Hungry Horse news and Columbian. [volume] (Columbia Falls, Mont.) 1946-1948, 1947-12-05
CHAPTER XIX

'RtAI GOO, lie 10 crazy
OHorace said. He pushed the
chair back and got up with nc
visible unsteadiness. Trying tc
saddle me with this nonsense
: The easy smile came once more
to his lips. ut sounds so damnab-
ly convincing, you know. l sup
pose 1 could have done all that,
but why should I? I had nothing
to gain"
"Not right then" said Todd pla-
cidly; but his face had the wood
en- look of strain. did no one
ever figure out how the inherit
ances would work, eventually?
Very simple, after all. If Miss
Adeline died first, the Judge got
all her real estate-that farm
property that has been rising so
phenomenally in value for the
past few years. If she outlived the
Judge, she'd inherit his property,
as the eldest member of the fam
lily. And to whom would she leave
it? To Gilbert, her next of kin.
And to whom would the Judge
leave it? To his own collateral
descendant. You could afford to
let him live for a while, Mr.. Till
Sit" said Todd smoothly, "once
he had got hold of the bulk of his
sisters property. You knew it
would be yours before too long;
and you can wait; you can be pa
tent if you're sure things will
come to you in the end. That
afternoon, though, you had to act,
to do your best to insure that Miss
Adeline would not outlive her
brother"
That's a perfect tissue of lies,"
said Horace CONTEMPORARY.
$50. Then, let's face facts. Gil
bert brought her the diamonds
late in the morning. According to
your story, the first time you saw
her that day was late in the after
noon, when she was unconscious.
Just when did your great-aunt tell
you that she'd hidden the dia-
nonds where no one would ever
find them'-unless it was during |
your secret visit at two o'clock?
And if you made an innocent call
IN her then, why haven't you ad-
nitted il?
There was brief silence. The |
uncomfortable red came up again.
Horace" Mary Helen said in a
dreadful whisper. She shrank |
from him, slowly retreating across |
the room. That's it. 1t was you.
never saw that, 1 never thought !
If"
Todd's eyes rested on her for a
moment. Didn't you, Mrs.
crane?" he said remotely. "Well
Il believe you'd better sign that,
'rother, and finish up the bust
less. You've admitted it's true,
1ou know; not in so MANY words,
nut your blood-vessels give you
way when anyone hits on your
lie secrets"
people have been convicted of
1urder," said Todd steadily, ION
violence thinner than any writer
vould dare to use. I've made out
better case, for instance, than
he one against Oscar Slater.
''you know how long he was in
rison?"
Horace struck the table with
ne fiat of his hand. "Who do you
mink you are, talking about pris-
a? You can't do anything to me,
obody can touch me, you sup
ose l don't know that?"
"I'nl nobody" said Todd, and
is teeth showed white in taunt-
lg smile. 1--WE touched you, my
lend, for now you've admitted
our guilt in words"
THE crimson flush spread until
L its color could be seen through
orace's thinning hair. His COM
anions were frozen in silence. He
lanced round the room once, and
.emed almost physically to stoop
1der the impact of their express
ons.
"You can't pin a thing on me-"
, said thickly. There's no proof,
lere never could be. What if that
arn of yours does come near
Tough"
confession before witnesses"
i'd Todd, looking far away.
"And what of it? If l signed {
at thing, if l went so far as to /
rite out statement in my own t
ords and sign it, you couldn't a
Ike it into court! 1t wouldn't be c
idence, and your lies are even II
Smoothing I've said has
what's a slip of the tongue" t
His voice fell off into silence. He
oked terrifyingly like Judge f
list at the beginning of a fit. il
odds agate-hard eyes flicked a
m. v
He tore the other typewriter a
Gets across and across, and Ii
opped the fragments into his n
cket. He was still smiling faint "
You're free, my friend. You "
n go anywhere you like in this C;
untry, no police officer will ever fl
p you on the shoulder for this y
ense. You can stay here if you y
e and try to brazen it out. No g
dy can punish you. But you'll ii
yer again be able to lay this Ell
me on the shoulders of a man
los with the Armed Forces in
E South Pacific. It's yours TO i
ny, now" cl