THE VANISHIHG VENGEANCE

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18585, 18 December 1923, Page 6

THE VANISHIHG VENGEANCE

. , ■ BY DOUGLAS NEWTON. AuthcT of " IXmblo Croseed." "Law Ceilings." ~ " Green Ladies," etc. *

' (Copyright.) " '' ' ' fc ' • -• • CHAPTER XII. •Otto "and Stroach moved away. Joyce waited ' ; fo(r a moment, deciding what ' she should do. . It . was curious, she was > -." thinking coolly and' without terror. The • . sense of horror that had attacked her 'i( - had passed utterly, leaving h(er cajm * ■:and resolute.

The only thing she thought about was how to warn Martin Stannard of his danger. She did not. ask herself whether 7 Stannard was a villain or a saint, all she knew was that she must warn him. She went back to her office thinking what she had best do to get warning to Martin Stannard. _ , , Her calm air was a good friend to her. Otto Bigg, looking in on her a, few minutes later, noted nothing unusual . about her. She ought to have shrunk from him m horror and fear, _ but that Bide of her nature wasn't acting. one •heard him sav that he was going over to Henry Maker's place, and Would be awav some time. She nodded acknowledgment and turned back to her work as though nothing disturbed her and he Went away unsuspicious. But his" going had given licj; an idea.. She saw that he had taken Stroach in his -car, and that meant that for an hour or two she could go about Greenhayie without fear of being spied on. She would go to the Dark House. It was really the only thing she could do. Like Otto Bigg she frit that the answer to the riddle lay thy re, in that lonelv neglected house on the Common. Anyhow, it was her only hope, and, getting her bicycle, she set out to inter- \ iew ine strange, quiet woman who lived in that house, Mrs. Sondes. It. was some time before the door was answered at the Dark House, and when it was Joyce found herself facing a servant old and gaunt, and ver y_. 1 ~" cidedly formidable and unfriendly. When Jovce asked for Mrs. Sondes she snapped, "You can't see her." "1 must see her," said Joyce, firmly'. i "She sees no one." . „ "She must see me. It is imperative. "Ho!" said the woman, staring hard. "What's your message?" "I will tell it to Mrs. Sondes." 1 "Well, then, . you'd better go about j your business," snapped the woman, and prepared to shut the door. Joyce put her foot between the door and the jamb. 1 "{Jo and tell your mistress, she said ttaraly. "that I am running a certain amount of risk in coming here at all, and that it is only because I felt the risk had to be run that I came. I think she yvill understand." Again the woman stared hard. , "Ho!" she said again; then reflectively > "You're ■ the wench up at Otto • Bigg's?" • • "Yes, -and that makes it all the more necessary for Mrs. Sondes to see me. ■ " An' yon won't give me an idea what ; you want to see her about?" "I -won't," said Joyce. • , The woman suddenly smiled: "Well, you 'know how to keep a tight tongue in your head, anyhow,' she said. "A good habitwait here. I '' '.V„- she shut tho door and went away for j - a full two minutes. Returning she . • ushered Joyce into a little sitting-room. plainly ? but beautifully furnished. I. -• : -Standing by the - table in- that room was'the strange woman, Mrs. Sondes. - Joyce ; was even more impressed by :V 'her dignity now that she was close to her. She'was slim and erect, still had <■ • a • graceful . and : gracious figure, as she ; :>4 still carried; much ;of the beauty that must have (been hers in her youth. v,v She** was very calm and reserved* but ■ hsr •eyen looked at Joyce 'clearly, gravely, : and steadily. ' "I am Mrs. Sondes," said the woman, ■ in a soft, cultured voice. "You wished to, •, see me?" ' " ~. >v "Yes," said Joyce. "I feel it I must see about Martin Stannard. . The woman ijvre no sign that . the name meant anything to her, but there was a short pause,. and then she said: ' "Martin Stannard? What should I have ••' to do with somebody called Martin Stan-

