Is This Revenge?

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22391, 11 April 1936, Page 13 (Supplement)

Is This Revenge?

' • By LEONARD R. GRIBBLE Author of " The Grand Modena Murder," " The Gillespie Suicide Mystery," " The Case of the Marsden Rubies."

(Copyright)

AN EXCITING MYSTERY NARRATIVE

CHAPTER XXlll—(Continued) Slaae smiled. ' " Oh, ha was prepared for that, Abo. g e went to his office in Bedford Row, where lie had a fresh stock of clothes, changed, and then went on to the Greville for an hour or two. Clinton's checked up every minute practically of that night." . . " So he ycould get into his office at that time of night?" " Yes.. He had often done so before. It was not, strictly regular, but it was vrorth the caretaker's while." ■ " I see. But how do you explain that attack on yourself and Eklimakos' think that move, Abe, shows the 6rst sign of his brain really cracking up. He wanted to throw us completely off the scent, disappear himself, and vet make it appear that Eklimakos' wife was threatened. "When he left here he was known to have taken a taxi and to have told the driver to go to the Greville. But he didn't go farther than Westminster. There he alighted —we traced the man who drove him —and presumably pame back here, and when I left he followed me. While I was in the flat he must have got through to Eklimakos' wife on the phone, and arranged with her to go to the house in Hinkley Street. I'm/pretty certain that her being tied to that chair in the other room was a blind. He didn't know whether I should be followed by any of my own men, and so couldn't say whether I should be rescued. If I was, then there was the woman to complicate matters. I take it that it was his idea to leave me long enough for the gas to have done its work, and then to have come back and untied the woman. Which only goes to show how much she surrendered herself to helping his plans to success. Certain it is that he didn't count on my getting free. That must have given the woman a shock, but finding her misled me completely. That next morning, of course, came his note to Jorst, which get another series of complications in motion. But by this time he was panicking. The enormity of his plan, and the success of his first bold moves, caused a mental reaction which resulted in his losing wall-nigh all sense of propor-

seized an opportunity of getting in unseen, and murdered the chauffeur. By the time the summons for the car came he was in livery and waiting. It was easy enough to get out of the garage without having his face scrutinised, and Eklimakos' wife, we may be sure, was too upset to regard the chauffeur closely. However, the other side oi' Golders Green lie drew up and gagged her. The rest you know. Poor Hewston, the faithful old retainer, was another victim of a maniac."

There was a long pause before Brawley spoke. " How did you discover, Tony, that it was Hewston who fetched the suitcase from Bedford Bow?"

"Hoivston has a younger brother who is a ticket collector at Biggleswade Station. Tho man remembered his brother going up to London the day before. Then the description given by the cirl in the inquiry office at Bedford Row fits Hewston all right." " And Miss Gertz, you sav. has thrown up her contract. Why? I thought she was settled to make a pile out of this new show."

"So she was. But she was not as mercenary as she seemed. She was playing Eklimakos to get a real chance for her brother, Dohss. And now Doliss is packing oil to the States with his wife." " His wife?"

" Miss Peggy Watts that was. Poor kid, she had the shock of her life when the truth came out! Gale played her red cloak for what it was worth. The man took the chance of making a fresh complication out of every odd piece of information he came by. It was obvious from the beginning, of course, that Eklimakos' wife lb ad a tale prepared for us, but we had no means of judging it for what it was. She was known as his sister to all the servants then in their employ, and if Miss Gertz didn't elect to come forward with the truth at the inquest we can't entirely put the blame on her. She wasn't called as a witness, and she had enough feeling for the other to give her a chance to straighten things out herself. True, she was what she wan as regards her connection with Eklimakos, but I understand something of—what shall I call

tion. Jorst suddenly loomed as a danger f—so the poor chap had to be put safely out of the way." "Forsan's theory is that he had another brain-storm that day." "That may well be the case. Anyway, he followed Jorst here, and then went on ahead -when he left. That was another piece of luck. If he had followed Jorst back he would have been stopped most likely by Dohss. You remember Dohss had taken Mannering's card from Peggy Watts?" "Yes, yes. I remember that. Let me see. That German clerk was the next victim, wasn't he?"

"Ludwig Blass. Yes, that attack was straightforward enough. Gale was determined to get those papers. He just went to Swindow House and took them. Probably Eklimakos' wife had suggested their being in the office safe. She had failed to find them, and it was becoming all-important that they were recovered without loss of time, for we were slowly covering all the ground and closing each possible aveaue of search. The killing of Blass was a bold stroke that succeeded. Gale got in just before Eklimakos' solicitors." "And having got the papers he began to look about for a means of getting out of the country first and considering things afterwards. Is that it?" "Quite" possibly. Hewston wan summoned from Braxley, and he was the man who fetched the suitcase from Bedford Row to the house in Streatham. But now apat,her factor conies into play the realisation by Eklimakosi' wife of the change that has come over her Jover. She knows of the bouse in Streatham. She goes there, and warns him that someone has 'phoned the flat in Braith Place asking for the Streatham address. She was most; likely at the flat expecting to see Gale when Dohss' call came through. Her news is sufficient to send Gale off again. But before he leaves her it is arranged that Lucie Hope shall meet him in Camden Town somewhere and supply him with money, for his funds are running low. The girl has been employed before to take messages to Gale, and the girl has proved that she can keep her mouth shut. Her mistress trusts her. Gale knows this, and looks upon the girl as someone to he feared because of what she knows. His deranged brain prompts another ghastly murder —and poor Lucje Hope is briitall}' murdered by a madman.

"Gale now finds refuge in a lodginghouse in Addison Street, Paddington. Mrs. Bull, the woman who took him in, says lie paid a week's rent in advance and disappeared on a morning four days after. She went into his room to find that he had gone with his suitcase. Which brings us to the last ®ad tlingy fcLis brain, now entirely unhinged. worked in only one way and toward one objective—personal safety. If there had been twenty people alive who knew his secret he would have attempted to kill them all. As it was there were two, junl he arranged his schemes accordingly, aided by a cunning that nearer instinctive than anything else. The papers he had obtained after such labour were r.ow forgotten, or probably remained in his consciousness °nly a;s symbols. "R ip n le n 'Sht before he left Mrs. Bull's house he sent an urgent note to the woman who had been true to Jiini through everything. But even with her he must attend with cunning. Her instructions were to drive to an address to Finchley. But Gale had timed the *hono-oal] to the garage for the car,

it? —her attitude, say. Eklimakos loved to see people cringo before him. He delighted in hurting them in such a way that they had to bear the hurt without striking back. He was a sadist of a rare type. He had vanity, and Ananda Gertz's success fed that vanity. Yet he struck at her through her brother. Peggy Watts played a double role without realising it. She was a pretty toy, and she was a subtle instrument for hurting others." " I know one thing," grunted Brawley; "whichever way you look at the case it's a confounded tangle. Nothing but cross-purpose and mazes. Beats that Modena affair for complication. Deuced thankful such cases don't

come my way, old man. Give me a dope gang and a chance for a set raid any day in preference to solving such double-folded enigmas as this one." Slade rose and crossed to the window. " Well, the case is closed as far as this department is concerned. Forsan's still compiling data from it, and he wants me to look over his notes when they nre finished. But he won't include the most fascinating feature of all." " Yes?" "To what extremes a woman will go for the sake of the man she loves — oven after tho bottom has dropped out of her world." THE END