4 files changed, 16560 insertions, 0 deletions

diff --git a/old/21891-8.txt b/old/21891-8.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6187192
--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/21891-8.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,8280 @@
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Brand of Silence, by Harrington Strong
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Brand of Silence
+       A Detective Story
+
+Author: Harrington Strong
+
+Release Date: June 21, 2007 [EBook #21891]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BRAND OF SILENCE ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Sigal Alon, Brett Fishburne, Mary Meehan and
+the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at
+http://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+                          The Brand of Silence
+
+                           A DETECTIVE STORY
+
+                          By HARRINGTON STRONG
+
+
+
+
+CHELSEA HOUSE 79 SEVENTH AVENUE NEW YORK CITY
+
+Copyright, 1919 by STREET & SMITH
+
+(Printed in the United States of America)
+
+All rights reserved, including that of translation into foreign
+languages, including the Scandinavian.
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+       I. IN THE HARBOR
+
+      II. THE GIRL ON THE SHIP
+
+     III. SOME DISCOURTESIES
+
+      IV. A FOE AND A FRIEND
+
+       V. THE COUSIN
+
+      VI. MURK--AND MURDER
+
+     VII. EVIDENCE
+
+    VIII. LIES AND LIARS
+
+      IX. PUZZLED
+
+       X. ON THE TRAIL
+
+      XI. CONCERNING KATE GILBERT
+
+     XII. BATTERED KEYS
+
+    XIII. A PLAN OF CAMPAIGN
+
+     XIV. MORE MYSTERY
+
+      XV. A MOMENT OF VIOLENCE
+
+     XVI. MURK RECEIVES A BLOW
+
+    XVII. MURK IS TEMPTED
+
+   XVIII. A WOMAN'S WAY
+
+     XIX. COADLEY QUITS
+
+      XX. UP THE RIVER
+
+     XXI. RECOGNITION
+
+    XXII. AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR
+
+   XXIII. A STARTLING STORY
+
+    XXIV. HIGH-HANDED METHODS
+
+     XXV. AN ACCUSATION
+
+    XXVI. THE TRUTH COMES OUT
+
+
+
+
+THE BRAND OF SILENCE
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+IN THE HARBOR
+
+
+Now the fog was clearing and the mist was lifting, and the bright
+sunshine was struggling to penetrate the billows of damp vapor and touch
+with its glory the things of the world beneath. In the lower harbor
+there still was a chorus of sirens and foghorns, as craft of almost
+every description made way toward the metropolis or out toward the open
+sea.
+
+The _Manatee_, tramp steamer with rusty plates and rattling engines and
+a lurch like that of a drunken man, wallowed her way in from the
+turbulent ocean she had fought for three days, her skipper standing on
+the bridge and inaudibly giving thanks that he was nearing the end of
+the voyage without the necessity for abandoning his craft for an open
+boat, or remaining to go down with the ship after the manner of skippers
+of the old school.
+
+Here and there showed a rift in the rolling fog, and those who braved
+the weather and lined the damp rail could see other craft in passing.
+
+A giant liner made her way past majestically, bound for Europe, or a
+seagoing tug clugged by as if turning up her nose at the old, battered
+_Manatee_.
+
+Standing at the rail, and well forward, Sidney Prale strained his eyes
+and looked ahead, watching where the fog lifted, an eager light in his
+face, his lips curved in a smile, a general expression of anticipation
+about him.
+
+Sidney Prale himself was not bad to look at. Thirty-eight he was, tall
+and broad of shoulder, with hair that was touched with gray at the
+temples, with a face that had been browned by the weather. Sidney Prale
+had the appearance of wearing clothes that had been molded to his form.
+He had a chin that expressed decision and determination, lips that could
+form in a thin, straight line if occasion required, eyes that could be
+kind or stern, according to the needs of the moment. A man of the world
+would have said that Sidney Prale was a gentleman of broad experience, a
+man who had presence of mind in the face of danger, a man who could
+think quickly and act quickly when such things were necessary.
+
+He was not alone at the rail--and yet he was alone in a sense, for he
+gave no one the slightest attention. He bent over and looked ahead
+eagerly, waving a hand now and then at the men on passing craft, like a
+schoolboy on an excursion trip. He listened to the bellowing sirens and
+foghorns, drank in the raucous cries of the ship's officers, strained
+his ears for the land sounds that rolled now and then across the waters.
+
+"It's great--great!" Sidney Prale said, half aloud.
+
+He bent over the rail again. A hand descended upon his shoulder, and a
+voice answered him.
+
+"You bet it's great, Prale!"
+
+Sidney Prale's smile weakened a bit as he turned around, but there was
+nothing of discourtesy in his manner.
+
+"You like it, Mr. Shepley?" he asked.
+
+"Do I like it? Does Rufus Shepley, forced to run here and there around
+the old world in the name of business, like it when he gets the chance
+to return to New York? Ask me!"
+
+"I have my answer," Prale said, laughing a bit. "And judge, then, how I
+like it--when I have not seen it for ten years."
+
+"Haven't seen New York for ten years?" Rufus Shepley gasped.
+
+"A whole decade," Prale admitted.
+
+"Been down in Honduras all that time?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"And you live to tell it? You are my idea of a real man!" Rufus Shepley
+said.
+
+Shepley took a cigar from his vest pocket, bit off the end, lighted it,
+and puffed a cloud of fragrant smoke into the air. Rufus Shepley was a
+man of fifty, and looked his age. If human being ever gave the
+appearance of being the regulation man of big business affairs, Rufus
+Shepley did.
+
+Sidney Prale had held some conversation with him on board ship, but they
+had not become very well acquainted, though they seemed to like each
+other. Each man seemed to be holding back, waiting, trying to discover
+in the other more qualities to like or dislike.
+
+"Ten years," Sidney Prale went on thoughtfully. "It seems a long time,
+but the years have passed swiftly."
+
+"I always had an idea," Rufus Shepley said, "that a genuine white man
+who went to one of those Central American countries turned bad after the
+first year and went to the devil generally. But you don't look it."
+
+"The idea is correct, at that, in some instances," Prale admitted. "Some
+of them do turn bad."
+
+"They get to drifting, eh? The climate gets into their blood. Do you
+know what I think? I think that, in seven cases out of eight, it's a
+case of a man wanting an excuse for loafing. I knew a chap once who went
+down to that part of the world. Got to drinking too much, threw up his
+job, used to loaf all the time, married some sort of a half-black woman
+who had a bit of coin, and went to the dogs generally."
+
+"Oh, there are many such," Sidney Prale admitted. "But the majority of
+them are men who made some grave mistake somewhere else and got the idea
+that life was merely existence afterward. A man must have an incentive
+in any climate to make anything of himself--and down there the incentive
+has to be stronger."
+
+"I assume that you--er--had the proper incentive," Rufus Shepley said,
+grinning.
+
+"I don't know how some persons would look at the propriety of it. I
+wanted to make a million dollars."
+
+"Great Scott! Your ambition was a modest one, I must say. And you
+managed to win out? Oh, I beg your pardon! It isn't any of my business,
+of course!"
+
+"That's all right," Prale answered good-naturedly. "I don't mind. I'm so
+happy this morning that I'm willing to overlook almost anything. And I
+don't mind telling you that I've won out."
+
+"A million in ten years," Shepley gasped.
+
+"Yes; and with an initial capital of ten thousand dollars," Sidney Prale
+replied. "I'm rather proud of it, of course. I suppose this sounds like
+boasting----"
+
+"My boy, you have the right to boast! A million dollars in ten years!
+Great Scott! Say, would you consider being general manager of one of my
+companies? We need a few men like you."
+
+Sidney Prale laughed again. "Sorry--but I'm afraid that I can't take the
+job," he replied. "I am going to have my little holiday now--going to
+play. A million isn't much in some quarters, but it is enough for me. I
+don't care for money to a great extent. I just wanted to prove to myself
+that I could make a million--prove it to myself and others. And, ready
+to take my vacation, I naturally decided to take it in New York--home!"
+
+"Ah! Home's in New York, eh? Old friends waiting at the dock, and all
+that!"
+
+Sidney Prale's face clouded. "I am afraid that there will be no
+reception committee," he said. "I didn't let anybody know that I was
+coming--for the simple reason that I didn't know whom to inform."
+
+"My boy!"
+
+"I have a few old friends scattered around some place, I suppose. I have
+no relatives in the world except a male cousin about my own age, and I
+never communicated with him after going to Honduras. There was a girl
+once----"
+
+"There always is a girl," Shepley said softly, as Prale ceased speaking.
+
+"But that ended ten years ago," Prale continued. "I stand alone--with my
+million."
+
+"You advertise that fact, my boy, and there'll be girls by the regiment
+looking up your telephone number."
+
+"And the right one wouldn't be in the crowd," Prale said, the smile
+leaving his face again.
+
+"Well, you are in for a fine time, at least," Rufus Shepley told him.
+"There have been quite a few changes in New York in the past ten years.
+Yes, quite a few changes! There are a few new boarding houses scattered
+around, and a new general store or two, and the street cars run out
+farther than they used to."
+
+"Oh, I've kept up to date after a fashion," Sidney Prale said, laughing
+once more. "I'm ready to appreciate the changes, but I suppose I will be
+surprised. The New York papers get down to Honduras now and then, you
+know."
+
+"I've always understood," Shepley said, "that there are certain
+gentlemen in that part of the world who watch the New York papers very
+closely."
+
+"Meaning the men who are fugitives from justice, I see," said Prale.
+
+"I didn't mean anything personal, of course."
+
+"It does look bad, doesn't it?" said Prale. "I went straight to Honduras
+when I left New York ten years ago, like a man running away from the
+law, and I have remained there all the time until this trip. And I have
+been gone ten years--thereby satisfying certain statutes of
+limitation----"
+
+"My boy, I never meant to insinuate that----"
+
+"I know that you didn't," Prale interrupted. "My conscience is clear,
+Mr. Shepley. When I land, I'll not be afraid of some officer of the law
+clutching me by the shoulder and hauling me away to a police station."
+
+"Even if one did, a cool million will buy lots of bail," Rufus Shepley
+said.
+
+The fog was lifting rapidly now. Here and there through the billows of
+mist could be seen the roofs of skyscrapers glistening in the sun.
+Sidney Prale almost forgot the man at his side as he bent over the rail
+to watch.
+
+"Getting home--getting home!" he said. "I suppose no man ever gets quite
+over the home idea, no matter how long he remains away. Ten years ought
+to make a change, but I find that it doesn't. I'll be glad to feel the
+pavements beneath my shoes again."
+
+"Sure!" said Rufus Shepley.
+
+"Confound the fog! Ah, there's a building I know! And there are a few I
+never saw before. We're beginning to get in, aren't we? Ought to dock
+before noon, don't you think?"
+
+"Sure thing!"
+
+"A hotel, a bath, fresh clothes--and then for hour after hour of walking
+around and taking in the sights!" Prale said.
+
+"Better engage a taxi if you expect to take 'em all in before night, my
+boy," Shepley said.
+
+"I forgot! We haven't any too many taxis in Honduras. I had a car of my
+own, but sold it before I came away."
+
+"You let the busy auto agents know that, and you'll have a regiment of
+them----"
+
+"And there!" Sidney Prale cried. "Now I know that I am home! There is
+the Old Girl in the Harbor!"
+
+Prale removed his cap, and a mist came into his eyes that did not come
+from the foggy billows through which the ship was plowing. The sun was
+shining through the murk at last, and it touched the Statue of Liberty.
+The great figure seemed like a live thing for a moment; the mist made it
+appear that her garments were waving in the breeze.
+
+"Now I know that I am home!" Sidney Prale repeated.
+
+"She sure is a great old girl!" Rufus Shepley agreed. "Always glad to
+see her!"
+
+"Well, I've got to get ready to land; I'm not going to waste any time,"
+Prale said. "I'm glad that I met you--and perhaps we'll meet again in
+the city."
+
+"Hope we do!" said Shepley, grasping Prale's hand. "Our factories are
+out in Ohio, but the company headquarters are in New York, of course.
+Here's my business card, my boy. And I generally put up at the
+Graymore."
+
+Sidney Prale took the card, thanked Rufus Shepley, and hurried down the
+deck toward his stateroom, one of the best on the ship. Rufus Shepley
+looked after him sharply.
+
+"Went straight to Honduras and stayed there for ten years, eh?" Rufus
+Shepley said to himself. "Um! Looks bad! I never put much stock in those
+Honduras chaps--but this one seems to be all right. Never can tell,
+though!"
+
+Sidney Prale, still smiling, and humming a Spanish love song, reached
+his stateroom and threw open the door; and just inside, he came to a
+stop, astonished.
+
+Somebody had been in that stateroom and had been going through his
+things. The contents of his suit case were spilled on the floor. A bag
+was wide open; he had left it closed and in a corner less than an hour
+before.
+
+Prale went down on his knees and made a quick inspection. There did not
+seem to be anything missing. A package of papers--business documents for
+the greater part--had been examined, he could tell at a glance, but none
+had been taken.
+
+"Peculiar!" Prale told himself. "Some sneak thief, I suppose. No sense
+in complaining to the ship's officers at this late hour, especially
+since nothing has been stolen. Makes a man angry, though!"
+
+He put the suit case on the table and began repacking the things that
+had been scattered on the floor. Then he gathered up his toilet
+articles, bits of clothing he had left out until the last minute, a few
+souvenirs of Honduras he had been showing a tourist the evening before.
+He turned toward the berth to pick up his light overcoat.
+
+There was a sheet of paper pinned to the pillow, paper that might have
+been taken from an ordinary writing tablet. Sidney Prale took it up and
+glanced at it. A few words of handwriting were upon the paper, words
+that looked as if they had been scrawled hurriedly with a pencil that
+needed sharpening badly.
+
+"Retribution is inevitable and comes when you least expect it."
+
+The smile fled from Sidney Prale's lips, and the Spanish love song he
+had been humming died in his throat. He frowned, and read the message
+again.
+
+"Now what the deuce does this mean?" he gasped.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+THE GIRL ON THE SHIP
+
+
+Sidney Prale folded the piece of paper carefully and slipped it into his
+wallet. Winning a fortune in ten years in a foreign country had taught
+Prale many things, notably that everything has its cause and effect, and
+that things that seem trifles may turn out to be of great importance
+later.
+
+He finished his packing, locked the suit case, put on coat and hat and
+went out upon the deck. The _Manatee_ was docking. A throng was on the
+wharf. Prale glanced at the buildings in the distance and forgot for the
+time being the scrap of paper, because of his happiness at being home
+again and his eagerness to land. Returning to New York after an absence
+of so many years was in the nature of an adventure. There would be
+exploring trips to make, things to find, surprises at every turn and on
+every side.
+
+The passengers were crowding forward now, preparing to go ashore. Sidney
+Prale picked up his suit case and started through the jostling crowd.
+Already those on board were calling greetings to relatives and friends
+on the wharf, and Prale's face grew solemn for a moment because there
+was nobody to welcome him.
+
+"Not a friend in the world," he had said to Rufus Shepley that morning.
+
+"A man with a million dollars has a million friends," Shepley had
+replied. "The only trouble is, you can't enjoy that sort of friends
+except by getting rid of them, unless you happen to be a miser."
+
+Well, that was something, Sidney Prale told himself now. He had ample
+funds, at least, and perhaps he could enjoy himself after ten years of
+battling with financial sharks, of inspecting and working mines, of
+cutting through dense forests and locating growths that could be turned
+into wealth.
+
+Prale put his suit case against the rail to wait until he could move
+forward again. He looked down at the throng on the wharf, and up and
+down the rail at his fellow passengers. Then he saw the girl again!
+
+He had seen her before. The first time had been at Tegucigalpa, at a
+ball given by some society people for charity. He had known her at once
+for an American, and finally had obtained an introduction. Her name was
+Kate Gilbert, and she lived in New York. It was understood that she was
+of a wealthy family and traveling for her health. She was accompanied
+only by a middle-aged maid, a giant of a woman who seemed to be maid and
+chaperon and general protector in one.
+
+That night at Tegucigalpa, Prale had talked to her and had danced with
+her twice. He judged her to be about twenty-eight, some ten years
+younger than himself. She was small and charming, not one of the
+helpless butterfly sort, but a woman who gave indication that she could
+care for herself if necessary.
+
+Prale had been surprised to find her aboard the _Manatee_, but she had
+told him that she was going home, that her health had been much
+benefited, and that she felt she could not remain away longer. It had
+seemed to Prale that she avoided him purposely, and that puzzled him a
+bit. He could not understand why any woman should absolutely dislike
+him. His record in Honduras was a clean one; it was known that he did
+not care much for women, and surely she had learned that he was a man of
+means, and did not think he might be a fortune hunter wishing to marry a
+prominent heiress.
+
+He had not spoken to her half a dozen times during the voyage. She made
+the acquaintance of others aboard and, for the first few days, had been
+busy in their company. The last three days had been stormy ones, and
+Kate Gilbert had not been much in evidence. Prale judged that she was a
+poor sailor.
+
+Now she stopped beside him, the middle-aged maid standing just behind
+her.
+
+"Well, we're home, Mr. Prale!" she said.
+
+"I suppose that you are glad to get home?"
+
+"Surely!" she replied. "And I'll be angry if there are not half a dozen
+to meet me when I land. I've been trying to spot some friends in that
+crowd, but it is a hopeless task."
+
+"I hope you'll not be disappointed," Prale said.
+
+As he spoke, he glanced past her at the middle-aged maid, and surprised
+a peculiar expression on the face of the woman. She had been looking
+straight at him, and her lips were almost curled into a sneer, while her
+eyes were flashing with something akin to anger.
+
+Prale did not understand that. Why should the dragon be incensed with
+him? He was making no attempt to lay siege to the heart of Miss Kate
+Gilbert. He was no fortune hunter after an heiress. The expression on
+the face of the maid amused Prale even while he wondered what it could
+mean.
+
+"Picked your hotel?" Kate Gilbert was asking.
+
+"Not yet, but I hope to get in somewhere," Prale told her. "May I be of
+assistance to you when we land?"
+
+"Marie will help me, thanks--and there will be others on the wharf," she
+answered.
+
+A cold look had come into her face again, and she turned half away from
+him and looked down at the crowd on the wharf. Sidney Prale looked
+straight at her, despite the glare of the middle-aged maid. Kate Gilbert
+was a woman who would appeal to a majority of men, but there seemed to
+be something peculiar about her, Prale told himself. He knew that she
+had avoided him purposely during the voyage, and that she had spoken to
+him purposely now, yet had asked nothing except whether he had chosen a
+hotel.
+
+Why should Kate Gilbert wish to know where he was going to stop? Perhaps
+it had been only an idle question, he explained to himself. In her
+happiness at getting home, she had merely wished to speak to somebody,
+and none of her shipboard friends happened to be near.
+
+He turned from her and glanced at the maid again. She was not the sort
+to be named Marie, Prale told himself. Marie called up a vision of a
+petite, trim woman from sunny France, and this Marie was nothing of the
+sort. She appeared more to be a peasant used to hard labor, Prale
+decided.
+
+And he could not understand the expression on the woman's face as she
+looked at him. It was almost one of loathing.
+
+"Got me mixed up with somebody else, or somebody has been giving me a
+bad reputation," Prale mused. "Enough to make a man shiver--that look of
+hers."
+
+Kate Gilbert, apparently, did not intend to have anything more to do
+with him. Smiling a little at her manner, Prale lifted his hat, picked
+up the suit case, and turned away. Once more he tried to force a passage
+through the jostling crowd. He had not taken three steps when Kate
+Gilbert touched him on the arm.
+
+"Pardon me, Mr. Prale, but there is something sticking on the end of
+your suit case," she said.
+
+Prale glanced down. On one end of the suit case was a bit of paper. It
+had been stuck there by a drop of mucilage, and the mucilage was still
+wet.
+
+He thanked Kate Gilbert and picked the paper off, but he did not throw
+it over the rail into the water. He crumpled it in his hand and, when he
+was some distance away, he smoothed it out.
+
+There was a single word written on it, in the same handwriting
+as that of the note he had found pinned to the pillow in the
+stateroom--"Retribution."
+
+Sidney Prale glanced around quickly. Nobody seemed to be paying
+particular attention to him. Kate Gilbert and her maid had passed him
+and were preparing to land. Prale put the piece of paper into his coat
+pocket and picked up his suit case again. That bit of paper, he knew
+well, had not been on the suit case when he had left the stateroom. It
+had been put there as he had made his way through the crowd of
+passengers along the rail. Who could have stuck it there--and why?
+
+Now the passengers were streaming ashore, and Sidney Prale stepped to
+one side and watched them. Perhaps he had some business enemy on board,
+he told himself, some man he had not noticed, and who was trying to
+frighten him after a childish fashion. He searched the faces of the
+landing passengers, but saw nobody he had known in Central America,
+nobody who looked at all suspicious.
+
+"Either a joke--or a mistake," Prale told himself again.
+
+He started ashore. He saw Kate Gilbert just ahead of him, the bulky maid
+at her heels. An elderly man met her, but did not greet her as a father
+would have been expected to do. Prale saw them hold a whispered
+conversation, and it seemed to him that the elderly man gave him a
+searching glance.
+
+"I must look like a swindler!" Prale mused.
+
+Finally, as he went out upon the street to engage a taxicab and start
+for a hotel, he saw Kate Gilbert and her maid and the elderly man again,
+getting into a limousine. The girl held a piece of paper in her hand,
+and was reading something from it to the elderly man. As she got into
+the car, she dropped the piece of paper to the curb.
+
+The limousine was gone before Prale reached the curb. He put his suit
+case down and picked up the piece of paper. There was nothing on it
+except a couple of names that meant nothing to Sidney Prale. But his
+eyes bulged, nevertheless, as he read them.
+
+For the paper was similar to that upon which had been written the note
+that he had found on the pillow in the stateroom--and the coarse
+handwriting was the same!
+
+"What the deuce----" Prale caught himself saying.
+
+Had Kate Gilbert written that message about retribution and had her maid
+leave it in the stateroom? Had Kate Gilbert written that single word and
+had her maid paste it on his suit case as he passed, or pasted it there
+herself?
+
+Why had Kate Gilbert--whom he never had seen and of whom he never had
+heard until she appeared at the ball in Tegucigalpa--avoided him in such
+a peculiar manner? And why had the misnamed Marie glared at him, and
+expressed loathing and anger when her eyes met his?
+
+"What the deuce----" Prale asked himself again.
+
+Then a taxicab drew up at the curb, and he got in.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+SOME DISCOURTESIES
+
+
+Sidney Prale obtained accommodations in a prominent hostelry on Fifth
+Avenue, bathed, dressed, ate luncheon, and then went out upon the
+streets, walking briskly and swinging his stick, going about New York
+like a stranger who never had seen it before.
+
+As a matter of fact, he never had seen this New York before. He had
+expected a multitude of changes, but nothing compared to what he found.
+He watched the crowds on the Avenue, cut over to Broadway and
+investigated the electric signs by daylight, observed the congestion of
+vehicles and the efforts of traffic policemen to straighten it out. He
+darted into the subway and rode far downtown and back again just for the
+sport of it. After that he got on an omnibus and rode up to Central
+Park, and acted as if every tree and twig were an old friend.
+
+He made himself acquainted with the animals in the zoo there, and
+promised himself to go to the other zoo in the Bronx before the end of
+the week. He stood back at the curb and lifted his head to look at new
+buildings after the manner of the comic supplement farmer with a straw
+between his teeth.
+
+"Great--great!" said Sidney Prale.
+
+Then he hurried back to the hotel, dressed for dinner, and went down to
+the dining room, stopping on the way to obtain a ticket for a musical
+revue that was the talk of the town at the moment.
+
+Prale ordered a dinner that made the waiter open his eyes. He made it a
+point to select things that were not on the menus of the hotels in
+Honduras. Then he sat back in his chair and listened to the orchestra,
+and watched well-dressed men and women come in and get their places at
+the tables.
+
+But the dinner was a disappointment to Prale after all. It seemed to him
+that the waiter was a long time giving him service. He remonstrated, and
+the man asked pardon and said that he would do better, but he did not.
+
+Prale found that his soup was lukewarm, his salad dressing prepared
+imperfectly, the salad itself a mere mess of vegetables. The fish and
+fowl he had ordered were not served properly, the dessert was without
+flavor, the cheese was stale. He sent for the head waiter.
+
+"I'm disgusted with the food and the service," he complained. "I rarely
+find fault, but I am compelled to do so this time. The man who has been
+serving me seems to be a rank amateur, and twice he was almost insolent.
+This hotel has a reputation which it scarcely is maintaining this
+evening."
+
+"I'll see about it, sir," the head waiter said.
+
+Prale saw him stop the waiter and speak to him, and the waiter glared at
+him when he brought the demi-tasse. Prale did not care. He glared back
+at the man, drank the coffee, and touched the match to a cigar. Then he
+signed the check and went from the dining room, an angry and disgusted
+man.
+
+"Another thing like that, and I look for the manager," he told himself.
+
+He supposed that he was a victim of circumstances--that the waiter was a
+new man and that it happened that the portions he served were poor
+portions. His happiness at being home again prevented Sidney Prale from
+feeling anger for any length of time. He got his hat and coat and went
+out upon the street again.
+
+He had an hour before time to go to the theater. He walked over to
+Broadway and went toward the north, looking at the bright lights and the
+crowds. He passed through two or three hotel lobbies, satisfied for the
+time merely to be in the midst of the throngs.
+
+At the proper time, he hurried to the theater and claimed his seat. The
+performance was a mediocre one, but it pleased Sidney Prale. He had seen
+a better show in Honduras a month before, had seen better dancing and
+heard better singing and comedy, but this was New York!
+
+The show at an end, Prale claimed his hat and coat at the check room and
+walked down the street toward a cabaret restaurant. He reached into his
+overcoat pocket for his gloves, and his hand encountered a slip of
+paper. He took it out.
+
+There was the same rough handwriting on the same kind of paper, and
+evidently with the same blunt pencil.
+
+"Remember--retribution is sure!"
+
+"This thing ceases to be a joke!" Prale told himself.
+
+His face flushed with anger, and he turned back toward the theater. But
+he had been among the last to leave, and already the lights of the
+playhouse were being turned out. The boy in charge of the check room
+would be gone, Prale knew.
+
+He thought of Kate Gilbert again, and the bit of paper she had dropped
+as she got into the limousine down on the water front. Surely she could
+have no hand in this, he thought. What interest could Kate Gilbert, a
+casual acquaintance and reputed daughter of a wealthy house, have in him
+and his affairs?
+
+"Somebody is making a mistake," he declared to himself, "or else it is
+some sort of a new advertising dodge. If I ever catch the jokesmith who
+is responsible for these dainty little messages, I'll tell him a thing
+or two."
+
+Prale turned into the restaurant and found a seat at a little table at
+one side of the room. The after-theater crowd was filling the place. The
+orchestra was playing furiously, and the cabaret performance was
+beginning. Sidney Prale leaned back in his chair and watched the show.
+The waiter came to his side, and he ordered something to eat and drink.
+
+Then he saw Kate Gilbert again, at a table not very far away from his.
+She was dressed in an evening gown, as if she had just come from the
+theater or opera. She was in the company of the elderly man who had met
+her at the wharf, and a young man and an older woman were at the same
+table.
+
+Prale's eyes met hers for an instant, and he inclined his head a bit in
+a respectful manner. But Kate Gilbert looked through him as if he had
+not been present, and then turned her head and began talking to the
+elderly man.
+
+Prale's face flushed. He hadn't done anything wrong, he told himself. He
+merely had bowed to her, as he would have bowed to any woman to whom he
+had been properly introduced. She had seen fit to cut him. Well, he
+could exist without Kate Gilbert, he told himself, but he wondered at
+her peculiar manner.
+
+He left the place within the hour and went back to the hotel and to bed.
+In the morning he walked up the Avenue as far as the Circle, dropped
+into a restaurant for a good breakfast, and then engaged a taxicab and
+drove downtown to the financial district. He had remembered that he was
+a man with a million, and that he had to pay some attention to business.
+
+He went into the establishment of a famous trust company and sent his
+card in to the president. An attendant ushered him into the president's
+private office immediately.
+
+"Sit down, Mr. Prale," said the financier. "I am glad that you came to
+see me this morning. I was just about to have somebody look you up."
+
+"Anything the matter?" Prale asked.
+
+"Your funds were transferred to us by our Honduras correspondent," the
+financier said. "Since you were leaving Honduras almost immediately, we
+decided to care for the funds until you arrived and we could talk to
+you."
+
+"I shall want some good investments, of course," Prale said. "I have
+disposed of all my holdings in Honduras, and I don't want the money to
+be idle."
+
+"Idleness is as bad for dollars as for men," said the financier,
+clearing his throat.
+
+"Can you suggest some investments? I have engaged no broker as yet, of
+course."
+
+"I--er--I am afraid that we have nothing at the present moment," the
+financier said.
+
+"The market must be good," Prale observed. "I never knew a time when
+investments were lacking."
+
+"I would not offer you a poor one, and good ones are scarce with us at
+present," said the banker. "Sorry that we cannot attend to the business
+for you. Perhaps some other trust company----"
+
+"Well, I can wait for something to turn up," Prale said. "There is no
+hurry, of course. Probably you'll have something in a few weeks that
+will take care of at least a part of the money."
+
+The banker cleared his throat again, and looked a trifle embarrassed as
+he spoke. "The fact of the matter is, Mr. Prale," he said, "that we do
+not care for the account."
+
+"I beg your pardon!" Prale exclaimed. "You mean you don't want me to
+leave my money in your bank?"
+
+"Just that, Mr. Prale."
+
+"But in Heaven's name, why? I should think that any financial
+institution would be glad to get a new account of that size."
+
+"I--er--I cannot go into details, sir," the banker said. "But I must
+tell you that we'd be glad if you'd make arrangements to move the
+deposit to some other bank."
+
+"I suppose you don't like to be bothered with small accounts," said
+Prale, with the suspicion of a sneer in his voice. "Very well, sir! I'll
+see that the deposit is transferred before night. Perhaps I can find
+banks that will be glad to take the money and treat me with respect. And
+I shall remember this, sir!"
+
+"I--er--have no choice in the matter," the banker said.
+
+"Can't you explain what it means?"
+
+"I have nothing to say--nothing at all to say," stammered the financier.
+"We took the money because of our Honduras correspondent, but we'll
+appreciate it very much if you do business with some other institution."
+
+"You can bet I'll do that little thing!" Prale exclaimed.
+
+He left the office angrily and stalked from the building. Were the big
+financiers of New York insane? A man with a million in cold cash has the
+right to expect that he will be treated decently in a bank. Prale walked
+down the street and grew angrier with every step he took.
+
+Before going to Honduras he had worked for a firm of brokers. He hurried
+toward their office now. He would send in his card to his old employer,
+Griffin, he decided, and ask his advice about banking his funds, and
+incidentally whether the financier he had just left was an imbecile.
+
+He found the Griffin concern in the same building, though the offices
+were twice as large now, and there were evidences of prosperity on every
+side.
+
+"Got an appointment?" an office boy demanded.
+
+"No, but I fancy that Mr. Griffin will see me," said Prale. "I used to
+work for him years ago."
+
+Then he sat down to wait. Griffin would be glad to see him, he thought.
+Griffin was a man who always liked to see younger men get along. He
+would want to know how Sidney Prale got his million. He would want to
+take him to luncheon and exhibit him to his friends--tell how one of his
+young men had forged ahead in the world.
+
+The boy came back with his card. "Mr. Griffin can't see you," he
+announced.
+
+"Oh, he's busy, eh? Did he make an appointment?"
+
+"No, he ain't busy," said the boy. "He's got his feet set up on the desk
+and he's readin' about yesterday's ball game. He said to say that he
+didn't have time to see you this mornin', and that he wouldn't ever have
+time to see you."
+
+"Don't be discourteous, you young imp!" Prale said, his face flushing.
+"You're sure you handed Mr. Griffin my card?"
+
+"Oh, I handed it to him--and don't you try to run any bluff on me!" the
+boy answered. "From the way the boss acted, I guess you don't stand very
+high with him!"
+
+The boy went back to his chair, and Sidney Prale went from the office, a
+puzzled and angry man. There probably was some mistake, he told himself.
+He'd meet Griffin during the day and tell him about the adventure.
+
+He was anxious to meet some of the men with whom he had worked ten years
+before, but he did not know where to find them. He'd have to wait and
+ask Griffin what had become of them. Then, too, he wanted to transfer
+his funds.
+
+Prale got another taxicab and started making the rounds of the banks he
+knew to be solid institutions. Within a few hours he had made
+arrangements to transfer the account, using four financial institutions.
+He said nothing, except that the money had been transferred to the trust
+company from Honduras, because the company had a correspondent there.
+
+His funds secure, Prale went back uptown and to the hotel. The clerk
+handed him a note with his key. Prale tore it open after he stepped into
+the elevator. This time it was a sheet of paper upon which a message had
+been typewritten.
+
+"You can't dodge the law of compensation. For what you have done, you
+must pay."
+
+Sidney Prale gasped when he read that message, and went back to the
+ground floor.
+
+"Who left this note for me?" he demanded of the clerk.
+
+"Messenger boy."
+
+"You don't know where he came from?"
+
+"No, sir."
+
+Prale turned away and started for the elevator again. A bell hop stopped
+him.
+
+"Manager would like to see you in his office, sir," the boy said. "This
+way, sir."
+
+Prale followed the boy, wondering what was coming now. He found the
+manager to be a sort of austere individual who seemed impressed with his
+own importance.
+
+"Mr. Prale," he said, "I regret to have to say this, but I find that it
+cannot be avoided. When you arrived yesterday, the clerk assigned you to
+a suite on the fifth floor. He made a mistake. We had a telegraphic
+reservation for that suite from an old guest of ours, and it should have
+been kept for him. You appreciate the situation, I feel sure."
+
+"No objection to being moved," Prale said. "I have unpacked scarcely any
+of my things."
+
+"But--again I regret it--there isn't a vacant suite in the house, Mr.
+Prale."
+
+"A room, then, until you have one."
+
+"We haven't a room. We haven't as much as a cot, Mr. Prale. We cannot
+take care of you, I'm afraid. So many regular guests, you understand,
+and out-of-town visitors."
+
+"Then I'll have to move, I suppose. You may have the suite within two
+hours."
+
+"Thank you, Mr. Prale."
+
+Prale was angry again when he left the office of the manager. It seemed
+that everything was conspiring against his comfort. He got a cab, drove
+to another hotel, inspected a suite and reserved it, paying a month in
+advance, and then went back to the big hotel on Fifth Avenue to get his
+baggage. He paid his bill at the cashier's window, and overheard the
+room clerk speaking to a woman.
+
+"Certainly, madam," the clerk was saying. "We will have an excellent
+suite on the fifth floor within half an hour. The party is just vacating
+it. Plenty of suites on the third floor, of course, but, if you want to
+be up higher in the building----"
+
+Sidney Prale felt the blood pounding in his temples, felt rage welling
+up within him. He felt as he had once in a Honduras forest when he
+became aware that a dishonest foreman was betraying business secrets. He
+hurried to the office of the manager, but the stenographer said the
+manager was busy and could not be seen.
+
+Prale whirled away, going through the lobby toward the entrance. He met
+Kate Gilbert face to face. She did not seem to see him, though he was
+forced to step aside to let her pass.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+A FOE AND A FRIEND
+
+
+After settling himself in the other hotel, Prale ate a belated luncheon.
+For the first time that day, he looked at the newspapers. He had
+remembered that a New Yorker reads the papers religiously to keep up to
+the minute; whereas, in Honduras, it was the custom for busy men to let
+the papers accumulate and then read a week's supply at a sitting.
+
+Aside from his name in the list of arrivals, Prale found no word
+concerning himself, though there was mention of other men who had come
+on the _Manatee_, and who had no special claim to prominence.
+
+"I don't amount to much, I guess," said Prale to himself. "Don't care
+for publicity, anyway, but they might let the world know a fellow has
+come home."
+
+He went for another walk that afternoon, returned to the hotel for
+dinner, and decided that, instead of going to a show that evening, he
+would prowl around the town.
+
+He walked up to the Park, went over to Broadway, and started down it,
+looking at the bright lights again, making his way through the happy,
+theater-going throngs toward Times Square. In the enjoyment of the
+crowds he forgot, in part, the discourtesies of the day, but he could
+not forget them entirely.
+
+Why had the banker acted in such a peculiar fashion? It was not like a
+financial institution to refuse a deposit of a round million. Why had
+Griffin refused to see him? Why had he as good as been ordered out of
+the hotel?
+
+"Coincidence," he told himself. "No reason on earth why such things
+should happen unless I am being taken for somebody else--and that
+wouldn't be true in the case of Griffin."
+
+He came to a prominent hotel and went into the lobby, looking in vain
+for some friend of the old days with whom he could spend an hour or so.
+Down in Honduras he had had his million and friends, too; and here, in
+his old home, he had nothing but his money. At this hour, down in
+Honduras, the band would be playing in the plaza, and society would be
+out in force. There would be a soft breeze sweeping down from the hills,
+bringing a thousand odors that could not be detected in New York. Here
+and there guitars would be tinkling, and men and maidens would be
+meeting in the moonlight.
+
+There would be a happy crowd at a certain club he knew, at which he
+always had been made welcome. A man could sit out on the veranda and
+look over the tumbling sea, and hear the ship's bells strike. Sidney
+Prale found himself just a bit homesick for Honduras.
+
+"Got to get over it," he told himself. "No sense in feeling this way.
+I'll have a hundred friends before I've been in town a month!"
+
+He went out upon the street, made his way down it, and dropped in at
+another hotel. There he saw Rufus Shepley sitting in an easy-chair,
+smoking and looking at an evening paper.
+
+Well, he knew Shepley, at least. Shepley was only a steamship
+acquaintance, but he was a human being and could talk. Prale was just a
+bit tired of confining his conversation to waiters and cigar-store
+clerks.
+
+He stopped before Shepley and cleared his throat.
+
+"Well, we meet again, Mr. Shepley!" he said.
+
+Rufus Shepley looked up, and then sprang to his feet, but his face did
+not light and he did not extend a hand in greeting. Instead, his
+countenance grew crimson, and he seemed to be shaking with anger.
+
+"You presume too much on a chance acquaintance, sir!" Rufus Shepley
+thundered. "I do not wish you to address me again--do you understand,
+sir? Never again--either in public or private!"
+
+"Why----" Prale stammered.
+
+"I don't want anything to do with a man of your stamp!" Rufus Shepley
+went on. "Ten years in Honduras, were you? We all know why men go to
+Honduras and spend years there."
+
+Shepley had raised his voice, and all in the lobby could hear. Men began
+moving toward them, and women began walking away, fearing a scene and a
+quarrel.
+
+Sidney Prale's face had flushed, too, and he felt his anger rising
+again.
+
+"I am sure I do not wish to continue the acquaintance if you do not,
+sir," he said. "I can be courteous, at least."
+
+"Some men are not entitled to courtesy," Shepley roared.
+
+"What do you mean by that?" Prale demanded.
+
+"I mean that I don't want anything to do with you, that's all! I don't
+want you to speak to me again! I don't want anybody to know that you
+even know me by sight!"
+
+"See here!" Prale cried. "You can't talk to me like that without giving
+me some explanation! You can't defame me before other men----"
+
+"Defame you?" Shepley cried. "You can't make a tar brush black, sir?"
+
+Rage was seething in Prale now. There was quite a crowd around them, and
+others were making their way forward.
+
+"I don't pretend to know what is the matter with you, and I don't much
+care!" he told Shepley. "If your hair wasn't gray, I'd take you out on
+the sidewalk and smash your face in! Please understand that!"
+
+"Threaten me, will you?"
+
+"I'm not threatening you. I don't fight a man with one foot in the
+grave."
+
+"Why you----"
+
+"And I don't care to have you address me in public again, either,"
+Sidney Prale went on. "It probably would be an insult."
+
+"Confound you, sir!" Shepley cried.
+
+He reached forward and grasped Prale by the arm. Sidney Prale put up a
+hand, tore the grasp loose, and tossed Rufus Shepley to one side.
+
+"Keep your paws off me!" he exclaimed. "I think that you're insane, if
+you ask me!"
+
+The hotel detective came hurrying up.
+
+"You'll have to cut that out!" he said. "What's the row here, anyway?"
+
+"The place is harboring a maniac!" Prale said.
+
+"It's harboring a crook!" Shepley cried.
+
+Prale lurched forward and grasped him by both arms, and shook him until
+Rufus Shepley's teeth chattered.
+
+"Another word out of you, and I'll forget that your hair is gray!" Prale
+exclaimed, and then he tossed Shepley to one side again.
+
+"Either of you guests here?" the house detective demanded. "No? Then
+maybe you'd both better get out until you can cool off. If you want to
+stage a scrap, go down and rent Madison Square Garden and advertise in
+the newspapers. I wouldn't mind seeing a good fight myself. But this
+lobby isn't any prize ring. Get me?"
+
+Sidney Prale, his face still flaming, whirled around and started for the
+entrance, the crowd parting to let him through. Rufus Shepley, fuming
+and fussing, followed him slowly. The house detective accompanied him to
+the door.
+
+Prale was waiting at the curb, a Prale whose face was white now because
+of the temper he was fighting to control. He stepped close to Shepley's
+side.
+
+"I don't know why you insulted me, but don't do it again!" Prale said.
+"I ought to settle with you for what you've said already."
+
+The house detective, who had heard, stepped forward again, but Sidney
+Prale swung across the street and went on his way.
+
+He walked rapidly for a dozen blocks or more, paying no attention to
+where he was going, until his anger began to subside.
+
+"Why, the raving maniac!" he gasped, once or twice.
+
+He didn't pretend to guess what it meant. Shepley had seemed to be
+friendly enough when they had separated aboard ship. What could have
+happened to make the man change his mind and attitude?
+
+"Must be some mistake!" Prale told himself. "If there is any more of
+this, I'll have to get to the bottom of it!"
+
+He reached Madison Square, and sat down on a bench to smoke and regain
+his composure. He knew that he had a terrible temper, and that it had to
+be controlled. A temper that flashed was all right at times in the
+jungles of Honduras, but it was not the proper thing to exhibit in the
+heart of New York City. It might get him into serious trouble with
+somebody.
+
+He finished his cigar, listened to the striking chimes, and lighted
+another smoke. A pedestrian stopped beside him.
+
+"Old Sid Prale, or I'm a liar!" he cried.
+
+Prale looked up, and then sprang to his feet.
+
+"Jim Farland, the sleuth!" he cried in answer. "Old Jim, the holy terror
+to evildoers. Now I am glad that I'm home!"
+
+"When did you get in?"
+
+"Yesterday. Sit down. Have a cigar. You're the first old friend I've
+met!"
+
+Detective Jim Farland sat down and lighted the cigar. "You've been gone
+some time," he said.
+
+"Ten years, Jim."
+
+"Went away rather sudden, didn't you?"
+
+"I did. I made my decision one night and sailed the night following,"
+said Prale.
+
+"I always wondered why you went, and what became of you. Had a good job
+with old Griffin, didn't you?"
+
+"The job was all right, Jim. But there was a girl----"
+
+"Ah, ha!"
+
+"And she threw me over for a fellow who had some money. That made me
+huffy, of course. I swore I'd shake the dust of New York from my shoes,
+go to some foreign country, take with me the ten thousand dollars I had
+saved, and turn it into a million."
+
+"And came back broke!" Farland said.
+
+"Nothing of the sort, Jim. I came back with a million."
+
+"Great Scott! I suppose I'd better be on my way then. I ain't in the
+habit of having millionaires let me associate with 'em."
+
+"You sit where you are, or I'll use violence!" Prale told him. "I
+suppose you are still on the force? Still fussing around down in the
+financial district watching for swindlers?"
+
+"I left the force three years ago," Jim Farland replied. "Couldn't seem
+to get ahead. Too honest, maybe--or too ignorant. I'm in a sort of
+private detective business now--got an office up the street. Doing
+fairly well, too--lots of old friends give me work. If you have anything
+in my line----"
+
+"If I have, you'll get a job," said Prale.
+
+"Let me slip you a card," said Farland. "You never know when you may
+need a detective. So you came back with a million, eh?"
+
+"And ran into a mess," Prale added.
+
+"I can't imagine a man with a million running into much of a mess,"
+Farland said.
+
+"That's all you know about it. I may need your services sooner than you
+think. There is a sort of jinx working on me, it appears."
+
+"Spill it!" Jim Farland said.
+
+Sidney Prale did. He related what had happened at the bank, at the
+hotel, in Griffin's office, and told of the scene with Rufus Shepley.
+
+"Funny!" Farland said, when he had finished. "I know old Rufus Shepley,
+and as a general thing he ain't a maniac. Something behind all this,
+Sid."
+
+"Yes; but what on earth could it be?"
+
+"That's the question. If anything else happens, and you need help, just
+let me know."
+
+"I'll do that, surely," said Prale. "And I'm glad that I've got one
+friend left in town."
+
+"Always have one as long as I'm here," Jim Farland assured him. "And it
+ain't because of your million, either. It's true about the million?"
+
+"Absolutely!"
+
+"Gee! That's more than old Griffin himself has in cash, anyway," Farland
+declared. "Maybe it's a good thing that girl turned you down. You'd
+probably be a clerk at a few thousand a year, if she hadn't. How'd you
+make the coin?"
+
+"Mines and fruit and water power and logs," said Prale.
+
+"Sounds simple enough. When the detective business goes on the blink, I
+may take a turn at it myself."
+
+"If you ever need money, Jim, call on me. If you want to engage bigger
+offices, hire operatives, branch out----"
+
+"Stop it!" Farland cried. "I want nothing of the kind. I'm a peculiar
+sort of duck--don't care about being rich at all. I just want to be sure
+I'll have a good living for myself and the wife and kids, and have a few
+friends, and be able to look every man in town straight in the eye. I'd
+rather work for a friend for nothing than do work I don't like for ten
+thousand an hour."
+
+"I believe you!" Prale said.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+THE COUSIN
+
+
+An hour later, having parted with Detective Jim Farland, Sidney Prale
+walked slowly up Fifth Avenue, determined to go to his hotel suite and
+rest for the remainder of the evening. His conversation and short visit
+with Farland had put him in a better humor. There was no mistaking the
+quality of Farland's friendship. He and Prale had been firm friends ten
+years before, when Farland was on duty in the financial district, and
+they had made it a point at that time to eat luncheon together when
+Farland's duties permitted.
+
+New York seemed a better place, even with one friend among several
+million persons. So Prale swung his stick jauntily, and hummed the
+Spanish love song again, and told himself that Rufus Shepley and Kate
+Gilbert, old Griffin and the hotel manager and the rest of the motley
+crew that had made the day miserable for him amounted to nothing in the
+broader scheme of things, and were not to be taken seriously.
+
+He came to a block where there were few pedestrians, where the great
+shops had their lights out and their night curtains up. He heard steps
+behind him, and presently a soft voice.
+
+"Sid! Sid!"
+
+Sidney Prale whirled around, alert and on guard, for he did not
+recognize the voice. A medium-sized man stood before him, a man of about
+his own age, who had a furtive manner and wore a beard.
+
+"Don't you know me, Sid?"
+
+"Can't say that I do!"
+
+"Why, I'm your cousin, George Lerton. I'm the only relative you've got
+in the world, unless you got married while you were away."
+
+Prale stepped aside so that the nearest light flashed on the face of the
+man before him.
+
+"Well, if it isn't!" he said. "Didn't recognize you at first. How long
+have you been wearing the alfalfa on your face?"
+
+"Two or three years," George Lerton told him, grinning a bit. "I saw
+your name in the passenger list, Sid, and wanted to see you. I found out
+where you are stopping----"
+
+"Why didn't you come to the hotel, then, or leave a note?" Prale asked.
+"Come on up now."
+
+"I--I wanted to talk to you----"
+
+"And I want to talk to you. What are you doing for yourself, George?
+Still working in a broker's office?"
+
+"Oh, I've got an office of my own now."
+
+"Getting along all right?"
+
+"Fairly well," Lerton said. "Business has been pretty good the last
+year."
+
+"Maybe you can dig up a few good investments for me, then," Prale said.
+"I've got some coin now."
+
+"I understand that you're worth a million, Sid."
+
+"Yes, I've made my pile, and came back to New York to enjoy it. But come
+along to the hotel."
+
+"I'd--I'd rather not."
+
+"Why not? We've got to talk over old times and find out about each
+other. We're cousins, you know."
+
+The truth of the matter was that Sidney Prale never had thought very
+much of his cousin. Ten years before they had worked side by side for
+Griffin, the broker. There was something furtive and shifty about George
+Lerton, but he never had presumed on his relationship, at least. He and
+Sidney Prale had been courteous to each other, but never had been warm
+friends.
+
+They came from different branches of the family. Lerton had some traits
+of character that Prale did not admire, but he always told himself that
+perhaps he was prejudiced. They had seen a deal of each other in a
+social way in the old days.
+
+"Let us just talk as we walk along," Lerton now said.
+
+"All right, if you have an engagement," Prale replied. "We can get
+together later, I suppose. How have the years been using you? Married?"
+
+"I was--I am a widower."
+
+"Sorry," said Prale. "Children?"
+
+"No--not any children. I--I married Mary Slade."
+
+"What?" Prale cried.
+
+He stopped, aghast. Mary Slade had been the girl who had turned him down
+for a man with money--and that man had not been George Lerton, who did
+not have as much as five thousand at that time.
+
+"It--it's a peculiar story," Lerton said. "You went away so quick--after
+you quarreled with her. And that other man--she threw him over, soon.
+She couldn't endure him, even with all his money. She regretted her
+quarrel with you. I'm quite sure she wanted you for a time. I got to
+taking her about. You didn't write, and she was too proud to look you
+up, and so--after a time----"
+
+"You married her," said Prale.
+
+"About three years after you went away, Sid. She died after we had been
+married a year."
+
+"But she always wanted money, and I had as much as you."
+
+"I made a strike soon after you left, Sid. I plunged with my five
+thousand, and turned it into a hundred thousand inside four months. I
+kept on, and got more. I was worth almost half a million when we were
+married."
+
+"I see. Well, there are no hard feelings, George. She was a good woman,
+in a way, and I'm sorry you lost her. I suppose we'll have to get
+together, for old time's sake."
+
+"Are you going to stay here long, Sid?"
+
+"Long? I've sold out all my Honduras holdings, and I'm here to spend the
+rest of my days. I've come home for good, George. The United States is
+plenty good enough for me. I'm going to be a civilized gentleman from
+now on."
+
+"You--you're not going back?"
+
+"Why should I? I brought that million with me. I left nothing in
+Honduras except a few friends. I suppose I'll run down there some day
+and see them, but this is going to be home, you can bet."
+
+"Don't do it, Sid!" Lerton exclaimed.
+
+"Don't do what?"
+
+"Don't stay here, Sid. Get out as quick as you can! Go back to
+Honduras--anywhere--but don't stay in New York."
+
+"Why shouldn't I? What on earth is the matter with you? Are you insane?"
+
+"I--I can't tell you, Sid. But you are in danger if you don't leave New
+York. I can tell you that much. That's why I didn't call at the hotel;
+I'm afraid. Sid, I'm afraid to have anybody see me talking to you. If
+you came to my office, I'd refuse to see you----"
+
+"Why?" demanded Sidney Prale, in a stern voice.
+
+"I--I can't explain, Sid."
+
+"I've endured a lot of nonsense to-day, and I'm not going to endure any
+more!" Prale said. "You're going to open your mouth and tell me what you
+mean, if I have to manhandle you."
+
+"You can beat me until I'm unconscious, Sid, but you can't make me
+talk!" Lerton told him.
+
+"But what does it all mean?"
+
+"You'd better go away, Sid; you'd better get out of the country and stay
+out!"
+
+"No reason why I should. I never gave up my citizenship; I haven't done
+anything wrong. I'm back in my old home, and I fail to see why I
+shouldn't remain here if that is my wish."
+
+"But you're in danger!"
+
+"In danger from what?" Sidney Prale cried.
+
+"You have powerful enemies, Sid."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"I--I don't know, exactly. But you have powerful enemies. Some of my
+best customers have informed me that they are through doing business
+with me if I have anything to do with you. They told me that before you
+had been back three hours."
+
+"Powerful enemies? Why? Business enemies?"
+
+"I--I don't know."
+
+"Um! So that is why the bank refused my deposit, why I was turned out of
+a hotel, and why old Rufus Shepley raised such a row with me! Powerful
+enemies, have I? But there isn't sense in it! I haven't done anything to
+make powerful enemies, or any other kind. I'm about fed up with this
+stuff!"
+
+"Go away, Sid. You've got money--you can live anywhere!"
+
+"You bet I can! And I'm going to live in New York!"
+
+"Don't try it, Sid!"
+
+Prale whirled and faced him. "You know more than you're telling!" he
+accused. "You open your face and talk! I never did have any too much
+love for you, and you can wager that I'm not going to let you frighten
+me into running away from New York! Talk!"
+
+"I haven't anything more to say, Sid!"
+
+"If I have to choke it out of you right here----"
+
+"You'd better not. It would give your enemies a chance!"
+
+"Lerton, I've fought the Honduras jungles! I've fought half-savage men
+and treacherous employees, snakes and fever, financial sharks and common
+adventurers. I didn't come back to New York to back down in front of a
+man like you--or half a hundred like you. Maybe that is strong talk--but
+you have it coming! Give my enemies a chance? I'll give them all the
+chance they want. Maybe they'll come into the open, then, and let me see
+whom I'm fighting! I don't like foes that fight from the dark!"
+
+"You'd better go away, Sid. I'm talking for your own good!"
+
+"For my good? For yours, you mean! Afraid you'll lose a few customers
+and a few dollars, by standing by your cousin, are you? Why don't you be
+a man, tell me what you know, help me to fight! Bah! I'm disgusted with
+you!"
+
+He hurled George Lerton away from him, curled his lips in scorn of the
+man.
+
+"I've tried to warn you," Lerton whimpered.
+
+"I don't understand this and I'm sure you could explain a lot, if you
+would. Perhaps I've got more dollars than the customers you are so
+afraid of losing. Suppose I hand my million to you for investment. Will
+you talk, then?"
+
+"I--I wouldn't dare touch it," Lerton whimpered.
+
+Prale looked at him closely. "It must be something pretty bad to make
+you toss aside the chance to handle a million in investments," he said.
+"I know you, George! You'd sell your soul for money! You got anything
+more to say to me about this?"
+
+"I--I dare not say anything more."
+
+"Very well. If you are afraid to be seen in my presence, kindly keep
+away from me hereafter and don't worry about me looking you up at your
+office. I'll not take the trouble!"
+
+Sidney Prale said nothing more; he whirled around and walked rapidly up
+the Avenue, enraged, wondering what it all meant, determined to find out
+as soon as possible.
+
+Lerton ran after him.
+
+"Won't you go away, Sid?" he whimpered.
+
+"No. I'll stay here, and if I have enemies I'll fight them!" Prale told
+him. "Why are you so eager to have me run away?"
+
+"I don't want to see you in trouble, Sid."
+
+"That's peculiar. In the old days you used to gloat whenever I got in
+trouble. You seem to have a wonderful and sudden regard for my welfare,
+and I can't explain it to myself."
+
+Once more, Prale whirled around and started up the Avenue. His brain was
+in a tumult. What did George Lerton know that he refused to tell? Why
+should there be powerful enemies? He knew of no reason in the world.
+
+"He's dead eager to get me out of town," Prale mused. "There's something
+behind it, all right."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+MURK--AND MURDER
+
+
+Instinct, intuition, or some similar faculty caused Prale to turn off
+the Avenue eastward toward the river. He was not angry now. His mind was
+in action. He had convinced himself that there was something behind all
+this, and he was eager for the solution.
+
+Those mysterious warnings had begun on board ship, he remembered. The
+piece of paper Kate Gilbert had dropped, and which he had picked up, had
+writing similar to the messages he had received. He would have to engage
+Jim Farland, he told himself, and learn a few things concerning Miss
+Kate Gilbert.
+
+Had the journey because of ill health been a subterfuge? Had Kate
+Gilbert gone to Honduras to watch him? If she had, what was the reason
+for it?
+
+"It's enough to make a man a maniac," Prale mused. "And that Shepley
+man! He was all right when we parted on the ship. Somebody said
+something to him about me after he landed. He treated me as if I had
+been a skunk."
+
+Then he thought of George Lerton, his cousin. He couldn't quite make up
+his mind about Lerton. The man seemed frenzied in his eagerness to get
+Prale to leave New York. And Prale knew that it was not because of an
+overwhelming love George Lerton had for him, not anxiety lest ill
+fortune should come to Sidney Prale.
+
+He would have to think it out, he told himself. At least, he knew that
+he had foes working against him, and could be on guard continually. Down
+in Honduras he had won a reputation as a fighter, and a fight was a
+fight in any clime, he knew; there might be a difference in the rules
+here and there, but the same qualities decided the winner.
+
+He continued walking down the street toward the river. In Honduras he
+had become accustomed to walking up and down the beach and looking at
+the water whenever he wanted to think and solve some problem, and it
+probably was habit that sent him to the water front now.
+
+He tossed away the butt of his cigar and did not light another at the
+moment. For a time he stood looking out at the black water, at the craft
+plying back and forth, their lights flashing. He stepped upon a little
+dock and started walking its length. After a time he came near the end
+of it without having encountered a watchman, and sat down on a box in a
+dark, secluded corner.
+
+There, his back braced against the building and the building shielding
+him from the cold wind that came up from the distant sea, Sidney Prale
+sat and tried to think it out.
+
+One thing made a comfortable thought--he had money with which to fight.
+Either he was the victim of some injustice, or a grave mistake was being
+made. He wished that he had forced George Lerton to tell him more, and
+he decided that he would do so if they met again. He might even hunt him
+out and force him to speak. Sidney Prale thought nothing of handling a
+man like Lerton.
+
+He heard steps on the dock and remained silent in the darkness, thinking
+that possibly some watchman was making the rounds. If he was discovered,
+he would say that he had been looking at the river, give the watchman
+his card and a tip, and leave.
+
+The steps came nearer and Prale could make out the form of a man
+slipping along the dock's edge in a furtive manner. There was not light
+enough for Prale to see his features. He was walking bent over, a short,
+heavy-set man who did not wear an overcoat.
+
+Prale watched as the man passed within six feet of him and went to the
+edge of the dock. There he stood, outlined against the sky, looking down
+at the water. Prale imagined that he heard something like a sob, and
+gave closer attention. Then he saw the man take off his coat and drop it
+behind him, remove his cap and place it on the coat, and look down at
+the water again.
+
+And then Sidney Prale sprang straight forward, and grasped the body of
+the other as it was in mid-air.
+
+"No, you don't!" Prale exclaimed.
+
+He found immediately that he had a fight on his hands. The other whirled
+and began kicking and striking. Sidney Prale hurled him backward,
+rushed, caught him up again in a better hold, threw him back against the
+building, and held him there, breathless and panting.
+
+"Another smash out of you, and I'll drop you into the river myself!"
+Prale said. "Suppose you take time to get your breath now."
+
+"I--I thought you was a cop."
+
+"Afraid of the cops?"
+
+"It's against the law to--to try to commit suicide."
+
+"So I understand," said Prale. "Well, I am not a cop. Trying to drown
+yourself, were you? Why?"
+
+"Why not?" the other asked. "I'm done with livin'."
+
+"Not just yet, but you would have been if I hadn't been sitting here."
+
+"I've knocked all over the world--and made a few mistakes," said the
+derelict. "Oh, nothin' that would get me in trouble with the cops! But I
+just found out that I'm clutterin' up the earth and don't amount to
+anything. I'm sick of half starvin' to death, and workin' like a dog
+when I get the chance just to get enough to keep a few old clothes hung
+on me."
+
+"Disgusted generally with your lot?" Prale asked.
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"Friends or relatives?"
+
+"Not any."
+
+"What's your name?" Prale asked.
+
+"You mean my real name? I don't remember. It's been so long since I've
+used it, and I've used so many others since that I don't know. What's
+the difference?"
+
+"I'll call you Murk," said Prale. "That expresses the dark river, the
+deed you were about to do, and the evident state of your feelings."
+
+"It's as good as any, I suppose."
+
+"What's your particular grievance against the world in general?"
+
+"It ain't anything in particular," said Murk. "It's just general."
+
+"I see. A drifter, are you?"
+
+"I reckon I am."
+
+"Sore at existence, eh?"
+
+"Well, what's the use of livin'?" Murk demanded. "There ain't a man,
+woman or child in the world that gives a whoop what becomes of me. I'm
+just in the way to be kicked around."
+
+"Maybe you haven't found your proper place in the scheme of things."
+
+"I've sure done some travelin' lookin' for it, boss, but maybe I ain't
+found it, as you say. I sure ain't found any place that looks like it
+needed me bad."
+
+"Hard to make a living?"
+
+"Oh, I get along. But, what's the use?" Murk wanted to know. "I ain't
+got anybody--I get lonesome lots of times. If I had money, it might be
+different."
+
+"I'm not so sure about that," said Prale, smiling a bit. "I've got a
+million dollars, and, as far as I know right this minute, I have just
+one friend in New York."
+
+"If I had a million dollars I wouldn't care whether I had a friend or
+not," Murk said.
+
+"You can be just as lonesome with a million dollars as you can without a
+cent," Prale told him. "I was sitting down here because I was lonesome,
+and because there are some enemies working at me, and I don't know who
+they are or why they want to trouble me."
+
+"Well, let's jump in the drink together," Murk said.
+
+"Why not fight it out?" asked Sidney Prale.
+
+"Mister, I've been fightin' for years, and it don't get me anything. It
+just tires me out--that's all. The next world can't be any worse than
+this."
+
+"Are you a fighter, or a quitter?"
+
+"Nobody ever called me a quitter."
+
+"But you were trying to be a few minutes ago. You were going to quit
+like a yellow dog!" Prale told him. "You were going to throw up the
+sponge and give the devil a laugh."
+
+"That's between me and the devil--nobody else would care."
+
+"If you had a friend, an influential friend, and didn't have to keep up
+a continual fight to hold body and soul together, could you manage to
+face the world a little longer?"
+
+"I reckon I could."
+
+"How old are you?"
+
+"Thirty-five," said Murk.
+
+"Old enough to have some sense. I am three years older. I'm almost as
+lonesome as you are. Why not join forces, Murk?"
+
+"Sir?"
+
+"If I showed you a corner where you would fit in, would you be loyal?
+Would you stand by me, help me fight if it was necessary, and all that?"
+
+"You just try me--that's all."
+
+"Very well, Murk, I'm going to trust you. I told you the truth when I
+said I had a million dollars. I have but one friend I can depend upon,
+and I have enemies. I like to fight, Murk, but I like to have a good pal
+at my back when I do."
+
+"That's me, too, sir; but I ain't ever had the pal."
+
+"You've got one now, Murk. You'd be dead now, but for me. So you must be
+my man, understand?"
+
+"I don't quite getcha."
+
+"You're under my orders from now on, Murk. We'll have a nice row,
+standing back to back perhaps. I'll take you on as a sort of valet and
+bodyguard. You'll have good clothes and a home and plenty to eat and a
+bit of money to spend. I'll expect you to be loyal. If I find that you
+are not--well, Murk, I got back yesterday from Central America. I got my
+million down there, by fighting for it, and there were times when I had
+to handle men roughly. I can read men, Murk. Can you imagine what I'd do
+to a man who double crossed me?"
+
+"I getcha now! You needn't be afraid I'll double cross you. I don't
+think this is real."
+
+"It's real, Murk, if we strike a bargain. Do we?"
+
+"I've got everything to win and nothin' to lose--so we do!" Murk said.
+
+"Fair enough. Now we'll get off this dock. Pick up your cap and coat."
+
+Murk picked them up and put them on, and then he followed at Prale's
+heels until they were on the street and beneath the nearest light. There
+they stopped and looked each other over.
+
+Murk was short, but he was built for strength. Prale could tell at a
+glance that the man, even poorly nourished as he was, had muscles that
+could be depended on. Prale liked the look around Murk's eyes, too. Murk
+was a dog man, the sort that proves faithful to the end if treated
+right.
+
+"Well, how do you like me?" Prale asked.
+
+"You look good to me, sir."
+
+"My name is Sidney Prale."
+
+"Yes, Mr. Prale."
+
+"You understand our little deal thoroughly?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"Come along, then. Here is a cigar--light up!"
+
+Murk lighted the cigar, and Prale lighted another, and they went rapidly
+up the street to Fifth Avenue. Prale signaled a passing taxicab, and
+they got in. When the cab stopped, it was in a district where some cheap
+clothing stores remain open until almost midnight.
+
+Half an hour later they emerged again. Murk was dressed in a suit which
+was somber in tone, and which was not at all a bad fit. He was dressed
+in new clothing from the skin out. Prale took him to a barber shop, and
+waited until the barber gave Murk a hair cut and a shave.
+
+"Gosh!" Murk said, when he looked at himself in the glass. "This can't
+be me!"
+
+"It is, however," Prale assured him. "Now, we'll go home, Murk, and get
+settled."
+
+"Where is home?"
+
+Prale named the hotel.
+
+"I'd get thrown out on my bean if I ever stuck my nose in the kitchen
+door," Murk said.
+
+"You're not going into the kitchen, Murk. You're going to be registered
+as my valet and bodyguard, and you're going up in the elevator with me.
+Kindly remember, Murk, that you are the personal servant of Mr. Sidney
+Prale."
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"And your boss has a million dollars and nobody knows how many secret
+enemies. Those things give you a standing, Murk. When we are alone, of
+course, you'll be a sort of pal. I never had a valet before and I
+couldn't stand a regular one. Instead of being a valet, when we are
+alone, I want you to be a regular fellow."
+
+"I getcha, Mr. Prale."
+
+"Off we go, then."
+
+They arrived at the hotel, and Prale registered Murk as his valet and
+took him up to the suite.
+
+"You bunk in there, Murk," Prale said, pointing to another room. "Take a
+bath and go to bed and get some rest. If you are inclined to throw me
+down, you'll find some money and jewelry in the top drawer of the
+dresser. Rob me and sneak out during the night, if you want to. Cut my
+throat, if it's necessary."
+
+"You needn't be afraid, sir--you can trust me!"
+
+"I do!" said Sidney Prale.
+
+Prale slept well that night. When he awoke in the morning, Murk was
+dressed and sitting by the window. He drew Prale's bath without being
+told, and then stood around as if waiting to be of service.
+
+"I--I found this slipped under your door, sir," he said, after a time.
+
+"What is it, Murk?"
+
+"A piece of paper with writing on it, sir."
+
+"More news from the enemy, I suppose. What does it say?"
+
+"It says as how a man's sin always finds him out."
+
+"That's interesting, isn't it? Do you think I am a sinner of some sort,
+Murk?"
+
+"I don't care if you are, sir!"
+
+"Murk! You needn't get excited about it. Put the paper in the lower
+drawer of the dresser; I'm making a collection of them," Prale said. He
+went back into the other room and continued dressing. "Go to the
+telephone and order breakfast served to us here, Murk," he directed.
+
+"What shall I order, sir?"
+
+"Order plenty of whatever you like, and tell them to make it double,"
+said Prale.
+
+Murk grinned and gave a proper order. Prale was dressed by the time the
+breakfast was served. He and Murk made a hearty meal.
+
+And then Prale lighted his morning cigar and began reading the
+newspapers. Murk went around the suite, straightening things and trying
+to be of service. He looked at Sidney Prale often; it was plain to be
+seen that Prale was Murk's kind of man.
+
+There came a knock at the door.
+
+"See who it is, Murk," Sidney Prale said.
+
+He did not even look up from the paper he was reading. He supposed it
+was some hotel employee. Murk stalked across to the door and threw it
+open. Two men stood there. Murk flinched when he saw them. He did not
+know either of them, but he knew them immediately for what they were.
+Murk was a man of experience.
+
+"Mr. Prale in?" one of them asked.
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+Without asking permission, the two men stepped inside, and one of them
+closed the door. Prale dropped the newspaper and turned around to face
+them.
+
+"Are you Sidney Prale?" one of them asked.
+
+"I am."
+
+"You are under arrest, Mr. Prale."
+
+"I beg your pardon?"
+
+"Under arrest," I said. "You know your rights, perhaps, so you need not
+talk unless you wish to do so."
+
+"You are officers?"
+
+They showed their shields.
+
+"Straight from headquarters," one of them replied. "We want to take a
+look around your room while we are here."
+
+"Suppose," said Sidney Prale, "that you tell me, first, why I am under
+arrest? Of what crime am I accused?"
+
+"You are charged with murder."
+
+"Murder? What crazy joke is this?" Prale cried. "And what particular
+person am I accused of murdering?"
+
+"You are charged with the murder of Mr. Rufus Shepley," the detective
+replied.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+EVIDENCE
+
+
+Many times in his life, Sidney Prale had been greatly surprised,
+astonished, shocked. But never had he experienced such a feeling as he
+did at this bald announcement of a police detective.
+
+The statement was like a blow between the eyes. Prale stared at the two
+detectives for an instant, his face flushed, and then he began to laugh.
+
+"It isn't a laughing matter, Mr. Prale," one of the detectives told him.
+
+"Pardon me, but it is so utterly preposterous," Prale replied. "I fail
+to see how I can be accused of such a crime. I am not a cut-throat, and
+Rufus Shepley was a man I met on shipboard casually, and have seen him
+only once since."
+
+"You can do your talking at headquarters, Mr. Prale," the officer said.
+"I'll have to ask you to come along with us. I'll leave my partner here
+to look through your rooms."
+
+"The sooner I get to headquarters, the sooner this thing will be
+straightened out," Prale said. "Murk, you will remain here in the rooms
+until you hear from me. Let the officer look at anything he wishes to
+inspect."
+
+"Yes, sir," said Murk, glaring at the two detectives.
+
+Prale faced the detective who had been speaking to him.
+
+"Be with you as soon as I get my hat and coat," he said. "It'll not be
+necessary, I hope, to put handcuffs on me."
+
+"We can go to headquarters in a taxi, and I guess I can handle you if
+you try any tricks," the detective replied.
+
+"There are going to be no tricks tried," Prale said.
+
+"Nevertheless, I think I'll keep a close eye on you."
+
+"Do so, by all means!" Prale retorted.
+
+"Ain't there anything I can do, sir?" Murk asked.
+
+"Nothing except to remain in the rooms until you hear from me," Prale
+told him. "If I should--er--be detained, I'll probably send for you."
+
+"Very well, sir."
+
+One of the detectives left the suite with Prale and walked down the hall
+to the elevator. The second officer remained behind to go through
+Prale's things in an effort to find evidence.
+
+Prale said nothing regarding the crime as they journeyed in the taxicab
+to police headquarters. His mind was busy, though. This appeared to be a
+culmination of the annoyances to which he had been subjected.
+
+At headquarters he was ushered into a room where a captain of detectives
+awaited him.
+
+"Don't have to talk unless you want to, Mr. Prale, but it probably will
+be better for you to do so, and have an end of it," the captain said.
+"Why did you kill Rufus Shepley?"
+
+"That's a fool question. I didn't kill him. I had no idea he was dead
+until the officer arrested me for his murder. I scarcely know the man,
+captain. I made his acquaintance aboard a ship coming from Central
+America, and I met him but once after leaving the ship. He told me his
+business and gave me his card, and that is all. I'm ready to answer any
+questions you may ask. This is some terrible mistake. I want to talk
+about it--have an end of it, as you say."
+
+"Very well, Prale," the captain said.
+
+"Mr. Prale, if you please. I have not been convicted yet and am entitled
+to some courtesy, it seems to me."
+
+"All right, if you're going to be nasty about it," the captain said.
+"But you won't gain anything by taking a high-and-mighty attitude with
+me."
+
+"I simply object to being addressed in the tone you used," Prale
+replied. "I am no crook. Let's get down to business. Ask me any
+questions you like, and I'd like to ask a few myself."
+
+"That is fair enough," the captain said, a shrewd expression coming into
+his face.
+
+"Suppose you take it for granted, for a few minutes, that I am innocent,
+and tell me when Rufus Shepley was killed, and where, and just how."
+
+"Very well, Mr. Prale. A hotel attendant found the body at an early hour
+this morning. It was in Mr. Shepley's room. The man was fully dressed.
+The physicians say that he was killed about eleven o'clock last night."
+
+"I understand; go on, please."
+
+"He had been stabbed through the heart," said the captain. "Death had
+been instantaneous."
+
+"But why suspect me of the crime?" Prale asked.
+
+"This was found beside the body," the captain replied.
+
+From the desk before him he picked up a fountain pen. It was an
+elaborate pen, chased with gold, and on one side of it was a tiny gold
+plate, upon which Prale's name had been engraved.
+
+"You recognize it?" the captain asked.
+
+"Certainly; it is mine."
+
+"Oh, you admit that, do you?"
+
+"Naturally. But I fail to see how it came to be beside the body of Rufus
+Shepley."
+
+"A man who has committed a murder generally is in a hurry to get away,"
+said the captain. "It is easy to drop a fountain pen from a pocket,
+especially if a man is bending over."
