The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1933-09-18
Chapter ~
THE WHOLE TRUTH

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Chapter ~
THE WHOLE TRUTH
FSoLIN jsrked his hand toward the
~ desk. @The answers In that let
ter over there-the one was to de
liver to Joe Lazarre. I opened Il
when ] got back here tonight. It's
rather longish, as you see, but Il
cleans up pretty well everything, and
II you want to read It for yourself &c
ahead. Otherwise I'll give You the
gist oft In few words"
II don't want to read 1t now" Ser
eeant MHlEey answered. "Tm toe
tired And I've got q few things &c
say myself So spiel All I want Il
know In what made Reddy think Il
was the Mask who bumped French
Pete ana Annie OF In the first place
and why Reddy supposed that La
zarre had been down on the lower
st. Lawrence for q year and whai
made him think Lazarre was work
ing for the Mask down there"
eta the code. Of course" Colin
said. mo help asked or wanted
from the police. A rift In q mob Il
another story. Annie was Reddy's
sister. and French Pete was La
zarre's brother. Reddy's idea, IN the
event of anything happening to him
was to pass on the torch. He be
lieved that Lazarre would turn
against the Mask to avenge his
brothers. murder and the murder oil
his brothers wife"
"Checkl. said Sergeant Mulvey.
Collins broWs puckered.
tits q little difiicult to iron It ali
out in its proper sequence" he said,
though Reddy explains everything
81 length in his letter as though be
believed that Lazarre was In igno
rance even OF the murders them,
selves.
"That you can readily understand,
because It appears from Reddy's let.
ter that Lazarre, as an alibi for him.
self we can safely say now. dropped
out Of sight q month or so before
french Pete was murdered"
"In other words" observed Ser.
geant Mulvey. "Reddy went on the
assumption that Lazarre knew moth.
Ing at all about anything that had
happened?"
aYes." said Colin, "even to the ex-
tent OF Lazarre being unaware that
Reddy knew him to be Louis Mireau,
French Pete's brother. French Pete
obviously knew 1t. and he used to
take Louis, or Lazarre-we'll call
him Lazarre hereafter to avoid con.
fasion-with him frequently to An
nieis fat.
That's how and where, OF
course. Laxarre's infatuation for An
ME began: but with Annie. we may
be certain. having none Of him. and
with French Pete standing always
In the road. Well. French Pete natu-
rally enough told Annie. the girl he
was going to marry. who Lazarre
really was, and In turn Annie con-
1dad IN Reddy, her brother--all this,
apparently. without Lazarre being
aware oft"
CERGEANT MuLvEY'S eyes were
= narrow with interest.
We'll go onl" he prompted impa-
tieptIy. what did he d03''
while he was still in atir. " Colin
went on. The got tipped on to the
men who were In the murder car the
night French Pete was put on the
spot And a. soon a. he got ont he
went TO work with that as Q starter.
Then overheard conversations
brought this mysterious overload.
the Mask into the picture and def.
nitaly linked NJ the Mask with
French Pete's murder ana Annie's
abduction.
vAiso one night he overheard one
Of these men say that Laxarre was
on the CAP 4 Forage fob. and from
thek 10 concluded thak LaxaEra like,
M esSah mllaA with TIE lEaak and
assumed that Lazanra had been II
Cap 4 i'prage 81 the time since he
had ieft New York.
aThat'a about all He ends BY
giving LazarFe Int of the men he
has spotted and putting 4 up to In
sarre to carry On. I don't know how
Tar he got hut he was q lot farther
from the truth than he seemed to
think he was. or. IL il needless to say,
he would not have written to Ia.
sarre.
Somewhere q false step or ill
luck exposed him. There's just one
thing though. that ! must confess
cannot quite understand"
whats thatla inquired Sergeant
Malvey.
"Why Louis Mirean assumed The
nasna Of joe I.axArre.s
Sergeant Mulyey snliled srlmly.
u can explain that he said. II
told zen we'd had . pretty busy night
Of H. That AGAR on his shoulder start
ed the ball rolling-and identified
him down &C Headquarters. He had