ASIA PR boH-^' A^7 CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY THE WASON CHINESE COLLECTION All books are subject to recall after two weeks Olin/Kroch Library DATE DUE -^HJJMWW, 1 GAYLORD PRINTED IN U.S.A. CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 924 073 203 154 Cornell University Library The original of tliis bool< is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924073203154 THE YELLOW CLAW BY SAX ROHMER Author of "The Insidious Dr. Fu-Manchu," etc. 1^1 NEW YORK McBRIDE, NAST & COMPANY 1915 "^l Copyright, 1915. by LiPPiNCOTT's Ma gazine Copyright, 1915. by McBride, Nast & Co. Was**! Published April, 1915 CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I The Lady of the Civet Furs i II Midnight — and Mr. King 8 III Inspector Dunbar Takes Charge .... 22 IV A Window is Opened 33 V Doctors Differ 42 VI At Scotland Yard 50 VII The Man in the Limousine S6 VIII Cabmen Two 67 IX The Man in Black 75 X The Great Understanding 84 XI Presenting M. Gaston Max 94 XII Mr. Gianapolis 103 XIII The Draft on Paris iii XIV East 18642 130 XV Cave of the Golden Dragon 144 XVI Ho-PiN's Catacombs IS9 XVII Kan-Suh Concessions 170 XVIII The World Above 182 XIX The Living Dead 191 XX Abraham Levinsky Butts In 201 XXI The Studio in Soho 209 XXII M. Max Mounts Cagliostro's Staircase . . 216 XXIII Raid in the Rue St.-Claude 222 XXIV Opium 236 XXV Fate's Shuttlecock 24s XXVI " Our Lady of the Poppies " 251 CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE XXVII Grove of a Million Apes 262 XXVIII The Opium Agent 27s XXIX M. Max of London and M. Max of Paris . . 284 XXX Mahara 292 XXXI Musk and Roses . 304 XXXII Blue Blinds 317 XXXIII Logic vs. Intuition 325 XXXIV M. Max Reports Progress 331 XXXV Tracker Tracked 344 XXXVI In Dunbar's Room 359 XXXVII The Whistle 37i XXXVIII The Secret Traps 382 XXXIX The Labyrinth 393 XL Dawn at the Nore 405 XLI Westminster — Midnight 418 THE YELLOW CLAW THE YELLOW CLAW I The Lady of the Civet Furs HENRY LEROUX wrote busily on. The light of the table-lamp, softened and en- riched by its mosaic shade, gave an appear- ance of added opulence to the already handsome appointments of the room. The little table-dock ticked merrily from half-past eleven to a quarter to twelve. Into the coz;y, bookish atmosphere of the novel- ist's study penetrated the muffled chime of Big Ben ; it chimed the three-quarters. But, with his mind centered upon his work, Leroux wrote on ceaselessly. An odd figure of a man was this popular novelist, with patchy and untidy hair which lessened the otherwise striking contour of his brow, A neglected and unpicturesque figure, in a baggy, neutral-colored dressing-gown; a figure more fitted to a garret than to this spacious, luxurious workroom, with the soft light playing upon rank after rank of rare and costly editions, deepening the tones in the Persian carpet, making red morocco more red, purifying the vellum 2 THE YELLOW CLAW and regilding the gold of the choice bindings, caress- ing lovingly the busts and statuettes surmounting the book-shelves, and twinkling upon the scantily- covered crown of Henry Leroux. The door bell rang. Leroux, heedless of external matters, pursued his work. But the door bell rang again and continued to ring. "Soames! Soames!" Leroux raised his voice irascibly, continuing to write the while. " Where the devil are you ! Can't you hear the door bell ? " Soames did not reveal himself; and to the ringing of the bell was added the unmistakable rattling of a letter-box. "Soames ! " Leroux put down his pen and stood up. " Damn it ! he's out I I have no memory ! " He retied the girdle of his dressing-gown, which had become unfastened, and opened the study door. Opposite, across the entrance lobby, was the outer door; and in the light from the lobby lamp he per- ceived two laughing eyes peering in under the up- raised flap of the letter-box. The ringing ceased. " Are you very angry with me for interrupting you? " cried a girl's voice. " My dear Miss Cumberly ! " said Leroux without irritation; " on the contrary — er — I am delighted to see you — or rather to hear you. There is no- body at home, you know." . . . " I do know," replied the girl firmly, " and I know something else, also. Father assures me that THE LADY OF THE CIVET FURS 3 you simply starve yourself when Mrs. Leroux is away I So I have brought down an omelette I " " Omelette I " muttered Leroux, advancing toward the door; "you have — er — brought an omelette! I understand — yes ; you have brought an omelette ? Er — that is very good of you." He hesitated when about to open the outer door, raising his hands to his dishevelled hair and un- shaven chin. The flap of the letter-box dropped; and the girl outside could be heard stifling her laughter. " You must think me — er — very rude," be- gan Leroux; "I mean — not to open the door. But" . . . " I quite understand," concluded the voice of the unseen one. " You are a most untidy object ! And I shall tell Mira directly she returns that she has no right to leave you alone like this ! Now I am going to hurry back upstairs; so you may appear safely. Don't let the omelette get cold. Good night! " " No, certainly I shall not! " cried Leroux. " So good of you — I — er — do like omelette. . . . Goodnight!" Calmly he returned to his writing-table, where, in the pursuit of the elusive character whose exploits he was chronicling and who had brought him fame and wealth, he forgot in the same moment Helen Cumberly and the omelette. The table-clock ticked merrily on ; scratch — scratch — splutter — scratch — went Henry Le- 4 THE YELLOW CLAW roux's pen; for this up-to-date litterateur, essayist by inclination, creator of " Martin Zeda, Criminal Sci- entist " by popular clamor, was yet old-fashioned enough, and sufficient of an enthusiast, to pen his work, while lesser men dictated. So, amidst that classic company, smiling or frown- ing upon him from the oaken shelves, where Pe- tronius Arbiter, exquisite, rubbed shoulders with Balzac, plebeian; where Omar Khayyam leaned con- fidentially toward Philostratus ; where Mark Twain, standing squarely beside Thomas Carlyle, glared across the room at George Meredith, Henry Leroux pursued the amazing career of " Martin Zeda." It wanted but five minutes to the hour of midnight, when again the door bell clamored in the silence. Leroux wrote steadily on. The bell continued to ring, and, furthermore, the ringer could be heard beating upon the outer door. " Soames ! " cried Leroux irritably, " Soames ! Why the hell don't you go to the doori " Leroux stood up, dashing his pen upon the table. " I shall have to sack that damned man ! " he cried; "he takes too many liberties — stopping out until this hour of the night! " He pulled open the study door, crossed the hall- way, and opened the door beyond. In, out of the darkness — for the stair lights had been extinguished — staggered a woman ; a woman whose pale face exhibited, despite the ravages of sorrow or illness, signs of quite unusual beauty. THE LADY OF THE CIVET FURS 5 Her eyes were wide opened, and terror-stricken, the pupils contracted almost to vanishing point. She wore a magnificent cloak of civet fur wrapped tightly about her, and, as Leroux opened the door, she tot- tered past him into the lobby, glancing back over her shoulder. With his upraised hands plunged pathetically into the mop of his hair, Leroux turned and stared at the intruder. She groped as if a darkness had descended, clutched at the sides of the study door- way, and then, unsteadily, entered — and sank down upon the big chesterfield in utter exhaustion. Leroux, rubbing his chin, perplexedly, walked in after her. He scarcely had his foot upon the study carpet, ere the woman started up, tremulously, and shot out from the enveloping furs a bare arm and a pointing, quivering finger. " Close the door ! " she cried hoarsely — " close the door ! . . . He has . . . followed me ! " . . . The disturbed novelist, as a man in a dream, turned, retraced his steps, and closed the outer door of the flat. Then, rubbing his chin more vigorously than ever and only desisting from this exercise to fumble in his dishevelled hair, he walked back into the study, whose Athenean calm had thus mysteri- ously been violated. Two minutes to midnight; the most respectable flat in respectable Westminster; a lonely and very abstracted novelist — and a pale-faced, beautiful woman, enveloped in costly furs, sitting staring with 6 THE YELLOW CLAW fearful eyes straight before her. This was such a scene as his sense of the proprieties and of the proba- bilities could never have permitted Henry Leroux to create. His visitor kept moistening her dry lips and swal- lowing, emotionally. Standing at a discreet distance from her: — " Madam," began Leroux, nervously. She waved her hand, enjoining him to silence, and at the same time intimating that she would explain herself directly speech became possible. Whilst she sought to recover her composure, Leroux, gradually forcing himself out of the dreamlike state, studied her with a sort of anxious curiosity. It now became apparent to him that his visitor was no more than twenty-five or twenty-six years of age, but illness or trouble, or both together, had seared and marred her beauty. Amid the auburn masses of her hair, gleamed streaks, not of gray, but of purest white. The low brow was faintly wrinkled, and the big — unnaturally big — eyes were purple shaded; whilst two heavy lines traced . their way from the corner of the nostrils to the corner of the mouth — of the drboping mouth with the bloodless lips. Her pallor became more strange and intertsting the longer he studied it; for, underlying the skin was a yellow tinge which he found inexplicable, but which he linked in his mind with the contracted THE LADY OF THE CIVET FURS 7 pupils of her eyes, seeking vainly for a common cause. He had a hazy impression that his visitof, beneath her furs, was most inadequately clothed; and seek- ing confirmation of this, his gaze strayed downward to where one little slippered foot peeped out from the civet furs. Leroux suppressed a gasp. He had caught a glimpse of a bare ankle ! He crossed to his writing-table, and seated him- self, glancing sideways at this living mystery. Sud- denly she began, in a voice tremulous and scarcely audible : — " Mr. Leroux, at a great — at a very great per- sonal risk, I have come to-night. What I have to ask of you- — to entreat of you, will . . . will" . . . Two bare arms emerged from the fur, and she began clutching at her throat and bosom as though choking — dying. Leroux leapt up and would have run to her; but forcing a ghastly smile, she waved him away again. " It is all right," she muttered, swallowing noisily. But frightful spasms of pain convulsed her, con- torting her pale face. " Some brandy — I " cried Leroux, anxiously. *' If you please," whispered the visitor. She dropped her arms and fell back upon the chesterfield, insensible. II Midnight and Mr. King LEROUX clutched at the comer of the writ- ing-table to steady himself and stood there looking at the deathly face. Under the most favorable circumstances, he was no man of action, although in common with the rest of his kind he prided himself upon the possession of that pres- ence of mind which he lacked. It was a situation which could not have alarmed " Martin Zeda," but it alarmed, immeasurably, nay, struck inert with horror, Martin Zeda's creator. Then, in upon Leroux's mental turmoil, a sensible idea intruded itself. "Dr. Ciunberly! " he muttered. "I hope to God he is in ! " Without touching the recumbent form upon the chesterfield, without seeking to learn, without daring to learn, if she lived or had died, Leroux, the tempo of his life changed to a breathless gallop, rushed out of the study, across the entrance hall, and, throw- ing -vvide the flat door, leapt up the stair to the flat above — that of his old friend. Dr. Cumberly. The patter of the slippered feet grew faint upon the stair; then, as Leroux reached the landing above, became inaudible altogether. 