+
+"I don't even know where Shepley's rooms were located," Prale said. "I
+didn't know the pen was missing until this minute----"
+
+"Possibly not," replied the captain of detectives.
+
+"And I am quite sure I do not know how it came to be beside the body,
+but of one thing I am certain--I did not drop it there."
+
+"Naturally, you would say that."
+
+"And where is the motive?" Prale demanded. "Suppose you tell me what you
+have against me, and then I'll proceed to tear your shabby evidence to
+pieces."
+
+"We have this particular case so well in hand that I can afford to do
+that," the captain said. "Attend me closely and you'll see the futility
+of denying your guilt."
+
+"I am waiting to hear the evidence," Prale said.
+
+"Very well. In the first place, you have recently spent some years in
+Central America."
+
+"Ten years in Honduras," said Prale.
+
+"You made a fortune down there. We have communicated with the
+authorities there and have learned many things about you. We have
+learned that you have a hot temper and know how to handle men. You have
+been known to beat natives terribly----"
+
+"Rot! I was kinder than nine out of ten men of affairs. I have punished
+a few natives caught stealing, for instance."
+
+"Recently, Mr. Prale, you cashed in on all your properties down there
+and announced that you were about to leave the country."
+
+"That is correct," said Prale. "I made the million I went down there to
+make. Honduras is all right in some ways, but a man likes to live with
+his own kind. My home was in New York, and so, naturally, I decided to
+return here."
+
+"Did you not tell some of your friends and acquaintances, before you
+left, that you were returning to New York for a certain purpose."
+
+"I suppose that I did. My purpose was no secret. I had my pile and
+wanted to enjoy life a bit and perhaps I wanted to show off a bit, too.
+That was only natural, I suppose. I am proud of my success."
+
+"Did you not hint that the purpose was something sinister--that you were
+going to have revenge, or something like that?"
+
+"Certainly not."
+
+"Very well; let us get on," said the captain of detectives. "You say
+that you first met Rufus Shepley aboard the _Manatee_?"
+
+"Never saw him in my life until I met him in the smoking room on the
+ship, and never had heard his name before."
+
+"That is peculiar. Mr. Shepley was a man of large affairs."
+
+"But I had been in Honduras for ten years, out of touch with men of
+affairs in the United States," Prale replied. "I did the most of my
+business with firms in South America."
+
+"Just how did you happen to meet Mr. Shepley?"
+
+"In the smoking room. We spoke, as passengers are liable to speak to
+each other on a boat or a train. We talked of ordinary things and
+exchanged cards."
+
+"Did you happen to _play_ cards?"
+
+"One evening, for a short time. But the game did not amount to anything,
+and we quit early. Are you trying to insinuate that I killed the man as
+the outcome of a gambling quarrel?"
+
+"Nothing of the sort," said the captain, "Let us get on. You had no
+trouble with Mr. Shepley on the ship--no trouble of any sort?"
+
+"Not the slightest. We parted good friends just before the ship docked.
+I went to my stateroom for my things and I suppose that he did the
+same."
+
+"When did you see him next?" the captain asked.
+
+"Last evening, in the lobby of a hotel on Broadway," said Prale.
+
+"What happened then?"
+
+"Ah, I see where you are trying to get the motive," Prale said. "But I
+think that you will agree with me, before we are done, that it is a slim
+thing upon which to hang a serious charge of murder. I saw Mr. Shepley
+sitting in the lobby and went up and spoke to him. We had been friendly
+on the ship, I was feeling lonesome, and was glad to find somebody with
+whom I could talk. Besides, he had expressed a desire to see me again."
+
+"Well, what happened?"
+
+"Something I am at a loss to understand. He berated me for daring to
+address him. He acted like a maniac. I rebuked him for his manner, and
+the hotel detective advised us to leave the place until we cooled off,
+or something like that."
+
+"Who left first?" the captain asked.
+
+"I did. I was angry because there was a crowd around and I hated the
+scene that had been caused. I went through the main entrance and stepped
+to the curb."
+
+"Shepley follow you?"
+
+"Almost immediately."
+
+"And you went up to him and threatened him, didn't you?"
+
+Prale thought a moment. "I told him that I didn't know why he had
+insulted me, but I didn't want him to do it again."
+
+"What else?" the captain demanded.
+
+"I believe I said that I ought to settle with him for what he had said
+already."
+
+"And then----"
+
+"And then I went on down the street. The hotel detective, I think, heard
+me speak to Mr. Shepley."
+
+"Yes, I know that he did," said the captain. "And the hotel detective
+also says that you were white with anger, and that you went off down
+Broadway like a man with murder in his mind. Do you care to say anything
+more?"
+
+"Of course," said Prale. "I went down to Madison Square, and there I sat
+down on a bench."
+
+"Meet anybody there?"
+
+"I did. I met an old friend, Jim Farland, who used to be on your
+detective force, and who now runs a private agency."
+
+"I know Farland well, and I'll send for him."
+
+"I talked with Jim for some time," Prale went on. "I told him, I
+believe, that I seemed to have enemies working in the dark. I told him
+about the scene with Shepley."
+
+"Um! What did Farland have to say?"
+
+"Nothing, except that he couldn't understand why Shepley had acted so.
+We talked the matter over for a while and then we separated."
+
+"Very well. And where did you go next?"
+
+"I walked up Fifth Avenue," said Prale. "It was after nine o'clock by
+that time."
+
+"Go straight to your hotel?"
+
+"I did not," Prale said.
+
+"Care to tell me where you went and what you did?"
+
+"I have no objections. I walked up the Avenue, and met my cousin, George
+Lerton, the broker."
+
+"Meet him accidentally?"
+
+"He overtook me--called to me."
+
+"How long did you talk to him?"
+
+"For only a few minutes," said Prale. "You must understand that, while
+George Lerton is my cousin, we are not exceptionally friendly, and never
+have been. We worked for the same firm ten years ago, and after I went
+to Honduras, George made some money and got into business for himself;
+at least he told me so last night."
+
+"So you merely shook hands and renewed your acquaintance?" the captain
+asked.
+
+"There was something peculiar about the meeting," Prale replied.
+
+"In what way?"
+
+"Lerton urged me to leave New York and remain away. He said that I had
+powerful enemies."
+
+"What about that?"
+
+"It is what has been puzzling me. So far as I know, I haven't a powerful
+enemy on earth. I suppose I have a few business foes in Central America;
+a man can't make a million without acquiring some enemies at the same
+time. But I don't know of a single influential person who is my enemy."
+
+"Didn't Lerton explain to you?"
+
+"He refused to do so," said Prale, "and I told him to go his way and
+that I'd go mine."
+
+"Doesn't that story seem a bit weak to you, Mr. Prale?"
+
+"It may, but it is a true story. Get Lerton and question him if you
+wish. I couldn't make him talk--maybe you can. I'd like to know the
+names of these enemies of mine, if I really have them."
+
+"Anything else lead you to believe you might have enemies?"
+
+"Yes. I have received several anonymous notes, some on board ship and
+some since landing, that say something about retribution about to be
+visited upon me."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"I don't know, captain. I never did anything in my life to merit such
+retribution. I am sure of that."
+
+"What time was it when you parted from Lerton?"
+
+"It must have been about nine thirty or a quarter to ten."
+
+"Go to your hotel then?"
+
+"No; I turned east and went to the river."
+
+"Wasn't that a peculiar thing to do at that hour of the night?"
+
+"It may seem so to you," said Prale, "and I scarcely can tell why I did
+it. I suppose it was because I wanted to think over what George Lerton
+had told me, and down in Honduras I always used to walk along the beach
+when I was thinking."
+
+"Well?"
+
+"I went out on a dock and sat down in the darkness to think."
+
+"How long did you remain there?"
+
+"For more than half an hour; and I had an experience. Another man came
+on the dock. He was going to jump into the river, but I convinced him
+that suicide was folly, and said I'd give him a job."
+
+"Did you?"
+
+"I did," said Prale. "I took him downtown and bought him some clothes,
+and then took him to a barber shop, and afterward to the hotel. I
+registered him as my valet. I call him Murk. I can prove by him that I
+could not have killed Rufus Shepley about eleven o'clock, because I was
+in Murk's company at that time."
+
+"What time did you get back to your hotel with him?"
+
+"It was a few minutes of midnight. We spent considerable time buying the
+clothes and visiting the barber shop."
+
+"Um!" the captain said. "We'll have to question a few of these people.
+It seems peculiar to me that a millionaire would pick up a tramp and
+turn him into a trusted servant."
+
+"Perhaps it was peculiar. I can read men, I believe, and I decided that
+Murk needed only a chance, and he would make good. He was broke and
+friendless, and I was a millionaire and almost as friendless. That's the
+only way I can explain it."
+
+"I'm going to send you to another office under guard, Mr. Prale," the
+captain said. "I'll have these people here in a short time, and we'll
+question them. Just tell me where you bought the clothes for this man,
+and what barber shop you visited."
+
+Sidney Prale did so, and the captain of detectives made notes regarding
+the addresses.
+
+"That will be all for the present, Mr. Prale," he said. "I don't want to
+cause any innocent man annoyance, but I can tell you this much--things
+look very bad for you!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+LIES AND LIARS
+
+
+Sidney Prale waited in an adjoining office, a detective sitting in one
+corner of it and watching him closely. It was almost a prison room, for
+there were steel bars at the windows, and only the one door. Prale
+walked to one of the windows and looked down at the street, his arms
+folded across his breast, trying to think it out.
+
+The finding of that fountain pen in the room beside Rufus Shepley's body
+was what puzzled and bothered him the most. How on earth could it have
+come there? He tried to remember when he had used it last, when he had
+last seen it. All that he could recall was that, the afternoon before,
+he had used it to write a note in a memorandum book. How and where had
+he lost it, and how had it come into Shepley's suite? Had he dropped it
+in the hotel lobby during his short quarrel with Shepley, while he was
+shaking the man? Had Shepley picked it up later and carried it home with
+him? Prale did not think Shepley would have done that under the
+circumstances.
+
+Well, he'd be at liberty soon enough, he told himself. It was natural
+for the police to learn of his quarrel with Shepley and to make an
+arrest on the strength of that and of finding the fountain pen. His
+alibi was perfect; they soon would know that he could not have committed
+the crime.
+
+It was almost an hour later when he was taken back into the other room
+again. Prale had spent the time standing before the window, smoking and
+trying to think things out. The captain of detectives was before his
+desk when Prale was ushered into the office.
+
+"I've been investigating your story, Mr. Prale," the captain said,
+looking at him peculiarly. "It always has been a mystery to me why a man
+keen in business and supposed to possess brains goes to pieces when he
+commits a crime and tells a tale that is full of holes."
+
+"I beg your pardon!" Prale said.
+
+"Sit down, Mr. Prale, over there--and I'll have some of the witnesses
+in. I have not questioned them yet, but my men have, and have reported
+to me what they said. They have discovered several other things, too."
+
+"I'm not afraid of anything they may have discovered," Prale told the
+captain.
+
+"Last night, you told Jim Farland that you had had trouble with a bank,
+and at the hotel where you first registered after you came ashore, did
+you not?"
+
+"Yes; don't those things bear out my statement about the powerful
+enemies?"
+
+"We'll see presently," the captain said.
+
+He spoke to the sergeant in attendance, who immediately left the room,
+and presently returned with the president of the trust company. He
+looked at Prale with interest, and took the chair the captain
+designated.
+
+"You know this man?" the captain asked.
+
+"I do," said the banker. "He is Sidney Prale."
+
+"Ever have any business with him?"
+
+"Mr. Prale transferred a fortune to our institution from Honduras," the
+banker said. "Yesterday he called at the bank, satisfied me as to his
+identity, and made arrangements concerning the money."
+
+"Mr. Prale has said that, for some reason unknown to him, you told him
+you did not care to handle his business and didn't want his deposit,"
+the captain said.
+
+"I scarcely think that was the way of it," the banker replied. "We would
+have been glad to take care of the deposit, which was practically one
+million dollars. But Mr. Prale told me he had other plans and that he
+would remove the deposit during the day, which he did."
+
+Sidney Prale sat up straight in his chair. "Didn't you tell me that you
+didn't want anything to do with me and my money?" he demanded.
+
+"Certainly not," lied the banker. "You said that you wished to put your
+funds in other institutions."
+
+Prale gasped at the man's statement. It was a bare-faced lie if one ever
+had been spoken.
+
+"Why----" Prale began.
+
+"I do not care to discuss the matter further," the banker interrupted.
+"I am a man of standing and cannot afford to be mixed up in a case of
+this sort."
+
+"You'll not be mixed up in it," the captain said. "I just wanted to show
+Mr. Prale that there were some holes in his story. That is all, thank
+you!"
+
+The banker left the room quickly, and Prale sprang to his feet, his face
+livid.
+
+"That man lied!" he exclaimed. "You could read it in his face! I don't
+know why he lied, but he did!"
+
+"Sit down, Mr. Prale, and let's have more witnesses in," the captain
+said.
+
+Once more he spoke to the sergeant, and again the latter went out, this
+time to return with the manager of the first hotel at which Prale
+registered.
+
+"Know this man?" the captain asked.
+
+"He registered at my place as Sidney Prale, of Honduras."
+
+"Well, what about it?"
+
+"We furnished him with a suite on the fifth floor," the hotel manager
+said. "But he gave it up."
+
+"Gave it up!" Prale cried. "Why, you called me into your office and told
+me to get out, that the suite has been reserved and that there was none
+vacant in the house. The bell boy can testify that he called me into the
+office."
+
+"Certainly he called you into my office, and at my request," the manager
+said. "I wanted to know why you were leaving, whether any of the
+employees had treated you with discourtesy. You told me that you had
+been served poorly in the dining room the evening before, and that you
+were done with the hotel!"
+
+Prale sprang to his feet. "That's a lie, and you know it!" he cried.
+
+"Captain," said the hotel man, "do I have to sit here and be insulted by
+a man charged with a heinous crime?"
+
+"That will be all, thank you," the captain said.
+
+The hotel manager hurried from the room, and the captain grinned at
+Prale.
+
+"So he lied, too, did he?" the captain asked.
+
+"He did!" Prale cried.
+
+"There seems to be an epidemic of falsehood, to hear you tell it.
+However, let us get on with the affair."
+
+Once more he instructed the sergeant, and this time the man brought in
+the hotel detective who had witnessed the trouble between Prale and
+Shepley.
+
+The hotel detective told the story much as Prale himself had told it,
+except that he made it appear that Prale had threatened Rufus Shepley on
+the walk in front of the hotel before they separated.
+
+"Did you pick up a fountain pen of mine after I had gone?" Prale asked.
+
+"I did not."
+
+"See anybody else pick it up?"
+
+"No, sir," said the hotel detective; and he went out of the room.
+
+The sergeant next ushered in George Lerton. Prale sat up straight in his
+chair again. Here was where his proper alibi began, with the exception
+of Jim Farland. George Lerton's face was pale as he sat down at the end
+of the desk.
+
+"Know this man?" the captain asked.
+
+"He is my cousin, Sidney Prale."
+
+"How long has he been away from New York?"
+
+"About ten years," Lerton said. "He returned day before yesterday, I
+believe. I saw his name in the passenger list."
+
+"Mr. Prale says that he met you last night on Fifth Avenue, and that you
+told him he had some powerful enemies seeking to cause him trouble, and
+advised him to leave New York and remain away."
+
+"Why--why this is not so!" Lerton cried. "I haven't seen him until this
+moment. I would have looked him up, but did not know at what hotel he
+was stopping, and thought that he'd try to find me."
+
+Prale was out of his chair again, his face flaming. "You mean to sit
+there and tell me that you didn't talk to me on Fifth Avenue last
+night?" he cried.
+
+"Why, of course I never talked to you, Sid. I never saw you. What are
+you trying to do, Sid? Why have you done this thing? We never were close
+to each other, and yet we are cousins, and I hate to see you in
+trouble."
+
+"Stop your hypocritical sniveling!" Prale cried. "You are lying and you
+know it! You saw me last night----"
+
+"But I didn't!"
+
+"You did--and tried to get me to run away, and wouldn't tell me your
+reason for it."
+
+George Lerton licked at his lips and looked appealingly at the captain
+of detectives.
+
+"I--I am a man of standing," he whimpered. "I am a broker--here is my
+card. This man is my cousin, but I cannot lie to shield him. I never saw
+him last night, and did not speak to him."
+
+Lerton got up and started for the door, and Sidney Prale did not make a
+move to stop him.
+
+"It appears that your story is full of flaws," the captain said. "A
+little of it is true, however; you did meet Jim Farland and talk to him
+in Madison Square, and remained for the length of time you said. Jim has
+told me that much. But he does not know where you went and what you did
+after leaving him. What we are interested in is what you did in the
+neighborhood of eleven o'clock last night. That is when Rufus Shepley
+was killed. And now we'll have in that new valet of yours."
+
+There was a snarl on Murk's face as he came into the room and sat down
+in the chair at the end of the desk. Murk did not like policemen and
+detectives, and did not care whether they knew of his dislike. He
+flashed a glance at Sidney Prale and then faced the captain.
+
+"Well, what is it?" he asked.
+
+"Tell us where and how you met Mr. Prale first, what happened, and bring
+the story right up to date," the captain commanded.
+
+"Well, I went down to the river to jump in," Murk said, as if stating a
+simple fact. "I was tired of fightin' to live and had decided to end it
+all. Mr. Prale grabbed me and hauled me back, and then he made me see
+that suicide was foolish. He offered me a job, and I agreed to take it.
+He was the first man who had treated me decent since I----"
+
+"Never mind that; get down to cases."
+
+"Well, we walked up the street and got a taxicab and drove downtown, and
+Mr. Prale bought me some clothes."
+
+"What time was it when you met him?"
+
+"I guess it was about ten o'clock. We bought the clothes, as I said, and
+then we went to a barber shop, and I got a hair cut and a shave. After
+that we went to Mr. Prale's hotel and up to his rooms. We got to bed
+pretty quick."
+
+"What time did you reach the hotel?"
+
+"About midnight."
+
+"What happened after you went to bed?"
+
+"Went to sleep," said Murk.
+
+"Never mind the jokes," the captain rebuked sternly.
+
+"Well, I stayed awake about an hour or so thinking how lucky I was, and
+then I went to sleep. I woke up early in the mornin' and got up and
+dressed. Mr. Prale got up later, and we ate breakfast in the suite. Then
+the cops came. One of them took Mr. Prale away, and he told me to stay
+in the rooms until sent for. The other cop rummaged around the rooms and
+then left."
+
+Prale bent forward. "There is one man who can speak the truth," he told
+the captain. "His story corresponds with the one I told you, doesn't it?
+And doesn't it show that I could not have murdered Rufus Shepley at
+eleven o'clock last night?"
+
+"The story is all right, and it certainly corresponds with yours,"
+replied the captain. "Just a minute!" He faced Murk again. "Who are you
+and where did you come from?" he demanded.
+
+"I ain't anybody in particular. I've been hangin' around town a couple
+of months doin' odd jobs. Before that I was bummin' around the country
+workin' whenever I got a chance."
+
+"You felt grateful to Mr. Prale for giving you a job and a home, didn't
+you?"
+
+"Sure!" said Murk. "He talked to me decent, like I was a man instead of
+a dog."
+
+"Well, you don't seem to have much standing in the world," the captain
+said. "Your word, against that of several prominent citizens, does not
+carry much weight. You must see that. And there happens to be something
+else, too. I had the clothing merchant and the barber you mentioned look
+you over while you were in the other room. The clothing merchant says he
+sold some clothes a couple of days ago, the ones you are wearing now,
+but that he certainly did not sell them last night, and the barber
+swears that he never saw you before!"
+
+"Why, the dirty liars!" Murk cried.
+
+"Did they say that?" Prale demanded.
+
+"They did," the captain replied. "And they said it in such a way that I
+believe them. Prale, your alibi is shot full of holes. You told the
+truth about meeting Jim Farland, and that much is in your favor. Aside
+from that, we have only the testimony of a tramp you said you picked up
+and gave a job. You had plenty of time to kill Rufus Shepley. You had
+ample time to concoct the story and get this man to learn it, so he
+could tell it and match yours. You are worth a million dollars, and this
+man probably was ready to lie a little for a wad of money."
+
+"He tells the truth----"
+
+"It's too thin, Prale! And don't forget the fountain pen that was found
+beside Shepley's body, either! As for you Murk, or whatever your right
+name is, you are under suspicion yourself."
+
+"What's that?" Murk snarled.
+
+"You are under suspicion, I said. You might have assisted at the murder,
+for all I know. I don't know when you met Mr. Prale, or where, but I do
+know that you got back to the hotel with Mr. Prale about midnight--an
+hour after the crime was committed."
+
+"You can't hang anything like that on me!" Murk snarled. "All the cops
+in the world can't do it! I met Mr. Prale just like I said, and he
+bought me the clothes and took me to the barber shop, no matter what the
+store man and the barber say! It's a black lie they're tellin'! Mr.
+Prale is a gentleman----"
+
+"That'll be enough!" the captain exclaimed. "I'm going to allow you to
+go, Murk, but you are to remain in Mr. Prale's rooms and take care of
+his things. And you can bet that you'll be watched, too."
+
+"I don't care who watches me!"
+
+"As for you, Mr. Prale, you'll have to go to a cell, I think. The
+evidence against you is such that I cannot turn you loose. You must
+realize that yourself."
+
+Prale realized it. His face was white and his hands were shaking. He
+looked across the room at Murk.
+
+"You go back to the hotel, Murk, and do as the captain says," he
+ordered. "I'll come out of this all right in time. There are a lot of
+things I cannot understand, but we'll solve the puzzle before we're
+done."
+
+"Ain't there anything I can do, sir?" Murk asked.
+
+"Perhaps, later. I'll engage a detective and a lawyer, and they may
+visit you at the hotel. I'll send you money by the lawyer. That's all
+now, Murk."
+
+Murk started to speak, then thought better of it and went from the room
+slowly, anger flushing his face. Sidney Prale faced the captain of
+detectives again.
+
+"No matter what you think, I am innocent, and know that my innocence can
+be proved," Prale said. "You are only doing your duty, of course. I want
+Jim Farland to attend to things for me. He is an old friend of mine and
+he is an honest man. Will you send for him?"
+
+"He's waiting in the other room now," the captain said. "I'll let you
+have a conference with him before I order you into a cell!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+PUZZLED
+
+
+Once more Prale was taken to the room in which he had first waited--the
+room with the barred windows. This time the watching detective was
+missing. When Jim Farland entered, he found Prale pacing back and forth
+from one corner to the other. He was trying to think out his problem,
+wondering what it all meant, why the witnesses had lied, and what would
+be the outcome.
+
+Farland rushed into the room, grasped Prale by the hand, led him across
+from the door, and forced him into a chair. This done, the loyal
+detective sat down facing him.
+
+"Now let us have it from beginning to end!" Farland commanded. "I don't
+want you to leave out a thing. I want to get to the bottom of this as
+soon as possible."
+
+Sidney Prale started at the beginning and talked rapidly, setting forth
+all the facts, while Jim Farland sat back in his chair and watched him.
+Now and then he frowned as if displeased at the recital.
+
+"Well, there is something rotten," he said, when Prale had concluded his
+statement. "I want you to know, Sid, that I believe you. You're not the
+sort of man to kill a fellow like Rufus Shepley over a little spat. I
+believe your story about this Murk, too. But why should everybody have
+it in for you?"
+
+"I haven't the slightest idea," Prale answered. "I must, indeed, have
+some powerful enemies, but I cannot imagine who they are, and I know of
+no reason why they should be against me. I'm simply up in the air."
+
+"You keep right on trying to figure it out," Farland advised him. "You
+might think of something in time that will give me a start in my work."
+
+"Why did the banker and hotel manager lie?" Prale asked. "Why did the
+clothing-store man and the barber lie? Why did George Lerton declare
+that he did not see me and speak to me last night? And how did my
+fountain pen get into Shepley's room?"
+
+"Huh! When we know a few of those things, we'll know enough to wipe this
+charge away from your name," Jim Farland told him. "It's my job to
+answer those little questions for you. And now--you want a lawyer, I
+suppose?"
+
+"Yes. Can you suggest one?"
+
+"The greatest criminal lawyer in town is named Coadley. I'll send him
+right up here after I explain about this case to him. Thank Heaven, you
+have plenty of money! A poor man in a fix like this would be on his way
+to the electric chair. Coadley can fix you up, if anybody can. He can
+make a sinner look like a saint."
+
+"But I'm not guilty!"
+
+"I understand that, Sid, but it doesn't hurt an innocent man to have the
+best attorney he can get. I'll send you Coadley. Give me a note to that
+fellow Murk, for I may want him to help me. Sure he's loyal to you?"
+
+"I never saw him until last night, but I'd bank on him," said Prale.
+"He'll stand by us!"
+
+"Fair enough! You write that note right now, and try to get out on bail.
+Tell Coadley to get busy on that right away. Get out under police
+supervision, under guard--any way--but get out!"
+
+Jim Farland hurried away, and Sidney Prale was conducted through dark
+corridors to a cell, where he had the experience of hearing a door clang
+shut behind him and the bolts shot. Prale never had expected to get into
+jail when he was worth a million dollars, and most certainly he never
+had expected to face a charge of murder.
+
+He was allowed to send out for some luncheon, and it was more than an
+hour before Coadley, the attorney, arrived. Prale was taken into the
+consultation room.
+
+He liked Coadley, and he liked the way in which Coadley regarded him
+before he spoke.
+
+"I believe that you are innocent," the lawyer said.
+
+"The job will be to make other people think that way," Prale said, with
+a laugh. The attorney's words had been like a ray of hope to him. "Did
+Jim Farland tell you the story?"
+
+"Yes. I'll try to get you out on bail, or get you out in some manner,"
+Coadley said. "This appears to be a peculiar case. It is not only the
+charge of murder; it is the fact that several men told falsehoods about
+you. You haven't an idea who your enemies are?"
+
+"Not the slightest."
+
+"I'm glad that Jim Farland is working on this case for you, Mr. Prale.
+He is a good man, and I may need a lot of help. I'll get my own
+investigators busy right away, too, and we'll coöperate with Jim
+Farland. You go back to your cell and take it easy. I'll get you out
+before night, if I can."
+
+Lawyer Coadley was a shrewd man, and his methods were the delight of
+other attorneys and jurists. He lost no time when he was confronted with
+a case that held unusual interest. Within an hour he was in court,
+acting as if fighting mad.
+
+Had a reputable citizen any rights, he demanded? Were the police to be
+allowed to throw an innocent man into jail simply because there had been
+a crime committed and somebody had to be accused? His client did not
+care for an examination at this time, he said. Arraignment and a plea of
+not guilty were all right, however.
+
+Sidney Prale was arraigned, and the plea of not guilty was made and
+entered. Then Coadley began his fight to have Prale admitted to bail.
+
+The district attorney opposed it, of course, since that was his
+business. The judge listened to the statement of the captain of
+detectives. He heard Coadley say that his client could put up cash bail
+in any amount, and was willing to abide by any provisions. Finally the
+judge freed Prale on cash bail of fifty thousand dollars, but designated
+that the bail could be recalled at any time, and that he was to be in
+the custody of a member of the police department continually.
+
+Coadley agreed, and left the jail with his client, a detective going
+with them to stand guard. The detective had explicit orders. He was not
+to annoy Sidney Prale. He was to withdraw out of earshot when Prale
+talked with his attorney or anybody else with whom he wished to converse
+privately. He was to allow Prale to come and go as he wished, except
+that Prale was not to be allowed to leave the limits of the city. If he
+attempted that, he was to be put under arrest immediately and taken to
+the nearest police station.
+
+Prale read the newspapers as he rode to the hotel with Coadley and the
+detective. The story of the crime was in all of them, the tale of his
+quarrel with Rufus Shepley and of the finding of the fountain pen, and
+the inevitable statement that the police were on the track of more and
+better evidence.
+
+Prale expected to be ordered out of the hotel, but he was not, the
+management stipulating only that he should not use the public dining
+room. He went up to the suite, to find Murk there, sitting in front of a
+window and glaring down at the street.
+
+A cot was moved in for the use of the detective. Coadley held another
+conference with Prale, and then left to get busy on the case. Murk
+regarded the detective with scorn, until Prale explained the situation
+to him. After that, there was a sort of armed neutrality between them.
+Murk had no special liking for detectives, and he was the sort of man
+detectives do not like.
+
+Presently Jim Farland arrived.
+
+"Well, Sid, Coadley got you out of jail and home before I could get
+here, did he?" Farland said. "I suppose I'll not need that note of yours
+now. Is this Mr. Murk?"
+
+"It is," Prale said. "Murk, meet Jim Farland. He's a detective friend of
+mine."
+
+"Gosh, Mr. Prale, ain't there anybody but cops in this town?" Murk
+asked.
+
+"Jim is a private cop, and he has a job now to get me out of this
+scrape," said Prale. "He's a friend of mine, I said."
+
+"I guess that makes it different," was Murk's only comment.
+
+"Oh, we'll get along all right," Farland put in. "I'm going to need you
+in my business, Murk. I've told the folks at police headquarters that
+I'd be responsible for you, so we can work together without being
+pestered. Understand?"
+
+Murk grinned at him. "You just show me how to help get Mr. Prale out of
+this mess, and I'll sure help," he said.
+
+Farland turned toward the police detective. "Go out into the hall and
+take a walk," he suggested. "Mr. Prale will give you a couple of
+cigars."
+
+The detective took the cigars and went out into the hall, smiling. He
+had no fear of Sidney Prale slipping down a fire escape, or anything
+like that. Jim Farland was responsible, and Jim Farland was known to the
+force as a man who felt his responsibilities.
+
+"Now we'll get busy and dig to the bottom of this mess," Farland said.
+"Been thinking it over, Sid? Know any reason why anybody should be out
+after you?"
+
+"I can't think of a thing," Prale replied. "I suppose I made a few
+business enemies down in Honduras, but none powerful enough to cause me
+all this trouble. I can't understand it, Jim. It must be something big
+to cause all those men to lie as they did."
+
+"Maybe it is, and maybe it is very simple when we get right down to it,"
+Farland said. "I've started right in to work it out. Let me see those
+notes and messages you received."
+
+Prale got them from the dresser drawer and handed them to Farland. The
+detective looked them over, even going as far as to use a magnifying
+glass.
+
+"Don't laugh!" Farland said. "A lot of folks make fun of the fiction
+detective who goes around with a magnifying glass in one hand, but,
+believe me, a good glass shows up a lot of things. It isn't showing up
+anything here, though. Where do you suppose these things came from?"
+
+"I don't know," said Prale.
+
+"Got the first one on the ship, did you?"
+
+"The first two. One was pinned to the pillow in my stateroom, and the
+second was pasted on the end of my suit case as I was landing. The
+mucilage was still wet."
+
+"Didn't suspect anybody?"
+
+"I didn't think much about it at first," said Prale. "I thought it was a
+joke, or that somebody was making a mistake."
+
+"Sid, have you told me everything?"
+
+Prale remembered Kate Gilbert and flushed.
+
+"I see that you haven't," Farland said. "Out with it! Some little thing
+may give me the start I am looking for."
+
+Prale told about Kate Gilbert, about the piece of paper she had dropped
+as she got into the limousine, about the peculiar way she acted toward
+him, and the attitude of Marie, the misnamed maid.
+
+"Um!" Farland grunted. "We had one thing lacking in this case--and we
+have that. The woman!"
+
+"But I only met her down there and danced with her twice."
+
+"Don't know anything about her, I suppose?"
+
+"Not a thing. It was understood that she belonged to a wealthy New York
+family and was traveling for the benefit of her health. At least, that
+was the rumor."
+
+"I know of a lot of wealthy families in this town, but I never heard of
+a Kate Gilbert," Farland said. "I think I'll make a little
+investigation."
+
+"But why on earth should she be taking a hand in my affairs?" Prale
+wanted to know.
+
+"Why should you be accused of murder? Why should men tell lies about
+you?" Farland asked. "Excuse me for a time; I'm going down to the hotel
+office to find out a few things."
+
+Farland hurried away, and the police detective entered the suite again
+and made himself comfortable. Jim Farland went directly to the office of
+the hotel and looked at a city directory. He found no Kate Gilbert
+listed, except a seamstress who resided in Brooklyn. The telephone
+directory gave him no help.
+
+But that was not conclusive, of course. A thousand Kate Gilberts might
+be living in New York, in apartments or at hotels, without having a
+private telephone.
+
+"Have to get a line on that girl!" Farland told himself. "She's got
+something to do with this. I'll bet my reputation on it."
+
+Jim Farland went to the smoking room and sat down in a corner. He tried
+to think it out, groped for a starting point. He considered all the
+persons connected with the case, one at a time.
+
+Farland knew that Sidney Prale had told the truth. Why, then, had George
+Lerton told a falsehood about meeting Prale and talking to him, when the
+truth would have helped to establish an alibi? Why had the clothing
+merchant and the barber lied?
+
+"I suppose I'll have to use stern methods," Farland told himself. "Old
+police stuff, I suppose. Well, I'm the man that can do it, take it from
+me!"
+
+He went up to Prale's suite again.
+
+"Can't find out anything about that woman," he reported. "And I want to
+get in touch with her. Keep your eyes peeled for her, Sid, and arrange
+for me to catch sight of her, if you can. Now you'd better take a little
+rest. You've been through an experience to-day. I'm going out to get
+busy, and I'm going to take Murk with me."
+
+"What for?" Murk demanded.
+
+"You're going to help me, old boy."
+
+"Me work with a cop?" Murk exclaimed.
+
+"To help Mr. Prale."
+
+"Well, that's different," Murk said. "Wait until I get my hat."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+ON THE TRAIL
+
+
+Farland engaged a taxicab, bade Murk get into it, got in himself, and
+they started downtown. The detective leaned back against the cushions
+and regarded Murk closely. He knew that Sidney Prale had guessed
+correctly, that Murk was the sort of man who would prove loyal to a
+friend.
+
+"This is a bad business," Farland said.
+
+"It's tough," said Murk.
+
+"If it was anybody but Sid Prale, I'd say he was guilty. It sure looks
+bad. And there is that fountain pen!"
+
+"Somebody's tryin' to do him dirt," Murk said.
+
+"There's no question about that, Murk, old boy. Well, we are going to
+get him out of it, aren't we?"
+
+"I'll do anything I can."
+
+"Like him, do you?"
+
+"Met him less than twenty-four hours ago, but I wish I'd met him or
+somebody like him ten years ago," Murk replied. "If it hadn't been for
+Mr. Prale, I'd be a stiff up in the morgue this minute."
+
+"Strong for him, are you?"
+
+"Yes, sir, I am!"
+
+"Um!" said Jim Farland. "We're going to get along fine together. I was
+strong for Sid Prale ten years ago, before he went away. And I'll bet
+that, when we get to the bottom of this, we'll find something mighty
+interesting."
+
+The taxicab stopped at a corner, and Farland and Murk got out. Farland
+paid the chauffeur and watched him drive away, and then he led Murk
+around the corner.
+
+"Know where you are?" he asked.
+
+"Sure. Right over there is the little shop where Mr. Prale bought me my
+new clothes," Murk said.
+
+"Fine! That goes to show that Prale told the truth. Well, Murk, you
+stand right here by the curb and watch the front door of that shop. And
+when you see me beckon to you, you come running."
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+Jim Farland hurried across the street, opened the door of the little
+shop, and entered. The proprietor came from the rear room when he heard
+the door slammed.
+
+He knew Jim Farland and had known him for years. There were few
+old-timers in that section of the city who did not know Jim Farland. The
+man who faced the detective now was small, stoop-shouldered, a sort of a
+rat of a man who had considerably more money to his credit than his
+appearance indicated, and who was not eager to have the world in general
+know how he had acquired some of it.
+
+"Evenin', Mr. Farland," he said. "Anything I can do for you, sir?"
+
+"Maybe you can and maybe you can't," Farland told him. "You been
+behaving yourself lately?"
+
+"What do you mean, Mr. Farland? I've been trying to get along, but
+business ain't been any too good the last year."
+
+"Save that song for somebody who doesn't know better!" Farland advised
+him. "Change the record when you play me a tune."
+
+"Yes, sir. Is there anything I can do for you, Mr. Farland?"
+
+"Remember a little deal a couple of years ago?" Farland demanded
+suddenly.
+
+"I--I----"
+
+"I see that you do. One little word from me in the proper quarter, old
+man, and you'll be doing time. You've sailed pretty close to the edge of
+the law a lot of times, and once, I know, you slipped over the edge a
+bit."
+
+"I--I hope, sir----"
+
+"You'd better hope that you can keep on the good side of me," Jim
+Farland told him.
+
+"If there is anything I can do, Mr. Farland----"
+
+"Do you suppose you could tell the truth?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"I'm going to give you a chance. If you tell the truth, I may forget
+something I know, for the time being. But, if you shouldn't tell the
+truth--well, my memory is excellent when I want to exercise it."
+
+Farland stepped to the door and beckoned, and Murk hurried across the
+street and entered the shop.
+
+"Ever see this man before?" Farland demanded.
+
+The storekeeper licked his lips, and a sudden gleam came into his eyes.
+
+"I--he seems to look familiar, but I can't say."
+
+"You'd better say!" Farland exclaimed. "I want the truth out of you, or
+something will drop. And when it drops, it is liable to hit you on the
+toes. Get me?"
+
+"I--I don't know what to do," wailed the merchant.
+
+"Tell the truth!"
+
+"But--there is something peculiar about----"
+
+"Out with it! Know this man?"
+
+"I've seen him before," the merchant replied.
+
+"When?"
+
+"La-last night, sir."
+
+"Now we are getting at it!" Jim Farland exclaimed. "When did you see him
+last night, and where, and what happened?"
+
+"He was in the store, Mr. Farland, about half past ten or a quarter of
+eleven o'clock. He--he bought those clothes he's got on."
+
+"Pay for them?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"Who paid for them?" Farland demanded.
+
+"A gentleman who was with him," said the merchant.
+
+"Ah! Know the gentleman?"
+
+"I saw him to-day--at police headquarters."
+
+"And you said that you never had seen him before--that he was not here
+last night with this man. Why did you lie?"
+
+Jim Farland roared the question and smashed a fist down upon the
+counter. The little merchant flinched.
+
+"Out with it!" Farland cried. "Tell the truth, you little crook! I want
+to know why you lied, who told you to lie. I want to know all about it,
+and mighty quick!"
+
+"I--I don't understand this," the merchant whimpered. "I was afraid of
+making a mistake."
+
+"You'll make a mistake right now if you don't tell the truth!" Jim
+Farland told him.
+
+"I--I got a letter, sir, by messenger. I got it early this morning,
+sir."
+
+"Well, what about it?"
+
+"The letter was typewritten, sir, and was not signed. There was a
+thousand dollars in bills in the letter, sir, and it said that a Mr.
+Prale had just been arrested for murder, and that he probably would try
+to make an alibi by saying that he was here last night and bought some
+clothes for another man. The letter said that I was to take the money
+and ask no questions, and that, if I was called to police headquarters,
+I was to say the man had not been here and that I never had seen him in
+my life before."
+
+"And you fell for it? You wanted that thousand, I suppose."
+
+"I'll show you the letter, Mr. Farland. There was no signature at all,
+and the paper was just common paper. I--I thought it was politics, sir."
+
+"You did, eh?"
+
+"Thought it had something to do with politics, sir. I thought the letter
+and money might have come from political headquarters. I was afraid to
+tell the truth at the police station."
+
+"You mean you have been so crooked for years that you're afraid of
+everybody who has a little influence," Farland told him.
+
+"I thought it was orders, sir, from somebody who had better be obeyed."
+
+"Oh, I understand, all right. Well, I scarcely think it was politics.
+You've been played, that's all. Get me that letter!"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+The merchant got it and handed it over, together with the envelope. He
+had told the truth. The letter was typewritten on an ordinary piece of
+paper, and the envelope was of the sort anybody could purchase at a
+corner drug store. Farland put the letter in his pocket.
+
+"Here between ten thirty and a quarter of eleven, was he?"
+
+"Yes, sir," said the merchant.
+
+"All right! You remember that, and don't change your mind again, if you
+know what is good for you. You'll hear from me in the morning. That's
+all!"
+
+Jim Farland went from the store with a grinning Murk at his heels,
+leaving a badly frightened small merchant behind him.
+
+"I know that bird," he told Murk. "He's a fence, or I miss my guess.
+It's no job at all to run a bluff on a small-time crook like that. And
+now we'll run down and see that barber."
+
+They engaged another taxicab and made a trip. Once more Murk remained
+outside, and Jim Farland entered and beckoned the barber to him.
+
+"Step outside the door where nobody will overhear," he said. "I want to
+ask you something."
+
+The barber stepped outside, wondering what was coming. This man knew Jim
+Farland, too, and he knew that a call from him might mean trouble.
+
+"Trying to see how far you can go and keep out of jail?" Farland
+demanded.
+
+"I--I don't know what you mean, sir."
+
+"Trying to run a bluff on me? On me?" Farland gasped. "You'd better talk
+straight. Do you expect to run a barber shop by day and a gambling joint
+by night all your life?"
+
+"Why, I----"
+
+"Don't lie!" Farland interrupted. "I know all about that little back
+room. Maybe I'm not on the city police force now, but you know me! I've
+got a bunch of friends on the force, and if I told a certain sergeant
+about your little game and said that I wanted to have you run in he
+wouldn't hesitate a minute."
+
+"But what have I done, Mr. Farland?" the barber gasped. "I've always
+been friendly to you."
+
+"I know it. But are you going to keep right on being friendly?"
+
+"Of course, sir."
+
+"Willing to help me out in a little matter if I forget about that
+gambling?"
+
+"I'll do the best I can, Mr. Farland."
+
+"Then answer a few questions. Did you get a typewritten letter this
+morning, with a wad of money in it?"
+
+The barber's face turned white.
+
+"Answer me!" Farland commanded.
+
+"Yes, I--I got such a letter and I don't know what to make of it," the
+barber said. "I've got the letter and money in my desk right now. There
+wasn't any signature, and I didn't know where the letter came from, or
+what it meant."
+
+"Then why did you do what the letter told you to do?" Farland asked.
+
+"I--I don't understand."
+
+Farland motioned, and Murk now stepped around the corner.
+
+"Know this man?" Farland demanded.
+
+"I--I've seen him before."
+
+"That letter told you to go to police headquarters, if requested to do
+so, and deny you knew this man, didn't it? It told you not to help a man
+named Sidney Prale, arrested for murder, to make his alibi by telling
+that he was here with this man last night about eleven o'clock, didn't
+it?"
+
+"Y-yes, sir."
+
+"And you did just what the letter told you?"
+
+"I was afraid not to do it, sir. I didn't know where that letter came
+from, you see."
+
+"Had an idea it came from some boss, didn't you?"
+
+"I didn't know and I didn't dare take a chance, Mr. Farland. You know
+how it is?"
+
+"I know how it is with a man who has busted a few laws and knows he
+ought to be pinched!"
+
+"Did I make some sort of a mistake, sir? What should I do now?"
+
+"Something you don't do very often--tell the truth," Jim Farland
+replied. "How about this man?"
+
+"He came here with the other gentleman last night about eleven o'clock,
+sir. He got a hair cut and a shave, and the other gentleman paid the
+bill."
+
+"Thanks. Sure about the time?"
+
+"I know that it was almost a quarter after eleven when they left the
+shop."
+
+"Well, I'm glad you can speak the truth. Get on your hat and coat!"
+
+"I--what do you mean, sir? Am I arrested?"
+
+"No. Get that letter and come with me. I want you to tell the truth to
+somebody else, that's all."
+
+The frightened barber got his hat and coat and the letter, and followed
+Jim Farland and Murk to the corner. There Farland engaged another
+taxicab, and ordered the chauffeur to drive back to the little clothing
+store.
+
+"Running up a nice expense bill for Prale, but he won't care," Jim
+Farland said to Murk.
+
+He compelled the merchant to shut up his shop and get into the cab, and
+then the chauffeur drove to police headquarters. Farland had telephoned
+from the clothing store, and the captain of detectives was waiting for
+him. He ushered the merchant and the barber into the office, looked down
+at the captain, and grinned.
+
+"What's all this?" the captain demanded.
+
+"It's Sid Prale's alibi," Jim Farland said. "These two gents want to
+tell you how they lied to-day, and why they lied. It is an interesting
+story."
+
+The captain sat up straight in his chair, while Jim Farland removed his
+hat, sat down, motioned for Murk to do the same, and made himself
+comfortable.
+
+"About that alibi," Farland said. "I know that George Lerton lied about
+meeting Sid Prale on Fifth Avenue, but you don't, and so we'll let that
+pass for the time being and get to it later. I just want to show you now
+that Prale's story about meeting this man Murk was a true tale. This
+clothing merchant is ready to say now that Prale and Murk were in his
+place last night about half past ten, and that Murk got his clothes
+there. And this barber is ready to swear that Prale and Murk arrived at
+his shop about a quarter of eleven or eleven, and did not leave until a
+quarter after eleven. Prale and Murk got to the hotel, as you know, at
+midnight. Prale couldn't have gone to that other hotel, murdered Rufus
+Shepley, and got to his suite by twelve o'clock, not if he left that
+barber shop far downtown at a quarter after eleven, could he?"
+
+"Scarcely," said the captain.
+
+"Very well. Ask these two gents some questions."
+
+The captain did. He read the two typewritten letters and he understood
+how the fear of a political power might have been in the hearts of the
+two men. He rebuked them and allowed them to go.
+
+"Well, it looks a little better for Mr. Prale," the captain said, "but
+this isn't the end, by any means. Remember that fountain pen of his that
+was found beside the body of Rufus Shepley!"
+
+"I didn't say that it was the end," Jim Farland declared. "I don't want
+it given out that any evidence has been found that is in Prale's favor.
+I just want you to whisper in the ear of the court that the alibi looks
+good, and let it go at that. There's something behind this case, and we
+want to find out what it is. Prale is out on bail--and let it go at
+that, as far as the public is concerned."
+
+"I grasp you," said the captain. "You want these enemies of his to think
+he is in deep water, so they'll be off guard and you can do your work."
+
+"Exactly," said Jim Farland.
+
+"Good enough. I'll do my part."
+
+"Know anything about a woman calling herself Kate Gilbert?"
+
+"Never heard of her."
+
+Farland explained what Prale had told him. The captain fingered his
+mustache.
+
+"Several thousand women in this town answer that general description,"
+he said. "I'm afraid I can't help you, unless you can pick her up."
+
+"That's what I'll do as soon as I can," Farland replied. "If I can get
+my eyes on her once, I'll trail her and find out a few things. She may
+have nothing to do with this, and she may have a great deal to do with
+it. What do you know about George Lerton?"
+
+"Shady broker," the captain replied. "Never done anything outside the
+law, as far as I know, but he's come pretty close to it. I'd hate to
+have him handling my money."
+
+"Well, he lied about meeting Prale. He did his best to get Prale to run
+away from town. That was a couple of hours before the murder, of course,
+so it probably had nothing to do with that. But why should he try to get
+Prale out of town? And, being a man of that sort, why did he say that he
+wouldn't handle Prale's funds? You'd think a man of his sort would like
+nothing better than to get his fingers tangled up in that million."
+
+"I'll have a man take a look at George Lerton."
+
+"Don't strain yourself," said Jim Farland. "I'm going to take a look at
+him myself, the first thing to-morrow morning."
+
+He left headquarters with Murk, and this time he did not engage a
+taxicab. He walked up the street, Murk at his side, and puffed at a
+cigar furiously.
+
+"Well, Murk, we've made a good start," Farland said, after a time.
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"How do you like working with a detective now?"
+
+"Aw, you ain't a regular detective," Murk said.
+
+"What's that?"
+
+"I mean you ain't an ordinary dick. You got some sense."
+
+"Thanks for the compliment. I know men who would dispute the statement,"
+Farland told him.
+
+They walked and walked, and after a time were on Fifth Avenue and going
+toward the hotel where Prale had his suite. Suddenly, just ahead of
+them, they saw Sidney Prale and the man from headquarters. They hurried
+to catch up with them.
+
+"What's the idea?" Farland asked.
+
+"Needed a walk," Prale replied. "Didn't feel like going to bed, and a
+walk would do me good, I knew."
+
+"I'll have some things to tell you in the morning," Farland said. "But
+I'm not going to tell you to-night, except to say that it is good news,
+and I'm issuing orders to Murk not to tell you, either. I want you to
+forget the thing and get some rest."
+
+"All right," Prale said, laughing; and then he stopped still and gasped.
+
+"What is it?" Farland asked.
+
+"Kate Gilbert!"
+
+"Where?"
+
+"There--just getting into that limousine. See her? The girl with the red
+hat!"
+
+"I see her," Farland replied, signaling the chauffeur of a passing
+taxicab. "This is what I was hoping for, Sid. Go on to the hotel with
+Murk and guard. I'm going to find out a few things about Miss Kate
+Gilbert!"
+
+He gave the chauffeur of the taxicab whispered directions, and then
+sprang into the machine.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+CONCERNING KATE GILBERT
+
+
+Given a definite trail to follow, Jim Farland was one of the best
+trackers in the business. He liked to know his quarry by sight, and
+conduct the hunt in a proper manner. And so he rejoiced, that now he was
+following a person he believed to be interested in some way in the
+Shepley case.
+
+The limousine went up Fifth Avenue toward Central Park, and the taxicab
+with Jim Farland inside followed half a block behind. Farland did
+nothing except look ahead continually and make sure that his chauffeur
+did not lose the other machine. He wanted to discover, first, where Miss
+Kate Gilbert was going, and after that he wanted to acquire all the
+information he could concerning her.
+
+There was little traffic on the Avenue at this hour, and the limousine
+made good progress. It curved around the Circle and went up Central Park
+West. In the Eighties it turned off into a side street, and finally drew
+up to the curb and stopped. The taxicab came to a halt a hundred feet
+behind it. "Wait," Jim Farland instructed the chauffeur, showing his
+shield. "Wait until I come back, even if I don't come back until
+morning. You will get good pay, all right."
+
+The chauffeur settled back behind his wheel, and Farland stepped to one
+side in the darkness and watched. He saw an elderly gentleman emerge
+from the limousine and turn to help Kate Gilbert out. Then the elderly
+gentleman got into the car again and was driven away, and Kate Gilbert
+went into the apartment house before which the limousine had stopped.
+
+Detective Jim Farland hurried forward, but when he came opposite the
+apartment house he slowed down and walked slowly, glancing in. It was
+not an apartment house of the better sort. The lobby was small, there
+was an automatic elevator, and no hall boy was on duty, that Farland
+could see. There was a row of mail boxes against a wall, with name
+plates over them.
+
+Farland went up the steps, opened the door, and stepped inside the
+lobby. He walked across to the mail boxes and began looking at the
+names. He found some one named Gilbert had an apartment on the third
+floor, front.
+
+The stairs were before him, and Farland was about to start up them when
+a door leading to the basement was opened, and a janitor appeared. He
+was an old man, bent and withered, and he looked at Farland with sudden
+suspicion.
+
+"You want to see somebody in the house?" he asked, in a voice that
+quavered.
+
+"I want to see you," Jim Farland answered.
+
+"What about, sir?"
+
+Farland exhibited his shield, and the old janitor recoiled, fright
+depicted in his face.
+
+"I ain't done anything wrong, mister," he said hoarsely. "I obey all the
+regulations about ashes and garbage and everything like that."
+
+"Don't be afraid of me," Farland said. "I'm not accusing you of doing
+anything wrong, am I? I can see that you're a law-abiding man. You
+haven't nerve enough to be anything else. Suppose you step outside with
+me for a few minutes. I just want to ask you a few questions about
+something."
+
+"All right, sir, if that's it," the old janitor said.
+
+He opened the front door and led the way outside, and Farland forced him
+to walk a short distance down the street, and there they stopped in a
+doorway to talk.
+
+"I'm going to ask you a few questions, and you are going to answer them,
+and then you are going to forget that you ever saw me or that I ever
+asked you a thing," Farland said.
+
+"I understand, sir. I won't give away any police business," the old
+janitor replied. "I know all about such things. I had a nephew once who
+was a policeman."
+
+"There's a party living in your place who goes by the name of Gilbert,
+isn't there?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"How many are there in the family, and who are they, and what do you
+know about them?"
+
+"There is an old man, sir," the janitor answered. "He's a sort of
+cripple, I guess. He always sits in one of them invalid chairs, and when
+he goes out somebody has to wheel him. If he ain't exactly a cripple,
+then he's mighty sick and weak."
+
+"Who else is in the family?"
+
+"He's got a daughter, whose name is Miss Kate," the janitor said. "She's
+a mighty fine-lookin' girl, too. She's a nice woman, I reckon. 'Pears to
+be, anyway."
+
+"Do you know anything in particular about her?" Jim Farland asked him.
+
+"Well, she's been away for about three months, and she just got back,"
+the janitor replied. "I don't know where she was--didn't hear. While she
+was gone, there was a man nurse 'tended to her father--cooked the meals
+and kept the apartment clean and took him out in his wheel chair. Miss
+Kate has a maid they call Marie--a big, ugly woman. She takes care of
+things generally when she is here, but she was away with Miss Kate."
+
+"How long have they lived here?" Farland asked.
+
+"About three years, sir. But I don't know much about them. They ain't
+the kind of folks a man can find out a lot about. They act peculiar
+sometimes."
+
+"Are they rich?"
+
+"My gracious, no!" said the old janitor. "They pay their rent on time,
+and they always seem to have plenty to eat, and I guess they can afford
+to keep that maid and hire a nurse once in a while, but they ain't what
+you'd call rich. But Miss Kate comes home in a big automobile now and
+then, and she seems to have a lot of clothes. There's something funny
+about it, at that."
+
+"Think she isn't a decent woman?" Farland asked.
+
+"Oh, I don't think she's a bad sort, sir, if that is what you mean. She
+doesn't seem to be, at all. I guess she gets her swell clothes honest
+enough. I think that she works for somebody and has to dress that way."
+
+"Do they get much mail and have many visitors?"
+
+"They get a few letters, and some newspapers and magazines," the janitor
+replied. "And they don't seem to have many visitors. I've seen a man
+come here once or twice to see them, and once he brought Miss Kate home
+in an auto. He looks like a rich man."
+
+"Is he old or young?" Farland asked.
+
+"Oh, he has gray hair, sir, and looks like a distinguished gentleman,
+like a lawyer or something. I guess he's rich. I think maybe he is an
+old friend of Mr. Gilbert's, or something like that."
+
+"They live on the third floor, don't they?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"Any vacant apartments up there?"
+
+"Why, the apartment adjoining theirs happens to be vacant just now,
+sir."
+
+"You take me up to that vacant apartment," Jim Farland directed. "Let me
+in without making any noise, and then forget all about me until I speak
+to you again. Here is a nice little bill, and there will be more if you
+attend to business. I'm an officer, so you'll not get in trouble with
+the landlord."
+
+The old janitor accepted the bill gladly, and led the way back to the
+house. Jim Farland refused to use the elevator; he insisted on walking
+up the stairs, and on going up noiselessly. When they reached the third
+floor, he was doubly alert.
+
+The old janitor pointed out the door of the vacant apartment, and handed
+Farland a key. Then he pattered back down the stairs. Farland slipped
+along the hall, unlocked the door of the vacant apartment, darted
+inside, and locked the door again, putting the key in his pocket. And
+then he moved noiselessly through the apartment until he had reached the
+front.
+
+He could hear voices in the apartment adjoining, and could make out the
+conversation. A woman was speaking--Farland decided that she was Kate
+Gilbert--and the weak voice of a sick man was answering her now and
+then.
+
+"Let's not talk about it any more to-night, father," the girl was
+saying. "You'll not sleep well, if you get to thinking about it. You
+must go to bed now, and we'll have a real talk about things when I have
+something of importance to tell you. Get a good sleep, and in the
+morning Marie can take you out in the Park."
+
+Jim Farland could hear the old man mutter some reply, and then there
+reached his ears the squeaking of a wheel chair being rolled across the
+floor. He remained for a time standing against the wall, listening. He
+decided that those in the Gilbert apartment were preparing to retire.
+Half an hour later, Farland slipped from the room and went to the
+basement to find the janitor.
+
+"Here's your key," he said. "I'll be back here in the morning, and I'll
+want to see you. And remember--you're not to say a word about all this."
+
+"Not a single word, sir."
+
+Farland went back to the taxicab and drove to his own modest home, where
+he tumbled into bed and slept the sleep of the just. When Jim Farland
+slept, he slept--and when he worked, he worked. Farland did not mix
+labor and rest.
+
+He arose early, hurried through his breakfast, got another taxicab and
+went up into the Eighties again. The old janitor was sweeping off the
+walk in front of the apartment house. The curtains at the windows of the
+Gilbert apartment were still down.
+
+"Give me that key again and give me a pass key, too," Farland told the
+old janitor. "If the maid takes Mr. Gilbert out, and Miss Gilbert is
+gone at the same time, I want to get into their apartment and take a
+look around. Understand? And I'll want you to watch, so I'll not be
+caught in there."
+
+"I understand, sir. Here are the keys."
+
+Farland reached the vacant apartment without being seen. The Gilberts
+were up now and eating breakfast. He could hear Kate Gilbert trying to
+cheer her father, but not a word she said had anything to do with Sidney
+Prale, or Rufus Shepley, or anybody connected in any way with the
+Shepley murder case.
+
+"Now you must let Marie take you to the Park, father," he heard the girl
+say. "It is a splendid day, and you must get a lot of fresh air. You can
+go down and watch the animals. I'm going out now, but I'll be back some
+time during the afternoon, and then we'll talk about things."
+
+Jim Farland waited in the vacant apartment until he heard Kate Gilbert
+depart. A quarter of an hour later, he opened the front door a crack and
+saw the gigantic Marie wheel out the chair with Mr. Gilbert in it. They
+went down in the elevator.
+
+Farland waited for another quarter of an hour, until the old janitor
+came up and told that he had watched the maid wheel Mr. Gilbert into the
+Park.
+
+"I'll just leave the elevator up here until somebody rings," the old
+janitor said, "and I'll watch the floor below from the top of the
+stairs. Then, if any of them come back, I'll tell you so you can get
+out."
+
+He took his station at the head of the stairs, leaving the elevator door
+open so that the contrivance could not be operated from below. Jim
+Farland unlocked the door of the Gilbert apartment and stepped inside.
+
+The first glance told him that it was an ordinary apartment furnished in
+quite an ordinary manner. It certainly did not look like a home of
+wealth, and Sidney Prale had said that it had been understood in
+Honduras that Kate Gilbert was of a rich family and traveling for her
+health.
+
+Many tourists claim to have money when they are away from home, of
+course, but the part about traveling for her health seemed to Jim
+Farland to be going a bit too far. Would such a woman be traveling for
+her health and leave behind her at home an old father who was an
+invalid?
+
+"There's something behind that little trip of hers," Farland told
+himself. "It looks to me as if she had gone down to Honduras to look up
+Sid Prale for some reason. And Honduras isn't exactly on the health-trip
+list, either."
+
+He began a close inspection of the apartment, leaving no trace of his
+search behind him, disarranging nothing that he did not replace. Jim
+Farland was an expert at such things.
+
+He ransacked a small desk that stood in one corner of the living room
+and found a tablet of writing paper similar to that upon which had been
+written the anonymous messages Sidney Prale had received. He found
+scraps of writing in the wastebasket, too, and inspected them carefully.
+
+"Somebody in this apartment wrote those notes, all right," Farland
+mused. "But why? That's the question I want answered, and I'll have to
+be careful how I start in to find out. You can't bluff that girl; one
+look is enough to tell me that. If I jump her about those notes, she'll
+probably get wise and cover her tracks, and then I'll be strictly up
+against it."
+
+He found nothing else of importance in the apartment. There were some
+letters, but they seemed to be from relatives scattered throughout the
+country, ordinary letters dealing with family affairs of no particular
+consequence, and they told Jim Farland nothing that he wished to know.
+
+But Kate Gilbert was only one angle of the case, he reminded himself,
+and so he decided that he was done for the present as far as she was
+concerned. It would be only a waste of valuable time, he thought, to
+remain longer in the Gilbert apartment; and there were plenty of other
+things for him to be doing.
+
+Farland went all over the apartment once more, making sure that he was
+leaving everything in its proper place, that there would be nothing to
+show that anybody had been making an investigation there. Then he
+hurried out and locked the door, returned the keys to the old janitor,
+gave him another bill and instructed him to forget the visit, lighted a
+black cigar, and started walking rapidly southward.
+
+When the proper time arrived, Jim Farland would tell Miss Kate Gilbert
+that he knew she had written the anonymous notes to Sidney Prale--or
+that her maid had--and he would ask her why.
+
+He reached Columbus Circle, made his way over to Fifth Avenue, and
+continued his walk down that broad thoroughfare. Farland had decided to
+go to the hotel and have a talk with Sidney Prale and Murk. He told
+himself that he was going to like Murk, the human hulk who suddenly had
+become of some use in the world.
+
+But he did not get a chance to go to the hotel just then. He came to a
+busy corner, and stopped to wait for a chance to cross the street
+congested with traffic. Suddenly, a few feet to his right, he saw Kate
+Gilbert, who had left her apartment only a short time before.
+
+There was nothing startling in that fact alone, for this was a district
+where there were fashionable shops and beauty parlors, and well-dressed
+women were on every side.
+
+What interested Detective Jim Farland the most was that Kate Gilbert was
+standing before the show window of a fashionable shop in intimate
+conversation with George Lerton, Sidney Prale's cousin!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+BATTERED KEYS
+
+
+Farland started moving slowly toward them, making his way through the
+crowd in such fashion that he did not attract too much attention to
+himself. He was feeling a sudden interest in this case. There were great
+possibilities in the fact that two persons connected with it from
+different angles were in conversation.
+
+As he made his way toward the show window, he remembered how this George
+Lerton had tried to induce Sidney Prale to leave the city and remain
+away, and how, afterward, he had denied that he had seen Prale on Fifth
+Avenue and had spoken to him.
+
+"He's connected with this thing in some way," Farland told himself.
+"It's my job to discover exactly how."
+
+But he was doomed to be disappointed. Before he could get near enough to
+make an attempt to overhear what they were saying, they suddenly parted.
+Kate Gilbert went into the shop, and George Lerton crossed the street
+and hurried down the Avenue.
+
+It was no use wasting time on Kate Gilbert. Farland knew where to find
+her if he wanted her, and he knew there would be no use in shadowing her
+now, since she probably had gone into the shop to purchase a hat. But
+George Lerton was quite another matter.
+
+The detective did not hesitate. He swung off down Fifth Avenue in the
+wake of George Lerton.
+
+Farland was a rough and ready man, and he had little liking for male
+humans of the George Lerton type. Lerton always dressed in the acme of
+fashion, running considerably to fads in clothes, appearing almost
+effeminate at times. And yet it was said in financial circles that
+Lerton was far from being effeminate when it came to a business deal.
+There had been whispers about his dark methods, and it was well known
+that a business foe got small sympathy or consideration from him. He was
+a fashionable cut-throat without any of the milk of human kindness in
+his system.
+
+It was a surprise to Jim Farland to see Lerton walking. He was the sort
+of man who likes to advertise his success, and he had a couple of
+imposing motor cars that he generally used. But he was walking this
+morning, and the fact gave Farland food for thought.
+
+Lerton continued down the Avenue, and Jim Farland followed him closely.
+He expected to see Lerton meet some one else and engage in another
+whispered conversation, but Lerton did not.
+
+"That boy is worried," Farland told himself. "He's one of those birds
+who like to walk when they want to think something out. If I could only
+know what was going on in that mind of his----"
+
+Lerton had reached Madison Square, and there he did something foreign to
+his nature. He crossed the Square, proceeded to Fourth Avenue, and
+descended into the subway.
+
+Farland was a few feet behind him, and got into the same car when Lerton
+caught a downtown train. He followed when Lerton got off and went up to
+the street level again, and now the broker made his way through the
+throngs and along the narrow streets until he finally came to the
+financial district. After a time he turned into the entrance of an
+office building--the building where his own offices were located.
+
+The detective watched him go up in the elevator, and then he turned back
+to the cigar stand in the lobby and purchased more of the black cigars
+he loved. For a time he stood out at the curb, puffing and thinking. He
+watched the building entrance closely, but George Lerton did not come
+down again.
+
+As a matter of fact, Farland scarcely had expected that he would. He
+believed that Lerton had kept an appointment with Kate Gilbert, and then
+had continued to his office to take up the work of the day. Farland
+decided that he would give Lerton a chance to attend to the morning mail
+and pressing matters of business, before seeking an interview.
+
+Finally, Farland threw the stub of the cigar away, turned into the
+entrance of the building once more, and walked briskly to the elevator.
+He shot up to the tenth floor, went down the hall, and entered the
+reception room of the Lerton offices. An imp of an office boy took in
+his card.
+
+"Mr. Lerton will see you in ten minutes, sir," the returning boy
+announced.
+
+Farland touched match to another cigar. He was a little surprised that
+Lerton had sent out that message. Lerton knew Farland, as Sidney Prale
+had known him in the old days. He knew Farland's business, and he knew
+that the detective and Prale were firm friends. He could guess that
+Prale had engaged Jim Farland to work on this case and clear him of the
+charge of having murdered Rufus Shepley.
+
+After a time the boy ushered him into the private office. George Lerton
+was sitting behind a gigantic mahogany desk, looking very much the
+prosperous man of business.
+
+"Well, Farland, this is a pleasure!" Lerton exclaimed. "Haven't seen you
+for ages. How's business?"
+
+"It could be better," Jim Farland replied, "and it could be a lot worse.
+I'm making a good living, and so have no kick coming."
+
+"If I ever need a man in your line, I'll call you in," George Lerton
+said. "And the pay will be all right, too."
+
+"Don't doubt it," Farland replied.
+
+"Want to see me about something special this morning?"
+
+"Yes, if you can give me a few minutes."
+
+"All the time you like," Lerton replied.
+
+That was not like the man, Jim Farland knew. Lerton was the sort to try
+to make himself important, the always-busy man who had no time for
+anybody less than a millionaire.
+
+Farland smiled and sat down in a chair at one end of the desk. He
+twisted his hat in his hands, looked across at George Lerton, cleared
+his throat, and spoke.
+
+"You know about Sidney Prale being in a bit of trouble, of course?"
+
+"Yes. Can't understand it," Lerton replied, frowning. "Sidney always had
+a temper, of course, but I never thought he would resort to murder
+during a fit of it. You know, I never got along with him any too well.
+He had a quarrel with his sweetheart in the old days and left for
+Honduras twenty-four hours later and remained there for ten years."
+
+"I know all about that, of course," Farland said. "You perhaps have
+guessed that he sent for me--engaged me to get him out of this little
+scrape."
+
+"Murder, a little scrape?" Lerton gasped. "I should call it a very
+serious matter."
+
+"Let us hope that it will not be a serious matter for Sid," Farland said
+with feeling. "I believe that the boy is innocent, and I hope to be able
+to clear him. Will you help me?"
+
+"I never had any particular love for Sidney, and neither did he for me,"
+George Lerton said. "However, he is my cousin, and I hate to see him in
+trouble. But how can I help you? I don't know anything about the
+affair."
+
+"An alibi is an important thing in a case like this," Farland said. "We
+want to prove an alibi, if we can, of course. Sidney says that you met
+him on Fifth Avenue----"
+
+"And I cannot understand that," Lerton interrupted. "Why should he say
+such a thing?"
+
+"You didn't meet him?"
+
+"I certainly did not! I cannot lie about such a thing, even to save my
+cousin. Why, it would make me a sort of accessory, wouldn't it? I cannot
+afford to be mixed up in anything of the sort. You must understand
+that!"
+
+"And you didn't urge him to leave New York and remain away for the rest
+of his life?"
+
+"I didn't see him at all," George Lerton persisted. "Why on earth should
+I care whether he remains in New York or takes his million dollars
+elsewhere?"
+
+"I don't know, I'm sure," Farland said. "But it seems peculiar to me
+that Sid would tell a rotten falsehood like that. Doesn't it look
+peculiar to you?"
+
+"I must confess that it does not," George Lerton replied. "I suppose it
+was the first thing that came into his head. He was trying to establish
+an alibi, of course, and he probably thought he would get a chance to
+telephone to me and ask me to stand by the story he had told, thinking
+that I would do it because of our relationship."
+
+"I was hoping that you would tell me you had met him on Fifth Avenue,"
+Farland said. "It would have made his alibi stronger, of course, and
+every little bit helps."
+
+"Stronger? You mean to say that he has any sort of an alibi at all?"
+
+"A dandy!" Farland exclaimed. "In fact, we have an alibi that tells us
+that Sid was quite a distance from Rufus Shepley's suite when Shepley
+was slain."
+
+"Why, how is that?"
+
+"Sid picked up a bum and tried to make a man of him. He bought the
+fellow some clothes and took him to a barber shop. The clothing merchant
+and the barber furnish the alibi."
+
+An expression of consternation was in George Lerton's face, and Jim
+Farland was quick to notice it.
+
+"Of course, I am glad for Sidney's sake," Lerton said. "But I had really
+believed that he had killed Shepley. It caused me a bit of trouble,
+too."
+
+"How do you mean?" Farland asked.
+
+"Shepley was a sort of client of mine," Lerton said. "I handled a deal
+for him now and then. He has been traveling on business for some time,
+as you perhaps know. I had hopes that he would give me a certain large
+commission and that I would make a handsome profit. He was about
+convinced, I am sure, that I was the man to handle it for him. His small
+deals with me had always been to his profit and my credit."
+
+"Oh, I understand!"
+
+"And a possible good customer is removed," Lerton went on. "So you have
+an alibi for Sidney, have you? In that case--if he did not kill Rufus
+Shepley--he must have told that story about meeting me when he was in a
+panic immediately following his arrest. Sid always was panicky, you
+know."
+
+"I didn't know that a panicky man could pick up a million dollars in ten
+years."
+
+"Oh, I suppose Sidney was fortunate. There are wonderful opportunities
+at times in Central America, and I suppose he happened to just strike
+one of them right. He was very fortunate, indeed. Not every man can have
+good luck like that."
+
+"Well, I'm sorry that I troubled you," Farland said. "And now, I'll get
+out--if you'll do me a small favor."
+
+"Anything, Farland."
+
+"I see you have a typewriter in the corner, and I'd like to write a
+short note to leave uptown."
+
+"Just step outside and dictate it to one of my stenographers," said
+George Lerton.
+
+"That'd be too much trouble," Farland replied. "It's only a few lines,
+and I can pound a typewriter pretty good. Besides, this is a little
+confidential report that I would not care to have your stenographer know
+anything about."
+
+"Oh, I see! Help yourself!"
+
+Farland got up and hurried over to the typewriter. He put a sheet of
+paper in the machine, wrote a few lines, folded the sheet and put it
+into his coat pocket.
+
+"Well, I'm much obliged," he said. "I think we'll have Sid out of
+trouble before long."
+
+"Let us hope so!" George Lerton said.
+
+There was something in the tone of his voice, however, that belied the
+words he spoke. Farland gave him a single, rapid glance, but the
+expression of Lerton's face told him nothing. Lerton was a broker and
+used to big business deals. He was a master of the art of the blank
+countenance, and Jim Farland knew it well.
+
+Farland had said nothing concerning Kate Gilbert, for he was not ready
+to let George Lerton know that he suspected any connection of Miss
+Gilbert with the Rufus Shepley case. Farland was not certain himself
+what that connection would be, and he knew it would be foolish to say
+anything that would put Lerton on guard and make the mystery more
+difficult of solution.
+
+He thanked Lerton once more and departed. Out in the corridor and some
+distance from the Lerton office, he took from his pocket the note he had
+written on Lerton's private typewriter and glanced at it quickly.
+Farland was merely verifying what he had noticed as he had typed the
+note.
+
+"That was a lucky hunch about that typewriter," he told himself. "This
+case is going to be interesting, all right--and for several persons."
+
+Farland had noticed particularly the typewritten notes that had been
+received by the clothing merchant and the barber. There were two certain
+keys that were battered in a peculiar manner, and another key that was
+out of alignment.
+
+He knew now, by glancing at the lines he had written himself, that those
+other notes had been typed on the same machine. He guessed that it had
+been George Lerton, the broker, who had sent those notes and the money
+to the barber and the merchant.
+
+Why had George Lerton been so eager to destroy his cousin's alibi?
+
+Why was George Lerton trying to have Sidney Prale sent to the electric
+chair for murder?
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+A PLAN OF CAMPAIGN
+
+
+Naturally, a man facing prosecution on a murder charge is liable to be
+nervous, whether he is innocent or not. If an attempt is being made to
+gather evidence that will clear him, he wishes for frequent reports,
+always hoping that there will be some ray of hope. And so it was with
+Sidney Prale this morning, as he paced the floor in the living room of
+his suite in the hotel.
+
+Murk had done everything possible to make Sidney Prale comfortable. Now
+he merely stood to one side and watched the man who had saved him from a
+self-inflicted death, and tried to think of something that he could say
+or do to make Prale easier in his mind.
