The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1946-03-01

not come home as he planned, that
Miss Ledforge had set these men
upon the trail. But Tope touched
Whitlock's arm, restraining him;
spoke himself instead.
well, ma'am, that's all right. !"
And he added: 81 want to leave Mr..
Whitlock here. He's expecting a
phone call from Mr.. Myers. Can he
stay?"
"Of course" she assured him;
and then Tope was saying good-by.
Outside, the old man said crisply:
"Whitlock, you and Beal stay here
till you hear from me-" And he
added: "Your job Is to see that moth
ing happens to that old lady,"
Happens to her? What"
II don't look for anything" Tope
admitted. "Your being here will
prevent. But-you stay"
And he turned and with Adam by
his side strobe toward the car. Whit
lock, gaping with bewilderment,
swung away to where Beal waited
in the other machine.
At the Mill, Bee and Mrs. Tope
were here to greet them. After the
first moment, Bee caught Adams
arm, drew him aside.
whats happened?" she demand
ed softly. "Where have you been?"
Lost in an impenetrable forest"
he assured her, chuckling. when
1t comes to giving a man directions,
you're a total loss. What were you
trying to do, get rid Il Ms for good
and all? We didn't find the lodge
till daylight"
"Idiot!" she protested. "You
didn't listen! But it's hours since
daylight. Where have you been
since? And why did he bring Mr..
Eberly here? And what did you
find out?"
"Well," he said, 1--WE called on
Miss Ledforge. It was she who put
Whitlock and Beal on this thing, be-
cause her brother wrote her that he
was sick"
"But that doesn't make sense"
She had no time to shape another
question. Tope was coming toward
them, and he called to Adam:
"All right, son! Let's COL"
He climbed into the car. "Where
TOT" Adam asked, and Tope said in
mild Impotence:
"The quarry, mani"
So Adam drove down the road
toward Ridgcomb, till he came to
that byway which led up into the
hills where the quarries were; then
turned aside and began the steep
climb.
Adam asked: "You feel sure this is
the Holdom carr"
But Tope reported in an impa-
tient tone: cts bound to be! Go
along"
When they reached the ledge
above the quarry, Mat Cumberland
came to meet them; beyond, Adam
saw half dozen men engaged in
the task here under way. Cumber-
land said in slow bewildered tones:
"Tope, Kell told the truth. Our
dead man can't be Ledforge! There's
story in the New York papers to-
day that Ledforge has made a COM
plant to the governing committee
of the Stock Exchange about Hol-
DOM"
mo, Ledforge isn't Dead" Tope
absently assented.
Adam pressed closer, as intent as
the District Attorney to hear what
the old mans answer would be; but
Tope gave them no enlightenment.
"Tn know lot more two hours
from now" he said. "But till I'm
sure in my own mind, I'd rather not
do any guessing" And he added re-
assuringly: "But Mat, if I'm on the
right track, we'll have all the dirty
linen washed and hung out on the
line by tonight" He took the big
mans arm. Nov come on. Let's
see what they're doing here"
They turned along the ledge and
Cumberland said: .'The newspapers
have got the story, Tope. Got re-
porters on it. l looked for some Of
them to be up here before now"
Tope stopped in his tracks. "We
| don't want thatl Quill here?" a
"Over yonder," Cumberland as
scented; and Tope saw the trooper.
lmeeling on the lip of the ledge to
look down into the quarry pit below,
and called to him. Quill came to-
ward them; and Tope said quickly:
"Son, 60 down the road and keep
the reporters from coming up here
If they find out where we are"
"Oke," Quill assented. II ran into
them once already today" And he
reported: 81 found the Holdom linn
CUISINE, Inspector. Number plates
gone, but it's the one, all right. Hid
in the woods. There's blood on the
floor rug in the rear seat" He
chuckled. 81 sent the reporters up
there. They couldn't make anything
out of that"
Tope nodded. "You looked It
over first?"
Nothing in it."
"Look at the toolS?"
''No. Why?"
l NIL