The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1940-10-08
Her Excellent Brain -
'ByVIRGINIA Han
Chapter A

L were done without Felicia'S
knowledge" l said. "At least
about Sandra. I saw her face
when she learned of it, and she
was shocked"
''But why did she worm her
way in here three months in ad-
vance? It was carefully thought
out plan, and hers was the brain
that conceived it, IN my opinion"
"And I shared her room last
night! Gerald, she wasn't the one
who attacked me. Who tUdS the
mani"
''The imposter at Fort Michigan.
] had my eye on him from the
first, but Sandra threw me off.
That poor girl-that poor fool!
Did she think she could pit her
self against"
"Gerald-tell me at once"
"You asked me two questions.
Who was the body in the car?
And who was the man who at
tackled you? The answer is the
same. Only not the same, if you
follow me-"
Either tell me or go away. If
that's your idea of soothing a sick
person try il on the state hospital
for the insane. Maybe they'll ap-
preciate you. l don't"
Kay, my dear, forgive me.
Only it seems so obvious. l keep
forgetting your head is probably
hazy yet. It was the chaplain, of
course"
l stared at him.
81 guess my head is hazy," /
admitted. THAT doesn't seem to
make sense"
Think it over a bit and you'll
get it. Chaplain Henry, the chap
lain Sandra had known in Texas,
was ordered to Fort Michigan. He
wrote to the adjutant You were
present in the mess hall when
Felicia told about the letter. She
probably thought if she didn't the
adjutant would, so it was good
strategy. The letter asked, you re-
member, about rooms, and also
detailed his program of action, in
Guiding his plans for purchasing
new Ford in Chicago and driv-
ing it here.
"He even asked where he
should stop for dinner. Dollars
to crullers, as the saying goes,
she wrote back and recommended
Fieldstone Inn. l say again that
hers was the mind behind this
coup. and I have plenty of rea-
son to think so. Her husband,
after that near escape from the
elevated station. was in need of
hide-out. She knew of his sus-
ceptibility to poison oak, and
there was enough of it around
the post to give her the idea. The
chaplain delivered himself into
her hands.
"The husband-call him Bride
well for the sake of convenience,
though its probably not his name
lay in wait at the inn. You were
with me the night l tried to find
someone who had seen him. I
haven't been able to prove il, yet.
But / know how it was worked.
It's the only possible way. An
acquaintance struck up, a casual
mention of Fort Michigan, and
the offer Of a lift. Once in the
car, events probably took place
much as described later. but with
important omissions. The real
chaplain was murd cred, by
chlorOfOrm, carbon monoxide, or
some similar method which would
leave no trace after the body was
burned.
Felicia had been to Chicago
that day. 1t was the following
day, after I arrived, that she told
you she had to go back as they
had sent her the wrong girdle. I'll
wager she really bought that
girdle, really exchanged il the
next day. It gave her all the ex-
cuse she needed to make two
trips to Chicago on consecutive
days.
THE first night she met Bride
well by prearrangement on some
deserted road. The body of the
chaplain was transferred to the
luggage compartment of her car.
Bridewell drove the chaplain'S
car back to Chicago, checked all
his luggage at the La Sale Street
Station and drove back to the
place where the car was later
found abandoned. Felicia picked
him up there, drove him to the
edge of the reservation. where he
stripped"
"Why? Why strip"
Two Reasons
1.-TWO reasons. Felicia'S excel
l. lent but misguided brain
again, I'm sure. First reason, the
chdpldin'S clothes tr0uld not fit