8 MIDNIGHT AND MR. KING 9 In Leroux's study, the table-clock ticked merrily on, seeming to hasten its ticking as the hand crept around closer and closer to midnight. The mosaic shade of the lamp mingled reds and blues and greens upon the white ceiling above and poured golden light upon the pages of manuscript strewn about beneath it. This was a typical work-room of a literary man having the ear of the public — typical In every re- spect, save for the fur-clad figure outstretched upon the settee. And now the peeping light indiscreetly penetrated to the hem of a silken garment revealed by some disarrangement of the civet fur. To the eye of an experienced observer, had such an observer been present In Henry Leroux's study, this billow of silk and lace behind the sheltering fur must have pro- claimed itself the edge of a night-robe, just as the ankle beneath had proclaimed Itself to Henry Le- roux's shocked susceptibilities to be Innocent of stocking. Thirty seconds were wanted to complete the cycle of the day, when one of the listless hands thrown across the back of the chesterfield opened and closed spasmodically. The fur at the bosom of the mid- night visitor began rapidly to rise and fall. Then, with a choking cry, the woman struggled upright; her hair, hastily dressed, burst free of Its bindings and poured In gleaming cascade down about her shoulders. Clutching with one hand at her cloak In order to 10 THE YELLOW CLAW keep it wrafiped about her, and holding the other blindly before her, she rose, and with that same odd, groping movement, began to approach the writing- table. The pupils of her eyes were mere pin-points now; she shuddered convulsively, and her skin was dewed with perspiration. Her breath came in ago- nized gasps. " God I — I ... am dying . . . and I cannot — tell him ! " she breathed. Feverishly, weakly, she took up a pen, and upon a quarto page, alreadyi half filled with Leroux's small, neat, illegible writing, began to scrawl a mes- sage, bending down, one hand upon the table, and with her whole body shaking. Some three or four wavering lines she had writ- ten, when intimately, for the flat of Henry Leroux in Palace Mansions lay within sight of the clock- face — Big Ben began to chime midnight. The writer started back and dropped a great blot of ink upon the paper; then, realizing the cause of the disturbance, forced herself to continue her task. The chime being completed: One! boomed the clock; two! . . . three! . . . four! . . . The light in the entrance-hall went out! Fii;^.' boomed Big Ben; — six! . . . seven! . . . A hand, of old ivory hue, a long, yellow, clawish hand, with part of a sinewy forearm, crept in from the black lobby through the study doorway and touched the electric switch! MIDNIGHT AND MR. KING ii Eight! . . . The study was plunged in darkness I Uttering a sob — a cry of agony and horror that came from her very soul — the woman stood up- right and turned to face toward the door, clutching the sheet of paper in one rigid hand. Through the leaded panes of the window above the writing-table swept a silvern beam of moon- light. It poured, searchingly, upon the fur-clad figure swaying by the table ; cutting through the dark- ness of the room like some huge scimitar, to end in a pallid pool about the woman's shadow on the center of the Persian carpet. Coincident with her sobbing cry — Nine! boomed Big Ben; ten! . . . Two hands — with outstretched, crooked, clutch- ing fingers — leapt from the darkness into the light of the moonbeam. " God 1 Oh, God ! " came a frenzied, rasping shriek— "Mr. i!:^^./" Straight at the bare throat leapt the yellow hands ; a gurgling cry rose — fell — and died away. Gently, noiselessly, the lady of the civet fur sank upon the carpet by the table ; as she fell, a dim black figure bent over her. The tearing of paper told of the note being snatched from her frozen grip; but never for a moment did the face or the form of her assailant encroach upon the moonbeam. Batlike, this second and terrible visitant avoided the light. 12 THE YELLOW CLAW The deed had occupied so brief, a time that but one note of the great bell had accompanied it. Twelve! rang out the final stroke from the clock- tower. A low, eerie whistle, minor, rising in three irregular notes and falling in weird, unusual cadence to silence again, came from somewhere outside the room. Then darkne'ss — stillness — with the moon a witness of one morfe ghastly crime. Presently, confused and intermingled voices from above proclaimed the return of Leroux with the doctor. They were talking in an excited key, the voice of Leroux, especially, sounding almost hyster- ical. They created such a disturbance that they attracted the attention of Mr. John Exel, M. P., occupant of the flat below, who at that very moment had returned from the House and was about to insert the key in the lock of his door. He looked up the stairway, but, all being in darkness, was unable to detect anything. Therefore he called out: — " Is that you, Leroux? Is anything the matter ? " " Matter, Exel! " cried Leroux; " there's a devil of a business ! For mercy's sake, come up ! " His curiosity greatly excited, Mr. Exel mounted the stairs, entering the lobby of Leroux' s flat imme- diately behind the owner and Dr. Cumberly — who, like Leroux, was arrayed in a dressing-gown ; for he had been in bed when summoned by his friend. " You are all in the dark, here," muttered Dr. Cumberly, fumbling for the switch. MIDNIGHT AND MR. KING 13 " Some one has turned the light out ! " whispered Leroux, nervously ; " / left it on." Dr. Cumberly pressed the switch, turning up the lobby light as Exel entered from the landing. Then Leroux, entering the study first of the three, switched on the light there, also. One glance he threw about the room, then started back like a man physically stricken. " Cumberly! " he gasped, " Cumberly " — and he pointed to the furry heap by the writing-table. " You said she lay on the chesterfield," muttered Cumberly. " I left her there." . . . Dr. Cumberly crossed the room and dropped upon his knees. He turned the white face toward the light, gently parted the civet fur, and pressed his ear to the silken covering of the breast. He started slightly and looked into the glazing eyes. Replacing the fur which he had disarranged, the physician stood up and fixed a keen gaze upon the face of Henry Leroux. The latter swallowed nois- ily, moistening his parched lips. " Is she "... he muttered; " is she "... " God's mercy, Leroux! " whispered Mr. Exel — " what does this mean? " " The woman is dead," said Dr. Cumberfy. In common with all medical men. Dr. Cumberly was a physiognomist; he was a great physician and a proportionately great physiognomist. Therefore, when he looked into Henry Leroux's eyes, he saw 14 THE YELLOW CLAW there, and recognized, horror and consternation. With no further evidence than that furnished by his own powers of perception, he knew that the mystery of this woman's death was as inexplicable to Henry Leroux as it was inexplicable to himself. He was a masterful man, with the gray eyes of a diplomat, and he knew Leroux as did few men. He laid both hands upon the novelist's shoul- ders. " Brace up, old chap! " he said; " you will want all your wits about you." "I left her," began Leroux, hesitatingly — "I left" . . . " We know all about where you left her, Leroux," interrupted Cumberly; "but what we want to get at is this: what occurred between the time you left her, and the time of our return? " Exel, who had walked across to the table, and with a horror-stricken face was gingerly examining the victim, now exclaimed : — "Why! Leroux! she is — she is . . . un- dressed! " Leroux clutched at his dishevelled hair with both hands. "My dear Exel!" he cried — "my dear, good man ! Why do you use that tone ? You say ' she is undressed ! ' as though / were responsible for the poor soul's condition 1 " "On the contrary, Leroux!" retorted Exel, standing very upright, and staring through his MIDNIGHT AND MR. KING 15 monocle; " on the contrary, you misconstrue me! I did not intend to imply — to insinuate — " "My dear Exell" broke in Dr. Cumberly — " Leroux is perfectly well aware that you intended nothing unkindly. But the poor chap, quite nat- urally, is distraught at the moment. You must un- derstand that, man I " " I understand ; and I am sorry," said Exel, cast- ing a sidelong glance at the body. " Of course, it is a delicate subject. No doubt Leroux can ex- plain." . . . "Damn your explanation!" shrieked Leroux hysterically. "I cannot explain! If I could ex- plain, I " . , . " Leroux ! " said Cumberly, placing his arm pa- ternally about the shaking man — " you are such a nervous subject. Do make an effort, old fellow. Pull yourself together. Exel does not know the circumstances — " " I am curious to learn them," said the M. P. icily. Leroux was about to launch some angry retort, but Cumberly forced him into the chesterfield, and crossing to a bureau, poured out a stiff peg of brandy from a decanter which stood there. Leroux sank upon the chesterfield, Tabbing his fingers up and down his palms with a curious nervous movement and glancing at the dead woman, and at Exel, alter- nately, in a mechanical, regular fashion, pathetic to behold. 