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DAVEN POI-‘.'I‘
kept her eyes open to see that. she was not fol-- '
lowed, but there was no trouble in evading her no-
tice. I housed her.”
‘ "Vvhere ?”
‘f W'ell," said Pete, ,with a slow draw], “the
name on the door-plate was ‘ Anthony Southwicki‘ ”
“ Good! - Describe her as well as you can."
Pete did so, and Blake felt sure it had been Mrs.
Southwick. . - '
“ VVhat did you do then ?”
“ XVent back to the Morgue.”
“ Anything new?”
“Not in that line.”
“ In what line is there anything new ?"
, “ You remember I spoke of a telegram?”
“ Yes.”. .
“ VVell, the reason I sent it was that, on my way
back from Southwick’s, I was passing near Mrs.
Park’s house, when my attention was drawn to the
vicinity by a. crowd collected in the street before
“ Ah! what then?”
,"I,went forward and found the people talking
excite-lly. I asked what had happened, and was
told that a woman had been murdered.”
“Hal Who was it?"
“Mrs. Park!" , '
“Zoundsl And that was why you telegraphed
“ Yes.” ‘
“Go on! Tell me all.”
“When I learned this I naturally became inter-
ested, and I tried to get near the door. The police-
men on guard showed an inclination to thump me
. over the head in the style peculiar to them, but I
managed to convince one of them that 1 represented
you, and he told what he knew.
‘ Unfortunately, this was not much. '
“Mrs. Park, it seems, lived alone, except for one
servant.
“The latter was away from four o'clock, P. '31.,
to eight, when she returned. , ,
“She found her mistress .murdered in her room,
with no sign left to show who was the’ doer of the
deed. It was a recent ' piece of work; natural
warmth had hardly ceased at all; but the assassin
had gone through a rear window and made good his
escape.” 4 .
To all this Blake had listened with eager atten-
tion. ‘ ' '
He now exclaimed: ,
“ But the motive-the motive!”
“Unknown. '80 far as can be discovered, norob-
bery was committed, and the motive is a mystery.”
' “ How was the house entered?" .
“ Nobody knows. The doors were locked and the
windows fastened. It is believed the murderer
‘sneaked in during the day when the windows were
, open." i
“Nonsense!” exclaimed Blake.
“ You don't believe it?" ‘
“ No.” .
“ What then?" .
“ Mrs. Park admitted the murderer.”
" Hale-their she must have knownhim.” .
“ Not necessarily, but I "believe she did know
him.’,' .
The detective picked up the morning paper, which
had a long account of the crime.
There was little about it that was more important
than what Pete had told, but the reporter had
given his fancy the rein and written up a long arti-
cle. ,
Blake had histheory in regard to the assassin, or
assassins, but not as to the motive.
“ Lwould have, given many dollars to see Mrs.
.Anthon Southwick when she heard of this affair,”
he final y said. ,
" What! do you suspect her 3”’.
BLAKE. Q. ! l 31
(1 No.7!
‘: %Vhat then T11’ A
‘ su ect t at she ma ossibl liav
double h(S)Bror when she leasrngd of it. Bgt friietvezf
mind-that chance is now gone, and we must catch
on to the fragments. Is that body still at the
Morgue r”
“Yes.”
“Then you may resume your espionage."
“ And you ?” '
“ I am going at once to Mrs. Park’s.”
He went, parting with Pete before the house was
reached, and each went his way.
Blake found the house of death in charge of the
ofiicers, but he found no troublein gaining admission
and the freedom of the place. ‘
He spent little time over the remains. ‘
The woman had been killed with a knife, and the
signs went to show that the assassin’s other hand
had clutched her throat, stifling all outcry while the
knife did its work.
Blake paid little attention to these things but
questioned those about the house and also used‘ his
own eyes.
Evidence went to show that nothing about the
place had been disturbed. '
The money and few jewels which would have
tempted a thief had not been touched.
No scattered paper indicated that documents of
some kind might have led tothe crime. -
When an ofiicer said that the thief had probably
been frightened off, Blake felt like smiling but said
nothing.
Ivhen he asked if no footprints of the assass'u
had been found in the back yard, he was answered
negatively. ‘ ‘
The uilty person seemed to have come and gone
like a s iadow.
‘‘’Of course,” added the officer, “he had plenty
tune to escape by the rear, since no one suspected
im.
" But I thought you said he was frightened ofI."V
Theoflicer scratched his head. ‘ - ‘ v
His tr 0 deductions did not seem to agree.
1‘ Wei , perha 5 you can explain it.”
If Blake coul he did not feel so inclined, but'theV
sus icion was strong in his mind that tl . '
ha both entered and left the house bymi‘Ii1e3SSf‘1z‘S()Srl)l:,
door. ' '
Who had he been?
The name which would naturally have arisen was
thatof Roger Angeli, but he knew the man was in
Seatown at such a time as to make it im ossible.
He became anxious to locate certain ot ier persons '
though. ' That they had killed Mrs. Park he was not
prepared to say, but he did want to know where
they had been at the time she was killed. "
He embraced the opportunity to speak privately I
with the servant girl.
“ How long have you worked for Mrs. Park i"’
" Six months, sir. ’ .
“ How much do you know about her private
affairs ?’
“]l:‘1)otliing, sir. She kept her own counsel.”
“ 0 on know where she lived befor ‘ o- ‘
New Ygrk P, e coining to
2: No, sii'.> She never referred to her past life."
H.ave5.=you any idea why she was secretive 1’;-
“mt 15, do you suppose it was because‘ she had
something to hide, or from a natural inclination ?”l ' A
"Qh! it was natural to her. I’m sure she had
nothing to conceal, sir.” ' '
“Did she have many visitors?"
“ No, sir.” , .
II ' c '
“ %:I;1’88i0ri: “the neighbois, possibly ,a..
9: An one else ?" ‘ I
‘ We l, yes; there was a‘richly dressed lady who
used to call now and then.’ 1 never heard her
I