“WHO PAID THE DEBT”

Manawatu Times, Volume LIV, Issue 7246, 28 August 1933, Page 9

“WHO PAID THE DEBT”

Instalment 23.

CHAPTER XXXIX. 1 -^{Continued.) "Bennett has told us that Mrs Weston was hJS aunt,” said the Magistrate. "Aht Then that explains it—the likeness and the knowledge of their friends and their surroundings. But I am quite at a loss to guess what his motive could have been.” "Was it from him that you heard of the house in Hayland’s Wood?" "Yos. He said that we should be safe there until he oould arrange to get us out of the country." "And it was someone he knew who brought you food " "Yes; he was a member of the club. 1 had seen him onoe or twice In London." "Then he must be brought here as a witness,” said the Magistrate. “I adjourn the case for another eight days." “And if I haven't found Wilkins and Enget by that time, I’ll go and boll myself," muttered the Inspector. CHAPTER XXXIII. And now what was to be done with the Professor? Looking back to those horrible experiences in Hayland’s Wood, Daryl could not believe that his recovered sanity was more than a flash in the ■pan; but Dr. Walters was reassuring. "He remembers nothing of all that,” he said. “He knows that he took his daughter to a lonely house, but the details are as blurred as the fancies of a fever patient when he comes out of his delirium. I would stay with him if I oould, but I must get back to my work, and Mr North is quite willing to take charge of him. Keep him off the subject as much as you can.” But that advice was not easy to follow, for they soon found that nothing did him so much harm as' to brood over his thoughts in silence. That he could have been so befooled weighed heavily on his mind, and it was a relief to him to unburden himself to Mr North. "I believed that I was helping on a noble work," he said, “the liberation of the oppressed has always appealed' to me, and here, I thought, were men with aims like my own. But these funds that they said were necessary— I had a suspicion once—l saw some notes that I fancied were forged! Wrangel denied it hotly—lt was when we were ■ln ■ Vienna— ’’« He paused, with a bewildered look, and Mr North tried to ohange the subject, but without success.

"No; let me tell you! They wanted to keejft on good terms with me because I was useful to them; I could speak many languages, and to all appearance I was only a harmless soholar, so that there was nothing to alarm the authorities. Wrangel was a leading spirit, but he was desperate after Enid refused him—they said he betrayed some of the club seorets."

His mind seemed to be always groping among these dark doings of the past, and It was almost a relief to everyone concerned when the time came for ' their re-appearance in Court.

• “Though it will only mean another remand," said Mr North privately to his wife. “I saw the Inspector yesterday, and no fresh evidence is forthcoming.” But it was not a remand that awaited them; three important witnesses were missing, and slnOe there seemed to be no hope of finding any of them, the Magistrate had made up his mind to deal with the facts before him. The crucial moment had come at last, and Daryl clenched his hands and set his lips in a hard line as he listened to the voice from the Bench. ■Mrs Wilkins had obviously. been a dupe, and would be dismissed from the case; as to the other two, he had no choice but to commit them for trial. For Bennett no sympathy would be felt; his career had been one of unmitigated deception, and there could be no doubt he was a leading member of a gang of forgers—the police were already in possession of much information on this count, and the case would be proceeded with In the Criminal Courts. Miss Denniston was in a different oategory. Here was a young lady of great charm repulsing the attentions of a man of notoriously bad reputation : varying stories had been told with regard to his death, but It was quite conceivable that if he had gone to the house, Intent on revenge, he had found her there alone, she might have been driven to defend herself against him, even to the death. It was significant that her own father believed the accusation directly it was made. The knife with which the deed was done had not been found, this important piece of evidence was therefore missing, but it was quite conceivable —" That hateful.phrase again I It was not conceivable—no sane person could think so for a ipoment, the Professor’s mind was already unhinged when he believed it—would no one stand up and say a word on her behalf? He cast desperate eyes round the Court and saw—who was that on the threshold, that doltish-faced, sallowhued man. whom Sergeant Hobson was bringing in? Someone whom ho had never seen before, but someone at whom Bennett stared with a consternation that he could not hide. "Tracked him to Antwerp—only got him here this morning—” the Inspector was speaking, and all eyes were fixed on the new-comev. "Karl Enget—a Finn by birthlived most of hiß life in Hungary, but married to an English woman —been in England for the last fOur years—manager of the Domestic Stores near Harlow Gardens ” The Inspector had all the facts ready, and when the Magistsate began to put his questions it was clear at once that this doltish-faced being had a keen eye to his own. advantage —tracked and cornered, he had agreed io turn King’s Evidence, and here he was in Court, his safety purchased by the betrayal of his comrades. - . No cross-examination was needed here; he had come to tell his tale, and he told it without hesitation, though the sullenness of his voice showed that he told It under compulsion. The members of the Chess Club were forgers—they talked of liberation and other high->sounding schemes to the Professor because they wanted his help; but that was merely a blind. Their headquarters wf.io in Paris, and Bennett yva® their