1 6 THE YELLOW CLAW Mr. Exel, tapping his boot with the head of his inverted cane, was staring fixedly at the doctor. " Here you are, Leroux," said Cumberly; " drink this up, and let us arrange our facts in decent order before we — " "'Phone for the police?" concluded Exel, his gaze upon the last speaker. Leroux drank the brandy at a gulp and put down the glass upon a little persian coffee table with a hand which he had somehow contrived to steady. " You are keen on the official forms, Exel? " he said, with a wry smile. " Please accept my apology for my recent — er — outburst, but picture this thing happening in your place ! " " I cannot," declared Exel, bluntly. " You lack imagination," said Cumberly. " Take a whisky and soda, and help me to search the flat." "Search the flat!" The physician raised a forefinger, forerisically. " Since you, Exel, if not actually in the building, must certainly have been within sight of the street entrance at the moment of the crime, and since Le- roux and I descended the stair and met you on the landing, it is reasonable to suppose that the assassin can only be in one place : here! " " Here! " cried Exel and'Leroux, together. " Did you see anyone leave the lower hall as you entered?" " No one ; emphatically, there was no one there ! " " Then I am right." MIDNIGHT AND MR. KING 17 "Good God!" whispered Exel, glancing about him, with a new, and keen apprehensiveness. " Take your drink," concluded Cumberly, " and join me in my search." " Thanks," replied Exel, nervously proffering a cigar-case ; " but I won't drink." " As you wish," said the doctor, who thus, in his masterful way, acted the host; " and I won't smoke. But do you light up." " Later," muttered Exel; " later. Let us search, first." Leroux stood up; Cumberly forced him back. "Stay where you are, Leroux; it is elementary strategy to operate from a fixed base. This study shall be the base. Ready, Exel? " Exel nodded, and the search commenced. Le- roux sat rigidly upon the settee, his hands resting upon his knees, watching and listening. Save for the merry ticking of the table-clbck, and the move- ments of the searchers from room to room, nothing disturbed the silence. From the table, and that which lay near to it, he kept his gaze obstinately averted. Five or six minutes passed in this fashion, Le- roux expecting each to bring a sudden outcry. He was disappointed. The searchers returned, Exel noticeably holding himself aloof and Cumberly very stern. Exel, a cigar between his teeth, walked to the writing-table, carefully circling around the dreadful 1 8 THE YELLOW CLAW obstacle which lay in his path, to help himself to a match. As he stooped to do so, he perceived that in the closed right hand of the dead woman was a torn scrap of paper. "Lerouxl Cumberlyl" he exclaimed; "come here!" He pointed with the match as Cumberly hurriedly crossed to his side. Leroux, inert, remained where he sat, but watched with haggard eyes. Dr. Cum- berly bent down and sought to detach the paper from the grip of the poor cold fingers, without tear- ing it. Finally he contrived to release the frag- ment, and, perceiving it to bear some written words, he spread it out beneath the lamp, on the table, and eagerly scanned it, lowering his massive gray head close to the writing. He inhaled, sibilantly. " Do you see, Exel? " he jerked — for Exel was bending over his shoulder. " I do — but I don't understand." "What is it?" came hollowly from Leroux. " It is the bottom part of an unfinished note," said Cumberly, slowly. " It is written shakily in a woman's hand, and it reads : — ' Your wife ' " . . . Leroux sprang to his feet and crossed the room in three strides. " Wife ! " he muttered. His voice seemed to be choked in his throat; " my wife 1 It says something about my wife? " " It says," resumed the doctor, quietly, " ' your MIDNIGHT AND MR. KING 19 wife.' Then there's a piece torn out, and the two words ' Mr. King.' No stop follows, and the line is evidently incomplete." " My wife I " mumbled Leroux, staring unsee- ingly at the fragment of paper. " My wife! Mr. King! Oh! God! I shall go mad I " " Sit down! " snapped Dr. Cumberly, turning to him; "damn it, Leroux, you are worse than a woman! " In a manner almost childlike, the novelist obeyed the will of the stronger man, throwing himself into an armchair, and burying his face in his hands. "My wife!" he kept muttering — "my wife!" . . . Exel and the doctor stood staring at one another ; when suddenly, from outside the flat, came a metal- lic clattering, followed by a little suppressed cry. Helen Cumberly, in daintiest deshabille, appeared in the lobby, carrying, in one hand, a chafing-dish, and, in the other, the lid. As she advanced toward the study,, from whence she had heard her father's voice : — "Why, Mr. Leroux!" she cried, "I shall cer- tainly report you to Mira, now! You have not even touched the omelette! " " Good God I Cumberly ! stop her 1 " muttered Exel, uneasily. " The door was not latched ! " . . . But it was too late. Even as the physician turned to intercept his daughter, she crossed the threshold of the study. She stopped short at per- 20 THE YELLOW CLAW ceiving Exel; then, with a woman's unerring intui- tion, divined a tragedy, and, in the instant of divi- nation, sought for, and found, the hub of the tragic wheel. One swift glance she cast at the fur-clad form, prostrate. The chafing-dish fell from her hand, and the omelette rolled, a grotesque mass, upon the carpet. She swayed, dizzily, raising one hand to her brow, but had recovered herself even as Leroux sprang forward to support her. "All right, Leroux!" cried Cumberly; "I will take her upstairs again. Walt for me, Exel." Exel nodded, lighted his cigar, and sat down In a chair, remote from the writing-table. " Mira — my wife ! " muttered Leroux, standing, looking after Dr. Cumberly and his daughter as they crossed the lobby. " She will report to — my wife." . . . In the outer doorway, Helen Cumberly looked back over her shoulder, and her glance met that of Leroux. Hers was a healing glance and a strength- ening glance ; it braced him up as nothing else could have done. He turned to Exel. "For Heaven's sake, Exel!" he said, evenly, " give me your advice — give me your help; I am going to 'phone for the police." Exel looked up with an odd expression. " I am entirely at your service, Leroux," he said> MIDNIGHT AND MR. KING 21 " I can quite understand how this ghastly affair has shaken you up." " It was so sudden," said the other, plaintively. "It is incredible that so much emotion can be crowded into so short a period of a man's life." . . . Big Ben chimed the quarter after midnight. Le- roux, eyes averted, walked to the writing-table, and took up the telephone. Ill Inspector Dunbar Takes Charge DETECTIVE-INSPECTOR DUNBAR was admitted by Dr. Cumberly. He was a man of notable height, large-boned, and built gauntly and squarely. His clothes fitted him ill, and through them one seemed to perceive the massive scaffolding of his frame. He had gray hair retiring above a high brow, but worn long and untidily at the back; a wire-like straight-cut mus- tache, also streaked with gray, which served to ac- centuate the grimness of his mouth and slightly undershot jaw. A massive head, with tawny, leonine eyes; indeed, altogether a leonine face, and a frame indicative of tremendous nervous energy. In the entrance lobby he stood for a moment. " My name is Cumberly," said the doctor, glanc- ing at the card which the Scotland Yard man had proffered. " I occupy the flat above." " Glad to know you. Dr. Cumberly," replied the detective in a light and not unpleasant voice — and the fierce eyes momentarily grew kindly. " This — " continued Cumberly, drawing Dunbar forward into the study, " is my friend, Leroux — Henry Leroux, whose name you will know?" " I have not that pleasure," replied Dunbar, DUNBAR TAKES CHARGE 23 " Well," added Cumberly, " he is a famous novel- ist, and his flat, unfortunately, has been made the scene of a crime. This is Detective-Inspector Dun- bar, who has come to solve our diificulties, Leroux." He turned to where Exel stood upon the hearth-rug — toying with his monocle. " Mr. John Exel, M. P." " Glad to know you, gentlemen," said Dunbar. Leroux rose from the armchair in which he had been sitting and stared, drearily, at the newcomer. Exel screwed the monocle into his right eye, and likewise surveyed the detective. Cumberly, taking a tumbler from the bureau, said:: — "A scotch-and-soda. Inspector?" " It is a suggestion," said Dunbar, " that, coming from a medical man, appeals." Whilst the doctor poured out the whisky and squirted the soda into the glass. Inspector Dunbar, standing squarely in the middle of the room, fixed his eyes upon the still form lying in the shadow of the writing-table. " You will have been called in, doctor," he said, taking the proffered tumbler, " at the time of the crime? " "Exactly!" replied Cumberly. "Mr, Leroux ran up to my flat and summoned me to see the woman." " What time would that be? " " Big Ben had just struck the final stroke of twelve when I came out on to the landing." 24 THE YELLOW CLAW " Mr. Leroux would be waiting there for you? " " He stood in my entrance-lobby whilst I slipped on my dressing-gown, and we came down together." " I was entering from the street," interrupted Exel, " as they were descending from above "... " You can enter from the street, sir, in a moment," said Dunbar, holding up his hand. " One witness at a time, if you please." Exel shrugged his shoulders and turned slightly, leaning his elbow upon the mantelpiece and flicking off the ash from his cigar. " I take it you were in bed? " questioned Dunbar, turning again to the doctor. " I had been in bed about a quarter of an hour when I was aroused by the ringing of the door-bell. This ringing struck me as so urgent that I ran out in my pajamas, and found there Mr. Leroux, in a very disturbed state — " "What did he say? Give his own words as nearly as you remember them." Leroux, who had been standing, sank slowly back into the armchair, with his eyes upon Dr. Cumberly as the latter replied : — "He said 'Cumberly! Cumberly 1 For God's sake, come down at once ; there is a strange woman in my flat, apparently in a dying condition ! ' " "What did you do?" " I ran into my bedroom and slipped on my dressing-gown, leaving Mr. Leroux in the entrance- hall. Then, with the clock chiming the last stroke of DUNBAR TAKES CHARGE 25 midnight, we came out together and I closed my door behind me. There was no light on the stair ; ibut our conversation — Mr. Leroux was speaking in a very high-pitched voice " . . . " What was he saying? " " He was explaining to me how some woman, unknown to him, had interrupted his work a few minutes before by ringing his door-bell." . , . Inspector Dunbar held up his hand. " I won't ask you to repeat what he said, doctor; Mr. Leroux, presently, can give me his own words." " We had descended to this floor, then," resumed Cumberly, " when Mr. Exel, entering below, called up to us, asking if anything was the matter. Leroux replied, ' Matter, Exel 1 There's a devil of