Evening star., 1951-04-20
CHAPTER ELEVEN.

! Bending down. she ran her
fingers over a metal strongbox'
1.-THE sort that people keep i'm
lportant papers in. She dragged
lit out of the closet and kneeled
lon the floor in front of it. 1t had
been locked at some time, but
lnow the lock was broken.
Feeling like Pandora opening
the box of good and evil, she lifted
the lid and peered inside. She
saw nothing but several bundles
of letters. each bundle tied with
a different colored ribbon.
Twenty or thirty minutes later
she sat back. her face white and
frightened, her pulse pounding.
All of the letters were love letters,
written to Nina by half dozen
different men, some Of them men,
ltioning very questionable events.
Tania realized suddenly what
these letters might mean. That
Nina, among her other crooked
activities. might have been in
Idulging in some blackmailing.
Most of the letters were signed
with pet names, but a few bore a
real name.
# the men who had written
them wanted them back. If they
had fallen in love with other girls,
they would have paid. But all
this, sickening as it was, was only
part Of what had shocked her.
For one thin bundle of love
letters bore the signature "Jer-
emy" and the writing was Jeremy
Knights.
Again Tania examined Jeremy's
letters. The dates on them indi-
Gated he had written them before
he had met her. Tania. Nina
must have kept them in allegiance.
But perhaps, when she read of
Jeremy's engagement to Tania
Lynn, she had begun her program
of extortion. Jeremy couldn't t
afford to have the letters fall into
the hands of reporters, or per-
haps into the hands of the girl he
expected to marry. Could Jeremy
have killed Nina. knowing it was
Nina. to shut her up?
BruSQue knuckles beat q tattoo
on the door Of the sitting room.
Hastily Tania closed the strongbox
and showed 1t underneath the bed.
She grabbed the green silk robe
and put it on. betting 1t snugly
around her tiny waist. At the
door she said in a taut voice, "Go
away or I'll cali the house de-
ltectivei"
"You needn't bother, Miss Hard
wicke." said an authoritative voice
from the other side of the wooden
panel. "This is 1t. Wilson, homi-
eide squad. police department"
Wildly Tania thought OF her
disheveled hair her bruised eyes.
her face without the Nina makeup.
Summoning all Of her control, she
said. II was just going to bed, 1t.
Wilson. VIII you give me 10 min
utes to dress?"
Very well. I'll wait 10 min
utes." he agreed.
Tania raced into the bath and
loaded her face with dark pan
cake makeup. an extra layer
around the eyes and plenty of lip
stick. Again she pulled on the
blue wool dress. AS she returned
to the door she turned of all but
two small lamps In the sitting
room.
Come in. please" she said,
opening the door.
1t. Wilson was a youngish man.
lstocky. with shrewd gray eyes. His
voice was soft, but his mouth
was hard.
He stood just inside the door,
removing neither his overcoat nor
his soft-brimmed felt hat. He
reached into his pocket and
brought out a Cancelled check. He
held it out to Tania.
did you ever see this before,
Miss Hardwicke?" he asked.
Tania stared at 1t. It was dated
10 days ago. It was made out to
Cash." 1t was for $1,000, and
her own name, Tania Lynn. was
signed to it. Only it wasn't her
signature, not quite, and she had
written no checks for q thousand
dollars.
II never saw it before" she an
swered truthfully.
1t. Wilson put it back in his
pocket. 1--WE found 1t among a
sheaf Of Cancelled checks which