THIS WOMAN TO THIS MAN.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 16213, 26 April 1916, Page 9

THIS WOMAN TO THIS MAN.

BY C. N. AND A. M. WILLIAMSON. Authors of "The Lightning Conductor," "Th» Car of Destiny," " The Goldon Silence, "The Princess Passes," etc., etc.

COPYRIGHT. CHAPTER XIII.-(Continued.) Could it be, Mary asked herself, that the watchers were somehow mixed up in the business ? Were they members of the supposed gang? That did not eeem likely, for how could a man like Knight possibly have got involved with thieves? Yet it had seemed, from what he had said that night—and never referred to again—as if he were somehow in their power. How curiously like one of them Count di Morello had been! She remembered

thinking so, with a shock of fear. Then she had lost the feeling of resemblance, and told herself that she must have imagined it. The two faces came back to her now, and again she saw them alike. She was glad that Knight had never, brought Count di Morello to see them, glad that, when half grudgingly she had asked one day after the two men who had witnessed their marriage, Knight had said, "Gone out of England. We just caught them in time." As for the watchers, she had heard no more of them. Knight ignored the episode, or all the part of it connected with these two men. The very memory 01 them was shut up in the locked box of his past, and ho never left the key of that lying about, as apparently he had left tho key of Mrs. Ellsworth's house.

Suddenly, as Mary listened to Ruthven Smith, she became conscious that, as he talked to Lady Cartwright his oyes had turned to her. That " proves," the fancy ran through her head, " that if you look, or even think of people at a little distance, you somehow attract their attention."

She glanced away, and at her two neighbours. They were both absorbed for the moment; she need not worry lest they should find her neglectful. She took some asparagus which was offered to her, and began to cat it but she still had the impression that Ruthven Smith was looking at her. Sho wondered why. "Ho can't be expecting mo to scream at him across the table," she thought.

" Yes," he was saving to Lady Cartwright, " it was a real misfortune to lose those pearls. Two I had selected to make a pair of ear-rings can scarcely bo duplicated. But none of tho things stolen from me compared in value to those pur ament lost on board the Monarchic. 1 suppose you read of that affair?"

"Oh, yes," said Lady Cartwright, her voice raised in deference to her neighbour's deafness. "It was most interesting. Especially about the clairvoyant woman on board who saw the thief in her crystal, throwing things into the sea attached to a life-belt with a light on it, or something of that sort, to be picked up by a yacht. One would have supposed with all that information to go upon, the police might have recovered the jewels, but they didn't, and probably they never will now." "I'm not sure that the police pinned their, faith to the clairvoyant's visions," replied Ruthven Smith, with his dry little chuckle.

"Really? But I've understood—though tho name wasn't mentioned then, I believe—that the woman was that wonderful Countess de Santiago we'ro all so excited about. She is certainly extraordinary. Nobody seems to doubt her powers! I rather thought she might be here"

Ruthven Smith showed no interest in the Countess de Santiago. Once on the subject of jewels, it was difficult to shunt him off upon another at short notice. Or possibly he had something still to say, which he particularly wished not to leave unsaid at that stage of \m conversation.

"The newspapers did not publish a description Of the jewels stolen on the Monarchic," he went on, brushing the countess aside. "It was thought best at the time nu to give the reporters a lilt. , To me, that eeemed a mistake. Who knows,

for instance, through how many hands the Malindoro diamond may have- passed If somo honest person, recognising it from a description in the papers, for instance—"

"Tho Malindoro diamond!" exclaimed Lady Cartwright, forgetting politeness in her interest, and cutting short a sentence which began dully. " Isn't that the wonderful blue diamond that the British Museum refused to buy three years ago, because it hadn't enough money to spend, or something ? " " Quite so," replied lluthven Smith, adding with pride : " But the Gravies had money enough. They always have when a uniquo thing like that is for sale ; and they are rich enough to wait for years, if need be, with their money locked up till somebody comes along who wants to buy it. That happened in tho case of the Malindoro diamond. The Grayles hoped to sell it to Mr. Pierpont Morgan. But he died, and it was left on their hands till this last autumn."

" Mi, then that lovely blue diamond was sold with tho other things the poor Grayle agent lost on the Monarchic V. "Was to be sold if the prospective buyer liked it. He had married a white wife, you know, and—" " Oh. yes, of course. It was Lady Eve Cassenden. That marriage made a big sensation among us. Horrid, I call it! But she hadn't a penny, poor girl, and they say he's the richest Maharajah in India"

" The Malindoro diamond was once in his family, I understand, about five hundred years ago, when we first began to jet its history," Ruthven Smith went ( on, ignoring the Maharajah as he had ignored the countess. "It was then the central jewel of a crown. But Louis XIV., on obtaining possession of it, had it set in a ring, and surrounded with small, white brilliants- It still remains in that form, or did so remain until it was stolen from our agent on the Monarchic. What form it is in and where it is now, only those who know can say."

