10-Story Detective Magazine Cover — page 36: what you’re looking at

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

34-——_________10.-STORY DETECTIVE a job cut out for you. That Darrow girl needs no protection; you're the guy who meeds it. You paid a hundred bucks to get into a screwy mess. You find a body, get shot at, return to the body, and find tt gone. So what? You hear the butler and guard cussing because Leymore wouldn't tell ’em where something is. Where what is? “A penny for your thoughts, Mr, Ben- nett,” Race whirled, looked into the smil- ing face of Janice Darrow. “Oh, I’m sor- ry if I startled you.” Race grinned. “‘Say, have you noticed there’s not a picture of Roger Leymore to be: seen? Funny, don’t you think?” She looked thoughtful. “New that you mention it, it does seem odd, I’ve never seen a picture of him. But I had heard Mother describe him go many times I recognized him imstantly.” “Have you written your answer to the million dollar question?” She raised her brows. “Oh, yes.” She left him and sauntered away. Gradually the water rose until at one - point it lapped against the house foun- dation. This alarmed several of the wom- en, and they held a little anxiety meet- ing. As a result Mrs. Dockery went over to the billiard table where a game was in progress. “Mr. Leymore, we ladies think you should phone for help. The water is at the house.” Leymore made his shot, missed. “Go right ahead and phone, if it'll relieve your fears.” : Mrs. Dockery looked at the men, se- lected the butler for the chore. “Please phone somewhere for help.” The butler looked displeased. “Who’}l I phone, lady?” “You won’t phone anyone,” Race said. "You’ve evidently forgotten the tele- phone line crossed the river on the bridge.” The butler snapped his fingers. “Sure it did. That’s out, lady. Have to send some other way.” Mrs. Dockery looked distressed. “But how?” Race winked at Dr. Lathan. “You might use a messenger pigeon, Mrs. Dockery.” She gave him a get-in-the-cor- ner look, turned her back. Race selected a seat and studied Rog- er Leymere. The man didn’t fit any type he had prepared for him. Leymore had battled and won against tremendous — ~ Poe “<< - he ates Bie — ae oe max “ SACL 5 A Suet © tA =F 2 Com — gi” BE ads ‘Pee wo 28 odds, emerging toughened and cantan- kerous. After ignering and disdaining his relatives for years, he now had called them together. For what? To look them over before making his will, so he had said. But the man acted like he had assembled them for a loneliness cure. Leymore was enjoying them immensely. Janice Darrow asked Race to go see the kitchen and cold storage room. He went with her. “It’s the most marvelous kitchen I ever hepe to see, Mr. Bennett. It simply has everything. But that cold storage room gives me the creeps. Re- minds me of a morgue.” He agreed with her about the kitchen. She opened the thiek door of the ice room. Carcasses of lamb, beef, porkers, and fowls hung in it. One huge carcass puzzled Race. “Tt’s bear,’”’ she whispered, and Race recalled a statement in the magazine story. Leymore was fond of bear meat. T WAS mid-afternoon before Ley- more called in the answers to his million dollar question. He rolled the pa- pers together, thrust them in his pock- et. “Look at ’em later,” he announced. Race went into the library and read the rest of the magazine story about Ley- more. When he came out, the water had stopped rising but showed no-signs of fallmg. The news brought much relief to the women. Mrs. Dockery was asking the proper way to cook bear meat. Ley- more had put in his order for it. - Someone suggested bridge and Race played until late. When he sought his bed his wrist watch said it was fifteeen after twelve. It seemed he had hardly closed his eyes before he heard a shot, muffied, but a shot just the same. He snapped on the hght, looked at his watch. It was five after two. The shot had sounded not so far away. Slipping into pants, shirt, and sneak- ers, he went into the hall. A door two rooms away epened. Dr. Lathan looked eut. “I thought I heard a shot, Mr. Ben- nett. Sounded quite close.” Other doors opened. Frightened whispers of women were heard. The but- ler came up the stairs, switched on the lights. The deor of a room five doors away opened. A thin man called out ex- cited}y : “It was in the room next to mine.” “That’s Slim’s room!” The butler hur- michboo “S) (E@) im