+
+They had not seen or heard from Jim Farland since the evening before,
+when he had engaged the taxicab and had started in pursuit of the
+limousine Kate Gilbert had entered. Prale wondered what Farland had been
+doing, whether he had discovered anything concerning Kate Gilbert,
+whether he had found a clew that would lead to an unraveling of the
+mystery.
+
+"Are you sure about that Farland man, Mr. Prale?" Murk asked, after a
+time.
+
+"What do you mean by that, Murk?"
+
+"Well, he's a kind of cop, and I never had much faith in cops," said
+Murk.
+
+"Farland is an old friend of mine, Murk, and he is on the square--if
+that is what you mean."
+
+"He sure started out like a house afire, sir, but he seems to be fallin'
+down now," Murk declared. "He sure did handle that barber and the
+clothin' merchant, but he ain't showed us any speed since he left us
+last night."
+
+"He is busy somewhere--you may be sure of that," Sidney Prale declared.
+
+"Well, boss, I ain't got any education, and I ain't an expert in any
+particular line, but I've often been accused of havin' common sense, and
+I'm strong for you!"
+
+"Meaning what, Murk?"
+
+"Nothin', boss, except that I'd like to be busy gettin' you out of this
+mess. Seems to me I know just as much about it as you do, and if we'd
+talk matters over, maybe I'd get some sort of an idea, or somethin' like
+that."
+
+Prale sat down before the window, lighted a cigar, and looked up at
+Murk.
+
+"Go ahead," he said. "It won't hurt anything, and it will serve to kill
+time until we hear from Jim Farland. What do you want to talk about
+first?"
+
+"It seems to me," said Murk, clearing his throat and attempting to speak
+in an impressive manner, "that this is a double-barreled affair."
+
+"What do you mean?" Prale asked.
+
+"Well, there's the murder thing, and then there's this thing about you
+havin' some powerful and secret enemies that are tryin' to do you dirt
+without even comin' out in the open about it. Maybe them two things are
+mixed together, and maybe again they ain't. If they ain't, we've got two
+jobs on our hands."
+
+"And, if they are?" Prale asked.
+
+"Then it looks to me, boss, like the gang that's after you is tryin' to
+hang this murder on you after havin' had somebody croak that Shepley
+guy."
+
+"I've thought of that, Murk. But it doesn't look possible," Prale said.
+"If my enemies merely wanted to hang a murder charge on me, as you have
+suggested, I think they would have planned better and would have made
+the evidence against me more conclusive. It would mean that there would
+be a lot of persons in the secret; the men who plan murder do not like
+to take the entire town into confidence about it."
+
+"Well, that sounds reasonable," Murk admitted.
+
+"And why Rufus Shepley?"
+
+"Because you had that spat with him in the lobby of the hotel, and it
+could be shown that you had a reason for knifin' him," Murk said, with
+evident satisfaction.
+
+"Nobody could have known I was going to have that quarrel with Shepley,
+because I had no idea of it myself when I entered the hotel lobby,"
+Prale said. "After I left the hotel, I met Farland and then walked down
+to the river and met you--and you know the rest. How could they have
+contemplated hanging that crime on me when they did not know but that I
+had a perfect alibi? I think we're on the wrong track, Murk."
+
+"Well, boss, how about your fountain pen?" Murk asked. "How come it was
+found beside the body?"
+
+"That is one of the biggest puzzles in the whole thing, Murk. I cannot
+remember exactly when I had the pen last. I cannot imagine how it got
+into Shepley's room and on the floor beside his body. That fountain pen
+of mine is an important factor in this case, Murk, and it has me
+worried."
+
+"It seems to me," Murk said, "that if I had any powerful enemies after
+my scalp, I'd know the birds and be watchin' out for them all the time,
+to see that they didn't start anything when I was lookin' in the other
+direction."
+
+"But, Murk, I haven't the slightest idea who they are," Sidney Prale
+declared. "I don't know why I should have enemies that amount to
+anything, and that is what makes it so puzzling. How can I work this
+thing out when I don't even know where to start? I wish Jim Farland
+would come."
+
+Jim Farland did, at that moment. Murk let him in, and the detective
+tossed his hat on a chair, sat down in another, lighted one of his own
+black cigars, and looked at Sidney Prale through narrowed eyes.
+
+"Well, Jim?" Prale asked.
+
+"I talk when I've really got something to say, but I'm not going to make
+general conversation and muddle your brains with a lot of scattered
+junk," Jim Farland replied. "I'll say this much--things are looking much
+better for you."
+
+"That sounds good, Jim. Can't you tell me anything?" Prale asked,
+sitting forward on his chair.
+
+"The barber and the clothing merchant have fixed up a part of your
+alibi, Sid, as perhaps Murk has told you. That is the first point. It
+makes it look impossible for you to have slain Rufus Shepley, and I
+think Lawyer Coadley could get the charge against you dismissed on that
+alone."
+
+"But I want to be entirely cleared."
+
+"Exactly. You don't want to leave the slightest doubt in the mind of a
+single person. There is but one way to clear you absolutely, Sid. We've
+got to show conclusively that you could not have killed Shepley, and the
+best way to do that is to find the person who did."
+
+"I understand, Jim."
+
+"There seems to be some sort of a mysterious alliance against you, Sid.
+You say that you can't understand why you should have enemies that hate
+you so, and I know you're telling the truth. Whether that business has
+anything to do with the murder, or not, I am not prepared to say now.
+But we want to find out about this enemy business, too, don't we?"
+
+"Certainly," Prale said.
+
+"I followed Kate Gilbert. I know where she lives. She does not belong to
+a rich family and does not live in splendor. But she wears expensive
+gowns and has plenty of spending money, and has mysterious dealings with
+a distinguished-looking man. Her father is mixed up in it in some way,
+too. I went through their apartment, Sid. Somebody in that apartment
+wrote the anonymous notes you received."
+
+"What?" Prale gasped.
+
+"I found a tablet of the same sort of paper, and scraps of writing in
+the wastebasket that were in the same hand. Think, Sid! On the ship----"
+
+"By George!" Prale exclaimed. "She could have slipped into my stateroom
+and pinned that note to my pillow, and she could have stuck the second
+one on my suit case as I walked past her on the deck."
+
+"And could have sent the others," Farland added.
+
+"But, why?" Prale demanded. "I never saw the woman until I met her at a
+social affair in Honduras. What could she or any of her people have
+against me?"
+
+"Perhaps it was the maid," Farland said.
+
+"She could have done it, of course, the same as Kate Gilbert," Prale
+said. "But the same difficulty holds good--why? Kate Gilbert did seem to
+avoid me, and I caught her big maid glaring at me once or twice as if
+she hated the sight of me. But why on earth----"
+
+Farland cleared his throat. "Here is another thought for you to digest,"
+he said. "This Kate Gilbert knows your cousin, George Lerton."
+
+Sidney Prale suddenly sat up straight in his chair again, his eyes
+blinking rapidly.
+
+"Doesn't that open up possibilities?" Jim Farland asked him. "The woman
+seems to be working against you for some reason, and we know that George
+Lerton lied about meeting you on Fifth Avenue that night. It appears
+that he is working against you, too, for some mysterious motive."
+
+A dangerous gleam came into Sidney Prale's eyes. "That simplifies
+matters," he said. "I'll watch for Kate Gilbert, and when I see her I'll
+ask why she sent me those notes. Then I'll get George Lerton alone and
+choke out of him why he lied about meeting me on the Avenue. I've
+trimmed worse men than George Lerton."
+
+"You'll be a good little boy and do nothing of the sort," Farland told
+him. "We are playing a double game, remember--trying to solve this enemy
+business, and at the same time trying to clear you of a murder charge.
+If any of those persons get the idea that we are unduly interested in
+them, we may not have such an easy time of it."
+
+"I understand that, of course."
+
+"Let me tell you a few more things, Sid. I saw Lerton talking to Miss
+Gilbert on the street. They were speaking in very low tones. When they
+parted, I followed Lerton to his office, and went in and talked to him.
+I did it just to size him up. He still declares that he never met you on
+Fifth Avenue. He acts like a man afraid of something; and I discovered
+an interesting thing, Sid. He has a typewriter in his private office,
+one for his personal use. I managed to type a short note on it."
+
+"What of that?"
+
+"That typewriter has a few bad keys, Sid. And I discovered this--that
+the notes sent to the barber and merchant, that caused them to lie and
+try to smash your alibi, were written on the typewriter in George
+Lerton's office!"
+
+Prale sprang to his feet. "Then Lerton has something to do with this!"
+he cried. "He tried to get me to leave town, and he tried to break down
+my alibi. How did he know I was going to make an alibi like that?"
+
+"My guess is that your cousin has been having you watched since you got
+off the ship."
+
+"But, why?" Prale cried. "It is true that he married the girl who had
+jilted me a few years before, but I do not hold that against him. I know
+of no reason why he should work against me so."
+
+"Know anything about him that might cause him serious trouble if you
+talked?"
+
+"No," Prale replied. "As much as I dislike him, as much as I suspect
+that he is crooked in business, all that I really could say would be
+that he had a mean disposition and was not to be trusted too far."
+
+"I thought maybe you had something on him, and he was trying to get you
+out of the way so you'd not talk," Farland said. "That would explain a
+lot, of course."
+
+"It can't be that."
+
+"Then we are up in the air again."
+
+"Why not ask him?" Prale demanded. "Believe me, I'll wait for him to
+come from his office--and he'll answer me, and tell the truth!"
+
+"Put that hot head of yours under the nearest cold-water faucet!"
+Farland commanded. "You make a move that I don't sanction, and I'll quit
+the case! You'll spoil things, Sid, if you're not careful. Just digest
+what I have told you."
+
+"You're in command, Jim!"
+
+"Very well. You leave George Lerton to me, Sid. There are many angles to
+this case, and I can't attend to all of them at once. I don't want to
+call in other detectives, because they may be in the pay of these
+mysterious enemies of yours, and I haven't an assistant with an ounce of
+brains. Sid, you've got to turn detective yourself--you and Murk."
+
+"I was just wonderin' if I was goin' to get a chance to do anything,"
+Murk said.
+
+"Plenty of chances," Farland replied. "Sid, you pick up this Kate
+Gilbert, if you can. Act as if you did not suspect a thing. Try to talk
+to her--you were introduced to her in Honduras, and all that. Don't let
+her get nervous about you, but watch her as much as you can, and let me
+know everything you see and hear. Take a look at that big maid, Marie,
+when you get a chance. If you can do so, and think it advisable, put
+Murk on Marie's trail. I'll want to use Murk later myself."
+
+Sidney Prale was quick to agree. And thus, without being aware of it, he
+started on a short career of adventure and romance.
+
+Had Murk been a crystal gazer or something of the sort, and could he
+have looked into the future in that manner, he would have said that the
+crystal lied.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+MORE MYSTERY
+
+
+Jim Farland went from the hotel to Coadley's office, to ascertain
+whether the attorney's private investigators, who were working
+independently of him, had unearthed anything of importance in connection
+with the case.
+
+Sidney Prale stated that he would go for a walk, and the police
+detective, now thoroughly convinced that he would not try to run away,
+raised no objection. It was Prale's intention to make an attempt to meet
+Kate Gilbert. Murk hurried around getting his coat and hat and gloves
+and stick.
+
+"Fool idea!" Prale told himself. "Kate Gilbert has given me the cold
+shoulder already, and she certainly will do it now, since I stand
+accused of murder. Not a chance in the world of getting better
+acquainted with her now."
+
+"What do you want me to do, boss?" Murk asked. "I don't seem to be
+amountin' to much in this game. I'd like to be in action, I would! Can't
+I take a hand?"
+
+"As soon as possible," Prale told him. "Remember, Farland said he wanted
+you to help him later."
+
+"I'd rather help you or work alone," Murk said. "I reckon he is pretty
+decent for a detective, but I don't put much stock in any of 'em."
+
+Prale laughed as he finished dressing, put on his hat and gloves, and
+reached for his stick.
+
+"Suppose you just shadow me this fine day," he told Murk. "Get a little
+practice in that line. Don't bother me, but just follow and watch."
+
+"I getcha, boss. You want me to be within hailin' distance in case you
+need help?"
+
+"Exactly, Murk. We never can tell what is going to happen, you know. I
+may need you in a hurry."
+
+"I'll be on hand," Murk promised.
+
+Sidney Prale went down in the elevator, Murk going down in the same car.
+Prale lounged about the lobby for a time, and Murk made himself as
+inconspicuous as possible in a corner. Prale believed, as Farland had
+intimated, that he was being followed and watched, possibly by the
+orders of George Lerton, his cousin. He did not know why Lerton should
+have done it, but it angered him, and he wanted to discover the man
+following him.
+
+He saw nobody in the lobby who appeared at all conspicuous, and after a
+short time he left and started walking briskly down the Avenue, like any
+gentleman taking a constitutional. The midday throngs were on the
+streets. Prale was forced to walk slower, and now and then he stopped to
+look in at a shop window. Once in a while he stepped to the curb and
+glanced behind. But if there was a "shadow" Prale did not see him.
+
+He did see Murk, however, and he smiled at Murk's methods. Murk remained
+a short distance behind him, moving up closer whenever Prale was forced
+to cross the street, so he would not lose him in the throng. Murk was
+ordinary-looking and had a happy faculty of effacing himself in a crowd.
+He was on the job every minute, watching Sidney Prale, glancing at every
+man or woman who approached Prale or as much as looked at him.
+
+Prale reached Forty-second Street, crossed it, and came opposite the
+library. He glanced aside--and saw Miss Kate Gilbert walking down the
+wide steps.
+
+It was a ticklish moment for Sidney Prale, but he remembered that he was
+fighting to protect himself. If Kate Gilbert ignored him, he could not
+help it. At least, he would give her the chance.
+
+She could not avoid seeing him, for they met face to face at the bottom
+of the steps. Prale lifted his hat.
+
+"Good morning, Miss Gilbert," he said.
+
+She turned and met his eyes squarely, and he could see that she
+hesitated for a moment. Then her face brightened, and she stepped toward
+him.
+
+"Good morning," she replied. "Although it is a little after noon, I am
+afraid."
+
+Her words might have been for the benefit of any who heard. They were
+light enough and cordial enough, but she did not offer him her hand, and
+the expression on her face was scarcely one of welcome.
+
+"I am glad to see you again," Prale said.
+
+"You are settled and feeling at home?"
+
+"In a measure," he said.
+
+She had not mentioned the crime of which he was accused, and he did not
+wish to be the first to speak of it. She stepped still closer.
+
+"I want to talk to you, Mr. Prale," she said. "Kindly get a taxi and
+have the chauffeur drive us through the Park."
+
+Prale scarcely could believe his good fortune. He had doubted whether he
+would have a chance to talk to her, and here she was asking him to
+engage a taxicab so that they could enjoy a conversation.
+
+He hailed a passing taxi, put her in, gave the chauffeur his directions,
+and sprang in himself. The machine turned at the first corner and
+started back up the Avenue in the heavy traffic.
+
+"You wished to speak to me about something in particular?" Prale asked.
+
+"Yes. I have read of the crime of which you are accused. I am sure that
+you are not guilty."
+
+"Thank you, Miss Gilbert. I assure you that I am not. It is an
+unfortunate affair, which we hope to have cleared up within a short
+time."
+
+"I hope that you will be free soon," she said. "And then you will be
+able to enjoy yourself, I suppose."
+
+"I hope to have my vacation yet," Prale said.
+
+"You are going to remain in New York?"
+
+"Certainly; it is my home."
+
+"Sometimes a man does better away from home."
+
+"But I have been away from home for ten years. I have made my pile, as
+the saying is, and have come home to show off and lord it over my
+neighbors," Prale replied, laughing.
+
+They had reached the lower end of Central Park now, and the taxi turned
+into a driveway, and made its way around the curves toward the upper
+end. The chauffeur was busy nodding to others of his craft and paying no
+attention to his fares. Sweethearts, he supposed, talking silly nothings
+as they were driven through the Park. The chauffeur was used to such; he
+hauled many of them.
+
+Kate Gilbert leaned a bit closer to Prale, and when she spoke it was in
+a low, tense voice.
+
+"Go away from New York, Mr. Prale!"
+
+"Why should I do that?" he asked.
+
+"It would be better for you, I feel sure."
+
+"Because of the absurd charge against me? I intend to have my innocence
+proved, and I'd hate to run away and let people think that perhaps I was
+guilty after all."
+
+"You have the right to prove your innocence of such a charge to all the
+world," she said. "But, after you have done it conclusively, you should
+go away."
+
+"Why?" he asked, again.
+
+"Because--you have enemies, Mr. Prale!"
+
+"I have discovered that; but I do not know why I should have enemies."
+
+"Perhaps you did something, some time, to create them."
+
+"But I haven't," Prale declared.
+
+"Retribution comes when we least expect it, Mr. Prale."
+
+"Yes. I believe that you wrote that in one of your notes."
+
+He had said it! And Jim Farland had told him not to let her suspect that
+they knew. Well, he couldn't help it now.
+
+Kate Gilbert gasped and sat back from him.
+
+"In my note?" she said.
+
+"The notes interested me greatly, Miss Gilbert. I have saved them. But
+why should you send them to me?"
+
+"You can ask me that!" she exclaimed. "So you know that I wrote them, do
+you? In that case, Mr. Prale, you know why I spoke of retribution, you
+probably know my identity and intentions, and you know why you have
+enemies!"
+
+"But I do not!" he protested.
+
+"Please do not attempt to tell a falsehood, Mr. Prale. You know I wrote
+the notes, do you? Then you know everything else. So you are going to
+fight."
+
+"I fail to understand all this."
+
+"Another falsehood!" she cried. "I have asked you to leave New York
+and----"
+
+"And I fail to see why I should."
+
+"Then remain--and receive the retribution!" she said. "You will deserve
+all you get, Sidney Prale! When I think of what you have done----"
+
+She ceased speaking, and turned to glance through the window.
+
+"You were kind enough to say that you believed me innocent of the murder
+charge----"
+
+"I do. I hate to have you facing a thing like that when you are
+innocent. But this other thing is----"
+
+"Can't you explain? I give you my word of honor that I do not understand
+this."
+
+"Your word of honor!" she sneered, facing him again. "You speak of
+honor--you? That is the best jest of all!"
+
+Sidney Prale's face flushed.
+
+"I had hoped that I was a man of honor," he said. "I always have tried
+to be honorable in my dealings with men and women, all my life. Please
+understand that, Miss Gilbert."
+
+"If you have tried, you have failed miserably. Why do you persist in
+telling falsehoods, Mr. Prale. Do you think that I am a weak, silly
+woman ready to be hoodwinked by lies?"
+
+"But I assure you----"
+
+"I do not care for any of your assurances," she interrupted. "I wish it
+understood that we are strangers hereafter. You are going to fight, are
+you? Fight, Sidney Prale--and lose! What I said was correct--you cannot
+dodge retribution. It will take more than a million dollars to be able
+to do that."
+
+"My dear young lady----"
+
+"I am done, Mr. Prale. I have said all that I intend saying to you."
+
+"Then it is my turn to talk!" Prale said. "This thing is getting to be
+so serious that I demand an explanation. Why should you, and others, be
+so eager to run me out of New York?"
+
+"Others?"
+
+"Yes--particularly one man we both know."
+
+"His name, please?"
+
+"Why ask, Miss Gilbert?"
+
+"Very well."
+
+"Why do you want me to run away?"
+
+"I did not know that others were trying to get you to leave," she said.
+"I suggested it because--well, because I am a woman, I suppose. You
+deserve the worst that can happen to you. But a woman, has a kind
+thought now and then. I hate to see any man ground down and down, no
+matter how much he deserves it--and that is what is to happen to you if
+you do not go away. If you leave, your enemies will not use such harsh
+measures, perhaps. But when you are here before their very eyes, they
+will lift their hands against you!"
+
+"Who are these enemies, and why are they after my scalp?"
+
+"You know, Sidney Prale, as well as I. I can see that it is useless to
+talk to you. I am sorry that I had a moment's compassion and made the
+attempt. Please stop the cab and let me out here."
+
+"But I demand to know----"
+
+"Do as I say, or I shall make a scene!"
+
+Prale gave the signal, and the taxi stopped. He helped her out, and she
+started briskly down the nearest path. Sidney Prale paid the chauffeur,
+and started to follow.
+
+He glanced back, and saw Murk getting out of another taxicab. He had
+forgotten Murk in his interest in the conversation with Kate Gilbert.
+But Murk had not forgotten. Murk had his orders, and he was carrying
+them out; he was keeping in sight, to be on hand if he was needed.
+
+Murk had a little money Prale had given him, enough to pay the taxi
+chauffeur. Prale motioned for him to approach.
+
+"Here's a roll of bills," he said. "Keep up the game, Murk. Don't get
+too far away."
+
+"I'll be right at your heels, boss."
+
+"And keep your eyes open."
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"That woman was Kate Gilbert."
+
+"Then I'll know her whenever I see her again, sir."
+
+Prale hurried on down the path. Murk kept pace with him, a short
+distance behind.
+
+Kate Gilbert had been walking swiftly. She had reached the street, and,
+as Prale watched, she crossed it. Prale followed.
+
+The girl did not look behind. She came to the middle of the block and
+ran up the steps of an apartment house. Prale passed the entrance,
+glanced at the number, and continued down the street. At the corner he
+allowed Murk to catch up with him.
+
+"She turned in at the address Jim Farland gave us," Prale said. "She has
+gone home, Murk. I fancy that we are done with her for to-day!"
+
+A lot he knew about it!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+A MOMENT OF VIOLENCE
+
+
+Sidney Prale turned around and walked back along the street to the Park,
+Murk once more following at a short distance, as he had been ordered to
+do.
+
+Because he wanted to think of his predicament, Prale crossed into the
+Park and began following one of the paths toward the south, making his
+way along it slowly, paying little attention to the persons he passed
+now and then.
+
+He crossed a drive and followed another path; and now he came to a
+secluded spot where the path was hidden from passers-by on the other
+walks and drives. Here the way ran through a tiny gulch, the sides of
+which were banked with bushes. Squirrels scampered and birds chattered
+at him, but Prale saw none of them.
+
+He was trying to explain to himself why Kate Gilbert had warned him to
+leave New York, why she had interested herself in his affairs at all,
+asking himself for the thousandth time what species of net it was in
+which he suddenly had found himself enmeshed without knowing the reason
+for it.
+
+He had demanded information and it had not been given him. She had said
+nothing at all that gave him an inkling as to the nature of what seemed
+to be a plot against him. He had been as firm as he dared, he told
+himself. A man could not threaten a woman, could not use violence in an
+attempt to make her speak and reveal secrets.
+
+"We'll have to work from another corner," Sidney Prale told himself. "I
+can't threaten a woman, but I can pummel a man; and if I meet George
+Lerton again, I am liable to forget what Jim Farland told me and use my
+own methods."
+
+He walked on through the tiny ravine. He came to a cross path, and a man
+lurched down it and against him.
+
+"Beg pardon!" Prale murmured.
+
+"Wonder you wouldn't look where you're going!" the other exclaimed. "Got
+an idea you own the whole Park, or something like that? Men like you
+shouldn't be running around loose!"
+
+"You ran into me, not I into you," Prale reminded him.
+
+As he spoke, he looked at the other closely. He saw a gigantic man who
+had the general appearance of a thug, whose chin was thrust forward
+aggressively, and whose hands were opening and closing as if he wished
+they were around Sidney Prale's throat.
+
+"I've a notion to smash you one!" the fellow said, advancing toward
+Prale a bit.
+
+Prale's temper flamed at once. His own chin was shot forward, and his
+own hands closed.
+
+"If that is the way you feel about it, start in!" Prale said. "Perhaps I
+can teach you to act decently and keep a civil tongue in your head!"
+
+The man before him made no comment--he simply launched himself forward
+like a thunderbolt. Sidney Prale darted quickly to one side, and tossed
+his hat and stick on the ground. He did not have time to get off his
+coat; he could not even remove his gloves.
+
+The other, missing him in that first rush, turned and came back,
+swinging his fists. Prale did not dart aside now. He put himself on
+guard, braced himself against the side of the little gulch, and waited
+for the attack.
+
+They clashed, and Prale knew that he had a real fight on his hands, for
+the man who had attacked him was no mean antagonist. But, after the
+first real clash, Prale had no fear of the outcome. The man was brutal,
+but he had no skill. He delivered blows that would have felled any
+one--but they did not reach their objective.
+
+Then a second man crashed down through the brush and joined in the
+attack. Sidney Prale realized in that moment that the attack had been
+premeditated and the fight forced upon him purposely. It fed fuel to the
+flames of his wrath. He did not know whether this was the work of some
+of his unknown enemies or whether these thugs were mere robbers intent
+upon getting his wallet and watch. It made little difference to him
+which they were.
+
+With his back against the side of the gulch, he fought with what skill
+he could, trying to stand off both of them. The attack had come with a
+rush, and all this had occupied but a few seconds.
+
+Presently a human whirlwind appeared and took part in the battle. There
+was an angry roar from a human throat, a raucous curse, a rushing body,
+the thuds of swift, hard blows. Mr. Murk had reached the scene!
+
+The battle immediately became two-fold. Murk fought as these thugs
+fought, disregarding the finer rules of combat, seeking only to put his
+opponent out, no matter by what means. Murk was not unaccustomed to
+fighting of that character, and he was doubly formidable now, for he was
+angry at the attack on Sidney Prale. Murk had been too far away to hear
+what had been said when the trouble started, but he had seen, and he
+guessed immediately that some of Sidney Prale's enemies were engaged in
+the attempt.
+
+Murk went after his opponent with determination if not with skill. He
+fought him down the path, and there the fellow rallied from the surprise
+and rushed back. But Murk was not the sort to give ground. In a fight, a
+man should stand up to another until one of them was whipped, Murk
+thought.
+
+He knew how to give blows, but not how to guard against them. He was
+marked, and marked well, before the battle was a minute old, but he had
+the satisfaction of seeing blood on the face of his antagonist. Foot to
+foot they stood and hammered each other, and gradually Murk began
+wearing the other man down.
+
+As for Sidney Prale, now that he had but the one thug against him, he
+fought with skill and cunning, knowing that the other was a bit the
+stronger, but realizing that he would be victor if he used reasonable
+care.
+
+His flare of anger had passed, and now he was fighting like a clever
+pugilist. He warded off the other's powerful blows, and now and then he
+slipped beneath a guard, or smashed his way through one, and sent home a
+blow of his own.
+
+At the end of three minutes, the thugs were getting much the worst of
+it. Gradually they were being fought back toward the nearest driveway.
+Back and back they went, but did not turn and run. Sidney Prale sensed
+that they were fighting for money, that they were being paid for this
+attack, and he realized that, but for the presence of Murk, he would
+have had no chance whatever, and probably would be a senseless, bleeding
+thing now.
+
+None of them knew that the fight had attracted attention, but it had.
+Two women, coming around a curve in the path, had seen it, and had run
+back toward the nearest driveway, screeching. Two mounted policemen
+hurried toward them, heard the story, and charged down the path.
+
+The two thugs made no effort to escape. They stopped fighting, and Prale
+and Murk ceased also, though the latter was eager to continue until a
+decision had been rendered. Murk had fought often where there was no
+interference and he disliked to be bothered now, but he desisted at
+Prale's command.
+
+"Well, what's all this about?" one of the officers demanded. He did not
+address any of them particularly. "I was walking along the path, and
+these men attacked me," Sidney Prale said. "My valet was a short
+distance behind and he came to my assistance. I never saw these fellows
+before."
+
+"Nothin' like it!" one of the thugs snarled. "Me and my pal were walkin'
+along this path and met these men, and the one with the stick ordered us
+out of the way as if we were dogs. When we didn't move quick enough,
+they jumped into us."
+
+"That's a lie----" Murk began.
+
+"You can settle this at the station," the officer replied. "All of you
+come along with us!"
+
+Prale picked up his hat and stick, took off his torn gloves and threw
+them away, and motioned for Murk to walk at his side and to keep quiet.
+They went to the driveway and along it, the policemen watching the four
+of them closely, the thugs growling to each other and remarking that it
+was a fine day when honest workingmen could not stroll in Central Park
+without a dude and his valet trying to beat them up.
+
+There was a short wait when the station was reached, and then, at the
+lieutenant's command, one of the thugs poured forth his story. He gave
+his name and address, as did the other, and both made the statement that
+they were out of work at present.
+
+Prale stepped forward and gave his name. The lieutenant stared at him in
+surprise.
+
+"Why, it's the guy who croaked that man Shepley!" one of the thugs
+cried. "There ought to be a way of stoppin' him runnin' around and
+assaultin' and killin' folks. If it hadn't been for the cops----"
+
+"Shut up!" Sidney Prale commanded loudly, ignoring the presence of the
+officers. "You fellows made a deliberate attack on me and you know it.
+And I want to know who paid you to do it--understand?"
+
+"You're crazy!" said one of the thugs.
+
+Prale turned to the lieutenant. "I'd like to have Jim Farland sent for,"
+he said. "He has been handling things for me. I want him to investigate
+these men. I have an idea that the names and addresses they gave are
+fictitious. Recently enemies of mine have caused me considerable
+trouble, and I feel sure that these men were hired to attack me.
+Fortunately, my valet was walking a short distance behind me, and rushed
+up and helped me hold them off."
+
+"I'm ready to put up bail, and so is my pal!" said one of the thugs
+angrily.
+
+"In that case, I'll have to let you go for the present," the lieutenant
+said. "The charge is fighting and disorderly conduct, and bail will be
+one hundred dollars in each case. You may use the telephone if you wish,
+Mr. Prale."
+
+Prale hurried to the telephone, called Jim Farland's office, and was
+informed that Farland had not been there, and that the girl in charge
+did not know where he was, or what he was doing, or when he would
+return. Prale left instructions for Farland and went back to the desk.
+
+"This is a serious business, though it may not look like it on the
+face," he said. "I'd like to have these men held until we can make sure
+they have given correct names and addresses."
+
+"No use holding them if they have given bail," the lieutenant replied.
+"I think it's nothing but a regular scrap. You can talk to the judge
+later, all of you."
+
+Prale took a roll of bills from his pocket and put up cash bail for both
+Murk and himself. One of the thugs followed suit and pulling out a roll
+of bills, stripped off two hundred dollars, and arranged for the release
+of himself and his partner.
+
+"You seem to have a lot of money for men who are out of work," Prale
+said.
+
+"Been savin' it, and it's none of your business anyway," growled the
+other.
+
+They started toward the door, and Prale and Murk followed them, watched
+them until they started away, and then turned back to bathe their faces
+and hands. Then Prale got a taxicab, and drove to the office of a
+physician, who did his best to make the countenances of Prale and Murk
+presentable.
+
+It was an hour later when Jim Farland called Prale by telephone at the
+hotel.
+
+"I've investigated that little matter, Sid," he reported. "Those fellows
+gave fictitious addresses, as you supposed they had done, and it is an
+even bet that the names they gave were fictitious, too. No doubt about
+it, Sid--they were hired to get you. You'd better be on guard and a bit
+careful."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+MURK RECEIVES A BLOW
+
+
+An hour before dinner, Detective Jim Farland suddenly appeared in Sidney
+Prale's suite at the hotel.
+
+"They are working on me now, Sid," he said. "I got a telephone message
+when I was in the office, and the gent at the other end of the line
+informed me that it would be beneficial to my health if I immediately
+ceased having anything to do with the Rufus Shepley murder case and
+stopped working for you."
+
+"Any idea where the message came from?" Prale asked.
+
+"It came from a public pay station in the subway. I had the call traced
+immediately, of course. No chance of finding out who sent it, naturally.
+I doubt whether I'd recognize the voice if I heard it again--could tell
+by the way the fellow talked that he was trying to disguise his tones. I
+told him to go to blazes, and he informed me that I was up against
+something too big for a man to face, or something like that."
+
+"Jim, if there is any danger, I don't want you to work for me," Sidney
+Prale said. "You're married and a father and----"
+
+"And that will be about all from you, Sid!" Farland interrupted. "Think
+I'm going to let some man who doesn't tell me his name throw a scare
+into me?"
+
+"But, if there is danger----"
+
+"I thrive on danger," said Jim Farland. "Think I'm going to desert you
+at this stage of the game? That is what they want, of course. If I did,
+you'd probably hire another detective, and it might be one of their own
+men--whoever they are. I'm in this game to stay, Sid, first because you
+are an old friend of mine and I think you are being made the victim of
+some sort of a dirty deal, and also because I'm not the kind of man to
+be bluffed out of a job. We are going right ahead. I got a note at the
+office, too."
+
+"A note!" Prale gasped.
+
+"Typewritten, but not on George Lerton's battered typewriter this time.
+It remarked that unless I gave up this case, somebody would make things
+hard for me, or words to that effect. Old stuff! If they are so scared
+that they send threatening letters, they're whipped right now--and they
+know it!"
+
+"I had an interesting experience this afternoon," said Prale.
+
+"The fight?"
+
+"I don't mean that. I met Kate Gilbert in front of the library. She
+asked me to get a taxicab and drive her through the Park. I did it. She
+begged me to leave New York and remain away, and said that my enemies
+might not be so harsh if I did. I tried to get her to explain, and she
+insisted that I knew all there was to know. She left the taxicab and
+walked to her home."
+
+"I'll have to investigate that girl more thoroughly," Farland said.
+
+"She is on guard now, as far as I am concerned."
+
+"Does she know Murk by sight?"
+
+"I think not."
+
+"Then here is where Murk gets a steady job for a time," Jim Farland
+declared. "Murk, you go up to Kate Gilbert's home and watch a bit. Give
+him plenty of money, Sid, for expenses. Just see if she leaves the
+place, Murk, and if so, where she goes, and to whom she talks. Get any
+general information you can. Try to keep her from knowing that you are
+watching her, but if she finds it out drop the chase and get back here,
+and we'll put another shadow on the job. When you are sure that she has
+decided to remain in her apartment for the night, report back here to
+Mr. Prale."
+
+"You watch me," Murk said. "I never expected to be caught doin'
+detective work and I reckon it's somethin' like a disgrace, but this is
+a sort of special occasion."
+
+Prale gave Murk more money, in case he would have to engage taxicabs or
+follow Kate Gilbert where money would be necessary for tips and bribes.
+
+"Your face looks pretty good, but you want to remember that there are
+some marks on it," Prale told him.
+
+"It's looked worse, boss," Murk replied, grinning. "I'll try to do this
+thing right."
+
+Murk hurried down in the elevator and went from the hotel. He got a cab
+immediately, and promised that dire things would happen to the chauffeur
+if he did not get to a certain corner up beside the Park in record time.
+Jim Farland had given him a badge to be used if he was questioned by a
+police officer, and he was to say that he was an operative attached to
+Farland's office.
+
+Murk discharged the taxi at the proper corner, touched match to
+cigarette, and walked slowly down the street toward the apartment house
+where Kate Gilbert lived with her father and her maid.
+
+Jim Farland had told him the location of the Gilbert apartment, and Murk
+saw that the lights in it were burning. It was about time for dinner, he
+knew.
+
+He went to a drug store on the nearest corner and hurried into a
+telephone booth. He called the apartment house and asked to be connected
+with the Gilberts. A woman's hoarse voice answered his call, and he
+guessed that it was the maid speaking.
+
+"Miss Kate Gilbert there?" Murk asked.
+
+"Who is calling, please?"
+
+"Tell her it is about that Prale affair," Murk replied.
+
+"One moment. I'll call her."
+
+Kate Gilbert's voice came to him over the wire almost immediately.
+
+"Miss Gilbert?" Murk asked. "I was to tell you that----"
+
+And then Murk jerked down the receiver hook, and grinned as he put the
+receiver on it. Kate Gilbert would believe that a careless central girl
+had cut them off and put an end to the conversation.
+
+He had learned what he had wished to learn--that Kate Gilbert was at
+home. He walked back up the street. All he had to do now was to watch,
+and if Kate Gilbert left the place follow her. If she did not, Murk
+would wait half an hour or so after the lights in the apartment were
+turned out, to be sure that she had retired, and then would hurry back
+to the hotel.
+
+Murk watched from a distance at first, and then went slowly forward, for
+he did not wish to attract attention by remaining in one position too
+long. There were few persons on the block; and now and then some
+automobile or taxicab would discharge a passenger and go on. Murk made
+his way slowly to the end of the block, always watching the entrance of
+the apartment house, crossed the street, and started back on the other
+side.
+
+He came in front of a dark passageway between two buildings, and went
+on. And out of the mouth of that dark passageway came a blow that caused
+Murk to groan once and topple forward. Hands gripped his unconscious
+body and drew him back into the darkness.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+MURK IS TEMPTED
+
+
+The next thing that impressed itself upon Murk's consciousness was the
+fact that he had a terrific pain in the back of his head. Many times
+during his career Murk had experienced similar pains. And he knew that
+the best thing to do was to remain quiet for a short time, keep his eyes
+closed, and gradually pull himself together.
+
+So he pretended that he had not regained consciousness. He knew that he
+had been stretched upon a bed or couch of some sort, and that his wrists
+were lashed together, and his ankles. He was not gagged, however.
+
+Gradually the pain ceased, Murk's senses cleared and he became aware of
+what was going on around him. He could hear whispered voices, but could
+not distinguish words and sentences; neither could he tell whether the
+voices were those of men or women.
+
+Finally Murk opened his eyes.
+
+He found that he was in a small room furnished in quite an ordinary
+manner. He was stretched on an old-fashioned sofa. There were a few
+chairs scattered about, and a cupboard in one corner. In the middle of
+the room was an ordinary table covered with a red cloth. Upon the table
+a kerosene lamp was burning.
+
+Murk groaned and made an attempt to sit up, but fell back again because
+of a fit of dizziness. It became evident that his groan had been heard
+in the room adjoining, for the door, which had been ajar, now was thrown
+open wide, and two men entered.
+
+Murk knew them instantly; they were the men who had attacked Sidney
+Prale in the Park.
+
+"Back to earth, are you?" one of them snarled. "If I had my way, you'd
+have been cracked on the head for good."
+
+Murk snarled in reply, despite the fact that he was bound and at the
+mercy of these men.
+
+"Sore because I smashed your face!" Murk said.
+
+"That'll be about all out of you! I may take a smash at you yet!"
+
+"You've got a good chance while my hands and feet are tied," Murk
+replied. "It's the only time you could get away with it, all right! Turn
+me loose and I can clean up the two of you!"
+
+"You're not doin' any cleanin' for the present," he was told.
+
+Murk began wondering at the object of the assault upon him. He could
+feel the roll of bills Prale had given him bulging his vest pocket, so
+he guessed robbery was not the motive. He managed to sit up on the sofa
+now, and he glared at the two thugs before him with right good will.
+
+One of the men went back into the adjoining room, and the other remained
+standing before Murk, sneering at him, his hands opening and closing as
+if he would take Murk's throat in them and choke the life out of Sidney
+Prale's valet and comrade in arms.
+
+Then the man who had left the room returned, and there was another with
+him. Murk looked at this stranger with sudden interest. He was well
+dressed, Murk could see, but he wore an ulster that had the wide collar
+turned up around his neck, and he had a mask on his face--a home-made
+mask that was nothing more than a handkerchief with eye slits cut in it.
+
+"Afraid to show yourself, are you?" Murk sneered. "Who are you--the
+chief thug?"
+
+The masked man pulled a chair up before the sofa and sat down. His eyes
+glittered at Murk through the slits in the handkerchief.
+
+"You are not going to be harmed, my man--if you are reasonable," he
+said.
+
+"Reasonable about what?" Murk demanded.
+
+"We want some information and we think you can give it to us; that is
+all."
+
+"I don't know much," said Murk.
+
+"Tell us why you were prowling around that house near the Park."
+
+"Maybe I was takin' a walk," Murk answered.
+
+"And maybe you were spying, as I happen to know you were. We assume that
+Sidney Prale sent you to watch the comings and goings of a certain young
+woman and her friends."
+
+"Go right ahead assumin'."
+
+"It will avail you nothing, my man, to adopt this attitude," Murk was
+told. "And it might help you a great deal if you are willing to listen
+to reason."
+
+"I'm listenin'," Murk replied.
+
+"You haven't been working for Sidney Prale very long, have you?"
+
+"Only a few days--since you seem to know all about it, anyway. Why ask
+foolish questions?"
+
+"Very well. We understand that Prale kept you from committing suicide
+and then gave you a job. There is no reason why you should feel an
+overwhelming gratitude for Prale. He merely got a valet cheap."
+
+"What about it?" Murk growled.
+
+"Sidney Prale has a million dollars, but you'll never see much of it. He
+isn't the sort of man to toss his money away. And there are others, not
+particularly Prale's friends, who have many millions between them."
+
+"Well, that ain't doin' me much good."
+
+"But it may do you a lot of good. We want information and we stand ready
+to pay for it."
+
+"I guess you'll have to do a little explainin'," Murk told him. "I never
+was any good at guessin' riddles. Life's too short to be spent workin'
+out silly puzzles."
+
+"Very well," the masked man said. "As you perhaps are aware, Prale has
+certain enemies. That is enough for you to know, if he has not told you
+more. If you can give me information concerning Sidney Prale's plans,
+and tell us how much he knows, we will pay you handsomely."
+
+"I getcha," Murk said.
+
+"And if you can manage to continue working for Prale, and let us know
+everything as it comes up, there'll be considerably more in it for you."
+
+"Want me to do the spy act, do you?"
+
+"Call it whatever you like. There is a chance for you to earn some good
+money."
+
+"How much?" Murk demanded.
+
+"That depends upon the services you render us. But let me assure you
+that you will be richly rewarded. We will not fool you or defraud you."
+
+"What do you want to know?"
+
+"What is Jim Farland, the detective, doing? What has he reported to
+Prale?"
+
+"He ain't reported much of anything," said Murk.
+
+"We want to know what Prale thinks about the situation. Tell us all you
+know concerning the Rufus Shepley murder case. Has Sidney Prale said
+anything you have been able to hear about the enemies who are bothering
+him? You understand what we want to know--everything possible about
+Prale's plans. And we want you to watch henceforth, and keep us informed
+in a way I shall explain to you."
+
+"Well, explain it!" said Murk.
+
+"Scarcely, until we know that you are our man. Try to think of things
+now, and tell us. Be sure you let us have everything. What you deem
+unimportant may be really important to us."
+
+"I'd feel a lot more friendly to you gents if you'd untie me," said
+Murk. "I can't talk business when I'm treated like a prisoner, or
+somethin' like that."
+
+"You'll be untied as soon as we feel sure of you, and not before," Murk
+was told. "We are not taking chances with you. Are you going to work for
+us?"
+
+"I'm not sure that the proposition looks good to me," Murk said. "I make
+a deal with a man whose face I can't see, and do the dirty work--and
+then maybe you turn me down cold and don't give me a cent, and I lose my
+job with Mr. Prale and get in a nice fix. Don't you suppose I got some
+common sense?"
+
+"Make the deal with us, and you shall have five hundred dollars in cash
+before you leave this room," the masked man promised. "And, take my word
+for it, you'll be rewarded richly if you serve us well."
+
+"Well, I don't know much about this business," Murk said. "You know I
+ain't been with Mr. Prale very long. All I know is that he's got some
+enemies who are tryin' to get the best of him. He says he ain't guilty
+of that murder charge, and I happen to know he ain't, because he was
+with me when Shepley was killed."
+
+"Maybe you both had a hand in the killing," the masked man said. "And if
+you don't come to terms with us, you may find yourself in jail charged
+with being an accessory."
+
+"You can't bluff me, and you can't threaten me and get away with it!"
+Murk cried.
+
+"Softly--softly!" said the masked man. "I was merely showing you where
+you stand."
+
+"Well, don't start talkin' to me that way, if you want to do business
+with me. If I'm goin' to work for you, I've got to know what's what.
+Who's got it in for Mr. Prale, and why? That's what I want to know. And
+what is it you're tryin' to do to him? How can I help if I ain't wise?"
+
+"Some of the wealthiest and most influential men in the city are against
+Sidney Prale. They are determined to run him away from this, his old
+home town. They are going to strip him of his fortune if they can. They
+are going to grind him down until he is nothing better than a tramp."
+
+"Well, why are they goin' to do all this?"
+
+"It is not necessary for you to know at present. Perhaps you will learn
+that from Sidney Prale, if you keep your ears and eyes open. All we want
+you to do is to watch and listen and make frequent reports to us. You'll
+have to be loyal to us, of course. If you are not, we shall punish you."
+
+"But what did Mr. Prale ever do to get such a bunch down on him?" Murk
+demanded.
+
+"You'll find that out in time--maybe."
+
+"I guess I'd better know right now."
+
+"It is not necessary. Besides, we are not sure of you yet, please
+remember."
+
+"How could you ever be sure of me?" Murk cried. "If I threw down Mr.
+Prale, wouldn't I be liable to throw you down, if somebody happened
+along and raised the price? Why, you simp, I wouldn't turn against Mr.
+Prale for a million dollars! He's treated me decent, and he was the
+first man who ever did that! I was just stringin' you, you fool! Mr.
+Prale himself don't know why your gang is causin' him trouble, and I was
+tryin' to pump you and find out!"
+
+"So he has told you that he doesn't know why he has enemies?"
+
+"He has--and he told the truth. There's something phony about that
+murder case; somebody's tryin' to frame him. And when Jim Farland gets
+through, somebody is goin' to jail!"
+
+"So you will not work for us?"
+
+"You're right; I won't. Maybe I don't amount to much, but I'm mighty
+square compared to some people I know about."
+
+"And what do you suppose is going to become of you, if you refuse to do
+as I say?"
+
+"I guess I'll manage to struggle along," Murk said.
+
+"We'll see about that!" the masked man replied, getting up from the
+chair. "Perhaps a night spent in your present position, without food or
+water, will cause you to change your mind. If it does not, there are
+other methods that can be used."
+
+"Goin' to pull rough stuff, are you?" Murk sneered. "Go as far as you
+like! You can manhandle me, but you can't make me turn against Sidney
+Prale. That's a golden little thought for to-day, as the preacher says."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+A WOMAN'S WAY
+
+
+The masked man stepped forward, snarling behind his mask, his hands
+closing, and the two thugs stepped forward also, as if to use Murk
+roughly if the other gave the command.
+
+But there was an interruption. Kate Gilbert came in from the adjoining
+room.
+
+The masked man whirled to meet her.
+
+"You should not--" he began.
+
+"It makes no difference," Kate Gilbert said. "This man knows me, or he
+would not have been set to spying on me. Sidney Prale knows that I am
+associated with his enemies, since I was talking to him to-day. It is
+not necessary for _me_ to mask my face!"
+
+"It really was not necessary for you to come," said the masked man.
+"This fellow refuses to have anything to do with us."
+
+"I cannot blame him. You used violence to get him here. I am afraid that
+I should refuse to have business relations with a man who knocked me on
+the head."
+
+"It was the only way. We couldn't approach him on the street very well.
+We have him here now and perhaps may be able to force him to see the
+light."
+
+"I shall not countenance more violence!" Kate Gilbert said. "I told you
+in the beginning that force was not to be used. This man is not to be
+blamed in any way. He merely is an employee of the man we are fighting."
+
+"I think it justifiable to use any method that will get results," the
+masked man told her. "You seem to forget----"
+
+"I do not forget!" Kate Gilbert cried. "Who has a better right to hope
+to see Sidney Prale punished? Who has suffered more than I and mine? But
+I do not wish to see violence used. This man may be made to help us, but
+I fear you have taken the wrong method. And what do you intend doing
+now?"
+
+"Perhaps it will be as well for you to return home and allow us to
+handle this part of the affair," the masked man told her. "No woman
+likes violence, of course, but at times it is necessary. We are going to
+leave him here to-night to think things over. He will be stiff and sore
+and hungry in the morning."
+
+"But----" Kate Gilbert protested.
+
+"It is the better way, I assure you--and quite necessary. This thing is
+so big that it must be handled with firmness and decision. You have
+aided us greatly, but I think it will be a mistake to let you take
+command of the situation."
+
+Kate Gilbert's eyes flashed angrily, and her face flushed.
+
+"Very well, sir," she said. "But let me talk to this man alone. Perhaps
+common sense and kindness will prevail where violence did not. I
+sincerely hope so."
+
+"I am willing to let you talk to him, but you are to be guarded in your
+speech. Tell him nothing about the real affair; we want to be sure of
+him before we take him fully into our confidence. All we wish him to do
+is to keep us informed about Prale and Jim Farland, and any others who
+may be helping Prale."
+
+"I understand, and I am not quite a fool!" Kate Gilbert told him, still
+angry.
+
+The masked man motioned the two thugs out of the room, and then followed
+them, closing the door behind him. Kate Gilbert sat down in the chair
+before the sofa, and looked at Murk.
+
+"First, I want you to know that I had nothing to do with the blow you
+received," she said. "That was going a bit too far. I knew nothing of it
+until I received a telephone message saying that you were spying on the
+place where I live, and that you had been captured and brought here."
+
+"I understand that, lady," Murk replied.
+
+"I know that you have been with Mr. Prale only a few days. If he were in
+your place now, I might be inclined to turn my back and let those men
+handle him. But you are not to be blamed for the faults of your
+employer."
+
+"No, ma'am," said Murk.
+
+"I am going to tell you only this much: Sidney Prale committed a great
+wrong against several persons. Those persons have banded together to
+have vengeance. Sidney Prale deserves everything that can happen to
+him."
+
+"I think you've got him wrong, ma'am," said Murk. "He's even accused of
+murder, and I know he ain't guilty."
+
+"Neither do I believe that he is guilty of that crime, but that has
+nothing to do with this other affair. The persons who are banded
+together against Sidney Prale have nothing to do with the murder charge,
+I am sure."
+
+"I reckon he'll be glad to know that. But you've got him wrong in this
+other thing, lady. Mr. Prale is worried almost to death because he don't
+know who his enemies are, or why they are causin' him a lot of trouble."
+
+"He has led you to believe that?" she asked.
+
+"I know he's tellin' the truth, ma'am. He's got a detective workin'
+tryin' to find out what it all means."
+
+"Then he is fooling you, and the detective also. Sidney Prale knows who
+his enemies are, and why they are troubling him. He tried to tell me
+that he did not know, and almost in the same breath he told me something
+that convinced me he did know. You have received an offer to help us.
+Are you willing?"
+
+"I don't intend to turn against Mr. Prale!" Murk declared. "I ain't a
+man like that! These gents can keep me here and starve me and beat me
+up, and that's all the good it'll do 'em. I know a man when I see one,
+and Mr. Prale's a man, and a square man, and I'm goin' to stand by him!"
+
+"He has fooled you! You do not know him for the scoundrel that he is."
+
+"Maybe it's you that's bein' fooled, lady."
+
+"No. If you knew all, you would understand."
+
+"Well, why don't you tell me, then? If you prove to me that Mr. Prale is
+a crook or somethin', and that you people ain't, maybe I'll change my
+mind about some things."
+
+"I can tell you nothing now, except that I am right and that Sidney
+Prale is fooling you," Kate Gilbert said.
+
+"Then I'll stay right here and take my beatin' at the hands of them
+thugs."
+
+"You will do nothing of the kind," she said. "I will not see them use
+violence toward you."
+
+"I don't see how you're goin' to help it, ma'am."
+
+"I am going to have you released. You may return to Sidney Prale and
+tell him that we intend to punish him, but that I, for one, will not
+resort to violence. He may fight unfairly, but we do not." She lowered
+her voice and bent toward him. "I'll attract their attention, and send
+my maid to release you," she said. "Remain where you are."
+
+"Yes'm."
+
+Without another word, Kate Gilbert got up and left the room, closing the
+door behind her. In the other room were the masked man, the two thugs,
+and Marie, the maid.
+
+"I have talked to him, and I have a plan," Kate Gilbert told the others.
+"Marie, I wish you to do something for me. Take the taxicab and go on
+the errand, and after I am done here I will go home in another car."
+
+She stepped across to the maid and gave her whispered instructions,
+while the men waited. Marie left the room, walked through the hall, and
+left the house. Kate Gilbert sat down at the table and called the others
+to her.
+
+"That man is loyal to Prale," she explained. "Prale has fooled him. He
+honestly believes that Prale does not know his enemies or why he is
+being bothered, and he is grateful to Prale for what Prale has done for
+him. So, naturally, he refuses to turn against his employer."
+
+"If you will leave the matter in my hands----" the masked man suggested.
+
+"I may do so after we have had this little talk. Come closer, so I can
+speak in a low tone and he will not hear."
+
+They pulled their chairs up to the table.
+
+"This man is stubborn," she said. "You could starve him or beat him, and
+it would do you not the slightest good. It would only make him the more
+determined to be faithful to Prale. We would gain nothing. We've got to
+convince him that we are in the right."
+
+"I object to telling him the whole truth," said the masked man.
+
+"He could do nothing except tell it to Prale--and Prale knows it
+already, doesn't he?" Kate Gilbert asked.
+
+"You want to let the fellow go?" the masked man cried. "Why, we can use
+him as a sort of hostage!"
+
+"As if Sidney Prale would care if he never saw his valet again!"
+
+"He is more than a valet; he is one of Prale's spies! If we can hold
+this man prisoner, and attend to Jim Farland, that detective, Prale
+would stand alone. There are not many men he would trust to help him.
+And, if he stands alone, it will be easier for us to torment him, cause
+him trouble, drive him away!"
+
+"Sometimes I regret that we started this thing," Kate Gilbert said.
+"What will it avail us to make Prale's life miserable?"
+
+"You seem to forget--"
+
+"I forget nothing! I know how I have suffered, how my father and others
+have suffered. But I am not sure that retribution will not visit Sidney
+Prale even if we keep our hands off."
+
+"You're a woman; that is why!" the masked man accused. "You have a soft
+heart, as is right and proper in a woman. But when you remember your
+father----"
+
+"I am not quitting!" she declared. "I will continue the game. But I will
+not permit violence toward anybody, least of all to a poor fellow who
+has nothing to do with the affair except that he is working for Sidney
+Prale. We can accomplish our aims without becoming thugs and breaking
+laws ourselves. I understood that we always were to keep inside the
+law."
+
+"Well, what have you to suggest?" the masked man asked.
+
+"Let Prale's valet go, for he can do us no harm. Prale knows that I am
+against him, but he can make no move unless we break the law and his
+detective has us apprehended. We play into Sidney Prale's hands if we do
+that. Can't you see it? We do not want to give him an advantage, do we?
+If we use violence or break a law, we do just that. We must break him
+down cleverly."
+
+"I see that point, all right."
+
+"I am astonished that you did not see it before. You appear to be very
+vindictive lately, yet you did not suffer as some others suffered."
+
+"I have my reasons. I always have hated Sidney Prale."
+
+"Then you are making this fight for personal reasons?"
+
+"Do not forget that some very good friends of mine suffered because of
+Prale. But, about the valet----"
+
+"Let him go, I say. What harm can he do?"
+
+"We slugged him to get him here. He can report it to the police, and
+have you arrested, and these two men."
+
+"And what evidence would he have?" she asked. "Who would testify that he
+was telling the truth? These two men can keep out of sight for the
+present. He has not seen your face because of your mask. And to charge
+me with slugging him would be ridiculous."
+
+"This house----"
+
+"Is vacant, so far as the neighbors know; it is owned by a man whose
+wife died, and who has been gone for more than a year. The agent who
+rented it to us furnished, is one of us. We can simply close it up and
+not come here again. If he complained, and the police investigated, they
+would find the house closed, and the nearest neighbors would declare
+that it had been closed since the owner went away. The furniture is not
+even dusted."
+
+"That part is all right."
+
+"And that attack on Prale in the Park during the afternoon!" she went
+on. "That was a mistake. Suppose Detective Farland managed to connect
+that with us. I tell you we must not break a law, or Sidney Prale may
+get the advantage!"
+
+"We can't handle an affair like this with kid gloves!" the masked man
+declared.
+
+"We do as I say, or I shall go to Sidney Prale and tell him everything
+and rob you of your vengeance!"
+
+"You would do that!" the masked man cried, springing from his chair.
+
+"I'll do it if there is any more violence!" she declared. "It was
+understood that no rough tactics were to be used, and I demand that we
+carry out the original plan!"
+
+"We'll see about this!" the masked man cried. "I'll talk to some of the
+others----"
+
+"And I'll leave the game if there is any more violence--do not forget
+that!" Kate Gilbert cried.
+
+She continued to talk and plan, for she was fighting for time. She had
+known that, at the last moment, this man would refuse to release Murk.
+
+Marie, the big maid, had hurried from the house, which sat far back from
+the street and was surrounded by trees. But she had returned after
+watching for a few minutes.
+
+Murk, sitting on the sofa, heard somebody at one of the windows. He
+watched the sash being raised slowly and cautiously, and after a time
+saw the head of Marie. She motioned him for silence, listened a moment,
+and then crawled inside.
+
+Marie hurried across to Murk and fumbled with the cords that bound his
+wrists together behind his back. The bonds slipped away, and Murk made
+quick work of the one around his ankles. He hurried across the room, got
+through the window, and helped the big maid through. Marie led him
+toward the street.
+
+"Come right along with me!" she commanded, when they were some distance
+from the house.
+
+"Thanks for helpin' me out, but I guess I'll hang around," Murk replied.
+"I'm right eager to get a look at the face of the man who was wearing
+the mask."
+
+"I supposed you'd want to do that," the big maid told him. "And that's
+what I've got orders to keep you from doing. You come along with me!"
+
+Murk got a surprise. Marie gripped his shoulder with her left hand--and
+it was no gentle grip. Then he saw that she was holding an automatic
+pistol in her right hand.
+
+"There is a taxi at the corner," she informed Murk. "We are going to get
+into it and drive back to the city. You may be able to find this house
+afterward, but I doubt it."
+
+"Suppose I take a notion not to go?" Murk asked.
+
+"I'm not afraid to shoot," Marie informed him.
+
+"Aw, let me go!" he exclaimed. "You're in wrong in this deal; see? I
+tell you that Mr. Prale, my boss, is an all-right man, and you people
+are makin' some kind of a mistake."
+
+"I like to see a man stick up for his boss," replied the gigantic Marie.
+"And I'm stickin' up for mine right this minute, and she told me to see
+that you went to town. Why don't you quit that man Prale and get a real
+job with a gentleman? You're not a bad-looking man at all."
+
+Murk felt himself blushing at this unexpected announcement. Praise from
+the lips of a woman was something new in his life. He glanced at the
+amazon beside him.
+
+"And you're sure some woman!" he said. "And that ain't just nice talk--I
+sure mean it! But you ain't got this from the right angle. I've got to
+work for Mr. Prale. I'd be a dead one this minute if it wasn't for him.
+If I didn't stick by him now, I'd never be able to look at myself in a
+shavin' mirror again. You don't want me to be an ungrateful pup, do you?
+You see----"
+
+Having directed her attention to another topic for a moment, Murk put
+his plan into action. He made a quick lunge forward as he spoke,
+springing a bit to one side as he did so, and trying to seize the
+automatic and tear it from her grasp.
+
+But the gigantic Marie had been anticipating something like that,
+despite Murk's speech and his manner that said he was a willing captive.
+She lurched forward and hurled Murk back, sprang after him, crashed the
+butt of the weapon against the side of his head, and then, while he was
+a trifle groggy from the blow, she grasped him with her powerful hands
+and piloted him toward the street with strength and determination.
+
+"Never try to play them child's tricks on me!" she announced.
+
+Murk regarded her with mingled admiration and chagrin, and spoke with
+enthusiasm.
+
+"Some woman!" he commented.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+COADLEY QUITS
+
+
+Murk, compelled to ride back to the city in the taxicab with Marie,
+spent the time in ordinary conversation with the amazon, and told
+himself repeatedly that she was a great woman, a dangerous state of mind
+for a bachelor.
+
+The only reason Murk wanted to remain in the vicinity of the cottage was
+to catch a sight of the countenance of the man who had worn the mask. As
+far as the cottage itself was concerned, he had noticed a signboard on a
+street corner not far from it, and he would be able to locate it again
+if Sidney Prale or Jim Farland thought it necessary.
+
+Marie stopped the taxicab near the Park, and Murk got out and gallantly
+offered to pay the bill for his enemy, but Marie would not allow it.
+
+"Hope to see you often and get to know you better when this little scrap
+is over," Murk made bold to say, and then, chuckling at her retort, he
+started walking down the street.
+
+He did not care to ride, for it was not so very many blocks to the
+hotel, and Murk wanted time to formulate in his mind the report he
+intended to make to his employer.
+
+Prale was waiting for him, and Murk told his story in detail and without
+embellishment.
+
+"So Kate Gilbert had you freed, did she?" Prale said. "And she told the
+others that she would quit them if they used any more violence? Murk,
+old boy, when our foes begin fighting in their own camp it is time for
+us to begin to hope. A house divided against itself cannot stand, as you
+probably have heard."
+
+"She certainly panned the man who wore the handkerchief over his face,"
+Murk said. "I think I'd know him again, boss. He talked a good deal,
+remember, and he got careless toward the last and used his regular
+voice. And I watched his hands--boob didn't have sense enough to wear
+gloves. Anybody but a boob would know that a hand can be recognized as
+easy as a face."
+
+"Let us hope that they make a lot of mistakes like that, Murk," Prale
+replied. "I'll be glad if we ever solve this confounded mystery. It's
+getting on my nerves."
+
+They remained up until one o'clock in the morning, but Jim Farland
+neither visited the hotel again nor called them up, and so they went to
+bed.
+
+They did not rise early, but had breakfast in the suite and took their
+time about eating it. After that, they waited for Farland to arrive or
+telephone and give orders and tell news. Farland did not come, but
+Attorney Coadley did.
+
+Murk admitted him, and the distinguished criminal lawyer sat in the
+window beside Prale, a grave expression on his face, his manner that of
+a disconcerted man.
+
+"I gather you do not bring good news, judging from your countenance,"
+Prale said.
+
+"At least, I have not come to say that the case against you is any
+stronger," Coadley replied. "I'd like to speak to you alone, Mr. Prale."
+
+"Certainly. You may go into the other room, Murk, and remain until I
+call."
+
+Murk obeyed, and Sidney Prale bent forward in his chair and looked at
+the attorney again, wondering what this visit meant, what was coming,
+half fearing that the news would be ill after all.
+
+"Mr. Prale," Coadley said, "I have come here to your apartment to tell
+you that I wish you to get another attorney."
+
+"I beg your pardon!" Prale gasped.
+
+"I wish to withdraw from the case, Mr. Prale--that is all. An attorney
+does that frequently, you know."
+
+"But I want you to handle my case," Prale said. "I have been given to
+understand that you are one of the foremost criminal lawyers in the
+city. And you have done so much already----"
+
+"I insist that I withdraw, Mr. Prale. I shall be ethical. I shall give
+the man you name in my place all the knowledge at my command regarding
+this case, and I shall see that the change does not embarrass you or
+place you in jeopardy. The court will grant extensions if they are
+necessary."
+
+"Farland has given me to understand that my alibi now is of such a
+nature that the case against me may be dismissed. I had hoped that you
+had come here this morning to tell me so."
+
+"I fancy that any good attorney can get the charge dismissed," Coadley
+said.
+
+"But I do not want to be freed under a cloud. I want the public to be
+sure I did not kill Rufus Shepley--I want to have the public know the
+identity of the man who did."
+
+"That is what I thought, and that will take considerable time, perhaps,"
+Coadley said. "And so I wish to withdraw----"
+
+"If it is a question of fee----"
+
+"Nothing of the sort, Mr. Prale. I am sure you would pay me any
+reasonable fee I asked. There is no question regarding your financial
+ability."
+
+"May I ask, then, why you desire to leave the case?" Sidney Prale asked.
+
+"I'd rather not state my reasons, Mr. Prale. Just let me withdraw, and
+make arrangements with the court, after you have named the man to take
+my place. The bail arrangement will stand, of course."
+
+"So you do not care to tell your reasons!" Prale said. "Mr. Coadley, a
+banker refused to handle my funds. A hotel manager ordered me out, you
+might say, for no good reason whatever. I understand that I have some
+powerful enemies who are working in the dark, and who cause these
+annoyances. Do you wish me to understand, Mr. Coadley, that they have
+been to see you? Do you wish me to think that you are under the thumbs
+of these persons, whoever they may be?"
+
+The attorney's face flushed, and he looked angry for an instant, but
+quickly controlled himself.
+
+"I do not care to go into details, Mr. Prale," he said.
+
+"Then it is the truth!" Prale said. "The big criminal lawyer is not so
+big but that others can force him to do as they please."
+
+"Let us say as I please, Mr. Prale."
+
+"Then you think that you have a good reason for withdrawing?"
+
+"I do."
+
+"In other words, something has been told you that convinced you I am not
+a fit client. Is that it? And, instead of telling me what it is, and
+giving me a chance to refute the charge or explain, you simply take the
+easiest course and believe my enemies. Do you call that an example of
+the square deal?"
+
+"Let us not talk about it further, Mr. Prale," Coadley replied. "I feel
+quite sure that you have a complete understanding of the situation."
+
+"But I have not! I seem to be able to understand nothing in regard to
+this affair of which I am the central figure. I would give half my
+fortune, I believe, to have an explanation and be able to set things
+right."
+
+"No doubt you would be willing to give half your fortune to set things
+right!" Coadley said. "It is your privilege, of course, to say that you
+do not understand. Mr. Prale, you must see that this interview is
+painful to me, and it must be painful to you. Why prolong it?"
+
+"As far as I am concerned, this interview may be terminated at once,
+sir!" Sidney Prale exclaimed. "I'll send you a check for your services
+as soon as you submit your bill; and please do not neglect to do so at
+once. I'll inform you as soon as possible of the name of the man I
+select to fill your legal shoes in this matter. That is satisfactory?
+Very well. Murk!"
+
+Murk hurried in from the adjoining room when he heard Sidney Prale's
+call.
+
+"Show Mr. Coadley to the hall door, Murk!" Sidney Prale said. "And while
+you are about it, please close that ventilator in the corner of the
+room. It creates a draft, I am sure, and Mr. Coadley already has cold
+feet!"
+
+The attorney glared at Prale, and then got up and walked quickly across
+to the door, which the grinning Murk held open to let him pass out.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+UP THE RIVER
+
+
+Coadley had not gone for more than an hour when Detective Jim Farland
+arrived at the hotel and made his way immediately to Sidney Prale's
+suite.
+
+He found Prale pacing the floor angrily, and Murk sitting in a corner
+and watching him. The police detective, after doing duty for a few days,
+had been withdrawn, as it seemed evident that Prale had no intention of
+jumping his bail or eluding trial in any other way.
+
+"What's the trouble now?" Farland asked.
+
+"Coadley has just been here," Prale replied. "He has quit us. Our
+friends the enemy have reached him."
+
+"You couldn't get any sort of an explanation out of him?" Farland asked.
+
+"Nothing at all. He simply informed me that he was done, and that I had
+to get another lawyer."
+
+"I'll try to find an honest one for you," Farland declared. "I happen to
+know a clever young chap who probably will take the case, especially if
+I explain the thing to him, for he loves a fight. There is no special
+hurry, but I'll try to attend to it some time to-day."
+
+"Anything new?" Prale asked.
+
+"That is what I am waiting to hear. What did you do last night, Murk?"
+
+Murk related his adventure at length, while Jim Farland listened
+gravely, nodding his head now and then, and looking puzzled at times.
+
+"I'd like to know the identity of that masked man," the detective said,
+when Murk had finished. "The main trouble in this case is that we do not
+know the people we are fighting. We know that Kate Gilbert is one of
+them, and have reason to suspect that George Lerton is another. But
+there is somebody bigger behind, and that's a fact."
+
+"What are you going to do next?" Prale asked.
+
+"I'm going to pay a little attention to the Rufus Shepley murder case.
+I'm going to find out, if I can, who killed Shepley, and why. I am of
+the opinion that the murder is distinct from this other trouble, Sid.
+Perhaps a clew to the murder, however, will give us a clew to the whole
+thing, for it is certain that somebody has attempted to hang that crime
+on you."
+
+"How about George Lerton?" Prale asked.
+
+"We know that he tried to help smash your alibi by telling a falsehood,
+and by sending those notes to the barber and the merchant. But we do not
+know his motive, unless it is simply a hatred of you, Sid, and envy of
+the million dollars you got in Honduras. I'm going to get out of here
+now, and get busy."
+
+"Anything for us to do?" Prale asked.
+
+"Keep out of trouble--that is the principal thing. It appears that every
+time either of you goes out, you get knocked on the head. I'll report
+again as soon as I can."
+
+Jim Farland left them and hurried from the hotel. He went to the
+hostelry where Rufus Shepley had met his death, was admitted to the
+suite, and made an exhaustive investigation, which revealed nothing of
+importance.
+
+He visited the New York offices of the company in which Shepley had been
+interested, and questioned officials and clerks, but got no inkling of a
+state of affairs that might have led to a murder. He was told that the
+company's business was in proper shape, and that Rufus Shepley had had
+no financial trouble of any sort so far as his associates knew.
+
+Farland left the office and continued his investigations. In the evening
+he went to his home for a meal, and admitted to himself that he did not
+know any more than when he had started out that morning.
+
+"It gets my goat!" he said to his reflection in the bathroom mirror.
+"I'll have to begin working from some other starting point. I've made a
+mistake somewhere, or overlooked something that I should have seen.
+Makes me sore!"
+
+The telephone bell rang, and Farland went to the instrument to hear the
+voice of a man he did not know.
+
+"I understand that you are interested in the Shepley murder case," his
+caller said.
+
+"I am working on it, yes. Who is talking?" Farland demanded.
+
+"I'm not ready to mention any names. If you want to hang up, go ahead
+and you'll miss something important. Or if you want to listen for a
+minute----"
+
+"I'll listen!" Farland said.
+
+"I know a lot about that Shepley case, but I am in a position where I
+have to be careful. If you'll do as I say, you can learn something you'd
+like to know."
+
+"What do you want me to do?" Farland asked.
+
+"Meet me in some place where nobody will see us talking, and I'll tell
+you a few things. But I must have your promise that you'll not reveal
+the source of the information."
+
+"I'll protect you, unless you are mixed up in it to such an extent that
+I'd dare not do so," Farland said. "I'm not guaranteeing to shield any
+murderer or accessory."
+
+"I had nothing to do with the murder, if that is what you mean," came
+the reply.
+
+"Then where do you want me to meet you--and when? Can you make it this
+evening?"
+
+"Yes; and suppose that you set the meeting place, one that you know will
+be all right for both of us."
+
+Farland was glad to listen to that sentence. He had half believed that
+this was nothing more than a trap, that some of Sidney Prale's
+mysterious enemies were attempting to lure him to some out-of-the-way
+place and get him in their power. But if he was to be allowed to name
+the meeting place, it seemed to indicate that everything was all right
+in that regard.
+
+Farland though a moment, and then suggested a certain famous restaurant
+on Broadway and a table in a corner of the main room, where a man could
+lose himself in the crowd. But that did not meet with the approval of
+the man at the other end of the telephone wire.
+
+"Nothing doing in that place," he said. "One of the men interested in
+this thing hangs out there almost every evening. He'd be sure to see us,
+he knows how much I know about it, and he'd suspect things in a second
+if he saw me talking to you. Then it'd be made hot for me. I've got to
+protect myself, of course."
+
+"Suggest a place yourself," Farland said.
+
+"Make it outside somewhere. How about some place in Riverside Park?"
+
+"Suits me," Farland replied.
+
+The man at the other end of the wire gave the directions after much
+seeming speculation and many changes. Jim Farland was to go to Grant's
+Tomb, and from there to a certain place near the river. The other man
+would be in the neighborhood watching, he said, would recognize Farland
+as he passed the Tomb, and then would follow and speak to him when
+nobody else was near.
+
+Farland agreed, and made the engagement for an hour and a half later,
+saying that he could not get there before that time. It would not be the
+first time that Jim Farland had obtained an important clew because
+somebody interested had grown disgruntled and had turned against his
+pals; and he supposed this to be a case of that sort.
+
+Before leaving home, Farland made sure that his automatic was in
+excellent condition, and that he had his handcuffs and electric torch
+and other paraphernalia of his trade. He made his way to Columbus
+Circle, having decided to walk to the rendezvous. Farland was in no
+hurry. He observed all who passed him, and he frequently made
+experiments to ascertain whether he was being followed. He decided,
+after a time, that if he was being shadowed the person doing it was too
+clever for him.
+
+He came to Riverside Drive through a cross street, and approached the
+famous Tomb as cautiously as possible, keeping in the shadows, alert to
+discover anybody who might be acting at all suspiciously. Farland felt
+sure that this was no trap, but he was not taking chances. He always had
+been known to his friends as a cautious man.
+
+He reached the Tomb finally, and glanced around. Half a dozen persons
+were passing, some men and some women, some alone and others in couples,
+but none were of suspicious appearance.
+
+Farland glanced at his watch to be sure that it was the appointed time.
+He strolled around the Tomb and waited ten minutes longer, for he did
+not care to find later that he had left the appointed spot too early and
+that the other man had not seen and followed him.
+
+At the end of the extra ten minutes, Farland lighted one of his big,
+black cigars and started walking toward the river, following the route
+the other man had designated over the telephone. He walked slowly and
+not for an instant did he throw caution aside.
