Carolyn Wells

“ You beautiful girl! You shall be mine! I’ll stop at nothing to win you. I would do anything for you, Avice, anything! Do you understand?”
Impulsively, he took her in his arms. But she cried out, “No, Leslie, you shall not kiss me, until you have freed Kane!”
“Girl!” he cried, and clasped her roughly, “do you know how you make me feel when you insist it is all for his sake?”
“But it is! I have made no attempt to deceive you as to that.”
“Indeed you haven’t. But aren’t you ashamed to love a man who cares for another woman?” ”

“ Announce our engagement, Avice, wear my ring, set a day to marry me, and I swear I will get Landon free, no matter what the truth may be.”
“You are contemptible!” and Avice gave him a look of utter scorn.
“I know it. I acknowledge it. But it is my love and devotion to your own dear self that makes me so. Can’t you understand,—no, no,—you can’t. No woman could guess what it means to a hitherto honorable man to resolve to commit perjury,—to swear to a lie,—but the prize is worth it! ”

“ Going to the window, Avice watched him stride down the street. His swinging walk was a splendid thing in itself, and the girl felt a thrill of pride in the strong, well-proportioned figure, so full of life and energy.
“But I can’t understand him,” she thought, “he acts so queer every time he talks about Uncle’s death. And then, he pretends to love me,—and he’s all mixed up with Eleanor,—I wish I could get up courage to ask him about her,—but I’m—oh, I’m not really afraid of Kane—but,—well, he is strong,—every way.” ”

“ Hoyt smiled tenderly at her. “Because our betrothal, long tacitly agreed upon, is now ratified by your uncle’s wish and decree.”
“Not at all. Because my uncle wished me to marry you, is no reason that I am obliged to do so.”
“Not obliged, my darling. That is a harsh word. But you want to, don’t you, my Avice? My beautiful girl!”
“I don’t know whether I do or not. But I’m sure of one thing, I won’t marry you simply because Uncle Rowly wanted it! Much as I loved him, and much as I revere his memory, I shall not marry a man I don’t love for his sake!” ”

“ After a time, Isis began in her soft, low voice: “I see a man in danger of his life. He is dear to you. I do not know who he is or what he has done, but his life is in grave danger. Ah, there is his salvation. I see a man who can save him. The man who is to save him must be summoned quickly, yes, even at once. Waste no time. Call him to you.”
“Who is he?” and Avice breathlessly awaited the answer.
“Fleming Stone. He is the only hope for the doomed man. Fleming Stone will rescue him from peril, but he must come soon. Call him.” ”

“ I don’t love you. I have told you I love Kane. But he must never know it. He is infatuated with Eleanor Black, and I shall in no way hamper his happiness. But, I don’t want to marry anybody.”
“You’ll marry me, or that precious adoration of yours will pay the full penalty of his crime. And, too, Avice, remember your uncle’s will. Do you want to throw away a million to escape a union with me? I’ll be very good to you, dear. You shall have your own way in everything.” ”

“ Avice paid the fee of Madame Isis, and went away in a daze. Not so much at the directions she had received, as at the fact of this woman knowing about Kane and knowing that it was a case for a great detective. For it was, Avice felt sure of that. She had become conscious of late, of undercurrents of mystery, of wheels within wheels, and she could not rest for vague, haunting fears of evil still being done, of crime yet to be committed. The whole effect of the clairvoyant’s conversation heightened these feelings, and Avice was glad to be advised to seek out Stone. ”

“ Duane, you’re drawing a long bow, to jump at the conclusion that the housekeeper took a handkerchief of Stryker’s, to be used as a false clue that would incriminate the butler! It’s almost too much of a prearranged performance.”
“Of course it is!” cried Avice. “Kane is a firebrand and impulsive and hotheaded, but he’s not a deliberate criminal! If he killed Uncle Rowly,—which he never did, never!—he did it in the heat of a quarrel, or under some desperate provocation. I wish you had never come to us, Mr. Duane! ”

“ Nobody liked the young man’s manner. It was careless, indifferent, and inattentive. He stood easily, and was in no way embarrassed, but his bravado, whether real or assumed, was distasteful to those who were earnestly trying to discover the facts of the crime that had been committed. There were many who at once leaped to the conclusion that the Swede’s testimony of the victim’s dying words, proved conclusively that the murderer was of a necessity this young man, whose name was Kane, and who so freely admitted his presence near the scene of the tragedy. ”

“ As for me, I’m far more concerned in hunting down my uncle’s murderer. And I doubt if that coroner man will do it. He’s a perfect lump! He’ll never find out anything!”
“Why, Avice,” remonstrated Hoyt, “what could he find out tonight? It is a mysterious affair, and as we here know nothing of the crime, how could Mr. Berg discover anything from us?”
“But he has no brains, no intelligence, no ingenuity!”
“Coroners rarely have. It is their province only to question and learn the circumstances. ‘Sleuthing’ is what you have in mind, and that must be done by detectives.” ”