a busi- ness! For mercy's sake, come up! ' " "Well?" " Mr, Exel thereupon joined us at the door of this flat." "Was it open?" " Yes. Mr. Leroux had rushed up to me, leav- ing the door open behind him. The light was out, both in the lobby and in the study, a fact upon which I commented at the time. It was all the more curi- ous as Mr. Leroux had left both lights on ! " . . . "Did he say so?" " He did. The circumstances surprised him to a marked degree. We came in and I turned up the light in the lobby. Then Leroux, entering the study, turned up the light there, too. I entered next, fol- 26 THE YELLOW CLAW lowed by Mr. Exel — and we saw the body lying where you see it now." "Who saw it first?" " Mr. Leroux; he drew my attention to it, saying that he had left her lying on the chesterfield and not upon the floor." " You examined her? " " I did. She was dead, but still warm. She ex- hibited signs of recent illness, and of being addicted to some drug habit; probably morphine. This, be- yond doubt, contributed to her death, but the direct cause was asphyxiation. She had been strangled I " " My God ! " groaned Leroux, dropping his face into his hands. " You found marks on her throat? " " The marks were very slight. No great pres- sure was required in her weak condition." " You did not move the body? " " Certainly not; a more complete examination must be made, of course. But I extracted a piece of torn paper from her clenched right hand." Inspector Dunbar lowered his tufted brows. " I'm not glad to know you did that," he said. " It should have been left." " It was done on the spur of the moment, but without altering the position of the hand or arm. The paper lies upon the table, yonder." Inspector Dunbar took a long drink. Thus far he had made no attempt to examine the victim. Pulling out a bulging note-case from the inside DUNBAR TAKES CHARGE 27 pocket of his blue serge coat, he unscrewed a foun- tain-pen, carefully tested the nib upon his thumb nail, and made three or four brief entries. Then, stretching out one long arm, he laid the wallet and the pen beside his glass upon the top of a book- case, without otherwise changing his position, and glancing aside at Exel, said: — "Now, Mr, Exel, what help can you give us?" " I have little to add to Dr. Cumbefly's account," answered Exel, offhandedly. " The t^hole thing seemed to me " . . . " What it seemed," interrupted Dunbar, " does not interest Scotland Yard, Mr. Exel, and won't In- terest the jury." Leroux glanced up for a moment, then set his teeth hard, so that his jaw muscles stood out promi- nently under the pallid skin. " What do you want to know, then? " asked Exel. " I will be wanting to know," said Dunbar, "where you were coming from, to-night?" " From the House of Commons." " You came direct? " " I left Sir Brian Malpas at the corner of Vic- toria Street at four minutes to twelve by Big Ben, and walked straight home, actually entering here, from the street, as the clock was chiming the last stroke of midnight." " Then you would have walked up the street from' an easterly direction? " " Certainly." 28 THE YELLOW CLAW " Did you meet any one or anything? " " A taxi-cab, empty — for the hood was lowered — passed me as I turned the corner. There was no other vehicle in the street, and no person." " You don't know from which door the cab came? " " As I turned the comer," replied Exel, " I heard the man starting his engine, although when I actually saw the dab, it was in motion; but judging by the sound to which I refer, the cab had been sta- tionary, iAnft at the door of Palace Mansions, cer- tainly at that of the next block — St. Andrew's Man- sions." " Did you hear, or see anything else? " " I saw nothing whatever. But just as I ap- proached the street door, I heard a peculiar whistle, apparently proceeding from the gardens in the center of the square. I attached no importance to it at the time." "What kind of whistle?" " I have forgotten the actual notes, but the effect was very odd in some way." " In what way? " " An impression of this sort is not entirely reliable. Inspector; but it struck me as Oriental." "Ah!" said Dunbar, and reached out the long arm for his notebook. " Can I be of any further assistance? " said Exel- glancing at his watch. " You had entered the hall-way and were about to DUNBAR TAKES CHARGE 29 enter your own flat when the voices of Dr. Cumberly and Mr. Leroux attracted your attention?" " I actually had the key in my hand," replied Exel. " Did you actually have the key in the lock? " " Let me think," mused Exel, and he took out a bunch of keys and dangled them, reflectively, before his eyes. " No I I was fumblina^or the right key when I heard the voices above nifl'''- •% " But were you facing your dc^f?'" ^ " No," averred Exel, perceivinffl/th^[J|pt of the inspector's inquiries ; " I was facin^tMstairway the whole time, and although it was in darkness, there is a street lamp immediately outside on the pave- ment, and I can swear, positively, that no one de- scended; that there was no one in the hall nor on the stair, except Mr. Leroux and Dr. Cumberly." " Ah! " said Dunbar again, and made further en- tries in his book. " I need not trouble you further, sir. Goodnight!" Exel, despite his earlier attitude of boredom, now ignored this ofEcial dismissal, and, tossing the stump of his cigar into the grate, lighted a cigarette, and with both hands thrust deep in his pockets, stood leaning back against the mantlepiece. The de- tective turned to Leroux. " Have a brandy-and-soda ? " suggested Dr. Cum- berly, his eyes turned upon the pathetic face of the novelist. But Leroux shook his head, wearily. 30 THE YELLOW CLAW "Go ahead, Inspector!" he said. "I am anx- ious to tell you all I know. God knows I am anx- ious to tell you." A sound was heard of a key being inserted in the lock of a door. Four pairs of curious eyes were turned toward the entrance lobby, when the door opened, and a sleek man of medium height, clean shaven, but with his hair cut low upon the cheek bones, so as to give the impression of short side-whiskers, entered in a manner at once furtive and servile. He wore a black overcoat and a bowler hat. Re- closing the door, he turned, perceived the group in the study, and fell back as though someone had struck him a fierce blow. Abject terror was written upon his features, and, for a moment, the idea of flight appeared to suggest itself urgently to him ; but finally, he took a step for- ward toward the study. " Who's this? " snapped Dunbar, without remov- ing his leonine, eyes from the newcomer. " It is Soames," came the weary voice of Leroux. " Butler? " " Yes." "Where's he been?" " I don't know. He remained out without my permission." "He did, eh?" Inspector Dunbar thrust forth a long finger at the shrinking form in the doorway. DUNBAR TAKES CHARGE 31 " Mr. Soames," he said, " you will be going to your own room and waiting there until I ring for you." " Yes, sir," said Soames, holding his hat in both hands, and speaking huskily. "Yes, sir: certainly, sir." He crossed the lobby and disappeared. " There is no other way out, is there ? " inquired the detective, glancing at Dr. Cumberly. "There is no other way," was the reply; "but surely you don't suspect "... " I would suspect the Archbishop of Westmin- ster," snapped Dunbar, "if he came in like that! Now, sir," — he turned to Leroux — " you were alone, here, to-night?" " Quite alone, Inspector. The truth is, I fear, that my servants take liberties in the absence of my wife." "In the absence of your wife? Where is your wife?" " She is in Paris." " Is she a Frenchwoman? " " No ! oh, no ! But my wife is a painter, yiou understand, and — er — I met her in Paris — er — . . . Must you insist upon these — domestic particulars. Inspector? " " If Mr. Exel is anxious to turn In," replied the inspector, " after his no doubt exhausting duties at the House, and if Dr. Cumberly — " " I have no secrets from Cumberly ! " interjected 32 THE YELLOW CLAW Leroux. " The doctor has known me almost from boyhood, but — er — " turning to the politician — " don't you know, Exel — no ofiense, no offense "... " My dear Leroux," responded Exel hastily, " / am the offender! Permit me to wish you all good night." He crossed the study, and, at the door, paused and turned. " Rely upon me, Leroux," he said, " to help in any way within my power." He crossed the lobby, opened the outer door, and departed. " Now, Mr. Leroux," resumed Dunbar, " about this matter of your wife's absence." IV A Window Is Opened WHILST Henry Leroux collected his thoughts, Dr. Cumberly glanced across at the writing-table where lay the fragment of paper which had been clutched in the dead wom- an's hand, then turned his head again toward the inspector, staring at him curiously. Since Dunbar had not yet attempted even to glance at the strange message, he wondered what had prompted the pres- ent line of inquiry. " My wife," began Leroux, " shared a studio in Paris, at the time that I met her, with an American lady — a very talented portrait painter — er — a Miss Denise Ryland. You may know her name ? — but of course, you don't, no! Well, my wife is, herself, quite clever with her brush; in fact she has exhibited more than once at the Paris Salon. We agreed at — er — the time of our — of our — engagement, that she should be free to visit her old artistic friends in Paris at any time. You understand? There was to be no let or hindrance. . . . Is this really necessary, Inspector?" " Pray go on, Mr. Leroux." • " Well, you understand, it was a give-and-take 33 34 THE YELLOW CLAW arrangement; because I am afraid that I, myself, demand certain — sacrifices from my wife — and — er — I did not feel entitled to — interfere "... " You see, Inspector," interrupted Dr. Cumberly, " they are a Bohemian pair, and Bohemians, inevi- tably, bore one another at times! This little ar- rangement was intended as a safety-valve. When- ever ennui attacked Mrs. Leroux, she was at liberty to depart for a week to her own friends in Paris, leaving Leroux to the bachelor's existence which is really his proper state ; to go unshaven and unshorn, to dine upon bread and cheese and onions, to work until all hours of the morning, and generally to en- joy himself I " " Does she usually stay long? " inquired Dunbar. " Not more than a week, as a rule," answered Leroux. " You must excuse me," continued the detective; " if I seem to pry into intimate matters ; but on these occasions, how does Mrs. Leroux get on for money? " " I have opened a credit for her," explained the novelist, wearily, " at the Credit Lyonnais, in Paris." Dunbar scribbled busily in his notebook. " Does she take her maid with her? " he jerked, suddenly. " She has no maid at the moment," replied Le- roux ; " she has been without one for twelve months or more, now." A