CHAPTER XIII
The Commissioner's eyes were
sharp but reassuringly friendly as
he took command of the situation.
"Mrs. Hale, did you quairrel with
your husband before you went to the
donee last evening; did he object to
your leaving him?"
"Was it only last evening?" She
shivered. "He didn't want me to
go"
"But you went?"
"Yes. For a short time."
"Did he threaten you?"
"Not more than usual."
"Mm. I see. Had he quarreled
"?mi anjruntr mi headquarters:"
"With Mr. Harcourt. You can't
suspect him, you can't! Bruce nev
er quarreled with him. He was at
the Waffle Shop every moment till
he walked home with me and then
he didn't come in."
"But the shooting was done with
his revolver."
"How do you know?" The ques
tion was a strained whisper.
"It was found on the shore."
She looked up with agonized eyes
at Harcourt standing by the mantel.
"Bruce! Bruce!"
"You and your brother were in the
H nouse helping decorate it. Did
you notice whether the gun was
there?"
"I ? I didn't notice."
"Anyone there besides you and
your brother?"
"Kadyama brought in the greens.
Miss Mary was unpacking some
things in one of the bedrooms."
Mrs. Hale, describe what you
found when you entered the cabin."
"Joe was lying face down on the
rug. Wheel-chair overturned. I don't
know how long I stood staring at
him. I felt something tugging at my
skirt. It was my little dog begging
to be iaken up. That broke the spell
of horror. I raised Joe's head and
shoulders, realized what had hap
pened and rushed for Mr. Har
court."
The Commissioner fitted spatula
finger-tips together with nice pre
cision. "Any theory as to the mo
tive for the attack on your hus
band, Mrs. Hale?"
Her thin fingers tightened. "No.
Unless ? unless it was robbery. Joe
always carried a lot of cash."
"Why did you go for Mr. Har
court instead of your mother?"
"Go for Jimmy? Why he hated
Joe and ? " she stifled a cry with
one hand. "You're not trying to
make out that Jimmy did it, are
you? Bruce! Bruce! You know Jim
my. You know that he's incapable
of a thing like that."
"Did he tell you then that he was
going away?"
"Away! Where?" She was on her
feet, swaying as she stood. Har
court pressed her back into the
chair.
"Take it easy, Millicent. Jimmy
went off in a plane."
"Where, Bruce, where?"
"In just one hour he will be on
his way to find out. We won't trou
ble you any more now, Mrs. Hale.
Good afternoon. See you in the
morning. Come on, Harcourt."
Out of earshot of the Samp cabin,
the Commissioner stopped.
"That woman knows more than
dhe's telling, a whole lot more. We'll
let her think we're as dumb as she
thinks we are, while we go after
Chester."
Trie Commissioner said Bruce
knew every field where a plane could
land. Harcourt admitted it.
"I do. We have three large camps
stocked with' provisions for two
years. They have good fields. Un
less Chester had an accident, he
must have come down in one of
those. He wouldn't go to a city or
town of any size. If he is running
away, he would know that you would
have his description broadcast."
"We'll start in an hour. Leave
someone in charge with instructions
to let Mrs. Hale have her head.
Get 'em all feeling secure, that's
the idea. Going to eat at the Waffle
Shop?"
"No. At my cabin. 1 want to
talk with Pasca, my hoi'se-boy. and
leave Grant in charge."
Tubby Grant was strumming a
mournful ditty on his ukulele as
Harcourt entered his cabin and left
instructions.
"Keep your eye on Janice, will
you?"
"What a heck of a honeymoon!"
"By the way, Millicent suggested
robbery as the motive of the at
tack on Joe. No money was found
on him or in the cabin, you remem
ber. Kadyama will bear watching."
Smoke rose from the chimney,
drifted Inzily into the pink after
glow. as Harcourt entered his cabin.
He stopped on the threshold
Was that really an embroidered
cloth and shining silver on the small
table laid for two. or was he seeing
things? The plates and tumblers
of the warranted-to- withstand-wear
and-tcar variety were his? he would
swesr to that. Who was humming
to the accompaniment of an egg
beater? He flung open the kitche-t
door.