+
+Here and there were dark spots where Farland expected to hear his name
+spoken, spots where an attack might be made if one was contemplated by
+foes.
+
+It was as he was passing one of these that a whisper came from the
+darkness:
+
+"Mr. Farland!"
+
+The detective whirled toward the sound, one hand diving into a coat
+pocket and clutching his automatic.
+
+"Well?"
+
+"Be as silent as possible. Do not flash your torch yet; you may do so
+presently, so you can see who is talking. I am the man who called you up
+by telephone."
+
+"Come out where I can get a glimpse of you," Farland commanded, ready
+for trouble.
+
+He could see a shadow detach itself from the patch of gloom in front of
+him and approach.
+
+"That is close enough for the present!" Farland said. "I'm not taking
+chances on you until I know who's talking to me."
+
+"I don't blame you, Mr. Farland, under the circumstances. If you are
+sure there is nobody approaching, I'll come out into the light so you
+can see my face."
+
+Farland glanced up and down the walk quickly. As he did so, he heard a
+step behind him. He whirled, the automatic came from his pocket ready
+for use--and a man crashed into him.
+
+The one who had been talking from the patch of shadow rushed forward at
+the same instant. Farland managed to fire once, but the shot went wild.
+Then a third man rushed from the darkness, and the detective had the
+automatic torn away, and found that he had a battle on his hands.
+
+One man was upon his back, throttling him so that he could not utter a
+cry. The others were trying to throw him to the ground. Farland wondered
+whether that single shot had been heard, whether assistance would reach
+him, for he knew that here was a battle he could not win by force.
+
+Finally they got him down. Something was thrust into his mouth and
+bandaged there, effectually gagging him. He was turned over on his face,
+and his wrists were lashed behind him. Then his ankles were fastened,
+and two of the men, at the whispered instruction of the third, picked
+him up like a sack of meal and carried him into the deep shadows.
+
+They did not stop there, but continued toward the river, holding a
+conversation in whispers at times, and stopping now and then for a
+moment to rest and listen. Farland had been quiet, gathering his
+strength, and suddenly he began to struggle.
+
+It was nothing worse than annoyance for his opponents. He was unable to
+make an outcry that would attract attention, and he was unable to put up
+an effective fight. They threw him upon the ground again and held him
+there.
+
+"Another little trick like that, and we'll give you something to keep
+you quiet," one of the men whispered into his ear. "We've got you, and
+you'd better let it go at that!"
+
+Once more they picked him up and went toward the river. They reached it,
+and one of the men hurried away while the other two guarded Farland.
+Five minutes passed, and then a powerful motor boat slipped toward the
+shore. An instant later Farland was aboard it, a prisoner, and the boat
+was rushing through the great river toward the north.
+
+Farland made an attempt to watch the lights along the shore, but one of
+the men threw a sack over his face, so that he could not see. And so he
+merely listened to the beating of the boat's engine, and tried to
+estimate with what speed they were running and how much mileage the
+craft was covering.
+
+The sack was heavy, and Jim Farland felt himself half smothered, the
+perspiration pouring from his face and neck. He had grown angry for a
+moment, angry at himself for walking into the trap even while suspecting
+that one might exist, angry at these three men who had captured him so
+close to Riverside Drive.
+
+Then his rage passed. He was experienced enough to know that an angry
+man is at a disadvantage in a game of wits, and that wits and nothing
+else could get him out of the present predicament.
+
+Finally, he felt the boat turning, the speed was cut off, and it drifted
+against something. Farland was lifted out of the motor boat, but one of
+the men held the sack over his head, and he was unable to see. Once more
+he was carried, this time away from the river, and he could tell nothing
+except that the men who carried him were struggling up a sharp slope.
+
+Farland made no attempt to fight or struggle now, knowing that it would
+avail him nothing to attempt to throw off these three men. He had
+decided to conserve his strength, and to trust to his usual good fortune
+to get a chance later to even things by turning the tables on his
+captors.
+
+Suddenly the sack was taken from his head, and he was able to breathe
+better. He found that he was beside a road in which stood an automobile.
+Two of the men lifted him, tossed him inside the machine, and then got
+in themselves. The driver started the engine, threw in the clutch, and
+soon the car was being driven at a furious pace along the winding road.
+
+"Look around all you want to!" one of Farland's captors growled at him.
+"You won't even know where you are when you get there!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+RECOGNITION
+
+
+Through a maze of crossing and winding roads the car made its way, now
+over highways as smooth as a city pavement, and now over rough mileage
+that jolted the occupants and threatened the springs with destruction.
+
+Jim Farland did not recognize this particular district. He did not even
+know upon which side of the river he was being hauled along as a
+prisoner. In the city proper, his abductors would have found it very
+difficult to take him to a section where he could not have recognized
+some sort of a landmark, but here they had him at a serious
+disadvantage.
+
+The night was dark, too, and a fine drizzle was falling. Farland tugged
+at his bonds when he could, and finally convinced himself that they
+would not give. He tried to work one end of the gag from the corner of
+his mouth and found that he could not do that. He was utterly helpless
+for the time being, at the mercy of the three men who had kidnaped him,
+and the chauffeur, and whoever might be where they were going.
+
+For half an hour longer the car made its way across the country, and
+then Farland noticed that it left the principal thoroughfare and turned
+into a rough, narrow lane that was bordered with big trees. At the end
+of a quarter of a mile of this lane, the chauffeur brought the car to a
+stop. Farland could see a building that had the appearance of being an
+abandoned farmhouse.
+
+He was lifted from the car and carried to the door. One of the men threw
+it open, and Farland was carried inside. They took him through a hall,
+turned into a room, and tossed him upon a couch in a corner there. One
+of them struck a match, lighted a lamp, and then they turned to survey
+him.
+
+Farland glared at them, waited for them to speak. They were making no
+attempt to hide their features. Typical thugs they were, the three of
+them, and Farland supposed that the chauffeur, who had not come into the
+house with the others, belonged to the same class.
+
+One of them stepped forward and removed Farland's gag, while another
+went into another room and presently returned with a dipper of water,
+which he held to Farland's lips. He drank greedily, for the gag had
+parched his mouth and throat.
+
+"Bein' as how you are a copper, I'd slip a knife between your ribs and
+call it a good job," one of the men told him, "but we are supposed to
+treat you nice and keep you in condition for a little talk with the
+boss. So you needn't tremble with fear any."
+
+"It'd take more than three bums like you to make me afraid!" Farland
+told him.
+
+"Nasty, ain't you? Maybe we'll get a little chance to beat you up later,
+especially if your little talk with the boss ain't what they call
+productive of results. You've got some reputation as a dick, but I
+reckon it's all a fake. We didn't have much trouble gettin' you and
+bringin' you here."
+
+"Isn't that enough to make you worry a bit?" Farland asked.
+
+"How do you mean?"
+
+"Did you ever stop to think that maybe I wanted to be captured and
+hauled here? Have you any idea how many men watched and trailed us?
+You've led me to where I wanted to come, to a place I wanted to find,
+perhaps."
+
+"That bluff won't work," came the reply. "We had a couple of men
+watchin' for that very thing, and they'd have given us a high sign if we
+had been followed. You're here all by your lonesome, and so you'd better
+be good."
+
+Two of the men left the room, and the third sat down by the table to act
+as guard. Fifteen minutes passed, during which Jim Farland and the man
+by the table exchanged pleasant remarks concerning each other, neither
+getting much the best of the argument.
+
+Then the hall door was opened again, and a masked man entered the room!
+
+Remembering what Murk had related to him concerning his experience of
+the night before, Jim Farland looked up at this newcomer with sudden
+interest.
+
+This man, undoubtedly, was a sort of leader, one who had hired others to
+help him in his work and who knew the identities of Sidney Prale's
+mysterious enemies, and why they were working against him; perhaps,
+also, the man who could tell a good deal about the murder of Rufus
+Shepley.
+
+Farland did not betray too much interest, though, for he sensed that he
+was opposed to a person of brains and cunning, a different type from the
+thugs he hired to work for him. So the detective merely blinked his eyes
+rapidly as he looked up at the other and waited for him to speak.
+
+"You are Jim Farland, a detective?"
+
+The voice was low and harsh, a monotone, a disguised voice in fact. Jim
+Farland knew that at once.
+
+"That's my name, and some people are kind enough to say that I am a
+detective," Farland replied. "What's the idea of treating me rough like
+this?"
+
+"I regret that violence was necessary to get you here, Mr. Farland," the
+masked man replied, "but it seemed to be the only way in which I could
+get a chance to talk to you freely without subjecting myself to danger."
+
+"Why regret?" Farland asked.
+
+"Because I want you for my friend instead of my enemy, Mr. Farland, and
+I fancy that we may be able to come to terms. I shall send this man of
+mine from the room and submit a proposition to you. I hope you see fit
+to accept it."
+
+He motioned for the other man to leave, which he did immediately,
+closing the hall door behind him. Then the masked man sat down in the
+chair by the table.
+
+Farland was watching him closely now. The collar of his coat and the
+handkerchief mask effectually shielded his face and head. But, as Murk
+had told, this man did not have the common sense to cover his hands, and
+Farland looked at them when he could, careful not to let the other
+suspect his object.
+
+"I am the man who talked to Mr. Prale's valet last night," Farland heard
+the other say. "In some manner, the valet escaped, and so we were
+obliged to have you brought here instead of to the place where we had
+him, and which was considerably nearer the city. I regret it if the long
+ride annoyed you, but you will appreciate that it was necessary for my
+men to bind and gag you."
+
+"It certainly was if they expected to get me here!" Jim Farland
+declared.
+
+He heard the masked man chuckle.
+
+"I understand that you have been engaged by Sidney Prale to clear him of
+the charge of murdering Rufus Shepley."
+
+"I don't mind admitting that, since the whole city knows it," said
+Farland.
+
+"And also to aid Sidney Prale in outwitting certain persons who are
+trying to punish him for something he did."
+
+"I don't know anything about that. I do know that some people are trying
+to make things hot for Sid Prale, and he doesn't deserve it, and----"
+
+"Pardon me, if I interrupt!" the masked man said. "You say that he does
+not deserve it. Do you believe that influential persons would persecute
+him if he did not deserve it?"
+
+"Sid Prale doesn't know what it is all about!"
+
+"That is what he told the valet, too. But believe me when I say that he
+does know what it is all about, and is deceiving you when he says
+otherwise."
+
+"What has all this to do with me?" Jim Farland demanded. "Did you have
+me brought here to argue the case with me?"
+
+"I had you brought here because I want you to cease working for Sidney
+Prale. I want you to go back to him and tell him that you are done."
+
+"As Coadley, the attorney, did?"
+
+"Exactly!"
+
+"Your people must be men of influence if they can buy off Coadley like
+that!"
+
+"Perhaps Coadley was shown that it would wreck his future if he
+continued working for Prale."
+
+"Well, you can't wreck my future, because I haven't any," Farland told
+him.
+
+"Do not be too sure of that, Mr. Farland. Agree to my proposition and
+you may have a great future. You may find business thrown your way. You
+may find yourself able to spread out, have a protective service, become
+a wealthy man. If you give up the Prale case, we'll see that you are
+paid cash immediately, of course, in lieu of the fee you would receive
+from Prale--and considerably more than he would pay you."
+
+"I suppose that would appeal to a lot of men," Jim Farland said, "but it
+isn't the right bait to use if you are eager to catch me. I have all the
+business I want. I can make a living for myself and my small family, and
+we do not hanker after riches. A larger business would make me a human
+machine, and I'd rather just drift along and be an ordinary good husband
+and father. I'd rather be running a little, third-rate detective agency
+as I am, making just enough to get along, and have a lot of friends. I
+wouldn't throw down a friend for a million dollars! I suppose I'm the
+only man in town that thinks this way, but I'm a sort of peculiar duck!"
+
+"You mean to tell me that you are not anxious to better yourself, to get
+along in the world?"
+
+"Oh, I manage to get along!" Jim Farland replied. "I even eat meat now
+and then. I haven't seen the face of the famous wolf outside my door for
+some time. What is money?"
+
+"Everything!" the masked man replied.
+
+"That's what you think. It gives me an inkling as to what sort of man
+you are. I happen to know a fellow to whom money is everything--and I
+have reason to suspect that he is considerably interested in the case of
+Sidney Prale. Be careful you do not betray your identity to me!"
+
+Farland had the satisfaction of hearing the masked man gasp, and he
+chuckled.
+
+"Well, what is the proposition?" Farland inquired. "You seem to waste a
+lot of time."
+
+"We want you merely to tell Sidney Prale that you will not work on the
+case any more--that you are done. Then go about your regular business.
+We'll have you watched, and as soon as we are satisfied that you are
+keeping faith with us, we'll send you ten thousand dollars in cash. If
+you make the agreement with me, I'll give you a thousand cash to-night
+before you leave this place, as a sort of retainer and expression of our
+sincerity. Then, following the fee of ten thousand dollars, you'll find
+that much business is flowing your way. All you have to do to get all
+this is to withdraw from the Prale case at once."
+
+"You must be afraid that I am finding out some things," Jim Farland
+suggested.
+
+"That is scarcely the reason," the masked man answered. "We want Sidney
+Prale to stand alone, to be without help of any sort--that is all."
+
+"But I am more than Sidney Prale's employee. I am his friend!" Farland
+protested.
+
+"You were his friend ten years ago, sir, but a man may change a great
+deal in ten years. Are you quite sure that the Sidney Prale of to-day is
+the boyish, friendly Sidney Prale of ten years ago?"
+
+"I am quite sure; and that is why I am trying to help him," Jim Farland
+declared.
+
+"I fear that he is fooling you--as he is deceiving others. He is not
+worthy of such friendship as you are giving him."
+
+"How do I know that?" Farland asked. "If I could have some sort of an
+explanation----"
+
+He awaited the other's reply. If he could get some inkling as to why
+Prale had powerful enemies, it might help a lot.
+
+"I can tell you this much: Sidney Prale did something that wrecked and
+ruined several lives. Certain prominent persons have decided to punish
+him. He is to have his life made miserable, he is to have his fortune
+taken away from him, he is to be subjected to petty annoyances and hard
+blows alike, driven from this, his home town, forced to realize that a
+man cannot do what he did and escape retribution."
+
+"Sounds like he murdered a nation!" Jim Farland commented. "Did he wreck
+the national treasury or turn traitor to the flag?"
+
+"I am not jesting, Mr. Farland."
+
+"Neither am I. My eyes have got to be opened, sir. You've got to come
+clean with me. Prale's enemies may strike at him from the dark, but Jim
+Farland never works in the dark! I want to see where I'm stepping. I
+never like to trip over anything."
+
+"I have told you all that I can at present."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because I do not care to give you information if you are still to work
+for Prale."
+
+"You say that Prale knows his enemies and why they are fighting him. If
+he does, he never has told me. Tell me that much--since you say Sid
+Prale knows it already. It couldn't hurt your side at all."
+
+"We might tell you later."
+
+"You've got some very good reason for not telling me!" Farland accused.
+"It is the truth, isn't it, that Prale does not know a single thing
+about it. You are afraid to tell me because I may inform him of what you
+say, and we may straighten out the tangle? I can see through you, sir,
+as easily as through a newly cleaned window."
+
+"I see that you have faith in Sidney Prale," the masked man said. "But I
+assure you that your faith is misplaced. Is there any way in which I can
+get you to stop your work for him?"
+
+"Meaning against his influential enemies, or on the Rufus Shepley murder
+case?" Farland asked.
+
+"We simply want you to stop working for him. If he stands alone, we can
+punish him the sooner."
+
+"I understand about that, of course. But how about the murder case? Do
+you think Sid Prale is guilty of that crime?" Farland asked.
+
+"I do not know, I am sure. I understand that the evidence against him is
+damaging. But we are not awaiting the outcome of that. He may manage to
+have the charge against him dismissed, and we are going ahead with our
+plans for punishment."
+
+"Then you want me to quit Prale so I won't be helping him work against
+his enemies, and not because you are afraid that, in clearing him of the
+murder charge, I may find something detrimental to other persons?"
+
+"That is the idea," the masked man replied. "The murder case can take
+care of itself, I suppose."
+
+"Suppose I refuse to make this deal with you?"
+
+"In that event, we may feel called upon to detain you--and perhaps to
+use further violence."
+
+"Then you might as well start!" Jim Farland cried. "For you are lying to
+me like blazes! It's the murder case that's worrying you, and you know
+it! And I know _you_! I've been trying to place those hands of yours and
+I have succeeded. Besides, you have said one or two things that have
+convinced me----"
+
+The masked man gave a shriek and started toward the couch, his hands
+reaching out, clutching. Two of the thugs ran in from the hall.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR
+
+
+Waiting in anticipation of hearing good news, Sidney Prale paced the
+floor of the living room of his hotel suite until noon the following
+day, expecting Jim Farland to put in an appearance at any time and make
+his report.
+
+Murk, having done all the work that there was to do, spent the most of
+his time looking from the window at the busy, fashionable avenue, and
+glancing now and then at Prale as if wishing to anticipate his wishes
+and save him the trouble of voicing them.
+
+Prale had luncheon served in the suite, and then he stepped to the
+telephone and called Jim Farland's office. Farland's stenographer
+informed him that the detective had not been there during the morning,
+though there was some business that needed his attention.
+
+Then Prale got Farland's residence on the telephone, and the detective's
+wife answered the call. Prale gave his name, and asked where Jim could
+be found.
+
+"That is more than I can tell, Mr. Prale," Mrs. Farland said. "He got a
+telephone call last evening, and from what I overheard I think he went
+some place to meet a man. He left soon after he received the call, and I
+have not heard from him since. That is peculiar, too. When he is obliged
+to remain away, he generally finds time to telephone and let me know."
+
+This conversation bothered Sidney Prale, but he tried to tell himself
+that Farland was following a hot trail, and that perhaps it had led him
+some distance away, or that he was in a locality where he did not care
+to telephone.
+
+He did not want to miss Farland if he did call, and so he remained at
+the hotel during the afternoon and kept Murk there also.
+
+"I have a hunch that something is going to happen soon," Prale said to
+his valet.
+
+"A little action wouldn't make me mad any!" Murk declared. "I'm spoilin'
+to mix with the enemy, Mr. Prale. Most of all, I'd like to meet up with
+them two thugs that got gay with us. You're sure about that Jim Farland,
+boss?"
+
+"I've told you a hundred times, Murk, that Jim Farland is my friend and
+as square a man as you can find anywhere. He has not deserted us, if
+that is the thought in your head."
+
+"I'm beginnin' to like him a bit myself," said Murk. "Ain't you got any
+idea, boss, who's engineerin' this deal against you?"
+
+"Once more, Murk, old boy, allow me to state that I haven't the faintest
+idea who my enemies are, or why they are trying so hard to make life
+miserable for me. If I knew where to start to round them up, I wouldn't
+be standing in this room talking to you--I'd be out rounding them up!"
+
+"Well, if you ask me, I think it's about time that Farland settled that
+murder case," Murk said. "If he don't get busy pretty quick, I'll tackle
+it myself. I've got an idea----"
+
+The ringing of the telephone bell cut his sentence off. Sidney Prale was
+near the instrument, and he answered the call.
+
+"Mr. Prale?" asked a man's voice.
+
+"Talking."
+
+"I just wanted to inform you that you needn't depend on Detective Jim
+Farland any more. We've got him--and we'll get anybody else you engage.
+And we'll get you, too, Mr. Prale, before very long. Don't think we'll
+not!"
+
+The man at the other end of the wire hung up his receiver. Prale paced
+the floor and told Murk of the conversation.
+
+"They've got Farland!" Prale exclaimed. "They probably got him last
+night, decoyed him in some way. Well, Murk, if that is the truth, and I
+imagine that it is, we'll have to do our sleuthing ourselves."
+
+"Suits me!" Murk said. "I'm ready to start out right now and sleuth
+until it's settled. Let's get in action, boss!"
+
+"We are in the same old quandary, Murk. We don't know where to start,"
+Sidney Prale said. "If our foes would come out in the open, instead of
+fighting from the dark, we might have a chance. This is some city, Murk,
+and there are several million persons in it and around it. Starting
+right in such a maze isn't the easiest thing in the world, you know."
+
+For the second time that afternoon, Murk was interrupted by the ringing
+of the telephone bell, and once more Sidney Prale happened to be near
+and answered the call.
+
+"Send them up at once!" Murk heard him say.
+
+And then Sidney Prale hung up the receiver and whirled around with a
+puzzled expression on his face.
+
+"Murk," he said, "Miss Kate Gilbert is coming up here with that big maid
+of hers--coming to see me. What she wants is more than I can guess,
+remembering what happened the last time I talked with her. It may be
+good news, Murk!"
+
+They waited impatiently for the ring at the door. Murk opened it and
+ushered them in.
+
+He grinned at the gigantic Marie, but she did not return the compliment.
+There was a serious expression in her face, and Murk looked past her at
+Kate Gilbert, who was being greeted by Sidney Prale.
+
+Something important had happened, Murk told himself immediately. Kate
+Gilbert did not look frightened exactly or sorrowful or triumphant.
+There was a peculiar expression about her mouth, and her face seemed
+pale.
+
+"I felt that I had to come, Mr. Prale, and have this talk with you,"
+Kate Gilbert said, when she was seated near the window. "I wanted to
+speak to you here instead of in some public place, and so I brought
+Marie and came to your suite."
+
+"You are welcome, Miss Gilbert, I am sure," Prale said. "If you wish to
+speak in private, Marie and Murk can step into the adjoining room."
+
+"Please," she said softly.
+
+Murk opened the door, and the maid stepped in. Then he followed and
+closed the door again. Prale sat down near Kate Gilbert and turned
+toward her.
+
+"Now, Miss Gilbert," he prompted.
+
+She met his eyes squarely as she spoke, but her lips trembled at times
+as if she were undergoing an ordeal.
+
+"Mr. Prale," she said, "as you know, I have been associated with others
+in an attempt to bring retribution home to you. When I became associated
+with them, it was understood between us that there was to be no
+violence, nothing outside the law. We were simply to attack you from
+every angle, cause you trouble and annoyance, take away your money if we
+could, break you in every way."
+
+"Pardon me, but----"
+
+"Please say nothing until I am finished, Mr. Prale. We began at once to
+gather all the information we could about you and your affairs. We began
+to plan for your downfall. We found that we could do nothing that
+amounted to anything while you were in Honduras, where you were a
+powerful man. But we were about to try, even there, when we learned that
+you were selling out your properties and preparing to return to New
+York.
+
+"You may know how that struck us. You had gone away and made your
+fortune, and you were coming home, possibly with the hope that the past
+had been forgotten. We intended showing you that it had not been
+forgotten, that you could not return and enjoy the fortune whose
+foundation was----But enough of that!
+
+"I had been in Honduras spying upon you. I was sent because you did not
+know me, and would not be on guard, as you might have been, had some man
+gone down there. We did not care to send an ordinary detective, of
+course. I kept the people here informed of all your movements. I began
+the punishment by leaving that note in your stateroom and pasting the
+other on your suit case, began it by reminding you that the past lived
+in the minds of some persons.
+
+"You know the rest. We began our work. We caused you annoyance from the
+first, with the banker, the hotel manager, and all that. Before we could
+do any more, you were accused of murder. That pleased us, of course. We
+did not believe you guilty, but we were glad to see that you were being
+caused some trouble, that your name was being stained. Some of us even
+began to think that the law of retribution was at work itself, without
+our poor help.
+
+"We went ahead with our plans, however. You engaged a prominent
+attorney, and finally we induced him to leave you. But some who were
+handling the affair went too far. You were assaulted in Central Park.
+Your valet was knocked on the head and kidnaped, and an attempt made to
+get him to take payment and spy upon you. At that time I told a certain
+man who had the handling of the affair that there could be no more
+violence.
+
+"We should not break a law to undo you, I declared. If we did that, we
+were as bad as you. I said that, if there was any more violence, I
+should cease having anything to do with the affair, and would come to
+you and tell you so. An hour ago, I found out that Detective Farland, a
+man in your employ, had been seized and treated with violence and was
+being held prisoner because he insisted upon remaining loyal to you. So
+I am here!"
+
+"This is amazing, Miss Gilbert!" Sidney Prale told her. "The whole thing
+has been amazing. Somebody has tried to connect me with that murder.
+Somebody tried to smash my alibi. The little annoyances were bad enough,
+and the knowledge that I had unknown foes who fought in the dark; but
+the murder charge was the worst of all, for it placed me in a position
+where I had to clear myself absolutely or remain forever suspected by
+many persons."
+
+"I understand that," Kate Gilbert said.
+
+"And now you have come to me to say that you are no longer associated
+with my enemies?"
+
+"For what you did, there can be no forgiveness, Mr. Prale. I want to see
+you punished. But I will not be a party to violence. It seems to me that
+the man who has been managing this affair has gone beyond proper bounds.
+For some reason, he is particularly vindictive, though he did not suffer
+at all, as did some of the others. I cannot forgive you for what you
+did, Sidney Prale. But I can wash my hands of the entire affair and try
+to forget you entirely and hope that there is a law of retribution that
+will take vengeance for me. That is all, Mr. Prale. Only please remember
+that, from this hour, I am not concerned with the others in this
+affair."
+
+She started to rise, but Prale motioned for her to retain her seat. He
+bent forward and looked at her searchingly.
+
+"I am very glad that you have come here and spoken to me in this way,
+Miss Gilbert," he said. "I scarcely know how to express what I feel that
+I must tell you. I have listened to you patiently, without interruption.
+Will you be kind enough to listen to me for a moment now?"
+
+"I'll listen, though it will be useless," she said.
+
+"When I left Honduras, Miss Gilbert, I was a happy man. I had made my
+pile and was coming home. I had left ten years before because a selfish
+woman, whom I imagined I loved, jilted me for a wealthier man. That
+wound had healed, and when I left Honduras, I did not think that I had
+an enemy in the world, unless it was some poor devil of a disgruntled
+native workman I had been forced to discharge, or somebody like that.
+
+"I believed those notes on the ship to be in the nature of a jest, or
+else that somebody was making a mistake. Then troubles began, and I was
+at a loss to understand them. Next came the murder charge! We will put
+that aside for the moment, for it seems to be the result of
+circumstantial evidence and probably has nothing to do with the other
+affair--merely a coincidence.
+
+"Miss Gilbert, look at me! I want you to believe what I am going to say.
+You must believe it! In the name of everything I hold sacred, I swear to
+you that I do not know these foes of mine, or the reason for their
+enmity!"
+
+"How can I believe that?" she cried. "Why should you ask me to believe
+such a statement?"
+
+"Because I want some light on this subject, Miss Gilbert, and I am
+determined to get it. There is some terrible mistake. I am being
+punished for the fault of some other person."
+
+"Can you not remember back ten years?" she asked.
+
+"Easily. I can live over again the last day I spent in New York ten
+years ago."
+
+"And the few days before that time?"
+
+"Certainly, Miss Gilbert."
+
+"And yet you ask why others should seek to punish you? Perhaps you are
+one of those men whose natures are so dishonorable that you think you
+did nothing wrong at that time."
+
+"So it was then that I was supposed to have done this terrible
+thing--whatever it was?"
+
+"As you know, Mr. Prale."
+
+"But I do not know, Miss Gilbert. To the best of my recollection I left
+New York without having done anything in the least dishonorable; and
+certainly I did nothing to merit a band of enemies working against me."
+
+"What is it that you wish me to do?" she asked.
+
+"Be fair with me, Miss Gilbert. I tell you that there is some terrible
+mistake! If I am supposed to know all about this, what harm can there be
+in your repeating the details to me? Tell me what crime I am supposed to
+have committed to merit this attack. Give me a chance to prove my
+innocence! The common thug gets that chance in a court of law, you
+know."
+
+"But this is ridiculous!" she exclaimed. "There can be no question of
+it! The whole thing came out at the time."
+
+"Then you do not wish to be fair?" Prale asked.
+
+"I cannot allow you to say that. I will tell the story to you, Mr.
+Prale, tell exactly what you did--as you know very well--if that will be
+any satisfaction to you. But it will do you no good to deny it!"
+
+"Tell me!" Sidney Prale said.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII
+
+A STARTLING STORY
+
+
+"This is a painful subject for me, as you must be aware," Kate Gilbert
+said. "I shall tell the story in as few words as possible, and if you
+are a gentleman, you will not interrupt or cause me more suffering by
+protesting your innocence."
+
+"I promise not to interrupt," Sidney Prale replied. "I want justice and
+nothing more, Miss Gilbert."
+
+"Ten years ago you were a clerk in the office of Griffin, the big
+broker, were you not?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Mr. Griffin took a fancy to you, after your father died and left you
+alone in the world without any money. He gave you odd jobs to do around
+his residence, fed and clothed you and arranged it so that you could go
+to school. Your uncle, the father of George Lerton, your cousin, would
+do nothing for you because there had been a family quarrel several years
+before.
+
+"Had it not been for Mr. Griffin you might have been an ordinary street
+Arab. He sent you to a business college after you had finished the
+public schools, and then he took you into his office and started you on
+a business career.
+
+"You showed great promise, and Mr. Griffin was delighted and advanced
+you rapidly. You seemed to know the meaning of gratitude and worked
+hard. You were ambitious, too--always said that some day you would be
+worth a million dollars.
+
+"Step by step, you went up the ladder. Then it happened that your
+cousin, George Lerton, obtained a position in the same office after his
+father's death. He had had the advantage of a college education and knew
+how to handle himself in the presence of other men, and yet you, after
+your early struggle and with an inferior education and inferior
+opportunities, easily outdistanced him.
+
+"Other men began talking about you as a coming man--bankers and brokers,
+business men and financiers. Mr. Griffin finally gave you the post of
+chief clerk and adviser. You worked hard and seemed to be loyal and
+faithful. You got profits for your employer where other men would have
+caused losses. So he let you more and more into his confidence.
+
+"You got to know the secrets of big deals, the inside facts of the
+country's finance. You spoke in millions, but got only a nice salary.
+Your ambition to be worth a million dollars seemed to be not susceptible
+of gratification. Yet you saved money, and took advantage of small,
+solid investments now and then.
+
+"After a while you met a girl and fell in love with her. She was the
+sort who wished wealth above all, and you soon found that out. You
+became engaged to her, however. Then a rival appeared in the field, a
+wealthier man. You realized that the girl was shallow in that she
+favored the man with more money, but you were so infatuated that you
+overlooked that. You wanted the girl and, to get her, you had to have
+more money.
+
+"Then you began to feel dissatisfied. You didn't want to grow gradually,
+as other men did. You wanted the foundation for a fortune--enough to use
+in a plunge in the market. You wanted to be rich as soon as possible.
+
+"You began to think, perhaps, that you were not getting ahead. You
+worked in an atmosphere of wealth, you heard men speak in terms of
+millions, while you had less than ten thousand dollars in the bank. You
+began to think that Mr. Griffin should do more for you, that he had not
+done enough. You forgot that he had picked you up and made you what you
+were, that you had so much more than other men who had not been equally
+fortunate in finding a sponsor."
+
+She ceased speaking for a moment, but Sidney Prale never took his eyes
+from her face. Be ungrateful to Griffin? He never had dreamed of that!
+He always had worshiped Griffin for what the broker had done for him; he
+realized what he might have been only for Griffin. But he had promised
+not to interrupt, and so he said nothing, merely waited for Kate Gilbert
+to continue her recital.
+
+"You made certain plans," she went on. "Certain big business deals were
+in the wind, and, as Mr. Griffin's confidential and chief clerk, you
+knew all about them. There were millions of dollars involved, the
+control of several large companies, and more than that; for Mr. Griffin
+and his associates were fighting a group of financial thieves who were
+trying to wreck excellent properties for the sake of making a gain. It
+was a fight for more than money--it was a fight to keep big business
+honest, to drive off the wolves and make finance solid. It was a
+tremendous thing!
+
+"And you, a boy picked up and educated by a broker, who had risen
+through his kindness, knew as much of the big deal contemplated as some
+of the wealthiest and most influential men of the country. There were
+men in the other group who would have given a million gladly to know
+what you, a clerk, knew.
+
+"You were approached by one of that band of financial wolves. You were
+willing to listen. You wanted money because the girl with whom you were
+infatuated demanded it before she would marry you. You believed that
+Griffin had not done enough for you and you agreed to sell him out--him
+and his associates."
+
+Sidney Prale gasped, sat up straight in his chair, opened his mouth as
+if to speak, but did not when he saw the expression in her face. He
+decided to keep his word.
+
+"The agreement was made," she went on. "And you, who could have demanded
+half a million easily for the information you had, sold out your
+benefactor and his friends and the decent element on the Street for a
+paltry hundred thousand! You sold your honor and your manhood for that.
+
+"At this juncture, the woman in the case informed you that she wished to
+break the engagement, because a man of money--your rival--had asked her
+to marry him, and she wanted his wealth. Instead of seeing what sort of
+woman she was--instead of coming to your senses then and stopping your
+deal with the other side--you took the opposite course. You would take
+the money, betray your benefactor and his friends, and leave the
+country! With that money as a foundation, you would build up a fortune.
+And that is what you did, Sidney Prale!
+
+"You arranged everything nicely. You gave those men the information and
+received your hundred thousand and then you quit your job and sailed
+away to Honduras.
+
+"The battle began on the Street, and because of the information you had
+sold them, the financial wolves got the better of the honest element. It
+was a battle that lasted for two weeks. The wolves met every move,
+because they knew everything that had been planned. Fortunes were lost
+overnight. A score of big, decent men were ruined in their attempt to
+defeat the wolves and keep finance clean.
+
+"Mr. Griffin, the man who had done everything for you, went down in the
+crash--because you had sold him out! It was only five years ago that he
+got new backing and fought his way up again. Others went down with him,
+and some never regained their footing--because of what you had done,
+because you had played traitor! They knew there had been a leak, and
+there was an investigation. You had sailed away the day before the fight
+began, and that looked suspicious, for you had made up your mind
+suddenly. Finally it was discovered that you were the traitor in the
+camp!
+
+"My father was one of Mr. Griffin's associates, Mr. Prale. He lost his
+fortune, of course. We could have endured that, but the blow cost him
+his health. He was a giant of a man at that time, the best father in the
+world. You should see him now, Mr. Prale--see what your treason made of
+him. He is an invalid who sits all day in his wheel chair. At times his
+mind wanders and he fights that battle over again and calls curses down
+upon the head of the man who played traitor! My big, handsome, rich
+father is a broken, thin-faced man whose voice is a whisper and whose
+hands tremble--because of what you did. You beast!"
+
+She began sobbing softly as she glanced through the window, and Sidney
+Prale started to get out of his chair. But she faced him again quickly
+and motioned for him to remain silent.
+
+"You wanted to hear it, and so I shall tell it all!" she declared. "You
+had been clever; you had done this thing in such a manner than the law
+could not touch you. Yet you must have been afraid of it, for you fled
+the country. It was some time before things were adjusted, and then
+those men you had betrayed got together and determined to make you pay!
+
+"They told the story to others, and they began gathering information
+about you. You were making your million, all right, on the foundation
+that had wrecked a score of fortunes and lives--on treason instead of
+superior financial ability--and they swore that you should pay.
+
+"They knew my father's story, of course, and knew that we had very
+little money. So they provided for him, and gave me funds and sent me to
+Honduras to spy upon you. Marie, my maid since girlhood, who worshiped
+my father and knew all the circumstances, went with me. Soon after I
+reached Honduras, I found that you were selling out with the intention
+of returning to New York and enjoying your million.
+
+"I communicated with the others and told them all I knew of your plans,
+whereupon they made some plans of their own. They won the sympathy of
+the most influential men in the city. They determined to make you pay!
+
+"That is why the big trust company would not accept your account. A
+whisper in the ear of the hotel manager by the president of the company
+that owned the hotel, and you were as good as ordered out. Can you
+understand now, Sidney Prale? Coadley, the lawyer, was told that he will
+be made a nobody by the influential men of the town unless he ceased to
+work for you, and he dropped your case.
+
+"But there was to be no violence, and because they have descended to
+that, I have ceased to be interested in the affair. I know nothing about
+the Shepley murder case or any trouble it may have caused you. That is
+quite another matter. Now that I have told my story, I hope that you are
+satisfied. It has shown you, I trust, that I know all, and that any
+falsehood you may utter will have no effect on me."
+
+"I do not intend uttering a falsehood, Miss Gilbert," Sidney Prale
+assured her. "What you have said has amazed and shocked me. So that is
+why I was treated so badly upon returning to my home?"
+
+"Exactly," she said.
+
+"Now listen to me one moment, I beg of you. There is some mystery here,
+and though it is ten years old, I shall solve it. Miss Gilbert--whether
+you believe me or not--I am not guilty of such treachery. I had no
+dealings with the financial wolves. When I left the United States I took
+with me the ten thousand dollars I had saved--nothing more. And I left
+nothing behind."
+
+"You made a million in ten years with a capital of ten thousand?" she
+asked, with a slight sneer.
+
+"I did, Miss Gilbert! I can prove every transaction, show you or anybody
+else exactly how I did it. Disbelieve me or not, it is the truth that I
+am innocent. If my people were sold out at that time, somebody else got
+the selling price. I was chagrined because my love affair had gone
+wrong. I shook the dust of New York from my feet. I did not even look at
+a New York newspaper for more than a year. Somebody else got the money,
+and I got a nasty name. And Mr. Griffin, who was as a father to me,
+thinks that I was an ungrateful cur!
+
+"This thing is hard to believe, Miss Gilbert. But I never can thank you
+enough for telling me. I am going to clear myself before I am done."
+
+"I cannot believe you, Mr. Prale! The proof was there!"
+
+"And who furnished it?" he demanded. "Who is handling this campaign of
+vengeance against me now?"
+
+"You scarcely can expect me to tell you that," she said. "I am
+done--have nothing more to do with the affair--but I am not going to be
+a traitor, as you were!"
+
+"If you ever are convinced, Miss Gilbert, that I am entirely innocent,
+that somebody has put this stain upon me for their own reasons, can I
+count upon your friendship?"
+
+"Convince me that injustice has been done you, Mr. Prale, and I'll do
+everything in my power to make amends--and so will all the others!"
+
+"Thanks for that assurance," Prale said. "I am going to clear myself in
+your eyes, and in the eyes of the others. I remember the details of that
+big deal perfectly and I shall know how to start to work."
+
+"I cannot understand this," she said. "You speak as if you were indeed
+innocent, but I cannot believe it!"
+
+"I am innocent!"
+
+"If so, who is guilty?"
+
+"That is what I intend finding out."
+
+"But you were in their confidence--you knew all the details of their
+financial plans," Kate Gilbert said. "You were the only one who could
+have betrayed them. You scarcely expect me to believe that they betrayed
+themselves."
+
+"Any spying clerk in the Griffin offices could have told the enemy
+enough to betray the plans," Prale replied. "By the way, who is this man
+who goes too far and insists upon using violence? Who is the man who
+seems to be so extraordinary vindictive toward me in this affair?"
+
+"I can tell you nothing more," she declared. "It would not be fair to
+them."
+
+"But they have Jim Farland, and Heaven knows what they are doing to him,
+simply because he will not turn against me. Is it fair to Jim Farland's
+wife and child?"
+
+"I--I am being kept informed," she assured him. "If they treat Mr.
+Farland badly, or detain him much longer, I shall speak. But until then,
+I have nothing to say. You see, Mr. Prale, I cannot believe that you are
+innocent and have been misjudged. The evidence against you is so
+conclusive, and I have learned to hate you as the man who betrayed his
+benefactor and friends and wrecked my father's health. But, if you are
+innocent, I hope that you will forgive me."
+
+"I'll forgive you gladly," said Sidney Prale. "I realize what you must
+have suffered, and what your father must have suffered, too. I am going
+to prove my innocence; and then I hope to claim you as one of my
+friends."
+
+"I am sorry that I cannot believe you," she said again, "although I
+would like to. I would prefer to think that no man could be so
+ungrateful as to do such a thing. I'd like to have my faith in human
+nature restored. If you prove your innocence, I shall be very glad
+indeed!"
+
+Then she called for Marie, and when the maid came from the adjoining
+room, Sidney Prale ushered the two women to the door and watched as they
+went down the hall toward the elevator. But Kate Gilbert did not glance
+back.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV
+
+HIGH-HANDED METHODS
+
+
+Sidney Prale closed the door and turned around to face a grinning Murk.
+
+"Some pair of chickens!" Murk said. "That Marie girl may be a bear for
+size and strength, but she's got a lot of good common sense. I'm strong
+for her!"
+
+"Sit down!" Prale commanded.
+
+And then, walking up and down across the room, he told Murk what Kate
+Gilbert had revealed to him, simply because he felt that he had to tell
+it to somebody.
+
+"How is that for a dirty deal, Murk?" he asked when he had finished.
+"Doesn't that make ordinary dirty work look rather pale?"
+
+"Who did it, boss? Name the gent, and I'll get his address out of the
+city directory and pay him a visit!" Murk said. "I'll have some things
+to say to him--and some things to do, maybe."
+
+"I'm a sort of husky individual myself, Murk, and, if I knew him, I
+think I'd beat you to it," Prale replied. "Now we must get busy!"
+
+"Just say the word, Mr. Prale. What is it to be?"
+
+"I haven't quite decided yet, Murk. How far will you go?"
+
+"I'll croak him, if it's necessary!"
+
+"That'd be a bit too far, Murk, and might lead to the electric chair and
+a far country. Let's take a walk and think it over. We will confine
+ourselves to the Avenue, and you may trail me as before. I scarcely
+think they'll assault us on the Avenue."
+
+Ten minutes later, Sidney Prale was walking down the street, and the
+faithful Murk was trailing in his wake, watching carefully. That walk
+lasted for an hour. Then they returned to the hotel and Prale ordered an
+early dinner. He did not say what he had decided to do, despite Murk's
+hints that he should state his plans.
+
+But Murk had noticed that Prale had stopped in at a printing office
+during the walk, and shortly after they finished dinner, a bell boy
+brought a small package to the suite. Prale unwrapped it, and some cards
+spilled out.
+
+"Nice cards, Murk," he said. "I had them printed this afternoon. They
+bear the name of Horace Greenman, whoever he may be, and state that he
+is connected with the General Utilities Company--whatever that is."
+
+"What's the big idea, Mr. Prale?" Murk asked wonderingly.
+
+"I wish to get into a certain place, Murk, and I'd never do it if I send
+in my own card. What time is it?"
+
+"A few minutes of eight, sir."
+
+"Then we'll be going. Let us hope that we find our man at home. If this
+happens to be his opera or theater evening, we are going to be delayed."
+
+Murk followed him down in the elevator and to the street, where Prale
+engaged a taxicab. The machine took them up past the Park and to an
+exclusive residence section, where it stopped on a corner. Prale and
+Murk got out, and Prale instructed the chauffeur to wait. Then he led
+the way to the middle of the block.
+
+"Murk, you remain just outside this gate," he instructed. "If I have
+good luck, I'll come out with a man, and I may want to take him with us.
+Be ready to help in case I get in wrong."
+
+"Sure thing, sir," Murk said.
+
+Prale passed through the gate, went up the walk, and lifted the knocker
+on the front door. A moment, and a servant appeared and looked at him
+searchingly.
+
+"I wish to see Mr. Griffin at once on important business," Prale said.
+"Kindly take my card to him."
+
+Then Prale waited with his heart in his mouth. Was Griffin at home? The
+servant instantly assured him of that, and carried the card away. Prale
+had written "Important Business" on it.
+
+The servant returned soon and announced that Mr. Griffin would see the
+visitor. Prale followed him down the hall to the library. He was glad
+that Griffin had chosen to receive him there, for there was less
+likelihood of an interruption. The servant opened the door, and Sidney
+Prale stepped inside.
+
+Griffin was sitting beside the long table, and he arose immediately and
+turned.
+
+"You!" he gasped.
+
+"Pardon the deception----"
+
+"James! James!" Griffin thundered.
+
+The servant was in the room instantly.
+
+"Show this fellow the door!" Griffin commanded. "Look at him well, and
+never admit him again!"
+
+James took a step forward and indicated the door. But Sidney Prale
+reached into the pocket of his coat, drew out an automatic pistol, and
+held it menacingly.
+
+"Close the door, James--softly!" he commanded in a stern voice. "Now
+advance to the table and stand where I can watch you. Don't you make a
+move, Mr. Griffin! I used to handle men down in Honduras, and I feel
+confident that I can take care of this situation."
+
+"You thug!" Griffin cried. "I'll have you sent up for this, Prale, if
+it's the last thing I do!"
+
+"I know that it is against the law to be carrying a gun without a
+permit, but this situation demands a show of force," Prale said. "I
+merely want you to listen to me for a moment, Mr. Griffin."
+
+"I don't want to hear anything you may have to say to me, Sidney Prale!"
+the financier said.
+
+"You are going to hear it, nevertheless! Mr. Griffin, I did not know
+until this afternoon why I had secret enemies and why they were trying
+to cause me endless trouble. Miss Kate Gilbert was kind enough to
+enlighten me."
+
+"Well, sir?"
+
+"I am sorry that you believe me guilty of such base ingratitude to you
+and of such dishonorable conduct, for I am not guilty, Mr. Griffin! You
+were like a father to me--which was enough to compel my loyalty--and,
+aside from that, you had taught me several things regarding honor in
+business deals. I went away on the spur of the moment because a woman
+had jilted me. But before I went, I did not betray you and your
+associates."
+
+"A likely story!"
+
+"But a true one, Mr. Griffin! I did not sell you out for a hundred
+thousand dollars or any other sum. My conscience is clear, and I came
+back to New York expecting to greet old friends and have a pleasant
+time. You know what I found instead of that happy state of affairs. I am
+not here to talk at length. I demand a chance to prove my innocence!"
+
+"How can you do the impossible, sir?"
+
+"It is not the impossible, Mr. Griffin! I intend to prove to you that I
+was not disloyal, and then I shall prove that I had nothing to do with
+the murder of Rufus Shepley. I have an idea, sir, what is behind all
+this."
+
+"We are wasting time----"
+
+"I think not, sir! Time is not wasted in which a man shows that he is
+not a scoundrel! I think you owe it to me to give me a chance. You have
+condemned me unheard."
+
+"I would give almost anything to have you prove your innocence," Griffin
+said. "You don't know how it hurt me. But the case against you was so
+strong--and is so strong----"
+
+"Let us waste no more time," Prale said. "I remember the details of the
+big deal that was under way when I left New York ten years ago. If you
+recall, sir, I helped plan the campaign. If I can look at papers in your
+office, I think I can show that I am not guilty."
+
+"I'd like to believe you, but this is preposterous!" Griffin cried. "I
+tell you the evidence----"
+
+"It probably was strong, because the guilty man wanted to make it so.
+Mr. Griffin, were I guilty I should not be here. Please give me a few
+minutes, and let us talk this over. Then, if you wish, we can go to your
+office and continue the investigation."
+
+Griffin sat down and motioned for Sidney Prale to do the same. Prale
+returned the automatic to his pocket, much to the relief of the servant.
+
+Murk, standing outside by the gate, paced back and forth and wondered
+whether he should attempt to take the house by storm and rescue his
+employer. The chauffeur, waiting at the corner, wondered whether his
+fare had slipped down the next street without paying the bill. Murk
+relieved him on that point and threatened to beat him up because he
+intimated that Prale might do such a thing.
+
+It was more than two hours later when Prale left the house and went out
+to the street. He paid the chauffeur and dismissed him, and told Murk to
+return to the hotel. Then he went back into the house and joined Mr.
+Griffin again, and after Griffin had telephoned several persons, he
+ordered his car, got into it with Prale, and started downtown.
+
+An astonished watchman took them up in an elevator in an office building
+in the financial district, and a little later he took up several other
+gentlemen.
+
+"Them financiers make me sick!" the watchman told himself. "Why can't
+they lay their schemes in the daytime?"
+
+It was almost dawn when they left the building and scattered. They had
+spent hours investigating books and papers. Sidney Prale had even sent a
+messenger to the hotel with an order to Murk for certain books and
+papers of his own, and these had been investigated, too.
+
+"And there we are, gentlemen," Prale had said, at the last. "I have
+shown you, I think, that I did not do this thing. I do not want you to
+believe me fully until I have proved my innocence by revealing the man
+who is guilty. I merely ask you to give me a fair chance to prove my
+case. I have told you my suspicions. Now it is up to me to demonstrate
+whether they are just or worthless."
+
+Griffin had little to say as they rode back uptown. But when he dropped
+Prale at the hotel just before daylight, he gripped him by the hand.
+
+"I want to believe you, Sidney!" he said. "I hope that you have told me
+the truth. If you have, I hope you'll be able to clear yourself. If you
+only can show me that the boy I was glad to help was not ungrateful,
+after all----"
+
+"I'll do it, sir!"
+
+"And then I'll never forgive myself, Sidney!"
+
+"You'll show your forgiveness by handling my affairs for me, sir, in
+that event, and by treating me as your son again!" Prale said.
+
+He hurried up to the suite. Murk had been sleeping in a chair in the
+living room, as if expecting a call at any moment. He was somewhat
+startled to hear Sidney Prale whistling merrily at four o'clock in the
+morning.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV
+
+AN ACCUSATION
+
+
+Springing toward him, the masked man stopped two feet from the bound Jim
+Farland.
+
+"So you think you know me, do you?" he snarled.
+
+"I have a pretty good idea," Farland said. "There are only a few men in
+the city, to my knowledge, who could be hired to do work like this, and
+it occurs to me that I have seen those hands of yours before. I think
+your face is in the rogues' gallery, too, if you want to know!"
+
+The masked man retreated for a few feet, evidently relieved.
+
+"So you'll not make terms with me," he said. "You'd rather work for
+Sidney Prale, would you? Perhaps we can change your mind."
+
+"I doubt that like blazes!"
+
+"You are going to be kept here as a prisoner until I decide what is to
+be done with you."
+
+He crossed over to the door, opened it, and called to his men, two of
+whom responded.
+
+"I want this man guarded well," he said. "I want you to understand that
+I am holding you responsible for him. I'll be back to-morrow evening and
+have another talk with him. Give him something to eat now and then, and
+fix him so he can sleep, but watch him all the time!"
+
+"I was figurin' on goin' to the city this mornin', boss," one of the men
+spoke up.
+
+"You'll do as I say!" the masked man cried.
+
+"But----"
+
+"Don't argue with me, you dog!"
+
+Farland saw the man's eyes flash fire for a moment. And then the masked
+man faced toward him again, his eyes glittering through his mask.
+
+"Sometimes it isn't healthy to know whose picture is in the rogues'
+gallery!" he said.
+
+He went from the room. After a short argument one of the men remained to
+guard Farland, and the other went away. Farland spent a night of agony.
+His guards fixed the bonds so that he could be a bit more comfortable,
+and yet he got little sleep.
+
+Jim Farland was considering a big idea now. He had thrown the masked man
+off guard by intimating that he might be a crook with a record, when, as
+a matter of fact, the detective did not believe him to be anything of
+the sort. Now Farland knew where to begin working, but he had to win his
+freedom first.
+
+Night passed, morning came, and the long day of agony began. Farland had
+his hands untied and was given some food. Then his wrists were lashed
+again and his ankles loosened, and he was allowed to walk around the
+room for an hour or so, two of the men watching him closely. The one to
+whom the masked man had applied the epithet, "dog," appeared surly.
+
+After they had bound him again and stretched him upon the couch, they
+guarded him one at a time, evidently secure in the belief that he could
+not escape. Jim Farland thought a day never had seemed so long. All the
+time he was busy with his thoughts. He had a plan of campaign outlined
+now; he wanted to be at work.
+
+Once more the evening came. Farland, who had been sleeping for a few
+minutes, awoke and turned over to find that his guard had been changed
+again. The man who had been called a dog was on duty.
+
+"How long are you going to keep me tied up like this?" Jim Farland
+asked.
+
+"Don't ask me. Ask the high and mighty boss," was the sneering reply.
+
+"You don't seem to stand very high with him."
+
+"Aw, he makes me sick sometimes."
+
+"It'd make me sick, too, if anybody called me a dog," Farland declared.
+
+The man before him did not reply to that, but Farland could see the
+anger burning in his face.
+
+"Come closer," Farland whispered.
+
+The man obeyed instantly.
+
+"Can anybody overhear what I say to you?"
+
+"No. Everybody's gone--but they'll be back soon."
+
+"Why are you working for these people?"
+
+"Coin, of course--and precious little of it I've seen so far," was the
+reply.
+
+"Then you haven't any other interest in this business? Maybe we can make
+a deal."
+
+"What sort of a deal?"
+
+"The man I work for is worth a million," Farland said. "Help me escape,
+and I'll give you five hundred dollars."
+
+"Got it with you?"
+
+"The biggest part of it," Farland replied.
+
+He told the truth, too, for he always carried plenty of money while
+working on a case.
+
+"Suppose I simply take it away from you," the guard said.
+
+"In the first place, I don't think you are that kind of a man. And you
+want to get square with the man who called you a dog, don't you?"
+
+"What's your scheme?"
+
+"Simply let me go, right now. It is dusk outside already. Tell me how to
+get to town the quickest way. I'll give you almost all I have on me;
+I'll need a little to use to get back to the city. To-morrow I'll meet
+you some place and give you the rest. In addition I'll give you a chance
+to get out without being arrested for your part in abducting me and
+holding me here."
+
+The man spent a few minutes in thought.
+
+"I'll fix you so you can slip your bonds," he said, "and I'll hand your
+automatic back to you. It is there in the cupboard. But I don't want you
+to make a get-away while I'm guarding you--see? I don't exactly love the
+man who'll guard you next. I'll fix it so you can handle him. Wait for
+five minutes after he comes and I have gone. I will be away for an hour
+or so, and the escape can happen while I'm not here."
+
+"That suits me," Farland said.
+
+"What about the money?"
+
+"You'll get it just as soon as I get my hands loose."
+
+The guard walked to the hall door and opened it, peered out into the
+hall and listened. Then he hurried back to the couch and cut Jim
+Farland's bonds. Farland took the money from one of his inside pockets
+and handed it over. The guard got the weapon from the cupboard and gave
+it to Farland.
+
+The detective stretched himself down on the couch again, and the guard
+adjusted the ropes on his ankles and wrists so that they would appear to
+be all right. Farland slipped the automatic beneath the small of his
+back, where he could reach it quickly.
+
+It was half an hour later before the guard was changed and Farland's
+friend hurried away, warning him with a glance that he should not make a
+move too soon. He had declined to meet the detective the following day
+and get the few dollars still due him; he would rather use what he
+already had in getting out of town, he had said.
+
+Farland made no attempt to talk with the new guard. He pretended to be
+tired, almost exhausted and sleepy. The guard sat beside the table,
+smoking and glancing at a newspaper now and then, apparently of the
+opinion that Farland was safely a prisoner.
+
+After waiting for about half an hour, the detective began moving his
+ankles and wrists gently. Gradually the ropes fell away. He reached one
+hand beneath his back and grasped the automatic. Then he sat up quickly
+on the couch and covered the guard.
+
+"Put 'em up!" he commanded.
+
+The guard whirled from the table and sprang to his feet, surprise
+written on his countenance. Farland had arisen now, and advancing toward
+him.
+
+"Walk past me to the couch!" the detective commanded.
+
+The guard started to obey. He was holding his hands above his head and
+seemed to be afraid that his captor would shoot. But as he came opposite
+Farland, he lurched to one side and made an attempt to grapple with him.
+
+The detective did not fire. He sprang aside himself, swung the
+automatic, and crashed it against the other man's temple. The guard
+groaned once and dropped to the floor.
+
+"Thought you might try something like that!" Jim Farland growled.
+"Couldn't have pleased me better--won't have to waste time tying you up
+now. You'll be dead to the world for a few minutes at least!"
+
+Farland darted to the door, opened it, went into the hall and closed the
+door again. He passed through the house noiselessly. He could hear two
+men in conversation in a rear room, and he knew that he would have to be
+cautious until he was at some distance from the old dwelling, unless he
+wanted a battle on his hands.
+
+He got out of the place without being discovered, and reached the edge
+of a grove not far away. There he found the lane, and near the end of it
+was a powerful roadster, its engine dead and its lights extinguished.
+
+Farland listened a moment, then went forward and examined the machine.
+He knew the model, and he was an excellent driver. Once more he stopped
+to listen. Then he sprang behind the wheel and operated the starter.
+
+He drove slowly down the lane, the engine almost silent, the car
+traveling slowly. He proceeded in that manner until he had reached the
+highway. There he switched on the lights, put on speed, and sent the
+powerful car roaring along the winding road toward the river.
+
+Jim Farland, being a modest man, never did tell the entire story of that
+night. He drove like a fiend, narrowly escaping collision a score of
+times. He made his way along the roads running alongside the broad
+river, and finally came opposite the city. He crossed over a bridge,
+drove through the streets with what speed he dared, left the car at a
+public garage with certain instructions, and hurried to a telephone.
+
+He was unable to get either Sidney Prale or Murk, for at that hour they
+were on their way to the Griffin residence. Farland telephoned to his
+wife to say that he was all right, but would not be home until some time
+during the day. Then he engaged a taxicab and began his work.
+
+He knew where to start now. An idea had come to him in that old house
+far up the river, a suspicion, a feeling of certainty that he was on the
+right track. Jim Farland was no respecter of persons that night.
+
+When morning came he stopped only for a cup of coffee, and then worked
+on. He dashed from one place to another, running up a taxicab bill that
+made the chauffeur smile. He interviewed important gentlemen,
+threatening some and cajoling others, but always getting the information
+that he desired.
+
+At two o'clock the following afternoon he stood on a certain corner near
+Madison Square, his suspicion almost proved, his investigation at an
+end.
+
+"Now for the big bluff!" Jim Farland said to himself.
+
+He fortified himself with another cup of coffee, got into the taxicab
+again, and started downtown. He was smoking one of his big, black
+cigars, puffing at it as if in deep contentment, not looking at all like
+a man who had been kept a prisoner a night and a day, and had been busy
+since that experience.
+
+The taxicab stopped before an office building, as Jim Farland had
+ordered. The detective pulled out his last money and paid the chauffeur.
+
+"You're got more coming, son, but this is all I have with me," Farland
+said. "Drop in at my office any time after ten to-morrow morning and get
+it."
+
+"Yes, Mr. Farland--and thanks!"
+
+"You're a good boy, but keep your mouth shut!" Farland told him.
+
+Then he hurried into the office building, went to the elevator nearest
+the entrance, and ascended to the floor where George Lerton had his
+suite of offices.
+
+The office boy stepped to the railing.
+
+"Mr. Lerton busy?" Farland asked.
+
+"He is alone in his private office, sir," said the boy, who regarded the
+detective with admiration and awe. After Farland's other visit, the
+youth had decided to be a detective when he grew up.
+
+"I am to go right in--important business," Farland said. "Never mind
+announcing me."
+
+The willing boy opened the gate, and Farland hurried across to the door
+of the private office. He paused there a moment and seemed to pull
+himself together, as if making sure before entering the room of
+questions he wanted to ask and information he wanted to gather. Then he
+threw the door open, stepped quickly inside, closed the door, and turned
+the key.
+
+Lerton was sitting at his desk with his back to the door. He made no
+move until he heard the key turned. Then he whirled around in his desk
+chair.
+
+"I--Great Scott, Farland, how you startled me!" he exclaimed. "I thought
+it was my secretary."
+
+"Pardon me for butting in this way, but I am in a deuce of a hurry and
+told the boy it was all right," Farland said.
+
+"You'll smash my office discipline doing things like this. But, sit
+down, man! What is it now? Has that cousin of mine been acting up again,
+or are you going to pester me with a lot of fool questions about things
+I don't know anything about?"
+
+Farland had seated himself in the chair at the end of the desk, within
+four feet of George Lerton. He had tossed his hat to a table and twisted
+the cigar into one corner of his mouth. Now he stared Lerton straight in
+the eyes.
+
+"You look like a madman!" Lerton said. "Why on earth are you looking at
+me like that? You look as if you were ill----"
+
+The expression in Farland's face made him stop, and he appeared to be a
+bit disconcerted.
+
+"Why did you kill Rufus Shepley?" Jim Farland demanded suddenly in a
+voice that seemed to sting.
+
+Lerton's face went white for an instant. His jaw dropped and his eyes
+bulged.
+
+"Are--are you insane?" he gasped. "What on earth do you mean by this?
+I'll call a clerk and----"
+
+"The door is locked," Farland said, taking the automatic from his
+pocket. "You raise your voice, touch a button or make any move that I do
+not like, and I'll plug you and say afterward that I had placed you
+under arrest and had to shoot when you tried to escape. Answer my
+question, Lerton! You are at the end of your rope! Why did you kill
+Rufus Shepley and then try to hang the crime on your cousin, Sidney
+Prale?"
+
+"This is preposterous!" Lerton exclaimed.
+
+"Oh, I've got the goods on you, Lerton! I wouldn't be here talking like
+this if I didn't! You're going to the electric chair!"
+
+Lerton laughed rather nervously. "I always thought that you were a good
+detective, Jim, but I am beginning to have doubts now," he said. "What
+has put such an idea into your head?"
+
+"Facts gathered and welded together," Farland told him. "Don't try to
+carry out the bluff any longer, Lerton. And don't call me Jim. I never
+allow murderers to get familiar with me!"
+
+"This has gone far enough!" the broker exclaimed. "I'll have to ask you
+to leave my office, sir!"
+
+"I expect to do that little thing before long, and you are going with
+me," Farland said.
+
+There was a knock at the door.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI
+
+THE TRUTH COMES OUT
+
+
+Farland did not take his eyes off George Lerton.
+
+"If you have touched a button and called some fool clerk, I'll manhandle
+you!" he promised. "Kindly consider yourself a prisoner!"
+
+The knock was repeated, and Farland, still keeping his eyes on the man
+at the desk, backed to the door and turned the key. Then he took up a
+position where he could continue watching George Lerton and keep an eye
+on the door at the same time.
+
+"Come in!" he called.
+
+The door was hurled open. At the same instant, the office boy who had
+opened it was thrust aside. Sidney Prale sprang into the private office
+and stood glaring at his cousin. Behind him was Murk, and behind Murk
+were Kate Gilbert and her maid.
+
+"Quite a gathering!" Farland said, grinning. "I'm glad that you are
+here. Kindly close and lock the door, Murk, with that young office
+gentleman on the outside!"
+
+Murk obeyed. George Lerton sprang to his feet.
+
+"What is the meaning of this intrusion?" he demanded. "Has my office
+been turned into a rendezvous for maniacs?"
+
+"Sit down!" Sidney Prale cried. He had not taken his eyes off Lerton,
+had not even turned to speak to Jim Farland, had not even wondered how
+Farland had escaped and come here.
+
+Lerton dropped back into his chair, wetting his thin lips, his eyes
+furtive now.
+
+"You miserable cur!" Sidney Prale went on, advancing toward his cousin.
+"I should handle this affair myself. I should have you in Honduras, and
+fasten you to a tree and beat you until you are senseless."
+
+"These insults----"
+
+"Are deserved, you beast!" Prale cried. "So, when I went away ten years
+ago, you sold out Mr. Griffin and put the blame for it on me, did you?
+You wrecked that good man's faith in me, turned influential men against
+me, had me persecuted when I returned."
+
+Jim Farland gave a shout of delight. "That right, Sid?" he cried, "Then
+I have the connecting link! So George Lerton has been causing you all
+this trouble, has he? I understand a lot more now. Lerton killed Rufus
+Shepley, also!"
+
+"It's a lie! You are trying to save Prale by accusing me!" Lerton cried.
+
+"Why, we've got you, you weak fool!" said Farland. "I knew you in that
+old farmhouse despite your mask. Your hands gave you away--I recognized
+them."
+
+"And he's the man who tried to bribe me!" Murk cried. "I can tell it by
+his hands, too!"
+
+"You tried to smash Prale's alibi," Jim Farland continued. "You had him
+followed that night and you sent those notes to the barber and the
+clothing merchant, with money in them."
+
+"And you betrayed yourself when you began using violence," Prale put in.
+"You were too vindictive. You showed that you had some good reason of
+your own for wanting to drive me away from New York quickly!"
+
+"Oh, we've got you!" Farland repeated. "You are as good as in the
+electric chair now!"
+
+George Lerton looked as if he might have been in it. He was breathing in
+gasps, and his face was white. His eyes held an expression of terror.
+
+"I guess--you've got me!" he said. "But I'll never--go to the chair!"
+
+Farland stepped across to him. "Get it off your chest!" he suggested.
+
+"I--I'll talk about it--yes!" George Lerton said. "I--I sold out
+Griffin. I wanted money, and I hated Griffin because he had put Sidney
+Prale over me. Then Sid had his trouble with the girl and ran away. I
+fixed things so it looked as if he had been the guilty one.
+
+"I pretended to hate Sid for what he was supposed to have done. I
+suggested the scheme of vengeance, and worked to get the influential men
+together. Then he came back--with his million. I hated him all the more
+because of that. I was afraid that, if he remained in New York, he would
+find out the truth and I'd be exposed. I knew what that would mean, and
+I was beginning to get rich.
+
+"So I had him followed and watched. I trailed him myself and met him on
+Fifth Avenue, and tried to get him to go away, and afterward denied that
+I had seen him at all, for he was accused of the murder of Rufus
+Shepley."
+
+"Which was your deed!" Farland put in. "Go ahead--tell it all. Let us
+see whether you were clever or merely an amateur at crime."
+
+"Oh, I was clever enough!" Lerton boasted. "I--I killed Shepley because
+he was about to have me arrested for embezzlement. I had been handling a
+vast sum for him, aside from his regular business. While he was
+traveling, I speculated with the money--and lost. He knew it. I could
+not repay.
+
+"I had an engagement with him that night at the hotel. The detective I
+had working for me had reported that Sid had had a quarrel with Shepley,
+and where he had gone afterward and what he had done. There I saw my
+chance.
+
+"I did not have myself announced at Shepley's hotel. I knew where his
+suite was, so I slipped up to it without anybody seeing me, and knocked
+at the door. He admitted me. I begged him to give me a little time to
+repay the money, but he would not. He called me a thief, and said that I
+must go to prison, that he would not have a hand in letting me remain at
+liberty to rob other men.
+
+"There was a steel letter opener on the table. I--I stabbed him with it,
+and then I got away by the fire escape. Nobody saw me. I left him there
+dead. I was almost frantic when I reached home. Then I saw how I could
+have Sidney Prale accused and remove the menace of his presence also. I
+would be safe if Prale were convicted of the murder. I would not have to
+repay the Shepley money, and Prale never could reveal that I had
+betrayed Mr. Griffin and the others instead of him.
+
+"So I sent the notes and money to the barber and clothing merchant, and
+they denied that Prale had visited them, thus smashing his alibi. I
+denied that I had met him on the Avenue. I thought that I was safe. But
+the barber and merchant told Farland the truth, and the police began to
+think that Sid was not guilty.
+
+"I grew almost frantic then. My one hope was in running Sid out of town
+as quickly as possible, and so I did everything I could think of to
+bring about that end."
+
+"How about that fountain pen found beside the body?" Farland asked.
+
+"When I was talking to Sid that night on the Avenue, his coat was open
+and I saw the pen. Something seemed to tell me to take it, that it might
+be used against him some time. As I clutched his lapel, begging him to
+leave town, I took the pen from his pocket."
+
+"Nothing but a plain dip, after all!" Farland sneered.
+
+"I dropped it beside the body after I had killed Shepley. It was a part
+of my plan. And--and I guess that is all!"
+
+"I guess it is!" Sidney Prale said. "Mr. Griffin and I, and some other
+men, made a little investigation last night and continued it this
+morning. We found that you were the traitor who caused that financial
+smash ten years ago. It may please you to know that Mr. Griffin is my
+friend again, and that others are being informed of my innocence. Even
+Coadley has come to me and asked to take my case again. But I was
+clearing myself of the charge of business treason, and nothing more. I
+did not connect you with the murder of Shepley."
+
+"Well, I did connect him with it," Farland put in. "But when I sprung it
+on him here this afternoon, I was running a bluff. I had some evidence,
+but not enough to convict. You might have got away with it, Lerton, if
+you had had any nerve. But you happen to be a rank coward--and a guilty
+man!"
+
+"You--you----" George Lerton gasped.
+
+He had been holding two fingers in a pocket of his waistcoat. Now he
+withdrew them and, before Farland could reach him, he had swallowed
+something.
+
+"You'll never----" he began, and then his head fell forward to the desk.
+"Get the ladies outside, Murk!" Farland commanded suddenly. "And tell
+that secretary out there to send in a call for a physician and the
+police. Lerton was right--he'll never go to the electric chair!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Ten minutes later, Sidney Prale and Murk were waiting for the elevator
+with Kate Gilbert and Marie, but each couple was standing at some
+distance from the other.
+
+"I have proved my innocence, and now I ask you to remember your promise
+and grant me your friendship," Prale was telling Kate Gilbert.
+
+"I shall remember," she said. "You have my address, haven't you? If you
+haven't, ask Murk. He knows it. You sent him to spy on me, remember."
+
+"Jim Farland did that," Prale protested.
+
+Murk was talking to the gigantic Marie at that moment.
+
+"You're mighty nice!" he was saying. "Say, I'd like to see you some
+more. I've got an idea my boss will be calling on your mistress, and
+when he does I might come up to the corner, and you might slip out and
+meet me, and we might take a walk in the Park. You wouldn't want to stay
+in the apartment and bother them, would you?"
+
+"It would be a shame!" said Marie. "Which corner, Murk?"
+
+
+THE END
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's The Brand of Silence, by Harrington Strong
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BRAND OF SILENCE ***
+
+***** This file should be named 21891-8.txt or 21891-8.zip *****
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+        http://www.gutenberg.org/2/1/8/9/21891/
+
+Produced by Sigal Alon, Brett Fishburne, Mary Meehan and
+the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at
+http://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
+will be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
+one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
+(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
+permission and without paying copyright royalties.  Special rules,
+set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
+copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
+protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark.  Project
+Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
+charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission.  If you
+do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
+rules is very easy.  You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
+such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
+research.  They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
+practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks.  Redistribution is
+subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
+redistribution.
+
+
+
+*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
+http://gutenberg.org/license).
+
+
+Section 1.  General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works
+
+1.A.  By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement.  If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
+all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
+If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
+terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
+entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
+
+1.B.  "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark.  It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.  There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.  See
+paragraph 1.C below.  There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
+and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.  See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C.  The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
+or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works.  Nearly all the individual works in the
+collection are in the public domain in the United States.  If an
+individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
+located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
+copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
+works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
+are removed.  Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
+Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
+freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
+this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
+the work.  You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
+keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D.  The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work.  Copyright laws in most countries are in
+a constant state of change.  If you are outside the United States, check
+the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
+before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
+creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
+Gutenberg-tm work.  The Foundation makes no representations concerning
+the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
+States.
+
+1.E.  Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1.  The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
+access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
+whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
+copied or distributed:
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+1.E.2.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
+from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
+posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
+and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
+or charges.  If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
+with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
+work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
+through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
+Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
+1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
+terms imposed by the copyright holder.  Additional terms will be linked
+to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
+permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4.  Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5.  Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6.  You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
+word processing or hypertext form.  However, if you provide access to or
+distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
+"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
+posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
+you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
+copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
+request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
+form.  Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7.  Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8.  You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
+that
+
+- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+     the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.  The fee is
+     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
+     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
+     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.  Royalty payments
+     must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
+     prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
+     returns.  Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
+     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
+     address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
+     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+     you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+     License.  You must require such a user to return or
+     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
+     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
+     Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
+     money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
+     of receipt of the work.
+
+- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+     distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9.  If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
+forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
+both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
+Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark.  Contact the
+Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1.  Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
+collection.  Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
+"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
+corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
+property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
+computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
+your equipment.
+
+1.F.2.  LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees.  YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3.  YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3.  LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from.  If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
+your written explanation.  The person or entity that provided you with
+the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
+refund.  If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
+providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
+receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.  If the second copy
+is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
+opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4.  Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER
+WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
+WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5.  Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
+If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
+law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
+interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
+the applicable state law.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any
+provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6.  INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
+with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
+promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
+harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
+that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
+or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
+work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
+Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
+
+
+Section  2.  Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
+including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.  It exists
+because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
+people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come.  In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
+To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
+and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
+and the Foundation web page at http://www.pglaf.org.
+
+
+Section 3.  Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
+Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service.  The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541.  Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
+http://pglaf.org/fundraising.  Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
+permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
+Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
+throughout numerous locations.  Its business office is located at
+809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
+business@pglaf.org.  Email contact links and up to date contact
+information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
+page at http://pglaf.org
+
+For additional contact information:
+     Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+     Chief Executive and Director
+     gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+
+Section 4.  Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment.  Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States.  Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements.  We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance.  To
+SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
+particular state visit http://pglaf.org
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States.  U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses.  Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations.
