl
When you ask something from him.
he's most likely to hand you a
double-crossl"
Has he handed you a double
cross yet?" asked ballard curious
ly.
I'll say he did" gritted the 9TH
er. his nostrils ~quivering at the
recollection Of his wrongs. He
promised me one OF the fourteen
million my resemblance to Jimmy
Blair enabled him to steal from
his wards. 1 had no choice. II was 70
help him or be turned over to the
French police for a crime I didn't
commit. After we had taken the
Blair securities to the bank safety
deposit vault I asked for my share
and a box for myself. Did I get Il?
HUH He never made any answer
to my Squawk. He Just slowed away
the stuff-all in one box, for which
he got the key. He told me he'd
fix me up with a ten thousand
dollar checking account. I protest.
ed. He laughed. When he opened
the account for me upstairs he made
a stipulation with the officials that
% dollars a day must be the limit
OF my Withdrawals. / had 10 accept
or get nothing. His purpose. YOU see.
was to keep me tied to him. It's
Just as I told him: He had the
first 'double-cross' put on me; at
the finish he'll double-croSs me
himself Just as he's double-croSSed
the Blair twins. He'll make 1t a
triple-cross-if he has his wayl"
Rex ballard and the Doctor
laughed outright. Not o much at
the clever trick OF Maxwell as the
naivete displayed by young Bouch-
ard; his candid acknowledgment,
virtually, that his grievance owed
itself to MaXwell'S double-croSsing
tactics. Margery smiled vaguely,
but Pats face indicated a big ques-
ton in her mind. Madame Leclerc
studied the countenance OF the
young man who had promised to
help save her husbands life. She,
too, seemed to be asking herself a
question.
Returning to their apartment
near Gramercy Park that night, or
morning. rather, in the taxicab in
which they had taken Pat and
Margery home, ballard and the
Doctor discussed the problems OF
Pat and the possible effect that
Madame Leclerc and Jean Bouch-
ard might have in the girls deal
ings with Herbert Maxwell.
The woman. I believe, Is a square
shooter and TO be trusted" averred
Rex. But this Bouchar6-" He
shook his head and the gesture, just
observable IN the dim glow OF the
tiny i~ncandescent above, vas dis
tinctly significant. The young man
whose resemblance to Jimmy Blair
had brought so much heart-ache
and worry to Patricia was, obvious
~, an individual to be watched, If
Rex ballard was any judge Of men
and their ways. The Doctor nodded.
in agreement. evidently, with both
spoken and unspoken opinions.
The fellow strikes me" he said.
"as being an average example OF
the educated crook, as well as the
typical rat OF the underworld. And
the rat, the squealer. you know. IS
the most hated product OF crook
dom. Unless I'm greatly mistaken