(By Mary Bradford Whiting)

Agent in England. The house in Harlow Gardens and the house at Hendon were used as meeting places, but their aotual operations were carried on In Paris with an occasional move to Hayldnd’s Wood when it seamed expedient. Bennett had let the Harlow Gardens home to Doniston and his daughter because Wrangel was suspected of treaohery and they wanted to have a lure ready If they decidod to take steps against him; his Infatuation for Miss Deniston was wellknown and a pretended summons •from her would bring him at any time. The fact that the house next door 'had become vaoant made it easy for them to prepare a way of escape. Wrangel had fallen Into the trap as soon as It was sot; the Club members did not wish to kill him, but there were other ways of disposing of unwanted people—they oould send him on a mission to some'unrestful part of the world—they could send him to South America or China—and ‘arrange’ that he never returned. The handkerchief? Bennett had got that ready beforehand because Wrangel was bound tp be furious when he found that lie had been tricked, and with a furious man no one could tell what might happen. What did happen? Wrangel came to the house at the appointed time; Mrs Wilkins was there to open the door to him, so that he might come in with no suspicion of a trap; he was In a frenzy of rage when he saw them waiting for him and tried to bolt, there was a scuffle and he pulled a knife out of Its sheath; Bennett seized his arm and the knife struck into hi 3 side with a fatal thrust. The handkerchief came in useful then, for since they could not carry him out of the house someone was bound to be accused of murdering him. Why did they not leave the Professor and his daughter there to meet the charge? They did mean to do so, but Bennett did not escape in time, and when he saw the effect that the shock had on the Professor ho darecl not risk it, for he did not know what revelations he might drop out to the police. He got him away, and then masked himeself and waited for Miss Deniston ,and got her awhy also. He was obliged to seize her because he knew that Mr Stanford would be there and his only chance was to look the door aaglnst him. Hayland’s Wood was only meant to be a temporary hiding-plaoe, but the ports were being closely watohod and the only thing to do was to leave them there for a time. Then came their rescue, and Mrs Wilkin’s arrest and it was clear there was no time to lose. Bennett went in disguise to fetoh Miss Deniston, meaning to make a scapegoat of her and get out of the country himself. He could have done It if he had gone at once, but the Harlow Gardens house had been sold and the money was to be paid over next day, he -wanted to secure it, but it was a bad mistake.

The messenger who had sent news of the rescue? He was a member of the Club who lived near Rexfleld and acted as a go-between with the shops and post office when tho house was being used. It was useless to look for him, for he had bolted as soon as he had communicated with Bennett; he was a sharp fellow and had never drawn sfhy suspicion on himself, so he had no difficulty in getting abroad.

Wilkins ? It was no use to look for him either; they had thought it butter to get him out of the way before Wrangel appeared because he was not so absolutely trustworthy as ills wife, and when he heard from her what happened he took fright and made off the next day. He had been a sailor, and he went to Plymouth and got a berth on board a trading vessel, and she had been caught In a storm and gone to the bottom with all hands. Mrs Wilkins lay low to her brother’s house, but someone had come along and ferreted her out, and what with that and Mr Standard's dropping on to Hay land's Wood —well, they all knew that the game was up. Bit by bit the story came out and the listeners sat enthralled while it unrolled before them like the scenes of a film picture. Daryl’s breath came quickly and his pulses raced with impatience; here was tho longed-for evidence at last—another moment and Enid would be free. But when the Magistrate spoke, Ms words came like a dash of ice-cold water. " If this witness is to be believed, it is Bennett who must stand his trial, while Miss Deniston is freed from all complicity in the crime. But there is still a lack of confirmation—■" Still a iaok? What more could possibly he wanted? It was an Insult to require any evidence at all—• was not one look at her face enough to convince the whole world that she was an angel from Heaven? Daryl's brain was in such a ferment that he was hardly conscious of what was going on around him and when a fresh voice struck upon his ear he did not recognise at once t. 5 whom It belonged. And then his senses cleared and a wild astonishment seized him—Rivers! Could it be Rivers who stood in tho witness-box? Rivers, whom he had read of only last week as reporting the disturbances in North Africa for his paper? And what was this that he was saying? " I was interested in the case as I had known the Professor and Miss 'Deniston in Vienna and when I happened to oome across an important witness I wired to my paper for leave, chartered an aeroplane and brought him along. We got to CrOydon an hour or so ago and ran up here in a taxi. Mr -Frazer is ready to answer any questions that you may like to put." Frazer? Daryl racked his memory. Yes, it must be Colin Frazer whom he had known in Edinburgh, but what on earth could he know about the case? It was Frazer who was .speaking now in quiet, deliberate accents. "Mr Stanford and I were classmates at the University; I had.not seen him since our Edinburgh days, but. I had heard that -he was going to be married and when I saw him at the Opera I knew him directly and was interested in seeing the young lady with him. I was not near enough to spoak to him, hut they wero in the house already when I got there and they sat in full view of me all through the performance.” (To bo Continued,.''