"Janice!"
The girl in her gay smock, furi
ously beating eggs in a bowl, bobbed
a dancing-school curtsy.
"What are you doing here?"
"Here! Didn't milord send word
by Miss Martha that if I did not
return to the H house pronto he
would come for me?"
"I didn't send tor you because I
wanted a cook."
"Don't bite. Miss Martha inti
mated that as a chef Pasca left
ivuisthisg tc be dcsirci. 'I ----
my duty an' I done it.' Look at that
asparagus with sauce vinaigrette. I
found a basket of gulls' eggs. I'm
making an omelette, a plump, yel
low omelette, not one of those thin
things with a soap-sudsy Ailing.
Something tells me that I have mor
tally offended your house-boy. He
cares so awfully for himself as a
cook."
Harcourt looked gravely at Janice
seated across the small table.
"For the first time in my life X
understand why my father always
said grace at his own table. Mother
was something for which to give
daily thanks if he had nothing else."
He cleared his voice. "Where did
all this elegance come from?" He
touched the beautiful cloth with a
shining silver spoon.
"I told you that I had not real
ized quite into what I was adven
Out of earshot of the Samp cabin
the Commissioner stopped.
turing. Thought I might have an
occasional afternoon tea."
"And you drew this. It is all
wrong, Jan, but we won't go back to
that now." He looked at the clock.
"I am taking off in just thirty min
utes."
"Where?"
"After Jimmy Chester."
"Oh, no! Not nice Jimmy Ches
ter! Does the Commissioner think
he did it?"
?He told her of the interview with
Millicent Hale, while Pasca served
the simple supper. As the Eskimo
set cups of coffee on the table, Har
court smiled at the girl.
"This has the restaurant at which
we dined beaten a mile. Feed Tong,
Pasca. Fuel the Tanager. I will be
at the field in te?. minutes."
As the door closed behind the man
and dog, Janice asked:
"Why are yon taking that particu
lar plane?"
"Because I can take off after a
run of less than three hundred feet,
and come to a complete stop one
hundred feet from the spot where
the plane first touches the ground.
As I don't know where I may have
to come down, it's the best bet."
He looked at her steadily. "Do 1
need to tell you that Millicent's in
timation that it would matter to me
if she were free is a figment of her
crazed imagination?"
Janice was intent on the pattern
she was etching on the cloth with
the tip of a silver spoon.
"Imagination! It sounded like the
real thing to me."
He caught her shoulders. "You
know bette:. You know that I?
Good Lord, is that the Commission
er knocking? Can't he allow me a
minute with? with my family?"
He opened the door. The smil
ing, impeccably dressed man fac
ing him said suavely:
"I was told that I would find ? "
"Ned!"
The choked exclamation came
from Janice. Harcourt glanced at
the- clock Five minutes before he
E??4' tttwws
Paxt??. whose eyes were on the
swmgly'a? l?rWard he K'^nced un"
seeingly at his wrist-watch ??c~I
just as' ' haV? l? leaVt" headquarters
ice and GrnnVVe-,raXt0n- but J?"
ice ana Grant will show vou th?
wonders of thu ?orth coWJnf^U..lhe
"Ks ,ht in his^rm..
IUce tearing my heart out to
leave you. Beautiful!" He kissed hi?r
eyes, her throat. her mou?h
- '-'ant before
Hpsto heT-harr! ""?Deares'u"SSea
Ha-ar-court!"
crUlfed T.mif i01er'S shout outside
crasned mto his husky voice Jan
he* relia baek 'he chains
were a d/rl, ?" Her lon* lash"
orleL i? 'ringe against her col
001 s*"\ Paxton was staring out
shoulders" ? ""^ting to his
Harcourt picked up jumpers hel
I'jC" s blood raced. He had
mtcnded to kiss Janice lightly a
mere gesture to impress the late
fiance with the reality of their re*
lationship. The feel of her in his
a.ms had set him aflame. Kc had
kissed her as though he were
sh/forJ-o h?rTSS he was" w<>uid
"*? lorgiva him?
tnf?e f?",owed h'm to the door in
true wifely solicitude. Said in a
voice disconcertingly steady.
