The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1940-04-05

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Mrs. Evans knew about Dirck was
beyond me. I gave up trying to
figure it out.
Sarah apparently had no inten-
ton of cleaning my apartment. /
suppose she was having no truck
with an adventures, so after wait
ing for her little while I washed
the glasses and busted the room.
My drawing board was still ly-
ing on the table and l saw with
considerable relief that the paper
was still tackled to it. but when
my eyes ran over the sheet
stopped short and had a chill.
A message had been printed on
the bottom again. This time it
read: REMEMBER YOU HAVE
BEEN WARNED.
l just stood here, staring at the
paper, not knowing what to do.
another day of this is going to
be my finish" I thought.
Then fearfully I looked in the
kitchen, the bathroom and out in
the yard. There was no one
around, of course, except a man
driving a car out of the garage. It
wasn't anyone from the house, so
he could have had nothing to do
with it. Mr.. Kimball rented out
half a dozen spaces to people in
the house and the neighborhood.
While I was out to breakfast
someone had come into my apart
ment again, and this time the door
had been locked.
l hadn't followed Dirck's in
structions about leaving the door
open. After all that had happened
during the night it seemed fool
hardy. And even with it locked
someone had come in.
Had Harry Kincaid kept a du-
plicate key when he moved, |
wondered, or had he ever given
one to Adrianne Wells? Sarah had
one, of course, and so did Mr..
Kimball, I supposed, and IShi
could use his.
Pretty Limp
WTELL, there wasn't a single
w thing I could do until Dirck
came back. This new develop
ment, or rather repetition, left me
pretty limp. locked the paper in
my desk drawer and sat down by
the fireplace. just sat there, with
out moving or even doing much
thinking, until l heard Sarah in
the hall, sweeping. l got up and
unlocked the door and asked. her
to come in.
Who has keys to these apart
mentS besides your" l asked her
as she stepped reluctantly inside
the door, a sulky expression on
her face.
She stared at me. mo one" she
said. leaning on her broom.
Are you Sure?"
'Mr Kimball gives you a key
when you take the apartment"
she said, but he never keeps one
for himself. l know l heard him
say often he ought to, what with
people losing them all the time"
Then no one but you can get
into my apartments"
She gave me very strange look
and pushed her hair back ner-
vously with a raw-boned hand
"Why?" She hesitated. Did some
one try to get in?"
"They didn't try" I said, think
ing might be able to scare some
thing outsof her. "They got in"
"Oh, Mrs. Howarth!' She paled
and turned away.
| let that pass.
"Then-then someone found
them" she muttered.
stepped forward and took her
by the shoulder before she could
walk out of the door. Found
What?"
Il lost them," she was half cry
ing. Il lost my set the day YOU
moved in, but I had another at
home. l had them made up a long
while ago. told my mother,
'Someday I'll lose those keys /
said, then where will l be?'"
And you haven't found them?"
She shook her head.
Then tUhoeUer found those
keys could get into my apartment
or any apartment in this house"
II couldn't help it." she sniv-
eled. ''They just seemed to disap-
pear. One minute they was in nv
pocket and the next minute gone"
What were you doing in Miss
Kent's apartment this morning?"
She looked at me, half fright
ened. 1--WE was looking. Mrs.
Evans husband :"
ooh, help" I said, and she
turned and ran out of the room.
Sarah's losing the keys was the
last straw. Locked in an apart
ment one might be more or less
secure, but with those keys at
large there wasn't a safe place in
the whole house.
I hadn't much time to worry,
though, because Sarah had scarce
ly disappeared with her broom
when Sergeant Long came up
stairs, still limping and not i'm
proved as to temper. He came in
and took the wing chair by the
fireplace and lighted cigar.
THAT fellow Lathrop," he be-
gan without any preamble, sis
just about as satisfactory as the
rest of you. I saw him again this
morning, hoping that after a
nights sleep, his memory might
improve. Did it? No. He knows
nothing, absolutely nothing"
/ regarded the Sergeant, puz-
zled. / took for granted that he
considered the case closed.