“ Stone,” returned Avice, simply. “Since you are here to help in this matter, I will tell you frankly, that if Judge Hoyt succeeds in winning his case and freeing Kane Landon, I have promised to marry him.”
Stryker had been dismissed, and the two were alone. With infinite pity, Stone looked at the sad-eyed girl, and intuitively understood the whole situation.
“I see,” he said, gently, “Judge Hoyt is going to sacrifice Stryker for you. It is a clever idea, and he will see to it, somehow, that the old man does not suffer penalty.” ”

“ And so Kane Landon had a clever, shrewd and capable lawyer to defend him. Avice had great faith in Leslie Hoyt’s genius, though she had feared the two men were not very friendly.
She took occasion later, on the way home, to thank Hoyt for his willingness in the matter.
“I’m sure you’ll get him off,” she said, hopefully.
Hoyt looked grave. “You’re mistaken, Avice; I can’t get him off.”
“What! You mean he’ll be convicted!”
“How can he help but be? I can’t perform miracles. But I might make a more desperate effort than a stranger. That’s all I can promise.” ”

“ Trowbridge lives long enough, thank goodness,—to say Kane killed me! You can’t get away from that speech, Mr. Whiting. If there hadn’t been any suspect named Kane, we might say Mr. Trowbridge meant Cain,—any murderer. But with the only real suspect bearing that very name, it’s too absurd to look any further. Then the murderer having thoughtfully provided himself with a handkerchief belonging to the next possible suspect, wipes the bloody blade on that and throws it where it’ll be found. Could anything be clearer? Who wants money right away? ”

“ Judge Hoyt was as attentive and considerate in manner as if talking to an equal.
“I know Terence,” he said, “that in the detective stories you are doubtless fond of, the eagle eyed sleuth sees a footprint, and immediately described the villain at full length. But I have never yet seen a footprint that amounted to anything as proof. Why, ninety-nine men out of a hundred would fit into the same footprint. Or, heelprint, I believe you said. Which, of course, would be even less distinctive.”
[162]
Fibsy looked at the speaker in genuine admiration. “That’s just true, sir!” he cried, eagerly. ”

“ Coroner?”
“Yes, my man, but it’s also natural that you should try to control your grief. As Judge Hoyt says, you may render assistance to your late master by your testimony. Now, tell us all you know of Mr. Trowbridge’s callers of late, or any little thing that might come to your notice as a butler. Sometimes you servants have opportunities of observation not known upstairs.”
“That we have, sir,” and Stryker nodded his head thoughtfully. “Yes, that we have. But I know nothing, sir, nothing at all, as has a bearing on the death of the master,—no, sir, not anything.” ”

“ Aside from the argument, Judge Hoyt was pinning his faith to his marvelously wide knowledge of the law governing every aspect of the matter in hand. He well knew that a prosecutor with a really clear case, may lose it because he has neglected to look up some points of law which may unexpectedly arise, and the defence was hoping for something of this sort.
Again, it is a fact, that juries are more likely to acquit in a murder trial than in case of other crimes. Unless the prisoner at the bar is of the depraved criminal class, a jury is inclined to give him every possible benefit of doubt. ”

“ But she stood quietly, and spoke with repressed force.
“What is the first thing to do?” she said, turning to Doctor Fulton, and then glancing past him to the policeman in the doorway.
“Wait, Avice, wait,” put in Leslie Hoyt; “let us consider a moment.”
“There is nothing to be considered, Leslie. Uncle is dead. We must discover who killed him. We must get the best detectives, and we must never rest until we have brought the villain to justice.”
“Of course, of course, Avice,” said Mrs. Black, soothingly, “but we can’t hurry so, child.” ”

“ Who has just quarreled with the victim? Who is impudent and insolent when questioned about it? Who is now enjoying his ill-gotten gains, and has already used a lot of money for the purpose he told his uncle about that first day he saw him? Answer all those questions, and then doubt, if you can, who murdered Rowland Trowbridge!”
[186]
Groot spoke quietly, but forcibly, and all present realized there was no answer save the one he indicated.
Judge Hoyt looked aghast. “It’s incredible!” he exclaimed. “Kane Landon——”
“You mean any other theory or suspicion is incredible, Judge,” said Whiting. ”

“ An’ then,” and the boy’s face grew solemn with the bigness of his revelation, “I seemed to see in my mind a—what do you call ’em, sir?—a dirk cane, a sword cane, an’—”
“Cane killed me!”
“Yes, sir! Oh, Mr. Stone, I knew you’d see it!”
“Boy, you are a wonder. Even if your deductions are all wrong, you have shown marvelous acumen.”
Fibsy had no idea what acumen was, nor did he care. He was not seeking praise, but corroboration, and he was getting it. The mark of a cane was perfectly clear and was unmistakable. It might mean nothing, but it was a cane mark, and some canes were murderous weapons. ”

