The Daily Alaska empire., 1934-05-19
Chapter Nine THREE SHOTS

THREE SHOTS
 THE scene of the crime was a l cozily-furnished breakfast-room resplendent with polished wood gleaming silver. sparkling glass, against a background of dark. stained wainscoting and richly em. bossed wallpaper. hung here and there with the bright colors of hunt ing scenes. In the center of the room stood a refectory table. with eight chairs ranged around it-three al each side, one at the foot. and a more formal armchair at the hosts place.
 On this table six slender wax tapers had burned down to gutter ing stubs. There was an open tile fireplace. it's wide hearth protected by a finely meshed copper screen, and massive log was still burning. Its heat was sufficient to give the room a comfortable temperature.
 Unfortunately. there were two dead men to turn the scene into a mockery. There was the friendly light of hearth-log and candle-with h the acrid fumes of gunfire still lin gering on the air.
 Officer Hamill lay just inside the door. He was sprawled at nearly full length. his legs drawn up just a trif1e. the weight of his body resting on his right side.
 The cause of death was fully ap- parent without moving the body two bullets had been fired into his left breast. one directly into the heart, the other slightly higher and closer to the sternum. So much for young James Michael Hamill-Offi- cer 1645.
 At the head of the table, seated Imply in the hosts chair. but in a very natural position. was the other man. His body had posed in such a llC-ilh0 POoItiOh tbdt thC Ia5SO0 black hole drilled through the iron. tai bone seemed an incongruous mark. This man was faultlessly at. tired in evening clothes. and the bull let's impact had not even jared loose his goldrimmed nose-glasses, with their thin black silk cord.
 His features, adorned by a we'll trimmed moustache and goatee. was tilted slightly. as if he were bored or abstracted in thought. Both his arms rested on the table. His right hand still clutched an automatic gun. his left held a cigarette. which had burned itself out, soaring the flesh of two fingers.
 A number of things stood at his place. There was packet of ciga- rettes of popular brand. with an open paper of matches beside it. Both were about half used. There were two small carafes. each hold ing a different liquor. A used. but now empty whiskey glass stood near his hand.
 Harper was inwardly amazed al this tragic scene, but his astonish- ment was self-contained. Not so Of. ficer Clymer's. on whom great light had dawned Say. that must be Pierre Dufresne himself" he blurted.
 HARPER had ordered the others II to keep their posts by the door while he went forward to get bet. ter view of the bodies and to exam. inc the wounds at close range. He | had leaned over the man in the chair. looking long and thoughtfully at his face. Then. without disturb ing the position of the body. he had gone through all the pockets. Moth ing of importance came to light. Harper turned and herded them all out of the room.
 'I want every one to stay out of this room until the photographers
 
 have been here." the detective or dered, "and keep your hands off any thing that looks as if it might have 3 fingerprint on it."
 The reporter. Doyle. buttonholed him as he was closing the door on that grim scene. "l thought Du fresne was under guard for the night?" he said How the devil did he get up here-alone?"
 Sergeant Harper's reply was cryptic. You'll want to know a great deal more than that before the nights over!"
 The reporter pricked up his ears at this mysterious prediction. He looked longingly at that closed and locked door. but he had covered Ser geant Harper's cases before and knew that his statements were nev- CT flim-flam.
 Harper stood in the center of the spacious hall. the key to the room of tragedy in his hand. Doyle won. iered why the detective had so