Argosy All-Story Weekly, Vol. 124, No. 3 — page 178: what you’re looking at

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

552 find her, and if she isn’t immediately be- hind them, keep on looking! There!” CHAPTER XXXIII. WHAT'S HAPPENED TO MARY? O far as the general sensations of Thomas Henning were concerned, at least, the end of the world had ar- rived. There might be a day or two of flood or possibly a world-wide conflagra- tion to polish off the job, but in all its es- sentials, the work was complete at this mo- ment. And a woman had done it—a woman naturally sweet and kindly, delicate of thought and impulse, with charity and for- giveness deeply inbred, had leaped back over the ages to the merry old time when ladies settled their arguments with large stone clubs! Be it said that the trip was brief. Noble was returning fast to the standards of the twentieth century; two seconds and cold fright was written large upon her. She started up as if to deny her own words be- fore the spell upon the rest of them,could break and set them into motion. She stood thus, looking at Peter; and the simple truth about Peter may as well be told. At that moment, Peter merely gaped at his wife; jaw. hanging, conscience pricking, Peter was reviewing mentally that devilish escapade of the earlier evening, when he had lured an innocent young bride to a masked ball and then had failed him- self to put in an appearance and round out the devilishness. But the gape did not reveal this precise train of thought. The gape and the dull stare of a peculiarly stupid man caught red-handed and sin-soaked! ‘So Mrs. Noble’s chin went high again. and she smiled abruptly. “You're all so chivalrous!” she ob- served. “ You're not even going to look, eh?” ‘““Do you mean to tell me that Mary—” William exploded at last. ‘I don’t mean to tell you anything at all ‘about Mary,” Mrs. Noble said sweetly. “I want you to see for yourself and—why, Sally ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. she'll tell you, doubtless. Ask her about my husband? Ask her—”’ Teeth shut upon his lower lip, the qual- ity of a savage animal in his expression once more, William had finally returned tc the warpath and struck his full stride. “All right!” he snapped. “ Henning! You and Noble go first! You're not going to slip out while my back’s turned!” ‘Dear me!” observed -Mrs. Noble “You're too cautious, Will! You couldn’ drive either of them away while Mary’s here. She seems to be the property of the firm, as it were. Each of them—” “Sally, you know that I’d kill a man William panted, maddened. “You would? If he was right?’’ Mrs. Noble queried. “Oh, I’m sure you wouldn’t. Those curtains aren’t locked, you know.” : She nodded toward them, and a queer, stifled howl came up in William’s thick throat. Thomas Henning gazed palely at him. His infernal gun was coming up again, now; William was unable to speak just then, yet the cannonlike affair indi- cated perfectly that he desired Thomas and his partner to precede him through the curtains. Thomas moved at last. And it was all over now—all but the shouting or the shooting! Mary was para- ,who said anything like that, don’t you?” lyzed with fright; his ear fairly ached with. listening for the inevitable betraying sound, and not one had come from the music- room. Mary would be standing theré, and after that—why, there would be no after that, of course. William would merely look once, go mad, pull the trigger— ‘“‘She’s not here!” William barked as they passed the curtains. “Why, she is there!’”’ Mrs. Noble cor- rected quickly, for she had sauntered after for the final scene: 6¢ Look! ? ‘“‘ She was there a minute ago!” stated Peter’s wife. “There’s a lot more to this flat!” Wil- liam observed grimly. ‘‘ know the way. You two Keep ahead. Tun on the lights, Henning. D’ye hear me? Turn ’em on!” “Yes, I—hear you! ('m turning—them CORDICOOOKKS Colin