The Room of Secrets

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 25, 6 March 1914, Page 11

The Room of Secrets

CHAPTER XXXII. The sight presented to our gaze was most horrible and gruesome. Need I describe it save to say that ■within lay the Thing over which many weeks before my eager hands ha'd blindly groped —that soft lace and silken clothing? Upon the dark' patch of corruption, and shining against the hideous discolouration, was a thin golden chain, to which was attached a square piece of red carnelian. A golden pin ran through the centre, and as Denman, entering the plac&, stooped and took it in his palm I saw that the stone worn as a pendant was engraved on all four sides with figures of the ancient Egyptian goddess, Isis, together with some hieroglyphics. It was the private seal of one of the Pharaohs of the earlier

dynasties which had been identified by ' the great Egyptologist, Professor Marvin, and worn by the.unfortunate girl from whose remains the detective had just removed it. I turned from that open door in Supreme horror. But my two companions first made a careful investigation, and then came forth, again. ' 'This certainly corroborates" your

•statement, Mr Colefax," Dennian ex{elaimed, in a low, hard voice. ''Who can the person be, I wonder?" "Her name was Ivy Faweett," I replied. "I established her identity -.some time ago. She lived with her aunt iti Craven Hill, and if you go there you ean learn all the details. She was an intimate friend of Joan Cooper.'' "And, as such, fell into Koop's trap, I suppose?" Crane remarked. Long and carefully the two men made their examination of that chamber of secrets to which so many persons had been lured, and had ever after ronmined missing to their friends. .\yithin' that hidden cavity, besides finding the grim evidence of Koop's crime, Denman presently discovered a small bottle-case of boxwood, which, when he unscrewed the top, a tiny phial, containing some thick brown liquid, was discovered.

Inserted intQ the cork was a long darning-needle, the point of which was immersed in the liquids.

i "Th # is intended for some evil purpose, without a doubt," he said, pointing out the needle.

"Yes," I said. "Be very careful how you handle it. It may be poisonous."

: $/Ly suspicion afterwards proved to , be correct, for upon subsequent,, examination it was found that the contents of the phial were the terribly fatal eobfa poison, and that the slightest scratch with that, infected needle would .be, sufficient to produce a certain and agonising' death, the cause of' which ' would: be most difficult—nay, almost : impossible—ever by experts,; to determine, ; J . "\sitiii».the past three yeitrs quite a number of people of both sexes had been found dead by the police in the

(By WILLIAM LE QTJEUX.)

[COPYRIGHT.]

London streets. Inquests had been held upon., them, and when the records came to be examined after the disclosures I am now describing, it was found that in every case the post-mor-tem revealed that the deceased succumbed to some natural cause. The eoroner's jury in each case gave a verdict in accordance with the medical evidence, and, though some of the dead bodies had been identified, others had been buried in nameless graves.

The cobra death —as it is known to the small circle of toxicological experts—was, of course, never suspected; .neither was Koop's hand. And, though it is known to be still practised in secret even to-day, yet its detection is unfortunately the most difficult of all criminal investigation. For a full hour we remained within the Room of Secrets, my two compan. ions alert and busy upon that most remarkable discovery in the criminal annals of modern London. I now realised Deniiian's infinite care, the pains he took to avoid the obliteration of my finger-prints, and how methodically he worked, Crane acting under his direc- '' Mr Colefax, I wish you'd do me a favour," Denman said, turning to me. "Just go down and tell the constable to find a telephone and ring up Mr Mayhew at the Yard. Ask him to corne along here at once, will you?" ' i 111 go myself and use the telephone in the other house,'' I said, and then I left the room, descending the dark, narrow stairs.

Hardly had I got half-way down the first flight when of a sudden something sprang out of the darkness upon me, tearing at me like a wild beast and at the same time pinioning my arms.

For a second I was startled. I shouted and managed to turn, when, to my utter amazement, I saw that my assailant was none other than Koop himself!

"You've brought them here!" he hissed, between his yellow teeth, as in the half light I saw that his eyes were glaring wildly from their sockets. '' I watched you bring the girl here, and you shall die —die like the others. You shall! "

I struggled with him, and, locked in each othei- 's arms, we fell heavily down half-a-dozen stairs on to the landing, wrtere we rol'cd, still in each other's embrace. In his madness he was possessed of demon strength, and, though I am naturally pretty muscular, he held my arms as easily as though I were a babe.

Er? the constable could rush up from below, or the two detectives could join me, we struggled fiercely —for he was on top of me. Yet I did not at that moment realise the horrible death whicii ne intended should be mine.

In the coat-cuff of his right-hand sleeve J noticed a long darning-needle was stuck with its point protruding. But it was not until my three companifns pulled him off and held him Drisoner that I knew they had just in

tiim rescued me from a scratch of that poisoned needle. Indeed, it was only three minutes later when the truth became plain. "yes,". Koop cried, hoarsely, struggling with the three burly men who now held him powerless, bringing him downstairs into the bare drawing-room —'' yes, you have me, thanks to that crafty devil yonder"—indicating myself. "He loves my Joan, but I intend to serve him just as I served the othei man who loved her —that young fool Barlow. He poked his infernal nose into my business. Ah! ah! He paid the penalty for interfering with things that didn't concern him." "Then Joan did not raise her hand against the young man?" I cried, eagerly. "She raised her hand in anger, because —because he had insulted her. but she did not harm him. No, I was in the room—l, her father; but they never knew. He! he!" And he laughed hideously, a wild, insane, laugh.- "No, she thought she did it. It was a big room, and they didn't know I was there.'' "And you, her father, have allowed her to believe herself a murderess?" I cried, in hard reproach. "It wasn't likely that I'd confess to killing the dear young man, was it?" he asked, with a sneer. "No! Mrs Maxwell declared that Joan did it." And then he became so violent that the trio had all their wo?k to do to hold him. "No, and you who have found out all about my affairs—l intend that you shall die, too. You sneaking cur,'' he cried, addressing me. And then the old man in his madness tore and .struggled again to get at me. "What are you donig here?" asked Denman, gruffly, his strong, heavy hand upon the madman's coat collar.