nard?" '■ . - • ... •*• .?• -*i- Joyce looked at her quickly. „ "That "was a bad beginning on my part, ■ she said. You couldn't possioly acknowledge • you knew of him—if you ■ P knew. v Bat I have a message for a Martin ■-v'-Stiwnard; and I do not know thereto f SW.:.-. . -No. don't say.anything now. Let me tell you my message, .1 r whether' it helps or not. , «'» fc , xn e»° s . nothing 10 yoct-well. it cannot be helped, ■ and I * nave done my best. If you under- - stand it, thin no more need be said be- ■ ' tween for I, too, will understand. ■ She v paused; the - woman stood, not • *Ispeaking, riot showing a sign. - • Joyce then told ' rapidly of the fears r : she had for Martin Stannard, how she had / overheard Otto ; Rigg forcing Stroach to agree to'kili Stannard, and how that killing was to be accomplished, and how s covered i; up -.in law. 'Stroach will un- ?■ doubtedly wait on the Common near this '■?» ;house, and will shoot on sight, and then give ; it "out: that- he shot in self-defence. Martin Standard's reputation as a criminal will save Slroach. >f That is how i't?.}*they have planned to do it." • \ '%{'■ i When .the completed her message she *;■'' turned -towards the door: "That is all I ; have- to say," she ended. "And no more •t-J- need ;be said between us. If the facts 'X. get to Martin Stannard, > then he will • know what, to expect. If they don't I / 7 have, done-the only thing I can think of '-• to help." l -v .. / The woman crossed to her swiftly, vcaught and pressed -her hand. Her blue \ '.' eyes, suddenly bright,' looked closely into the ffirl's...:;;/-'-':', •• •, . ' "You've run a great risk, Miss Alleyn . i . to go 'ounter So such men as you speak ■ : of," she said -softly." /.> .. : . "I had to do.it " ' ■ "I see that, my dear,"she said. "I was showing you how JI appreciated your act—without mentioning names." ' Joyce smiled at her:'"Ah, I am glad," ■> r; she said. ' "No, there is no need to *' mention names." V. ... < "Be careful, my • dear," said Mrs. j Sondes. "From what you say they are terrible and unscrupulous men you . are dealing with." "I shall be as careful as I can."

. "And, my dear," smiled the woman, ; her eyes suddenly loosing their, reserve,, suddenly twinkling, "if you a,re ever in any trouble or danger yoq, must come to me. " : The Dark House apparently has a .. reputation for being a safe harbourage." "Stroach, anyhow, is .baffled by it," smiled Joyce, and sho left the house without a word about Stsnnard. or his hidingplace leirg mentioned, but with the certainty, in "her heart- that her message would noi; go astray. Cycling in a circuitous route, so as not to betray where she had been, she passed through Grefnhayle villiage. Between the police station and the post office she ' passed the weary and uninteresting Mr. Dudley, He was leaning on a bike he had managed to secure, and was in tired conversation with the- local taxi-driver, who lounged off duty. Joycc nad a momentary thought of stopping and calling him aside and taking him into her confidence. She hesitated just a moment too long, and was past him before she could make up her mind. As -. «he i swung into tho leafy lanes she felt, ' « that it was best not to tell, him ' ' aoythmg. And as she thought that she ■r r RK "OK behind her. man onn0 n n ? saw th® weary gentle-Hw-Wceridin U k' llts c >' clin ? after her - an index to bis as unhandy on & V l3 IJ , ncomfor table and - could; ?H the Bamo ? as a ".V man p ■ such power'that Xl i! e as , m oving with not hope to oacat!e i hat she could away. 1 him if she tried to get |g|' f Ho waved hi. . "»n an obviou# and Si. er in an life:, waited fur him. h« ? >ounted and and wearily., ; came ur, shakily alighted lrom his bi c .. cI ; el J than I & W* A ft, ' ( the 0110 WmMt. '|Tw4l«y# for TWA .stance. iWy m UeAaio

there % was }no .possible chance of | any, on* seeing : them tor overhearing • their conversation. ®?r-f;«- / }r 5$ $ **.'.•' SdVlOß* 'f. Vj-f.r.iA' 'U^^d'V/s^S'L'>l- ' .', Satisfied in this • respect," he leant across his ■•;saddle and gwed•;at'her with tired intentness. Them ha said, dolly : • "Are von in this lying game, too ?" i Joyce laughed outright at • the difference between Mr. Dudley s manner and his words. "She opened her mouth ~£c> retort. "Don't perjure yourself," lie said, lan-, guidly. "Don't say anything until you've heard me out. I don't think you tell lies, though that fat, cold trickster may have jockeyed you* into 'a position which makes you helpless." Joyce gasped a little at this tired but acute summing-up of Otto i Bigg. Tho indifferent man went on : "Now listen. I know tihi3..otto Bigg feller is lying:, I ' know ho was only telling me what he wants me to know— for his .own ends. ' I'll tell you that I've been watching him, fooling hinv and that I've only put enough of my own cards on the table to draw him out as far as he intends to go. It's the only way to deal with his sort. But- I know that he is keeping a lot back. I know there is a lot more in this than meets the human eyeand I know you know a little more than yon pretend." "I know?" she- cried. "What do I know?" . "Well, how much do you know about this mysterious personality who is behind the whole business, the feller they are keeping so confoundelly dark" about? ' "What fellow " cried Joyce, her heart beating, her anxiety showing in her face. Mr. Dudley, the weary, grinned a tired grin. The • grin showed that ha had trapped her into admission. "What feller?" he said, slowly. "Why, that other feller . —Martin Stannard?"