+To donate, please visit: http://pglaf.org/donate
+
+
+Section 5.  General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
+with anyone.  For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
+Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
+
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
+unless a copyright notice is included.  Thus, we do not necessarily
+keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
+
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
+
+     http://www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
diff --git a/old/21891-8.zip b/old/21891-8.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..38ca02a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/21891-8.zip
diff --git a/old/21891.txt b/old/21891.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f1f5c32
--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/21891.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,8280 @@
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Brand of Silence, by Harrington Strong
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Brand of Silence
+       A Detective Story
+
+Author: Harrington Strong
+
+Release Date: June 21, 2007 [EBook #21891]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BRAND OF SILENCE ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Sigal Alon, Brett Fishburne, Mary Meehan and
+the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at
+http://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+                          The Brand of Silence
+
+                           A DETECTIVE STORY
+
+                          By HARRINGTON STRONG
+
+
+
+
+CHELSEA HOUSE 79 SEVENTH AVENUE NEW YORK CITY
+
+Copyright, 1919 by STREET & SMITH
+
+(Printed in the United States of America)
+
+All rights reserved, including that of translation into foreign
+languages, including the Scandinavian.
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+       I. IN THE HARBOR
+
+      II. THE GIRL ON THE SHIP
+
+     III. SOME DISCOURTESIES
+
+      IV. A FOE AND A FRIEND
+
+       V. THE COUSIN
+
+      VI. MURK--AND MURDER
+
+     VII. EVIDENCE
+
+    VIII. LIES AND LIARS
+
+      IX. PUZZLED
+
+       X. ON THE TRAIL
+
+      XI. CONCERNING KATE GILBERT
+
+     XII. BATTERED KEYS
+
+    XIII. A PLAN OF CAMPAIGN
+
+     XIV. MORE MYSTERY
+
+      XV. A MOMENT OF VIOLENCE
+
+     XVI. MURK RECEIVES A BLOW
+
+    XVII. MURK IS TEMPTED
+
+   XVIII. A WOMAN'S WAY
+
+     XIX. COADLEY QUITS
+
+      XX. UP THE RIVER
+
+     XXI. RECOGNITION
+
+    XXII. AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR
+
+   XXIII. A STARTLING STORY
+
+    XXIV. HIGH-HANDED METHODS
+
+     XXV. AN ACCUSATION
+
+    XXVI. THE TRUTH COMES OUT
+
+
+
+
+THE BRAND OF SILENCE
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+IN THE HARBOR
+
+
+Now the fog was clearing and the mist was lifting, and the bright
+sunshine was struggling to penetrate the billows of damp vapor and touch
+with its glory the things of the world beneath. In the lower harbor
+there still was a chorus of sirens and foghorns, as craft of almost
+every description made way toward the metropolis or out toward the open
+sea.
+
+The _Manatee_, tramp steamer with rusty plates and rattling engines and
+a lurch like that of a drunken man, wallowed her way in from the
+turbulent ocean she had fought for three days, her skipper standing on
+the bridge and inaudibly giving thanks that he was nearing the end of
+the voyage without the necessity for abandoning his craft for an open
+boat, or remaining to go down with the ship after the manner of skippers
+of the old school.
+
+Here and there showed a rift in the rolling fog, and those who braved
+the weather and lined the damp rail could see other craft in passing.
+
+A giant liner made her way past majestically, bound for Europe, or a
+seagoing tug clugged by as if turning up her nose at the old, battered
+_Manatee_.
+
+Standing at the rail, and well forward, Sidney Prale strained his eyes
+and looked ahead, watching where the fog lifted, an eager light in his
+face, his lips curved in a smile, a general expression of anticipation
+about him.
+
+Sidney Prale himself was not bad to look at. Thirty-eight he was, tall
+and broad of shoulder, with hair that was touched with gray at the
+temples, with a face that had been browned by the weather. Sidney Prale
+had the appearance of wearing clothes that had been molded to his form.
+He had a chin that expressed decision and determination, lips that could
+form in a thin, straight line if occasion required, eyes that could be
+kind or stern, according to the needs of the moment. A man of the world
+would have said that Sidney Prale was a gentleman of broad experience, a
+man who had presence of mind in the face of danger, a man who could
+think quickly and act quickly when such things were necessary.
+
+He was not alone at the rail--and yet he was alone in a sense, for he
+gave no one the slightest attention. He bent over and looked ahead
+eagerly, waving a hand now and then at the men on passing craft, like a
+schoolboy on an excursion trip. He listened to the bellowing sirens and
+foghorns, drank in the raucous cries of the ship's officers, strained
+his ears for the land sounds that rolled now and then across the waters.
+
+"It's great--great!" Sidney Prale said, half aloud.
+
+He bent over the rail again. A hand descended upon his shoulder, and a
+voice answered him.
+
+"You bet it's great, Prale!"
+
+Sidney Prale's smile weakened a bit as he turned around, but there was
+nothing of discourtesy in his manner.
+
+"You like it, Mr. Shepley?" he asked.
+
+"Do I like it? Does Rufus Shepley, forced to run here and there around
+the old world in the name of business, like it when he gets the chance
+to return to New York? Ask me!"
+
+"I have my answer," Prale said, laughing a bit. "And judge, then, how I
+like it--when I have not seen it for ten years."
+
+"Haven't seen New York for ten years?" Rufus Shepley gasped.
+
+"A whole decade," Prale admitted.
+
+"Been down in Honduras all that time?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"And you live to tell it? You are my idea of a real man!" Rufus Shepley
+said.
+
+Shepley took a cigar from his vest pocket, bit off the end, lighted it,
+and puffed a cloud of fragrant smoke into the air. Rufus Shepley was a
+man of fifty, and looked his age. If human being ever gave the
+appearance of being the regulation man of big business affairs, Rufus
+Shepley did.
+
+Sidney Prale had held some conversation with him on board ship, but they
+had not become very well acquainted, though they seemed to like each
+other. Each man seemed to be holding back, waiting, trying to discover
+in the other more qualities to like or dislike.
+
+"Ten years," Sidney Prale went on thoughtfully. "It seems a long time,
+but the years have passed swiftly."
+
+"I always had an idea," Rufus Shepley said, "that a genuine white man
+who went to one of those Central American countries turned bad after the
+first year and went to the devil generally. But you don't look it."
+
+"The idea is correct, at that, in some instances," Prale admitted. "Some
+of them do turn bad."
+
+"They get to drifting, eh? The climate gets into their blood. Do you
+know what I think? I think that, in seven cases out of eight, it's a
+case of a man wanting an excuse for loafing. I knew a chap once who went
+down to that part of the world. Got to drinking too much, threw up his
+job, used to loaf all the time, married some sort of a half-black woman
+who had a bit of coin, and went to the dogs generally."
+
+"Oh, there are many such," Sidney Prale admitted. "But the majority of
+them are men who made some grave mistake somewhere else and got the idea
+that life was merely existence afterward. A man must have an incentive
+in any climate to make anything of himself--and down there the incentive
+has to be stronger."
+
+"I assume that you--er--had the proper incentive," Rufus Shepley said,
+grinning.
+
+"I don't know how some persons would look at the propriety of it. I
+wanted to make a million dollars."
+
+"Great Scott! Your ambition was a modest one, I must say. And you
+managed to win out? Oh, I beg your pardon! It isn't any of my business,
+of course!"
+
+"That's all right," Prale answered good-naturedly. "I don't mind. I'm so
+happy this morning that I'm willing to overlook almost anything. And I
+don't mind telling you that I've won out."
+
+"A million in ten years," Shepley gasped.
+
+"Yes; and with an initial capital of ten thousand dollars," Sidney Prale
+replied. "I'm rather proud of it, of course. I suppose this sounds like
+boasting----"
+
+"My boy, you have the right to boast! A million dollars in ten years!
+Great Scott! Say, would you consider being general manager of one of my
+companies? We need a few men like you."
+
+Sidney Prale laughed again. "Sorry--but I'm afraid that I can't take the
+job," he replied. "I am going to have my little holiday now--going to
+play. A million isn't much in some quarters, but it is enough for me. I
+don't care for money to a great extent. I just wanted to prove to myself
+that I could make a million--prove it to myself and others. And, ready
+to take my vacation, I naturally decided to take it in New York--home!"
+
+"Ah! Home's in New York, eh? Old friends waiting at the dock, and all
+that!"
+
+Sidney Prale's face clouded. "I am afraid that there will be no
+reception committee," he said. "I didn't let anybody know that I was
+coming--for the simple reason that I didn't know whom to inform."
+
+"My boy!"
+
+"I have a few old friends scattered around some place, I suppose. I have
+no relatives in the world except a male cousin about my own age, and I
+never communicated with him after going to Honduras. There was a girl
+once----"
+
+"There always is a girl," Shepley said softly, as Prale ceased speaking.
+
+"But that ended ten years ago," Prale continued. "I stand alone--with my
+million."
+
+"You advertise that fact, my boy, and there'll be girls by the regiment
+looking up your telephone number."
+
+"And the right one wouldn't be in the crowd," Prale said, the smile
+leaving his face again.
+
+"Well, you are in for a fine time, at least," Rufus Shepley told him.
+"There have been quite a few changes in New York in the past ten years.
+Yes, quite a few changes! There are a few new boarding houses scattered
+around, and a new general store or two, and the street cars run out
+farther than they used to."
+
+"Oh, I've kept up to date after a fashion," Sidney Prale said, laughing
+once more. "I'm ready to appreciate the changes, but I suppose I will be
+surprised. The New York papers get down to Honduras now and then, you
+know."
+
+"I've always understood," Shepley said, "that there are certain
+gentlemen in that part of the world who watch the New York papers very
+closely."
+
+"Meaning the men who are fugitives from justice, I see," said Prale.
+
+"I didn't mean anything personal, of course."
+
+"It does look bad, doesn't it?" said Prale. "I went straight to Honduras
+when I left New York ten years ago, like a man running away from the
+law, and I have remained there all the time until this trip. And I have
+been gone ten years--thereby satisfying certain statutes of
+limitation----"
+
+"My boy, I never meant to insinuate that----"
+
+"I know that you didn't," Prale interrupted. "My conscience is clear,
+Mr. Shepley. When I land, I'll not be afraid of some officer of the law
+clutching me by the shoulder and hauling me away to a police station."
+
+"Even if one did, a cool million will buy lots of bail," Rufus Shepley
+said.
+
+The fog was lifting rapidly now. Here and there through the billows of
+mist could be seen the roofs of skyscrapers glistening in the sun.
+Sidney Prale almost forgot the man at his side as he bent over the rail
+to watch.
+
+"Getting home--getting home!" he said. "I suppose no man ever gets quite
+over the home idea, no matter how long he remains away. Ten years ought
+to make a change, but I find that it doesn't. I'll be glad to feel the
+pavements beneath my shoes again."
+
+"Sure!" said Rufus Shepley.
+
+"Confound the fog! Ah, there's a building I know! And there are a few I
+never saw before. We're beginning to get in, aren't we? Ought to dock
+before noon, don't you think?"
+
+"Sure thing!"
+
+"A hotel, a bath, fresh clothes--and then for hour after hour of walking
+around and taking in the sights!" Prale said.
+
+"Better engage a taxi if you expect to take 'em all in before night, my
+boy," Shepley said.
+
+"I forgot! We haven't any too many taxis in Honduras. I had a car of my
+own, but sold it before I came away."
+
+"You let the busy auto agents know that, and you'll have a regiment of
+them----"
+
+"And there!" Sidney Prale cried. "Now I know that I am home! There is
+the Old Girl in the Harbor!"
+
+Prale removed his cap, and a mist came into his eyes that did not come
+from the foggy billows through which the ship was plowing. The sun was
+shining through the murk at last, and it touched the Statue of Liberty.
+The great figure seemed like a live thing for a moment; the mist made it
+appear that her garments were waving in the breeze.
+
+"Now I know that I am home!" Sidney Prale repeated.
+
+"She sure is a great old girl!" Rufus Shepley agreed. "Always glad to
+see her!"
+
+"Well, I've got to get ready to land; I'm not going to waste any time,"
+Prale said. "I'm glad that I met you--and perhaps we'll meet again in
+the city."
+
+"Hope we do!" said Shepley, grasping Prale's hand. "Our factories are
+out in Ohio, but the company headquarters are in New York, of course.
+Here's my business card, my boy. And I generally put up at the
+Graymore."
+
+Sidney Prale took the card, thanked Rufus Shepley, and hurried down the
+deck toward his stateroom, one of the best on the ship. Rufus Shepley
+looked after him sharply.
+
+"Went straight to Honduras and stayed there for ten years, eh?" Rufus
+Shepley said to himself. "Um! Looks bad! I never put much stock in those
+Honduras chaps--but this one seems to be all right. Never can tell,
+though!"
+
+Sidney Prale, still smiling, and humming a Spanish love song, reached
+his stateroom and threw open the door; and just inside, he came to a
+stop, astonished.
+
+Somebody had been in that stateroom and had been going through his
+things. The contents of his suit case were spilled on the floor. A bag
+was wide open; he had left it closed and in a corner less than an hour
+before.
+
+Prale went down on his knees and made a quick inspection. There did not
+seem to be anything missing. A package of papers--business documents for
+the greater part--had been examined, he could tell at a glance, but none
+had been taken.
+
+"Peculiar!" Prale told himself. "Some sneak thief, I suppose. No sense
+in complaining to the ship's officers at this late hour, especially
+since nothing has been stolen. Makes a man angry, though!"
+
+He put the suit case on the table and began repacking the things that
+had been scattered on the floor. Then he gathered up his toilet
+articles, bits of clothing he had left out until the last minute, a few
+souvenirs of Honduras he had been showing a tourist the evening before.
+He turned toward the berth to pick up his light overcoat.
+
+There was a sheet of paper pinned to the pillow, paper that might have
+been taken from an ordinary writing tablet. Sidney Prale took it up and
+glanced at it. A few words of handwriting were upon the paper, words
+that looked as if they had been scrawled hurriedly with a pencil that
+needed sharpening badly.
+
+"Retribution is inevitable and comes when you least expect it."
+
+The smile fled from Sidney Prale's lips, and the Spanish love song he
+had been humming died in his throat. He frowned, and read the message
+again.
+
+"Now what the deuce does this mean?" he gasped.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+THE GIRL ON THE SHIP
+
+
+Sidney Prale folded the piece of paper carefully and slipped it into his
+wallet. Winning a fortune in ten years in a foreign country had taught
+Prale many things, notably that everything has its cause and effect, and
+that things that seem trifles may turn out to be of great importance
+later.
+
+He finished his packing, locked the suit case, put on coat and hat and
+went out upon the deck. The _Manatee_ was docking. A throng was on the
+wharf. Prale glanced at the buildings in the distance and forgot for the
+time being the scrap of paper, because of his happiness at being home
+again and his eagerness to land. Returning to New York after an absence
+of so many years was in the nature of an adventure. There would be
+exploring trips to make, things to find, surprises at every turn and on
+every side.
+
+The passengers were crowding forward now, preparing to go ashore. Sidney
+Prale picked up his suit case and started through the jostling crowd.
+Already those on board were calling greetings to relatives and friends
+on the wharf, and Prale's face grew solemn for a moment because there
+was nobody to welcome him.
+
+"Not a friend in the world," he had said to Rufus Shepley that morning.
+
+"A man with a million dollars has a million friends," Shepley had
+replied. "The only trouble is, you can't enjoy that sort of friends
+except by getting rid of them, unless you happen to be a miser."
+
+Well, that was something, Sidney Prale told himself now. He had ample
+funds, at least, and perhaps he could enjoy himself after ten years of
+battling with financial sharks, of inspecting and working mines, of
+cutting through dense forests and locating growths that could be turned
+into wealth.
+
+Prale put his suit case against the rail to wait until he could move
+forward again. He looked down at the throng on the wharf, and up and
+down the rail at his fellow passengers. Then he saw the girl again!
+
+He had seen her before. The first time had been at Tegucigalpa, at a
+ball given by some society people for charity. He had known her at once
+for an American, and finally had obtained an introduction. Her name was
+Kate Gilbert, and she lived in New York. It was understood that she was
+of a wealthy family and traveling for her health. She was accompanied
+only by a middle-aged maid, a giant of a woman who seemed to be maid and
+chaperon and general protector in one.
+
+That night at Tegucigalpa, Prale had talked to her and had danced with
+her twice. He judged her to be about twenty-eight, some ten years
+younger than himself. She was small and charming, not one of the
+helpless butterfly sort, but a woman who gave indication that she could
+care for herself if necessary.
+
+Prale had been surprised to find her aboard the _Manatee_, but she had
+told him that she was going home, that her health had been much
+benefited, and that she felt she could not remain away longer. It had
+seemed to Prale that she avoided him purposely, and that puzzled him a
+bit. He could not understand why any woman should absolutely dislike
+him. His record in Honduras was a clean one; it was known that he did
+not care much for women, and surely she had learned that he was a man of
+means, and did not think he might be a fortune hunter wishing to marry a
+prominent heiress.
+
+He had not spoken to her half a dozen times during the voyage. She made
+the acquaintance of others aboard and, for the first few days, had been
+busy in their company. The last three days had been stormy ones, and
+Kate Gilbert had not been much in evidence. Prale judged that she was a
+poor sailor.
+
+Now she stopped beside him, the middle-aged maid standing just behind
+her.
+
+"Well, we're home, Mr. Prale!" she said.
+
+"I suppose that you are glad to get home?"
+
+"Surely!" she replied. "And I'll be angry if there are not half a dozen
+to meet me when I land. I've been trying to spot some friends in that
+crowd, but it is a hopeless task."
+
+"I hope you'll not be disappointed," Prale said.
+
+As he spoke, he glanced past her at the middle-aged maid, and surprised
+a peculiar expression on the face of the woman. She had been looking
+straight at him, and her lips were almost curled into a sneer, while her
+eyes were flashing with something akin to anger.
+
+Prale did not understand that. Why should the dragon be incensed with
+him? He was making no attempt to lay siege to the heart of Miss Kate
+Gilbert. He was no fortune hunter after an heiress. The expression on
+the face of the maid amused Prale even while he wondered what it could
+mean.
+
+"Picked your hotel?" Kate Gilbert was asking.
+
+"Not yet, but I hope to get in somewhere," Prale told her. "May I be of
+assistance to you when we land?"
+
+"Marie will help me, thanks--and there will be others on the wharf," she
+answered.
+
+A cold look had come into her face again, and she turned half away from
+him and looked down at the crowd on the wharf. Sidney Prale looked
+straight at her, despite the glare of the middle-aged maid. Kate Gilbert
+was a woman who would appeal to a majority of men, but there seemed to
+be something peculiar about her, Prale told himself. He knew that she
+had avoided him purposely during the voyage, and that she had spoken to
+him purposely now, yet had asked nothing except whether he had chosen a
+hotel.
+
+Why should Kate Gilbert wish to know where he was going to stop? Perhaps
+it had been only an idle question, he explained to himself. In her
+happiness at getting home, she had merely wished to speak to somebody,
+and none of her shipboard friends happened to be near.
+
+He turned from her and glanced at the maid again. She was not the sort
+to be named Marie, Prale told himself. Marie called up a vision of a
+petite, trim woman from sunny France, and this Marie was nothing of the
+sort. She appeared more to be a peasant used to hard labor, Prale
+decided.
+
+And he could not understand the expression on the woman's face as she
+looked at him. It was almost one of loathing.
+
+"Got me mixed up with somebody else, or somebody has been giving me a
+bad reputation," Prale mused. "Enough to make a man shiver--that look of
+hers."
+
+Kate Gilbert, apparently, did not intend to have anything more to do
+with him. Smiling a little at her manner, Prale lifted his hat, picked
+up the suit case, and turned away. Once more he tried to force a passage
+through the jostling crowd. He had not taken three steps when Kate
+Gilbert touched him on the arm.
+
+"Pardon me, Mr. Prale, but there is something sticking on the end of
+your suit case," she said.
+
+Prale glanced down. On one end of the suit case was a bit of paper. It
+had been stuck there by a drop of mucilage, and the mucilage was still
+wet.
+
+He thanked Kate Gilbert and picked the paper off, but he did not throw
+it over the rail into the water. He crumpled it in his hand and, when he
+was some distance away, he smoothed it out.
+
+There was a single word written on it, in the same handwriting
+as that of the note he had found pinned to the pillow in the
+stateroom--"Retribution."
+
+Sidney Prale glanced around quickly. Nobody seemed to be paying
+particular attention to him. Kate Gilbert and her maid had passed him
+and were preparing to land. Prale put the piece of paper into his coat
+pocket and picked up his suit case again. That bit of paper, he knew
+well, had not been on the suit case when he had left the stateroom. It
+had been put there as he had made his way through the crowd of
+passengers along the rail. Who could have stuck it there--and why?
+
+Now the passengers were streaming ashore, and Sidney Prale stepped to
+one side and watched them. Perhaps he had some business enemy on board,
+he told himself, some man he had not noticed, and who was trying to
+frighten him after a childish fashion. He searched the faces of the
+landing passengers, but saw nobody he had known in Central America,
+nobody who looked at all suspicious.
+
+"Either a joke--or a mistake," Prale told himself again.
+
+He started ashore. He saw Kate Gilbert just ahead of him, the bulky maid
+at her heels. An elderly man met her, but did not greet her as a father
+would have been expected to do. Prale saw them hold a whispered
+conversation, and it seemed to him that the elderly man gave him a
+searching glance.
+
+"I must look like a swindler!" Prale mused.
+
+Finally, as he went out upon the street to engage a taxicab and start
+for a hotel, he saw Kate Gilbert and her maid and the elderly man again,
+getting into a limousine. The girl held a piece of paper in her hand,
+and was reading something from it to the elderly man. As she got into
+the car, she dropped the piece of paper to the curb.
+
+The limousine was gone before Prale reached the curb. He put his suit
+case down and picked up the piece of paper. There was nothing on it
+except a couple of names that meant nothing to Sidney Prale. But his
+eyes bulged, nevertheless, as he read them.
+
+For the paper was similar to that upon which had been written the note
+that he had found on the pillow in the stateroom--and the coarse
+handwriting was the same!
+
+"What the deuce----" Prale caught himself saying.
+
+Had Kate Gilbert written that message about retribution and had her maid
+leave it in the stateroom? Had Kate Gilbert written that single word and
+had her maid paste it on his suit case as he passed, or pasted it there
+herself?
+
+Why had Kate Gilbert--whom he never had seen and of whom he never had
+heard until she appeared at the ball in Tegucigalpa--avoided him in such
+a peculiar manner? And why had the misnamed Marie glared at him, and
+expressed loathing and anger when her eyes met his?
+
+"What the deuce----" Prale asked himself again.
+
+Then a taxicab drew up at the curb, and he got in.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+SOME DISCOURTESIES
+
+
+Sidney Prale obtained accommodations in a prominent hostelry on Fifth
+Avenue, bathed, dressed, ate luncheon, and then went out upon the
+streets, walking briskly and swinging his stick, going about New York
+like a stranger who never had seen it before.
+
+As a matter of fact, he never had seen this New York before. He had
+expected a multitude of changes, but nothing compared to what he found.
+He watched the crowds on the Avenue, cut over to Broadway and
+investigated the electric signs by daylight, observed the congestion of
+vehicles and the efforts of traffic policemen to straighten it out. He
+darted into the subway and rode far downtown and back again just for the
+sport of it. After that he got on an omnibus and rode up to Central
+Park, and acted as if every tree and twig were an old friend.
+
+He made himself acquainted with the animals in the zoo there, and
+promised himself to go to the other zoo in the Bronx before the end of
+the week. He stood back at the curb and lifted his head to look at new
+buildings after the manner of the comic supplement farmer with a straw
+between his teeth.
+
+"Great--great!" said Sidney Prale.
+
+Then he hurried back to the hotel, dressed for dinner, and went down to
+the dining room, stopping on the way to obtain a ticket for a musical
+revue that was the talk of the town at the moment.
+
+Prale ordered a dinner that made the waiter open his eyes. He made it a
+point to select things that were not on the menus of the hotels in
+Honduras. Then he sat back in his chair and listened to the orchestra,
+and watched well-dressed men and women come in and get their places at
+the tables.
+
+But the dinner was a disappointment to Prale after all. It seemed to him
+that the waiter was a long time giving him service. He remonstrated, and
+the man asked pardon and said that he would do better, but he did not.
+
+Prale found that his soup was lukewarm, his salad dressing prepared
+imperfectly, the salad itself a mere mess of vegetables. The fish and
+fowl he had ordered were not served properly, the dessert was without
+flavor, the cheese was stale. He sent for the head waiter.
+
+"I'm disgusted with the food and the service," he complained. "I rarely
+find fault, but I am compelled to do so this time. The man who has been
+serving me seems to be a rank amateur, and twice he was almost insolent.
+This hotel has a reputation which it scarcely is maintaining this
+evening."
+
+"I'll see about it, sir," the head waiter said.
+
+Prale saw him stop the waiter and speak to him, and the waiter glared at
+him when he brought the demi-tasse. Prale did not care. He glared back
+at the man, drank the coffee, and touched the match to a cigar. Then he
+signed the check and went from the dining room, an angry and disgusted
+man.
+
+"Another thing like that, and I look for the manager," he told himself.
+
+He supposed that he was a victim of circumstances--that the waiter was a
+new man and that it happened that the portions he served were poor
+portions. His happiness at being home again prevented Sidney Prale from
+feeling anger for any length of time. He got his hat and coat and went
+out upon the street again.
+
+He had an hour before time to go to the theater. He walked over to
+Broadway and went toward the north, looking at the bright lights and the
+crowds. He passed through two or three hotel lobbies, satisfied for the
+time merely to be in the midst of the throngs.
+
+At the proper time, he hurried to the theater and claimed his seat. The
+performance was a mediocre one, but it pleased Sidney Prale. He had seen
+a better show in Honduras a month before, had seen better dancing and
+heard better singing and comedy, but this was New York!
+
+The show at an end, Prale claimed his hat and coat at the check room and
+walked down the street toward a cabaret restaurant. He reached into his
+overcoat pocket for his gloves, and his hand encountered a slip of
+paper. He took it out.
+
+There was the same rough handwriting on the same kind of paper, and
+evidently with the same blunt pencil.
+
+"Remember--retribution is sure!"
+
+"This thing ceases to be a joke!" Prale told himself.
+
+His face flushed with anger, and he turned back toward the theater. But
+he had been among the last to leave, and already the lights of the
+playhouse were being turned out. The boy in charge of the check room
+would be gone, Prale knew.
+
+He thought of Kate Gilbert again, and the bit of paper she had dropped
+as she got into the limousine down on the water front. Surely she could
+have no hand in this, he thought. What interest could Kate Gilbert, a
+casual acquaintance and reputed daughter of a wealthy house, have in him
+and his affairs?
+
+"Somebody is making a mistake," he declared to himself, "or else it is
+some sort of a new advertising dodge. If I ever catch the jokesmith who
+is responsible for these dainty little messages, I'll tell him a thing
+or two."
+
+Prale turned into the restaurant and found a seat at a little table at
+one side of the room. The after-theater crowd was filling the place. The
+orchestra was playing furiously, and the cabaret performance was
+beginning. Sidney Prale leaned back in his chair and watched the show.
+The waiter came to his side, and he ordered something to eat and drink.
+
+Then he saw Kate Gilbert again, at a table not very far away from his.
+She was dressed in an evening gown, as if she had just come from the
+theater or opera. She was in the company of the elderly man who had met
+her at the wharf, and a young man and an older woman were at the same
+table.
+
+Prale's eyes met hers for an instant, and he inclined his head a bit in
+a respectful manner. But Kate Gilbert looked through him as if he had
+not been present, and then turned her head and began talking to the
+elderly man.
+
+Prale's face flushed. He hadn't done anything wrong, he told himself. He
+merely had bowed to her, as he would have bowed to any woman to whom he
+had been properly introduced. She had seen fit to cut him. Well, he
+could exist without Kate Gilbert, he told himself, but he wondered at
+her peculiar manner.
+
+He left the place within the hour and went back to the hotel and to bed.
+In the morning he walked up the Avenue as far as the Circle, dropped
+into a restaurant for a good breakfast, and then engaged a taxicab and
+drove downtown to the financial district. He had remembered that he was
+a man with a million, and that he had to pay some attention to business.
+
+He went into the establishment of a famous trust company and sent his
+card in to the president. An attendant ushered him into the president's
+private office immediately.
+
+"Sit down, Mr. Prale," said the financier. "I am glad that you came to
+see me this morning. I was just about to have somebody look you up."
+
+"Anything the matter?" Prale asked.
+
+"Your funds were transferred to us by our Honduras correspondent," the
+financier said. "Since you were leaving Honduras almost immediately, we
+decided to care for the funds until you arrived and we could talk to
+you."
+
+"I shall want some good investments, of course," Prale said. "I have
+disposed of all my holdings in Honduras, and I don't want the money to
+be idle."
+
+"Idleness is as bad for dollars as for men," said the financier,
+clearing his throat.
+
+"Can you suggest some investments? I have engaged no broker as yet, of
+course."
+
+"I--er--I am afraid that we have nothing at the present moment," the
+financier said.
+
+"The market must be good," Prale observed. "I never knew a time when
+investments were lacking."
+
+"I would not offer you a poor one, and good ones are scarce with us at
+present," said the banker. "Sorry that we cannot attend to the business
+for you. Perhaps some other trust company----"
+
+"Well, I can wait for something to turn up," Prale said. "There is no
+hurry, of course. Probably you'll have something in a few weeks that
+will take care of at least a part of the money."
+
+The banker cleared his throat again, and looked a trifle embarrassed as
+he spoke. "The fact of the matter is, Mr. Prale," he said, "that we do
+not care for the account."
+
+"I beg your pardon!" Prale exclaimed. "You mean you don't want me to
+leave my money in your bank?"
+
+"Just that, Mr. Prale."
+
+"But in Heaven's name, why? I should think that any financial
+institution would be glad to get a new account of that size."
+
+"I--er--I cannot go into details, sir," the banker said. "But I must
+tell you that we'd be glad if you'd make arrangements to move the
+deposit to some other bank."
+
+"I suppose you don't like to be bothered with small accounts," said
+Prale, with the suspicion of a sneer in his voice. "Very well, sir! I'll
+see that the deposit is transferred before night. Perhaps I can find
+banks that will be glad to take the money and treat me with respect. And
+I shall remember this, sir!"
+
+"I--er--have no choice in the matter," the banker said.
+
+"Can't you explain what it means?"
+
+"I have nothing to say--nothing at all to say," stammered the financier.
+"We took the money because of our Honduras correspondent, but we'll
+appreciate it very much if you do business with some other institution."
+
+"You can bet I'll do that little thing!" Prale exclaimed.
+
+He left the office angrily and stalked from the building. Were the big
+financiers of New York insane? A man with a million in cold cash has the
+right to expect that he will be treated decently in a bank. Prale walked
+down the street and grew angrier with every step he took.
+
+Before going to Honduras he had worked for a firm of brokers. He hurried
+toward their office now. He would send in his card to his old employer,
+Griffin, he decided, and ask his advice about banking his funds, and
+incidentally whether the financier he had just left was an imbecile.
+
+He found the Griffin concern in the same building, though the offices
+were twice as large now, and there were evidences of prosperity on every
+side.
+
+"Got an appointment?" an office boy demanded.
+
+"No, but I fancy that Mr. Griffin will see me," said Prale. "I used to
+work for him years ago."
+
+Then he sat down to wait. Griffin would be glad to see him, he thought.
+Griffin was a man who always liked to see younger men get along. He
+would want to know how Sidney Prale got his million. He would want to
+take him to luncheon and exhibit him to his friends--tell how one of his
+young men had forged ahead in the world.
+
+The boy came back with his card. "Mr. Griffin can't see you," he
+announced.
+
+"Oh, he's busy, eh? Did he make an appointment?"
+
+"No, he ain't busy," said the boy. "He's got his feet set up on the desk
+and he's readin' about yesterday's ball game. He said to say that he
+didn't have time to see you this mornin', and that he wouldn't ever have
+time to see you."
+
+"Don't be discourteous, you young imp!" Prale said, his face flushing.
+"You're sure you handed Mr. Griffin my card?"
+
+"Oh, I handed it to him--and don't you try to run any bluff on me!" the
+boy answered. "From the way the boss acted, I guess you don't stand very
+high with him!"
+
+The boy went back to his chair, and Sidney Prale went from the office, a
+puzzled and angry man. There probably was some mistake, he told himself.
+He'd meet Griffin during the day and tell him about the adventure.
+
+He was anxious to meet some of the men with whom he had worked ten years
+before, but he did not know where to find them. He'd have to wait and
+ask Griffin what had become of them. Then, too, he wanted to transfer
+his funds.
+
+Prale got another taxicab and started making the rounds of the banks he
+knew to be solid institutions. Within a few hours he had made
+arrangements to transfer the account, using four financial institutions.
+He said nothing, except that the money had been transferred to the trust
+company from Honduras, because the company had a correspondent there.
+
+His funds secure, Prale went back uptown and to the hotel. The clerk
+handed him a note with his key. Prale tore it open after he stepped into
+the elevator. This time it was a sheet of paper upon which a message had
+been typewritten.
+
+"You can't dodge the law of compensation. For what you have done, you
+must pay."
+
+Sidney Prale gasped when he read that message, and went back to the
+ground floor.
+
+"Who left this note for me?" he demanded of the clerk.
+
+"Messenger boy."
+
+"You don't know where he came from?"
+
+"No, sir."
+
+Prale turned away and started for the elevator again. A bell hop stopped
+him.
+
+"Manager would like to see you in his office, sir," the boy said. "This
+way, sir."
+
+Prale followed the boy, wondering what was coming now. He found the
+manager to be a sort of austere individual who seemed impressed with his
+own importance.
+
+"Mr. Prale," he said, "I regret to have to say this, but I find that it
+cannot be avoided. When you arrived yesterday, the clerk assigned you to
+a suite on the fifth floor. He made a mistake. We had a telegraphic
+reservation for that suite from an old guest of ours, and it should have
+been kept for him. You appreciate the situation, I feel sure."
+
+"No objection to being moved," Prale said. "I have unpacked scarcely any
+of my things."
+
+"But--again I regret it--there isn't a vacant suite in the house, Mr.
+Prale."
+
+"A room, then, until you have one."
+
+"We haven't a room. We haven't as much as a cot, Mr. Prale. We cannot
+take care of you, I'm afraid. So many regular guests, you understand,
+and out-of-town visitors."
+
+"Then I'll have to move, I suppose. You may have the suite within two
+hours."
+
+"Thank you, Mr. Prale."
+
+Prale was angry again when he left the office of the manager. It seemed
+that everything was conspiring against his comfort. He got a cab, drove
+to another hotel, inspected a suite and reserved it, paying a month in
+advance, and then went back to the big hotel on Fifth Avenue to get his
+baggage. He paid his bill at the cashier's window, and overheard the
+room clerk speaking to a woman.
+
+"Certainly, madam," the clerk was saying. "We will have an excellent
+suite on the fifth floor within half an hour. The party is just vacating
+it. Plenty of suites on the third floor, of course, but, if you want to
+be up higher in the building----"
+
+Sidney Prale felt the blood pounding in his temples, felt rage welling
+up within him. He felt as he had once in a Honduras forest when he
+became aware that a dishonest foreman was betraying business secrets. He
+hurried to the office of the manager, but the stenographer said the
+manager was busy and could not be seen.
+
+Prale whirled away, going through the lobby toward the entrance. He met
+Kate Gilbert face to face. She did not seem to see him, though he was
+forced to step aside to let her pass.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+A FOE AND A FRIEND
+
+
+After settling himself in the other hotel, Prale ate a belated luncheon.
+For the first time that day, he looked at the newspapers. He had
+remembered that a New Yorker reads the papers religiously to keep up to
+the minute; whereas, in Honduras, it was the custom for busy men to let
+the papers accumulate and then read a week's supply at a sitting.
+
+Aside from his name in the list of arrivals, Prale found no word
+concerning himself, though there was mention of other men who had come
+on the _Manatee_, and who had no special claim to prominence.
+
+"I don't amount to much, I guess," said Prale to himself. "Don't care
+for publicity, anyway, but they might let the world know a fellow has
+come home."
+
+He went for another walk that afternoon, returned to the hotel for
+dinner, and decided that, instead of going to a show that evening, he
+would prowl around the town.
+
+He walked up to the Park, went over to Broadway, and started down it,
+looking at the bright lights again, making his way through the happy,
+theater-going throngs toward Times Square. In the enjoyment of the
+crowds he forgot, in part, the discourtesies of the day, but he could
+not forget them entirely.
+
+Why had the banker acted in such a peculiar fashion? It was not like a
+financial institution to refuse a deposit of a round million. Why had
+Griffin refused to see him? Why had he as good as been ordered out of
+the hotel?
+
+"Coincidence," he told himself. "No reason on earth why such things
+should happen unless I am being taken for somebody else--and that
+wouldn't be true in the case of Griffin."
+
+He came to a prominent hotel and went into the lobby, looking in vain
+for some friend of the old days with whom he could spend an hour or so.
+Down in Honduras he had had his million and friends, too; and here, in
+his old home, he had nothing but his money. At this hour, down in
+Honduras, the band would be playing in the plaza, and society would be
+out in force. There would be a soft breeze sweeping down from the hills,
+bringing a thousand odors that could not be detected in New York. Here
+and there guitars would be tinkling, and men and maidens would be
+meeting in the moonlight.
+
+There would be a happy crowd at a certain club he knew, at which he
+always had been made welcome. A man could sit out on the veranda and
+look over the tumbling sea, and hear the ship's bells strike. Sidney
+Prale found himself just a bit homesick for Honduras.
+
+"Got to get over it," he told himself. "No sense in feeling this way.
+I'll have a hundred friends before I've been in town a month!"
+
+He went out upon the street, made his way down it, and dropped in at
+another hotel. There he saw Rufus Shepley sitting in an easy-chair,
+smoking and looking at an evening paper.
+
+Well, he knew Shepley, at least. Shepley was only a steamship
+acquaintance, but he was a human being and could talk. Prale was just a
+bit tired of confining his conversation to waiters and cigar-store
+clerks.
+
+He stopped before Shepley and cleared his throat.
+
+"Well, we meet again, Mr. Shepley!" he said.
+
+Rufus Shepley looked up, and then sprang to his feet, but his face did
+not light and he did not extend a hand in greeting. Instead, his
+countenance grew crimson, and he seemed to be shaking with anger.
+
+"You presume too much on a chance acquaintance, sir!" Rufus Shepley
+thundered. "I do not wish you to address me again--do you understand,
+sir? Never again--either in public or private!"
+
+"Why----" Prale stammered.
+
+"I don't want anything to do with a man of your stamp!" Rufus Shepley
+went on. "Ten years in Honduras, were you? We all know why men go to
+Honduras and spend years there."
+
+Shepley had raised his voice, and all in the lobby could hear. Men began
+moving toward them, and women began walking away, fearing a scene and a
+quarrel.
+
+Sidney Prale's face had flushed, too, and he felt his anger rising
+again.
+
+"I am sure I do not wish to continue the acquaintance if you do not,
+sir," he said. "I can be courteous, at least."
+
+"Some men are not entitled to courtesy," Shepley roared.
+
+"What do you mean by that?" Prale demanded.
+
+"I mean that I don't want anything to do with you, that's all! I don't
+want you to speak to me again! I don't want anybody to know that you
+even know me by sight!"
+
+"See here!" Prale cried. "You can't talk to me like that without giving
+me some explanation! You can't defame me before other men----"
+
+"Defame you?" Shepley cried. "You can't make a tar brush black, sir?"
+
+Rage was seething in Prale now. There was quite a crowd around them, and
+others were making their way forward.
+
+"I don't pretend to know what is the matter with you, and I don't much
+care!" he told Shepley. "If your hair wasn't gray, I'd take you out on
+the sidewalk and smash your face in! Please understand that!"
+
+"Threaten me, will you?"
+
+"I'm not threatening you. I don't fight a man with one foot in the
+grave."
+
+"Why you----"
+
+"And I don't care to have you address me in public again, either,"
+Sidney Prale went on. "It probably would be an insult."
+
+"Confound you, sir!" Shepley cried.
+
+He reached forward and grasped Prale by the arm. Sidney Prale put up a
+hand, tore the grasp loose, and tossed Rufus Shepley to one side.
+
+"Keep your paws off me!" he exclaimed. "I think that you're insane, if
+you ask me!"
+
+The hotel detective came hurrying up.
+
+"You'll have to cut that out!" he said. "What's the row here, anyway?"
+
+"The place is harboring a maniac!" Prale said.
+
+"It's harboring a crook!" Shepley cried.
+
+Prale lurched forward and grasped him by both arms, and shook him until
+Rufus Shepley's teeth chattered.
+
+"Another word out of you, and I'll forget that your hair is gray!" Prale
+exclaimed, and then he tossed Shepley to one side again.
+
+"Either of you guests here?" the house detective demanded. "No? Then
+maybe you'd both better get out until you can cool off. If you want to
+stage a scrap, go down and rent Madison Square Garden and advertise in
+the newspapers. I wouldn't mind seeing a good fight myself. But this
+lobby isn't any prize ring. Get me?"
+
+Sidney Prale, his face still flaming, whirled around and started for the
+entrance, the crowd parting to let him through. Rufus Shepley, fuming
+and fussing, followed him slowly. The house detective accompanied him to
+the door.
+
+Prale was waiting at the curb, a Prale whose face was white now because
+of the temper he was fighting to control. He stepped close to Shepley's
+side.
+
+"I don't know why you insulted me, but don't do it again!" Prale said.
+"I ought to settle with you for what you've said already."
+
+The house detective, who had heard, stepped forward again, but Sidney
+Prale swung across the street and went on his way.
+
+He walked rapidly for a dozen blocks or more, paying no attention to
+where he was going, until his anger began to subside.
+
+"Why, the raving maniac!" he gasped, once or twice.
+
+He didn't pretend to guess what it meant. Shepley had seemed to be
+friendly enough when they had separated aboard ship. What could have
+happened to make the man change his mind and attitude?
+
+"Must be some mistake!" Prale told himself. "If there is any more of
+this, I'll have to get to the bottom of it!"
+
+He reached Madison Square, and sat down on a bench to smoke and regain
+his composure. He knew that he had a terrible temper, and that it had to
+be controlled. A temper that flashed was all right at times in the
+jungles of Honduras, but it was not the proper thing to exhibit in the
+heart of New York City. It might get him into serious trouble with
+somebody.
+
+He finished his cigar, listened to the striking chimes, and lighted
+another smoke. A pedestrian stopped beside him.
+
+"Old Sid Prale, or I'm a liar!" he cried.
+
+Prale looked up, and then sprang to his feet.
+
+"Jim Farland, the sleuth!" he cried in answer. "Old Jim, the holy terror
+to evildoers. Now I am glad that I'm home!"
+
+"When did you get in?"
+
+"Yesterday. Sit down. Have a cigar. You're the first old friend I've
+met!"
+
+Detective Jim Farland sat down and lighted the cigar. "You've been gone
+some time," he said.
+
+"Ten years, Jim."
+
+"Went away rather sudden, didn't you?"
+
+"I did. I made my decision one night and sailed the night following,"
+said Prale.
+
+"I always wondered why you went, and what became of you. Had a good job
+with old Griffin, didn't you?"
+
+"The job was all right, Jim. But there was a girl----"
+
+"Ah, ha!"
+
+"And she threw me over for a fellow who had some money. That made me
+huffy, of course. I swore I'd shake the dust of New York from my shoes,
+go to some foreign country, take with me the ten thousand dollars I had
+saved, and turn it into a million."
+
+"And came back broke!" Farland said.
+
+"Nothing of the sort, Jim. I came back with a million."
+
+"Great Scott! I suppose I'd better be on my way then. I ain't in the
+habit of having millionaires let me associate with 'em."
+
+"You sit where you are, or I'll use violence!" Prale told him. "I
+suppose you are still on the force? Still fussing around down in the
+financial district watching for swindlers?"
+
+"I left the force three years ago," Jim Farland replied. "Couldn't seem
+to get ahead. Too honest, maybe--or too ignorant. I'm in a sort of
+private detective business now--got an office up the street. Doing
+fairly well, too--lots of old friends give me work. If you have anything
+in my line----"
+
+"If I have, you'll get a job," said Prale.
+
+"Let me slip you a card," said Farland. "You never know when you may
+need a detective. So you came back with a million, eh?"
+
+"And ran into a mess," Prale added.
+
+"I can't imagine a man with a million running into much of a mess,"
+Farland said.
+
+"That's all you know about it. I may need your services sooner than you
+think. There is a sort of jinx working on me, it appears."
+
+"Spill it!" Jim Farland said.
+
+Sidney Prale did. He related what had happened at the bank, at the
+hotel, in Griffin's office, and told of the scene with Rufus Shepley.
+
+"Funny!" Farland said, when he had finished. "I know old Rufus Shepley,
+and as a general thing he ain't a maniac. Something behind all this,
+Sid."
+
+"Yes; but what on earth could it be?"
+
+"That's the question. If anything else happens, and you need help, just
+let me know."
+
+"I'll do that, surely," said Prale. "And I'm glad that I've got one
+friend left in town."
+
+"Always have one as long as I'm here," Jim Farland assured him. "And it
+ain't because of your million, either. It's true about the million?"
+
+"Absolutely!"
+
+"Gee! That's more than old Griffin himself has in cash, anyway," Farland
+declared. "Maybe it's a good thing that girl turned you down. You'd
+probably be a clerk at a few thousand a year, if she hadn't. How'd you
+make the coin?"
+
+"Mines and fruit and water power and logs," said Prale.
+
+"Sounds simple enough. When the detective business goes on the blink, I
+may take a turn at it myself."
+
+"If you ever need money, Jim, call on me. If you want to engage bigger
+offices, hire operatives, branch out----"
+
+"Stop it!" Farland cried. "I want nothing of the kind. I'm a peculiar
+sort of duck--don't care about being rich at all. I just want to be sure
+I'll have a good living for myself and the wife and kids, and have a few
+friends, and be able to look every man in town straight in the eye. I'd
+rather work for a friend for nothing than do work I don't like for ten
+thousand an hour."
+
+"I believe you!" Prale said.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+THE COUSIN
+
+
+An hour later, having parted with Detective Jim Farland, Sidney Prale
+walked slowly up Fifth Avenue, determined to go to his hotel suite and
+rest for the remainder of the evening. His conversation and short visit
+with Farland had put him in a better humor. There was no mistaking the
+quality of Farland's friendship. He and Prale had been firm friends ten
+years before, when Farland was on duty in the financial district, and
+they had made it a point at that time to eat luncheon together when
+Farland's duties permitted.
+
+New York seemed a better place, even with one friend among several
+million persons. So Prale swung his stick jauntily, and hummed the
+Spanish love song again, and told himself that Rufus Shepley and Kate
+Gilbert, old Griffin and the hotel manager and the rest of the motley
+crew that had made the day miserable for him amounted to nothing in the
+broader scheme of things, and were not to be taken seriously.
+
+He came to a block where there were few pedestrians, where the great
+shops had their lights out and their night curtains up. He heard steps
+behind him, and presently a soft voice.
+
+"Sid! Sid!"
+
+Sidney Prale whirled around, alert and on guard, for he did not
+recognize the voice. A medium-sized man stood before him, a man of about
+his own age, who had a furtive manner and wore a beard.
+
+"Don't you know me, Sid?"
+
+"Can't say that I do!"
+
+"Why, I'm your cousin, George Lerton. I'm the only relative you've got
+in the world, unless you got married while you were away."
+
+Prale stepped aside so that the nearest light flashed on the face of the
+man before him.
+
+"Well, if it isn't!" he said. "Didn't recognize you at first. How long
+have you been wearing the alfalfa on your face?"
+
+"Two or three years," George Lerton told him, grinning a bit. "I saw
+your name in the passenger list, Sid, and wanted to see you. I found out
+where you are stopping----"
+
+"Why didn't you come to the hotel, then, or leave a note?" Prale asked.
+"Come on up now."
+
+"I--I wanted to talk to you----"
+
+"And I want to talk to you. What are you doing for yourself, George?
+Still working in a broker's office?"
+
+"Oh, I've got an office of my own now."
+
+"Getting along all right?"
+
+"Fairly well," Lerton said. "Business has been pretty good the last
+year."
+
+"Maybe you can dig up a few good investments for me, then," Prale said.
+"I've got some coin now."
+
+"I understand that you're worth a million, Sid."
+
+"Yes, I've made my pile, and came back to New York to enjoy it. But come
+along to the hotel."
+
+"I'd--I'd rather not."
+
+"Why not? We've got to talk over old times and find out about each
+other. We're cousins, you know."
+
+The truth of the matter was that Sidney Prale never had thought very
+much of his cousin. Ten years before they had worked side by side for
+Griffin, the broker. There was something furtive and shifty about George
+Lerton, but he never had presumed on his relationship, at least. He and
+Sidney Prale had been courteous to each other, but never had been warm
+friends.
+
+They came from different branches of the family. Lerton had some traits
+of character that Prale did not admire, but he always told himself that
+perhaps he was prejudiced. They had seen a deal of each other in a
+social way in the old days.
+
+"Let us just talk as we walk along," Lerton now said.
+
+"All right, if you have an engagement," Prale replied. "We can get
+together later, I suppose. How have the years been using you? Married?"
+
+"I was--I am a widower."
+
+"Sorry," said Prale. "Children?"
+
+"No--not any children. I--I married Mary Slade."
+
+"What?" Prale cried.
+
+He stopped, aghast. Mary Slade had been the girl who had turned him down
+for a man with money--and that man had not been George Lerton, who did
+not have as much as five thousand at that time.
+
+"It--it's a peculiar story," Lerton said. "You went away so quick--after
+you quarreled with her. And that other man--she threw him over, soon.
+She couldn't endure him, even with all his money. She regretted her
+quarrel with you. I'm quite sure she wanted you for a time. I got to
+taking her about. You didn't write, and she was too proud to look you
+up, and so--after a time----"
+
+"You married her," said Prale.
+
+"About three years after you went away, Sid. She died after we had been
+married a year."
+
+"But she always wanted money, and I had as much as you."
+
+"I made a strike soon after you left, Sid. I plunged with my five
+thousand, and turned it into a hundred thousand inside four months. I
+kept on, and got more. I was worth almost half a million when we were
+married."
+
+"I see. Well, there are no hard feelings, George. She was a good woman,
+in a way, and I'm sorry you lost her. I suppose we'll have to get
+together, for old time's sake."
+
+"Are you going to stay here long, Sid?"
+
+"Long? I've sold out all my Honduras holdings, and I'm here to spend the
+rest of my days. I've come home for good, George. The United States is
+plenty good enough for me. I'm going to be a civilized gentleman from
+now on."
+
+"You--you're not going back?"
+
+"Why should I? I brought that million with me. I left nothing in
+Honduras except a few friends. I suppose I'll run down there some day
+and see them, but this is going to be home, you can bet."
+
+"Don't do it, Sid!" Lerton exclaimed.
+
+"Don't do what?"
+
+"Don't stay here, Sid. Get out as quick as you can! Go back to
+Honduras--anywhere--but don't stay in New York."
+
+"Why shouldn't I? What on earth is the matter with you? Are you insane?"
+
+"I--I can't tell you, Sid. But you are in danger if you don't leave New
+York. I can tell you that much. That's why I didn't call at the hotel;
+I'm afraid. Sid, I'm afraid to have anybody see me talking to you. If
+you came to my office, I'd refuse to see you----"
+
+"Why?" demanded Sidney Prale, in a stern voice.
+
+"I--I can't explain, Sid."
+
+"I've endured a lot of nonsense to-day, and I'm not going to endure any
+more!" Prale said. "You're going to open your mouth and tell me what you
+mean, if I have to manhandle you."
+
+"You can beat me until I'm unconscious, Sid, but you can't make me
+talk!" Lerton told him.
+
+"But what does it all mean?"
+
+"You'd better go away, Sid; you'd better get out of the country and stay
+out!"
+
+"No reason why I should. I never gave up my citizenship; I haven't done
+anything wrong. I'm back in my old home, and I fail to see why I
+shouldn't remain here if that is my wish."
+
+"But you're in danger!"
+
+"In danger from what?" Sidney Prale cried.
+
+"You have powerful enemies, Sid."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"I--I don't know, exactly. But you have powerful enemies. Some of my
+best customers have informed me that they are through doing business
+with me if I have anything to do with you. They told me that before you
+had been back three hours."
+
+"Powerful enemies? Why? Business enemies?"
+
+"I--I don't know."
+
+"Um! So that is why the bank refused my deposit, why I was turned out of
+a hotel, and why old Rufus Shepley raised such a row with me! Powerful
+enemies, have I? But there isn't sense in it! I haven't done anything to
+make powerful enemies, or any other kind. I'm about fed up with this
+stuff!"
+
+"Go away, Sid. You've got money--you can live anywhere!"
+
+"You bet I can! And I'm going to live in New York!"
+
+"Don't try it, Sid!"
+
+Prale whirled and faced him. "You know more than you're telling!" he
+accused. "You open your face and talk! I never did have any too much
+love for you, and you can wager that I'm not going to let you frighten
+me into running away from New York! Talk!"
+
+"I haven't anything more to say, Sid!"
+
+"If I have to choke it out of you right here----"
+
+"You'd better not. It would give your enemies a chance!"
+
+"Lerton, I've fought the Honduras jungles! I've fought half-savage men
+and treacherous employees, snakes and fever, financial sharks and common
+adventurers. I didn't come back to New York to back down in front of a
+man like you--or half a hundred like you. Maybe that is strong talk--but
+you have it coming! Give my enemies a chance? I'll give them all the
+chance they want. Maybe they'll come into the open, then, and let me see
+whom I'm fighting! I don't like foes that fight from the dark!"
+
+"You'd better go away, Sid. I'm talking for your own good!"
+
+"For my good? For yours, you mean! Afraid you'll lose a few customers
+and a few dollars, by standing by your cousin, are you? Why don't you be
+a man, tell me what you know, help me to fight! Bah! I'm disgusted with
+you!"
+
+He hurled George Lerton away from him, curled his lips in scorn of the
+man.
+
+"I've tried to warn you," Lerton whimpered.
+
+"I don't understand this and I'm sure you could explain a lot, if you
+would. Perhaps I've got more dollars than the customers you are so
+afraid of losing. Suppose I hand my million to you for investment. Will
+you talk, then?"
+
+"I--I wouldn't dare touch it," Lerton whimpered.
+
+Prale looked at him closely. "It must be something pretty bad to make
+you toss aside the chance to handle a million in investments," he said.
+"I know you, George! You'd sell your soul for money! You got anything
+more to say to me about this?"
+
+"I--I dare not say anything more."
+
+"Very well. If you are afraid to be seen in my presence, kindly keep
+away from me hereafter and don't worry about me looking you up at your
+office. I'll not take the trouble!"
+
+Sidney Prale said nothing more; he whirled around and walked rapidly up
+the Avenue, enraged, wondering what it all meant, determined to find out
+as soon as possible.
+
+Lerton ran after him.
+
+"Won't you go away, Sid?" he whimpered.
+
+"No. I'll stay here, and if I have enemies I'll fight them!" Prale told
+him. "Why are you so eager to have me run away?"
+
+"I don't want to see you in trouble, Sid."
+
+"That's peculiar. In the old days you used to gloat whenever I got in
+trouble. You seem to have a wonderful and sudden regard for my welfare,
+and I can't explain it to myself."
+
+Once more, Prale whirled around and started up the Avenue. His brain was
+in a tumult. What did George Lerton know that he refused to tell? Why
+should there be powerful enemies? He knew of no reason in the world.
+
+"He's dead eager to get me out of town," Prale mused. "There's something
+behind it, all right."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+MURK--AND MURDER
+
+
+Instinct, intuition, or some similar faculty caused Prale to turn off
+the Avenue eastward toward the river. He was not angry now. His mind was
+in action. He had convinced himself that there was something behind all
+this, and he was eager for the solution.
+
+Those mysterious warnings had begun on board ship, he remembered. The
+piece of paper Kate Gilbert had dropped, and which he had picked up, had
+writing similar to the messages he had received. He would have to engage
+Jim Farland, he told himself, and learn a few things concerning Miss
+Kate Gilbert.
+
+Had the journey because of ill health been a subterfuge? Had Kate
+Gilbert gone to Honduras to watch him? If she had, what was the reason
+for it?
+
+"It's enough to make a man a maniac," Prale mused. "And that Shepley
+man! He was all right when we parted on the ship. Somebody said
+something to him about me after he landed. He treated me as if I had
+been a skunk."
+
+Then he thought of George Lerton, his cousin. He couldn't quite make up
+his mind about Lerton. The man seemed frenzied in his eagerness to get
+Prale to leave New York. And Prale knew that it was not because of an
+overwhelming love George Lerton had for him, not anxiety lest ill
+fortune should come to Sidney Prale.
+
+He would have to think it out, he told himself. At least, he knew that
+he had foes working against him, and could be on guard continually. Down
+in Honduras he had won a reputation as a fighter, and a fight was a
+fight in any clime, he knew; there might be a difference in the rules
+here and there, but the same qualities decided the winner.
+
+He continued walking down the street toward the river. In Honduras he
+had become accustomed to walking up and down the beach and looking at
+the water whenever he wanted to think and solve some problem, and it
+probably was habit that sent him to the water front now.
+
+He tossed away the butt of his cigar and did not light another at the
+moment. For a time he stood looking out at the black water, at the craft
+plying back and forth, their lights flashing. He stepped upon a little
+dock and started walking its length. After a time he came near the end
+of it without having encountered a watchman, and sat down on a box in a
+dark, secluded corner.
+
+There, his back braced against the building and the building shielding
+him from the cold wind that came up from the distant sea, Sidney Prale
+sat and tried to think it out.
+
+One thing made a comfortable thought--he had money with which to fight.
+Either he was the victim of some injustice, or a grave mistake was being
+made. He wished that he had forced George Lerton to tell him more, and
+he decided that he would do so if they met again. He might even hunt him
+out and force him to speak. Sidney Prale thought nothing of handling a
+man like Lerton.
+
+He heard steps on the dock and remained silent in the darkness, thinking
+that possibly some watchman was making the rounds. If he was discovered,
+he would say that he had been looking at the river, give the watchman
+his card and a tip, and leave.
+
+The steps came nearer and Prale could make out the form of a man
+slipping along the dock's edge in a furtive manner. There was not light
+enough for Prale to see his features. He was walking bent over, a short,
+heavy-set man who did not wear an overcoat.
+
+Prale watched as the man passed within six feet of him and went to the
+edge of the dock. There he stood, outlined against the sky, looking down
+at the water. Prale imagined that he heard something like a sob, and
+gave closer attention. Then he saw the man take off his coat and drop it
+behind him, remove his cap and place it on the coat, and look down at
+the water again.
+
+And then Sidney Prale sprang straight forward, and grasped the body of
+the other as it was in mid-air.
+
+"No, you don't!" Prale exclaimed.
+
+He found immediately that he had a fight on his hands. The other whirled
+and began kicking and striking. Sidney Prale hurled him backward,
+rushed, caught him up again in a better hold, threw him back against the
+building, and held him there, breathless and panting.
+
+"Another smash out of you, and I'll drop you into the river myself!"
+Prale said. "Suppose you take time to get your breath now."
+
+"I--I thought you was a cop."
+
+"Afraid of the cops?"
+
+"It's against the law to--to try to commit suicide."
+
+"So I understand," said Prale. "Well, I am not a cop. Trying to drown
+yourself, were you? Why?"
+
+"Why not?" the other asked. "I'm done with livin'."
+
+"Not just yet, but you would have been if I hadn't been sitting here."
+
+"I've knocked all over the world--and made a few mistakes," said the
+derelict. "Oh, nothin' that would get me in trouble with the cops! But I
+just found out that I'm clutterin' up the earth and don't amount to
+anything. I'm sick of half starvin' to death, and workin' like a dog
+when I get the chance just to get enough to keep a few old clothes hung
+on me."
+
+"Disgusted generally with your lot?" Prale asked.
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"Friends or relatives?"
+
+"Not any."
+
+"What's your name?" Prale asked.
+
+"You mean my real name? I don't remember. It's been so long since I've
+used it, and I've used so many others since that I don't know. What's
+the difference?"
+
+"I'll call you Murk," said Prale. "That expresses the dark river, the
+deed you were about to do, and the evident state of your feelings."
+
+"It's as good as any, I suppose."
+
+"What's your particular grievance against the world in general?"
+
+"It ain't anything in particular," said Murk. "It's just general."
+
+"I see. A drifter, are you?"
+
+"I reckon I am."
+
+"Sore at existence, eh?"
+
+"Well, what's the use of livin'?" Murk demanded. "There ain't a man,
+woman or child in the world that gives a whoop what becomes of me. I'm
+just in the way to be kicked around."
+
+"Maybe you haven't found your proper place in the scheme of things."
+
+"I've sure done some travelin' lookin' for it, boss, but maybe I ain't
+found it, as you say. I sure ain't found any place that looks like it
+needed me bad."
+
+"Hard to make a living?"
+
+"Oh, I get along. But, what's the use?" Murk wanted to know. "I ain't
+got anybody--I get lonesome lots of times. If I had money, it might be
+different."
+
+"I'm not so sure about that," said Prale, smiling a bit. "I've got a
+million dollars, and, as far as I know right this minute, I have just
+one friend in New York."
+
+"If I had a million dollars I wouldn't care whether I had a friend or
+not," Murk said.
+
+"You can be just as lonesome with a million dollars as you can without a
+cent," Prale told him. "I was sitting down here because I was lonesome,
+and because there are some enemies working at me, and I don't know who
+they are or why they want to trouble me."
+
+"Well, let's jump in the drink together," Murk said.
+
+"Why not fight it out?" asked Sidney Prale.
+
+"Mister, I've been fightin' for years, and it don't get me anything. It
+just tires me out--that's all. The next world can't be any worse than
+this."
+
+"Are you a fighter, or a quitter?"
+
+"Nobody ever called me a quitter."
+
+"But you were trying to be a few minutes ago. You were going to quit
+like a yellow dog!" Prale told him. "You were going to throw up the
+sponge and give the devil a laugh."
+
+"That's between me and the devil--nobody else would care."
+
+"If you had a friend, an influential friend, and didn't have to keep up
+a continual fight to hold body and soul together, could you manage to
+face the world a little longer?"
+
+"I reckon I could."
+
+"How old are you?"
+
+"Thirty-five," said Murk.
+
+"Old enough to have some sense. I am three years older. I'm almost as
+lonesome as you are. Why not join forces, Murk?"
+
+"Sir?"
+
+"If I showed you a corner where you would fit in, would you be loyal?
+Would you stand by me, help me fight if it was necessary, and all that?"
+
+"You just try me--that's all."
+
+"Very well, Murk, I'm going to trust you. I told you the truth when I
+said I had a million dollars. I have but one friend I can depend upon,
+and I have enemies. I like to fight, Murk, but I like to have a good pal
+at my back when I do."
+
+"That's me, too, sir; but I ain't ever had the pal."
+
+"You've got one now, Murk. You'd be dead now, but for me. So you must be
+my man, understand?"
+
+"I don't quite getcha."
+
+"You're under my orders from now on, Murk. We'll have a nice row,
+standing back to back perhaps. I'll take you on as a sort of valet and
+bodyguard. You'll have good clothes and a home and plenty to eat and a
+bit of money to spend. I'll expect you to be loyal. If I find that you
+are not--well, Murk, I got back yesterday from Central America. I got my
+million down there, by fighting for it, and there were times when I had
+to handle men roughly. I can read men, Murk. Can you imagine what I'd do
+to a man who double crossed me?"
+
+"I getcha now! You needn't be afraid I'll double cross you. I don't
+think this is real."
+
+"It's real, Murk, if we strike a bargain. Do we?"
+
+"I've got everything to win and nothin' to lose--so we do!" Murk said.
+
+"Fair enough. Now we'll get off this dock. Pick up your cap and coat."
+
+Murk picked them up and put them on, and then he followed at Prale's
+heels until they were on the street and beneath the nearest light. There
+they stopped and looked each other over.
+
+Murk was short, but he was built for strength. Prale could tell at a
+glance that the man, even poorly nourished as he was, had muscles that
+could be depended on. Prale liked the look around Murk's eyes, too. Murk
+was a dog man, the sort that proves faithful to the end if treated
+right.
+
+"Well, how do you like me?" Prale asked.
+
+"You look good to me, sir."
+
+"My name is Sidney Prale."
+
+"Yes, Mr. Prale."
+
+"You understand our little deal thoroughly?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"Come along, then. Here is a cigar--light up!"
+
+Murk lighted the cigar, and Prale lighted another, and they went rapidly
+up the street to Fifth Avenue. Prale signaled a passing taxicab, and
+they got in. When the cab stopped, it was in a district where some cheap
+clothing stores remain open until almost midnight.
+
+Half an hour later they emerged again. Murk was dressed in a suit which
+was somber in tone, and which was not at all a bad fit. He was dressed
+in new clothing from the skin out. Prale took him to a barber shop, and
+waited until the barber gave Murk a hair cut and a shave.
+
+"Gosh!" Murk said, when he looked at himself in the glass. "This can't
+be me!"
+
+"It is, however," Prale assured him. "Now, we'll go home, Murk, and get
+settled."
+
+"Where is home?"
+
+Prale named the hotel.
+
+"I'd get thrown out on my bean if I ever stuck my nose in the kitchen
+door," Murk said.
+
+"You're not going into the kitchen, Murk. You're going to be registered
+as my valet and bodyguard, and you're going up in the elevator with me.
+Kindly remember, Murk, that you are the personal servant of Mr. Sidney
+Prale."
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"And your boss has a million dollars and nobody knows how many secret
+enemies. Those things give you a standing, Murk. When we are alone, of
+course, you'll be a sort of pal. I never had a valet before and I
+couldn't stand a regular one. Instead of being a valet, when we are
+alone, I want you to be a regular fellow."
+
+"I getcha, Mr. Prale."
+
+"Off we go, then."
+
+They arrived at the hotel, and Prale registered Murk as his valet and
+took him up to the suite.
+
+"You bunk in there, Murk," Prale said, pointing to another room. "Take a
+bath and go to bed and get some rest. If you are inclined to throw me
+down, you'll find some money and jewelry in the top drawer of the
+dresser. Rob me and sneak out during the night, if you want to. Cut my
+throat, if it's necessary."
+
+"You needn't be afraid, sir--you can trust me!"
+
+"I do!" said Sidney Prale.
+
+Prale slept well that night. When he awoke in the morning, Murk was
+dressed and sitting by the window. He drew Prale's bath without being
+told, and then stood around as if waiting to be of service.
+
+"I--I found this slipped under your door, sir," he said, after a time.
+
+"What is it, Murk?"
+
+"A piece of paper with writing on it, sir."
+
+"More news from the enemy, I suppose. What does it say?"
+
+"It says as how a man's sin always finds him out."
+
+"That's interesting, isn't it? Do you think I am a sinner of some sort,
+Murk?"
+
+"I don't care if you are, sir!"
+
+"Murk! You needn't get excited about it. Put the paper in the lower
+drawer of the dresser; I'm making a collection of them," Prale said. He
+went back into the other room and continued dressing. "Go to the
+telephone and order breakfast served to us here, Murk," he directed.
+
+"What shall I order, sir?"
+
+"Order plenty of whatever you like, and tell them to make it double,"
+said Prale.
+
+Murk grinned and gave a proper order. Prale was dressed by the time the
+breakfast was served. He and Murk made a hearty meal.
+
+And then Prale lighted his morning cigar and began reading the
+newspapers. Murk went around the suite, straightening things and trying
+to be of service. He looked at Sidney Prale often; it was plain to be
+seen that Prale was Murk's kind of man.
+
+There came a knock at the door.
+
+"See who it is, Murk," Sidney Prale said.
+
+He did not even look up from the paper he was reading. He supposed it
+was some hotel employee. Murk stalked across to the door and threw it
+open. Two men stood there. Murk flinched when he saw them. He did not
+know either of them, but he knew them immediately for what they were.
+Murk was a man of experience.
+
+"Mr. Prale in?" one of them asked.
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+Without asking permission, the two men stepped inside, and one of them
+closed the door. Prale dropped the newspaper and turned around to face
+them.
+
+"Are you Sidney Prale?" one of them asked.
+
+"I am."
+
+"You are under arrest, Mr. Prale."
+
+"I beg your pardon?"
+
+"Under arrest," I said. "You know your rights, perhaps, so you need not
+talk unless you wish to do so."
+
+"You are officers?"
+
+They showed their shields.
+
+"Straight from headquarters," one of them replied. "We want to take a
+look around your room while we are here."
+
+"Suppose," said Sidney Prale, "that you tell me, first, why I am under
+arrest? Of what crime am I accused?"
+
+"You are charged with murder."
+
+"Murder? What crazy joke is this?" Prale cried. "And what particular
+person am I accused of murdering?"
+
+"You are charged with the murder of Mr. Rufus Shepley," the detective
+replied.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+EVIDENCE
+
+
+Many times in his life, Sidney Prale had been greatly surprised,
+astonished, shocked. But never had he experienced such a feeling as he
+did at this bald announcement of a police detective.
+
+The statement was like a blow between the eyes. Prale stared at the two
+detectives for an instant, his face flushed, and then he began to laugh.
+
+"It isn't a laughing matter, Mr. Prale," one of the detectives told him.
+
+"Pardon me, but it is so utterly preposterous," Prale replied. "I fail
+to see how I can be accused of such a crime. I am not a cut-throat, and
+Rufus Shepley was a man I met on shipboard casually, and have seen him
+only once since."
+
+"You can do your talking at headquarters, Mr. Prale," the officer said.
+"I'll have to ask you to come along with us. I'll leave my partner here
+to look through your rooms."
+
+"The sooner I get to headquarters, the sooner this thing will be
+straightened out," Prale said. "Murk, you will remain here in the rooms
+until you hear from me. Let the officer look at anything he wishes to
+inspect."
+
+"Yes, sir," said Murk, glaring at the two detectives.
+
+Prale faced the detective who had been speaking to him.
+
+"Be with you as soon as I get my hat and coat," he said. "It'll not be
+necessary, I hope, to put handcuffs on me."
+
+"We can go to headquarters in a taxi, and I guess I can handle you if
+you try any tricks," the detective replied.
+
+"There are going to be no tricks tried," Prale said.
+
+"Nevertheless, I think I'll keep a close eye on you."
+
+"Do so, by all means!" Prale retorted.
+
+"Ain't there anything I can do, sir?" Murk asked.
+
+"Nothing except to remain in the rooms until you hear from me," Prale
+told him. "If I should--er--be detained, I'll probably send for you."
+
+"Very well, sir."
+
+One of the detectives left the suite with Prale and walked down the hall
+to the elevator. The second officer remained behind to go through
+Prale's things in an effort to find evidence.
+
+Prale said nothing regarding the crime as they journeyed in the taxicab
+to police headquarters. His mind was busy, though. This appeared to be a
+culmination of the annoyances to which he had been subjected.
+
+At headquarters he was ushered into a room where a captain of detectives
+awaited him.
+
+"Don't have to talk unless you want to, Mr. Prale, but it probably will
+be better for you to do so, and have an end of it," the captain said.
+"Why did you kill Rufus Shepley?"
+
+"That's a fool question. I didn't kill him. I had no idea he was dead
+until the officer arrested me for his murder. I scarcely know the man,
+captain. I made his acquaintance aboard a ship coming from Central
+America, and I met him but once after leaving the ship. He told me his
+business and gave me his card, and that is all. I'm ready to answer any
+questions you may ask. This is some terrible mistake. I want to talk
+about it--have an end of it, as you say."
+
+"Very well, Prale," the captain said.
+
+"Mr. Prale, if you please. I have not been convicted yet and am entitled
+to some courtesy, it seems to me."
+
+"All right, if you're going to be nasty about it," the captain said.
+"But you won't gain anything by taking a high-and-mighty attitude with
+me."
+
+"I simply object to being addressed in the tone you used," Prale
+replied. "I am no crook. Let's get down to business. Ask me any
+questions you like, and I'd like to ask a few myself."
+
+"That is fair enough," the captain said, a shrewd expression coming into
+his face.
+
+"Suppose you take it for granted, for a few minutes, that I am innocent,
+and tell me when Rufus Shepley was killed, and where, and just how."
+
+"Very well, Mr. Prale. A hotel attendant found the body at an early hour
+this morning. It was in Mr. Shepley's room. The man was fully dressed.
+The physicians say that he was killed about eleven o'clock last night."
+
+"I understand; go on, please."
+
+"He had been stabbed through the heart," said the captain. "Death had
+been instantaneous."
+
+"But why suspect me of the crime?" Prale asked.
+
+"This was found beside the body," the captain replied.
+
+From the desk before him he picked up a fountain pen. It was an
+elaborate pen, chased with gold, and on one side of it was a tiny gold
+plate, upon which Prale's name had been engraved.
+
+"You recognize it?" the captain asked.
+
+"Certainly; it is mine."
+
+"Oh, you admit that, do you?"
+
+"Naturally. But I fail to see how it came to be beside the body of Rufus
+Shepley."
+
+"A man who has committed a murder generally is in a hurry to get away,"
+said the captain. "It is easy to drop a fountain pen from a pocket,
+especially if a man is bending over."
