Evening star., 1933-01-10
INSTALLMENT xxx.

II little stunned by the over
A a whelming piece of good luck
which had befallen him. It was
not easy to catalogue the information
which had been so generously handed
to him in moments time, but its
genuinenesS was beyond question. From
the mans talk it was obvious that he
had been out of touch with Santini,
perhaps since Immediately after the lat
ters arrival. Also, it was reasonable to
deduce that the man had been lying
low somewhere, for he had evidently
associated closely with Lejarre and Le-
Jarre was hiding from the police. Per-
haps the. mysterious agent did not even
realize that a second Europa had been
entered for the race So Lejarre was a
party to the theft of the rubies This
bit of Information threw light On a
great MANY things. Lejarre had been
with Armand each time the safe had
been opened. 1t was he who had helped
count the little packets in which they
had been kept, and it was he, beyond
doubt, who had palmed the real stones
and substituted the false under the very
noses of himself and the blockhead of
surete representative! Come to think
of it, the man had merely used the COM
moreSt of card tricks! And his formal
dress with the starched cuffs. which
was de rigeur at Piron's, had aided him
nicely, No wonder only one set of fin
gerprints showed on the papers NJ Jes-
SAINT had carried away for examination! |!
AND no wonder, too, that when Lejarre
got wind of this he had taken informal
leave of the establishment!
And so Santini under pain of death
from his distrustful confederates was
to hand over the jewels, return to Paris,
his hands apparently clean, TO begin a
new program of crime! Well, Armand
thought with satisfaction, not having
received any suggestions in the matter,
Sant1ni would undoubtedly make a dash
for Italy, as he had originally planned.
And If Santini went to Italy, the jewels
would go with him. If his arrest could
not be managed before the race then
he must be prevented from leaving the
track afterward, even momentarily. But
how? Cursing himself for fool in al
lowing his informant to leave without
shadowing him, Armand watched un-
seeingly while the good-natured Ber-
narde painted his car with a black
No. 7.
The system of police registration is
as complete in the principality OF
Monaco as anywhere in Europe, yet or
the night before the annual automobil=
race it did not contain the name OF
Santlni. M. Blot, one of the gentle
men sent down in confidence BY the
Paris prefet had carefully examined the
daily lists sent in by hotel and pension
keepers without adding to his informa- l.
tion, and it looked as though a house
toulouse canvass would be the only
means OF locating that elusive gentle
man.
Moreover, Santini had a lifelong ac-
cuantance with the out the way
corners of the whole Riviera and if
there existed safe hide-out in Monte
Carlo he was sure to know of it and
would be able to remain there tndef-
nitely, guarded by abysmal ignorance
on the part Of those who might oe
asked for information as to his where
abouts. The entry form which he had
signed for the automobile club bore an
address in Nice but inquiries revea, ed
that he most certainly was not staying
at 1t; while weary parade OF thc
streets and a more refreshing round
of cafes and bistrots had not yielded
so much as glimpse of him After
his brief visit to the Hotel de Paris
the man had apparently melted into
thin air. All of which was duly re.
ported to the Prince dOrsant, a ver,
worldly figure in impeccable evenin,
clothes. who listened to the recital i'm,
patiently enough. Armand, recalini
shop, shivered slightly, wondering i
by chance Santini had already bear
done away with? In man ordinarily
SO fond of publicity the gigolo's pres
- ent reticence was unpleasantly signifi
cant, to say the least Of it!
And the carp the prince demanded
Have You no trace Of that either?
The detective was most apOlogetic. II
had no trace of Santini's car, yet h
admitted that it must be right at thei
elbows; his cOnfrere was. in fact, a
that moment making a systematic in
spectlon Of private garages, but that
one comprehended, was an enormous
matter, an affair! Perhaps by tomor
row night
Tomorrow night will be too late.
De Pas told him grimly. adding L
himself that probably it was slread
too late. and his own course Of actiol
was still undecided beyond a certai,
point when half an hour later he wa
dining with Alacia and telling her tn
story OF his afternoons adventures. Sh
listened With all the attention of whici
that remarkable recital was worthy ant
beat her little fists on the damasE.
covered table in very becoming fur
when he had finished.
IF only we could lay our hands o.
that carl" she cried. There it stand,
biioux eompris, waiting to be take
away If only We could lay hands o.
it, Get it for me. Armand"
And" ssid ne. IF 1 can get hol
of the moon I'd bring you that, a
well"
Armand, Armand" she said. "Hay
you any plan? Think up plant
He had one, but he did not divulg
what it was Much later that nigh
when he stood alone on the little bal
cony of his room, looking out over th
moonlit sea, he thought about th
scheme. 1t did not offer an agreeabl
a prospect, but he could think of n
4 cthe1 alternative. To allow Santini /