WINDOW IS OPENED 35 " When did you last hear from her? " " Three days ago." " Did you answer the letter? " " Yes ; my answer was amongst the mail which Soames took to the post, to-night." " You said, though, if I remember rightly, that he was out without permission? " Leroux ran his fingers through his hair. " I meant that he should only have been absent five minutes or so ; whilst he remained out for more than an hour." Inspector Dunbar nodded, comprehendingly, tap- ping his teeth with the head of the fountain-pen. " And the other servants? " " There are only two : a cook and a maid. I re- leased them for the evening — glad to get rid of them — wanted to work." "They are late?" " They take liberties, damnable liberties, because I am easy-going." " I see," said Dunbar. " So that you were quite alone this evening, when " — he nodded in the direc- tion of the writing-table — " your visitor came? " " Quite alone." " Was her arrival the first interruption? " " No — er — not exactly. Miss Cumberly . . ." " My daughter," explained Dr. Cumberly, " knowing that Mr. Leroux, at these times, was very neglectful in regard to meals, prepared him an ome- lette, and brought it down in a chafing-dish." 36 THE YELLOW CLAW " How long did she remain?" asked the inspec- tor of Leroux. "I — er — did not exactly open, the door. We chatted, through — er — through the letter-box, and she left the omelette outside on the landing." " What time would that be? " " It was a quarter to twelve," declared Cumberly;. " I had been supping with some friends, and returned to find Helen, my daughter, engaged in preparing the omelette. I congratulated her upon the happy thought, knowing that Leroux was probably starving himself." " I see. The omelette, though, seems to be upset here on the floor? " said the inspector. Cumberly briefly explained how it came to be there, Leroux punctuating his friend's story with afiirmative nods. " Then the door of the flat was open all the time ? " cried Dunbar. "Yes," replied Cumberly; "but whilst Exel and I searched the other rooms — and our search was exhaustive — Mr. Leroux remained here in the study, and in full view of the lobby — as you see for yourself." " No living thing," said Leroux, monotonously, " left this flat from the time that the three of us, Exel, Cumberly, and I, entered, up to the time that Miss Cumberly came, and, with the doctor, went out again. "H'ml" said the inspector, making notes; "it A WINDOW IS OPENED 37 appears so, certainly. I will ask you then, for your own account, Mr. Leroux, of the arrival of the woman in the civet furs. Pay special attention " — he pointed with his fountain-pen — "to the time at which the various incidents occurred." Leroux, growing calmer as he proceeded with the strange story, complied with the inspector's request. He had practically completed his account when the door-bell rang. " It's the servants," said Dr. Cumberly. " Soames will open the door." But Soames did not appear. The ringing being repeated : — " I told him to remain in his room," said Dunbar, " until I rang for him, I remember — " " I will open the door," said Cumberly. " And tell the servants to stay in the kitchen," snapped Dunbar. Dr. Cumberly opened the door, admitting the cook and housemaid. " There has been an unfortunate accident," he said — "but not to your master; you need not be afraid. But be good enough to remain in the kitchen for the present." Peeping in furtively as they passed, the two women crossed the lobby and went to their own quarters. " Mr. Soames next," muttered Dunbar, and, glancing at Cumberly as he returned from the lobby : — "Will you ring for him?" he requested. 38 THE YELLOW CLAW Dr. Cumberly nodded, and pressed a bell beside the mantelpiece. An interval followed, in which the inspector made notes and Cumberly stood look- ing at Leroux, who was beating his palms upon his knees, and staring unseeingly before him. Cumberly rang again; and in response to the sec- ond ring, the housemaid appeared at the door. " I rang for Soames," said Dr. Cumberly. " He is not in, sir," answered the girl. Inspector Dunbar started as though he had been bitten. "What!" he cried; "not in?" " No, sir," said the girl, with wide-open, fright- ened eyes. Dunbar turned to Cumberly. " You said there was no other way out ! " " There is no other way, to my knowledge." "Where's his room? " Cumberly led the way to a room at the end of a short corridor, and Inspector Dunbar, entering, and turning up the light, glanced about the little apart- ment. It was a very neat servants' bedroom; with comfortable, quite simpkj furniture; but the chest- of-drawers had been hastily ransacked, and the con- tents of a tri^k — or some of its contents — lay strewn about the floor. " He has packed his grip I " came Leroux's voice from the doorway. "It's gone ! " The window was wide open. Dunbar sprang for- A WINDOW IS OPENED 39 ward and leaned out over the ledge, looking to right and left, above and below. A sort of square courtyard was beneath, and for the convenience of tradesmen, a hand-lift was con- structed outside the kitchens of the three flats com- prising the house ; i. e. : — Mr. Exel's, ground floor, Henry Leroux's second floor, and Dr. Cumberly's, top. It worked in a skeleton shaft which passed close to the left of Soames' window. For an active man, this was a good enough ladder, and the inspector withdrew his head shrugging his square shoulders, irritably. " My fault entirely ! " he muttered, biting his wiry mustache. " I should have come and seen for my- self if there was another way out." Leroux, in a new flutter of excitement, now craned from the window. " It might be possible to climb down the shaft," he cried, after a brief survey " but not if one were carrying a heavy grip, such as that which he has taken I" " H'm ! " said Dunbar. " You are a writing gen- tleman, I understand, and yet it does not occur to you that he could have lowered the bag on a cord, if he wanted to avoid the noise of dropping it ! " " Yes — er — of course ! " muttered Leroux. " But really — but really — oh, good God I I am bewildered! What in Heaven's name does it all mean ! " 40 THE YELLOW CLAW " It means trouble," replied Dunbar, grimly ; " bad trouble." They returned to the study, and Inspector Dun- bar, for the first time since his arrival, walked across and examined the fragmentary message, raising his eyebrows when he discovered that it was written upon the same paper as Leroux's MSS. He glanced, too, at the pen lying on a page of " Martin Zeda " near the lamp and at the inky splash which told how hastily the pen had been dropped. Then — his brows drawn together — he stooped to the body of the murdered woman. Partially raising the fur cloak, he suppressed a gasp of aston- ishment. " Why I she only wears a silk night-dress, and a pair of suede slippers ! " He glanced back over his shoulder. " I had noted that," said Cumberly. " The whole business is utterly extraordinary." " Extraordinary is no word for it! " growled the inspector, pursuing his examination. ..." Marks of pressure at the throat — yes; and generally un- healthy appearance." " Due to the drug habit," interjected Dr. Cum- berly. " What drug? " " I should not like to say out of hand; possibly morphine." " No jewelry," continued the detective, musingly; " wedding ring — not a new one. Finger nails well A WINDOW IS OPENED 41 cared for, but recently neglected. Hair dyed to hide gray patches; dye wanted renewing. Shoes, French. Night-robe, silk; good lace; probably French, also. Faint perfume — don't know what it is — lapparently proceeding from civet fur. Furs, magnificent; very costly." . . . He slightly moved the table-lamp in order to di- rect its light upon the white face. The bloodless lips were parted and the detective bent, closely peer- ing at the teeth thus revealed. " Her teeth were oddly discolored, doctor," he said, taking out a magnifying glass and examining them closely. " They had been recently scaled, too ; so that she was not in the habit of neglecting them." Dr. Cumberly nodded. " The drug habit, agaitt," he said guardedly; " a proper examination will establish the full facts." The inspector added brief notes to those already made, ere he rose from beside the body. Then : — " You are absolutely certain," he said, deliber- ately, facing Leroux, " that you had never set eyes on this woman prior to her coming here, to-night? " " I can swear it! " said Leroux. "Good!" replied the detective, and closed his notebook with a snap. " Usual formalities will have to be gone through, but I don't think I need trouble you, gentlemen, any further, to-night." V Doctors Differ DR. CUMBERLY walked slowly upstairs to his own flat, a picture etched indelibly upon his mind, of Henry Leroux, with a face of despair, sitting below in his dining-room and listen- ing to the ominous sounds proceeding from the study, where the police were now busily engaged. In the lobby he met his daughter Helen, who was waiting for him in a state of nervous suspense. " Father 1" she began, whilst rebuke died upon the doctor's lips — " tell me quickly what has hap- pened." Perceiving that an explanation was unavoidable, Dr. Gumberly outlined the story of the night's grue- some happenings, whilst Big Ben began to chime the hour of one. Helen, eager-eyed, and with her charming face rather pale, hung upon every word of the narrative. " And now," concluded her father, "you must go to bed. I insist." " But father ! " cried the girl — " there is some- thing" . . . She hesitated, uneasily. " Well, Helen, go on," said the doctor. 