+
+"I don't even know where Shepley's rooms were located," Prale said. "I
+didn't know the pen was missing until this minute----"
+
+"Possibly not," replied the captain of detectives.
+
+"And I am quite sure I do not know how it came to be beside the body,
+but of one thing I am certain--I did not drop it there."
+
+"Naturally, you would say that."
+
+"And where is the motive?" Prale demanded. "Suppose you tell me what you
+have against me, and then I'll proceed to tear your shabby evidence to
+pieces."
+
+"We have this particular case so well in hand that I can afford to do
+that," the captain said. "Attend me closely and you'll see the futility
+of denying your guilt."
+
+"I am waiting to hear the evidence," Prale said.
+
+"Very well. In the first place, you have recently spent some years in
+Central America."
+
+"Ten years in Honduras," said Prale.
+
+"You made a fortune down there. We have communicated with the
+authorities there and have learned many things about you. We have
+learned that you have a hot temper and know how to handle men. You have
+been known to beat natives terribly----"
+
+"Rot! I was kinder than nine out of ten men of affairs. I have punished
+a few natives caught stealing, for instance."
+
+"Recently, Mr. Prale, you cashed in on all your properties down there
+and announced that you were about to leave the country."
+
+"That is correct," said Prale. "I made the million I went down there to
+make. Honduras is all right in some ways, but a man likes to live with
+his own kind. My home was in New York, and so, naturally, I decided to
+return here."
+
+"Did you not tell some of your friends and acquaintances, before you
+left, that you were returning to New York for a certain purpose."
+
+"I suppose that I did. My purpose was no secret. I had my pile and
+wanted to enjoy life a bit and perhaps I wanted to show off a bit, too.
+That was only natural, I suppose. I am proud of my success."
+
+"Did you not hint that the purpose was something sinister--that you were
+going to have revenge, or something like that?"
+
+"Certainly not."
+
+"Very well; let us get on," said the captain of detectives. "You say
+that you first met Rufus Shepley aboard the _Manatee_?"
+
+"Never saw him in my life until I met him in the smoking room on the
+ship, and never had heard his name before."
+
+"That is peculiar. Mr. Shepley was a man of large affairs."
+
+"But I had been in Honduras for ten years, out of touch with men of
+affairs in the United States," Prale replied. "I did the most of my
+business with firms in South America."
+
+"Just how did you happen to meet Mr. Shepley?"
+
+"In the smoking room. We spoke, as passengers are liable to speak to
+each other on a boat or a train. We talked of ordinary things and
+exchanged cards."
+
+"Did you happen to _play_ cards?"
+
+"One evening, for a short time. But the game did not amount to anything,
+and we quit early. Are you trying to insinuate that I killed the man as
+the outcome of a gambling quarrel?"
+
+"Nothing of the sort," said the captain, "Let us get on. You had no
+trouble with Mr. Shepley on the ship--no trouble of any sort?"
+
+"Not the slightest. We parted good friends just before the ship docked.
+I went to my stateroom for my things and I suppose that he did the
+same."
+
+"When did you see him next?" the captain asked.
+
+"Last evening, in the lobby of a hotel on Broadway," said Prale.
+
+"What happened then?"
+
+"Ah, I see where you are trying to get the motive," Prale said. "But I
+think that you will agree with me, before we are done, that it is a slim
+thing upon which to hang a serious charge of murder. I saw Mr. Shepley
+sitting in the lobby and went up and spoke to him. We had been friendly
+on the ship, I was feeling lonesome, and was glad to find somebody with
+whom I could talk. Besides, he had expressed a desire to see me again."
+
+"Well, what happened?"
+
+"Something I am at a loss to understand. He berated me for daring to
+address him. He acted like a maniac. I rebuked him for his manner, and
+the hotel detective advised us to leave the place until we cooled off,
+or something like that."
+
+"Who left first?" the captain asked.
+
+"I did. I was angry because there was a crowd around and I hated the
+scene that had been caused. I went through the main entrance and stepped
+to the curb."
+
+"Shepley follow you?"
+
+"Almost immediately."
+
+"And you went up to him and threatened him, didn't you?"
+
+Prale thought a moment. "I told him that I didn't know why he had
+insulted me, but I didn't want him to do it again."
+
+"What else?" the captain demanded.
+
+"I believe I said that I ought to settle with him for what he had said
+already."
+
+"And then----"
+
+"And then I went on down the street. The hotel detective, I think, heard
+me speak to Mr. Shepley."
+
+"Yes, I know that he did," said the captain. "And the hotel detective
+also says that you were white with anger, and that you went off down
+Broadway like a man with murder in his mind. Do you care to say anything
+more?"
+
+"Of course," said Prale. "I went down to Madison Square, and there I sat
+down on a bench."
+
+"Meet anybody there?"
+
+"I did. I met an old friend, Jim Farland, who used to be on your
+detective force, and who now runs a private agency."
+
+"I know Farland well, and I'll send for him."
+
+"I talked with Jim for some time," Prale went on. "I told him, I
+believe, that I seemed to have enemies working in the dark. I told him
+about the scene with Shepley."
+
+"Um! What did Farland have to say?"
+
+"Nothing, except that he couldn't understand why Shepley had acted so.
+We talked the matter over for a while and then we separated."
+
+"Very well. And where did you go next?"
+
+"I walked up Fifth Avenue," said Prale. "It was after nine o'clock by
+that time."
+
+"Go straight to your hotel?"
+
+"I did not," Prale said.
+
+"Care to tell me where you went and what you did?"
+
+"I have no objections. I walked up the Avenue, and met my cousin, George
+Lerton, the broker."
+
+"Meet him accidentally?"
+
+"He overtook me--called to me."
+
+"How long did you talk to him?"
+
+"For only a few minutes," said Prale. "You must understand that, while
+George Lerton is my cousin, we are not exceptionally friendly, and never
+have been. We worked for the same firm ten years ago, and after I went
+to Honduras, George made some money and got into business for himself;
+at least he told me so last night."
+
+"So you merely shook hands and renewed your acquaintance?" the captain
+asked.
+
+"There was something peculiar about the meeting," Prale replied.
+
+"In what way?"
+
+"Lerton urged me to leave New York and remain away. He said that I had
+powerful enemies."
+
+"What about that?"
+
+"It is what has been puzzling me. So far as I know, I haven't a powerful
+enemy on earth. I suppose I have a few business foes in Central America;
+a man can't make a million without acquiring some enemies at the same
+time. But I don't know of a single influential person who is my enemy."
+
+"Didn't Lerton explain to you?"
+
+"He refused to do so," said Prale, "and I told him to go his way and
+that I'd go mine."
+
+"Doesn't that story seem a bit weak to you, Mr. Prale?"
+
+"It may, but it is a true story. Get Lerton and question him if you
+wish. I couldn't make him talk--maybe you can. I'd like to know the
+names of these enemies of mine, if I really have them."
+
+"Anything else lead you to believe you might have enemies?"
+
+"Yes. I have received several anonymous notes, some on board ship and
+some since landing, that say something about retribution about to be
+visited upon me."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"I don't know, captain. I never did anything in my life to merit such
+retribution. I am sure of that."
+
+"What time was it when you parted from Lerton?"
+
+"It must have been about nine thirty or a quarter to ten."
+
+"Go to your hotel then?"
+
+"No; I turned east and went to the river."
+
+"Wasn't that a peculiar thing to do at that hour of the night?"
+
+"It may seem so to you," said Prale, "and I scarcely can tell why I did
+it. I suppose it was because I wanted to think over what George Lerton
+had told me, and down in Honduras I always used to walk along the beach
+when I was thinking."
+
+"Well?"
+
+"I went out on a dock and sat down in the darkness to think."
+
+"How long did you remain there?"
+
+"For more than half an hour; and I had an experience. Another man came
+on the dock. He was going to jump into the river, but I convinced him
+that suicide was folly, and said I'd give him a job."
+
+"Did you?"
+
+"I did," said Prale. "I took him downtown and bought him some clothes,
+and then took him to a barber shop, and afterward to the hotel. I
+registered him as my valet. I call him Murk. I can prove by him that I
+could not have killed Rufus Shepley about eleven o'clock, because I was
+in Murk's company at that time."
+
+"What time did you get back to your hotel with him?"
+
+"It was a few minutes of midnight. We spent considerable time buying the
+clothes and visiting the barber shop."
+
+"Um!" the captain said. "We'll have to question a few of these people.
+It seems peculiar to me that a millionaire would pick up a tramp and
+turn him into a trusted servant."
+
+"Perhaps it was peculiar. I can read men, I believe, and I decided that
+Murk needed only a chance, and he would make good. He was broke and
+friendless, and I was a millionaire and almost as friendless. That's the
+only way I can explain it."
+
+"I'm going to send you to another office under guard, Mr. Prale," the
+captain said. "I'll have these people here in a short time, and we'll
+question them. Just tell me where you bought the clothes for this man,
+and what barber shop you visited."
+
+Sidney Prale did so, and the captain of detectives made notes regarding
+the addresses.
+
+"That will be all for the present, Mr. Prale," he said. "I don't want to
+cause any innocent man annoyance, but I can tell you this much--things
+look very bad for you!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+LIES AND LIARS
+
+
+Sidney Prale waited in an adjoining office, a detective sitting in one
+corner of it and watching him closely. It was almost a prison room, for
+there were steel bars at the windows, and only the one door. Prale
+walked to one of the windows and looked down at the street, his arms
+folded across his breast, trying to think it out.
+
+The finding of that fountain pen in the room beside Rufus Shepley's body
+was what puzzled and bothered him the most. How on earth could it have
+come there? He tried to remember when he had used it last, when he had
+last seen it. All that he could recall was that, the afternoon before,
+he had used it to write a note in a memorandum book. How and where had
+he lost it, and how had it come into Shepley's suite? Had he dropped it
+in the hotel lobby during his short quarrel with Shepley, while he was
+shaking the man? Had Shepley picked it up later and carried it home with
+him? Prale did not think Shepley would have done that under the
+circumstances.
+
+Well, he'd be at liberty soon enough, he told himself. It was natural
+for the police to learn of his quarrel with Shepley and to make an
+arrest on the strength of that and of finding the fountain pen. His
+alibi was perfect; they soon would know that he could not have committed
+the crime.
+
+It was almost an hour later when he was taken back into the other room
+again. Prale had spent the time standing before the window, smoking and
+trying to think things out. The captain of detectives was before his
+desk when Prale was ushered into the office.
+
+"I've been investigating your story, Mr. Prale," the captain said,
+looking at him peculiarly. "It always has been a mystery to me why a man
+keen in business and supposed to possess brains goes to pieces when he
+commits a crime and tells a tale that is full of holes."
+
+"I beg your pardon!" Prale said.
+
+"Sit down, Mr. Prale, over there--and I'll have some of the witnesses
+in. I have not questioned them yet, but my men have, and have reported
+to me what they said. They have discovered several other things, too."
+
+"I'm not afraid of anything they may have discovered," Prale told the
+captain.
+
+"Last night, you told Jim Farland that you had had trouble with a bank,
+and at the hotel where you first registered after you came ashore, did
+you not?"
+
+"Yes; don't those things bear out my statement about the powerful
+enemies?"
+
+"We'll see presently," the captain said.
+
+He spoke to the sergeant in attendance, who immediately left the room,
+and presently returned with the president of the trust company. He
+looked at Prale with interest, and took the chair the captain
+designated.
+
+"You know this man?" the captain asked.
+
+"I do," said the banker. "He is Sidney Prale."
+
+"Ever have any business with him?"
+
+"Mr. Prale transferred a fortune to our institution from Honduras," the
+banker said. "Yesterday he called at the bank, satisfied me as to his
+identity, and made arrangements concerning the money."
+
+"Mr. Prale has said that, for some reason unknown to him, you told him
+you did not care to handle his business and didn't want his deposit,"
+the captain said.
+
+"I scarcely think that was the way of it," the banker replied. "We would
+have been glad to take care of the deposit, which was practically one
+million dollars. But Mr. Prale told me he had other plans and that he
+would remove the deposit during the day, which he did."
+
+Sidney Prale sat up straight in his chair. "Didn't you tell me that you
+didn't want anything to do with me and my money?" he demanded.
+
+"Certainly not," lied the banker. "You said that you wished to put your
+funds in other institutions."
+
+Prale gasped at the man's statement. It was a bare-faced lie if one ever
+had been spoken.
+
+"Why----" Prale began.
+
+"I do not care to discuss the matter further," the banker interrupted.
+"I am a man of standing and cannot afford to be mixed up in a case of
+this sort."
+
+"You'll not be mixed up in it," the captain said. "I just wanted to show
+Mr. Prale that there were some holes in his story. That is all, thank
+you!"
+
+The banker left the room quickly, and Prale sprang to his feet, his face
+livid.
+
+"That man lied!" he exclaimed. "You could read it in his face! I don't
+know why he lied, but he did!"
+
+"Sit down, Mr. Prale, and let's have more witnesses in," the captain
+said.
+
+Once more he spoke to the sergeant, and again the latter went out, this
+time to return with the manager of the first hotel at which Prale
+registered.
+
+"Know this man?" the captain asked.
+
+"He registered at my place as Sidney Prale, of Honduras."
+
+"Well, what about it?"
+
+"We furnished him with a suite on the fifth floor," the hotel manager
+said. "But he gave it up."
+
+"Gave it up!" Prale cried. "Why, you called me into your office and told
+me to get out, that the suite has been reserved and that there was none
+vacant in the house. The bell boy can testify that he called me into the
+office."
+
+"Certainly he called you into my office, and at my request," the manager
+said. "I wanted to know why you were leaving, whether any of the
+employees had treated you with discourtesy. You told me that you had
+been served poorly in the dining room the evening before, and that you
+were done with the hotel!"
+
+Prale sprang to his feet. "That's a lie, and you know it!" he cried.
+
+"Captain," said the hotel man, "do I have to sit here and be insulted by
+a man charged with a heinous crime?"
+
+"That will be all, thank you," the captain said.
+
+The hotel manager hurried from the room, and the captain grinned at
+Prale.
+
+"So he lied, too, did he?" the captain asked.
+
+"He did!" Prale cried.
+
+"There seems to be an epidemic of falsehood, to hear you tell it.
+However, let us get on with the affair."
+
+Once more he instructed the sergeant, and this time the man brought in
+the hotel detective who had witnessed the trouble between Prale and
+Shepley.
+
+The hotel detective told the story much as Prale himself had told it,
+except that he made it appear that Prale had threatened Rufus Shepley on
+the walk in front of the hotel before they separated.
+
+"Did you pick up a fountain pen of mine after I had gone?" Prale asked.
+
+"I did not."
+
+"See anybody else pick it up?"
+
+"No, sir," said the hotel detective; and he went out of the room.
+
+The sergeant next ushered in George Lerton. Prale sat up straight in his
+chair again. Here was where his proper alibi began, with the exception
+of Jim Farland. George Lerton's face was pale as he sat down at the end
+of the desk.
+
+"Know this man?" the captain asked.
+
+"He is my cousin, Sidney Prale."
+
+"How long has he been away from New York?"
+
+"About ten years," Lerton said. "He returned day before yesterday, I
+believe. I saw his name in the passenger list."
+
+"Mr. Prale says that he met you last night on Fifth Avenue, and that you
+told him he had some powerful enemies seeking to cause him trouble, and
+advised him to leave New York and remain away."
+
+"Why--why this is not so!" Lerton cried. "I haven't seen him until this
+moment. I would have looked him up, but did not know at what hotel he
+was stopping, and thought that he'd try to find me."
+
+Prale was out of his chair again, his face flaming. "You mean to sit
+there and tell me that you didn't talk to me on Fifth Avenue last
+night?" he cried.
+
+"Why, of course I never talked to you, Sid. I never saw you. What are
+you trying to do, Sid? Why have you done this thing? We never were close
+to each other, and yet we are cousins, and I hate to see you in
+trouble."
+
+"Stop your hypocritical sniveling!" Prale cried. "You are lying and you
+know it! You saw me last night----"
+
+"But I didn't!"
+
+"You did--and tried to get me to run away, and wouldn't tell me your
+reason for it."
+
+George Lerton licked at his lips and looked appealingly at the captain
+of detectives.
+
+"I--I am a man of standing," he whimpered. "I am a broker--here is my
+card. This man is my cousin, but I cannot lie to shield him. I never saw
+him last night, and did not speak to him."
+
+Lerton got up and started for the door, and Sidney Prale did not make a
+move to stop him.
+
+"It appears that your story is full of flaws," the captain said. "A
+little of it is true, however; you did meet Jim Farland and talk to him
+in Madison Square, and remained for the length of time you said. Jim has
+told me that much. But he does not know where you went and what you did
+after leaving him. What we are interested in is what you did in the
+neighborhood of eleven o'clock last night. That is when Rufus Shepley
+was killed. And now we'll have in that new valet of yours."
+
+There was a snarl on Murk's face as he came into the room and sat down
+in the chair at the end of the desk. Murk did not like policemen and
+detectives, and did not care whether they knew of his dislike. He
+flashed a glance at Sidney Prale and then faced the captain.
+
+"Well, what is it?" he asked.
+
+"Tell us where and how you met Mr. Prale first, what happened, and bring
+the story right up to date," the captain commanded.
+
+"Well, I went down to the river to jump in," Murk said, as if stating a
+simple fact. "I was tired of fightin' to live and had decided to end it
+all. Mr. Prale grabbed me and hauled me back, and then he made me see
+that suicide was foolish. He offered me a job, and I agreed to take it.
+He was the first man who had treated me decent since I----"
+
+"Never mind that; get down to cases."
+
+"Well, we walked up the street and got a taxicab and drove downtown, and
+Mr. Prale bought me some clothes."
+
+"What time was it when you met him?"
+
+"I guess it was about ten o'clock. We bought the clothes, as I said, and
+then we went to a barber shop, and I got a hair cut and a shave. After
+that we went to Mr. Prale's hotel and up to his rooms. We got to bed
+pretty quick."
+
+"What time did you reach the hotel?"
+
+"About midnight."
+
+"What happened after you went to bed?"
+
+"Went to sleep," said Murk.
+
+"Never mind the jokes," the captain rebuked sternly.
+
+"Well, I stayed awake about an hour or so thinking how lucky I was, and
+then I went to sleep. I woke up early in the mornin' and got up and
+dressed. Mr. Prale got up later, and we ate breakfast in the suite. Then
+the cops came. One of them took Mr. Prale away, and he told me to stay
+in the rooms until sent for. The other cop rummaged around the rooms and
+then left."
+
+Prale bent forward. "There is one man who can speak the truth," he told
+the captain. "His story corresponds with the one I told you, doesn't it?
+And doesn't it show that I could not have murdered Rufus Shepley at
+eleven o'clock last night?"
+
+"The story is all right, and it certainly corresponds with yours,"
+replied the captain. "Just a minute!" He faced Murk again. "Who are you
+and where did you come from?" he demanded.
+
+"I ain't anybody in particular. I've been hangin' around town a couple
+of months doin' odd jobs. Before that I was bummin' around the country
+workin' whenever I got a chance."
+
+"You felt grateful to Mr. Prale for giving you a job and a home, didn't
+you?"
+
+"Sure!" said Murk. "He talked to me decent, like I was a man instead of
+a dog."
+
+"Well, you don't seem to have much standing in the world," the captain
+said. "Your word, against that of several prominent citizens, does not
+carry much weight. You must see that. And there happens to be something
+else, too. I had the clothing merchant and the barber you mentioned look
+you over while you were in the other room. The clothing merchant says he
+sold some clothes a couple of days ago, the ones you are wearing now,
+but that he certainly did not sell them last night, and the barber
+swears that he never saw you before!"
+
+"Why, the dirty liars!" Murk cried.
+
+"Did they say that?" Prale demanded.
+
+"They did," the captain replied. "And they said it in such a way that I
+believe them. Prale, your alibi is shot full of holes. You told the
+truth about meeting Jim Farland, and that much is in your favor. Aside
+from that, we have only the testimony of a tramp you said you picked up
+and gave a job. You had plenty of time to kill Rufus Shepley. You had
+ample time to concoct the story and get this man to learn it, so he
+could tell it and match yours. You are worth a million dollars, and this
+man probably was ready to lie a little for a wad of money."
+
+"He tells the truth----"
+
+"It's too thin, Prale! And don't forget the fountain pen that was found
+beside Shepley's body, either! As for you Murk, or whatever your right
+name is, you are under suspicion yourself."
+
+"What's that?" Murk snarled.
+
+"You are under suspicion, I said. You might have assisted at the murder,
+for all I know. I don't know when you met Mr. Prale, or where, but I do
+know that you got back to the hotel with Mr. Prale about midnight--an
+hour after the crime was committed."
+
+"You can't hang anything like that on me!" Murk snarled. "All the cops
+in the world can't do it! I met Mr. Prale just like I said, and he
+bought me the clothes and took me to the barber shop, no matter what the
+store man and the barber say! It's a black lie they're tellin'! Mr.
+Prale is a gentleman----"
+
+"That'll be enough!" the captain exclaimed. "I'm going to allow you to
+go, Murk, but you are to remain in Mr. Prale's rooms and take care of
+his things. And you can bet that you'll be watched, too."
+
+"I don't care who watches me!"
+
+"As for you, Mr. Prale, you'll have to go to a cell, I think. The
+evidence against you is such that I cannot turn you loose. You must
+realize that yourself."
+
+Prale realized it. His face was white and his hands were shaking. He
+looked across the room at Murk.
+
+"You go back to the hotel, Murk, and do as the captain says," he
+ordered. "I'll come out of this all right in time. There are a lot of
+things I cannot understand, but we'll solve the puzzle before we're
+done."
+
+"Ain't there anything I can do, sir?" Murk asked.
+
+"Perhaps, later. I'll engage a detective and a lawyer, and they may
+visit you at the hotel. I'll send you money by the lawyer. That's all
+now, Murk."
+
+Murk started to speak, then thought better of it and went from the room
+slowly, anger flushing his face. Sidney Prale faced the captain of
+detectives again.
+
+"No matter what you think, I am innocent, and know that my innocence can
+be proved," Prale said. "You are only doing your duty, of course. I want
+Jim Farland to attend to things for me. He is an old friend of mine and
+he is an honest man. Will you send for him?"
+
+"He's waiting in the other room now," the captain said. "I'll let you
+have a conference with him before I order you into a cell!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+PUZZLED
+
+
+Once more Prale was taken to the room in which he had first waited--the
+room with the barred windows. This time the watching detective was
+missing. When Jim Farland entered, he found Prale pacing back and forth
+from one corner to the other. He was trying to think out his problem,
+wondering what it all meant, why the witnesses had lied, and what would
+be the outcome.
+
+Farland rushed into the room, grasped Prale by the hand, led him across
+from the door, and forced him into a chair. This done, the loyal
+detective sat down facing him.
+
+"Now let us have it from beginning to end!" Farland commanded. "I don't
+want you to leave out a thing. I want to get to the bottom of this as
+soon as possible."
+
+Sidney Prale started at the beginning and talked rapidly, setting forth
+all the facts, while Jim Farland sat back in his chair and watched him.
+Now and then he frowned as if displeased at the recital.
+
+"Well, there is something rotten," he said, when Prale had concluded his
+statement. "I want you to know, Sid, that I believe you. You're not the
+sort of man to kill a fellow like Rufus Shepley over a little spat. I
+believe your story about this Murk, too. But why should everybody have
+it in for you?"
+
+"I haven't the slightest idea," Prale answered. "I must, indeed, have
+some powerful enemies, but I cannot imagine who they are, and I know of
+no reason why they should be against me. I'm simply up in the air."
+
+"You keep right on trying to figure it out," Farland advised him. "You
+might think of something in time that will give me a start in my work."
+
+"Why did the banker and hotel manager lie?" Prale asked. "Why did the
+clothing-store man and the barber lie? Why did George Lerton declare
+that he did not see me and speak to me last night? And how did my
+fountain pen get into Shepley's room?"
+
+"Huh! When we know a few of those things, we'll know enough to wipe this
+charge away from your name," Jim Farland told him. "It's my job to
+answer those little questions for you. And now--you want a lawyer, I
+suppose?"
+
+"Yes. Can you suggest one?"
+
+"The greatest criminal lawyer in town is named Coadley. I'll send him
+right up here after I explain about this case to him. Thank Heaven, you
+have plenty of money! A poor man in a fix like this would be on his way
+to the electric chair. Coadley can fix you up, if anybody can. He can
+make a sinner look like a saint."
+
+"But I'm not guilty!"
+
+"I understand that, Sid, but it doesn't hurt an innocent man to have the
+best attorney he can get. I'll send you Coadley. Give me a note to that
+fellow Murk, for I may want him to help me. Sure he's loyal to you?"
+
+"I never saw him until last night, but I'd bank on him," said Prale.
+"He'll stand by us!"
+
+"Fair enough! You write that note right now, and try to get out on bail.
+Tell Coadley to get busy on that right away. Get out under police
+supervision, under guard--any way--but get out!"
+
+Jim Farland hurried away, and Sidney Prale was conducted through dark
+corridors to a cell, where he had the experience of hearing a door clang
+shut behind him and the bolts shot. Prale never had expected to get into
+jail when he was worth a million dollars, and most certainly he never
+had expected to face a charge of murder.
+
+He was allowed to send out for some luncheon, and it was more than an
+hour before Coadley, the attorney, arrived. Prale was taken into the
+consultation room.
+
+He liked Coadley, and he liked the way in which Coadley regarded him
+before he spoke.
+
+"I believe that you are innocent," the lawyer said.
+
+"The job will be to make other people think that way," Prale said, with
+a laugh. The attorney's words had been like a ray of hope to him. "Did
+Jim Farland tell you the story?"
+
+"Yes. I'll try to get you out on bail, or get you out in some manner,"
+Coadley said. "This appears to be a peculiar case. It is not only the
+charge of murder; it is the fact that several men told falsehoods about
+you. You haven't an idea who your enemies are?"
+
+"Not the slightest."
+
+"I'm glad that Jim Farland is working on this case for you, Mr. Prale.
+He is a good man, and I may need a lot of help. I'll get my own
+investigators busy right away, too, and we'll cooeperate with Jim
+Farland. You go back to your cell and take it easy. I'll get you out
+before night, if I can."
+
+Lawyer Coadley was a shrewd man, and his methods were the delight of
+other attorneys and jurists. He lost no time when he was confronted with
+a case that held unusual interest. Within an hour he was in court,
+acting as if fighting mad.
+
+Had a reputable citizen any rights, he demanded? Were the police to be
+allowed to throw an innocent man into jail simply because there had been
+a crime committed and somebody had to be accused? His client did not
+care for an examination at this time, he said. Arraignment and a plea of
+not guilty were all right, however.
+
+Sidney Prale was arraigned, and the plea of not guilty was made and
+entered. Then Coadley began his fight to have Prale admitted to bail.
+
+The district attorney opposed it, of course, since that was his
+business. The judge listened to the statement of the captain of
+detectives. He heard Coadley say that his client could put up cash bail
+in any amount, and was willing to abide by any provisions. Finally the
+judge freed Prale on cash bail of fifty thousand dollars, but designated
+that the bail could be recalled at any time, and that he was to be in
+the custody of a member of the police department continually.
+
+Coadley agreed, and left the jail with his client, a detective going
+with them to stand guard. The detective had explicit orders. He was not
+to annoy Sidney Prale. He was to withdraw out of earshot when Prale
+talked with his attorney or anybody else with whom he wished to converse
+privately. He was to allow Prale to come and go as he wished, except
+that Prale was not to be allowed to leave the limits of the city. If he
+attempted that, he was to be put under arrest immediately and taken to
+the nearest police station.
+
+Prale read the newspapers as he rode to the hotel with Coadley and the
+detective. The story of the crime was in all of them, the tale of his
+quarrel with Rufus Shepley and of the finding of the fountain pen, and
+the inevitable statement that the police were on the track of more and
+better evidence.
+
+Prale expected to be ordered out of the hotel, but he was not, the
+management stipulating only that he should not use the public dining
+room. He went up to the suite, to find Murk there, sitting in front of a
+window and glaring down at the street.
+
+A cot was moved in for the use of the detective. Coadley held another
+conference with Prale, and then left to get busy on the case. Murk
+regarded the detective with scorn, until Prale explained the situation
+to him. After that, there was a sort of armed neutrality between them.
+Murk had no special liking for detectives, and he was the sort of man
+detectives do not like.
+
+Presently Jim Farland arrived.
+
+"Well, Sid, Coadley got you out of jail and home before I could get
+here, did he?" Farland said. "I suppose I'll not need that note of yours
+now. Is this Mr. Murk?"
+
+"It is," Prale said. "Murk, meet Jim Farland. He's a detective friend of
+mine."
+
+"Gosh, Mr. Prale, ain't there anybody but cops in this town?" Murk
+asked.
+
+"Jim is a private cop, and he has a job now to get me out of this
+scrape," said Prale. "He's a friend of mine, I said."
+
+"I guess that makes it different," was Murk's only comment.
+
+"Oh, we'll get along all right," Farland put in. "I'm going to need you
+in my business, Murk. I've told the folks at police headquarters that
+I'd be responsible for you, so we can work together without being
+pestered. Understand?"
+
+Murk grinned at him. "You just show me how to help get Mr. Prale out of
+this mess, and I'll sure help," he said.
+
+Farland turned toward the police detective. "Go out into the hall and
+take a walk," he suggested. "Mr. Prale will give you a couple of
+cigars."
+
+The detective took the cigars and went out into the hall, smiling. He
+had no fear of Sidney Prale slipping down a fire escape, or anything
+like that. Jim Farland was responsible, and Jim Farland was known to the
+force as a man who felt his responsibilities.
+
+"Now we'll get busy and dig to the bottom of this mess," Farland said.
+"Been thinking it over, Sid? Know any reason why anybody should be out
+after you?"
+
+"I can't think of a thing," Prale replied. "I suppose I made a few
+business enemies down in Honduras, but none powerful enough to cause me
+all this trouble. I can't understand it, Jim. It must be something big
+to cause all those men to lie as they did."
+
+"Maybe it is, and maybe it is very simple when we get right down to it,"
+Farland said. "I've started right in to work it out. Let me see those
+notes and messages you received."
+
+Prale got them from the dresser drawer and handed them to Farland. The
+detective looked them over, even going as far as to use a magnifying
+glass.
+
+"Don't laugh!" Farland said. "A lot of folks make fun of the fiction
+detective who goes around with a magnifying glass in one hand, but,
+believe me, a good glass shows up a lot of things. It isn't showing up
+anything here, though. Where do you suppose these things came from?"
+
+"I don't know," said Prale.
+
+"Got the first one on the ship, did you?"
+
+"The first two. One was pinned to the pillow in my stateroom, and the
+second was pasted on the end of my suit case as I was landing. The
+mucilage was still wet."
+
+"Didn't suspect anybody?"
+
+"I didn't think much about it at first," said Prale. "I thought it was a
+joke, or that somebody was making a mistake."
+
+"Sid, have you told me everything?"
+
+Prale remembered Kate Gilbert and flushed.
+
+"I see that you haven't," Farland said. "Out with it! Some little thing
+may give me the start I am looking for."
+
+Prale told about Kate Gilbert, about the piece of paper she had dropped
+as she got into the limousine, about the peculiar way she acted toward
+him, and the attitude of Marie, the misnamed maid.
+
+"Um!" Farland grunted. "We had one thing lacking in this case--and we
+have that. The woman!"
+
+"But I only met her down there and danced with her twice."
+
+"Don't know anything about her, I suppose?"
+
+"Not a thing. It was understood that she belonged to a wealthy New York
+family and was traveling for the benefit of her health. At least, that
+was the rumor."
+
+"I know of a lot of wealthy families in this town, but I never heard of
+a Kate Gilbert," Farland said. "I think I'll make a little
+investigation."
+
+"But why on earth should she be taking a hand in my affairs?" Prale
+wanted to know.
+
+"Why should you be accused of murder? Why should men tell lies about
+you?" Farland asked. "Excuse me for a time; I'm going down to the hotel
+office to find out a few things."
+
+Farland hurried away, and the police detective entered the suite again
+and made himself comfortable. Jim Farland went directly to the office of
+the hotel and looked at a city directory. He found no Kate Gilbert
+listed, except a seamstress who resided in Brooklyn. The telephone
+directory gave him no help.
+
+But that was not conclusive, of course. A thousand Kate Gilberts might
+be living in New York, in apartments or at hotels, without having a
+private telephone.
+
+"Have to get a line on that girl!" Farland told himself. "She's got
+something to do with this. I'll bet my reputation on it."
+
+Jim Farland went to the smoking room and sat down in a corner. He tried
+to think it out, groped for a starting point. He considered all the
+persons connected with the case, one at a time.
+
+Farland knew that Sidney Prale had told the truth. Why, then, had George
+Lerton told a falsehood about meeting Prale and talking to him, when the
+truth would have helped to establish an alibi? Why had the clothing
+merchant and the barber lied?
+
+"I suppose I'll have to use stern methods," Farland told himself. "Old
+police stuff, I suppose. Well, I'm the man that can do it, take it from
+me!"
+
+He went up to Prale's suite again.
+
+"Can't find out anything about that woman," he reported. "And I want to
+get in touch with her. Keep your eyes peeled for her, Sid, and arrange
+for me to catch sight of her, if you can. Now you'd better take a little
+rest. You've been through an experience to-day. I'm going out to get
+busy, and I'm going to take Murk with me."
+
+"What for?" Murk demanded.
+
+"You're going to help me, old boy."
+
+"Me work with a cop?" Murk exclaimed.
+
+"To help Mr. Prale."
+
+"Well, that's different," Murk said. "Wait until I get my hat."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+ON THE TRAIL
+
+
+Farland engaged a taxicab, bade Murk get into it, got in himself, and
+they started downtown. The detective leaned back against the cushions
+and regarded Murk closely. He knew that Sidney Prale had guessed
+correctly, that Murk was the sort of man who would prove loyal to a
+friend.
+
+"This is a bad business," Farland said.
+
+"It's tough," said Murk.
+
+"If it was anybody but Sid Prale, I'd say he was guilty. It sure looks
+bad. And there is that fountain pen!"
+
+"Somebody's tryin' to do him dirt," Murk said.
+
+"There's no question about that, Murk, old boy. Well, we are going to
+get him out of it, aren't we?"
+
+"I'll do anything I can."
+
+"Like him, do you?"
+
+"Met him less than twenty-four hours ago, but I wish I'd met him or
+somebody like him ten years ago," Murk replied. "If it hadn't been for
+Mr. Prale, I'd be a stiff up in the morgue this minute."
+
+"Strong for him, are you?"
+
+"Yes, sir, I am!"
+
+"Um!" said Jim Farland. "We're going to get along fine together. I was
+strong for Sid Prale ten years ago, before he went away. And I'll bet
+that, when we get to the bottom of this, we'll find something mighty
+interesting."
+
+The taxicab stopped at a corner, and Farland and Murk got out. Farland
+paid the chauffeur and watched him drive away, and then he led Murk
+around the corner.
+
+"Know where you are?" he asked.
+
+"Sure. Right over there is the little shop where Mr. Prale bought me my
+new clothes," Murk said.
+
+"Fine! That goes to show that Prale told the truth. Well, Murk, you
+stand right here by the curb and watch the front door of that shop. And
+when you see me beckon to you, you come running."
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+Jim Farland hurried across the street, opened the door of the little
+shop, and entered. The proprietor came from the rear room when he heard
+the door slammed.
+
+He knew Jim Farland and had known him for years. There were few
+old-timers in that section of the city who did not know Jim Farland. The
+man who faced the detective now was small, stoop-shouldered, a sort of a
+rat of a man who had considerably more money to his credit than his
+appearance indicated, and who was not eager to have the world in general
+know how he had acquired some of it.
+
+"Evenin', Mr. Farland," he said. "Anything I can do for you, sir?"
+
+"Maybe you can and maybe you can't," Farland told him. "You been
+behaving yourself lately?"
+
+"What do you mean, Mr. Farland? I've been trying to get along, but
+business ain't been any too good the last year."
+
+"Save that song for somebody who doesn't know better!" Farland advised
+him. "Change the record when you play me a tune."
+
+"Yes, sir. Is there anything I can do for you, Mr. Farland?"
+
+"Remember a little deal a couple of years ago?" Farland demanded
+suddenly.
+
+"I--I----"
+
+"I see that you do. One little word from me in the proper quarter, old
+man, and you'll be doing time. You've sailed pretty close to the edge of
+the law a lot of times, and once, I know, you slipped over the edge a
+bit."
+
+"I--I hope, sir----"
+
+"You'd better hope that you can keep on the good side of me," Jim
+Farland told him.
+
+"If there is anything I can do, Mr. Farland----"
+
+"Do you suppose you could tell the truth?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"I'm going to give you a chance. If you tell the truth, I may forget
+something I know, for the time being. But, if you shouldn't tell the
+truth--well, my memory is excellent when I want to exercise it."
+
+Farland stepped to the door and beckoned, and Murk hurried across the
+street and entered the shop.
+
+"Ever see this man before?" Farland demanded.
+
+The storekeeper licked his lips, and a sudden gleam came into his eyes.
+
+"I--he seems to look familiar, but I can't say."
+
+"You'd better say!" Farland exclaimed. "I want the truth out of you, or
+something will drop. And when it drops, it is liable to hit you on the
+toes. Get me?"
+
+"I--I don't know what to do," wailed the merchant.
+
+"Tell the truth!"
+
+"But--there is something peculiar about----"
+
+"Out with it! Know this man?"
+
+"I've seen him before," the merchant replied.
+
+"When?"
+
+"La-last night, sir."
+
+"Now we are getting at it!" Jim Farland exclaimed. "When did you see him
+last night, and where, and what happened?"
+
+"He was in the store, Mr. Farland, about half past ten or a quarter of
+eleven o'clock. He--he bought those clothes he's got on."
+
+"Pay for them?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"Who paid for them?" Farland demanded.
+
+"A gentleman who was with him," said the merchant.
+
+"Ah! Know the gentleman?"
+
+"I saw him to-day--at police headquarters."
+
+"And you said that you never had seen him before--that he was not here
+last night with this man. Why did you lie?"
+
+Jim Farland roared the question and smashed a fist down upon the
+counter. The little merchant flinched.
+
+"Out with it!" Farland cried. "Tell the truth, you little crook! I want
+to know why you lied, who told you to lie. I want to know all about it,
+and mighty quick!"
+
+"I--I don't understand this," the merchant whimpered. "I was afraid of
+making a mistake."
+
+"You'll make a mistake right now if you don't tell the truth!" Jim
+Farland told him.
+
+"I--I got a letter, sir, by messenger. I got it early this morning,
+sir."
+
+"Well, what about it?"
+
+"The letter was typewritten, sir, and was not signed. There was a
+thousand dollars in bills in the letter, sir, and it said that a Mr.
+Prale had just been arrested for murder, and that he probably would try
+to make an alibi by saying that he was here last night and bought some
+clothes for another man. The letter said that I was to take the money
+and ask no questions, and that, if I was called to police headquarters,
+I was to say the man had not been here and that I never had seen him in
+my life before."
+
+"And you fell for it? You wanted that thousand, I suppose."
+
+"I'll show you the letter, Mr. Farland. There was no signature at all,
+and the paper was just common paper. I--I thought it was politics, sir."
+
+"You did, eh?"
+
+"Thought it had something to do with politics, sir. I thought the letter
+and money might have come from political headquarters. I was afraid to
+tell the truth at the police station."
+
+"You mean you have been so crooked for years that you're afraid of
+everybody who has a little influence," Farland told him.
+
+"I thought it was orders, sir, from somebody who had better be obeyed."
+
+"Oh, I understand, all right. Well, I scarcely think it was politics.
+You've been played, that's all. Get me that letter!"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+The merchant got it and handed it over, together with the envelope. He
+had told the truth. The letter was typewritten on an ordinary piece of
+paper, and the envelope was of the sort anybody could purchase at a
+corner drug store. Farland put the letter in his pocket.
+
+"Here between ten thirty and a quarter of eleven, was he?"
+
+"Yes, sir," said the merchant.
+
+"All right! You remember that, and don't change your mind again, if you
+know what is good for you. You'll hear from me in the morning. That's
+all!"
+
+Jim Farland went from the store with a grinning Murk at his heels,
+leaving a badly frightened small merchant behind him.
+
+"I know that bird," he told Murk. "He's a fence, or I miss my guess.
+It's no job at all to run a bluff on a small-time crook like that. And
+now we'll run down and see that barber."
+
+They engaged another taxicab and made a trip. Once more Murk remained
+outside, and Jim Farland entered and beckoned the barber to him.
+
+"Step outside the door where nobody will overhear," he said. "I want to
+ask you something."
+
+The barber stepped outside, wondering what was coming. This man knew Jim
+Farland, too, and he knew that a call from him might mean trouble.
+
+"Trying to see how far you can go and keep out of jail?" Farland
+demanded.
+
+"I--I don't know what you mean, sir."
+
+"Trying to run a bluff on me? On me?" Farland gasped. "You'd better talk
+straight. Do you expect to run a barber shop by day and a gambling joint
+by night all your life?"
+
+"Why, I----"
+
+"Don't lie!" Farland interrupted. "I know all about that little back
+room. Maybe I'm not on the city police force now, but you know me! I've
+got a bunch of friends on the force, and if I told a certain sergeant
+about your little game and said that I wanted to have you run in he
+wouldn't hesitate a minute."
+
+"But what have I done, Mr. Farland?" the barber gasped. "I've always
+been friendly to you."
+
+"I know it. But are you going to keep right on being friendly?"
+
+"Of course, sir."
+
+"Willing to help me out in a little matter if I forget about that
+gambling?"
+
+"I'll do the best I can, Mr. Farland."
+
+"Then answer a few questions. Did you get a typewritten letter this
+morning, with a wad of money in it?"
+
+The barber's face turned white.
+
+"Answer me!" Farland commanded.
+
+"Yes, I--I got such a letter and I don't know what to make of it," the
+barber said. "I've got the letter and money in my desk right now. There
+wasn't any signature, and I didn't know where the letter came from, or
+what it meant."
+
+"Then why did you do what the letter told you to do?" Farland asked.
+
+"I--I don't understand."
+
+Farland motioned, and Murk now stepped around the corner.
+
+"Know this man?" Farland demanded.
+
+"I--I've seen him before."
+
+"That letter told you to go to police headquarters, if requested to do
+so, and deny you knew this man, didn't it? It told you not to help a man
+named Sidney Prale, arrested for murder, to make his alibi by telling
+that he was here with this man last night about eleven o'clock, didn't
+it?"
+
+"Y-yes, sir."
+
+"And you did just what the letter told you?"
+
+"I was afraid not to do it, sir. I didn't know where that letter came
+from, you see."
+
+"Had an idea it came from some boss, didn't you?"
+
+"I didn't know and I didn't dare take a chance, Mr. Farland. You know
+how it is?"
+
+"I know how it is with a man who has busted a few laws and knows he
+ought to be pinched!"
+
+"Did I make some sort of a mistake, sir? What should I do now?"
+
+"Something you don't do very often--tell the truth," Jim Farland
+replied. "How about this man?"
+
+"He came here with the other gentleman last night about eleven o'clock,
+sir. He got a hair cut and a shave, and the other gentleman paid the
+bill."
+
+"Thanks. Sure about the time?"
+
+"I know that it was almost a quarter after eleven when they left the
+shop."
+
+"Well, I'm glad you can speak the truth. Get on your hat and coat!"
+
+"I--what do you mean, sir? Am I arrested?"
+
+"No. Get that letter and come with me. I want you to tell the truth to
+somebody else, that's all."
+
+The frightened barber got his hat and coat and the letter, and followed
+Jim Farland and Murk to the corner. There Farland engaged another
+taxicab, and ordered the chauffeur to drive back to the little clothing
+store.
+
+"Running up a nice expense bill for Prale, but he won't care," Jim
+Farland said to Murk.
+
+He compelled the merchant to shut up his shop and get into the cab, and
+then the chauffeur drove to police headquarters. Farland had telephoned
+from the clothing store, and the captain of detectives was waiting for
+him. He ushered the merchant and the barber into the office, looked down
+at the captain, and grinned.
+
+"What's all this?" the captain demanded.
+
+"It's Sid Prale's alibi," Jim Farland said. "These two gents want to
+tell you how they lied to-day, and why they lied. It is an interesting
+story."
+
+The captain sat up straight in his chair, while Jim Farland removed his
+hat, sat down, motioned for Murk to do the same, and made himself
+comfortable.
+
+"About that alibi," Farland said. "I know that George Lerton lied about
+meeting Sid Prale on Fifth Avenue, but you don't, and so we'll let that
+pass for the time being and get to it later. I just want to show you now
+that Prale's story about meeting this man Murk was a true tale. This
+clothing merchant is ready to say now that Prale and Murk were in his
+place last night about half past ten, and that Murk got his clothes
+there. And this barber is ready to swear that Prale and Murk arrived at
+his shop about a quarter of eleven or eleven, and did not leave until a
+quarter after eleven. Prale and Murk got to the hotel, as you know, at
+midnight. Prale couldn't have gone to that other hotel, murdered Rufus
+Shepley, and got to his suite by twelve o'clock, not if he left that
+barber shop far downtown at a quarter after eleven, could he?"
+
+"Scarcely," said the captain.
+
+"Very well. Ask these two gents some questions."
+
+The captain did. He read the two typewritten letters and he understood
+how the fear of a political power might have been in the hearts of the
+two men. He rebuked them and allowed them to go.
+
+"Well, it looks a little better for Mr. Prale," the captain said, "but
+this isn't the end, by any means. Remember that fountain pen of his that
+was found beside the body of Rufus Shepley!"
+
+"I didn't say that it was the end," Jim Farland declared. "I don't want
+it given out that any evidence has been found that is in Prale's favor.
+I just want you to whisper in the ear of the court that the alibi looks
+good, and let it go at that. There's something behind this case, and we
+want to find out what it is. Prale is out on bail--and let it go at
+that, as far as the public is concerned."
+
+"I grasp you," said the captain. "You want these enemies of his to think
+he is in deep water, so they'll be off guard and you can do your work."
+
+"Exactly," said Jim Farland.
+
+"Good enough. I'll do my part."
+
+"Know anything about a woman calling herself Kate Gilbert?"
+
+"Never heard of her."
+
+Farland explained what Prale had told him. The captain fingered his
+mustache.
+
+"Several thousand women in this town answer that general description,"
+he said. "I'm afraid I can't help you, unless you can pick her up."
+
+"That's what I'll do as soon as I can," Farland replied. "If I can get
+my eyes on her once, I'll trail her and find out a few things. She may
+have nothing to do with this, and she may have a great deal to do with
+it. What do you know about George Lerton?"
+
+"Shady broker," the captain replied. "Never done anything outside the
+law, as far as I know, but he's come pretty close to it. I'd hate to
+have him handling my money."
+
+"Well, he lied about meeting Prale. He did his best to get Prale to run
+away from town. That was a couple of hours before the murder, of course,
+so it probably had nothing to do with that. But why should he try to get
+Prale out of town? And, being a man of that sort, why did he say that he
+wouldn't handle Prale's funds? You'd think a man of his sort would like
+nothing better than to get his fingers tangled up in that million."
+
+"I'll have a man take a look at George Lerton."
+
+"Don't strain yourself," said Jim Farland. "I'm going to take a look at
+him myself, the first thing to-morrow morning."
+
+He left headquarters with Murk, and this time he did not engage a
+taxicab. He walked up the street, Murk at his side, and puffed at a
+cigar furiously.
+
+"Well, Murk, we've made a good start," Farland said, after a time.
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"How do you like working with a detective now?"
+
+"Aw, you ain't a regular detective," Murk said.
+
+"What's that?"
+
+"I mean you ain't an ordinary dick. You got some sense."
+
+"Thanks for the compliment. I know men who would dispute the statement,"
+Farland told him.
+
+They walked and walked, and after a time were on Fifth Avenue and going
+toward the hotel where Prale had his suite. Suddenly, just ahead of
+them, they saw Sidney Prale and the man from headquarters. They hurried
+to catch up with them.
+
+"What's the idea?" Farland asked.
+
+"Needed a walk," Prale replied. "Didn't feel like going to bed, and a
+walk would do me good, I knew."
+
+"I'll have some things to tell you in the morning," Farland said. "But
+I'm not going to tell you to-night, except to say that it is good news,
+and I'm issuing orders to Murk not to tell you, either. I want you to
+forget the thing and get some rest."
+
+"All right," Prale said, laughing; and then he stopped still and gasped.
+
+"What is it?" Farland asked.
+
+"Kate Gilbert!"
+
+"Where?"
+
+"There--just getting into that limousine. See her? The girl with the red
+hat!"
+
+"I see her," Farland replied, signaling the chauffeur of a passing
+taxicab. "This is what I was hoping for, Sid. Go on to the hotel with
+Murk and guard. I'm going to find out a few things about Miss Kate
+Gilbert!"
+
+He gave the chauffeur of the taxicab whispered directions, and then
+sprang into the machine.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+CONCERNING KATE GILBERT
+
+
+Given a definite trail to follow, Jim Farland was one of the best
+trackers in the business. He liked to know his quarry by sight, and
+conduct the hunt in a proper manner. And so he rejoiced, that now he was
+following a person he believed to be interested in some way in the
+Shepley case.
+
+The limousine went up Fifth Avenue toward Central Park, and the taxicab
+with Jim Farland inside followed half a block behind. Farland did
+nothing except look ahead continually and make sure that his chauffeur
+did not lose the other machine. He wanted to discover, first, where Miss
+Kate Gilbert was going, and after that he wanted to acquire all the
+information he could concerning her.
+
+There was little traffic on the Avenue at this hour, and the limousine
+made good progress. It curved around the Circle and went up Central Park
+West. In the Eighties it turned off into a side street, and finally drew
+up to the curb and stopped. The taxicab came to a halt a hundred feet
+behind it. "Wait," Jim Farland instructed the chauffeur, showing his
+shield. "Wait until I come back, even if I don't come back until
+morning. You will get good pay, all right."
+
+The chauffeur settled back behind his wheel, and Farland stepped to one
+side in the darkness and watched. He saw an elderly gentleman emerge
+from the limousine and turn to help Kate Gilbert out. Then the elderly
+gentleman got into the car again and was driven away, and Kate Gilbert
+went into the apartment house before which the limousine had stopped.
+
+Detective Jim Farland hurried forward, but when he came opposite the
+apartment house he slowed down and walked slowly, glancing in. It was
+not an apartment house of the better sort. The lobby was small, there
+was an automatic elevator, and no hall boy was on duty, that Farland
+could see. There was a row of mail boxes against a wall, with name
+plates over them.
+
+Farland went up the steps, opened the door, and stepped inside the
+lobby. He walked across to the mail boxes and began looking at the
+names. He found some one named Gilbert had an apartment on the third
+floor, front.
+
+The stairs were before him, and Farland was about to start up them when
+a door leading to the basement was opened, and a janitor appeared. He
+was an old man, bent and withered, and he looked at Farland with sudden
+suspicion.
+
+"You want to see somebody in the house?" he asked, in a voice that
+quavered.
+
+"I want to see you," Jim Farland answered.
+
+"What about, sir?"
+
+Farland exhibited his shield, and the old janitor recoiled, fright
+depicted in his face.
+
+"I ain't done anything wrong, mister," he said hoarsely. "I obey all the
+regulations about ashes and garbage and everything like that."
+
+"Don't be afraid of me," Farland said. "I'm not accusing you of doing
+anything wrong, am I? I can see that you're a law-abiding man. You
+haven't nerve enough to be anything else. Suppose you step outside with
+me for a few minutes. I just want to ask you a few questions about
+something."
+
+"All right, sir, if that's it," the old janitor said.
+
+He opened the front door and led the way outside, and Farland forced him
+to walk a short distance down the street, and there they stopped in a
+doorway to talk.
+
+"I'm going to ask you a few questions, and you are going to answer them,
+and then you are going to forget that you ever saw me or that I ever
+asked you a thing," Farland said.
+
+"I understand, sir. I won't give away any police business," the old
+janitor replied. "I know all about such things. I had a nephew once who
+was a policeman."
+
+"There's a party living in your place who goes by the name of Gilbert,
+isn't there?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"How many are there in the family, and who are they, and what do you
+know about them?"
+
+"There is an old man, sir," the janitor answered. "He's a sort of
+cripple, I guess. He always sits in one of them invalid chairs, and when
+he goes out somebody has to wheel him. If he ain't exactly a cripple,
+then he's mighty sick and weak."
+
+"Who else is in the family?"
+
+"He's got a daughter, whose name is Miss Kate," the janitor said. "She's
+a mighty fine-lookin' girl, too. She's a nice woman, I reckon. 'Pears to
+be, anyway."
+
+"Do you know anything in particular about her?" Jim Farland asked him.
+
+"Well, she's been away for about three months, and she just got back,"
+the janitor replied. "I don't know where she was--didn't hear. While she
+was gone, there was a man nurse 'tended to her father--cooked the meals
+and kept the apartment clean and took him out in his wheel chair. Miss
+Kate has a maid they call Marie--a big, ugly woman. She takes care of
+things generally when she is here, but she was away with Miss Kate."
+
+"How long have they lived here?" Farland asked.
+
+"About three years, sir. But I don't know much about them. They ain't
+the kind of folks a man can find out a lot about. They act peculiar
+sometimes."
+
+"Are they rich?"
+
+"My gracious, no!" said the old janitor. "They pay their rent on time,
+and they always seem to have plenty to eat, and I guess they can afford
+to keep that maid and hire a nurse once in a while, but they ain't what
+you'd call rich. But Miss Kate comes home in a big automobile now and
+then, and she seems to have a lot of clothes. There's something funny
+about it, at that."
+
+"Think she isn't a decent woman?" Farland asked.
+
+"Oh, I don't think she's a bad sort, sir, if that is what you mean. She
+doesn't seem to be, at all. I guess she gets her swell clothes honest
+enough. I think that she works for somebody and has to dress that way."
+
+"Do they get much mail and have many visitors?"
+
+"They get a few letters, and some newspapers and magazines," the janitor
+replied. "And they don't seem to have many visitors. I've seen a man
+come here once or twice to see them, and once he brought Miss Kate home
+in an auto. He looks like a rich man."
+
+"Is he old or young?" Farland asked.
+
+"Oh, he has gray hair, sir, and looks like a distinguished gentleman,
+like a lawyer or something. I guess he's rich. I think maybe he is an
+old friend of Mr. Gilbert's, or something like that."
+
+"They live on the third floor, don't they?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"Any vacant apartments up there?"
+
+"Why, the apartment adjoining theirs happens to be vacant just now,
+sir."
+
+"You take me up to that vacant apartment," Jim Farland directed. "Let me
+in without making any noise, and then forget all about me until I speak
+to you again. Here is a nice little bill, and there will be more if you
+attend to business. I'm an officer, so you'll not get in trouble with
+the landlord."
+
+The old janitor accepted the bill gladly, and led the way back to the
+house. Jim Farland refused to use the elevator; he insisted on walking
+up the stairs, and on going up noiselessly. When they reached the third
+floor, he was doubly alert.
+
+The old janitor pointed out the door of the vacant apartment, and handed
+Farland a key. Then he pattered back down the stairs. Farland slipped
+along the hall, unlocked the door of the vacant apartment, darted
+inside, and locked the door again, putting the key in his pocket. And
+then he moved noiselessly through the apartment until he had reached the
+front.
+
+He could hear voices in the apartment adjoining, and could make out the
+conversation. A woman was speaking--Farland decided that she was Kate
+Gilbert--and the weak voice of a sick man was answering her now and
+then.
+
+"Let's not talk about it any more to-night, father," the girl was
+saying. "You'll not sleep well, if you get to thinking about it. You
+must go to bed now, and we'll have a real talk about things when I have
+something of importance to tell you. Get a good sleep, and in the
+morning Marie can take you out in the Park."
+
+Jim Farland could hear the old man mutter some reply, and then there
+reached his ears the squeaking of a wheel chair being rolled across the
+floor. He remained for a time standing against the wall, listening. He
+decided that those in the Gilbert apartment were preparing to retire.
+Half an hour later, Farland slipped from the room and went to the
+basement to find the janitor.
+
+"Here's your key," he said. "I'll be back here in the morning, and I'll
+want to see you. And remember--you're not to say a word about all this."
+
+"Not a single word, sir."
+
+Farland went back to the taxicab and drove to his own modest home, where
+he tumbled into bed and slept the sleep of the just. When Jim Farland
+slept, he slept--and when he worked, he worked. Farland did not mix
+labor and rest.
+
+He arose early, hurried through his breakfast, got another taxicab and
+went up into the Eighties again. The old janitor was sweeping off the
+walk in front of the apartment house. The curtains at the windows of the
+Gilbert apartment were still down.
+
+"Give me that key again and give me a pass key, too," Farland told the
+old janitor. "If the maid takes Mr. Gilbert out, and Miss Gilbert is
+gone at the same time, I want to get into their apartment and take a
+look around. Understand? And I'll want you to watch, so I'll not be
+caught in there."
+
+"I understand, sir. Here are the keys."
+
+Farland reached the vacant apartment without being seen. The Gilberts
+were up now and eating breakfast. He could hear Kate Gilbert trying to
+cheer her father, but not a word she said had anything to do with Sidney
+Prale, or Rufus Shepley, or anybody connected in any way with the
+Shepley murder case.
+
+"Now you must let Marie take you to the Park, father," he heard the girl
+say. "It is a splendid day, and you must get a lot of fresh air. You can
+go down and watch the animals. I'm going out now, but I'll be back some
+time during the afternoon, and then we'll talk about things."
+
+Jim Farland waited in the vacant apartment until he heard Kate Gilbert
+depart. A quarter of an hour later, he opened the front door a crack and
+saw the gigantic Marie wheel out the chair with Mr. Gilbert in it. They
+went down in the elevator.
+
+Farland waited for another quarter of an hour, until the old janitor
+came up and told that he had watched the maid wheel Mr. Gilbert into the
+Park.
+
+"I'll just leave the elevator up here until somebody rings," the old
+janitor said, "and I'll watch the floor below from the top of the
+stairs. Then, if any of them come back, I'll tell you so you can get
+out."
+
+He took his station at the head of the stairs, leaving the elevator door
+open so that the contrivance could not be operated from below. Jim
+Farland unlocked the door of the Gilbert apartment and stepped inside.
+
+The first glance told him that it was an ordinary apartment furnished in
+quite an ordinary manner. It certainly did not look like a home of
+wealth, and Sidney Prale had said that it had been understood in
+Honduras that Kate Gilbert was of a rich family and traveling for her
+health.
+
+Many tourists claim to have money when they are away from home, of
+course, but the part about traveling for her health seemed to Jim
+Farland to be going a bit too far. Would such a woman be traveling for
+her health and leave behind her at home an old father who was an
+invalid?
+
+"There's something behind that little trip of hers," Farland told
+himself. "It looks to me as if she had gone down to Honduras to look up
+Sid Prale for some reason. And Honduras isn't exactly on the health-trip
+list, either."
+
+He began a close inspection of the apartment, leaving no trace of his
+search behind him, disarranging nothing that he did not replace. Jim
+Farland was an expert at such things.
+
+He ransacked a small desk that stood in one corner of the living room
+and found a tablet of writing paper similar to that upon which had been
+written the anonymous messages Sidney Prale had received. He found
+scraps of writing in the wastebasket, too, and inspected them carefully.
+
+"Somebody in this apartment wrote those notes, all right," Farland
+mused. "But why? That's the question I want answered, and I'll have to
+be careful how I start in to find out. You can't bluff that girl; one
+look is enough to tell me that. If I jump her about those notes, she'll
+probably get wise and cover her tracks, and then I'll be strictly up
+against it."
+
+He found nothing else of importance in the apartment. There were some
+letters, but they seemed to be from relatives scattered throughout the
+country, ordinary letters dealing with family affairs of no particular
+consequence, and they told Jim Farland nothing that he wished to know.
+
+But Kate Gilbert was only one angle of the case, he reminded himself,
+and so he decided that he was done for the present as far as she was
+concerned. It would be only a waste of valuable time, he thought, to
+remain longer in the Gilbert apartment; and there were plenty of other
+things for him to be doing.
+
+Farland went all over the apartment once more, making sure that he was
+leaving everything in its proper place, that there would be nothing to
+show that anybody had been making an investigation there. Then he
+hurried out and locked the door, returned the keys to the old janitor,
+gave him another bill and instructed him to forget the visit, lighted a
+black cigar, and started walking rapidly southward.
+
+When the proper time arrived, Jim Farland would tell Miss Kate Gilbert
+that he knew she had written the anonymous notes to Sidney Prale--or
+that her maid had--and he would ask her why.
+
+He reached Columbus Circle, made his way over to Fifth Avenue, and
+continued his walk down that broad thoroughfare. Farland had decided to
+go to the hotel and have a talk with Sidney Prale and Murk. He told
+himself that he was going to like Murk, the human hulk who suddenly had
+become of some use in the world.
+
+But he did not get a chance to go to the hotel just then. He came to a
+busy corner, and stopped to wait for a chance to cross the street
+congested with traffic. Suddenly, a few feet to his right, he saw Kate
+Gilbert, who had left her apartment only a short time before.
+
+There was nothing startling in that fact alone, for this was a district
+where there were fashionable shops and beauty parlors, and well-dressed
+women were on every side.
+
+What interested Detective Jim Farland the most was that Kate Gilbert was
+standing before the show window of a fashionable shop in intimate
+conversation with George Lerton, Sidney Prale's cousin!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+BATTERED KEYS
+
+
+Farland started moving slowly toward them, making his way through the
+crowd in such fashion that he did not attract too much attention to
+himself. He was feeling a sudden interest in this case. There were great
+possibilities in the fact that two persons connected with it from
+different angles were in conversation.
+
+As he made his way toward the show window, he remembered how this George
+Lerton had tried to induce Sidney Prale to leave the city and remain
+away, and how, afterward, he had denied that he had seen Prale on Fifth
+Avenue and had spoken to him.
+
+"He's connected with this thing in some way," Farland told himself.
+"It's my job to discover exactly how."
+
+But he was doomed to be disappointed. Before he could get near enough to
+make an attempt to overhear what they were saying, they suddenly parted.
+Kate Gilbert went into the shop, and George Lerton crossed the street
+and hurried down the Avenue.
+
+It was no use wasting time on Kate Gilbert. Farland knew where to find
+her if he wanted her, and he knew there would be no use in shadowing her
+now, since she probably had gone into the shop to purchase a hat. But
+George Lerton was quite another matter.
+
+The detective did not hesitate. He swung off down Fifth Avenue in the
+wake of George Lerton.
+
+Farland was a rough and ready man, and he had little liking for male
+humans of the George Lerton type. Lerton always dressed in the acme of
+fashion, running considerably to fads in clothes, appearing almost
+effeminate at times. And yet it was said in financial circles that
+Lerton was far from being effeminate when it came to a business deal.
+There had been whispers about his dark methods, and it was well known
+that a business foe got small sympathy or consideration from him. He was
+a fashionable cut-throat without any of the milk of human kindness in
+his system.
+
+It was a surprise to Jim Farland to see Lerton walking. He was the sort
+of man who likes to advertise his success, and he had a couple of
+imposing motor cars that he generally used. But he was walking this
+morning, and the fact gave Farland food for thought.
+
+Lerton continued down the Avenue, and Jim Farland followed him closely.
+He expected to see Lerton meet some one else and engage in another
+whispered conversation, but Lerton did not.
+
+"That boy is worried," Farland told himself. "He's one of those birds
+who like to walk when they want to think something out. If I could only
+know what was going on in that mind of his----"
+
+Lerton had reached Madison Square, and there he did something foreign to
+his nature. He crossed the Square, proceeded to Fourth Avenue, and
+descended into the subway.
+
+Farland was a few feet behind him, and got into the same car when Lerton
+caught a downtown train. He followed when Lerton got off and went up to
+the street level again, and now the broker made his way through the
+throngs and along the narrow streets until he finally came to the
+financial district. After a time he turned into the entrance of an
+office building--the building where his own offices were located.
+
+The detective watched him go up in the elevator, and then he turned back
+to the cigar stand in the lobby and purchased more of the black cigars
+he loved. For a time he stood out at the curb, puffing and thinking. He
+watched the building entrance closely, but George Lerton did not come
+down again.
+
+As a matter of fact, Farland scarcely had expected that he would. He
+believed that Lerton had kept an appointment with Kate Gilbert, and then
+had continued to his office to take up the work of the day. Farland
+decided that he would give Lerton a chance to attend to the morning mail
+and pressing matters of business, before seeking an interview.
+
+Finally, Farland threw the stub of the cigar away, turned into the
+entrance of the building once more, and walked briskly to the elevator.
+He shot up to the tenth floor, went down the hall, and entered the
+reception room of the Lerton offices. An imp of an office boy took in
+his card.
+
+"Mr. Lerton will see you in ten minutes, sir," the returning boy
+announced.
+
+Farland touched match to another cigar. He was a little surprised that
+Lerton had sent out that message. Lerton knew Farland, as Sidney Prale
+had known him in the old days. He knew Farland's business, and he knew
+that the detective and Prale were firm friends. He could guess that
+Prale had engaged Jim Farland to work on this case and clear him of the
+charge of having murdered Rufus Shepley.
+
+After a time the boy ushered him into the private office. George Lerton
+was sitting behind a gigantic mahogany desk, looking very much the
+prosperous man of business.
+
+"Well, Farland, this is a pleasure!" Lerton exclaimed. "Haven't seen you
+for ages. How's business?"
+
+"It could be better," Jim Farland replied, "and it could be a lot worse.
+I'm making a good living, and so have no kick coming."
+
+"If I ever need a man in your line, I'll call you in," George Lerton
+said. "And the pay will be all right, too."
+
+"Don't doubt it," Farland replied.
+
+"Want to see me about something special this morning?"
+
+"Yes, if you can give me a few minutes."
+
+"All the time you like," Lerton replied.
+
+That was not like the man, Jim Farland knew. Lerton was the sort to try
+to make himself important, the always-busy man who had no time for
+anybody less than a millionaire.
+
+Farland smiled and sat down in a chair at one end of the desk. He
+twisted his hat in his hands, looked across at George Lerton, cleared
+his throat, and spoke.
+
+"You know about Sidney Prale being in a bit of trouble, of course?"
+
+"Yes. Can't understand it," Lerton replied, frowning. "Sidney always had
+a temper, of course, but I never thought he would resort to murder
+during a fit of it. You know, I never got along with him any too well.
+He had a quarrel with his sweetheart in the old days and left for
+Honduras twenty-four hours later and remained there for ten years."
+
+"I know all about that, of course," Farland said. "You perhaps have
+guessed that he sent for me--engaged me to get him out of this little
+scrape."
+
+"Murder, a little scrape?" Lerton gasped. "I should call it a very
+serious matter."
+
+"Let us hope that it will not be a serious matter for Sid," Farland said
+with feeling. "I believe that the boy is innocent, and I hope to be able
+to clear him. Will you help me?"
+
+"I never had any particular love for Sidney, and neither did he for me,"
+George Lerton said. "However, he is my cousin, and I hate to see him in
+trouble. But how can I help you? I don't know anything about the
+affair."
+
+"An alibi is an important thing in a case like this," Farland said. "We
+want to prove an alibi, if we can, of course. Sidney says that you met
+him on Fifth Avenue----"
+
+"And I cannot understand that," Lerton interrupted. "Why should he say
+such a thing?"
+
+"You didn't meet him?"
+
+"I certainly did not! I cannot lie about such a thing, even to save my
+cousin. Why, it would make me a sort of accessory, wouldn't it? I cannot
+afford to be mixed up in anything of the sort. You must understand
+that!"
+
+"And you didn't urge him to leave New York and remain away for the rest
+of his life?"
+
+"I didn't see him at all," George Lerton persisted. "Why on earth should
+I care whether he remains in New York or takes his million dollars
+elsewhere?"
+
+"I don't know, I'm sure," Farland said. "But it seems peculiar to me
+that Sid would tell a rotten falsehood like that. Doesn't it look
+peculiar to you?"
+
+"I must confess that it does not," George Lerton replied. "I suppose it
+was the first thing that came into his head. He was trying to establish
+an alibi, of course, and he probably thought he would get a chance to
+telephone to me and ask me to stand by the story he had told, thinking
+that I would do it because of our relationship."
+
+"I was hoping that you would tell me you had met him on Fifth Avenue,"
+Farland said. "It would have made his alibi stronger, of course, and
+every little bit helps."
+
+"Stronger? You mean to say that he has any sort of an alibi at all?"
+
+"A dandy!" Farland exclaimed. "In fact, we have an alibi that tells us
+that Sid was quite a distance from Rufus Shepley's suite when Shepley
+was slain."
+
+"Why, how is that?"
+
+"Sid picked up a bum and tried to make a man of him. He bought the
+fellow some clothes and took him to a barber shop. The clothing merchant
+and the barber furnish the alibi."
+
+An expression of consternation was in George Lerton's face, and Jim
+Farland was quick to notice it.
+
+"Of course, I am glad for Sidney's sake," Lerton said. "But I had really
+believed that he had killed Shepley. It caused me a bit of trouble,
+too."
+
+"How do you mean?" Farland asked.
+
+"Shepley was a sort of client of mine," Lerton said. "I handled a deal
+for him now and then. He has been traveling on business for some time,
+as you perhaps know. I had hopes that he would give me a certain large
+commission and that I would make a handsome profit. He was about
+convinced, I am sure, that I was the man to handle it for him. His small
+deals with me had always been to his profit and my credit."
+
+"Oh, I understand!"
+
+"And a possible good customer is removed," Lerton went on. "So you have
+an alibi for Sidney, have you? In that case--if he did not kill Rufus
+Shepley--he must have told that story about meeting me when he was in a
+panic immediately following his arrest. Sid always was panicky, you
+know."
+
+"I didn't know that a panicky man could pick up a million dollars in ten
+years."
+
+"Oh, I suppose Sidney was fortunate. There are wonderful opportunities
+at times in Central America, and I suppose he happened to just strike
+one of them right. He was very fortunate, indeed. Not every man can have
+good luck like that."
+
+"Well, I'm sorry that I troubled you," Farland said. "And now, I'll get
+out--if you'll do me a small favor."
+
+"Anything, Farland."
+
+"I see you have a typewriter in the corner, and I'd like to write a
+short note to leave uptown."
+
+"Just step outside and dictate it to one of my stenographers," said
+George Lerton.
+
+"That'd be too much trouble," Farland replied. "It's only a few lines,
+and I can pound a typewriter pretty good. Besides, this is a little
+confidential report that I would not care to have your stenographer know
+anything about."
+
+"Oh, I see! Help yourself!"
+
+Farland got up and hurried over to the typewriter. He put a sheet of
+paper in the machine, wrote a few lines, folded the sheet and put it
+into his coat pocket.
+
+"Well, I'm much obliged," he said. "I think we'll have Sid out of
+trouble before long."
+
+"Let us hope so!" George Lerton said.
+
+There was something in the tone of his voice, however, that belied the
+words he spoke. Farland gave him a single, rapid glance, but the
+expression of Lerton's face told him nothing. Lerton was a broker and
+used to big business deals. He was a master of the art of the blank
+countenance, and Jim Farland knew it well.
+
+Farland had said nothing concerning Kate Gilbert, for he was not ready
+to let George Lerton know that he suspected any connection of Miss
+Gilbert with the Rufus Shepley case. Farland was not certain himself
+what that connection would be, and he knew it would be foolish to say
+anything that would put Lerton on guard and make the mystery more
+difficult of solution.
+
+He thanked Lerton once more and departed. Out in the corridor and some
+distance from the Lerton office, he took from his pocket the note he had
+written on Lerton's private typewriter and glanced at it quickly.
+Farland was merely verifying what he had noticed as he had typed the
+note.
+
+"That was a lucky hunch about that typewriter," he told himself. "This
+case is going to be interesting, all right--and for several persons."
+
+Farland had noticed particularly the typewritten notes that had been
+received by the clothing merchant and the barber. There were two certain
+keys that were battered in a peculiar manner, and another key that was
+out of alignment.
+
+He knew now, by glancing at the lines he had written himself, that those
+other notes had been typed on the same machine. He guessed that it had
+been George Lerton, the broker, who had sent those notes and the money
+to the barber and the merchant.
+
+Why had George Lerton been so eager to destroy his cousin's alibi?
+
+Why was George Lerton trying to have Sidney Prale sent to the electric
+chair for murder?
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+A PLAN OF CAMPAIGN
+
+
+Naturally, a man facing prosecution on a murder charge is liable to be
+nervous, whether he is innocent or not. If an attempt is being made to
+gather evidence that will clear him, he wishes for frequent reports,
+always hoping that there will be some ray of hope. And so it was with
+Sidney Prale this morning, as he paced the floor in the living room of
+his suite in the hotel.
+
+Murk had done everything possible to make Sidney Prale comfortable. Now
+he merely stood to one side and watched the man who had saved him from a
+self-inflicted death, and tried to think of something that he could say
+or do to make Prale easier in his mind.
