The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1930-02-07
CHAPTER XIV
Danielle's Secret

r0un0 MIN In the I1vlng room, play
ing solitaire. Mrs. Kicker was In the
chair by the window, tatting.
LANDS, SAM" said, sitting down
across the table from him. when do
you take to sitting around and vast
ing good time like this?"
81 am helping Miss Macdonald" he
said. making 1t easy for her TO
watch me and convincing her that
I'm more or less OF nut, at the same
time. Two birds with one stone"
"She isn't watching you" Mrs.
Kicker spoke up. "She is watching
Hubert and me. II don't leave here
soon, shall have to be taken-to an
insane asylum tell you. can't
stand it," She jumped up from her
chair, and went rushing out of the
room through the front door. On the
porch she dropped into chair, and
hid her face In her hands.
AS looked at her, sitting there,
remembered that II was she who had
found the body. Hen story had
sounded straight enough; but, before
she had told it, she had had plenty
of time to make it straight one.
Perhaps she had had help in making IL
a straight one.
Hubert Hand. He had, by his own
admission, served term In prison for
forgery. He had had notes from Gaby,
and had destroyed them. Was II pos.
sible that he might have written the
farewell note to Gaby, and the inscrip-
ton on the photograph? Sam could
not swear that Hubert Hand had been
in the barn the entire hour between
five and six o'clock.
Would IL have been possible for
Hubert Hand to have slipped into the
house, through the front door. during
that hour, without Danny's having
seen him? Possibie-that was all
Mrs. Kicker, of course, would have
seen Hubert Hand lass through the
room; but Mrs. Kicker could keep
secret.
Again, what had ne thought that
had overheard that day In the cabin
What motive could he have had for
killing Gaby? Suppose that Gaby had
lied to Danny about the entire con-
tents of the code letter, and that.
after all, the money had been hidden
on the place. That would be an ex.
PLANTATION for CanneZiano's coming TO
the ranch. But suppose that Hubert
Hand had found ft, or had known that
Gaby had found it
"Come home, Mary" Sans voice,
speaking extra low, cut In on my
reverie 81 want TO know what you
think about this
81 set Canneziano to mending the
south clover fence this morning.
told him | was going tu north clover.
On my way there, | passed the house.
| happened to remember how slick
Miss Macdonald had cleaned the attic.
1t seemed a shame not to use II so
went up, taking my field glasses with
me, for luck I'd watched about five
minutes, out of the window, when
saw Canneziano leave the fence and
make up toward the cabin. came
down, jumped on Bobbie Burns. and
circled around the hill, back of the
cabin. just as got my glasses
trained, saw Danny. walking to beat
time, coming away from the cabin.
| don't know whether she had been In
1t or not | didn't see her come out OF
it. | rode straight down. Before
had quite reached the cabin. Came
zianO came out of II. He was carry
ing a fishing rod. and he went right
down to the stream with 1t. What
I'm wondering is. had he and Danny
met at the cabin, and had talkT"
81 know exactly what Mrs. Kicker
MEANS" l said. "about losing her mind
on this place. 1t has come to the pass
that no one can do any simple thing
without being spied on and suspected.
Danny always takes her walks In the
direction of the cabin. We all do. II
is the prettiest. coolest walk on the
place."
Sam rubbed the pack of his head.
"By Joel hadn't thought of that"
"Think about it now. for a minute"
advised. "When you get through,
try to think whether you know of any
place where we could get hold of a
scrap or two of Gaby's handwriting.
We have the last note she wrote to
Danny, but we want something more"
you've come to the right place, for
once" he said, and took q long en-
velope ou, OF his pocket
81 guess never happened to men,
ton to you, did l. that fixed up a
small checking account for the girls
In the TelkO bank. Their bank state
ments and cancelled checks came In a
few days ago. Here they are. Do you
want me to take them up to Miss Mac
DonaldY
"Ill take them," offered. "and save
you the trip" ionged to see how
much of Sans money the girls had
spent in one month, and what they
had spent 1t for.
] don't know yet whether II was
cunning, contrariness. or courtesy that
propelled Sam up those stairs, with
the envelope tight In his hand. and
without having allowed me as much
as peek at its contents.
went into the kitchen and put
through fairly good batch of baking,
considering that I'd got late start
at It was all through and frostins
the cakes, when Miss Macdonald fele
phoned dOwE to the kitchen and asked
me to go for walk with her.
told her that I'd like nothing bet
ter than breath of the. clean, sage
seasoned air, and that I'd be ready In
ten minutes 1 gave Zlnnia q few d.
rections. and went upstairs to change
my sho.s.
AS | came down the front stairs.