42 DOCTORS DIFFER 43 " I am afraid you will refuse." " At least give me the opportunity;." " Well — in the glimpse, the half-glimpse, which I had of her, I seemed "... Dr. Cumberly rested his hands upon his daugh- ter's shoulders characteristically, looking into the troubled gray eyes. " You don't mean," he began . . . "I thought I recognized her!" whispered the girl. " Good God! can it be possible? " " I have been trying, ever since, to recall where we had met, but without result. It might mean so much "... Dr. Cumberly regarded her, fixedly. " It might mean so much to — Mr. Leroux. But I suppose you will say it is impossible ? " "It is impossible," said Dr. Cumberly firmly; " dismiss the idea, Helen." " But father," pleaded the girl, placing her hands over his own, " consider what is at stake "... " I am anxious that you should not become in- volved in this morbid business." " But you surely know me better than to expect me to faint or become hysterical, or anything silly like that! I was certainly shocked when I came down to-night, because — well, it was all so fright- fully unexpected "... Dr. Cumberly shook his head. Helen put her arms about his neck and raised her eyes to his. 44 THE YELLOW CLAW " You have no right to refuse," she said, softly: " don't you see that? " Dr. Cumberly frowned. Then: — " You are right, Helen," he agreed. " I should know your pluck well enough. But if Inspector Dunbar is gone, the police may refuse to admit us " . . . "Then let us hurry I" cried Helen. "I am ■ afraid they will take away "... Side by side they descended to Henry Leroux's flat, ringing the bell, which, an hour earlier, the lady of the civet furs had rung. A sergeant in uniform opened the door. " Is Detective-Inspector Dunbar here ? " inquired the physician. "Yes, sir." " Say that Dr. Cumberly wishes to speak to him. And" — as the man was about to depart — "re- quest him not to arouse Mr. Leroux." Almost immediately the inspector appeared, a look of surprise upon his face, which increased on perceiving the girl beside her father. " This is my daughter, Inspector," explained Cum- berly; " she Is a contributor to the Planet, and to various magazines, and in this journalistic capacity, meets many people in many walks of life. She thinks she may be of use to you in preparing your case." Dunbar bowed rather awkwardly. DOCTORS DIFFER 45 " Glad to meet you, Miss Curaberly," came the inevitable formula. " Entirely at your service." " I had an idea, Inspector," said the girl, laying her hand confidentially upon Dunbar's arm, " that I recognized, when I entered Mr. Leroux's study, to- night " — Dunbar nodded — "that I recognized — the — the victim ! " " Good ! " said the inspector, rubbing his palms briskly together. His tawny eyes sparkled. " And you would wish to see her again before we take her away. Very plucky of you. Miss Cumberly! But then, you are a doctor's daughter." They entered, and the inspector closed the door behind them. " Don't arouse poor Leroux," whispered Cum- berly to the detective. " I left him on a couch in the dining-room." . . . " He is still there," replied Dunbar; " poor chapl Itis" . . . He met Helen's glance, and broke off shortly. In the study two uniformed constables, and an ofEccr in plain clothes, were apparently engaged in making an inventory — or such was the impression conveyed. The clock ticked merrily on; its ticking a desecration, where all else was hushed in deference to the grim visitor. The body of the murdered woman had been laid upon the chesterfield, and a little, dark, bearded man was conducting an elabo- rate examination; when, seeing the trio enter, he 46 THE YELLOW CLAW hastily threw the coat of civet fur over the body, and stood up, facing the intruders. " It's all right, doctor," said the inspector; " and we shan't detain you a moment." He glanced over his shoulder. " Mr. Hilton, M. R. C. S." he said, indicating the dark man — " Dr. Cumberly and Miss Cumberly." The divisional surgeon bowed to Helen and ea- gerly grasped the hand of the celebrated physician. " I am fortunate in being able to ask your opin- ion," he began. . . . Dr. Cumberly nodded shortly, and with upraised hand, cut him short. " I shall willingly give you any assistance in my power," he said; " but my daughter has voluntarily committed herself to a rather painful ordeal, and I am anxious to get it over." He stooped and raised the fur from the ghastly face. Helen, her hand resting upon her father's shoul- der, ventured one rapid glance and then looked away, shuddering slightly. Dr. Cumberly replaced the coat and gazed anxiously at his daughter. But Helen, with admirable courage, having closed her eyes for a moment, reopened them, and smiled at her father's anxiety. She was pale, but perfectly composed. " Well, Miss Cumberly? " inquired the inspector, eagerly; whilst all in the room watched this slim DOCTORS DIFFER 47 girl in her charming deshabille, this dainty figure so utterly out of place in that scene of morbid crime. \^e raised her gray eyes to the detective. " r~stilhbelieve that I have seen the face, some- where, before. But I shall have to reflect a while — I meet so many folks, you know, in a casual way — before I can commit myself to any statement." In the leonine eyes looking into hers gleamed the light of admiration and approval. The canny Scots- man admired this girl for her beauty, as a matter of course, for her courage, because courage was a qual- ity standing high in his estimation, but, above all, for her admirable discretion. "Very proper. Miss Cumberly," he said; "very proper and wise on your part. I don't wish to hurry you in any way, but " — he hesitated, glancing at the .man in plain clothes, who had now resumed a careful perusal of a newspaper — " but her name doesn't happen to be Vernon — " "Vernon!" cried the girl, her eyes lighting up at sound of the name. " Mrs. Vernon! it is! it is! She was pointed out to me at the last Arts Ball — where she appeared in a most monstrous Chinese costume — " "Chinese?" inquired Dunbar, producing the bulky notebook. "Yes. Oh! poor, poor soul! " " You know nothing further about her. Miss Cum- berly? " 48 THE YELLOW CLAW "Nothing, Inspector. She was merely pointed out to me as one of the strangest figures in the hall. Her husband, I understand, is an art expert — " " He was! " said Dunbar, closing the book sharply. "He died this afternoon; and a para- graph announcing his death appears in the news- paper which we found in the victim's fur coat ! " "But how—" " It was the only paragraph on the half-page folded outwards which was in any sense personal. I am greatly indebted to you, Miss Cumberly ; every hour wasted on a case like this means a fresh plait in the rope around the neck of the wrong man! " Helen Cumberly grew slowly quite pallid. " Good night," she said; and bowing to the de- tective and to the surgeon, she prepared to depart. Mr. Hilton touched Dr. Cumberly's arm, as he, too, was about to retire. " May I hope," he whispered, " that you will re- turn and give me the benefit of your opinion in making out my report? " Dr. Cumberly glanced at his daughter; and see- ing her to be perfectly composed: — " For the mo- ment, I have formed no opinion, Mr. Hilton," he said, quietly, " not having had an opportunity to conduct a proper examination." ^ Hilton bent and whispered, confidentially, in the other's ear: — " She was drugged ! " The innuendo underlying the w©rds struck Dr. DOCTORS DIFFER 49 Cumberly forcibly, and he started back with his brows drawn together in a frown. " Do you mean that she was addicted to the use of drugs?" he asked, sharply; "or that the drug- ging took place to-night." "The drugging did take place to-night I " whis- pered the other. " An injection was made in the left shoulder with a hypodermic syringe; the mark is quite fresh." Dr. Cumberly glared at his fellow practitioner, angrily. "Are there no other marks of injection?" he asked. " On the left forearm, yes. Obviously self-ad- ministered. Oh, I don't deny the habit! But my point is this: the injection in the shoulder was not self -administered. " " Come, Helen," said Cumberly, taking his daugh- ter's arm; for she had drawn near, during the col- loquy — " you must get to bed." His face was very stern when he turned again to Mr. Hilton. " I shall return in a few minutes," he said, and escorted his daughter from the room. VI At Scotland Yard MATTERS of vital importance to some peo- ple whom already we have met, and to others whom thus far we have not met, were transacted in a lofty and rather bleak looking room at Scotland Yard between the hours of nine and ten A. M. ; that is, later in the morning of the fateful day whose advent we have heard acclaimed from the Tower of Westminster. The room, which was lighted by a large French window opening upon a balcony, commanded' an excellent view of the Thames Embankment. The floor was polished to a degree of brightness, almost ^ painful. The distempered walls, save for a severe and solitary etching of a former Commissioner, were nude in all their unloveliness. A heavy deal table (upon which rested a blotting-pad, a pewter ink-pot, several newspapers and two pens) together with three deal chairs, built rather as monuments of durability than as examples of art, constituted the only furniture, if we except an electric lamp with a green glass shade, above the table. This was the room of Detective-Inspector Dun- bar; and Detective-Inspector Dunbar, at the hour so AT SCOTLAND YARD 51 of our entrance, will be found seated in the chair, placed behind the table, his elbows resting upon the blotting-pad. At ten minutes past nine, exactly, the door opened, and a thick-set, florid man, buttoned up in a fawn colored raincoat and wearing a bowler hat of obso- lete build, entered. He possessed a black mustache, a breezy, bustling manner, and humorous blue eyes ; furthermore, when he took off his hat, he revealed the possession of a head of very bristly, upstanding, black hair. This was Detective-Sergeant Sowerby, and the same who was engaged in examining a newspaper in the study of Henry Leroux when Dr. Cumberly and his daughter had paid their second visit to 'that scene of an unhappy soul's dis- missal. "Well?" said Dunbar, glancing up at his sub- ordinate, inquiringly. " I have done all the cab depots," reported Ser- geant Sowerby, " and a good many of the private owners; but so far the man seen by Mr. Exel has not turned up." " The word will be passed round now, though," said Dunbar, " and we shall probably have him here during the day." " I hope so," said the other good-humoredly, seat- ing himself upon one of the two chairs ranged be- side the wall. " If he doesn't show up." . . . " Well? " jerked Dunbar—" if he doesn't? " " It will look very black against Leroux." 