BLACK WEDNESDAY

Auckland Star, Volume XLIII, Issue 142, 14 June 1912, Page 10

BLACK WEDNESDAY

By ARTHUR W. MARCHMONT.

' CHAPTER lIL If General Kasslov tad really been poisoned it was clear that I might find myself in a very serious position. The evidence in my possession would be of the_ most critical importance and might- prove-~"f3iSy--.dan-

IDiscfose it," however, I" dared-iioi- If poison', -srere -.known to hareCßeen in Alma's possession her arrest would- follow as" snrely:_as iligtit"ioUo.ws-day "the

instant tEe" doctors official r6Ji~oft~wa3

made. The relations between her and ler father -would' be accepted as enffi-

cient motrroj

the qua-rrcls hetween

theni about her ;marriage would be read as confirmation, and I had beard

enough of police methods to be conwiniced - Chafe ■ evidence- -would coon. - 'be> i orthcemmtg , "to -secure-a.- cen/vietion. -inaccordance •with any police-"tHeory.— " ■I -went -bo my- tedrbom - desperately perplexed ~by this fresh coiaplication, and resoltted that my first act on the morrow should be to destroy the evidence "which had come into my hands. Sleep -was out of the question, and I TFa3 pacing the floor when I heard a movement in the corridor. Instinctively I 6-sritched off the light and listened.

- sly ; ~ bearing Ms yeiy- • "quick, and;! caught the soft rustle of a skirt against my door as someone passed. If ' opened my " door noiselessly and •peered' oh£' There "was a. light in the Toojed.:liiiM:-:left, m Z ifebots, I cpßpfc-along- -the -corridor *oi efctvtf "*" "woinair,"wearing a , -black hooded cloak,, in.. the act . -of opening the Jxureau Tiic]i J had seen Ate l * lock.

She searched -with, feverish nervous loaste; jfrrr • something^which-i&e ' .could \- In*, seeming -dismay SafcT OCe" iailure-she glanced round-the.room, and ar :saw- her features. -It .was Alma's maid, fedora Douroff. In .....another sabinent XSras Baftfc-in: tayjrooin, 3ati& Sea", that: I -lad Kgjfttagk: an : important clue to the partf'of-Hne"proiblein. which had" so .perplexed . mci _ _■. . ■ ' " ' That the woman had gone in search Df the poison, I was convinced; and the ;dbvio.US inference; was that she was in some -way connected with the tragedy .of' that, night. •' ' , ' ," In the morning, when I rose, I found a couple of police in Alma's room, and (Fedora -with them. One of them, whose pame was Grovski, I knew well. 'flaking a search?" I aaked, as we shook -hands. /.'ll'm ..suraJMademqiselle Kasslbv will gladly do all in-her pow« ifo assist you. I am looking after cer, tain.matters for. her." , "Dr. Buscb. told mc you-were in the. fcoSSeT "Mr. -Enderby," - ; he ; ?Di course, this search to purely formal, although our orders axe .to make it; We fcnow the assassin-is not:in the house, fc-ut "these -things nave to'be , V ■ «4his is my mistreaß's-Iwreau, pat. in Fedora, qnite unnecessarily, and it struck mc ■ that ' she was desirous of gtanding well with, the .poßce.- Significant, in- view- of -wba't 1: Jiadi-witneaeed dnring ihe night". '-" "" "" " " " CrrovskT'waa a .courteous fellow.--.lt i 3 prQEaHe "mademoiselle may >not care io have her .private; paper?, disturbed until she.is present," he said to mc. "I think, she.would rather get it over, , ' J,. ieplied;-aTjd-6ent-Fedora -for : tae She was coon iback, and a. very- perfuMtorj- seajch;was_ina<ie. As soon as .it. iwas finished, I explained to Grovsfci the lesfeons for- my•-•presence.in the houee, ajid asked him about the.General's body Bervamtj-SSkoV.— '--—- ■ '■— '■' , - "iHis part"is"noi at all "a!ip«(Kes!V, «t----eept"so far as the i-dbbery 13 concerned," Ms view. "It is Terrorist -work, and. I aon't" beHevie thtffc Eikdv v, was' even iff coHusion -wxfeh." them." He "came tp-.ids, Excellency "with an. jeharatcter and wae.one of...the gentlest of men.He was in a panic, no dpu-bt,_lest he should, be: suspected,, and s.eeing. a large. sum of money ready.to -hand; yielded to the sudden temptation and bolted with it. A man migHt well lose'bis head at such a time." - - - "A very iprobable solution," I agreed.- ---? 0£ couisej iMadenoisiire _ Kassk)v will give you every-helj) in-her power,, arid,, in" return, we should like' to be 'kept posted abont any fresh.dTscoveidefi. By •the way, has 3>r Eiisoli inside his report pefctsL.. _ _..-. ... _._ kntjw aliout,him, poor felfowf° " — '•Know -vbAtyiJ- aaked, with a twinge, Dfiineasißess.— — ™ ". ' .: "He fa dead Jlr. Enderby." "Dead!"" I cried, in amazement. •^"He, , . wtfs.on- iasj-wax h_ome-£rain- -here,and there was an affray between -some of crs? and those whom they were arresting; some shots were fired and he. was killed on the spot." Overwhelmed by the vital IT,, „,..-„ t (,„,,!,! n7l ! v ? t:ir e (if. Grovski in- speechless ■ It meant ! that in all the.Empire I alone knew the true cause of the General's death. ! "'I did riot know that he was a friend of yours, or I wouldn't 'have blurted out the news like this," said Grovski, after : a. pause, seeing nry concern. 11 I!'I "Jfave known 'him almost as long aar-i I have been.in. -Moscow," I replied, grasp- ■■•< ing readily a£.'the suggested reason for my agitationr;. ..1' "_:, ;,;," " ~_ .; ;_ ;; . "Seemsrlike'Fate-ahiipst. . Youj-inowj- j !he was going*-to~retire after; this case? He had all arrangements made to go to South America as soon as His Excellency's health peraHitted.-"- - - - "Poor Buech!" I exclaimed with a BJgfl. "A tragic finish "to-ids work here, hu .v ever, iie made the ■ post mortem , I-wt He told mc."

