Argosy All-Story Weekly — page 76: what you’re looking at

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

=a a pid you = Mr. Kent burriedly €n- ter the next room?” , Of course Kent had ‘made no such move, Se bak Nancy was determined to learn if pos- — ~ sible whether Shoreham had heard the en- _ trances into the next room—was aware that - = se any one had been there since Mr, Kent had left so precipitately. SS “Kent return to the next room?” blus- -____ tered the irate man. “Of course, I didn’t hear him. Don’t you suppose I’d have = stepped to the door between and asked him what he meant by keeping me waiting? I’m not such a doddering idiot as that. - And I can tell you that I’m not in the S22 habit of being kept waiting.” ; Andignation covered his fare indion. a aa Zs tion and outraged dignity. =. As Nancy regarded him it was borne home to her that, extraordinary as his con- duct ‘had first seemed, it looked ney tam ian pen — th its. ‘eewariotected -The desk gave “every appearance of an unexpected inter- -Tuption and a hasty desertion of the busi- ness i in hand. ee ee = am’s eyes followed her glance, He ARs eves: from the nature of the in- terrupted business. Steadily her clear gaze = sz upon him. He paused abruptly. = “Tt seems rather. odd, Mr, Shoreham, it and - Kent’ des “Not at. oo rapped the man. “I’ve 2 = -_ expected him back momentarily. — People ‘in the Temple Building, either inmates or cients, aren't in the habit of poking into =pelvate offices.” ~The truth of this remark was patent to Nae “She took a tentative, tantalizing = step nearer the documents on the desk. __Mr. Shoreham stepped up angrily. “ See here, Dr. Dayland, I don’t understand your z business, nor why you are subjecting me, -— an old client of a reputable concern, a= — ecm on ieecoedt os to such a cross- = "ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. Se your meddling into my private SSS | particularly when Mr. Kent isn’t here to z= prevent you.” = “Were Mr. Kent here he could not pre- vent me.” “ W-what’s that? Why not?” “ Because,” the girl stated flatly, “every- thing on this first floor, and all the prop- erty, is now under the strictest police sur- veillance.” ‘* Police surveillance!” came the startled echo. “ But why? I don’t understand. Has Kent done anything?” “Not to my knowledge, but some one has. 33 “ Explain, please,” he asked harshly. — “ A man has just come to a violent death in the corridor of this building.” 7 “ Great Heavens!”? Shoreham sat down suddenly. _Perspiration dampened his brow. “ What a confounded mess! W- oe you can even se me aac “* Precisely.” Shoreham’s wide glance went as though magnetized to the paper-strewn desk. Nancy translated the look. “ Yes,” she observed, _ zs “and the nature of yeme very Sproperty. Kent?” “Ten years or so.” Nancy was leading up to a vital ques- tion. | é You are known to the other firms = € Certainly. most of them have deatiecs with the Second National.” “Do the law firms of Case & Strong and were ea & Winters?” “Do you know Mr. Cunningham well?” Plainly perplexed at the seeming irrele- vancy of these questions, he answered la- _ conically, “‘ Yes.” , “ Undoubtedly,” remarked Nancy slow- ly; “ you are likewise acquainted with an eld client of Mr. Cunningham—Mr. Hugh Cavendish ” With a queer look filtering across his face which she could not explain, shore- = ham returned, & « Xes, I know him.” Sex long have you known Mr, - -