Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1931-02-12
CHAPTER TX

Some Light and More Darkness
CHE had expected that statement
- 20 startle him. but she'd no
where near guessed what the force
OF the explosion would be. The ut
ter disintegraton OF panic that his
whole appearance betrayed would
have been ludicrous II II had not
been revolving. His face had gone
q sickly shiny yellow. A door had
opened and the man in the blue
serge suit was In the room. "Yes.
sir?' he said interrogatively.
I didn't ring. Conley." Forster
told him. without looking around
Understand now. I shan't want you
until I ring"
IL was precisely the same phrase.
Rhoda noted. that he'd used In dis
missing the man the other time. 10
was no doubt q code order TO
station himself az some listening
post where he could hear everything
they said.
What was Il you were saying7"
Forster asked That some trunk
Of yours had been stolenT'
Yes" she said. my hat trunk,
while I was out at lunch. AT least
! think that's when it was. When
7 went back TO the studio after
lunch. about two O'Clock. 7 found
Il gone"
Went home after lunch. dId
your" he asked. after n sharp look
at her. what kind OF hours do
you keep on your jobY'
81 had this afternoon OF" she
told him. II didn't 20 back 10 the
paper nc all"
We'll. then, he demanded, how
did you get my message that you
were 70 come up here and zee mer'
She hadn't foreseen the question.
and her instinctively truthful an
swer was. Il didn't"
We'll" he persisted. -how did
you know who 7 was or where I
lived? What did you Gene here
forg"
She smiled at him ms ahe said.
Its rather complicated I came
here without having planned 10. and
I was surprised when I found you
were expecting me. I didn't know
anything about you until last night.
Even then I hadn't decided 70 en-
swer the advertisement / didn't
connect you with my father, you
see. nor know that you'd been his
friend. Wei. last night I got a let
ter from a woman I'd never heard
OF before. asking me TO lunch with
her today. She said she'd known
my father well and had something
very important to talk to me about.
! went to lunch with her TO find
out what II was. What she seemed
interested in was my fathers pa
pers. whether he'd left any and
whether I had destroyed them I
told her I hadn't; I'd kept them all
together In q trunk. She said she'd
given him a letter to keep for her
and now she wanted IL back She
suggested that / take her home with
me-to my room, you know-and
let her help me ind t. I told her
that thar wasn't necessary, bot that
I'd ind II for her II I could When
! said that. she excused herself
from the lunch table TO 70 out and
telephone When she came back she
kept talking and ordering more
food 50 that I couldn't get away.
When ! finally cot away and went
home. ! found that the trunk vita
my fathers papers In 1t was gone"
His little gimlet eyes had been
boring right into her All the while
she talked. Now. at her first pause.
he barked out. who was this
woman
She told me-" Rhoda answered,
that her name was Claire Ceve-
land"
A sudden suffusion OF blood In
his face turned IL purple. He beat
feebly but furiously upon his desk
with a loosely clenched hand. so
you've Joined I'D with that black
mailing woman, have your he
said
II haven't Joined ID with her
at ALL" Rhoda retorted. "Tve lust
been telling you I think she stole
my trunk. She talked to me about
you quite a lot at lunch-after
she'd come black from the tele-
phone. that Is. She said she'd seen
your advertisement for me In the
newspaper"
Cro 81 coNrENUEDs