Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1941-08-10

Ivor was dead and Major Cliff
ford, hot on the trail. must inev-
itably discover IL soon.
Strangely. the whole tangled
drama OF Hurricane House
seemed to crystalline itself into
race between herself and Alice
Lumsden. AS she moved on eau
tiously down the drive, her
thoughts were full OF that other
woman who was struggling
against the storm to a destina-
ton as important as her own.
Kay VINEYARD in a trench coat
shamelessly hurrying through
the rain to try to save potential
murderer. Alice Lumsden in a
red slicker pedaling maliciously
through the rain to try to have a
murderer - hanged!
Alice had farther to go, but
Alice had had a start. Almost
twenty minutes.
The rain had obliterated all
stnse of distance. She moved
onward. conscious Of nothing but
the greyish CLEAN OF the drive
beneath her feet and the vague
bulk of the house looming beyond
the sheet Of falling water. That
lighted window--was it the Ii
brary, the kitchen? That light
made her think Of Alice's red
slicker.
A red slicker +, Suddenly Kays
heart missed a beat. She took a
step forward and then stopped,
the rain hammering down on her
head and shoulders. A red slick
er. She had thought Of a red
slicker and then-as If she had
conjured it up out of her mind
there was that red thing ahead.
A vague red thing cleaning duly
ahead, cleaning against the grey
sand of the drive.
Her hands were numb-like ice.
She took another step. her legs
shaking, her eyes seeing nothing
but that vague red thing that
couldn't-couldn't be there.
And then her toe, moving for
ward. touched something. Some
thing soft and yielding. Some
thing horribly real.
A shiver electrified her whole
body. Using every ounce of con-
troll, she dropped TO her knees
She stretched out her hand. Her
fingers reached that thing, felt
its wet. shiny surface. She tried
to keep them there. but she
couldn't.
She crouched on the drive, not
able to think, not letting herself
see--And- then, a flash Of light
ming like a vast spotlight snap
ping on and off. made il impos-
sible to pretend any more.
In that short, CHASTITY moment
of illumination. Kay had seen the
red thing on the drive in every
soaring detail. The red shiny
surface of the slicker And the
huddled. pointless body that was
wearing il. Lying there, its legs
twisted under IL, it's arms flung
out in a senseless gesture across
the drive.
Behind, a fantastic adjunct tC
disaster, she had caught a
glimpse of the cleaning. sprawlec
silhouette Of bicycle, its silverec
handlebars shining, its front
wheel grotesquely pointing up
ward.
But all that was only incidental
TO the other thing she had seen
the white, contorted face beneath
a battered brown felt hat, the
face splashed with scarlet. Scar
let again. like the slicker!
Blood
The face Of Alice Lumsden.
In a rush of instructive. UNI
conscious efficiency Kay CROPPED
forward on her knees, seeing
nothing needless Of the rain. She
found the woman's hand Tremb-
ling, she searched for the pulse
in the wrist
Nothing 49,.
She leaned over. peering down
at the face, because she had 10
although it was impossible.
Dimly she could trace the out
line OF a wound on the temple,
a sharp. deep wound. Her hand.
moving almost Independently of
her will. slipped across the slick
er, unbuttoned il and felt for the
heart.
Nothing again. o.. No flicker Of
a heartbeat. Just coldness, un-
responsiveness.
The rain slashed down remorse-