The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1936-06-12

iH-IGt0 Hope IN her room, and try
to discover her secret. Hope IS the
older brother Rupert. Hoto III of
pneumonia tn the Adirondacks.
Martin. Hopes chauffeur. has re-
ported to Dirk that he heard
mans roice IN Hopes room, but
that t1hen he searched he could find
80 trace Of anyone. The compIicd-
fion is that Dirk is more than
little interested IN Hope himself.
Chapter@27
ciGARET SMOKE
"uOW is Rupert?" Hope asked.
= Rupert was better this morn
Ing" Dirk answered. Doesn't San
ford keep you advised? l asked him
to-"
"Yes, he telephones. But then
-" Her voice was lower than usual.
as II she 'eared disturbing some
one. It was sheer weakness. no
doubt.
Il understand" Dirk said. you
feel I've just come from him. He's
going to pull through. He's got every
chance. Please sit down. Hope.
I'll only stay minute"
After a moment she moved with
a twinkle of beaded. padded slippers.
and sank in the big chair. She did
not look at him now, but sat clutch.
ing the shawl. staring before her.
her face pale in the dusk.
Dirk sat down. too. permitting
his anxiety to creep into his voice.
Martin tells me you had some
thing of scare the other night"
YES she said. still in the low.
cred. rather husky voice. as if she
were afraid of disturbing some one.
Suddenly Dirk was aware of an
odor in the room. the faint. not alto
gether stale. odor of cigarets. He
thought Of Timothy who held that
ghosts have their scent" He
thought of Nora who had said that
Mrs. Joris did not smoke. Nora. he
recalled. did not look after Mrs.
Joris's room these days. That nerv-
Gus people sometimes took up smok.
ing, Dirk was aware.
He said:
Il understand that Martin him.
self was worse than the burglar. or
whatever it was"
Mary" she answered. "says that
1t was ghost"
"Yes, know. didn't know wheth.
er you'd heard of the tower-ghost or
not. =. Whatever it was. Hope, |
want you to move your ROOM"
But like this ROOM"
Even though it's haunted?"
Dirk smiled as he said the word.
but he was serious enough in want,
ing her out of here. in wanting to ex.
anime this room as he had never ex.
amined it. The smell of cigarets dis
turbed him. even though. to his
mind. Hope might have good reason
to take up smoking.
She answered now in the low
voice:
81 don't think the rooms haunt
ed"
And you're not afraid?" he asked.
After the barest possible moment
her face turned to him. He thought
he could have seen her face, star
white with the tragic eyes. even in
the dark.
mo-" she said. 81 am not afraid"
Defiance. faint but unmistakable,
was in her voice.
Dirk spoke impulsively.
II know you're afraid. Hope. Let
me- help you"
She looked at him. You think I'm
afraid?"
"I'm sure of it. Won't you trust
me%
But why should you think I'm
afraid?"
What else? Why else should you
have the revolver"
Her eyes lit darkly.
81 knew 1t was you. Where Is it?"
"The revolver" he said. II knew
nothing about it d. nothing about
your having it {. till Nora told me.
She found it in the SAFE"
FORA. -. Il the safe."
~ She repeated the words auto
matically. as If they had stunned
her. Then suddenly:
MORA opened q safei" she said.
"She took what was not hers. It's
common thievery."
So that was her opinion Of the
transaction. And she had assumed
that the thief was he.
"Nora didn't know that the re-
volver belonged to you" he ex-
planned. "She dusts in the safe oc.
casionally. When she found a gun
In It she took it out for fear you
might run across it. an6 hurt your.
self. Was 1t loaded?"
She said that 1t was. She had risen
now. and was moving about the
room. quietly at first then blindly.
distractedly, like moth. The paint
ed shawl had fallen on the floor. and
Dirk picked 1t up. Dirk LIT the lamp.
and she whirled about. facing him.
paler than ever in the light.