The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1940-03-11

"A friend Of yours?" he asked
his eyes on the door.
my friends" l said coldly,
"aren't in the habit of running
into my apartment in the middle
of the night"
He considered. 'You can't be
certain, though, can you, since
! you didn't see bis. face? It might
| have been someone you know"
| Sergeant" I said. sit must
have been someone who lives
here. At any rate, the front door
is kept locked and no one can get
in without key. I've just come
back from Paris and no one in
town knows where I'm living"
The Sergeant shook his head.
Its queer, very queer. that you
happened to move here Just at
this time. And you say you don't
know these people. Well. we'll
see."
leaned back in. the. chair and
lighted cigarette to keep from
screaming with annoyance. Nov
please listen to me, Sergeant
Long" / said. I'D never have
moved here if I'd known all this
was going to happen. It will just
hold up my work until can pack
up and move out"
The Sergeant rose abruptly.
You can't move out until say
So," he Numbered. Everyone
stays put until we find out who
did this, and if you make a move.
to go you'll be sorry. You're con-.
nected with this in some way or
other and it's not going to take me-
long to find out how"
He opened the hall door and
called for Norton, and, it was the,
man who spoke to me on the STAIR.
way who came out of Miss Kent'si
apartment to answer the Sergeant.
Almost finished in there?" the
Sergeant asked.
"Yup. The doc Just left"
What did he say?">
The. detective or whatever he,
was, lounged in. the doorway. and
winked at me. He had bright red
hair and an impudent nose. "The
doc says it's hard to tell the time,
she died." he said casually. THE
window was open and it was cold,
but he puts it close to midnight.
She was strangled. Suicides out
And she was choked to death with
those beads around her neck. Some
kind of an instrument was used to
twist them like a tourniquet. /
looked the beads over pretty care.
fully. They are strung on fine
chain, but it was very strong be-
cause it didn't break"
In A Bad Spot
"EIND the Instrument" the Ser.
geant asked briefly.
Nope"
Anything else?"
There isn't a thing in the
apartment that'll help US, except
that note"
OK. See you later"
The Sergeant turned back to me
and the red-headed Mr.. Norton
waved cheerily from the doorway
as he left.
When you went into the girls
room this morning did you see a
note on the desk. Miss Howarth?"
shook my head. ''The room
could have been full of notes.
was much too upset to notice"
That's all ] wanted to know"
he snapped. Answer yes or no
after this. Do you know man by
the, name of Tim Lathrop?"
paused and then said Sweetly;
eyes and no. Sergeant. Person
ally. no. BY reputation, yes"
He seemed pleased. so he's got
a bad reputation"
Il didn't say bad. | said he had
reputation. very good one. He
writes swell mystery stories"
The Sergeant Swore softly.
Have you ever seen him?" he
asked presently.
Once. at a meeting of some
artists and writers, but | haven't
the slightest notion what he
looked like"
Sorry to interrupt, Sergeant"
Mr.. Kimball said from the door
way, "but there is someone from
Police Headquarters here to see
you. / finally got that call through
to Miss Kent's mother and
brother. They are on their way
to the city now. They'll be here
shortly"
After the Sergeant left with
Mr.. Kimball I didn't stir out of
the chair. My mind was as calm
as seven-day bicycle race.
miss Howarth." ! said. you're
in a bad spot"
| took the. last cigaretteo out of
my case reluctantly. The blizzard
of '88 had nothing on this. Il was
about half-past eleven; I'd had. no
breakfast and the Sergeant would
probably never let me out of the.
house to getoa pack of cigarettes
or a sandwich.
Finally ! got up and went to
the window Everything in sight
was covered with snow and the
sky was dark. It looked as though
it might storm again. A week ago.
| thought sadly, could have gone
to Bermuda. Now / was mixed
up in a murder. In fact. | was the
murderer. according to the bril-.
liant Sergeant Long. Why he was
more suspicious of me than of
Mrs. Evans or Sarah ! couldn't
imagine. Goodness knows I'm no
beauty. but I'm certainly not the
criminal type either. He made me
feel very uneasy. and that fire eS-
cape outside my window didn't
add to my peace of mind either.
Joan Kent had been. murdered
and there wasn't any reason to
WORRY YnrEr that "a had hammered