The Coolidge examiner., 1932-02-26
CHAPTER TX
Portraits by Roberts.


L once locked the door and drew
the curtains at the windows. He
then opened his bag and took out a
quart bottle of whisky. With it he
went into the washroom and poured
himself a half-glass of the liquor.
After drinking it neat he gasped
and coughed, but even in his nerv-
BUSINESS he remembered to play
host. He rinsed the glass and came
out to offer it and the bottle to
Stanton, who shook his head.
mo? All right" said Rob
erts. "We'n have lunch here in the
room. Well have all our meals
here. Blair and Ashley are on the
train. I'll need all the breaks If l
can get away from them. D-n the
luck that / had to run into them at
old man Darling's. without that
I'd have had a fair chance"
lit might seem that Roberts at
this time was overemphasiZing the
probable consequences of this unfor-
tunate coincidence, however true
they proved in the event. Allow
ance. however, must be made for all
the motives animating the Turner
will associates. Persons with init
mate knowledge of their characters
gave more weight to distrust than
to desire of money without at all
overlooking the strength Of the lat
ter. AS Maisie later says. 1t was a
panic. Turner undoubtedly knew
the men thoroughly. Possibly If
Blair and Ashley had not encoun-
tered Roberts as they did in New
burgh the temptation to do away
with him might have been resist
ible. This remains conjectural, but
it is possible that without the meet
ing at Mr.. Darling's home the MUIR
ders might have been three and not
six.1
"Ill ring for the porter" said
Roberts. Have him send a waiter.
Whenever anyone comes I'm going
into the washroom."
"Pll go through the train," said
Stanton, land see if they're on"
"What good would that do?"
You'd be able to stop worrying
in one case and really begin it in
the other"
Never mind. l know they're on
the train. They may or may not
know l know it. Let them guess.
I'll need all the breaks"
After lunch Roberts slept on the
couch and Stanton read. When
Roberts lazily aroused himself he
played games of solitaire, and en-
joyed his bottle, coaxing the lieu
tenant to join him in a two-handed
game of cards or in drinks.
You're a dull John Law" he said.
Hunt up your friends" said the
lieutenant. "We might invite them
in."
That's an idea. A truce. They'd
keep it as long as they wanted to-"
What did you fellows do to Tur-
ner? You might as well begin clean
ing up that"
THAT seems to be preying on your
mind. Nothing was done to Tur-
ner. Incidents will happen in
rough life. We haven't lived in the
parlor. Sometimes one man would
get little the worst of it and some
times another. No one would keep
account Of them. Turner wasn't the
fellow to do it."
Just a great big boy"
That's It,"
And the best two-fsted hater
I've ever heard of. Play your cards.
or you'll have me knowing I'm
simpler than I am"
With dark and after dinner Rob
erts appeared almost at ease in his
mind His bottle explained some of
his comfort. The cloister sense
he again had the curtains drawn
in the closed room of the speeding
train was another reason for his
lifting spirits. He was talkative.
and the lieutenant thought some
thing might come of that but very
little did.
They'll pair for it," he said late
in the evening in one of his few ref
erences to his flight, "but l may
handle them yet. They've always
been paired, and it's a queer combi-
nation at that. l never could un-
derstand how they trusted each
other. l don't believe they can. I'll
never know why l haven't trapped
and shot them. Nothing but scruples