52 THE YELLOW CLAW Dunbar drummed upon the blotting-pad with the fingers of his left hand. " It beats anything of the kind that has ever come my way," he confessed. " You get pretty cautious at weighing people up, in this business; but I cer- tainly don't think — mind you, I go no further — but I certainly don't think Mr. Henry Leroux would willingly kill a fly; yet there is circumstantial evi- dence enough to hang him." Sergeant Sowerby nodded, gazing speculatively at the floor. "I wonder," he said, slowly, "why the girl — Miss Cumberly — hesitated about telling us the woman's name? " " I am not wondering about that at all," replied Dunbar, bluntly. " She must meet thousands in the same way. The wonder to me is that she re- membered at all. I am open to bet half-a-crown that you couldn't remember the name of every woman you happened to have pointed out to you at an Arts Ball?" " Maybe not," agreed Sowerby; " she's a smart girl, I'll allow. I see you have last night's papers there? " "I have," replied Dunbar; "and I'm wonder- mg ... "If there's any connection?" " Well," continued the inspector, " it looks on the face of it as though the news of her husband's death had something to do with Mrs. Vernon's pres- AT SCOTLAND YARD 53 ence at Leroux's flat. It's not a natural thing for a woman, on the evening of her husband's death, to rush straight away to another man's place "... " It's strange we couldn't find her clothes "... " It's not strange at all I You're simply obsessed with the idea that this was a love intrigue ! Think, man! the most abandoned woman wouldn't run to keep an appointment with a lover at a time like thatl And remember she had the news in her pocket! She came to that flat dressed — or un- dressed — just as we found her; I'm sure of it. And a point like that sometimes means the differ- ence between hanging and acquittal." Sergeant Sowerby digested these words, compos- ing his jovial countenance in an expression of un- natural profundity. Then: — " The point to my mind," he said, " is the one raised by Mr. Hilton. By gum! didn't Dr. Cum- berly tell him off ! " " Dr. Cumberly," replied Dunbar, " is entitled to his opinion, that the injection in the woman's shoul- der was at least eight hours old; whilst Mr. Hilton is equally entitled to maintain that it was less than one hour old. Neither of them can hope to prove his case." " If either of them could? "... " It might make a difference to the evidence — but I'm not sure." " What time is your appointment? " " Ten o'clock," replied Dunbar. "I am meeting 54 THE YELLOW CLAW Mr. Debnam — the late Mr. Vernon's solicitor. There is something in it. Damme ! I am sure of itl" " Something in what?" i i " The fad: that Mr. Vernon died yesterday even- ing, and that his wife was murdered at midnight." " What have you told the press? " " As little as possible, but you will see that the early editions will all be screaming for the arrest of Soames." " I shouldn't wonder. He would be a useful man to have ; but he's probably out of London now." " I think not. He's more likely to wait for in- structions from his principal." " His principal? " " Certainly. You don't think Soames did the murder, do you? " ^ " No; but he's obviously an accessory." " I'm not so sure even of that." "Then why did he bolt?" " Because he had a guilty conscience." " Yes," agreed Sowerby ; " it does turn out that way sometimes. At any rate. Stringer is after him, but he's got next to nothing to go upon. Has any reply been received from Mrs. Leroux In Paris? '' " No," answered Dunbar, frowning thoughtfully. " Her husband's wire would reach her first thing this morning; I am expecting to hear of a reply at any moment." " They^re a funny couple, altogether," said Sow- AT SCOTLAND YARD 55 erby, " I can't Imagine myself standing for Mrs. Sowerby spending her week-ends in Paris. Asking for trouble, / call it 1 " " It does seem a daft arrangement," agreed Dun- bar; " but then, as you say, they're a funny couple." " I never saw such a bundle of nerves in aU my lifel" . . . "Leroux?" Sowerby nodded. " I suppose," he said, " it's the artistic tempera- ment I If Mrs. Leroux has got it, too, I don't won- der that they get fed up with one another's company." " That's about the secret of it. And now, I shall be glad, Sowerby, If you will be after that taxi-man again. Report at one o'clock. I shall be here." With his hand on the door-knob : " By the way," said Sowerby, " who the blazes Is Mr. King? " Inspector Dunbar looked up. " Mr. King," he replied slowly, " Is the solution of the mystery." VII The Man in the Limousine THE house of the late Horace Vernon was a modern villa of prosperous appearance; but, on this sunny September morning, a palpable atmosphere of gloom seemed to overlie it. This made itself perceptible even to the toughened and unimpressionable nerves of Inspector Dunbar. As he mounted the five steps leading up to the door, glancing meanwhile at the lowered blinds at the win- dows, he wondered if, failing these evidences and his own private knowledge of the facts, he should have recognized that the hand of tragedy had placed its mark upon this house. But when the door was opened by a white-faced servant, he told himself that he should, for a veritable miasma of death seemed to come out to meet him, to envelop him. Within, proceeded a subdued activity : somber fig- ures moved upon the staircase; and Inspector Dun- bar, having presented his card, presently found himself in a well-appointed library. At the table, whereon were spread a number of documents, sat a lean, clean-shaven, sallow-faced man, wearing gold-rimmed pince-nez; a man whose demeanor of business-like gloom was most admi- rably adapted to that place and occasion. This was 56 THE MAN IN THE LIMOUSINE 57 Mr. Debnam, the solicitor. He gravely waved the detective to an armchair, adjusted his pince-nez, and coughed, introductorily. " Your communication. Inspector," he began (he had the kind of voice which seems to be buried in sawdust packing) , " was brought to me this morn- ing, and has disturbed me immeasurably, unspeak- ably." " You have been to view the body, sir? " " One of my clerks, who knew Mrs. Vernon, has just returned to this house to report that he has identified her." " I should have preferred you to have gone your- self, sir," began Dunbar, taking out his notebook. " My state of health. Inspector," said the solici- tor, " renders it undesirable that I should submit myself to an ordeal so unnecessary — so wholly un- necessary'." " Very good ! " muttered Dunbar, making an entry in his book; "your clerk, then, whom I can see in a moment, identifies the murdered woman as Mrs. Vernon. What was her Christian name? " " Iris — Iris Mary Vernon." Inspector Dunbar made a note of the fact. " And now," he said, " you will have read the copy of that portion of my report which I submitted to you this morning — acting upon information sup- plied by Miss Helen Cumberly ? " " Yes, yes, Inspector, I have read it — but, by the way, I do not know Miss Cumberly." 58 THE YELLOW CLAW " Miss Cumberly," explained the detective, " is the daughter of Dr. Cumberly, the Harley Street physician. She lives with her father in the flat above that of Mr. Leroux. She saw the body by accident — and recognized it as that of a lady who had been named to her at the last Arts Ball." " Ah 1 " said Debnam, " yes — I see — at the Arts Ball, Inspector. This is a mysterious and a very ghastly case." "It is indeed, sir," agreed Dunbar. " Can you throw any light upon the presence of Mrs. Vernon at Mr. Leroux's flat on the very night of her hus- band's death?" " I can — and I cannot," answered the solicitor, leaning back in the chair and again adjusting his pince-nez, in the manner of a man having important matters — and gloomy, very gloomy, matters — to communicate. " Good ! " said the inspector, and prepared to listen. " You see," continued Debnam, " the late Mrs. Vernon was not actually residing with her husband at the date of his death." "Indeed!" " Ostensibly " — the solicitor shook a lean fore- finger at his vis-a-vis — " ostensibly, Inspector, she was visiting her sister in Scotland." Inspector Dunbar sat up very straight, his brows drawn down over the tawny eyes. " These visits were of frequent occurrence, and THE MAN IN THE LIMOUSINE 59 usually of about a week's duration. Mr. Vernon, my late client, a man — I'll not deny it — of incon- stant affections (you understand me, Inspector?), did not greatly concern himself with his wife's move- ments. She belonged to a smart Bohemian set, and — to use a popular figure of speech — burnt the candle at both ends ; late dances, night clubs, bridge parties, and other feverish pursuits, possibly taken up as a result of the — shall I say cooling? — of her husband's affections "... " There was another woman in the case? " " I fear so. Inspector; in fact, I am sure of it: but to return to Mrs. Vernon. My client provided her with ample funds ; and I, myself, have expressed to him astonishment respecting her expenditures in Scotland. I understand that her sister was in com- paratively poor circumstances, and I went so far as to point out to Mr. Vernon that one hundred pounds was — shall I say an excessive ? — outlay upon a week's sojourn in Auchterander, Perth." " A hundred pounds ! " " One hundred pounds ! " " Was it queried by Mr. Vernon? " " Not at all." " Was Mr. Vernon personally acquainted with this sister in Perth ? " " He was not, Inspector. Mrs. Vernon, at the time of her marriage, did not enjoy that social status to which my late client elevated her. For many years she held no open communication with 6o THE YELLOW CLAW any member of her family, but latterly, as I have explained, she acquired the habit of recuperating — recuperating from the effects of her febrile pleas- ures — at this obscure place in Scotland. And Mr. Vernon, his interest in her movements having con- siderably — shall I say abated? — offered no objec- tion: even suffered it gladly, counting the cost but little against "... " Freedom? " suggested Dunbar, scribbling in his notebook. " Rather crudely expressed, perhaps," said the solicitor, peering over the top of his glasses, " but you have the idea. I come now to my client's awak- ening. Four days ago, he learned the truth; he learned that he was being deceived! " "Deceived!" " Mrs. Vernon, thoroughly exhausted with irregu- lar living, announced that she was about to resort once more to the healing breezes of the heather- land " — Mr. Debnam was thoroughly warming to his discourse and thoroughly enjoying his own dusty phrases. " Interrupting you for a moment," said the in- . spector, "at what intervals did these visits take place?" "At remarkably regular intervals. Inspector: something like six times a year." " For how long had Mrs. Vernon made a custom of these visits? " " Roughly, for two years." THE MAN IN THE LIMOUSINE 6i " Thank you. Will you go on, sir? " " She requested Mr. Vernon, then, on the last oc- casion to give her a check for eighty pounds; and this he did, unquestioningly. On Thursday, the second of September, she left for Scotland "... " Did she take her maid? " " Her maid always received a holiday on these oc- casions ; Mrs. Vernon wired her respecting the date of her return." " Did any one actually see her off? " " No, not that I am aware of. Inspector." " To put the whole thing quite bluntly, Mr. Deb- nam," said Dunbar, fixing his tawny eyes upon the solicitor, " Mr. Vernon was thoroughly glad to get rid of her for a week? " Mr. Debnam shifted uneasily in his chair; the truculent directness of the detective was unpleasing to his tortuous mind. However: — " I fear you have hit upon the truth," he con- fessed, " and I must admit that we have no legal evidence of her leaving for Scotland on this, or on any other occasion. Letters were received from Perth, and letters sent to Auchterander from Lon- don were answered. But the truth, the painful truth came to light, unexpectedly, dramatically, on Monday last "... " Four days ago ? " " Exactly; three days before the death of my