Argosy All-Story Weekly, October 6, 1923 — page 140: what you’re looking at

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

922 himself when he entered a moment later, drenched and a little white, but with as buoyant a step as ever. ‘You've heard, Claudia? I was waiting in your office, Mr. Rowe, when I heard that court had been adjourned at the start of the afternoon session and I knew that some- thing unexpected must have occurred. I didn’t think it wise to come here or send a message before—” ““ Now that you’re here, Munson, tell us what you know,” Dreyer interrupted terse- ly. ‘“ Zorn was called as a witness for the prosecution at the opening of court this afternoon and then the announcement was made of his death. Do you know when it occurred—and how?” Stephen nodded very gravely. ‘“‘T was waiting on the other side of the river for him,” he said. ‘‘ He must have been coming to keep his appointment, but the dust storm blinded him and he walked off the edge—”’ “Dust!” A creeping sense of awe stole over Claudia. Was it mere accident, after all, by which this man had come to his death at the moment when he was about to do her the greatest injury? Had some strangely beneficent fate, watching over her, removed him, as it had that other, from her path? “Ves. You must have heard the wind! It was most unprecedented at this time of year, but so was the long drought we’ve had.” Stephen hung his dripping hat on the back of his chair and removed his sod- den overcoat before seating himself. ‘“ Is that all you’ve heard about Zorn? He didn’t want me to come again to that apart- ment on the Concourse where he had a room and it suited me because—well, you know what I had in mind if I couldn’t come to terms with him! When I think of it, and then of what happened anyway—vwell, it kind of gives a fellow a queer feeling!” “T know!” Claudia murmured very low. ‘Oh, Stephen, I was so afraid—” “ He tried to double-cross us, anyway!” Stephen’s jaw set. “ You’ve been told where the body was found? You know the lo- cality?” He had turned to the attorneys and Dreyer nodded. ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. ‘There are vacant lots and rocks and patches of woodland on the far side where the new road branches off from the old,” he remarked. ‘“ I don’t remember any house for a quarter of a mile or more.” “That’s why I chose it,” explained Stephen, “I was to meet him there at half past eight. I reached the spot over the new bridge in plenty of time, but he didn’t appear. The wind was howling a perfect gale and driving clouds of dust like solid walls before it; you couldn’t see your hand before your face when the gusts arose and it was almost impossible to breathe! There are several new buildings going up on the city side of the river, you know, with heaps of loose sand lying around, and Zorn must have been caught in a miniature des- ert storm. The barricade at the end of the bridge abutment had been blown away and believing that he was crossing the new span he must have simply stepped off into space! Lord, what an end!” ‘Was he drowned?” Claudia whispered fearfully. “I thought bodies usually sank at first! How was he found?” “The ambulance doctor called it heart disease; I heard him,” Stephen replied. “TI waited there on the other side of the river for more than three hours walking up and down and sheltering myself behind the rocks as well as I could when a blast of wind came. It settled down to a steady blow as the sky grew darker, and I was wild, wondering if Zorn had been located at the last minute by the authorities or what had happened to him! ‘“‘ Then at last I saw a commotion at the other side of the bridge and a crowd be- ginning to collect at the abutment of the old one and somehow—I knew! You know what I was carrying? I hid it under a big stone in the lot and hurried across the bridge. Before I reached the other side I heard an ambulance gong, and when I pushed my way into the crowd they had just hauled Zorn up from the water. ‘“‘ A workman standing near was explain- ing how he happened to see the body as he started to clear away the débris of the old barricade, and I waited only long enough to hear the doctor’s diagnosis, then went back over the bridge, got the wallet from where COMicloOoe S (©