Evening star., 1951-05-18

lSllence, making her Jump q foo
loff the bed. She picked it up anc
answered, hoping it would be Bill
Then she heard voice she hao
thought she would never hear
Iagain-Mickey's voice!
4 "Oh. Mickey!" she cried. care
you all right? Where have YOU
been? Where are you now?"
| She heard his familiar, friendly
lchuckle. Take it easy, Tania,
Honey. I'm okay. just flew in
from Chicago. knocked myself
lout trying to get information and
had pretty good luck. read the
papers, too. all about what hap
lpened to you. Are you all right? o.
Just bad case of jitters," she
lconfessed. Come over, Mickey
I1'n fix some bacon and scrambled
Ieggs. Hurry!"
I'll get there in 10 minutes.
kid" he assured her, and rang off
Relief at his safety swept
Through her, raising her spirits E
little. Now Mickey was back. per.
haps things would be better. He
was clever. He would help her. It
would cheer her just to see his
Jolly round face again.
Quickly she slipped into a pai,.
of tailored green slacks and a
corduroy shirt, tied a green ribbon
around her hair and put on a dash
or llpstick. Mickey wouldn't mind
her scrubbed face and freckles
She needn't bother with powder
BY the time Mickey rang her
oell she had the shades drawn,
the lamps on, and two scotch
hlghballs waiting on the coffee
table.
AS she opened the door she
Icrleo, Mickey! Oh, Mickey, it's
heaven to see you safe and sound I"
He put his arm around her
shoulders and Rugged her. 1--WE
gotten gray hair worrying over
you" he told her, and came in
shutting the door behind him. 81
would have called you from Chi
cago but I thought the police
might be here, and if they found
out where I was, they'd insist on
my coming back. I must have
looked up so people. I finally
found a chorus girl who had been
a witness at a wedding-Gloria's S
wedding to Jeremy!"
I know about that" she said
hating to detract from his triumph
Gloria herself told me last night. +"
She told youi" he exclaimed
But figured Gloria did all the
killing!"
II thought so, too, until last
night, but I don't now" She re-
lated what had happened. then
ADDED. Don't feel bad, Mickey
You tried, and I'm terribly CRATE
full"
He grinned ruefully. "Alwavs
the clown, that's me. Never do
anything right. except on the
stage. Golly. I'm worn out, kid"
Sit down and drink your high
ball" she urged. then I'll feed
you. Afterward I'll tell you every
thing that's happened since you
left" wv"
He drank only a little of the
mgnoall and ate sparingly of the
food. Guess I'm too tired to eat i"
he explained.
You do look tired" she said in
quick sympathy. His clothes were
rumpled. as if he'd slept in them
tnere was a sandy stubble on his
PINK, moon face, and his pale blue
eyes were haggard.
After curling up on the sofa on
poslte his chair. Tania told him
briefly what had happened. Once
ne interrupted to say, "Of course
gave a phony name for the plane
reservation. I wanted to make NV
inquiries in private. I didn't want
any one to know I had gone to
Chicago"
AC tne end she said, Bill Reyn-
olos was here for lunch today. We
sort OF went over the case again
We ended UP right where we
started-nowhere. For awhile 7
suspected Gloria, then George
NARROW and Anton Ludovic. but
I'm sure it wasn't any of them
They're eliminated, and there's no
one left. Absolutely no one!"
Then suddenly, almost as soon
as she had said this, several odd
happenings popped up into her
mind, things she'd forgotten and
hadn't thought of since. Things
she didn't want to think of now.
but her memory was forcing her
to think of them!
She remembered that it was
Mickey who had insisted from the
beginning that the murderer had
wanted to kill her. not Nina; that
1t was Mickey who had talked her
out OF going to the police; that he
had prompted her in recalling
Miss Hardwicke; that he had To-
Gated Nina's room at the Hamil-
ton Hotel in less than 20 minutes.
She also remembered, her heart
skipping a beat. that the dose of
sodium amytal which had knocked
Mickey out and put him in the
hospital. had not been a fatal
dose. And last-that Mickey had
been released from the hospital
the day before Jeremy was killed!
All Of these thoughts were in
her expressive brown eyes as she
stared at him. He couldn't help
reading them. She saw his face
pale, his eyes narrow.
ITO Be Continued