Argosy All-Story Weekly — 'The Metal Monster' — page 114: what you’re looking at

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

108 “YJ understood that he was fixed for life; that his father, knowing his reckless- ness where money was concerned, had tied up a portion of his inheritance in a trust fund of some sort so that he could not dig into the entire principal, but I may be wrong. Alexander — George Alexander, his partner, is in a better positicn to mform you on that score than I am. Now that I think of it, it seems to me that Creveling has been a bit queer lately; not despondent exactly, but moody. Perhaps there was something preying on his mind.” Mrs. O’Rourke opened her lips to speak, but closed them again, and McCarty saw in a sidelong glance that she was still star- ing fixedly at her husband, who kept his eyes studiously lowered. A dull flush had risen beneath the freckles, and an odd note of constraint had come into his voice. “Tt’s your opinion, then, that he met with financial reverses?” McCarty affect- ed to take no note of the change in Mr. O’Rourke’s manner. “T don’t say that; th® fatt is, that I have no opinion whatever on the matter.” The young man raised his eyes stowly. ‘“ T’ve known him for several years as one) man knows another in. the same crowd, es- pecially when their wives are on an intl-. mate footing; but nothing has ever hap- pened to bring us closer together than on a basis of general goodfcllowship. He has never” discussed-hiS affairs with me, and | he’d be far more likely to confide in Doug. Waverly or Nick Cutter. Waverly, you say? Couidn’t he suggest any motive for suicide?” ‘No more than yourself, sir.” “But you haven’t interviewed Cutter, yet, have you?” There was a singular note of eagerness now in the younger man’s tones. “No, sir; I’ve not had time.” McCarty picked up his hat from the-table where he had placed it and turned to Mrs. O’ Rourke. “TH say good day, my lady, and thank you for seeing me. I’m sorry if I’ve trou- bled you—”’ | “Pm not ‘my lady’ here, you know,” she smiled faintly as she gave him her hand. “ You say that you’re not officially connected with the investigation: mto this You’ve seen | ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. dreadfully sad affair, Mr. McCarty?- kt is a pity, for we shall both be interested naturally m learning the truth; I mean the —the motive for the suicide. At any rate, you will come to see us again now that you have found us, won’t you? I have a warm spot m my heart, as John has, for a friend from the old country, and there will al- ways be a welcome for yeu.” “ * Welcome?’” Mr. O’Rourke advanced and held out his hand. “F should say there would be! We've got to have a good long talk about the old days, Timmie Mc- Carty, you rascal! You must come and dine with us soon, just we three together, and we'll celebrate the reunion in the prop- er way. In the mean time, if there’s any- thing I can do to help your friend, the in- spector, to clear up this matter of poor Creveling’s death, just let me know.” ‘“* Thank vou, sir.” “Don’t ‘sir’? me!” He laughed genially. ‘“T was ‘ Johnnie’ when we went fishing together, aye, and poaching,,too! Good- by. Don’t forget to drop in on us when- ever you can.” : ~ McCarty took his leave of them, con- scious that Lady Peggy’s troubled eyes fol- lowed him questioningly to the very doer. _ Fhere was more than one question in his own mind also as he strode off down the avenue. What sudden thought had wrought the change in the O’Rourke’s manner? At frst frankly admitting that he knew of no reason for suicide on Creveling’s part, he had promptly hedged and attempted by suggestion to shift the responsibility of a reply to other shoulders, notably those Mr. Nicholas Cutter. Why? deed accepted suicide as the solution of Creveling’s deatk or did he secretly inchine toward the conviction held by Mrs. Crevel- ing? Whatever his opinion m the case, it wes evident that his wife had her doubts, in spite of her air of amazed incredulity on learning of Mrs. Creveling’s attitude. That shp she had made in saying that both she and her husband would be interested m learning “ the truth ” and then changing it auickly to “motive for the suicide” had been slight but significant, yet her surprise had been as genuine as McCarty’s own al ECOMmicloooks.ce@ Had be 1 wo