+
+They had not seen or heard from Jim Farland since the evening before,
+when he had engaged the taxicab and had started in pursuit of the
+limousine Kate Gilbert had entered. Prale wondered what Farland had been
+doing, whether he had discovered anything concerning Kate Gilbert,
+whether he had found a clew that would lead to an unraveling of the
+mystery.
+
+"Are you sure about that Farland man, Mr. Prale?" Murk asked, after a
+time.
+
+"What do you mean by that, Murk?"
+
+"Well, he's a kind of cop, and I never had much faith in cops," said
+Murk.
+
+"Farland is an old friend of mine, Murk, and he is on the square--if
+that is what you mean."
+
+"He sure started out like a house afire, sir, but he seems to be fallin'
+down now," Murk declared. "He sure did handle that barber and the
+clothin' merchant, but he ain't showed us any speed since he left us
+last night."
+
+"He is busy somewhere--you may be sure of that," Sidney Prale declared.
+
+"Well, boss, I ain't got any education, and I ain't an expert in any
+particular line, but I've often been accused of havin' common sense, and
+I'm strong for you!"
+
+"Meaning what, Murk?"
+
+"Nothin', boss, except that I'd like to be busy gettin' you out of this
+mess. Seems to me I know just as much about it as you do, and if we'd
+talk matters over, maybe I'd get some sort of an idea, or somethin' like
+that."
+
+Prale sat down before the window, lighted a cigar, and looked up at
+Murk.
+
+"Go ahead," he said. "It won't hurt anything, and it will serve to kill
+time until we hear from Jim Farland. What do you want to talk about
+first?"
+
+"It seems to me," said Murk, clearing his throat and attempting to speak
+in an impressive manner, "that this is a double-barreled affair."
+
+"What do you mean?" Prale asked.
+
+"Well, there's the murder thing, and then there's this thing about you
+havin' some powerful and secret enemies that are tryin' to do you dirt
+without even comin' out in the open about it. Maybe them two things are
+mixed together, and maybe again they ain't. If they ain't, we've got two
+jobs on our hands."
+
+"And, if they are?" Prale asked.
+
+"Then it looks to me, boss, like the gang that's after you is tryin' to
+hang this murder on you after havin' had somebody croak that Shepley
+guy."
+
+"I've thought of that, Murk. But it doesn't look possible," Prale said.
+"If my enemies merely wanted to hang a murder charge on me, as you have
+suggested, I think they would have planned better and would have made
+the evidence against me more conclusive. It would mean that there would
+be a lot of persons in the secret; the men who plan murder do not like
+to take the entire town into confidence about it."
+
+"Well, that sounds reasonable," Murk admitted.
+
+"And why Rufus Shepley?"
+
+"Because you had that spat with him in the lobby of the hotel, and it
+could be shown that you had a reason for knifin' him," Murk said, with
+evident satisfaction.
+
+"Nobody could have known I was going to have that quarrel with Shepley,
+because I had no idea of it myself when I entered the hotel lobby,"
+Prale said. "After I left the hotel, I met Farland and then walked down
+to the river and met you--and you know the rest. How could they have
+contemplated hanging that crime on me when they did not know but that I
+had a perfect alibi? I think we're on the wrong track, Murk."
+
+"Well, boss, how about your fountain pen?" Murk asked. "How come it was
+found beside the body?"
+
+"That is one of the biggest puzzles in the whole thing, Murk. I cannot
+remember exactly when I had the pen last. I cannot imagine how it got
+into Shepley's room and on the floor beside his body. That fountain pen
+of mine is an important factor in this case, Murk, and it has me
+worried."
+
+"It seems to me," Murk said, "that if I had any powerful enemies after
+my scalp, I'd know the birds and be watchin' out for them all the time,
+to see that they didn't start anything when I was lookin' in the other
+direction."
+
+"But, Murk, I haven't the slightest idea who they are," Sidney Prale
+declared. "I don't know why I should have enemies that amount to
+anything, and that is what makes it so puzzling. How can I work this
+thing out when I don't even know where to start? I wish Jim Farland
+would come."
+
+Jim Farland did, at that moment. Murk let him in, and the detective
+tossed his hat on a chair, sat down in another, lighted one of his own
+black cigars, and looked at Sidney Prale through narrowed eyes.
+
+"Well, Jim?" Prale asked.
+
+"I talk when I've really got something to say, but I'm not going to make
+general conversation and muddle your brains with a lot of scattered
+junk," Jim Farland replied. "I'll say this much--things are looking much
+better for you."
+
+"That sounds good, Jim. Can't you tell me anything?" Prale asked,
+sitting forward on his chair.
+
+"The barber and the clothing merchant have fixed up a part of your
+alibi, Sid, as perhaps Murk has told you. That is the first point. It
+makes it look impossible for you to have slain Rufus Shepley, and I
+think Lawyer Coadley could get the charge against you dismissed on that
+alone."
+
+"But I want to be entirely cleared."
+
+"Exactly. You don't want to leave the slightest doubt in the mind of a
+single person. There is but one way to clear you absolutely, Sid. We've
+got to show conclusively that you could not have killed Shepley, and the
+best way to do that is to find the person who did."
+
+"I understand, Jim."
+
+"There seems to be some sort of a mysterious alliance against you, Sid.
+You say that you can't understand why you should have enemies that hate
+you so, and I know you're telling the truth. Whether that business has
+anything to do with the murder, or not, I am not prepared to say now.
+But we want to find out about this enemy business, too, don't we?"
+
+"Certainly," Prale said.
+
+"I followed Kate Gilbert. I know where she lives. She does not belong to
+a rich family and does not live in splendor. But she wears expensive
+gowns and has plenty of spending money, and has mysterious dealings with
+a distinguished-looking man. Her father is mixed up in it in some way,
+too. I went through their apartment, Sid. Somebody in that apartment
+wrote the anonymous notes you received."
+
+"What?" Prale gasped.
+
+"I found a tablet of the same sort of paper, and scraps of writing in
+the wastebasket that were in the same hand. Think, Sid! On the ship----"
+
+"By George!" Prale exclaimed. "She could have slipped into my stateroom
+and pinned that note to my pillow, and she could have stuck the second
+one on my suit case as I walked past her on the deck."
+
+"And could have sent the others," Farland added.
+
+"But, why?" Prale demanded. "I never saw the woman until I met her at a
+social affair in Honduras. What could she or any of her people have
+against me?"
+
+"Perhaps it was the maid," Farland said.
+
+"She could have done it, of course, the same as Kate Gilbert," Prale
+said. "But the same difficulty holds good--why? Kate Gilbert did seem to
+avoid me, and I caught her big maid glaring at me once or twice as if
+she hated the sight of me. But why on earth----"
+
+Farland cleared his throat. "Here is another thought for you to digest,"
+he said. "This Kate Gilbert knows your cousin, George Lerton."
+
+Sidney Prale suddenly sat up straight in his chair again, his eyes
+blinking rapidly.
+
+"Doesn't that open up possibilities?" Jim Farland asked him. "The woman
+seems to be working against you for some reason, and we know that George
+Lerton lied about meeting you on Fifth Avenue that night. It appears
+that he is working against you, too, for some mysterious motive."
+
+A dangerous gleam came into Sidney Prale's eyes. "That simplifies
+matters," he said. "I'll watch for Kate Gilbert, and when I see her I'll
+ask why she sent me those notes. Then I'll get George Lerton alone and
+choke out of him why he lied about meeting me on the Avenue. I've
+trimmed worse men than George Lerton."
+
+"You'll be a good little boy and do nothing of the sort," Farland told
+him. "We are playing a double game, remember--trying to solve this enemy
+business, and at the same time trying to clear you of a murder charge.
+If any of those persons get the idea that we are unduly interested in
+them, we may not have such an easy time of it."
+
+"I understand that, of course."
+
+"Let me tell you a few more things, Sid. I saw Lerton talking to Miss
+Gilbert on the street. They were speaking in very low tones. When they
+parted, I followed Lerton to his office, and went in and talked to him.
+I did it just to size him up. He still declares that he never met you on
+Fifth Avenue. He acts like a man afraid of something; and I discovered
+an interesting thing, Sid. He has a typewriter in his private office,
+one for his personal use. I managed to type a short note on it."
+
+"What of that?"
+
+"That typewriter has a few bad keys, Sid. And I discovered this--that
+the notes sent to the barber and merchant, that caused them to lie and
+try to smash your alibi, were written on the typewriter in George
+Lerton's office!"
+
+Prale sprang to his feet. "Then Lerton has something to do with this!"
+he cried. "He tried to get me to leave town, and he tried to break down
+my alibi. How did he know I was going to make an alibi like that?"
+
+"My guess is that your cousin has been having you watched since you got
+off the ship."
+
+"But, why?" Prale cried. "It is true that he married the girl who had
+jilted me a few years before, but I do not hold that against him. I know
+of no reason why he should work against me so."
+
+"Know anything about him that might cause him serious trouble if you
+talked?"
+
+"No," Prale replied. "As much as I dislike him, as much as I suspect
+that he is crooked in business, all that I really could say would be
+that he had a mean disposition and was not to be trusted too far."
+
+"I thought maybe you had something on him, and he was trying to get you
+out of the way so you'd not talk," Farland said. "That would explain a
+lot, of course."
+
+"It can't be that."
+
+"Then we are up in the air again."
+
+"Why not ask him?" Prale demanded. "Believe me, I'll wait for him to
+come from his office--and he'll answer me, and tell the truth!"
+
+"Put that hot head of yours under the nearest cold-water faucet!"
+Farland commanded. "You make a move that I don't sanction, and I'll quit
+the case! You'll spoil things, Sid, if you're not careful. Just digest
+what I have told you."
+
+"You're in command, Jim!"
+
+"Very well. You leave George Lerton to me, Sid. There are many angles to
+this case, and I can't attend to all of them at once. I don't want to
+call in other detectives, because they may be in the pay of these
+mysterious enemies of yours, and I haven't an assistant with an ounce of
+brains. Sid, you've got to turn detective yourself--you and Murk."
+
+"I was just wonderin' if I was goin' to get a chance to do anything,"
+Murk said.
+
+"Plenty of chances," Farland replied. "Sid, you pick up this Kate
+Gilbert, if you can. Act as if you did not suspect a thing. Try to talk
+to her--you were introduced to her in Honduras, and all that. Don't let
+her get nervous about you, but watch her as much as you can, and let me
+know everything you see and hear. Take a look at that big maid, Marie,
+when you get a chance. If you can do so, and think it advisable, put
+Murk on Marie's trail. I'll want to use Murk later myself."
+
+Sidney Prale was quick to agree. And thus, without being aware of it, he
+started on a short career of adventure and romance.
+
+Had Murk been a crystal gazer or something of the sort, and could he
+have looked into the future in that manner, he would have said that the
+crystal lied.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+MORE MYSTERY
+
+
+Jim Farland went from the hotel to Coadley's office, to ascertain
+whether the attorney's private investigators, who were working
+independently of him, had unearthed anything of importance in connection
+with the case.
+
+Sidney Prale stated that he would go for a walk, and the police
+detective, now thoroughly convinced that he would not try to run away,
+raised no objection. It was Prale's intention to make an attempt to meet
+Kate Gilbert. Murk hurried around getting his coat and hat and gloves
+and stick.
+
+"Fool idea!" Prale told himself. "Kate Gilbert has given me the cold
+shoulder already, and she certainly will do it now, since I stand
+accused of murder. Not a chance in the world of getting better
+acquainted with her now."
+
+"What do you want me to do, boss?" Murk asked. "I don't seem to be
+amountin' to much in this game. I'd like to be in action, I would! Can't
+I take a hand?"
+
+"As soon as possible," Prale told him. "Remember, Farland said he wanted
+you to help him later."
+
+"I'd rather help you or work alone," Murk said. "I reckon he is pretty
+decent for a detective, but I don't put much stock in any of 'em."
+
+Prale laughed as he finished dressing, put on his hat and gloves, and
+reached for his stick.
+
+"Suppose you just shadow me this fine day," he told Murk. "Get a little
+practice in that line. Don't bother me, but just follow and watch."
+
+"I getcha, boss. You want me to be within hailin' distance in case you
+need help?"
+
+"Exactly, Murk. We never can tell what is going to happen, you know. I
+may need you in a hurry."
+
+"I'll be on hand," Murk promised.
+
+Sidney Prale went down in the elevator, Murk going down in the same car.
+Prale lounged about the lobby for a time, and Murk made himself as
+inconspicuous as possible in a corner. Prale believed, as Farland had
+intimated, that he was being followed and watched, possibly by the
+orders of George Lerton, his cousin. He did not know why Lerton should
+have done it, but it angered him, and he wanted to discover the man
+following him.
+
+He saw nobody in the lobby who appeared at all conspicuous, and after a
+short time he left and started walking briskly down the Avenue, like any
+gentleman taking a constitutional. The midday throngs were on the
+streets. Prale was forced to walk slower, and now and then he stopped to
+look in at a shop window. Once in a while he stepped to the curb and
+glanced behind. But if there was a "shadow" Prale did not see him.
+
+He did see Murk, however, and he smiled at Murk's methods. Murk remained
+a short distance behind him, moving up closer whenever Prale was forced
+to cross the street, so he would not lose him in the throng. Murk was
+ordinary-looking and had a happy faculty of effacing himself in a crowd.
+He was on the job every minute, watching Sidney Prale, glancing at every
+man or woman who approached Prale or as much as looked at him.
+
+Prale reached Forty-second Street, crossed it, and came opposite the
+library. He glanced aside--and saw Miss Kate Gilbert walking down the
+wide steps.
+
+It was a ticklish moment for Sidney Prale, but he remembered that he was
+fighting to protect himself. If Kate Gilbert ignored him, he could not
+help it. At least, he would give her the chance.
+
+She could not avoid seeing him, for they met face to face at the bottom
+of the steps. Prale lifted his hat.
+
+"Good morning, Miss Gilbert," he said.
+
+She turned and met his eyes squarely, and he could see that she
+hesitated for a moment. Then her face brightened, and she stepped toward
+him.
+
+"Good morning," she replied. "Although it is a little after noon, I am
+afraid."
+
+Her words might have been for the benefit of any who heard. They were
+light enough and cordial enough, but she did not offer him her hand, and
+the expression on her face was scarcely one of welcome.
+
+"I am glad to see you again," Prale said.
+
+"You are settled and feeling at home?"
+
+"In a measure," he said.
+
+She had not mentioned the crime of which he was accused, and he did not
+wish to be the first to speak of it. She stepped still closer.
+
+"I want to talk to you, Mr. Prale," she said. "Kindly get a taxi and
+have the chauffeur drive us through the Park."
+
+Prale scarcely could believe his good fortune. He had doubted whether he
+would have a chance to talk to her, and here she was asking him to
+engage a taxicab so that they could enjoy a conversation.
+
+He hailed a passing taxi, put her in, gave the chauffeur his directions,
+and sprang in himself. The machine turned at the first corner and
+started back up the Avenue in the heavy traffic.
+
+"You wished to speak to me about something in particular?" Prale asked.
+
+"Yes. I have read of the crime of which you are accused. I am sure that
+you are not guilty."
+
+"Thank you, Miss Gilbert. I assure you that I am not. It is an
+unfortunate affair, which we hope to have cleared up within a short
+time."
+
+"I hope that you will be free soon," she said. "And then you will be
+able to enjoy yourself, I suppose."
+
+"I hope to have my vacation yet," Prale said.
+
+"You are going to remain in New York?"
+
+"Certainly; it is my home."
+
+"Sometimes a man does better away from home."
+
+"But I have been away from home for ten years. I have made my pile, as
+the saying is, and have come home to show off and lord it over my
+neighbors," Prale replied, laughing.
+
+They had reached the lower end of Central Park now, and the taxi turned
+into a driveway, and made its way around the curves toward the upper
+end. The chauffeur was busy nodding to others of his craft and paying no
+attention to his fares. Sweethearts, he supposed, talking silly nothings
+as they were driven through the Park. The chauffeur was used to such; he
+hauled many of them.
+
+Kate Gilbert leaned a bit closer to Prale, and when she spoke it was in
+a low, tense voice.
+
+"Go away from New York, Mr. Prale!"
+
+"Why should I do that?" he asked.
+
+"It would be better for you, I feel sure."
+
+"Because of the absurd charge against me? I intend to have my innocence
+proved, and I'd hate to run away and let people think that perhaps I was
+guilty after all."
+
+"You have the right to prove your innocence of such a charge to all the
+world," she said. "But, after you have done it conclusively, you should
+go away."
+
+"Why?" he asked, again.
+
+"Because--you have enemies, Mr. Prale!"
+
+"I have discovered that; but I do not know why I should have enemies."
+
+"Perhaps you did something, some time, to create them."
+
+"But I haven't," Prale declared.
+
+"Retribution comes when we least expect it, Mr. Prale."
+
+"Yes. I believe that you wrote that in one of your notes."
+
+He had said it! And Jim Farland had told him not to let her suspect that
+they knew. Well, he couldn't help it now.
+
+Kate Gilbert gasped and sat back from him.
+
+"In my note?" she said.
+
+"The notes interested me greatly, Miss Gilbert. I have saved them. But
+why should you send them to me?"
+
+"You can ask me that!" she exclaimed. "So you know that I wrote them, do
+you? In that case, Mr. Prale, you know why I spoke of retribution, you
+probably know my identity and intentions, and you know why you have
+enemies!"
+
+"But I do not!" he protested.
+
+"Please do not attempt to tell a falsehood, Mr. Prale. You know I wrote
+the notes, do you? Then you know everything else. So you are going to
+fight."
+
+"I fail to understand all this."
+
+"Another falsehood!" she cried. "I have asked you to leave New York
+and----"
+
+"And I fail to see why I should."
+
+"Then remain--and receive the retribution!" she said. "You will deserve
+all you get, Sidney Prale! When I think of what you have done----"
+
+She ceased speaking, and turned to glance through the window.
+
+"You were kind enough to say that you believed me innocent of the murder
+charge----"
+
+"I do. I hate to have you facing a thing like that when you are
+innocent. But this other thing is----"
+
+"Can't you explain? I give you my word of honor that I do not understand
+this."
+
+"Your word of honor!" she sneered, facing him again. "You speak of
+honor--you? That is the best jest of all!"
+
+Sidney Prale's face flushed.
+
+"I had hoped that I was a man of honor," he said. "I always have tried
+to be honorable in my dealings with men and women, all my life. Please
+understand that, Miss Gilbert."
+
+"If you have tried, you have failed miserably. Why do you persist in
+telling falsehoods, Mr. Prale. Do you think that I am a weak, silly
+woman ready to be hoodwinked by lies?"
+
+"But I assure you----"
+
+"I do not care for any of your assurances," she interrupted. "I wish it
+understood that we are strangers hereafter. You are going to fight, are
+you? Fight, Sidney Prale--and lose! What I said was correct--you cannot
+dodge retribution. It will take more than a million dollars to be able
+to do that."
+
+"My dear young lady----"
+
+"I am done, Mr. Prale. I have said all that I intend saying to you."
+
+"Then it is my turn to talk!" Prale said. "This thing is getting to be
+so serious that I demand an explanation. Why should you, and others, be
+so eager to run me out of New York?"
+
+"Others?"
+
+"Yes--particularly one man we both know."
+
+"His name, please?"
+
+"Why ask, Miss Gilbert?"
+
+"Very well."
+
+"Why do you want me to run away?"
+
+"I did not know that others were trying to get you to leave," she said.
+"I suggested it because--well, because I am a woman, I suppose. You
+deserve the worst that can happen to you. But a woman, has a kind
+thought now and then. I hate to see any man ground down and down, no
+matter how much he deserves it--and that is what is to happen to you if
+you do not go away. If you leave, your enemies will not use such harsh
+measures, perhaps. But when you are here before their very eyes, they
+will lift their hands against you!"
+
+"Who are these enemies, and why are they after my scalp?"
+
+"You know, Sidney Prale, as well as I. I can see that it is useless to
+talk to you. I am sorry that I had a moment's compassion and made the
+attempt. Please stop the cab and let me out here."
+
+"But I demand to know----"
+
+"Do as I say, or I shall make a scene!"
+
+Prale gave the signal, and the taxi stopped. He helped her out, and she
+started briskly down the nearest path. Sidney Prale paid the chauffeur,
+and started to follow.
+
+He glanced back, and saw Murk getting out of another taxicab. He had
+forgotten Murk in his interest in the conversation with Kate Gilbert.
+But Murk had not forgotten. Murk had his orders, and he was carrying
+them out; he was keeping in sight, to be on hand if he was needed.
+
+Murk had a little money Prale had given him, enough to pay the taxi
+chauffeur. Prale motioned for him to approach.
+
+"Here's a roll of bills," he said. "Keep up the game, Murk. Don't get
+too far away."
+
+"I'll be right at your heels, boss."
+
+"And keep your eyes open."
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"That woman was Kate Gilbert."
+
+"Then I'll know her whenever I see her again, sir."
+
+Prale hurried on down the path. Murk kept pace with him, a short
+distance behind.
+
+Kate Gilbert had been walking swiftly. She had reached the street, and,
+as Prale watched, she crossed it. Prale followed.
+
+The girl did not look behind. She came to the middle of the block and
+ran up the steps of an apartment house. Prale passed the entrance,
+glanced at the number, and continued down the street. At the corner he
+allowed Murk to catch up with him.
+
+"She turned in at the address Jim Farland gave us," Prale said. "She has
+gone home, Murk. I fancy that we are done with her for to-day!"
+
+A lot he knew about it!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+A MOMENT OF VIOLENCE
+
+
+Sidney Prale turned around and walked back along the street to the Park,
+Murk once more following at a short distance, as he had been ordered to
+do.
+
+Because he wanted to think of his predicament, Prale crossed into the
+Park and began following one of the paths toward the south, making his
+way along it slowly, paying little attention to the persons he passed
+now and then.
+
+He crossed a drive and followed another path; and now he came to a
+secluded spot where the path was hidden from passers-by on the other
+walks and drives. Here the way ran through a tiny gulch, the sides of
+which were banked with bushes. Squirrels scampered and birds chattered
+at him, but Prale saw none of them.
+
+He was trying to explain to himself why Kate Gilbert had warned him to
+leave New York, why she had interested herself in his affairs at all,
+asking himself for the thousandth time what species of net it was in
+which he suddenly had found himself enmeshed without knowing the reason
+for it.
+
+He had demanded information and it had not been given him. She had said
+nothing at all that gave him an inkling as to the nature of what seemed
+to be a plot against him. He had been as firm as he dared, he told
+himself. A man could not threaten a woman, could not use violence in an
+attempt to make her speak and reveal secrets.
+
+"We'll have to work from another corner," Sidney Prale told himself. "I
+can't threaten a woman, but I can pummel a man; and if I meet George
+Lerton again, I am liable to forget what Jim Farland told me and use my
+own methods."
+
+He walked on through the tiny ravine. He came to a cross path, and a man
+lurched down it and against him.
+
+"Beg pardon!" Prale murmured.
+
+"Wonder you wouldn't look where you're going!" the other exclaimed. "Got
+an idea you own the whole Park, or something like that? Men like you
+shouldn't be running around loose!"
+
+"You ran into me, not I into you," Prale reminded him.
+
+As he spoke, he looked at the other closely. He saw a gigantic man who
+had the general appearance of a thug, whose chin was thrust forward
+aggressively, and whose hands were opening and closing as if he wished
+they were around Sidney Prale's throat.
+
+"I've a notion to smash you one!" the fellow said, advancing toward
+Prale a bit.
+
+Prale's temper flamed at once. His own chin was shot forward, and his
+own hands closed.
+
+"If that is the way you feel about it, start in!" Prale said. "Perhaps I
+can teach you to act decently and keep a civil tongue in your head!"
+
+The man before him made no comment--he simply launched himself forward
+like a thunderbolt. Sidney Prale darted quickly to one side, and tossed
+his hat and stick on the ground. He did not have time to get off his
+coat; he could not even remove his gloves.
+
+The other, missing him in that first rush, turned and came back,
+swinging his fists. Prale did not dart aside now. He put himself on
+guard, braced himself against the side of the little gulch, and waited
+for the attack.
+
+They clashed, and Prale knew that he had a real fight on his hands, for
+the man who had attacked him was no mean antagonist. But, after the
+first real clash, Prale had no fear of the outcome. The man was brutal,
+but he had no skill. He delivered blows that would have felled any
+one--but they did not reach their objective.
+
+Then a second man crashed down through the brush and joined in the
+attack. Sidney Prale realized in that moment that the attack had been
+premeditated and the fight forced upon him purposely. It fed fuel to the
+flames of his wrath. He did not know whether this was the work of some
+of his unknown enemies or whether these thugs were mere robbers intent
+upon getting his wallet and watch. It made little difference to him
+which they were.
+
+With his back against the side of the gulch, he fought with what skill
+he could, trying to stand off both of them. The attack had come with a
+rush, and all this had occupied but a few seconds.
+
+Presently a human whirlwind appeared and took part in the battle. There
+was an angry roar from a human throat, a raucous curse, a rushing body,
+the thuds of swift, hard blows. Mr. Murk had reached the scene!
+
+The battle immediately became two-fold. Murk fought as these thugs
+fought, disregarding the finer rules of combat, seeking only to put his
+opponent out, no matter by what means. Murk was not unaccustomed to
+fighting of that character, and he was doubly formidable now, for he was
+angry at the attack on Sidney Prale. Murk had been too far away to hear
+what had been said when the trouble started, but he had seen, and he
+guessed immediately that some of Sidney Prale's enemies were engaged in
+the attempt.
+
+Murk went after his opponent with determination if not with skill. He
+fought him down the path, and there the fellow rallied from the surprise
+and rushed back. But Murk was not the sort to give ground. In a fight, a
+man should stand up to another until one of them was whipped, Murk
+thought.
+
+He knew how to give blows, but not how to guard against them. He was
+marked, and marked well, before the battle was a minute old, but he had
+the satisfaction of seeing blood on the face of his antagonist. Foot to
+foot they stood and hammered each other, and gradually Murk began
+wearing the other man down.
+
+As for Sidney Prale, now that he had but the one thug against him, he
+fought with skill and cunning, knowing that the other was a bit the
+stronger, but realizing that he would be victor if he used reasonable
+care.
+
+His flare of anger had passed, and now he was fighting like a clever
+pugilist. He warded off the other's powerful blows, and now and then he
+slipped beneath a guard, or smashed his way through one, and sent home a
+blow of his own.
+
+At the end of three minutes, the thugs were getting much the worst of
+it. Gradually they were being fought back toward the nearest driveway.
+Back and back they went, but did not turn and run. Sidney Prale sensed
+that they were fighting for money, that they were being paid for this
+attack, and he realized that, but for the presence of Murk, he would
+have had no chance whatever, and probably would be a senseless, bleeding
+thing now.
+
+None of them knew that the fight had attracted attention, but it had.
+Two women, coming around a curve in the path, had seen it, and had run
+back toward the nearest driveway, screeching. Two mounted policemen
+hurried toward them, heard the story, and charged down the path.
+
+The two thugs made no effort to escape. They stopped fighting, and Prale
+and Murk ceased also, though the latter was eager to continue until a
+decision had been rendered. Murk had fought often where there was no
+interference and he disliked to be bothered now, but he desisted at
+Prale's command.
+
+"Well, what's all this about?" one of the officers demanded. He did not
+address any of them particularly. "I was walking along the path, and
+these men attacked me," Sidney Prale said. "My valet was a short
+distance behind and he came to my assistance. I never saw these fellows
+before."
+
+"Nothin' like it!" one of the thugs snarled. "Me and my pal were walkin'
+along this path and met these men, and the one with the stick ordered us
+out of the way as if we were dogs. When we didn't move quick enough,
+they jumped into us."
+
+"That's a lie----" Murk began.
+
+"You can settle this at the station," the officer replied. "All of you
+come along with us!"
+
+Prale picked up his hat and stick, took off his torn gloves and threw
+them away, and motioned for Murk to walk at his side and to keep quiet.
+They went to the driveway and along it, the policemen watching the four
+of them closely, the thugs growling to each other and remarking that it
+was a fine day when honest workingmen could not stroll in Central Park
+without a dude and his valet trying to beat them up.
+
+There was a short wait when the station was reached, and then, at the
+lieutenant's command, one of the thugs poured forth his story. He gave
+his name and address, as did the other, and both made the statement that
+they were out of work at present.
+
+Prale stepped forward and gave his name. The lieutenant stared at him in
+surprise.
+
+"Why, it's the guy who croaked that man Shepley!" one of the thugs
+cried. "There ought to be a way of stoppin' him runnin' around and
+assaultin' and killin' folks. If it hadn't been for the cops----"
+
+"Shut up!" Sidney Prale commanded loudly, ignoring the presence of the
+officers. "You fellows made a deliberate attack on me and you know it.
+And I want to know who paid you to do it--understand?"
+
+"You're crazy!" said one of the thugs.
+
+Prale turned to the lieutenant. "I'd like to have Jim Farland sent for,"
+he said. "He has been handling things for me. I want him to investigate
+these men. I have an idea that the names and addresses they gave are
+fictitious. Recently enemies of mine have caused me considerable
+trouble, and I feel sure that these men were hired to attack me.
+Fortunately, my valet was walking a short distance behind me, and rushed
+up and helped me hold them off."
+
+"I'm ready to put up bail, and so is my pal!" said one of the thugs
+angrily.
+
+"In that case, I'll have to let you go for the present," the lieutenant
+said. "The charge is fighting and disorderly conduct, and bail will be
+one hundred dollars in each case. You may use the telephone if you wish,
+Mr. Prale."
+
+Prale hurried to the telephone, called Jim Farland's office, and was
+informed that Farland had not been there, and that the girl in charge
+did not know where he was, or what he was doing, or when he would
+return. Prale left instructions for Farland and went back to the desk.
+
+"This is a serious business, though it may not look like it on the
+face," he said. "I'd like to have these men held until we can make sure
+they have given correct names and addresses."
+
+"No use holding them if they have given bail," the lieutenant replied.
+"I think it's nothing but a regular scrap. You can talk to the judge
+later, all of you."
+
+Prale took a roll of bills from his pocket and put up cash bail for both
+Murk and himself. One of the thugs followed suit and pulling out a roll
+of bills, stripped off two hundred dollars, and arranged for the release
+of himself and his partner.
+
+"You seem to have a lot of money for men who are out of work," Prale
+said.
+
+"Been savin' it, and it's none of your business anyway," growled the
+other.
+
+They started toward the door, and Prale and Murk followed them, watched
+them until they started away, and then turned back to bathe their faces
+and hands. Then Prale got a taxicab, and drove to the office of a
+physician, who did his best to make the countenances of Prale and Murk
+presentable.
+
+It was an hour later when Jim Farland called Prale by telephone at the
+hotel.
+
+"I've investigated that little matter, Sid," he reported. "Those fellows
+gave fictitious addresses, as you supposed they had done, and it is an
+even bet that the names they gave were fictitious, too. No doubt about
+it, Sid--they were hired to get you. You'd better be on guard and a bit
+careful."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+MURK RECEIVES A BLOW
+
+
+An hour before dinner, Detective Jim Farland suddenly appeared in Sidney
+Prale's suite at the hotel.
+
+"They are working on me now, Sid," he said. "I got a telephone message
+when I was in the office, and the gent at the other end of the line
+informed me that it would be beneficial to my health if I immediately
+ceased having anything to do with the Rufus Shepley murder case and
+stopped working for you."
+
+"Any idea where the message came from?" Prale asked.
+
+"It came from a public pay station in the subway. I had the call traced
+immediately, of course. No chance of finding out who sent it, naturally.
+I doubt whether I'd recognize the voice if I heard it again--could tell
+by the way the fellow talked that he was trying to disguise his tones. I
+told him to go to blazes, and he informed me that I was up against
+something too big for a man to face, or something like that."
+
+"Jim, if there is any danger, I don't want you to work for me," Sidney
+Prale said. "You're married and a father and----"
+
+"And that will be about all from you, Sid!" Farland interrupted. "Think
+I'm going to let some man who doesn't tell me his name throw a scare
+into me?"
+
+"But, if there is danger----"
+
+"I thrive on danger," said Jim Farland. "Think I'm going to desert you
+at this stage of the game? That is what they want, of course. If I did,
+you'd probably hire another detective, and it might be one of their own
+men--whoever they are. I'm in this game to stay, Sid, first because you
+are an old friend of mine and I think you are being made the victim of
+some sort of a dirty deal, and also because I'm not the kind of man to
+be bluffed out of a job. We are going right ahead. I got a note at the
+office, too."
+
+"A note!" Prale gasped.
+
+"Typewritten, but not on George Lerton's battered typewriter this time.
+It remarked that unless I gave up this case, somebody would make things
+hard for me, or words to that effect. Old stuff! If they are so scared
+that they send threatening letters, they're whipped right now--and they
+know it!"
+
+"I had an interesting experience this afternoon," said Prale.
+
+"The fight?"
+
+"I don't mean that. I met Kate Gilbert in front of the library. She
+asked me to get a taxicab and drive her through the Park. I did it. She
+begged me to leave New York and remain away, and said that my enemies
+might not be so harsh if I did. I tried to get her to explain, and she
+insisted that I knew all there was to know. She left the taxicab and
+walked to her home."
+
+"I'll have to investigate that girl more thoroughly," Farland said.
+
+"She is on guard now, as far as I am concerned."
+
+"Does she know Murk by sight?"
+
+"I think not."
+
+"Then here is where Murk gets a steady job for a time," Jim Farland
+declared. "Murk, you go up to Kate Gilbert's home and watch a bit. Give
+him plenty of money, Sid, for expenses. Just see if she leaves the
+place, Murk, and if so, where she goes, and to whom she talks. Get any
+general information you can. Try to keep her from knowing that you are
+watching her, but if she finds it out drop the chase and get back here,
+and we'll put another shadow on the job. When you are sure that she has
+decided to remain in her apartment for the night, report back here to
+Mr. Prale."
+
+"You watch me," Murk said. "I never expected to be caught doin'
+detective work and I reckon it's somethin' like a disgrace, but this is
+a sort of special occasion."
+
+Prale gave Murk more money, in case he would have to engage taxicabs or
+follow Kate Gilbert where money would be necessary for tips and bribes.
+
+"Your face looks pretty good, but you want to remember that there are
+some marks on it," Prale told him.
+
+"It's looked worse, boss," Murk replied, grinning. "I'll try to do this
+thing right."
+
+Murk hurried down in the elevator and went from the hotel. He got a cab
+immediately, and promised that dire things would happen to the chauffeur
+if he did not get to a certain corner up beside the Park in record time.
+Jim Farland had given him a badge to be used if he was questioned by a
+police officer, and he was to say that he was an operative attached to
+Farland's office.
+
+Murk discharged the taxi at the proper corner, touched match to
+cigarette, and walked slowly down the street toward the apartment house
+where Kate Gilbert lived with her father and her maid.
+
+Jim Farland had told him the location of the Gilbert apartment, and Murk
+saw that the lights in it were burning. It was about time for dinner, he
+knew.
+
+He went to a drug store on the nearest corner and hurried into a
+telephone booth. He called the apartment house and asked to be connected
+with the Gilberts. A woman's hoarse voice answered his call, and he
+guessed that it was the maid speaking.
+
+"Miss Kate Gilbert there?" Murk asked.
+
+"Who is calling, please?"
+
+"Tell her it is about that Prale affair," Murk replied.
+
+"One moment. I'll call her."
+
+Kate Gilbert's voice came to him over the wire almost immediately.
+
+"Miss Gilbert?" Murk asked. "I was to tell you that----"
+
+And then Murk jerked down the receiver hook, and grinned as he put the
+receiver on it. Kate Gilbert would believe that a careless central girl
+had cut them off and put an end to the conversation.
+
+He had learned what he had wished to learn--that Kate Gilbert was at
+home. He walked back up the street. All he had to do now was to watch,
+and if Kate Gilbert left the place follow her. If she did not, Murk
+would wait half an hour or so after the lights in the apartment were
+turned out, to be sure that she had retired, and then would hurry back
+to the hotel.
+
+Murk watched from a distance at first, and then went slowly forward, for
+he did not wish to attract attention by remaining in one position too
+long. There were few persons on the block; and now and then some
+automobile or taxicab would discharge a passenger and go on. Murk made
+his way slowly to the end of the block, always watching the entrance of
+the apartment house, crossed the street, and started back on the other
+side.
+
+He came in front of a dark passageway between two buildings, and went
+on. And out of the mouth of that dark passageway came a blow that caused
+Murk to groan once and topple forward. Hands gripped his unconscious
+body and drew him back into the darkness.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+MURK IS TEMPTED
+
+
+The next thing that impressed itself upon Murk's consciousness was the
+fact that he had a terrific pain in the back of his head. Many times
+during his career Murk had experienced similar pains. And he knew that
+the best thing to do was to remain quiet for a short time, keep his eyes
+closed, and gradually pull himself together.
+
+So he pretended that he had not regained consciousness. He knew that he
+had been stretched upon a bed or couch of some sort, and that his wrists
+were lashed together, and his ankles. He was not gagged, however.
+
+Gradually the pain ceased, Murk's senses cleared and he became aware of
+what was going on around him. He could hear whispered voices, but could
+not distinguish words and sentences; neither could he tell whether the
+voices were those of men or women.
+
+Finally Murk opened his eyes.
+
+He found that he was in a small room furnished in quite an ordinary
+manner. He was stretched on an old-fashioned sofa. There were a few
+chairs scattered about, and a cupboard in one corner. In the middle of
+the room was an ordinary table covered with a red cloth. Upon the table
+a kerosene lamp was burning.
+
+Murk groaned and made an attempt to sit up, but fell back again because
+of a fit of dizziness. It became evident that his groan had been heard
+in the room adjoining, for the door, which had been ajar, now was thrown
+open wide, and two men entered.
+
+Murk knew them instantly; they were the men who had attacked Sidney
+Prale in the Park.
+
+"Back to earth, are you?" one of them snarled. "If I had my way, you'd
+have been cracked on the head for good."
+
+Murk snarled in reply, despite the fact that he was bound and at the
+mercy of these men.
+
+"Sore because I smashed your face!" Murk said.
+
+"That'll be about all out of you! I may take a smash at you yet!"
+
+"You've got a good chance while my hands and feet are tied," Murk
+replied. "It's the only time you could get away with it, all right! Turn
+me loose and I can clean up the two of you!"
+
+"You're not doin' any cleanin' for the present," he was told.
+
+Murk began wondering at the object of the assault upon him. He could
+feel the roll of bills Prale had given him bulging his vest pocket, so
+he guessed robbery was not the motive. He managed to sit up on the sofa
+now, and he glared at the two thugs before him with right good will.
+
+One of the men went back into the adjoining room, and the other remained
+standing before Murk, sneering at him, his hands opening and closing as
+if he would take Murk's throat in them and choke the life out of Sidney
+Prale's valet and comrade in arms.
+
+Then the man who had left the room returned, and there was another with
+him. Murk looked at this stranger with sudden interest. He was well
+dressed, Murk could see, but he wore an ulster that had the wide collar
+turned up around his neck, and he had a mask on his face--a home-made
+mask that was nothing more than a handkerchief with eye slits cut in it.
+
+"Afraid to show yourself, are you?" Murk sneered. "Who are you--the
+chief thug?"
+
+The masked man pulled a chair up before the sofa and sat down. His eyes
+glittered at Murk through the slits in the handkerchief.
+
+"You are not going to be harmed, my man--if you are reasonable," he
+said.
+
+"Reasonable about what?" Murk demanded.
+
+"We want some information and we think you can give it to us; that is
+all."
+
+"I don't know much," said Murk.
+
+"Tell us why you were prowling around that house near the Park."
+
+"Maybe I was takin' a walk," Murk answered.
+
+"And maybe you were spying, as I happen to know you were. We assume that
+Sidney Prale sent you to watch the comings and goings of a certain young
+woman and her friends."
+
+"Go right ahead assumin'."
+
+"It will avail you nothing, my man, to adopt this attitude," Murk was
+told. "And it might help you a great deal if you are willing to listen
+to reason."
+
+"I'm listenin'," Murk replied.
+
+"You haven't been working for Sidney Prale very long, have you?"
+
+"Only a few days--since you seem to know all about it, anyway. Why ask
+foolish questions?"
+
+"Very well. We understand that Prale kept you from committing suicide
+and then gave you a job. There is no reason why you should feel an
+overwhelming gratitude for Prale. He merely got a valet cheap."
+
+"What about it?" Murk growled.
+
+"Sidney Prale has a million dollars, but you'll never see much of it. He
+isn't the sort of man to toss his money away. And there are others, not
+particularly Prale's friends, who have many millions between them."
+
+"Well, that ain't doin' me much good."
+
+"But it may do you a lot of good. We want information and we stand ready
+to pay for it."
+
+"I guess you'll have to do a little explainin'," Murk told him. "I never
+was any good at guessin' riddles. Life's too short to be spent workin'
+out silly puzzles."
+
+"Very well," the masked man said. "As you perhaps are aware, Prale has
+certain enemies. That is enough for you to know, if he has not told you
+more. If you can give me information concerning Sidney Prale's plans,
+and tell us how much he knows, we will pay you handsomely."
+
+"I getcha," Murk said.
+
+"And if you can manage to continue working for Prale, and let us know
+everything as it comes up, there'll be considerably more in it for you."
+
+"Want me to do the spy act, do you?"
+
+"Call it whatever you like. There is a chance for you to earn some good
+money."
+
+"How much?" Murk demanded.
+
+"That depends upon the services you render us. But let me assure you
+that you will be richly rewarded. We will not fool you or defraud you."
+
+"What do you want to know?"
+
+"What is Jim Farland, the detective, doing? What has he reported to
+Prale?"
+
+"He ain't reported much of anything," said Murk.
+
+"We want to know what Prale thinks about the situation. Tell us all you
+know concerning the Rufus Shepley murder case. Has Sidney Prale said
+anything you have been able to hear about the enemies who are bothering
+him? You understand what we want to know--everything possible about
+Prale's plans. And we want you to watch henceforth, and keep us informed
+in a way I shall explain to you."
+
+"Well, explain it!" said Murk.
+
+"Scarcely, until we know that you are our man. Try to think of things
+now, and tell us. Be sure you let us have everything. What you deem
+unimportant may be really important to us."
+
+"I'd feel a lot more friendly to you gents if you'd untie me," said
+Murk. "I can't talk business when I'm treated like a prisoner, or
+somethin' like that."
+
+"You'll be untied as soon as we feel sure of you, and not before," Murk
+was told. "We are not taking chances with you. Are you going to work for
+us?"
+
+"I'm not sure that the proposition looks good to me," Murk said. "I make
+a deal with a man whose face I can't see, and do the dirty work--and
+then maybe you turn me down cold and don't give me a cent, and I lose my
+job with Mr. Prale and get in a nice fix. Don't you suppose I got some
+common sense?"
+
+"Make the deal with us, and you shall have five hundred dollars in cash
+before you leave this room," the masked man promised. "And, take my word
+for it, you'll be rewarded richly if you serve us well."
+
+"Well, I don't know much about this business," Murk said. "You know I
+ain't been with Mr. Prale very long. All I know is that he's got some
+enemies who are tryin' to get the best of him. He says he ain't guilty
+of that murder charge, and I happen to know he ain't, because he was
+with me when Shepley was killed."
+
+"Maybe you both had a hand in the killing," the masked man said. "And if
+you don't come to terms with us, you may find yourself in jail charged
+with being an accessory."
+
+"You can't bluff me, and you can't threaten me and get away with it!"
+Murk cried.
+
+"Softly--softly!" said the masked man. "I was merely showing you where
+you stand."
+
+"Well, don't start talkin' to me that way, if you want to do business
+with me. If I'm goin' to work for you, I've got to know what's what.
+Who's got it in for Mr. Prale, and why? That's what I want to know. And
+what is it you're tryin' to do to him? How can I help if I ain't wise?"
+
+"Some of the wealthiest and most influential men in the city are against
+Sidney Prale. They are determined to run him away from this, his old
+home town. They are going to strip him of his fortune if they can. They
+are going to grind him down until he is nothing better than a tramp."
+
+"Well, why are they goin' to do all this?"
+
+"It is not necessary for you to know at present. Perhaps you will learn
+that from Sidney Prale, if you keep your ears and eyes open. All we want
+you to do is to watch and listen and make frequent reports to us. You'll
+have to be loyal to us, of course. If you are not, we shall punish you."
+
+"But what did Mr. Prale ever do to get such a bunch down on him?" Murk
+demanded.
+
+"You'll find that out in time--maybe."
+
+"I guess I'd better know right now."
+
+"It is not necessary. Besides, we are not sure of you yet, please
+remember."
+
+"How could you ever be sure of me?" Murk cried. "If I threw down Mr.
+Prale, wouldn't I be liable to throw you down, if somebody happened
+along and raised the price? Why, you simp, I wouldn't turn against Mr.
+Prale for a million dollars! He's treated me decent, and he was the
+first man who ever did that! I was just stringin' you, you fool! Mr.
+Prale himself don't know why your gang is causin' him trouble, and I was
+tryin' to pump you and find out!"
+
+"So he has told you that he doesn't know why he has enemies?"
+
+"He has--and he told the truth. There's something phony about that
+murder case; somebody's tryin' to frame him. And when Jim Farland gets
+through, somebody is goin' to jail!"
+
+"So you will not work for us?"
+
+"You're right; I won't. Maybe I don't amount to much, but I'm mighty
+square compared to some people I know about."
+
+"And what do you suppose is going to become of you, if you refuse to do
+as I say?"
+
+"I guess I'll manage to struggle along," Murk said.
+
+"We'll see about that!" the masked man replied, getting up from the
+chair. "Perhaps a night spent in your present position, without food or
+water, will cause you to change your mind. If it does not, there are
+other methods that can be used."
+
+"Goin' to pull rough stuff, are you?" Murk sneered. "Go as far as you
+like! You can manhandle me, but you can't make me turn against Sidney
+Prale. That's a golden little thought for to-day, as the preacher says."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+A WOMAN'S WAY
+
+
+The masked man stepped forward, snarling behind his mask, his hands
+closing, and the two thugs stepped forward also, as if to use Murk
+roughly if the other gave the command.
+
+But there was an interruption. Kate Gilbert came in from the adjoining
+room.
+
+The masked man whirled to meet her.
+
+"You should not--" he began.
+
+"It makes no difference," Kate Gilbert said. "This man knows me, or he
+would not have been set to spying on me. Sidney Prale knows that I am
+associated with his enemies, since I was talking to him to-day. It is
+not necessary for _me_ to mask my face!"
+
+"It really was not necessary for you to come," said the masked man.
+"This fellow refuses to have anything to do with us."
+
+"I cannot blame him. You used violence to get him here. I am afraid that
+I should refuse to have business relations with a man who knocked me on
+the head."
+
+"It was the only way. We couldn't approach him on the street very well.
+We have him here now and perhaps may be able to force him to see the
+light."
+
+"I shall not countenance more violence!" Kate Gilbert said. "I told you
+in the beginning that force was not to be used. This man is not to be
+blamed in any way. He merely is an employee of the man we are fighting."
+
+"I think it justifiable to use any method that will get results," the
+masked man told her. "You seem to forget----"
+
+"I do not forget!" Kate Gilbert cried. "Who has a better right to hope
+to see Sidney Prale punished? Who has suffered more than I and mine? But
+I do not wish to see violence used. This man may be made to help us, but
+I fear you have taken the wrong method. And what do you intend doing
+now?"
+
+"Perhaps it will be as well for you to return home and allow us to
+handle this part of the affair," the masked man told her. "No woman
+likes violence, of course, but at times it is necessary. We are going to
+leave him here to-night to think things over. He will be stiff and sore
+and hungry in the morning."
+
+"But----" Kate Gilbert protested.
+
+"It is the better way, I assure you--and quite necessary. This thing is
+so big that it must be handled with firmness and decision. You have
+aided us greatly, but I think it will be a mistake to let you take
+command of the situation."
+
+Kate Gilbert's eyes flashed angrily, and her face flushed.
+
+"Very well, sir," she said. "But let me talk to this man alone. Perhaps
+common sense and kindness will prevail where violence did not. I
+sincerely hope so."
+
+"I am willing to let you talk to him, but you are to be guarded in your
+speech. Tell him nothing about the real affair; we want to be sure of
+him before we take him fully into our confidence. All we wish him to do
+is to keep us informed about Prale and Jim Farland, and any others who
+may be helping Prale."
+
+"I understand, and I am not quite a fool!" Kate Gilbert told him, still
+angry.
+
+The masked man motioned the two thugs out of the room, and then followed
+them, closing the door behind him. Kate Gilbert sat down in the chair
+before the sofa, and looked at Murk.
+
+"First, I want you to know that I had nothing to do with the blow you
+received," she said. "That was going a bit too far. I knew nothing of it
+until I received a telephone message saying that you were spying on the
+place where I live, and that you had been captured and brought here."
+
+"I understand that, lady," Murk replied.
+
+"I know that you have been with Mr. Prale only a few days. If he were in
+your place now, I might be inclined to turn my back and let those men
+handle him. But you are not to be blamed for the faults of your
+employer."
+
+"No, ma'am," said Murk.
+
+"I am going to tell you only this much: Sidney Prale committed a great
+wrong against several persons. Those persons have banded together to
+have vengeance. Sidney Prale deserves everything that can happen to
+him."
+
+"I think you've got him wrong, ma'am," said Murk. "He's even accused of
+murder, and I know he ain't guilty."
+
+"Neither do I believe that he is guilty of that crime, but that has
+nothing to do with this other affair. The persons who are banded
+together against Sidney Prale have nothing to do with the murder charge,
+I am sure."
+
+"I reckon he'll be glad to know that. But you've got him wrong in this
+other thing, lady. Mr. Prale is worried almost to death because he don't
+know who his enemies are, or why they are causin' him a lot of trouble."
+
+"He has led you to believe that?" she asked.
+
+"I know he's tellin' the truth, ma'am. He's got a detective workin'
+tryin' to find out what it all means."
+
+"Then he is fooling you, and the detective also. Sidney Prale knows who
+his enemies are, and why they are troubling him. He tried to tell me
+that he did not know, and almost in the same breath he told me something
+that convinced me he did know. You have received an offer to help us.
+Are you willing?"
+
+"I don't intend to turn against Mr. Prale!" Murk declared. "I ain't a
+man like that! These gents can keep me here and starve me and beat me
+up, and that's all the good it'll do 'em. I know a man when I see one,
+and Mr. Prale's a man, and a square man, and I'm goin' to stand by him!"
+
+"He has fooled you! You do not know him for the scoundrel that he is."
+
+"Maybe it's you that's bein' fooled, lady."
+
+"No. If you knew all, you would understand."
+
+"Well, why don't you tell me, then? If you prove to me that Mr. Prale is
+a crook or somethin', and that you people ain't, maybe I'll change my
+mind about some things."
+
+"I can tell you nothing now, except that I am right and that Sidney
+Prale is fooling you," Kate Gilbert said.
+
+"Then I'll stay right here and take my beatin' at the hands of them
+thugs."
+
+"You will do nothing of the kind," she said. "I will not see them use
+violence toward you."
+
+"I don't see how you're goin' to help it, ma'am."
+
+"I am going to have you released. You may return to Sidney Prale and
+tell him that we intend to punish him, but that I, for one, will not
+resort to violence. He may fight unfairly, but we do not." She lowered
+her voice and bent toward him. "I'll attract their attention, and send
+my maid to release you," she said. "Remain where you are."
+
+"Yes'm."
+
+Without another word, Kate Gilbert got up and left the room, closing the
+door behind her. In the other room were the masked man, the two thugs,
+and Marie, the maid.
+
+"I have talked to him, and I have a plan," Kate Gilbert told the others.
+"Marie, I wish you to do something for me. Take the taxicab and go on
+the errand, and after I am done here I will go home in another car."
+
+She stepped across to the maid and gave her whispered instructions,
+while the men waited. Marie left the room, walked through the hall, and
+left the house. Kate Gilbert sat down at the table and called the others
+to her.
+
+"That man is loyal to Prale," she explained. "Prale has fooled him. He
+honestly believes that Prale does not know his enemies or why he is
+being bothered, and he is grateful to Prale for what Prale has done for
+him. So, naturally, he refuses to turn against his employer."
+
+"If you will leave the matter in my hands----" the masked man suggested.
+
+"I may do so after we have had this little talk. Come closer, so I can
+speak in a low tone and he will not hear."
+
+They pulled their chairs up to the table.
+
+"This man is stubborn," she said. "You could starve him or beat him, and
+it would do you not the slightest good. It would only make him the more
+determined to be faithful to Prale. We would gain nothing. We've got to
+convince him that we are in the right."
+
+"I object to telling him the whole truth," said the masked man.
+
+"He could do nothing except tell it to Prale--and Prale knows it
+already, doesn't he?" Kate Gilbert asked.
+
+"You want to let the fellow go?" the masked man cried. "Why, we can use
+him as a sort of hostage!"
+
+"As if Sidney Prale would care if he never saw his valet again!"
+
+"He is more than a valet; he is one of Prale's spies! If we can hold
+this man prisoner, and attend to Jim Farland, that detective, Prale
+would stand alone. There are not many men he would trust to help him.
+And, if he stands alone, it will be easier for us to torment him, cause
+him trouble, drive him away!"
+
+"Sometimes I regret that we started this thing," Kate Gilbert said.
+"What will it avail us to make Prale's life miserable?"
+
+"You seem to forget--"
+
+"I forget nothing! I know how I have suffered, how my father and others
+have suffered. But I am not sure that retribution will not visit Sidney
+Prale even if we keep our hands off."
+
+"You're a woman; that is why!" the masked man accused. "You have a soft
+heart, as is right and proper in a woman. But when you remember your
+father----"
+
+"I am not quitting!" she declared. "I will continue the game. But I will
+not permit violence toward anybody, least of all to a poor fellow who
+has nothing to do with the affair except that he is working for Sidney
+Prale. We can accomplish our aims without becoming thugs and breaking
+laws ourselves. I understood that we always were to keep inside the
+law."
+
+"Well, what have you to suggest?" the masked man asked.
+
+"Let Prale's valet go, for he can do us no harm. Prale knows that I am
+against him, but he can make no move unless we break the law and his
+detective has us apprehended. We play into Sidney Prale's hands if we do
+that. Can't you see it? We do not want to give him an advantage, do we?
+If we use violence or break a law, we do just that. We must break him
+down cleverly."
+
+"I see that point, all right."
+
+"I am astonished that you did not see it before. You appear to be very
+vindictive lately, yet you did not suffer as some others suffered."
+
+"I have my reasons. I always have hated Sidney Prale."
+
+"Then you are making this fight for personal reasons?"
+
+"Do not forget that some very good friends of mine suffered because of
+Prale. But, about the valet----"
+
+"Let him go, I say. What harm can he do?"
+
+"We slugged him to get him here. He can report it to the police, and
+have you arrested, and these two men."
+
+"And what evidence would he have?" she asked. "Who would testify that he
+was telling the truth? These two men can keep out of sight for the
+present. He has not seen your face because of your mask. And to charge
+me with slugging him would be ridiculous."
+
+"This house----"
+
+"Is vacant, so far as the neighbors know; it is owned by a man whose
+wife died, and who has been gone for more than a year. The agent who
+rented it to us furnished, is one of us. We can simply close it up and
+not come here again. If he complained, and the police investigated, they
+would find the house closed, and the nearest neighbors would declare
+that it had been closed since the owner went away. The furniture is not
+even dusted."
+
+"That part is all right."
+
+"And that attack on Prale in the Park during the afternoon!" she went
+on. "That was a mistake. Suppose Detective Farland managed to connect
+that with us. I tell you we must not break a law, or Sidney Prale may
+get the advantage!"
+
+"We can't handle an affair like this with kid gloves!" the masked man
+declared.
+
+"We do as I say, or I shall go to Sidney Prale and tell him everything
+and rob you of your vengeance!"
+
+"You would do that!" the masked man cried, springing from his chair.
+
+"I'll do it if there is any more violence!" she declared. "It was
+understood that no rough tactics were to be used, and I demand that we
+carry out the original plan!"
+
+"We'll see about this!" the masked man cried. "I'll talk to some of the
+others----"
+
+"And I'll leave the game if there is any more violence--do not forget
+that!" Kate Gilbert cried.
+
+She continued to talk and plan, for she was fighting for time. She had
+known that, at the last moment, this man would refuse to release Murk.
+
+Marie, the big maid, had hurried from the house, which sat far back from
+the street and was surrounded by trees. But she had returned after
+watching for a few minutes.
+
+Murk, sitting on the sofa, heard somebody at one of the windows. He
+watched the sash being raised slowly and cautiously, and after a time
+saw the head of Marie. She motioned him for silence, listened a moment,
+and then crawled inside.
+
+Marie hurried across to Murk and fumbled with the cords that bound his
+wrists together behind his back. The bonds slipped away, and Murk made
+quick work of the one around his ankles. He hurried across the room, got
+through the window, and helped the big maid through. Marie led him
+toward the street.
+
+"Come right along with me!" she commanded, when they were some distance
+from the house.
+
+"Thanks for helpin' me out, but I guess I'll hang around," Murk replied.
+"I'm right eager to get a look at the face of the man who was wearing
+the mask."
+
+"I supposed you'd want to do that," the big maid told him. "And that's
+what I've got orders to keep you from doing. You come along with me!"
+
+Murk got a surprise. Marie gripped his shoulder with her left hand--and
+it was no gentle grip. Then he saw that she was holding an automatic
+pistol in her right hand.
+
+"There is a taxi at the corner," she informed Murk. "We are going to get
+into it and drive back to the city. You may be able to find this house
+afterward, but I doubt it."
+
+"Suppose I take a notion not to go?" Murk asked.
+
+"I'm not afraid to shoot," Marie informed him.
+
+"Aw, let me go!" he exclaimed. "You're in wrong in this deal; see? I
+tell you that Mr. Prale, my boss, is an all-right man, and you people
+are makin' some kind of a mistake."
+
+"I like to see a man stick up for his boss," replied the gigantic Marie.
+"And I'm stickin' up for mine right this minute, and she told me to see
+that you went to town. Why don't you quit that man Prale and get a real
+job with a gentleman? You're not a bad-looking man at all."
+
+Murk felt himself blushing at this unexpected announcement. Praise from
+the lips of a woman was something new in his life. He glanced at the
+amazon beside him.
+
+"And you're sure some woman!" he said. "And that ain't just nice talk--I
+sure mean it! But you ain't got this from the right angle. I've got to
+work for Mr. Prale. I'd be a dead one this minute if it wasn't for him.
+If I didn't stick by him now, I'd never be able to look at myself in a
+shavin' mirror again. You don't want me to be an ungrateful pup, do you?
+You see----"
+
+Having directed her attention to another topic for a moment, Murk put
+his plan into action. He made a quick lunge forward as he spoke,
+springing a bit to one side as he did so, and trying to seize the
+automatic and tear it from her grasp.
+
+But the gigantic Marie had been anticipating something like that,
+despite Murk's speech and his manner that said he was a willing captive.
+She lurched forward and hurled Murk back, sprang after him, crashed the
+butt of the weapon against the side of his head, and then, while he was
+a trifle groggy from the blow, she grasped him with her powerful hands
+and piloted him toward the street with strength and determination.
+
+"Never try to play them child's tricks on me!" she announced.
+
+Murk regarded her with mingled admiration and chagrin, and spoke with
+enthusiasm.
+
+"Some woman!" he commented.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+COADLEY QUITS
+
+
+Murk, compelled to ride back to the city in the taxicab with Marie,
+spent the time in ordinary conversation with the amazon, and told
+himself repeatedly that she was a great woman, a dangerous state of mind
+for a bachelor.
+
+The only reason Murk wanted to remain in the vicinity of the cottage was
+to catch a sight of the countenance of the man who had worn the mask. As
+far as the cottage itself was concerned, he had noticed a signboard on a
+street corner not far from it, and he would be able to locate it again
+if Sidney Prale or Jim Farland thought it necessary.
+
+Marie stopped the taxicab near the Park, and Murk got out and gallantly
+offered to pay the bill for his enemy, but Marie would not allow it.
+
+"Hope to see you often and get to know you better when this little scrap
+is over," Murk made bold to say, and then, chuckling at her retort, he
+started walking down the street.
+
+He did not care to ride, for it was not so very many blocks to the
+hotel, and Murk wanted time to formulate in his mind the report he
+intended to make to his employer.
+
+Prale was waiting for him, and Murk told his story in detail and without
+embellishment.
+
+"So Kate Gilbert had you freed, did she?" Prale said. "And she told the
+others that she would quit them if they used any more violence? Murk,
+old boy, when our foes begin fighting in their own camp it is time for
+us to begin to hope. A house divided against itself cannot stand, as you
+probably have heard."
+
+"She certainly panned the man who wore the handkerchief over his face,"
+Murk said. "I think I'd know him again, boss. He talked a good deal,
+remember, and he got careless toward the last and used his regular
+voice. And I watched his hands--boob didn't have sense enough to wear
+gloves. Anybody but a boob would know that a hand can be recognized as
+easy as a face."
+
+"Let us hope that they make a lot of mistakes like that, Murk," Prale
+replied. "I'll be glad if we ever solve this confounded mystery. It's
+getting on my nerves."
+
+They remained up until one o'clock in the morning, but Jim Farland
+neither visited the hotel again nor called them up, and so they went to
+bed.
+
+They did not rise early, but had breakfast in the suite and took their
+time about eating it. After that, they waited for Farland to arrive or
+telephone and give orders and tell news. Farland did not come, but
+Attorney Coadley did.
+
+Murk admitted him, and the distinguished criminal lawyer sat in the
+window beside Prale, a grave expression on his face, his manner that of
+a disconcerted man.
+
+"I gather you do not bring good news, judging from your countenance,"
+Prale said.
+
+"At least, I have not come to say that the case against you is any
+stronger," Coadley replied. "I'd like to speak to you alone, Mr. Prale."
+
+"Certainly. You may go into the other room, Murk, and remain until I
+call."
+
+Murk obeyed, and Sidney Prale bent forward in his chair and looked at
+the attorney again, wondering what this visit meant, what was coming,
+half fearing that the news would be ill after all.
+
+"Mr. Prale," Coadley said, "I have come here to your apartment to tell
+you that I wish you to get another attorney."
+
+"I beg your pardon!" Prale gasped.
+
+"I wish to withdraw from the case, Mr. Prale--that is all. An attorney
+does that frequently, you know."
+
+"But I want you to handle my case," Prale said. "I have been given to
+understand that you are one of the foremost criminal lawyers in the
+city. And you have done so much already----"
+
+"I insist that I withdraw, Mr. Prale. I shall be ethical. I shall give
+the man you name in my place all the knowledge at my command regarding
+this case, and I shall see that the change does not embarrass you or
+place you in jeopardy. The court will grant extensions if they are
+necessary."
+
+"Farland has given me to understand that my alibi now is of such a
+nature that the case against me may be dismissed. I had hoped that you
+had come here this morning to tell me so."
+
+"I fancy that any good attorney can get the charge dismissed," Coadley
+said.
+
+"But I do not want to be freed under a cloud. I want the public to be
+sure I did not kill Rufus Shepley--I want to have the public know the
+identity of the man who did."
+
+"That is what I thought, and that will take considerable time, perhaps,"
+Coadley said. "And so I wish to withdraw----"
+
+"If it is a question of fee----"
+
+"Nothing of the sort, Mr. Prale. I am sure you would pay me any
+reasonable fee I asked. There is no question regarding your financial
+ability."
+
+"May I ask, then, why you desire to leave the case?" Sidney Prale asked.
+
+"I'd rather not state my reasons, Mr. Prale. Just let me withdraw, and
+make arrangements with the court, after you have named the man to take
+my place. The bail arrangement will stand, of course."
+
+"So you do not care to tell your reasons!" Prale said. "Mr. Coadley, a
+banker refused to handle my funds. A hotel manager ordered me out, you
+might say, for no good reason whatever. I understand that I have some
+powerful enemies who are working in the dark, and who cause these
+annoyances. Do you wish me to understand, Mr. Coadley, that they have
+been to see you? Do you wish me to think that you are under the thumbs
+of these persons, whoever they may be?"
+
+The attorney's face flushed, and he looked angry for an instant, but
+quickly controlled himself.
+
+"I do not care to go into details, Mr. Prale," he said.
+
+"Then it is the truth!" Prale said. "The big criminal lawyer is not so
+big but that others can force him to do as they please."
+
+"Let us say as I please, Mr. Prale."
+
+"Then you think that you have a good reason for withdrawing?"
+
+"I do."
+
+"In other words, something has been told you that convinced you I am not
+a fit client. Is that it? And, instead of telling me what it is, and
+giving me a chance to refute the charge or explain, you simply take the
+easiest course and believe my enemies. Do you call that an example of
+the square deal?"
+
+"Let us not talk about it further, Mr. Prale," Coadley replied. "I feel
+quite sure that you have a complete understanding of the situation."
+
+"But I have not! I seem to be able to understand nothing in regard to
+this affair of which I am the central figure. I would give half my
+fortune, I believe, to have an explanation and be able to set things
+right."
+
+"No doubt you would be willing to give half your fortune to set things
+right!" Coadley said. "It is your privilege, of course, to say that you
+do not understand. Mr. Prale, you must see that this interview is
+painful to me, and it must be painful to you. Why prolong it?"
+
+"As far as I am concerned, this interview may be terminated at once,
+sir!" Sidney Prale exclaimed. "I'll send you a check for your services
+as soon as you submit your bill; and please do not neglect to do so at
+once. I'll inform you as soon as possible of the name of the man I
+select to fill your legal shoes in this matter. That is satisfactory?
+Very well. Murk!"
+
+Murk hurried in from the adjoining room when he heard Sidney Prale's
+call.
+
+"Show Mr. Coadley to the hall door, Murk!" Sidney Prale said. "And while
+you are about it, please close that ventilator in the corner of the
+room. It creates a draft, I am sure, and Mr. Coadley already has cold
+feet!"
+
+The attorney glared at Prale, and then got up and walked quickly across
+to the door, which the grinning Murk held open to let him pass out.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+UP THE RIVER
+
+
+Coadley had not gone for more than an hour when Detective Jim Farland
+arrived at the hotel and made his way immediately to Sidney Prale's
+suite.
+
+He found Prale pacing the floor angrily, and Murk sitting in a corner
+and watching him. The police detective, after doing duty for a few days,
+had been withdrawn, as it seemed evident that Prale had no intention of
+jumping his bail or eluding trial in any other way.
+
+"What's the trouble now?" Farland asked.
+
+"Coadley has just been here," Prale replied. "He has quit us. Our
+friends the enemy have reached him."
+
+"You couldn't get any sort of an explanation out of him?" Farland asked.
+
+"Nothing at all. He simply informed me that he was done, and that I had
+to get another lawyer."
+
+"I'll try to find an honest one for you," Farland declared. "I happen to
+know a clever young chap who probably will take the case, especially if
+I explain the thing to him, for he loves a fight. There is no special
+hurry, but I'll try to attend to it some time to-day."
+
+"Anything new?" Prale asked.
+
+"That is what I am waiting to hear. What did you do last night, Murk?"
+
+Murk related his adventure at length, while Jim Farland listened
+gravely, nodding his head now and then, and looking puzzled at times.
+
+"I'd like to know the identity of that masked man," the detective said,
+when Murk had finished. "The main trouble in this case is that we do not
+know the people we are fighting. We know that Kate Gilbert is one of
+them, and have reason to suspect that George Lerton is another. But
+there is somebody bigger behind, and that's a fact."
+
+"What are you going to do next?" Prale asked.
+
+"I'm going to pay a little attention to the Rufus Shepley murder case.
+I'm going to find out, if I can, who killed Shepley, and why. I am of
+the opinion that the murder is distinct from this other trouble, Sid.
+Perhaps a clew to the murder, however, will give us a clew to the whole
+thing, for it is certain that somebody has attempted to hang that crime
+on you."
+
+"How about George Lerton?" Prale asked.
+
+"We know that he tried to help smash your alibi by telling a falsehood,
+and by sending those notes to the barber and the merchant. But we do not
+know his motive, unless it is simply a hatred of you, Sid, and envy of
+the million dollars you got in Honduras. I'm going to get out of here
+now, and get busy."
+
+"Anything for us to do?" Prale asked.
+
+"Keep out of trouble--that is the principal thing. It appears that every
+time either of you goes out, you get knocked on the head. I'll report
+again as soon as I can."
+
+Jim Farland left them and hurried from the hotel. He went to the
+hostelry where Rufus Shepley had met his death, was admitted to the
+suite, and made an exhaustive investigation, which revealed nothing of
+importance.
+
+He visited the New York offices of the company in which Shepley had been
+interested, and questioned officials and clerks, but got no inkling of a
+state of affairs that might have led to a murder. He was told that the
+company's business was in proper shape, and that Rufus Shepley had had
+no financial trouble of any sort so far as his associates knew.
+
+Farland left the office and continued his investigations. In the evening
+he went to his home for a meal, and admitted to himself that he did not
+know any more than when he had started out that morning.
+
+"It gets my goat!" he said to his reflection in the bathroom mirror.
+"I'll have to begin working from some other starting point. I've made a
+mistake somewhere, or overlooked something that I should have seen.
+Makes me sore!"
+
+The telephone bell rang, and Farland went to the instrument to hear the
+voice of a man he did not know.
+
+"I understand that you are interested in the Shepley murder case," his
+caller said.
+
+"I am working on it, yes. Who is talking?" Farland demanded.
+
+"I'm not ready to mention any names. If you want to hang up, go ahead
+and you'll miss something important. Or if you want to listen for a
+minute----"
+
+"I'll listen!" Farland said.
+
+"I know a lot about that Shepley case, but I am in a position where I
+have to be careful. If you'll do as I say, you can learn something you'd
+like to know."
+
+"What do you want me to do?" Farland asked.
+
+"Meet me in some place where nobody will see us talking, and I'll tell
+you a few things. But I must have your promise that you'll not reveal
+the source of the information."
+
+"I'll protect you, unless you are mixed up in it to such an extent that
+I'd dare not do so," Farland said. "I'm not guaranteeing to shield any
+murderer or accessory."
+
+"I had nothing to do with the murder, if that is what you mean," came
+the reply.
+
+"Then where do you want me to meet you--and when? Can you make it this
+evening?"
+
+"Yes; and suppose that you set the meeting place, one that you know will
+be all right for both of us."
+
+Farland was glad to listen to that sentence. He had half believed that
+this was nothing more than a trap, that some of Sidney Prale's
+mysterious enemies were attempting to lure him to some out-of-the-way
+place and get him in their power. But if he was to be allowed to name
+the meeting place, it seemed to indicate that everything was all right
+in that regard.
+
+Farland though a moment, and then suggested a certain famous restaurant
+on Broadway and a table in a corner of the main room, where a man could
+lose himself in the crowd. But that did not meet with the approval of
+the man at the other end of the telephone wire.
+
+"Nothing doing in that place," he said. "One of the men interested in
+this thing hangs out there almost every evening. He'd be sure to see us,
+he knows how much I know about it, and he'd suspect things in a second
+if he saw me talking to you. Then it'd be made hot for me. I've got to
+protect myself, of course."
+
+"Suggest a place yourself," Farland said.
+
+"Make it outside somewhere. How about some place in Riverside Park?"
+
+"Suits me," Farland replied.
+
+The man at the other end of the wire gave the directions after much
+seeming speculation and many changes. Jim Farland was to go to Grant's
+Tomb, and from there to a certain place near the river. The other man
+would be in the neighborhood watching, he said, would recognize Farland
+as he passed the Tomb, and then would follow and speak to him when
+nobody else was near.
+
+Farland agreed, and made the engagement for an hour and a half later,
+saying that he could not get there before that time. It would not be the
+first time that Jim Farland had obtained an important clew because
+somebody interested had grown disgruntled and had turned against his
+pals; and he supposed this to be a case of that sort.
+
+Before leaving home, Farland made sure that his automatic was in
+excellent condition, and that he had his handcuffs and electric torch
+and other paraphernalia of his trade. He made his way to Columbus
+Circle, having decided to walk to the rendezvous. Farland was in no
+hurry. He observed all who passed him, and he frequently made
+experiments to ascertain whether he was being followed. He decided,
+after a time, that if he was being shadowed the person doing it was too
+clever for him.
+
+He came to Riverside Drive through a cross street, and approached the
+famous Tomb as cautiously as possible, keeping in the shadows, alert to
+discover anybody who might be acting at all suspiciously. Farland felt
+sure that this was no trap, but he was not taking chances. He always had
+been known to his friends as a cautious man.
+
+He reached the Tomb finally, and glanced around. Half a dozen persons
+were passing, some men and some women, some alone and others in couples,
+but none were of suspicious appearance.
+
+Farland glanced at his watch to be sure that it was the appointed time.
+He strolled around the Tomb and waited ten minutes longer, for he did
+not care to find later that he had left the appointed spot too early and
+that the other man had not seen and followed him.
+
+At the end of the extra ten minutes, Farland lighted one of his big,
+black cigars and started walking toward the river, following the route
+the other man had designated over the telephone. He walked slowly and
+not for an instant did he throw caution aside.