“ And Eleanor was another mysterious one! She had her inheritance now, and Avice hoped they might separate, never to meet again. Well, of course, they would, for neither had a desire to continue living with the other. As for Avice herself, she would go out of that house at once. But where? That must soon be decided. Then, like a flooding wave, came back the memory of her uncle’s will! She must marry Judge Hoyt or lose her fortune. She would have some money, to be sure, but the interest of that, as an income would make life a very different matter from what it had been! ”

“ Don’t be jealous of Eleanor Black, Avice, she is a firm friend of yours. She is a frivolous, shallow-hearted woman, but she is a strong and loyal friend. And she was really fond of Uncle, though she doesn’t seem to mourn for him very deeply.”
“And she doesn’t care who killed him!”
“That is part of her volatile nature. She never looks back. To her, only the future counts. I don’t believe she does care who the murderer is. Who do you think, Avice?”
“I can’t form any idea, Kane. ”

“ And that telephone message isn’t needed to settle your case. When a man is found dead, and with his dying breath tells who killed him, I don’t need any further evidence.”
“Keep still, Groot,” said the coroner. “We’ve all agreed that those words about Cain, might mean any murderer.”
“They might, but they didn’t,” answered Groot, angrily.
“As Mr. Landon says,” spoke up Judge Hoyt, “it may be merely a coincidence that his name is Kane, when his uncle had so recently stigmatized his assailant as Cain. Surely such questionable evidence must be backed up by some incontrovertible facts.” ”

“ Since I’m not incriminating an innocent man, I’m willing to let a guilty one go free. But Avice, if some guiltless person should be suspected,—I couldn’t then keep back the truth.”
“That’s why I want John Hemingway suspected. Then there is no danger of accusing an innocent person. If the police really think it was a man named Hemingway, they can’t do anything to Kane, but free him.”
“We’ll see,” and Judge Hoyt sighed. It was not an easy task he had undertaken, to fasten suspicion on a mythical character, but he would carry it through, if possible, because of the reward that was to be his. ”

“ Judge Hoyt told me the only way to get Kane off, is to get somebody else to swear to that telephone message. If Stryker does this, they can’t prove Kane’s guilt.”
“It’s a desperate move,” observed Stone.
“It is; but Judge Hoyt is a desperate man. If he determines to do a thing, he sweeps away all obstacles.”
“A strong nature. And a most capable mind. I was impressed today by his marvelous faculty of making other people see things as he does.”
“Yes,” and Avice sighed. “He can do that. It is that power that I am banking on in his conduct of the trial.” ”

“ Trowbridge ‘uncle’. If I could get some one to swear that he did that, it would go a long way in Landon’s favor.”
“Some one who didn’t really do it, you mean?”
“Yes, of course. It would be perjury, and it would have to be handsomely paid for.”
“How wicked!”
[234]
“Don’t think for a moment that I don’t realize the wickedness of it! Even you can have no idea what such an act means to a man, and a lawyer. A hitherto honorable lawyer! Oh, Avice, what a man will do for a woman!” ”

“ For one we love, we stop at nothing! You would perjure your soul for Landon; I, for you! Where’s the difference?”
“I won’t, Leslie. I can’t! Don’t do that awful thing!”
“And let Landon be convicted?”
“Oh, no, no! Not that! But wait, Leslie, I have a new plan.”
“Oh, yes, I forgot you were going to save Landon by your own exertions!”
“And I am. Have you ever heard of Fleming Stone?”
“Of course I have. Why?”
“I’m going to get him to find the murderer.”
“Avice! what nonsense. You mustn’t do any such thing!”
“Why not?”
“Because it is absurd. We already have Duane on the case. ”

“ For some reason, Avice did not resent the man’s directness, and answered, slowly. “She is housekeeper, and was engaged to my uncle. I don’t dislike her,—not altogether.”
“Is she Italian? She looks so.”
“Of Italian descent, yes. Why?”
“Nothing. She’s a stunner for looks, but she’s entirely able to take care of herself. I say, Miss Trowbridge, are you alone,—in this matter, I mean.”
“In a way, I am. There is no one in the house but the housekeeper and myself. But Judge Hoyt, my uncle’s lawyer, looks after all business affairs for us.” ”

“ While waiting, Groot told them, in low tones, about Stryker’s insurance matter.
“Time up next week!” repeated Judge Hoyt. “That looks bad, very bad. I’ve heard Stryker speak of insuring, several times, but I thought nothing about it. He wasn’t asking my advice, merely discussing it as a business proposition. When I’ve been here of an evening with Mr. Trowbridge, we often spoke with Stryker almost as to a friend. He’s an old and trusted servant. I’m desperately sorry to learn all this.”
“So am I,” said Avice. “I do want to track down uncle’s murderer,—but I don’t want it to be Stryker!” ”