Under His Thumb — page 101: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

ae | UNDER HIS THUMB. That she was intensely interested Stella could not conceal. The fact that her weapon had been the instrument of crime, and that it had been stolen so mysteriously from her room, and returned thither after the tragedy, was something which not only puzzled but troubled her. Croly’s shrewdness had discovered the startling _ fact. How did she know but he, or others, would try to fasten the crime upon her? That her father was suspected she knew already. It seemed to her as though the vagabond and herself were being in- volved in a labyrinth of condemning circumstances. | Leary saw at once that the girl was interested. This was precisely what he desired. Accordingly he released her arm to show that he did not expect her to run away. She drew away from him, but did not attempt to — flee. ‘What do you know about the crime?”’ she asked, with tremulous eagerness. “I know that Carl Brandon is suspected,’’ Leary replied. ‘‘He is innocent. He would never do that!’’ “Why shouldn’t he?’’ ‘*He is not so cruel, so brutal.’’ | ‘“Maybe he isn’t. But your pistol did the work, you know that!”’ “It was stolen from my room, and returned before I had missed it.’’ Leary closed one eye with an air of insolent shrewdness. ‘‘Now you’d be surprised if I told you who stole it, eh?’’ he asked. “Do you know?”’ ‘I could make a close guess,”’ comicbooks.com —