CHAPTER XIII. . The weary Mr. Dudley smiled his dry smile at Joyce. It obviously gave him tremendous "satisfaction to startle her with his knowledge, "Thought I didn't know about Stannard," he said, as sho stood aghast. "But I do. Shouldn't have let you- know, only you ain't that Bigg feller's sort. You seem to be the only honest person in the district who does "know anything about him, except me, of course." "What do you know about him?" gasped, "It's me who's coming to you for information, miss," he said, dryly. -"It's what you know about him, his doings in this business, I want to learn." "You are certain he is in this business?" she said, suddenly on her guard. He stared at her for a weary halfminuto: "I know that" ho is in this. This is the reason why." •From his pocket he took a folded sheet of paper. It was Henry Maker's notepaper. Written in Henry Maker's handwriting were tho following words: "Martin Stannard has been here. He's got us. There's no escape. He's made me do what Gamlin did. He's got us. I'm clearing out. — Henry MARSR."

"That," said Mr. Dudley, "was under Henry 'Maker's desk when I got to his house. I went there because Maker had sent that big sum of money to the Public Trustee, and the Public Trustee felt that his. gift, on top of Gamlin's, indicated a rather queer business. I came along to get some information from Henry. I guess this letter was swept off his desk by Henry while he was collecting things in the panic that made him bolt. The envelope was addressed to Otto Rigg, but as it had not been stuck down I consider I was acting inside my authority in examining the contents. . i "You see," he weni on. "in my foolish way I got Otto Rigg to let me know in half a dozen ways that there was some one behind this—you don't always have to say a thing to tell. I gnessed that man was Martin Stannard. Besides, Martin Stannard fits in. You know about him?" "Only that he was the sixth director of Consolidated Exploitations, and the man whose theft caused the smash, also that they are afraid of; him." "Ah, that's definite, is it? > They are afraid of himdo ; you. know why?" . i Joyce 'told , him why, that is, Otto Riggs reason for being afraid of Stannard. V . "That's plausible enough," he said, wearily. It may even be true. Stannard certainly showed himself a brilliant blackguard over that Consolidated affair." Joyce's breath caught and her- face hardened at this implicit condemnation of Martin Stannard. The uninterested Mr. Dudley, whose eyes were sot listless and missed so ; little, «aid :': "So you've meet this Martin Stannard, miss? • He's here in Greenhayle?" Joyce frowned and tightened ; her lips. She , was Really' afraid of this man, who seemed so stupid and was so shrewd. She was afraid for Martin, Stannard. She made a' gesture as though she would resume her ride. -• '

The man did "not move, but he said, quietly : "I'm not the police, miss, but I have power to call the police in. You may not want to tell me ; anything, but perhaps it would be better to tell me now than to tell it out in the courts."

"Am you thinking of arrestirg me?" she laughed, - bitterly. "No—subpoena you as a witness in the re-opened inquest on Seward Gamlin." Joyce gave a little ciy and backed away from.,- him- . - -

"I think we are getting at it, Miss," he said, in his tired way. "So' Stannard did call on Gamlin as he called on Maker. It wa3 ■■ that visit of Stannard's that made Gamlin take his own life, just as it caused Maker .to bolt. It was also Stannard's visit that made them send those sums of money to the Public Trustee.' It was also Stannard who took all the papers and -the diaries of 19, the year of the Consolidated crash. If we can get hold of Stannard we'll find the whole secret of this queer business." : Abruptly, then, she begart to tell Mr. Dudley all she knewperhaps not all she knew; she hid some things, her call on Mrs. Sondes, for example; but in . the main she told all that mattered from her first seeing the stranger in Gamlin's drive to Otto's latest attitude and his command to Stroach to kill Stannard. Mr. Dudley listened with, that weary calm of his tnat was-baffling to irritation. - Ho showed not even the slightest emotion when Joyce's voice shook with horror. When sho stopped, panting, he was leaning over his saddle, as before, staring at the ground. ' _ Presently she heard him saying softly, as though to himself: "So—o! That's it, eh? I thought that was the line we were travelling. Deep—yes, miles deeper than we thought. And ugly. But that's the way the finger pointed from the beginning." He looked up abruptly, as though only just remembering that Joyce was there. "You've helped me a great deal, miss," he said, in his - tired way. "A great deal. More than you realise. Thank you." He straightened, turned his bike to go back to the village, moved a few steps away. . . ; Suddenly he said in his habitual manner : : "Here's the man Stroach coming to spy on you, miss. Be careful how you deal with these folks. Dangerous. If you can go away from Greenhayle— away." His -weary eve astonishingly winked at her. Amazingly he said out loud: "Well, miss, I don't think you are telling me ail you know. It'd pay you to be straight with me. I'm an officer of the law, you know. I have a right to ask questions. What is more, I can enforce "that —just you remember that." Ho mounted and rode away, leaving Joyce gapirg, astounded. i (To be continued daily.)