The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1939-12-11
Chapter 10
The SundiaI

Chapter 10
The SundiaI
MICHAEL tapped his right tenn
Ava pie meditatively and fingered
the papers. Tuck put her hand
over her eyes and concentrated
The District Attorney was listen
ing. his hand shading his eyes.
Michael picked up the larger
pile OF papers and counted them
absently. Eighteen" he muttered.
Eighteen" Tuck echoed under
her breath.
The District Attorney bent for
ward suddenly and looked at Bun
ny. "It's a cool night" he told her.
Strange how cool it gets of an
evening" 49,
Tuck looked at him. She gasped.
you've got it," she said. Michael
raised his eyebrows. "Eighteenr'
she cried. Eighteen, and there are
thirty all together. That leaves
twelve, Michael"
81 have been led to believe so"
he said gravely. "And-?"
Her eyes were shining. "The
words fairly ring in my ears
twelve of them. on a fine chain.
Don't you see. Michael? It is the
diamonds"
Michael looked down at the peb-
bles incredulously. They lay all
together in a little heap on the
table. He picked one UP, and fin
gered it. "Damn!" he said fervent-
~.
Damn. Michael?" Bunny in
quired politely.
I'VE shouldn't have mixed them.
Maybe the child's right. Maybe
twelve of them do mean something
.. although they're certainly all
rocks together"
"Why are they wrapped up? I
don't get it."
ITO keep 'em all nice and warm,
like the letters" he said soberly.
Don't be fool. Could he have
written letter on the paper that
wrapped these pebbles, then torn
ii all up into little bits like this?"
What for?"
How do l known"
There's no writing on the pa
per-"
Those pencil marks. Maybe it's
one word, in big thin letters. Torn
up. All the marks / found were on
the smooth paper. 1t means some
thing"
81 think they kept the pebbles
TO count the days BY" Tuck said
modify. Zone for each day of the
month. If they sent each other five
pebbles it meant they would meet
on the fifth"
"Tut tut" said Michael. "Come
on with your pencil marks, Bum
ny. Her minds wandering"
do you know" Bunny said sud-
denly. looking up from the paper
in her hand. "those lines go right
along the edge. If the paper were
torn exactly straight they wouldn't
show at all"
Michael stared at her. "Torn
along the mark, Ell? Well. then
well then,% Tuck repeated in
a choked little voice, 1--WE can fit
them back together again the way
he tore them. Because if he tore
them on lines he must have meant
John Forester had left his
chair again, and stood at the desk.
He looked down at the twelve bits
Of bond paper, pushed into a heap
by Michael's long restless fingers.
ITS a picture puzzle" he said
slowly.
Il never was good at puzzles"
Michael said.
The puzzle was not easy to solve,
but time and patience did it at last
On some of the papers pencilings
were not to be found even after
the most careful scrutiny: the con-
sequence was that no one knew
which side of those pieces should
60 uppermoSt, and as all of the
bits seemed to be of much the same
shape, roughly triangular. for a
time il seemed as if they were
getting nowhere. But Tuck started
them on the right track when she
pushed to one side four pieces
which were less triangular and
Lore oblcng than the others.
Shiny and Dull
ITS some sort of pattern" she
said abSorbedly. mot just torn
any old way" She fingered the
four papers she had pushed aside.
She put them in row next each
other. but they did not fit. She tried
making a square with them. one
at each side, but they were not
wide enough. Then, Systematically,
she picked up each of the other
eight pieces and fitted it, first one
side up and then the other. to
each of the oblongs until she
found where it belonged. That was
the correct procedure: and in a
short time the fitted pattern lay
before them.
The four oblongs, it seemed,
radiated at right angles from q
common center. and between each
pair two long triangles fitted neat
ly. The outer circumference of the
pattern was a rounded square and
the center was round hole.
Tuck stared at it. Bunny tapped
absently on the tabletop. Michaeli
pulled his ear.
There's something about it that
looks sort of familiar he NUT
tered to himself. But I'm hanged
fl get it. Do you. dad? Mean any
thing TO you?"