Good luck to you, Bruce "
stepped to the board walk
ously forward t? whisper furi
Your technique is superb Ynn
must have had heaps of practTce
Ned?" martyr yourself to impress
itfree^Xpe" K Sh? tWis,<?d
The door closed.
? ? ?
Harcourt was still stubbornly
Chefte?. thC convic,ion of Jimmy
?HirH !i innocence when on the
north the search he left the
^hri ?nn2?Si camP- No< one of the
cl?e Th^r Visiled had yieIded 3
tatok Commissioner was irri
? nta( I'T He had ordered
nun r ! headquarters, had radi
oed Grant to expect them that aft
ernoon. As Harcourt climbed to
asUto'nCheUJtU?e thC first uneasiness
as to Chester's safety seized him
bration h*,thou?ht he heard the vil
oration OI an engine ahead It
couldn t be the Commissioner, must
be a sound mirage H<? ^
the sunUP The H?"* Came out int?
mile altimeter registered a
He kept above the cloud.?, till he
"-"I* c'.ear 3k, . Descended to
k f ! hearings. Was that a camp
below. Men, looking no bigger than
arrh= S' im?Vmg" DiSSing? Probably
archaeologists in search of the first
P??eriH?s\ Het Iooked at ^ com
p . heart stood still. It had
thaf6 Some electric current in
?e trfek wS rai" Storm had done
tne trick. Where was he?
^UZZ in his ear warned him
that he must have more forward
tPra'nHStnntIy ^ thC Pla"e ^Uld
Stall and spin out of control. As
'tmbed swift'y he 'ooked round
' * . fiiZon to Set his bearings. To
ward the south the sky was black
with smoke. Old Katmal tuning up
Now he knew the direction in which
He mounted into the clouds. Thev
were moving south. They would
serve as compass. The drone of an
The'eff he rea,,y hearing it?
cauVhf hCimWaS Weird" Sudden,y f?*
? .To.hl? astonishment he came o.,?
fe? ^f'l,lant sunlight. What an in
fernally queer world! The berg-dot
ed sea was over his right Wini
had flon rt' he laughed- The plane
had flopped on its side. He rio-htlj
't and took his bearings.
How long had he been flying aim
lessly in the storm? He glanfed
his wrist-watch. Noon. He frowned
at the gas gauge. Couldn't do much
more experimenting with that sup?
I * Peered over the side of the
ship. An ice-floe. Big as a? m?
bodied island with acres of plateau"
He w.ng-slipped nearer, wires htim
ming. Dots! Three of them- Two
moving. One inert. A plane on ;t=
side! The phantom of the clouds
cracked-up? Could one of the dot?
be Chester? No. Jimmy went alone
tnginc shut off, he side-slioDed
down. Landed, bumped and skirt
ded over the rough surface to a step"
The floe stretched away illimitahlv'
not a collection of cakes buTacres
of grinding, heaving ice-fields, their
smoothness broken by an occasional
crevice choked with loose rag
ments by swiftly running rills Hp
pushed back his helmet. The crte
Pled plane! Good Lord what ^
wrc.ck! Propeller smashed', one w.ne
gashed into fringe by the ice Where
was the oilot?
'TO KR ftiMIM H),
ASK ME ?
ANOTHER i
A quiz with answers offering
information on various subjects
The Questions
1. Why is a small pocket knife
called a pen-knife?
2. The solid part of the earth is
known as what?
3. What result is obtained by
multiplying 5 x 6 x 0 x 10?
4. Is the science of fingerprint
ing practiced in China?
5. What is the only walled city
in North America?
6. What sainted woman is said
to have given her kerchief to
Christ as he carried his cross to
Golgotha?
7. The Philippines are named
for the king of what country?
The Antwer*
1. Because it was formerly used
to make and sharpen quills for
pens.
2. The lithospliere.
3. Zero.
4. Yes. It originated there in
the Fourth century.
5. Quebec is the only walled
city in North America.
6. Veronica.
7. Spain (Philip II).
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