"AbeT very tmfoTfcnna.tely, as it turns ont. He carved the body about in such a way that no other doctor -win be able to. say imich more than, that His Ex' cellency is dead." "Did he not make hie report, then?" "Not a-word of it. He ma? have made some notes, liilt in the struggle after his death his body was trampled on and toseed about a good deal, and when it was recovered nothing of the sort was found on it.". ; "Poor fellow!" I exclaimed with, a sigh of txmcern intended to hide my satisfaction- at the news. "But he otight to have bad some other doctors at the post mortem, surely." "He was wrong tliere, of course. But ■he knew his work; 1 would rather have his opinion than that of twenty others._ Tie consequences might harve -been serious; -however, it tbe ease w-ere not so -plain." And Trith that Grovski went off. I was indeed the only soul in the world who knew the truth, and the sooner the evidences in my possession were destroyed, the better. Bnt when Fedora returned to say that mj- breakfast was ready, I rementfbered, with a chill of dismay, that •tie secret imight be shared with her. 1 would have given a great deal to learn all that she knew; bnt I dared not run the risk of questioning her. I bad just finished my breakfast when Madame de Courtcnnes came in with the news of Alma. She bad slept a little duiing'rthe .night, "and. was in .better tone in iconeequence;..and she wiehed to see tncta little later. "That Will jtist suit mc. I have to go to my office," I replied. "But you, madaroe, you look wearied." She looked, indeed haggard,- worried and ill. • She gestured despairingly. -"I- am in core trouble;-1 haive been racked with neuralgia and have not closed my eyes all night. I have lost the. needle I use for in-y morphia. I would hatve given a thousand roubles for" it in the night." '- *■ <■' ■ I Sid not let her see the effect of tbjs news Tipori mc, arid when she asked mc to buy her one, I Jed her on to describe that which she had lost. The description fitted exactly the syringe I had fortnd! ' X read this as a fu'ther proof of the treacherous 'attempt to fasten suspicion upon Alma or Madame de Courtennes. Whoever was -engaged in the slimy task ■was obviously able to obtain ready'access -to their rooms; and thU pointed clearly to one person—the maid; "Fedora. I had taken a. powerful dislike to the girl, and both my sister and I had been surprised that Alma should place any Confidence, in her, -She was ugly wkh a repellant "sort of ugliness. A long thin face, with cunning stamped on every feature, and close-set black eyes instinct •with infinite slynees. A born spy, with stealthy, catlike movements; a very dangerous woman, quite • capable, in mv opinion, of laying such a snare as seemed, to have 'been laid now. If I had any influence witH 'Alma, the first use of it would be to get rid of Fedora. ; When,!-, reached. my_.ofSce. I fiestroyed all traces of the poison, and filled the little green- -bottle with strong, scent, ftiter what Madame had -said about tlte syringe, -1 • decided not to destroy it, but to • return it to her after a time; and I locked it away in the secret drawer 7 of my safe.— — - From went to my rooms, to.-explain my absence on the preceding night, and to get a change of clothes; and on "my .way to Alma's I purchased a common, syringe for Madame. ' Alma greeted: nic "with a. .smile, and 1 was delighted to see that the night's rest, had enabled her almost" entirely to throw off the-effects; of. the shock of the. previous .day's horrors. 'Tarn so glad - you -have come.. I am anxious to talk over all this terrible affair with you. Have you heard the sad news about Dr. Busch?" "S"es. The police agent, Gr«W3ki, told mc early this morning." "At any other time I •-should have been terribly shocked," she answered, ■with a sigh.; "but my father's death (appears to h»v« -dwarfed everything else. I seem scarcely able to realise it yet. I catch myself expecting to. see him enter tne room, and hare a strange thonght./thafc J ought to go and consult him abonfc adl that has to.;be_.done. You, see, his has always been the master mind. i& everything'. 1 ' ... "It is.a natural feelingj Irat you will tewe-to~ accustom yourself to -your new authority." • • "It -is so- strange io - have everyone 'coming to mc for directions. __I don't think I like it. And there js"another thing. I feel a sort of shame because I cannot grieve for my father as I should. I did not realise before how ■entirely [my love jfor him 2iad '.been killed.' 1 know I can speak freely to you; and if I tell the truth I am rattier than ctlierwise. Hβ was so hard, so harsh, and sometimes -o cruel, that I can't keep down h feeling oi relief that it is all over. Is not that a dreadful thought for a' ■daughter to entertain? And I tried all ay: life long to love him and to get j him to love mc/

