Argosy All-Story Weekly, August 9, 1924 — page 84: what you’re looking at

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

234 have been a pirate,” chuckled Bullard. ‘“‘ Suppose this list was that of a crew; he wouldn’t have brought his crew back here with him to Freehaven.” ‘‘ Not all of them,” agreed Ropes. ‘“ But suppose that one of that crew was the man who lured Holroyd to the boathouse, and another the fellow who gave me a false message over the telephone, and still others the strangers who egged Nat Larkin on at the store to go out and make trouble for Holroyd? And suppose some of these names correspond to the initials in that little book you have at your office, names of people to whom he paid money? ‘They may not correspond, of course; for the names may have been changed; but the men may have been the same. If that were all so, what would you say then?” ‘“T’d say that this was the most mysteri- ous affair I’d ever heard of.” ‘Oh, come now!” urged Ropes, his eyes gleaming. ‘‘ Wouldn’t you go further than that, and admit that our friend Cushing was a very adroit criminal?” CHAPTER XII. ROPES MAKES A DISCOVERY. OPES paced the cliffs above the ocean in the warm summer night. Out over the waters shone the beacon on the Porpoise Shoals, an eye that was constantly on the watch for sailors, seeming as fixed and steadfast as the stars themselves. The air was filled with the fragrance of the sea meadows; the hour was made for pleasure; under any other circumstances than those in which he found himself Ropes—who was not given to solitary musings—would have sought the company of people of his own age and condition; he would have liked to go to Anne Derby and share the evening with her. As he paced the path that led from the old seaport section of Freehaven to the newer summer colony of the Point, he was occasionally passed by men and women coming from the other direction. Much as these might differ in appearance, they were all of one type in a sense—pleasure seekers, idlers, holiday makers, come from the great ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY, cities to amuse themselves on the coast of Maine. Smartly dressed men and women in light gowns, chattering, flirting, easily laughing. Butterflies, or rather moths of the summer night, fluttering around the nearest candle that would give them pleas- ure. Some, he noticed casually, went in at the Mermaid Teahouse; but he was too much occupied with his own thoughts to spare any attention to strangers from the Point. When he came to the end of the woods and looked down on the cluster of the cottages and caught the strains of an orchestra playing dance music in a hotel he stopped and turned and wended his way back to the height above the ocean, where, but for the teahouse at a little distance, he had the world to himself. He was standing, his back to the path, when a voice accosted him—a light, pleas- ant voice, yet having a note of mockery. ‘Youre a solitary creature, Mr. Ropes. What do you find out here to amuse you?” He knew before he turned that it was the French-Canadian girl. She was standing almost at his elbow, as if she had, with some mischievous intent, stolen up on him unawares. “A great deal,” he said lightly. “Though I flatter myself that I’m not like most of these summer people from the Point, who have to be amused every min- ute. ‘They seem to come over here a good deal in the evenings. I should have thought that when you planned to open a teahouse you’d have picked out a place at the Point, nearer the hotels.” “Oh, people like what they think is quaint. I’ve heard women from the Point rave over tumbledown cottages here in Featherbed Lane. They think Freehaven is tremendously picturesque, and I suppose the teahouse shares in some of that glory. But you haven’t been in to see me since the evening you told me about Nat Lar- kin.” “Surely you haven’t missed me?” Georgette’s eyes met his, and immediate- ly he felt the allure of this woman. Yes, whoever she might be, there was about her - that quality of the temptress that belonged to many celebrated women of history. It COMmiCclboo @) S (C@) nn