+
+Here and there were dark spots where Farland expected to hear his name
+spoken, spots where an attack might be made if one was contemplated by
+foes.
+
+It was as he was passing one of these that a whisper came from the
+darkness:
+
+"Mr. Farland!"
+
+The detective whirled toward the sound, one hand diving into a coat
+pocket and clutching his automatic.
+
+"Well?"
+
+"Be as silent as possible. Do not flash your torch yet; you may do so
+presently, so you can see who is talking. I am the man who called you up
+by telephone."
+
+"Come out where I can get a glimpse of you," Farland commanded, ready
+for trouble.
+
+He could see a shadow detach itself from the patch of gloom in front of
+him and approach.
+
+"That is close enough for the present!" Farland said. "I'm not taking
+chances on you until I know who's talking to me."
+
+"I don't blame you, Mr. Farland, under the circumstances. If you are
+sure there is nobody approaching, I'll come out into the light so you
+can see my face."
+
+Farland glanced up and down the walk quickly. As he did so, he heard a
+step behind him. He whirled, the automatic came from his pocket ready
+for use--and a man crashed into him.
+
+The one who had been talking from the patch of shadow rushed forward at
+the same instant. Farland managed to fire once, but the shot went wild.
+Then a third man rushed from the darkness, and the detective had the
+automatic torn away, and found that he had a battle on his hands.
+
+One man was upon his back, throttling him so that he could not utter a
+cry. The others were trying to throw him to the ground. Farland wondered
+whether that single shot had been heard, whether assistance would reach
+him, for he knew that here was a battle he could not win by force.
+
+Finally they got him down. Something was thrust into his mouth and
+bandaged there, effectually gagging him. He was turned over on his face,
+and his wrists were lashed behind him. Then his ankles were fastened,
+and two of the men, at the whispered instruction of the third, picked
+him up like a sack of meal and carried him into the deep shadows.
+
+They did not stop there, but continued toward the river, holding a
+conversation in whispers at times, and stopping now and then for a
+moment to rest and listen. Farland had been quiet, gathering his
+strength, and suddenly he began to struggle.
+
+It was nothing worse than annoyance for his opponents. He was unable to
+make an outcry that would attract attention, and he was unable to put up
+an effective fight. They threw him upon the ground again and held him
+there.
+
+"Another little trick like that, and we'll give you something to keep
+you quiet," one of the men whispered into his ear. "We've got you, and
+you'd better let it go at that!"
+
+Once more they picked him up and went toward the river. They reached it,
+and one of the men hurried away while the other two guarded Farland.
+Five minutes passed, and then a powerful motor boat slipped toward the
+shore. An instant later Farland was aboard it, a prisoner, and the boat
+was rushing through the great river toward the north.
+
+Farland made an attempt to watch the lights along the shore, but one of
+the men threw a sack over his face, so that he could not see. And so he
+merely listened to the beating of the boat's engine, and tried to
+estimate with what speed they were running and how much mileage the
+craft was covering.
+
+The sack was heavy, and Jim Farland felt himself half smothered, the
+perspiration pouring from his face and neck. He had grown angry for a
+moment, angry at himself for walking into the trap even while suspecting
+that one might exist, angry at these three men who had captured him so
+close to Riverside Drive.
+
+Then his rage passed. He was experienced enough to know that an angry
+man is at a disadvantage in a game of wits, and that wits and nothing
+else could get him out of the present predicament.
+
+Finally, he felt the boat turning, the speed was cut off, and it drifted
+against something. Farland was lifted out of the motor boat, but one of
+the men held the sack over his head, and he was unable to see. Once more
+he was carried, this time away from the river, and he could tell nothing
+except that the men who carried him were struggling up a sharp slope.
+
+Farland made no attempt to fight or struggle now, knowing that it would
+avail him nothing to attempt to throw off these three men. He had
+decided to conserve his strength, and to trust to his usual good fortune
+to get a chance later to even things by turning the tables on his
+captors.
+
+Suddenly the sack was taken from his head, and he was able to breathe
+better. He found that he was beside a road in which stood an automobile.
+Two of the men lifted him, tossed him inside the machine, and then got
+in themselves. The driver started the engine, threw in the clutch, and
+soon the car was being driven at a furious pace along the winding road.
+
+"Look around all you want to!" one of Farland's captors growled at him.
+"You won't even know where you are when you get there!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+RECOGNITION
+
+
+Through a maze of crossing and winding roads the car made its way, now
+over highways as smooth as a city pavement, and now over rough mileage
+that jolted the occupants and threatened the springs with destruction.
+
+Jim Farland did not recognize this particular district. He did not even
+know upon which side of the river he was being hauled along as a
+prisoner. In the city proper, his abductors would have found it very
+difficult to take him to a section where he could not have recognized
+some sort of a landmark, but here they had him at a serious
+disadvantage.
+
+The night was dark, too, and a fine drizzle was falling. Farland tugged
+at his bonds when he could, and finally convinced himself that they
+would not give. He tried to work one end of the gag from the corner of
+his mouth and found that he could not do that. He was utterly helpless
+for the time being, at the mercy of the three men who had kidnaped him,
+and the chauffeur, and whoever might be where they were going.
+
+For half an hour longer the car made its way across the country, and
+then Farland noticed that it left the principal thoroughfare and turned
+into a rough, narrow lane that was bordered with big trees. At the end
+of a quarter of a mile of this lane, the chauffeur brought the car to a
+stop. Farland could see a building that had the appearance of being an
+abandoned farmhouse.
+
+He was lifted from the car and carried to the door. One of the men threw
+it open, and Farland was carried inside. They took him through a hall,
+turned into a room, and tossed him upon a couch in a corner there. One
+of them struck a match, lighted a lamp, and then they turned to survey
+him.
+
+Farland glared at them, waited for them to speak. They were making no
+attempt to hide their features. Typical thugs they were, the three of
+them, and Farland supposed that the chauffeur, who had not come into the
+house with the others, belonged to the same class.
+
+One of them stepped forward and removed Farland's gag, while another
+went into another room and presently returned with a dipper of water,
+which he held to Farland's lips. He drank greedily, for the gag had
+parched his mouth and throat.
+
+"Bein' as how you are a copper, I'd slip a knife between your ribs and
+call it a good job," one of the men told him, "but we are supposed to
+treat you nice and keep you in condition for a little talk with the
+boss. So you needn't tremble with fear any."
+
+"It'd take more than three bums like you to make me afraid!" Farland
+told him.
+
+"Nasty, ain't you? Maybe we'll get a little chance to beat you up later,
+especially if your little talk with the boss ain't what they call
+productive of results. You've got some reputation as a dick, but I
+reckon it's all a fake. We didn't have much trouble gettin' you and
+bringin' you here."
+
+"Isn't that enough to make you worry a bit?" Farland asked.
+
+"How do you mean?"
+
+"Did you ever stop to think that maybe I wanted to be captured and
+hauled here? Have you any idea how many men watched and trailed us?
+You've led me to where I wanted to come, to a place I wanted to find,
+perhaps."
+
+"That bluff won't work," came the reply. "We had a couple of men
+watchin' for that very thing, and they'd have given us a high sign if we
+had been followed. You're here all by your lonesome, and so you'd better
+be good."
+
+Two of the men left the room, and the third sat down by the table to act
+as guard. Fifteen minutes passed, during which Jim Farland and the man
+by the table exchanged pleasant remarks concerning each other, neither
+getting much the best of the argument.
+
+Then the hall door was opened again, and a masked man entered the room!
+
+Remembering what Murk had related to him concerning his experience of
+the night before, Jim Farland looked up at this newcomer with sudden
+interest.
+
+This man, undoubtedly, was a sort of leader, one who had hired others to
+help him in his work and who knew the identities of Sidney Prale's
+mysterious enemies, and why they were working against him; perhaps,
+also, the man who could tell a good deal about the murder of Rufus
+Shepley.
+
+Farland did not betray too much interest, though, for he sensed that he
+was opposed to a person of brains and cunning, a different type from the
+thugs he hired to work for him. So the detective merely blinked his eyes
+rapidly as he looked up at the other and waited for him to speak.
+
+"You are Jim Farland, a detective?"
+
+The voice was low and harsh, a monotone, a disguised voice in fact. Jim
+Farland knew that at once.
+
+"That's my name, and some people are kind enough to say that I am a
+detective," Farland replied. "What's the idea of treating me rough like
+this?"
+
+"I regret that violence was necessary to get you here, Mr. Farland," the
+masked man replied, "but it seemed to be the only way in which I could
+get a chance to talk to you freely without subjecting myself to danger."
+
+"Why regret?" Farland asked.
+
+"Because I want you for my friend instead of my enemy, Mr. Farland, and
+I fancy that we may be able to come to terms. I shall send this man of
+mine from the room and submit a proposition to you. I hope you see fit
+to accept it."
+
+He motioned for the other man to leave, which he did immediately,
+closing the hall door behind him. Then the masked man sat down in the
+chair by the table.
+
+Farland was watching him closely now. The collar of his coat and the
+handkerchief mask effectually shielded his face and head. But, as Murk
+had told, this man did not have the common sense to cover his hands, and
+Farland looked at them when he could, careful not to let the other
+suspect his object.
+
+"I am the man who talked to Mr. Prale's valet last night," Farland heard
+the other say. "In some manner, the valet escaped, and so we were
+obliged to have you brought here instead of to the place where we had
+him, and which was considerably nearer the city. I regret it if the long
+ride annoyed you, but you will appreciate that it was necessary for my
+men to bind and gag you."
+
+"It certainly was if they expected to get me here!" Jim Farland
+declared.
+
+He heard the masked man chuckle.
+
+"I understand that you have been engaged by Sidney Prale to clear him of
+the charge of murdering Rufus Shepley."
+
+"I don't mind admitting that, since the whole city knows it," said
+Farland.
+
+"And also to aid Sidney Prale in outwitting certain persons who are
+trying to punish him for something he did."
+
+"I don't know anything about that. I do know that some people are trying
+to make things hot for Sid Prale, and he doesn't deserve it, and----"
+
+"Pardon me, if I interrupt!" the masked man said. "You say that he does
+not deserve it. Do you believe that influential persons would persecute
+him if he did not deserve it?"
+
+"Sid Prale doesn't know what it is all about!"
+
+"That is what he told the valet, too. But believe me when I say that he
+does know what it is all about, and is deceiving you when he says
+otherwise."
+
+"What has all this to do with me?" Jim Farland demanded. "Did you have
+me brought here to argue the case with me?"
+
+"I had you brought here because I want you to cease working for Sidney
+Prale. I want you to go back to him and tell him that you are done."
+
+"As Coadley, the attorney, did?"
+
+"Exactly!"
+
+"Your people must be men of influence if they can buy off Coadley like
+that!"
+
+"Perhaps Coadley was shown that it would wreck his future if he
+continued working for Prale."
+
+"Well, you can't wreck my future, because I haven't any," Farland told
+him.
+
+"Do not be too sure of that, Mr. Farland. Agree to my proposition and
+you may have a great future. You may find business thrown your way. You
+may find yourself able to spread out, have a protective service, become
+a wealthy man. If you give up the Prale case, we'll see that you are
+paid cash immediately, of course, in lieu of the fee you would receive
+from Prale--and considerably more than he would pay you."
+
+"I suppose that would appeal to a lot of men," Jim Farland said, "but it
+isn't the right bait to use if you are eager to catch me. I have all the
+business I want. I can make a living for myself and my small family, and
+we do not hanker after riches. A larger business would make me a human
+machine, and I'd rather just drift along and be an ordinary good husband
+and father. I'd rather be running a little, third-rate detective agency
+as I am, making just enough to get along, and have a lot of friends. I
+wouldn't throw down a friend for a million dollars! I suppose I'm the
+only man in town that thinks this way, but I'm a sort of peculiar duck!"
+
+"You mean to tell me that you are not anxious to better yourself, to get
+along in the world?"
+
+"Oh, I manage to get along!" Jim Farland replied. "I even eat meat now
+and then. I haven't seen the face of the famous wolf outside my door for
+some time. What is money?"
+
+"Everything!" the masked man replied.
+
+"That's what you think. It gives me an inkling as to what sort of man
+you are. I happen to know a fellow to whom money is everything--and I
+have reason to suspect that he is considerably interested in the case of
+Sidney Prale. Be careful you do not betray your identity to me!"
+
+Farland had the satisfaction of hearing the masked man gasp, and he
+chuckled.
+
+"Well, what is the proposition?" Farland inquired. "You seem to waste a
+lot of time."
+
+"We want you merely to tell Sidney Prale that you will not work on the
+case any more--that you are done. Then go about your regular business.
+We'll have you watched, and as soon as we are satisfied that you are
+keeping faith with us, we'll send you ten thousand dollars in cash. If
+you make the agreement with me, I'll give you a thousand cash to-night
+before you leave this place, as a sort of retainer and expression of our
+sincerity. Then, following the fee of ten thousand dollars, you'll find
+that much business is flowing your way. All you have to do to get all
+this is to withdraw from the Prale case at once."
+
+"You must be afraid that I am finding out some things," Jim Farland
+suggested.
+
+"That is scarcely the reason," the masked man answered. "We want Sidney
+Prale to stand alone, to be without help of any sort--that is all."
+
+"But I am more than Sidney Prale's employee. I am his friend!" Farland
+protested.
+
+"You were his friend ten years ago, sir, but a man may change a great
+deal in ten years. Are you quite sure that the Sidney Prale of to-day is
+the boyish, friendly Sidney Prale of ten years ago?"
+
+"I am quite sure; and that is why I am trying to help him," Jim Farland
+declared.
+
+"I fear that he is fooling you--as he is deceiving others. He is not
+worthy of such friendship as you are giving him."
+
+"How do I know that?" Farland asked. "If I could have some sort of an
+explanation----"
+
+He awaited the other's reply. If he could get some inkling as to why
+Prale had powerful enemies, it might help a lot.
+
+"I can tell you this much: Sidney Prale did something that wrecked and
+ruined several lives. Certain prominent persons have decided to punish
+him. He is to have his life made miserable, he is to have his fortune
+taken away from him, he is to be subjected to petty annoyances and hard
+blows alike, driven from this, his home town, forced to realize that a
+man cannot do what he did and escape retribution."
+
+"Sounds like he murdered a nation!" Jim Farland commented. "Did he wreck
+the national treasury or turn traitor to the flag?"
+
+"I am not jesting, Mr. Farland."
+
+"Neither am I. My eyes have got to be opened, sir. You've got to come
+clean with me. Prale's enemies may strike at him from the dark, but Jim
+Farland never works in the dark! I want to see where I'm stepping. I
+never like to trip over anything."
+
+"I have told you all that I can at present."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because I do not care to give you information if you are still to work
+for Prale."
+
+"You say that Prale knows his enemies and why they are fighting him. If
+he does, he never has told me. Tell me that much--since you say Sid
+Prale knows it already. It couldn't hurt your side at all."
+
+"We might tell you later."
+
+"You've got some very good reason for not telling me!" Farland accused.
+"It is the truth, isn't it, that Prale does not know a single thing
+about it. You are afraid to tell me because I may inform him of what you
+say, and we may straighten out the tangle? I can see through you, sir,
+as easily as through a newly cleaned window."
+
+"I see that you have faith in Sidney Prale," the masked man said. "But I
+assure you that your faith is misplaced. Is there any way in which I can
+get you to stop your work for him?"
+
+"Meaning against his influential enemies, or on the Rufus Shepley murder
+case?" Farland asked.
+
+"We simply want you to stop working for him. If he stands alone, we can
+punish him the sooner."
+
+"I understand about that, of course. But how about the murder case? Do
+you think Sid Prale is guilty of that crime?" Farland asked.
+
+"I do not know, I am sure. I understand that the evidence against him is
+damaging. But we are not awaiting the outcome of that. He may manage to
+have the charge against him dismissed, and we are going ahead with our
+plans for punishment."
+
+"Then you want me to quit Prale so I won't be helping him work against
+his enemies, and not because you are afraid that, in clearing him of the
+murder charge, I may find something detrimental to other persons?"
+
+"That is the idea," the masked man replied. "The murder case can take
+care of itself, I suppose."
+
+"Suppose I refuse to make this deal with you?"
+
+"In that event, we may feel called upon to detain you--and perhaps to
+use further violence."
+
+"Then you might as well start!" Jim Farland cried. "For you are lying to
+me like blazes! It's the murder case that's worrying you, and you know
+it! And I know _you_! I've been trying to place those hands of yours and
+I have succeeded. Besides, you have said one or two things that have
+convinced me----"
+
+The masked man gave a shriek and started toward the couch, his hands
+reaching out, clutching. Two of the thugs ran in from the hall.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR
+
+
+Waiting in anticipation of hearing good news, Sidney Prale paced the
+floor of the living room of his hotel suite until noon the following
+day, expecting Jim Farland to put in an appearance at any time and make
+his report.
+
+Murk, having done all the work that there was to do, spent the most of
+his time looking from the window at the busy, fashionable avenue, and
+glancing now and then at Prale as if wishing to anticipate his wishes
+and save him the trouble of voicing them.
+
+Prale had luncheon served in the suite, and then he stepped to the
+telephone and called Jim Farland's office. Farland's stenographer
+informed him that the detective had not been there during the morning,
+though there was some business that needed his attention.
+
+Then Prale got Farland's residence on the telephone, and the detective's
+wife answered the call. Prale gave his name, and asked where Jim could
+be found.
+
+"That is more than I can tell, Mr. Prale," Mrs. Farland said. "He got a
+telephone call last evening, and from what I overheard I think he went
+some place to meet a man. He left soon after he received the call, and I
+have not heard from him since. That is peculiar, too. When he is obliged
+to remain away, he generally finds time to telephone and let me know."
+
+This conversation bothered Sidney Prale, but he tried to tell himself
+that Farland was following a hot trail, and that perhaps it had led him
+some distance away, or that he was in a locality where he did not care
+to telephone.
+
+He did not want to miss Farland if he did call, and so he remained at
+the hotel during the afternoon and kept Murk there also.
+
+"I have a hunch that something is going to happen soon," Prale said to
+his valet.
+
+"A little action wouldn't make me mad any!" Murk declared. "I'm spoilin'
+to mix with the enemy, Mr. Prale. Most of all, I'd like to meet up with
+them two thugs that got gay with us. You're sure about that Jim Farland,
+boss?"
+
+"I've told you a hundred times, Murk, that Jim Farland is my friend and
+as square a man as you can find anywhere. He has not deserted us, if
+that is the thought in your head."
+
+"I'm beginnin' to like him a bit myself," said Murk. "Ain't you got any
+idea, boss, who's engineerin' this deal against you?"
+
+"Once more, Murk, old boy, allow me to state that I haven't the faintest
+idea who my enemies are, or why they are trying so hard to make life
+miserable for me. If I knew where to start to round them up, I wouldn't
+be standing in this room talking to you--I'd be out rounding them up!"
+
+"Well, if you ask me, I think it's about time that Farland settled that
+murder case," Murk said. "If he don't get busy pretty quick, I'll tackle
+it myself. I've got an idea----"
+
+The ringing of the telephone bell cut his sentence off. Sidney Prale was
+near the instrument, and he answered the call.
+
+"Mr. Prale?" asked a man's voice.
+
+"Talking."
+
+"I just wanted to inform you that you needn't depend on Detective Jim
+Farland any more. We've got him--and we'll get anybody else you engage.
+And we'll get you, too, Mr. Prale, before very long. Don't think we'll
+not!"
+
+The man at the other end of the wire hung up his receiver. Prale paced
+the floor and told Murk of the conversation.
+
+"They've got Farland!" Prale exclaimed. "They probably got him last
+night, decoyed him in some way. Well, Murk, if that is the truth, and I
+imagine that it is, we'll have to do our sleuthing ourselves."
+
+"Suits me!" Murk said. "I'm ready to start out right now and sleuth
+until it's settled. Let's get in action, boss!"
+
+"We are in the same old quandary, Murk. We don't know where to start,"
+Sidney Prale said. "If our foes would come out in the open, instead of
+fighting from the dark, we might have a chance. This is some city, Murk,
+and there are several million persons in it and around it. Starting
+right in such a maze isn't the easiest thing in the world, you know."
+
+For the second time that afternoon, Murk was interrupted by the ringing
+of the telephone bell, and once more Sidney Prale happened to be near
+and answered the call.
+
+"Send them up at once!" Murk heard him say.
+
+And then Sidney Prale hung up the receiver and whirled around with a
+puzzled expression on his face.
+
+"Murk," he said, "Miss Kate Gilbert is coming up here with that big maid
+of hers--coming to see me. What she wants is more than I can guess,
+remembering what happened the last time I talked with her. It may be
+good news, Murk!"
+
+They waited impatiently for the ring at the door. Murk opened it and
+ushered them in.
+
+He grinned at the gigantic Marie, but she did not return the compliment.
+There was a serious expression in her face, and Murk looked past her at
+Kate Gilbert, who was being greeted by Sidney Prale.
+
+Something important had happened, Murk told himself immediately. Kate
+Gilbert did not look frightened exactly or sorrowful or triumphant.
+There was a peculiar expression about her mouth, and her face seemed
+pale.
+
+"I felt that I had to come, Mr. Prale, and have this talk with you,"
+Kate Gilbert said, when she was seated near the window. "I wanted to
+speak to you here instead of in some public place, and so I brought
+Marie and came to your suite."
+
+"You are welcome, Miss Gilbert, I am sure," Prale said. "If you wish to
+speak in private, Marie and Murk can step into the adjoining room."
+
+"Please," she said softly.
+
+Murk opened the door, and the maid stepped in. Then he followed and
+closed the door again. Prale sat down near Kate Gilbert and turned
+toward her.
+
+"Now, Miss Gilbert," he prompted.
+
+She met his eyes squarely as she spoke, but her lips trembled at times
+as if she were undergoing an ordeal.
+
+"Mr. Prale," she said, "as you know, I have been associated with others
+in an attempt to bring retribution home to you. When I became associated
+with them, it was understood between us that there was to be no
+violence, nothing outside the law. We were simply to attack you from
+every angle, cause you trouble and annoyance, take away your money if we
+could, break you in every way."
+
+"Pardon me, but----"
+
+"Please say nothing until I am finished, Mr. Prale. We began at once to
+gather all the information we could about you and your affairs. We began
+to plan for your downfall. We found that we could do nothing that
+amounted to anything while you were in Honduras, where you were a
+powerful man. But we were about to try, even there, when we learned that
+you were selling out your properties and preparing to return to New
+York.
+
+"You may know how that struck us. You had gone away and made your
+fortune, and you were coming home, possibly with the hope that the past
+had been forgotten. We intended showing you that it had not been
+forgotten, that you could not return and enjoy the fortune whose
+foundation was----But enough of that!
+
+"I had been in Honduras spying upon you. I was sent because you did not
+know me, and would not be on guard, as you might have been, had some man
+gone down there. We did not care to send an ordinary detective, of
+course. I kept the people here informed of all your movements. I began
+the punishment by leaving that note in your stateroom and pasting the
+other on your suit case, began it by reminding you that the past lived
+in the minds of some persons.
+
+"You know the rest. We began our work. We caused you annoyance from the
+first, with the banker, the hotel manager, and all that. Before we could
+do any more, you were accused of murder. That pleased us, of course. We
+did not believe you guilty, but we were glad to see that you were being
+caused some trouble, that your name was being stained. Some of us even
+began to think that the law of retribution was at work itself, without
+our poor help.
+
+"We went ahead with our plans, however. You engaged a prominent
+attorney, and finally we induced him to leave you. But some who were
+handling the affair went too far. You were assaulted in Central Park.
+Your valet was knocked on the head and kidnaped, and an attempt made to
+get him to take payment and spy upon you. At that time I told a certain
+man who had the handling of the affair that there could be no more
+violence.
+
+"We should not break a law to undo you, I declared. If we did that, we
+were as bad as you. I said that, if there was any more violence, I
+should cease having anything to do with the affair, and would come to
+you and tell you so. An hour ago, I found out that Detective Farland, a
+man in your employ, had been seized and treated with violence and was
+being held prisoner because he insisted upon remaining loyal to you. So
+I am here!"
+
+"This is amazing, Miss Gilbert!" Sidney Prale told her. "The whole thing
+has been amazing. Somebody has tried to connect me with that murder.
+Somebody tried to smash my alibi. The little annoyances were bad enough,
+and the knowledge that I had unknown foes who fought in the dark; but
+the murder charge was the worst of all, for it placed me in a position
+where I had to clear myself absolutely or remain forever suspected by
+many persons."
+
+"I understand that," Kate Gilbert said.
+
+"And now you have come to me to say that you are no longer associated
+with my enemies?"
+
+"For what you did, there can be no forgiveness, Mr. Prale. I want to see
+you punished. But I will not be a party to violence. It seems to me that
+the man who has been managing this affair has gone beyond proper bounds.
+For some reason, he is particularly vindictive, though he did not suffer
+at all, as did some of the others. I cannot forgive you for what you
+did, Sidney Prale. But I can wash my hands of the entire affair and try
+to forget you entirely and hope that there is a law of retribution that
+will take vengeance for me. That is all, Mr. Prale. Only please remember
+that, from this hour, I am not concerned with the others in this
+affair."
+
+She started to rise, but Prale motioned for her to retain her seat. He
+bent forward and looked at her searchingly.
+
+"I am very glad that you have come here and spoken to me in this way,
+Miss Gilbert," he said. "I scarcely know how to express what I feel that
+I must tell you. I have listened to you patiently, without interruption.
+Will you be kind enough to listen to me for a moment now?"
+
+"I'll listen, though it will be useless," she said.
+
+"When I left Honduras, Miss Gilbert, I was a happy man. I had made my
+pile and was coming home. I had left ten years before because a selfish
+woman, whom I imagined I loved, jilted me for a wealthier man. That
+wound had healed, and when I left Honduras, I did not think that I had
+an enemy in the world, unless it was some poor devil of a disgruntled
+native workman I had been forced to discharge, or somebody like that.
+
+"I believed those notes on the ship to be in the nature of a jest, or
+else that somebody was making a mistake. Then troubles began, and I was
+at a loss to understand them. Next came the murder charge! We will put
+that aside for the moment, for it seems to be the result of
+circumstantial evidence and probably has nothing to do with the other
+affair--merely a coincidence.
+
+"Miss Gilbert, look at me! I want you to believe what I am going to say.
+You must believe it! In the name of everything I hold sacred, I swear to
+you that I do not know these foes of mine, or the reason for their
+enmity!"
+
+"How can I believe that?" she cried. "Why should you ask me to believe
+such a statement?"
+
+"Because I want some light on this subject, Miss Gilbert, and I am
+determined to get it. There is some terrible mistake. I am being
+punished for the fault of some other person."
+
+"Can you not remember back ten years?" she asked.
+
+"Easily. I can live over again the last day I spent in New York ten
+years ago."
+
+"And the few days before that time?"
+
+"Certainly, Miss Gilbert."
+
+"And yet you ask why others should seek to punish you? Perhaps you are
+one of those men whose natures are so dishonorable that you think you
+did nothing wrong at that time."
+
+"So it was then that I was supposed to have done this terrible
+thing--whatever it was?"
+
+"As you know, Mr. Prale."
+
+"But I do not know, Miss Gilbert. To the best of my recollection I left
+New York without having done anything in the least dishonorable; and
+certainly I did nothing to merit a band of enemies working against me."
+
+"What is it that you wish me to do?" she asked.
+
+"Be fair with me, Miss Gilbert. I tell you that there is some terrible
+mistake! If I am supposed to know all about this, what harm can there be
+in your repeating the details to me? Tell me what crime I am supposed to
+have committed to merit this attack. Give me a chance to prove my
+innocence! The common thug gets that chance in a court of law, you
+know."
+
+"But this is ridiculous!" she exclaimed. "There can be no question of
+it! The whole thing came out at the time."
+
+"Then you do not wish to be fair?" Prale asked.
+
+"I cannot allow you to say that. I will tell the story to you, Mr.
+Prale, tell exactly what you did--as you know very well--if that will be
+any satisfaction to you. But it will do you no good to deny it!"
+
+"Tell me!" Sidney Prale said.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII
+
+A STARTLING STORY
+
+
+"This is a painful subject for me, as you must be aware," Kate Gilbert
+said. "I shall tell the story in as few words as possible, and if you
+are a gentleman, you will not interrupt or cause me more suffering by
+protesting your innocence."
+
+"I promise not to interrupt," Sidney Prale replied. "I want justice and
+nothing more, Miss Gilbert."
+
+"Ten years ago you were a clerk in the office of Griffin, the big
+broker, were you not?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Mr. Griffin took a fancy to you, after your father died and left you
+alone in the world without any money. He gave you odd jobs to do around
+his residence, fed and clothed you and arranged it so that you could go
+to school. Your uncle, the father of George Lerton, your cousin, would
+do nothing for you because there had been a family quarrel several years
+before.
+
+"Had it not been for Mr. Griffin you might have been an ordinary street
+Arab. He sent you to a business college after you had finished the
+public schools, and then he took you into his office and started you on
+a business career.
+
+"You showed great promise, and Mr. Griffin was delighted and advanced
+you rapidly. You seemed to know the meaning of gratitude and worked
+hard. You were ambitious, too--always said that some day you would be
+worth a million dollars.
+
+"Step by step, you went up the ladder. Then it happened that your
+cousin, George Lerton, obtained a position in the same office after his
+father's death. He had had the advantage of a college education and knew
+how to handle himself in the presence of other men, and yet you, after
+your early struggle and with an inferior education and inferior
+opportunities, easily outdistanced him.
+
+"Other men began talking about you as a coming man--bankers and brokers,
+business men and financiers. Mr. Griffin finally gave you the post of
+chief clerk and adviser. You worked hard and seemed to be loyal and
+faithful. You got profits for your employer where other men would have
+caused losses. So he let you more and more into his confidence.
+
+"You got to know the secrets of big deals, the inside facts of the
+country's finance. You spoke in millions, but got only a nice salary.
+Your ambition to be worth a million dollars seemed to be not susceptible
+of gratification. Yet you saved money, and took advantage of small,
+solid investments now and then.
+
+"After a while you met a girl and fell in love with her. She was the
+sort who wished wealth above all, and you soon found that out. You
+became engaged to her, however. Then a rival appeared in the field, a
+wealthier man. You realized that the girl was shallow in that she
+favored the man with more money, but you were so infatuated that you
+overlooked that. You wanted the girl and, to get her, you had to have
+more money.
+
+"Then you began to feel dissatisfied. You didn't want to grow gradually,
+as other men did. You wanted the foundation for a fortune--enough to use
+in a plunge in the market. You wanted to be rich as soon as possible.
+
+"You began to think, perhaps, that you were not getting ahead. You
+worked in an atmosphere of wealth, you heard men speak in terms of
+millions, while you had less than ten thousand dollars in the bank. You
+began to think that Mr. Griffin should do more for you, that he had not
+done enough. You forgot that he had picked you up and made you what you
+were, that you had so much more than other men who had not been equally
+fortunate in finding a sponsor."
+
+She ceased speaking for a moment, but Sidney Prale never took his eyes
+from her face. Be ungrateful to Griffin? He never had dreamed of that!
+He always had worshiped Griffin for what the broker had done for him; he
+realized what he might have been only for Griffin. But he had promised
+not to interrupt, and so he said nothing, merely waited for Kate Gilbert
+to continue her recital.
+
+"You made certain plans," she went on. "Certain big business deals were
+in the wind, and, as Mr. Griffin's confidential and chief clerk, you
+knew all about them. There were millions of dollars involved, the
+control of several large companies, and more than that; for Mr. Griffin
+and his associates were fighting a group of financial thieves who were
+trying to wreck excellent properties for the sake of making a gain. It
+was a fight for more than money--it was a fight to keep big business
+honest, to drive off the wolves and make finance solid. It was a
+tremendous thing!
+
+"And you, a boy picked up and educated by a broker, who had risen
+through his kindness, knew as much of the big deal contemplated as some
+of the wealthiest and most influential men of the country. There were
+men in the other group who would have given a million gladly to know
+what you, a clerk, knew.
+
+"You were approached by one of that band of financial wolves. You were
+willing to listen. You wanted money because the girl with whom you were
+infatuated demanded it before she would marry you. You believed that
+Griffin had not done enough for you and you agreed to sell him out--him
+and his associates."
+
+Sidney Prale gasped, sat up straight in his chair, opened his mouth as
+if to speak, but did not when he saw the expression in her face. He
+decided to keep his word.
+
+"The agreement was made," she went on. "And you, who could have demanded
+half a million easily for the information you had, sold out your
+benefactor and his friends and the decent element on the Street for a
+paltry hundred thousand! You sold your honor and your manhood for that.
+
+"At this juncture, the woman in the case informed you that she wished to
+break the engagement, because a man of money--your rival--had asked her
+to marry him, and she wanted his wealth. Instead of seeing what sort of
+woman she was--instead of coming to your senses then and stopping your
+deal with the other side--you took the opposite course. You would take
+the money, betray your benefactor and his friends, and leave the
+country! With that money as a foundation, you would build up a fortune.
+And that is what you did, Sidney Prale!
+
+"You arranged everything nicely. You gave those men the information and
+received your hundred thousand and then you quit your job and sailed
+away to Honduras.
+
+"The battle began on the Street, and because of the information you had
+sold them, the financial wolves got the better of the honest element. It
+was a battle that lasted for two weeks. The wolves met every move,
+because they knew everything that had been planned. Fortunes were lost
+overnight. A score of big, decent men were ruined in their attempt to
+defeat the wolves and keep finance clean.
+
+"Mr. Griffin, the man who had done everything for you, went down in the
+crash--because you had sold him out! It was only five years ago that he
+got new backing and fought his way up again. Others went down with him,
+and some never regained their footing--because of what you had done,
+because you had played traitor! They knew there had been a leak, and
+there was an investigation. You had sailed away the day before the fight
+began, and that looked suspicious, for you had made up your mind
+suddenly. Finally it was discovered that you were the traitor in the
+camp!
+
+"My father was one of Mr. Griffin's associates, Mr. Prale. He lost his
+fortune, of course. We could have endured that, but the blow cost him
+his health. He was a giant of a man at that time, the best father in the
+world. You should see him now, Mr. Prale--see what your treason made of
+him. He is an invalid who sits all day in his wheel chair. At times his
+mind wanders and he fights that battle over again and calls curses down
+upon the head of the man who played traitor! My big, handsome, rich
+father is a broken, thin-faced man whose voice is a whisper and whose
+hands tremble--because of what you did. You beast!"
+
+She began sobbing softly as she glanced through the window, and Sidney
+Prale started to get out of his chair. But she faced him again quickly
+and motioned for him to remain silent.
+
+"You wanted to hear it, and so I shall tell it all!" she declared. "You
+had been clever; you had done this thing in such a manner than the law
+could not touch you. Yet you must have been afraid of it, for you fled
+the country. It was some time before things were adjusted, and then
+those men you had betrayed got together and determined to make you pay!
+
+"They told the story to others, and they began gathering information
+about you. You were making your million, all right, on the foundation
+that had wrecked a score of fortunes and lives--on treason instead of
+superior financial ability--and they swore that you should pay.
+
+"They knew my father's story, of course, and knew that we had very
+little money. So they provided for him, and gave me funds and sent me to
+Honduras to spy upon you. Marie, my maid since girlhood, who worshiped
+my father and knew all the circumstances, went with me. Soon after I
+reached Honduras, I found that you were selling out with the intention
+of returning to New York and enjoying your million.
+
+"I communicated with the others and told them all I knew of your plans,
+whereupon they made some plans of their own. They won the sympathy of
+the most influential men in the city. They determined to make you pay!
+
+"That is why the big trust company would not accept your account. A
+whisper in the ear of the hotel manager by the president of the company
+that owned the hotel, and you were as good as ordered out. Can you
+understand now, Sidney Prale? Coadley, the lawyer, was told that he will
+be made a nobody by the influential men of the town unless he ceased to
+work for you, and he dropped your case.
+
+"But there was to be no violence, and because they have descended to
+that, I have ceased to be interested in the affair. I know nothing about
+the Shepley murder case or any trouble it may have caused you. That is
+quite another matter. Now that I have told my story, I hope that you are
+satisfied. It has shown you, I trust, that I know all, and that any
+falsehood you may utter will have no effect on me."
+
+"I do not intend uttering a falsehood, Miss Gilbert," Sidney Prale
+assured her. "What you have said has amazed and shocked me. So that is
+why I was treated so badly upon returning to my home?"
+
+"Exactly," she said.
+
+"Now listen to me one moment, I beg of you. There is some mystery here,
+and though it is ten years old, I shall solve it. Miss Gilbert--whether
+you believe me or not--I am not guilty of such treachery. I had no
+dealings with the financial wolves. When I left the United States I took
+with me the ten thousand dollars I had saved--nothing more. And I left
+nothing behind."
+
+"You made a million in ten years with a capital of ten thousand?" she
+asked, with a slight sneer.
+
+"I did, Miss Gilbert! I can prove every transaction, show you or anybody
+else exactly how I did it. Disbelieve me or not, it is the truth that I
+am innocent. If my people were sold out at that time, somebody else got
+the selling price. I was chagrined because my love affair had gone
+wrong. I shook the dust of New York from my feet. I did not even look at
+a New York newspaper for more than a year. Somebody else got the money,
+and I got a nasty name. And Mr. Griffin, who was as a father to me,
+thinks that I was an ungrateful cur!
+
+"This thing is hard to believe, Miss Gilbert. But I never can thank you
+enough for telling me. I am going to clear myself before I am done."
+
+"I cannot believe you, Mr. Prale! The proof was there!"
+
+"And who furnished it?" he demanded. "Who is handling this campaign of
+vengeance against me now?"
+
+"You scarcely can expect me to tell you that," she said. "I am
+done--have nothing more to do with the affair--but I am not going to be
+a traitor, as you were!"
+
+"If you ever are convinced, Miss Gilbert, that I am entirely innocent,
+that somebody has put this stain upon me for their own reasons, can I
+count upon your friendship?"
+
+"Convince me that injustice has been done you, Mr. Prale, and I'll do
+everything in my power to make amends--and so will all the others!"
+
+"Thanks for that assurance," Prale said. "I am going to clear myself in
+your eyes, and in the eyes of the others. I remember the details of that
+big deal perfectly and I shall know how to start to work."
+
+"I cannot understand this," she said. "You speak as if you were indeed
+innocent, but I cannot believe it!"
+
+"I am innocent!"
+
+"If so, who is guilty?"
+
+"That is what I intend finding out."
+
+"But you were in their confidence--you knew all the details of their
+financial plans," Kate Gilbert said. "You were the only one who could
+have betrayed them. You scarcely expect me to believe that they betrayed
+themselves."
+
+"Any spying clerk in the Griffin offices could have told the enemy
+enough to betray the plans," Prale replied. "By the way, who is this man
+who goes too far and insists upon using violence? Who is the man who
+seems to be so extraordinary vindictive toward me in this affair?"
+
+"I can tell you nothing more," she declared. "It would not be fair to
+them."
+
+"But they have Jim Farland, and Heaven knows what they are doing to him,
+simply because he will not turn against me. Is it fair to Jim Farland's
+wife and child?"
+
+"I--I am being kept informed," she assured him. "If they treat Mr.
+Farland badly, or detain him much longer, I shall speak. But until then,
+I have nothing to say. You see, Mr. Prale, I cannot believe that you are
+innocent and have been misjudged. The evidence against you is so
+conclusive, and I have learned to hate you as the man who betrayed his
+benefactor and friends and wrecked my father's health. But, if you are
+innocent, I hope that you will forgive me."
+
+"I'll forgive you gladly," said Sidney Prale. "I realize what you must
+have suffered, and what your father must have suffered, too. I am going
+to prove my innocence; and then I hope to claim you as one of my
+friends."
+
+"I am sorry that I cannot believe you," she said again, "although I
+would like to. I would prefer to think that no man could be so
+ungrateful as to do such a thing. I'd like to have my faith in human
+nature restored. If you prove your innocence, I shall be very glad
+indeed!"
+
+Then she called for Marie, and when the maid came from the adjoining
+room, Sidney Prale ushered the two women to the door and watched as they
+went down the hall toward the elevator. But Kate Gilbert did not glance
+back.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV
+
+HIGH-HANDED METHODS
+
+
+Sidney Prale closed the door and turned around to face a grinning Murk.
+
+"Some pair of chickens!" Murk said. "That Marie girl may be a bear for
+size and strength, but she's got a lot of good common sense. I'm strong
+for her!"
+
+"Sit down!" Prale commanded.
+
+And then, walking up and down across the room, he told Murk what Kate
+Gilbert had revealed to him, simply because he felt that he had to tell
+it to somebody.
+
+"How is that for a dirty deal, Murk?" he asked when he had finished.
+"Doesn't that make ordinary dirty work look rather pale?"
+
+"Who did it, boss? Name the gent, and I'll get his address out of the
+city directory and pay him a visit!" Murk said. "I'll have some things
+to say to him--and some things to do, maybe."
+
+"I'm a sort of husky individual myself, Murk, and, if I knew him, I
+think I'd beat you to it," Prale replied. "Now we must get busy!"
+
+"Just say the word, Mr. Prale. What is it to be?"
+
+"I haven't quite decided yet, Murk. How far will you go?"
+
+"I'll croak him, if it's necessary!"
+
+"That'd be a bit too far, Murk, and might lead to the electric chair and
+a far country. Let's take a walk and think it over. We will confine
+ourselves to the Avenue, and you may trail me as before. I scarcely
+think they'll assault us on the Avenue."
+
+Ten minutes later, Sidney Prale was walking down the street, and the
+faithful Murk was trailing in his wake, watching carefully. That walk
+lasted for an hour. Then they returned to the hotel and Prale ordered an
+early dinner. He did not say what he had decided to do, despite Murk's
+hints that he should state his plans.
+
+But Murk had noticed that Prale had stopped in at a printing office
+during the walk, and shortly after they finished dinner, a bell boy
+brought a small package to the suite. Prale unwrapped it, and some cards
+spilled out.
+
+"Nice cards, Murk," he said. "I had them printed this afternoon. They
+bear the name of Horace Greenman, whoever he may be, and state that he
+is connected with the General Utilities Company--whatever that is."
+
+"What's the big idea, Mr. Prale?" Murk asked wonderingly.
+
+"I wish to get into a certain place, Murk, and I'd never do it if I send
+in my own card. What time is it?"
+
+"A few minutes of eight, sir."
+
+"Then we'll be going. Let us hope that we find our man at home. If this
+happens to be his opera or theater evening, we are going to be delayed."
+
+Murk followed him down in the elevator and to the street, where Prale
+engaged a taxicab. The machine took them up past the Park and to an
+exclusive residence section, where it stopped on a corner. Prale and
+Murk got out, and Prale instructed the chauffeur to wait. Then he led
+the way to the middle of the block.
+
+"Murk, you remain just outside this gate," he instructed. "If I have
+good luck, I'll come out with a man, and I may want to take him with us.
+Be ready to help in case I get in wrong."
+
+"Sure thing, sir," Murk said.
+
+Prale passed through the gate, went up the walk, and lifted the knocker
+on the front door. A moment, and a servant appeared and looked at him
+searchingly.
+
+"I wish to see Mr. Griffin at once on important business," Prale said.
+"Kindly take my card to him."
+
+Then Prale waited with his heart in his mouth. Was Griffin at home? The
+servant instantly assured him of that, and carried the card away. Prale
+had written "Important Business" on it.
+
+The servant returned soon and announced that Mr. Griffin would see the
+visitor. Prale followed him down the hall to the library. He was glad
+that Griffin had chosen to receive him there, for there was less
+likelihood of an interruption. The servant opened the door, and Sidney
+Prale stepped inside.
+
+Griffin was sitting beside the long table, and he arose immediately and
+turned.
+
+"You!" he gasped.
+
+"Pardon the deception----"
+
+"James! James!" Griffin thundered.
+
+The servant was in the room instantly.
+
+"Show this fellow the door!" Griffin commanded. "Look at him well, and
+never admit him again!"
+
+James took a step forward and indicated the door. But Sidney Prale
+reached into the pocket of his coat, drew out an automatic pistol, and
+held it menacingly.
+
+"Close the door, James--softly!" he commanded in a stern voice. "Now
+advance to the table and stand where I can watch you. Don't you make a
+move, Mr. Griffin! I used to handle men down in Honduras, and I feel
+confident that I can take care of this situation."
+
+"You thug!" Griffin cried. "I'll have you sent up for this, Prale, if
+it's the last thing I do!"
+
+"I know that it is against the law to be carrying a gun without a
+permit, but this situation demands a show of force," Prale said. "I
+merely want you to listen to me for a moment, Mr. Griffin."
+
+"I don't want to hear anything you may have to say to me, Sidney Prale!"
+the financier said.
+
+"You are going to hear it, nevertheless! Mr. Griffin, I did not know
+until this afternoon why I had secret enemies and why they were trying
+to cause me endless trouble. Miss Kate Gilbert was kind enough to
+enlighten me."
+
+"Well, sir?"
+
+"I am sorry that you believe me guilty of such base ingratitude to you
+and of such dishonorable conduct, for I am not guilty, Mr. Griffin! You
+were like a father to me--which was enough to compel my loyalty--and,
+aside from that, you had taught me several things regarding honor in
+business deals. I went away on the spur of the moment because a woman
+had jilted me. But before I went, I did not betray you and your
+associates."
+
+"A likely story!"
+
+"But a true one, Mr. Griffin! I did not sell you out for a hundred
+thousand dollars or any other sum. My conscience is clear, and I came
+back to New York expecting to greet old friends and have a pleasant
+time. You know what I found instead of that happy state of affairs. I am
+not here to talk at length. I demand a chance to prove my innocence!"
+
+"How can you do the impossible, sir?"
+
+"It is not the impossible, Mr. Griffin! I intend to prove to you that I
+was not disloyal, and then I shall prove that I had nothing to do with
+the murder of Rufus Shepley. I have an idea, sir, what is behind all
+this."
+
+"We are wasting time----"
+
+"I think not, sir! Time is not wasted in which a man shows that he is
+not a scoundrel! I think you owe it to me to give me a chance. You have
+condemned me unheard."
+
+"I would give almost anything to have you prove your innocence," Griffin
+said. "You don't know how it hurt me. But the case against you was so
+strong--and is so strong----"
+
+"Let us waste no more time," Prale said. "I remember the details of the
+big deal that was under way when I left New York ten years ago. If you
+recall, sir, I helped plan the campaign. If I can look at papers in your
+office, I think I can show that I am not guilty."
+
+"I'd like to believe you, but this is preposterous!" Griffin cried. "I
+tell you the evidence----"
+
+"It probably was strong, because the guilty man wanted to make it so.
+Mr. Griffin, were I guilty I should not be here. Please give me a few
+minutes, and let us talk this over. Then, if you wish, we can go to your
+office and continue the investigation."
+
+Griffin sat down and motioned for Sidney Prale to do the same. Prale
+returned the automatic to his pocket, much to the relief of the servant.
+
+Murk, standing outside by the gate, paced back and forth and wondered
+whether he should attempt to take the house by storm and rescue his
+employer. The chauffeur, waiting at the corner, wondered whether his
+fare had slipped down the next street without paying the bill. Murk
+relieved him on that point and threatened to beat him up because he
+intimated that Prale might do such a thing.
+
+It was more than two hours later when Prale left the house and went out
+to the street. He paid the chauffeur and dismissed him, and told Murk to
+return to the hotel. Then he went back into the house and joined Mr.
+Griffin again, and after Griffin had telephoned several persons, he
+ordered his car, got into it with Prale, and started downtown.
+
+An astonished watchman took them up in an elevator in an office building
+in the financial district, and a little later he took up several other
+gentlemen.
+
+"Them financiers make me sick!" the watchman told himself. "Why can't
+they lay their schemes in the daytime?"
+
+It was almost dawn when they left the building and scattered. They had
+spent hours investigating books and papers. Sidney Prale had even sent a
+messenger to the hotel with an order to Murk for certain books and
+papers of his own, and these had been investigated, too.
+
+"And there we are, gentlemen," Prale had said, at the last. "I have
+shown you, I think, that I did not do this thing. I do not want you to
+believe me fully until I have proved my innocence by revealing the man
+who is guilty. I merely ask you to give me a fair chance to prove my
+case. I have told you my suspicions. Now it is up to me to demonstrate
+whether they are just or worthless."
+
+Griffin had little to say as they rode back uptown. But when he dropped
+Prale at the hotel just before daylight, he gripped him by the hand.
+
+"I want to believe you, Sidney!" he said. "I hope that you have told me
+the truth. If you have, I hope you'll be able to clear yourself. If you
+only can show me that the boy I was glad to help was not ungrateful,
+after all----"
+
+"I'll do it, sir!"
+
+"And then I'll never forgive myself, Sidney!"
+
+"You'll show your forgiveness by handling my affairs for me, sir, in
+that event, and by treating me as your son again!" Prale said.
+
+He hurried up to the suite. Murk had been sleeping in a chair in the
+living room, as if expecting a call at any moment. He was somewhat
+startled to hear Sidney Prale whistling merrily at four o'clock in the
+morning.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV
+
+AN ACCUSATION
+
+
+Springing toward him, the masked man stopped two feet from the bound Jim
+Farland.
+
+"So you think you know me, do you?" he snarled.
+
+"I have a pretty good idea," Farland said. "There are only a few men in
+the city, to my knowledge, who could be hired to do work like this, and
+it occurs to me that I have seen those hands of yours before. I think
+your face is in the rogues' gallery, too, if you want to know!"
+
+The masked man retreated for a few feet, evidently relieved.
+
+"So you'll not make terms with me," he said. "You'd rather work for
+Sidney Prale, would you? Perhaps we can change your mind."
+
+"I doubt that like blazes!"
+
+"You are going to be kept here as a prisoner until I decide what is to
+be done with you."
+
+He crossed over to the door, opened it, and called to his men, two of
+whom responded.
+
+"I want this man guarded well," he said. "I want you to understand that
+I am holding you responsible for him. I'll be back to-morrow evening and
+have another talk with him. Give him something to eat now and then, and
+fix him so he can sleep, but watch him all the time!"
+
+"I was figurin' on goin' to the city this mornin', boss," one of the men
+spoke up.
+
+"You'll do as I say!" the masked man cried.
+
+"But----"
+
+"Don't argue with me, you dog!"
+
+Farland saw the man's eyes flash fire for a moment. And then the masked
+man faced toward him again, his eyes glittering through his mask.
+
+"Sometimes it isn't healthy to know whose picture is in the rogues'
+gallery!" he said.
+
+He went from the room. After a short argument one of the men remained to
+guard Farland, and the other went away. Farland spent a night of agony.
+His guards fixed the bonds so that he could be a bit more comfortable,
+and yet he got little sleep.
+
+Jim Farland was considering a big idea now. He had thrown the masked man
+off guard by intimating that he might be a crook with a record, when, as
+a matter of fact, the detective did not believe him to be anything of
+the sort. Now Farland knew where to begin working, but he had to win his
+freedom first.
+
+Night passed, morning came, and the long day of agony began. Farland had
+his hands untied and was given some food. Then his wrists were lashed
+again and his ankles loosened, and he was allowed to walk around the
+room for an hour or so, two of the men watching him closely. The one to
+whom the masked man had applied the epithet, "dog," appeared surly.
+
+After they had bound him again and stretched him upon the couch, they
+guarded him one at a time, evidently secure in the belief that he could
+not escape. Jim Farland thought a day never had seemed so long. All the
+time he was busy with his thoughts. He had a plan of campaign outlined
+now; he wanted to be at work.
+
+Once more the evening came. Farland, who had been sleeping for a few
+minutes, awoke and turned over to find that his guard had been changed
+again. The man who had been called a dog was on duty.
+
+"How long are you going to keep me tied up like this?" Jim Farland
+asked.
+
+"Don't ask me. Ask the high and mighty boss," was the sneering reply.
+
+"You don't seem to stand very high with him."
+
+"Aw, he makes me sick sometimes."
+
+"It'd make me sick, too, if anybody called me a dog," Farland declared.
+
+The man before him did not reply to that, but Farland could see the
+anger burning in his face.
+
+"Come closer," Farland whispered.
+
+The man obeyed instantly.
+
+"Can anybody overhear what I say to you?"
+
+"No. Everybody's gone--but they'll be back soon."
+
+"Why are you working for these people?"
+
+"Coin, of course--and precious little of it I've seen so far," was the
+reply.
+
+"Then you haven't any other interest in this business? Maybe we can make
+a deal."
+
+"What sort of a deal?"
+
+"The man I work for is worth a million," Farland said. "Help me escape,
+and I'll give you five hundred dollars."
+
+"Got it with you?"
+
+"The biggest part of it," Farland replied.
+
+He told the truth, too, for he always carried plenty of money while
+working on a case.
+
+"Suppose I simply take it away from you," the guard said.
+
+"In the first place, I don't think you are that kind of a man. And you
+want to get square with the man who called you a dog, don't you?"
+
+"What's your scheme?"
+
+"Simply let me go, right now. It is dusk outside already. Tell me how to
+get to town the quickest way. I'll give you almost all I have on me;
+I'll need a little to use to get back to the city. To-morrow I'll meet
+you some place and give you the rest. In addition I'll give you a chance
+to get out without being arrested for your part in abducting me and
+holding me here."
+
+The man spent a few minutes in thought.
+
+"I'll fix you so you can slip your bonds," he said, "and I'll hand your
+automatic back to you. It is there in the cupboard. But I don't want you
+to make a get-away while I'm guarding you--see? I don't exactly love the
+man who'll guard you next. I'll fix it so you can handle him. Wait for
+five minutes after he comes and I have gone. I will be away for an hour
+or so, and the escape can happen while I'm not here."
+
+"That suits me," Farland said.
+
+"What about the money?"
+
+"You'll get it just as soon as I get my hands loose."
+
+The guard walked to the hall door and opened it, peered out into the
+hall and listened. Then he hurried back to the couch and cut Jim
+Farland's bonds. Farland took the money from one of his inside pockets
+and handed it over. The guard got the weapon from the cupboard and gave
+it to Farland.
+
+The detective stretched himself down on the couch again, and the guard
+adjusted the ropes on his ankles and wrists so that they would appear to
+be all right. Farland slipped the automatic beneath the small of his
+back, where he could reach it quickly.
+
+It was half an hour later before the guard was changed and Farland's
+friend hurried away, warning him with a glance that he should not make a
+move too soon. He had declined to meet the detective the following day
+and get the few dollars still due him; he would rather use what he
+already had in getting out of town, he had said.
+
+Farland made no attempt to talk with the new guard. He pretended to be
+tired, almost exhausted and sleepy. The guard sat beside the table,
+smoking and glancing at a newspaper now and then, apparently of the
+opinion that Farland was safely a prisoner.
+
+After waiting for about half an hour, the detective began moving his
+ankles and wrists gently. Gradually the ropes fell away. He reached one
+hand beneath his back and grasped the automatic. Then he sat up quickly
+on the couch and covered the guard.
+
+"Put 'em up!" he commanded.
+
+The guard whirled from the table and sprang to his feet, surprise
+written on his countenance. Farland had arisen now, and advancing toward
+him.
+
+"Walk past me to the couch!" the detective commanded.
+
+The guard started to obey. He was holding his hands above his head and
+seemed to be afraid that his captor would shoot. But as he came opposite
+Farland, he lurched to one side and made an attempt to grapple with him.
+
+The detective did not fire. He sprang aside himself, swung the
+automatic, and crashed it against the other man's temple. The guard
+groaned once and dropped to the floor.
+
+"Thought you might try something like that!" Jim Farland growled.
+"Couldn't have pleased me better--won't have to waste time tying you up
+now. You'll be dead to the world for a few minutes at least!"
+
+Farland darted to the door, opened it, went into the hall and closed the
+door again. He passed through the house noiselessly. He could hear two
+men in conversation in a rear room, and he knew that he would have to be
+cautious until he was at some distance from the old dwelling, unless he
+wanted a battle on his hands.
+
+He got out of the place without being discovered, and reached the edge
+of a grove not far away. There he found the lane, and near the end of it
+was a powerful roadster, its engine dead and its lights extinguished.
+
+Farland listened a moment, then went forward and examined the machine.
+He knew the model, and he was an excellent driver. Once more he stopped
+to listen. Then he sprang behind the wheel and operated the starter.
+
+He drove slowly down the lane, the engine almost silent, the car
+traveling slowly. He proceeded in that manner until he had reached the
+highway. There he switched on the lights, put on speed, and sent the
+powerful car roaring along the winding road toward the river.
+
+Jim Farland, being a modest man, never did tell the entire story of that
+night. He drove like a fiend, narrowly escaping collision a score of
+times. He made his way along the roads running alongside the broad
+river, and finally came opposite the city. He crossed over a bridge,
+drove through the streets with what speed he dared, left the car at a
+public garage with certain instructions, and hurried to a telephone.
+
+He was unable to get either Sidney Prale or Murk, for at that hour they
+were on their way to the Griffin residence. Farland telephoned to his
+wife to say that he was all right, but would not be home until some time
+during the day. Then he engaged a taxicab and began his work.
+
+He knew where to start now. An idea had come to him in that old house
+far up the river, a suspicion, a feeling of certainty that he was on the
+right track. Jim Farland was no respecter of persons that night.
+
+When morning came he stopped only for a cup of coffee, and then worked
+on. He dashed from one place to another, running up a taxicab bill that
+made the chauffeur smile. He interviewed important gentlemen,
+threatening some and cajoling others, but always getting the information
+that he desired.
+
+At two o'clock the following afternoon he stood on a certain corner near
+Madison Square, his suspicion almost proved, his investigation at an
+end.
+
+"Now for the big bluff!" Jim Farland said to himself.
+
+He fortified himself with another cup of coffee, got into the taxicab
+again, and started downtown. He was smoking one of his big, black
+cigars, puffing at it as if in deep contentment, not looking at all like
+a man who had been kept a prisoner a night and a day, and had been busy
+since that experience.
+
+The taxicab stopped before an office building, as Jim Farland had
+ordered. The detective pulled out his last money and paid the chauffeur.
+
+"You're got more coming, son, but this is all I have with me," Farland
+said. "Drop in at my office any time after ten to-morrow morning and get
+it."
+
+"Yes, Mr. Farland--and thanks!"
+
+"You're a good boy, but keep your mouth shut!" Farland told him.
+
+Then he hurried into the office building, went to the elevator nearest
+the entrance, and ascended to the floor where George Lerton had his
+suite of offices.
+
+The office boy stepped to the railing.
+
+"Mr. Lerton busy?" Farland asked.
+
+"He is alone in his private office, sir," said the boy, who regarded the
+detective with admiration and awe. After Farland's other visit, the
+youth had decided to be a detective when he grew up.
+
+"I am to go right in--important business," Farland said. "Never mind
+announcing me."
+
+The willing boy opened the gate, and Farland hurried across to the door
+of the private office. He paused there a moment and seemed to pull
+himself together, as if making sure before entering the room of
+questions he wanted to ask and information he wanted to gather. Then he
+threw the door open, stepped quickly inside, closed the door, and turned
+the key.
+
+Lerton was sitting at his desk with his back to the door. He made no
+move until he heard the key turned. Then he whirled around in his desk
+chair.
+
+"I--Great Scott, Farland, how you startled me!" he exclaimed. "I thought
+it was my secretary."
+
+"Pardon me for butting in this way, but I am in a deuce of a hurry and
+told the boy it was all right," Farland said.
+
+"You'll smash my office discipline doing things like this. But, sit
+down, man! What is it now? Has that cousin of mine been acting up again,
+or are you going to pester me with a lot of fool questions about things
+I don't know anything about?"
+
+Farland had seated himself in the chair at the end of the desk, within
+four feet of George Lerton. He had tossed his hat to a table and twisted
+the cigar into one corner of his mouth. Now he stared Lerton straight in
+the eyes.
+
+"You look like a madman!" Lerton said. "Why on earth are you looking at
+me like that? You look as if you were ill----"
+
+The expression in Farland's face made him stop, and he appeared to be a
+bit disconcerted.
+
+"Why did you kill Rufus Shepley?" Jim Farland demanded suddenly in a
+voice that seemed to sting.
+
+Lerton's face went white for an instant. His jaw dropped and his eyes
+bulged.
+
+"Are--are you insane?" he gasped. "What on earth do you mean by this?
+I'll call a clerk and----"
+
+"The door is locked," Farland said, taking the automatic from his
+pocket. "You raise your voice, touch a button or make any move that I do
+not like, and I'll plug you and say afterward that I had placed you
+under arrest and had to shoot when you tried to escape. Answer my
+question, Lerton! You are at the end of your rope! Why did you kill
+Rufus Shepley and then try to hang the crime on your cousin, Sidney
+Prale?"
+
+"This is preposterous!" Lerton exclaimed.
+
+"Oh, I've got the goods on you, Lerton! I wouldn't be here talking like
+this if I didn't! You're going to the electric chair!"
+
+Lerton laughed rather nervously. "I always thought that you were a good
+detective, Jim, but I am beginning to have doubts now," he said. "What
+has put such an idea into your head?"
+
+"Facts gathered and welded together," Farland told him. "Don't try to
+carry out the bluff any longer, Lerton. And don't call me Jim. I never
+allow murderers to get familiar with me!"
+
+"This has gone far enough!" the broker exclaimed. "I'll have to ask you
+to leave my office, sir!"
+
+"I expect to do that little thing before long, and you are going with
+me," Farland said.
+
+There was a knock at the door.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI
+
+THE TRUTH COMES OUT
+
+
+Farland did not take his eyes off George Lerton.
+
+"If you have touched a button and called some fool clerk, I'll manhandle
+you!" he promised. "Kindly consider yourself a prisoner!"
+
+The knock was repeated, and Farland, still keeping his eyes on the man
+at the desk, backed to the door and turned the key. Then he took up a
+position where he could continue watching George Lerton and keep an eye
+on the door at the same time.
+
+"Come in!" he called.
+
+The door was hurled open. At the same instant, the office boy who had
+opened it was thrust aside. Sidney Prale sprang into the private office
+and stood glaring at his cousin. Behind him was Murk, and behind Murk
+were Kate Gilbert and her maid.
+
+"Quite a gathering!" Farland said, grinning. "I'm glad that you are
+here. Kindly close and lock the door, Murk, with that young office
+gentleman on the outside!"
+
+Murk obeyed. George Lerton sprang to his feet.
+
+"What is the meaning of this intrusion?" he demanded. "Has my office
+been turned into a rendezvous for maniacs?"
+
+"Sit down!" Sidney Prale cried. He had not taken his eyes off Lerton,
+had not even turned to speak to Jim Farland, had not even wondered how
+Farland had escaped and come here.
+
+Lerton dropped back into his chair, wetting his thin lips, his eyes
+furtive now.
+
+"You miserable cur!" Sidney Prale went on, advancing toward his cousin.
+"I should handle this affair myself. I should have you in Honduras, and
+fasten you to a tree and beat you until you are senseless."
+
+"These insults----"
+
+"Are deserved, you beast!" Prale cried. "So, when I went away ten years
+ago, you sold out Mr. Griffin and put the blame for it on me, did you?
+You wrecked that good man's faith in me, turned influential men against
+me, had me persecuted when I returned."
+
+Jim Farland gave a shout of delight. "That right, Sid?" he cried, "Then
+I have the connecting link! So George Lerton has been causing you all
+this trouble, has he? I understand a lot more now. Lerton killed Rufus
+Shepley, also!"
+
+"It's a lie! You are trying to save Prale by accusing me!" Lerton cried.
+
+"Why, we've got you, you weak fool!" said Farland. "I knew you in that
+old farmhouse despite your mask. Your hands gave you away--I recognized
+them."
+
+"And he's the man who tried to bribe me!" Murk cried. "I can tell it by
+his hands, too!"
+
+"You tried to smash Prale's alibi," Jim Farland continued. "You had him
+followed that night and you sent those notes to the barber and the
+clothing merchant, with money in them."
+
+"And you betrayed yourself when you began using violence," Prale put in.
+"You were too vindictive. You showed that you had some good reason of
+your own for wanting to drive me away from New York quickly!"
+
+"Oh, we've got you!" Farland repeated. "You are as good as in the
+electric chair now!"
+
+George Lerton looked as if he might have been in it. He was breathing in
+gasps, and his face was white. His eyes held an expression of terror.
+
+"I guess--you've got me!" he said. "But I'll never--go to the chair!"
+
+Farland stepped across to him. "Get it off your chest!" he suggested.
+
+"I--I'll talk about it--yes!" George Lerton said. "I--I sold out
+Griffin. I wanted money, and I hated Griffin because he had put Sidney
+Prale over me. Then Sid had his trouble with the girl and ran away. I
+fixed things so it looked as if he had been the guilty one.
+
+"I pretended to hate Sid for what he was supposed to have done. I
+suggested the scheme of vengeance, and worked to get the influential men
+together. Then he came back--with his million. I hated him all the more
+because of that. I was afraid that, if he remained in New York, he would
+find out the truth and I'd be exposed. I knew what that would mean, and
+I was beginning to get rich.
+
+"So I had him followed and watched. I trailed him myself and met him on
+Fifth Avenue, and tried to get him to go away, and afterward denied that
+I had seen him at all, for he was accused of the murder of Rufus
+Shepley."
+
+"Which was your deed!" Farland put in. "Go ahead--tell it all. Let us
+see whether you were clever or merely an amateur at crime."
+
+"Oh, I was clever enough!" Lerton boasted. "I--I killed Shepley because
+he was about to have me arrested for embezzlement. I had been handling a
+vast sum for him, aside from his regular business. While he was
+traveling, I speculated with the money--and lost. He knew it. I could
+not repay.
+
+"I had an engagement with him that night at the hotel. The detective I
+had working for me had reported that Sid had had a quarrel with Shepley,
+and where he had gone afterward and what he had done. There I saw my
+chance.
+
+"I did not have myself announced at Shepley's hotel. I knew where his
+suite was, so I slipped up to it without anybody seeing me, and knocked
+at the door. He admitted me. I begged him to give me a little time to
+repay the money, but he would not. He called me a thief, and said that I
+must go to prison, that he would not have a hand in letting me remain at
+liberty to rob other men.
+
+"There was a steel letter opener on the table. I--I stabbed him with it,
+and then I got away by the fire escape. Nobody saw me. I left him there
+dead. I was almost frantic when I reached home. Then I saw how I could
+have Sidney Prale accused and remove the menace of his presence also. I
+would be safe if Prale were convicted of the murder. I would not have to
+repay the Shepley money, and Prale never could reveal that I had
+betrayed Mr. Griffin and the others instead of him.
+
+"So I sent the notes and money to the barber and clothing merchant, and
+they denied that Prale had visited them, thus smashing his alibi. I
+denied that I had met him on the Avenue. I thought that I was safe. But
+the barber and merchant told Farland the truth, and the police began to
+think that Sid was not guilty.
+
+"I grew almost frantic then. My one hope was in running Sid out of town
+as quickly as possible, and so I did everything I could think of to
+bring about that end."
+
+"How about that fountain pen found beside the body?" Farland asked.
+
+"When I was talking to Sid that night on the Avenue, his coat was open
+and I saw the pen. Something seemed to tell me to take it, that it might
+be used against him some time. As I clutched his lapel, begging him to
+leave town, I took the pen from his pocket."
+
+"Nothing but a plain dip, after all!" Farland sneered.
+
+"I dropped it beside the body after I had killed Shepley. It was a part
+of my plan. And--and I guess that is all!"
+
+"I guess it is!" Sidney Prale said. "Mr. Griffin and I, and some other
+men, made a little investigation last night and continued it this
+morning. We found that you were the traitor who caused that financial
+smash ten years ago. It may please you to know that Mr. Griffin is my
+friend again, and that others are being informed of my innocence. Even
+Coadley has come to me and asked to take my case again. But I was
+clearing myself of the charge of business treason, and nothing more. I
+did not connect you with the murder of Shepley."
+
+"Well, I did connect him with it," Farland put in. "But when I sprung it
+on him here this afternoon, I was running a bluff. I had some evidence,
+but not enough to convict. You might have got away with it, Lerton, if
+you had had any nerve. But you happen to be a rank coward--and a guilty
+man!"
+
+"You--you----" George Lerton gasped.
+
+He had been holding two fingers in a pocket of his waistcoat. Now he
+withdrew them and, before Farland could reach him, he had swallowed
+something.
+
+"You'll never----" he began, and then his head fell forward to the desk.
+"Get the ladies outside, Murk!" Farland commanded suddenly. "And tell
+that secretary out there to send in a call for a physician and the
+police. Lerton was right--he'll never go to the electric chair!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Ten minutes later, Sidney Prale and Murk were waiting for the elevator
+with Kate Gilbert and Marie, but each couple was standing at some
+distance from the other.
+
+"I have proved my innocence, and now I ask you to remember your promise
+and grant me your friendship," Prale was telling Kate Gilbert.
+
+"I shall remember," she said. "You have my address, haven't you? If you
+haven't, ask Murk. He knows it. You sent him to spy on me, remember."
+
+"Jim Farland did that," Prale protested.
+
+Murk was talking to the gigantic Marie at that moment.
+
+"You're mighty nice!" he was saying. "Say, I'd like to see you some
+more. I've got an idea my boss will be calling on your mistress, and
+when he does I might come up to the corner, and you might slip out and
+meet me, and we might take a walk in the Park. You wouldn't want to stay
+in the apartment and bother them, would you?"
+
+"It would be a shame!" said Marie. "Which corner, Murk?"
+
+
+THE END
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's The Brand of Silence, by Harrington Strong
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BRAND OF SILENCE ***
+
+***** This file should be named 21891.txt or 21891.zip *****
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+        http://www.gutenberg.org/2/1/8/9/21891/
+
+Produced by Sigal Alon, Brett Fishburne, Mary Meehan and
+the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at
+http://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
+will be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
+one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
+(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
+permission and without paying copyright royalties.  Special rules,
+set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
+copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
+protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark.  Project
+Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
+charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission.  If you
+do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
+rules is very easy.  You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
+such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
+research.  They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
+practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks.  Redistribution is
+subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
+redistribution.
+
+
+
+*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
+http://gutenberg.org/license).
+
+
+Section 1.  General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works
+
+1.A.  By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement.  If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
+all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
+If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
+terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
+entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
+
+1.B.  "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark.  It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.  There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.  See
+paragraph 1.C below.  There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
+and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.  See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C.  The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
+or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works.  Nearly all the individual works in the
+collection are in the public domain in the United States.  If an
+individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
+located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
+copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
+works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
+are removed.  Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
+Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
+freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
+this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
+the work.  You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
+keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D.  The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work.  Copyright laws in most countries are in
+a constant state of change.  If you are outside the United States, check
+the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
+before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
+creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
+Gutenberg-tm work.  The Foundation makes no representations concerning
+the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
+States.
+
+1.E.  Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1.  The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
+access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
+whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
+copied or distributed:
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+1.E.2.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
+from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
+posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
+and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
+or charges.  If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
+with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
+work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
+through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
+Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
+1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
+terms imposed by the copyright holder.  Additional terms will be linked
+to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
+permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4.  Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5.  Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6.  You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
+word processing or hypertext form.  However, if you provide access to or
+distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
+"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
+posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
+you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
+copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
+request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
+form.  Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7.  Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8.  You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
+that
+
+- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+     the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.  The fee is
+     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
+     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
+     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.  Royalty payments
+     must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
+     prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
+     returns.  Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
+     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
+     address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
+     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+     you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+     License.  You must require such a user to return or
+     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
+     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
+     Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
+     money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
+     of receipt of the work.
+
+- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+     distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9.  If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
+forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
+both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
+Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark.  Contact the
+Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1.  Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
+collection.  Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
+"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
+corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
+property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
+computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
+your equipment.
+
+1.F.2.  LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees.  YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3.  YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3.  LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from.  If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
+your written explanation.  The person or entity that provided you with
+the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
+refund.  If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
+providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
+receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.  If the second copy
+is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
+opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4.  Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER
+WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
+WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5.  Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
+If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
+law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
+interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
+the applicable state law.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any
+provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6.  INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
+with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
+promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
+harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
+that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
+or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
+work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
+Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
+
+
+Section  2.  Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
+including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.  It exists
+because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
+people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come.  In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
+To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
+and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
+and the Foundation web page at http://www.pglaf.org.
+
+
+Section 3.  Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
+Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service.  The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541.  Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
+http://pglaf.org/fundraising.  Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
+permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
+Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
+throughout numerous locations.  Its business office is located at
+809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
+business@pglaf.org.  Email contact links and up to date contact
+information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
+page at http://pglaf.org
+
+For additional contact information:
+     Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+     Chief Executive and Director
+     gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+
+Section 4.  Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment.  Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States.  Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements.  We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance.  To
+SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
+particular state visit http://pglaf.org
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States.  U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses.  Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations.
+To donate, please visit: http://pglaf.org/donate
+
+
+Section 5.  General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
+with anyone.  For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
+Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
+
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
+unless a copyright notice is included.  Thus, we do not necessarily
+keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
+
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
+
+     http://www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
diff --git a/old/21891.zip b/old/21891.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8bd25eb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/21891.zip