"He was not a man to -think much of the softer feelings." -'Be loved my mother. I know that. Abnost worshipped her: and it was becanse my birth cost her her life that he turned.against mc. I know he loved her, because one day, years ago. 1 found on hi 3 desk some of the old let,'ters that had passed between them. He kept them to the last, I believe.

They used to be in a secret drawer of his desk; and I want to read them again to lessen, if I can, this unnatural hardness of mine toward him. I -want to realise that there was a bright side to his life by which I can remember fri™. There was so nrach that was dark and repellant. Will you help mc?" "Why, of course." I was only too delighted to have the chance, "What can I do?"

"1 don't wish, anyone but us two to know the secret. Cther3 would laugh; even Madame de Courtennos. She hated him so."

"How can I help yon?"

"The police agents will search bis papers, and I wish to keep these letters from them. I suppose I may do that? We could get them at once from their hiding place, and then you could keep them. Will you?"

I agreed readily enough; and w< , wont upstairs to the room adjoining that in which the murder had taken place, and from a drawer within a secret compartment of an old desk Alma took out ji packet and handed it to mc.

"'Now I don't mind what the police discover," she said. "But ] afraid to come and take them alone."

We returned to the room below, and Alma unfastened the string which held the packet together; and then I saw that, in addition to the letters of /which she had spoken, there was a [book.

She did Dot notice this, being engrossed by her desire to get at the letters. >S'hc read som-e of thorn to mc, with many signs of deep feeling. '"1 have nothing of my mother'?," she said simply; and at the sight of one from her mother tbe tears stood thick in her ey«s and her roice was choked with emotion.

"Oh, if she had only lived!" she murmured.

It was as she had said. The letters breathed the spirit of a devoted love on the part of a mau whom the worid knew only as one of the hardest of his kind; and I could scarcely have believed that the tyrant I had known could have felt so intensely as these letters proved.

When the reading was finished she fastened up. tho packet, and, holding it .a moment, sighed. '"1 wish I dared show these to madame"; but she shook Ber head.

"That reminds mc," 1 said, to take her thoughts from the letters. "I hava a needle syringe for hpr. She is suffering greatly to-day, she told mc."

"I will take it to her"; and Alma went away with it at once, giving mc the packet.

I was tying the book up with them when, in curiosity, I opened it. It was a roughly-kept diary, perhaps halffilled with entries under various dates.

I glanced idly through some pages, reading at random, when suddenly my attention was riveted upon an entry, the date of which was some fewmonths before.

"The plot I scented is developing,* and certainly Alma is in it. I now know why I was ill on Thursday. She had "brought mc Ithat tea, with her own hands. To-day she gave mc some sweets—unusual enough to ronse a fool's suspicions. But it is she who is the fooL I tasted one. It waa enough. It was poisoned. Arsenic."

I was staring at this amazing entry when a, voice close to my elbow broke in: "Hullo, friend Englishman, what have you got there?"

I turned quickly to find that Count Kaspar iiad entered the room and waa staring curiously over my shoulder.