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#0 FHE SHADOW OF A SIND
‘Guilty of murder, my dear. It is a strange case. If¢
appears that the very day after we left the Chase, a dread.
ful murder was discovered at Leybridge—a woman: was
found cruelly murdered under a hedge in one of the ficlds
-near the station. In the poor woman’s clinched hand was
a handkerchief, with the name.‘ Claude Lennox ‘Upon it.
On searching further the police found his address, ‘Claude
‘Lennox, 200 Belgrave Square,’ written in pencil on a smalt
folded piece of paper. The woman’s name is supposed to
be Anna Barratt. Circumstantial evidence is very strong
against Claude. One of the porters at Leybridge Station
swears that he saw him walk with a woman in the direc.
tion of the fields ; a laboring man swears that he saw hiny
returning alone to Oakton Park in the early dawn of the
morning ; and the colonel’s servants say he was absent
from Oakton the whole night.” wane oy
“Still, that may only be circumstantial evidence,” said
Sir Arthur, ‘though it is strongly against him. Why
should he kill a woman who was quite a stranger to him, -
as he solemnly swears she was?”
“Who, then, was with him at the station? You see,’
three people swear to have noticed him leave Leybridgs
Station with a woman whom none of them recognized,” —
They might perhaps have continued ‘the discussion, but
a-slight sound disturbed them, and, looking round, they
saw that Hyacinth had fallen to the floor. She had risen
from her seat with a ghastly face and burning eyes ;, her
white lips had opened to say, “ It is not Claude who killed
her, but her husband.” She tried to utter the words, but
her voice was mute, and then with outstretched arms she
fell-face foremost to the ground in a dead swoon. Adrian
sran to her; he raised her——he looked in wondering alarm
‘at the colorless face with its impress of dread and fear.
: “Tt has frightened her almost to death,” he said. “Did
she know this Claude Lennox,’ Lady Vaughan?”
“Yes, very slightly ; we met him once or twice at Oak-
- ton Park, and he called at the Chase. But I did not like ©
him. I kept Hyacinth carefully out of his Way.”
““What'can we do for her?” he asked, in a trembling
voice. , . :
J“ Nothing,” said Lady Vaughan. “Do not call the ser
_ Vants ; they make such a fuss about anything of this kind.
Let the fresh air blow over her.” . .
They raised her up and laid her upon the couch.’ Sir
Arthur threw open the deors into the conservatory, and
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