So strong was the call from Ruthven Smith's eyes to Mary's eyes, that she was forced to look up. She had been sure that she would meet bis gaze fixed upon her, and so it was. He was staring across the table at her, with a very curious expression on his long, hatehet face.

CHAPTER XIV.

RUTHVEN SMITH WITH HIS EYEGLASSES ON.

Mary could not read the look. Yet she felt that it- might be read, if her soul and body had not been wrenched apart, and hastily flung together again, upside down, it seemed, with her bruin where her heart had been, and vice versa. Why had Ruthven Smith looked at her ns he spoke, in his loud voice, of the stolen Malindoro diamond—a blue diamond set with small brilliants, in a ring ? Had he found out that she— he believe —but she could not finish the thought. It seemed that the ring Knight, bad given her, and told her to hide, was burning her flesh.

Could her blue diamond be the diamond, the famous diamond, about which the jewel expert was telling Lady Cartwright? A horrid sensation overcame the girl. She felt her blood growing cold, and oozing so sluggishly through her veins that she could count the dropswinp> drip, drip 1 She hoped that she had not turned

ghastly pale. Oh, above all things sho hoped that she was not going to faint! If she did that, Ruthven Smith would certainly think—what would he not think? She found herself praying for strength, and tho power of self control that she might reason calmly with her own intelligence. Of course, if this were the diamond, Knight didn't dream that it had been stolen.

Just then a hand reached out at her left side- and poured champagne into her glass. It was the hand of Charrington, the butler. Mary saw that it was trembling, and sho thought it looked like the snapped stem of a flower. She had never Seen durington's hand tremuie beture. miners' hands were not supposed to tremble. Charrington spilled a little champagne on the tablecloth,' only a very little, no more than a. drop or two, but Mary started, and glanced up. The butler was moving away, but sho caught a glimpse of his face. It was red, as usual, for his complexion, and that of his younger brother, were alike in colouring, but there was a look of strain on his features, a s if lie were keeping his muscles taut. Sir Elmer Cavtwright began to talk to her. His voice buzzed unmeaningly in her ears, as though sho were coming out from under the influence of chloroform. "What will become of me?" she said to Herself wildly, and then was afraid she had said it aloud. How awful that WOU (1 be. Her eyes turned almost imploringly to Sir Elmer. He was smiling pleasantly, evidently unaware of anything' unusual. Oh yes!" she said at random. Fortunately it seemed to be the right answer; and the relief this assurance gave was likea helping hand to a beginner skating on thin ice. Sir Elmer went on to tell her some story which he said he had just been telling the duchess. Mary suddenly thought of a woman rider she had seen at a circus when she was a small child. Tho woman stood on the bare back of ono horse, and drove six others, three abreast, all going very fast and noiselessly round a ring. " I must drive my thoughts as she did the horses," came flashing into the girl's head. " I must think this out, and I must listen to Sir Elmer and go on giving him right answers, and I must look just as usual. I must! I must!" "For Knight's sake!" Shu seemed to hear the words whispered. Why for Knight's sake ? Oh, but of course she must try to think how it would involve him if the blue diamond lie had civen her was the famous one stolen from the Grayle's agent on the Monarchic!

Ho would not be to blame, for if he had known, he would not have bought the diamond. And vet. might he not have done that? He had told her few details of his life before thoy met, but he had said that it had .been hard and rough sometimes, that he had travelled a great deal among rough people, and picked up some of their rough ways. He had confessed frankly that his ideas of right and wrong had got a bit mixed up and blunted. From the very first he had never let her call him good. Would it perhaps not seem very dreadful to him to buy a jewel which he might guess, from its low cost, had to bo got rid of at almost any price, without questions? Mary was forced to admit, much as sho loved Knight, that his daring, original nature (so sho called it to herself) might enter into strange adventures and intrigues for sheer joy in taking risks. She imagined that some wild escapade regretted too late, might have led him into association with the watchers. Maybe they had all three been members of some secret society, she had often told herself, and Knight had left against the others' will, in spite of threats. That would be like him: and bravo and splendid as was his image in her heart, she could not say that he would never he guilty of an act which might not be called unscrupulous.

1 (To be continued on Saturday next.)