"Doiug? Why, nothing. I only got back from Antwerp this morning," was the white-faced man's reply, as he looked wildly about him. "I came back here to paint—yes, to see my pictures, my works that will live,, and, to paint. But how can I now —ell?"

"No, I don't suppose you'll be able to do much more painting," Denman said in triumph. "But I could if—if only I had Ibrahim."

4 ' Where is Ibrahim ? Is he back here with you?" demanded the detective eagerly.

"Back with me?" echoed the old man, strangely, his thin face now haggard and blanched. "No; he was shot on Dartmoor by that cur over yonder —that man whom I mean to kill." And he once again struggled fiercely in order to get at me. '' He never recovered from his wound,'' went on Koop, panting, '' for he left the hospital before he should have done, and got back to his rooms round here, in Porchester Street. Afterwards he went abroad with me, and the motoring caused complications and a chill. He died the day before yesterday in the hospital in Antwerp." "Then he's dead! ,Are you quite sure of that?" Crane asked.

"Telegraph to the hospital if you don't believe me," was the reply. "But where can I find Joan?" I demanded.

"What do you want with my girl?" he shouted angrily. "You love, her, I know! But, by Heaven, I'll see you. dead before she shall marry you—the man who has brought all this disaster upon me!"

" Remember, Mr Koop, you lured me into this house and tried to kill me, just us you have so ingeniously

brought agony and death upon others,'' I said, quite quietly. "You will have to answer for that, as well as for certain other things—the death of Ivy Fawcett, for instance, and that of poor Ethel Farquhar, who was so foully done to death in your house round the cornei\

At my words the old man went into a fearful frenzy of passion. His grey hair, and whiskers seemed to bristle with* anger; his face was flushed; his deep-set eyes were full of the evil fire of his homicidal mania. His thin, talon-like fingers moved convulsively, eager to spring upon me and again tear my throat in the paroxyism of his revolting madness. "You—you'll bring me to tliis! " he gasped, struggling with his captors, there being a trace of foreign accent, in his words now that he was beside himself with anger and excitement. "Ah! ah!" he laughed, with bitter sarcasm. " You, the police, think that you've got me now, eh? You think that you'll put me in the dock of a criminal court and torture me by trial and sentence. Oh, what a feast of horrors the public would have, wouldn't they? And all because , I love painting—painting! Ah!" —and he paused suddenly, his countenance altering in?a moment, and he continued as though talking to himself—"ah', how I love my pictures—my beautiful pictures—and my models. My models!" His face grew evil again, and with his lingers working convulsively he added:—

"My models! Ah! how they begged, how they prayed, how they implored me to give theni back their lives! But Ibraham—poor Ibrahim!—he knew the exact dose; he knew the exact antidote to give them life just as long as I wanted them to live. After thatwell, they were of no further use to me—no further use at all. You've seen my pictures?" he said, staring straight into my face with a strange, stony stare. '"Are they not beautiful? And yet nobody sees them—nobody." '' Mr Colefax, will you please go and telephone to the Yard?" Denman said quietly. "Ask Mr Mayhew to bring along a "couple of sergeants.'' "Sergeants?" shrieked the maniac. "Then you are going to arrest me, after all?" *

"You are arrested, Mr Kbop," replied Denman. "Aud you'll put me in prison—eh!" "Yes, I think so," was the detective's reply.

"Confound you!" he cried, still struggling violently and facing him. "Then you won't. I intended death for that man there, Colefax, but I don't care. I don't want to live now that Ibrahim—my dear • Ibrahim —is gone. I'll take my life myself. I'll cheat you. infernal hounds of the law. I 've had my pleasures, and I'm a sportsman—l'll pay for it." And, still in the hands of tjie three men, he made a sudden movement, diving his head towards his right hand. Then, when he raised it, I saw a dark red scratch across his right cheek, a deep scratch where the needle had torn the flesh. The men who held him did not entirely realise for several moments what he had done—riot, indeed, until his jaws began to move up and down quickly, causing his teeth to chatter. "The needle! " I cried, at that time, of course, in ignorance of the cobradeath. "That's poisoned! Look!" And as they held him they felt his resistance slowly relax. Over his white, hard countenance there spread an expression of agony such as 1 never again wish to witness upon any human face—that expression so vividly depicted upon those weird canvases in the" room above.'

He shouted "wildly, showering, the most fearful curses upon us, for his brain was still unbalanced. The muscles of his evil face produced the most hideous contortions as the snake's venom spread rapidly through his system; his teeth were set, his white hands, with their pointed nails, were clenched into his palms; his whole frame became rigid in an agony that could be felt —the agony of death. "Ah!" he shrieked wildly. Then, after a pause, he breathed his last words: "Ah! What torture! I'm— I'm all on fire! Ah, Heaven forgive me-—forgive me—forgive!'' And then he gasped and fell forward, collapsing in their arms, limp, inert, dead!

(To be continued to-morrow.)