client." Mr. Debnam wagged his finger at the in- spector again. " I maintain," he said, " that this 62 THE YELLOW CLAW painful discovery, which I am about to mention, pre- cipitated my client's end; although it is a fact that there was — hereditary heart trouble. But I admit that his neglect of his wife (to give it no harsher name) contributed to the catastrophe." He paused to give dramatic point to the revela- tion. " Walking homeward at a late hour on Monday evening from a flat in Victoria Street — the flat of — shall I employ the term a particular friend? — Mr. Vernon was horrified — horrified beyond meas- ure, to perceive, in a large and well-appointed car — a limousine — his wife!" . . . " The inside lights of the car were on, then? " " No; but the light from a street lamp shone di- rectly into the car. A temporary block In the traflic compelled the driver of the car, whom my client described to me as an Asiatic — to pull up for a moment. There, within a few yards of her hus- band, Mrs. Vernon reclined in the car — or rather in the arms of a male companion! " "What!" " Positively ! " Mr. Debnam was sedately en- joying himself. " Positively, my dear Inspector, In the arms of a man of extremely dark complexion. Mr. Vernon was unable to perceive more than this, for the man had his back toward him. But the light shone fully upon the face of Mrs. Vernon, who ap- peared pale and exhausted. She wore a conspicuous motor-coat of civet fur, and it was this which first THE MAN IN THE LIMOUSINE 63 attracted Mr. Vernon's attention. The blow was a very severe one to a man in my client's state of health; and although I cannot claim that his own conscience was clear, this open violation of the mar- riage vows outraged the husband — outraged him. In fact he was so perturbed, that he stood there shaking, quivering, unable to speak or act, and the car drove away before he had recovered sufficient presence of mind to note the number." " In which direction did the car proceed?" " Toward Victoria Station." " Any other particulars? " " Not regarding the car, its driver, or its occu- pants; but early on the following morning, Mr. Vernon, very much shaken, called upon me and in- structed me to despatch an agent to Perth immedi- ately. My agent's report reached me at practically the same time as the news of my client's death " . . . " And his report was ? " . . . " His report. Inspector, telegraphic, of course, was this: that no sister of Mrs. Vernon resided at the address; that the place was a cottage occupied by a certain Mrs. Fry and her husband; that the husband was of no occupation, and had no visible means of support "— he ticked off the points on the long forefinger — " that the Frys lived better than any of their neighbors; and — most important of all — that Mrs. Fry's maiden name, which my agent discovered by recourse to the parish register of mar- riages — was Ann Fairchild." 64 THE YELLOW CLAW "What of that?" " Ann Fairchild was a former maid of Mrs. Vernon!" " In short, it amounts to this, then : Mrs. Ver- non, during these various absences, never went to Scotland at all? It was a conspiracy?" " Exactly — exactly, Inspector 1 I wired in- structing my agent to extort from the woman, Fry, the address to which she forwarded letters received by her for Mrs. Vernon. The lady's death, news of which will now have reached him, will no doubt be a lever, enabling my representative to obtain the desired information." " When do you expect to hear from him? " " At any moment. Failing a full confession by the Frys, you will of course know how to act, In- spector? " " Damme I " cried Dunbar, " can your man be relied upon to watch them? They mustn't slip away ! Shall I instruct Perth to arrest the couple ? " " I wired my agent this morning. Inspector, to communicate with the local police respecting the Frys." Inspector Dunbar tapped his small, widely-sepa- rated teeth with the end of his fountain-pen. " I have had one priceless witness slip, through my fingers," he muttered. " I'll hand in my resig- nation if the Frys go I " " To whom do you refer? " THE MAN IN THE LIMOUSINE 65 Inspector Dunbar rose. " It is a point with which I need not trouble you, sir," he said. " It was not included in the extract of report sent to you. This is going to be the big- gest case of my professional career, or my name is not Robert Dunbar ! " Closing his notebook, he thrust it into his pocket, and replaced his fountain-pen in the little leather wallet. " Of course,"' said the solicitor, rising in turn, and adjusting the troublesome pince-nez, " there was some intrigue with Leroux? So much is evident." " You will be thinking that, eh? " " My dear Inspector " — Mr. Debnam, the wily, was seeking information — " my dear Inspector, Leroux's own wife was absent in Paris — quite a safe distance; and Mrs. Vernon (now proven to be a woman conducting a love intrigue) is found dead under most compromising circumstances — most compromising circumstances — in his flat ! His servants, even, are got safely out of the way for the evening "... " Quite so," said Dunbar, shortly, " quite so, Mr. Debnam." He opened the door. " Might I see the late Mrs. Vernon's maid? " " She is at her home. As I told you, Mrs. Ver- non habitually released her for the period of these absences." The notebook reappeared. 66 THE YELLOW CLAW " The young woman's address? " " You can get it from the housekeeper. Is there anything else you wish to know? " " Nothing beyond that, thank you." Three minutes later, Inspector Dunbar had writ- ten in his book : — Clarice Goodstone, c/o Mrs. Heme, 134a Robert Street, Hampstead Road, N. W. He departed from the house whereat Death the Gleaner had twice knocked with his Scythe. VIII Cabman Two RETURNING to Scotland Yard, Inspector Dunbar walked straight up to his own room. There he found Sowerby, very red faced and humid, and a taximan who sat stolidly surveying the Embankment from the window. "Hullo!" cried Dunbar; "he's turned up, then?" " No, he hasn't," replied Sowerby with a mild irritation. " But we know where to find him, and he ought to lose his license." The taximan turned hurriedly. He wore a muf- fler so tightly packed between his neck and the col- lar of his uniform jacket, that it appeared materially to impair his respiration. His face possessed a bluish tinge, suggestive of asphyxia, and his watery eyes protruded remarkably; his breathing was noisily audible. "No, chuck it, mister!" he exclaimed. "I'm only tellin' you 'cause it ain't my line to play tricks on the police. You'll find my name in the books downstairs more'n any other driver in London! I reckon I've brought enough umbrellas, cameras, walkin' sticks, hopera cloaks, watches and sicklikc in 'ere, to set up a blarsted pawnbroker's ! " 67 68 THE YELLOW CLAW " That's all right, my lad ! " said Dunbar, hold- ing up his hand to silence the voluble speaker. " There's going to be no license-losing. You did not hear that you were wanted before? " The watery eyes of the cabman protruded pain- fully; he respired like a horse. "Me, guv'nor!" he exclaimed. "Gor'blimel I ain't the bloke! I was drivin' back from takin' the Honorable 'Erbert 'Arding 'ome — same as I does almost every night, when the 'ouse is a-sittin' — when I see old Tom Brian drawin' away from the door o' Palace Man — " Again Dunbar held up his hand. " No doubt you mean well," he saidi " but damme ! begin at the beginning I Who are you, and what have you come to tell us ? " " 'Oo are I? — 'Ere's 'oo I ham! " wheezed the cabman, proffering a greasy license. " Richard 'Almper, number 3 Breams Mews, Dulwich Vil- lage " . . . " That's all right," said Dunbar, thrusting back the proffered document; " and last night you had taken Mr. Harding the member of Parliament, to his residence in?" — "In Peers' Chambers, Westminister — that's it, guv'nor! Comin' back, I 'ave to pass along the north side o' the Square, an' just a'ead o' me, I see old Tom Brian a-puUin' round the Johnny 'Orner, — 'im comin' from Palace Mansions." " Mr. Exel only mentioned seeing one cab," mut- CABMAN TWO 69 tered Dunbar, glancing keenly aside at Sowerby. " Wotcher say, guv'nor?" asked the cabman. "I say — did you see a gentleman approaching from the corner? " asked Dunbar. "Yus," declared the man; "I see 'im, but 'e 'adn't got as far as the Johnny 'Omer. As I passed outside old Tom Brian, wot's changin' 'is gear, I see a bloke blowin' along on the pavement — a bloke in a high 'at, an' wearin' a heye-glass." " At this time, then," pursued Dunbar, " you had actually passed the other cab, and the gentleman on the pavement had not come up with it? " " 'E couldn't see it, guv'nor I I'm tellin' you 'e 'adn't got to the Johnny 'Orner! " " I see," muttered Sowerby. " It's possible that Mr. Exel took no notice of the first cab — espe- cially as it did not come out of the Square." " Wotcher say, guv'nor? " queried the cabman again, turning his bleared eyes upon Sergeant Sow- erby. " He said," interrupted Dunbar, " was Brian's cab empty? " " 'Course it was," rapped Mr. Hamper, " 'e 'd just dropped 'is fare at Palace Mansions." . . . " How do you know? " snapped Dunbar, sud- denly, fixing his fierce eyes upon the face of the speaker. The cabman glared in beery truculence. " I got me blarsted senses, ain't I ? " he inquired. " There's only two lots o' flats on that side o' the 70 THE YELLOW CLAW Square — Palace Mansions, an' St. Andrew's Man- sions." "Well?" "St. Andrew's Mansions," continued Hamper, "is all away!" "All away?" " All away ! I know, 'cause I used to have a reg'- lar fare there. 'E's in Egyp'; flat shut up. Top floor's to let. Bottom floor's two old unmarried maiden ladies what always travels by 'bus. So does all their blarsted friends an' relations. Where can old Tom Brian 'ave been comin' from, if it wasn't Palace Mansions?" " H'm I " said Dunbar, " you are a loss to the detective service, my lad! And how do you ac- count for the fact that Brian has not got to hear of the inquiry? " Hamper bent to Dunbar and whispered, beerily, in his ear: " P'r'aps 'e don't want to 'ear, guv'nor! " "Oh! Why not?" " Well, 'e knows there's something up there ! " " Therefore it's his plain duty to assist the po- lice." " Same as what I does?" cried Hamper, raising his eyebrows. " Course it is ! but 'ow d'you know 'e ain't been got at? " " Our friend, here, evidently has one up against Mr. Tom Brian ! " muttered Dunbar aside to Sow- erby. CABMAN TWO 71 " Wotcher say, guv'nor? " inquired the cabman, looking from one to the other. " I say, no doubt you can save us the trouble of looking out Brian's license, and give us his private address?" replied Dunbar. " Course I can. 'E lives hat num'er 36 Forth Street, Brixton, and 'e's out o' the big Brixton depot." " Oh ! " said Dunbar, dryly. " Does he owe you anything? " "Wotcher say, guv'nor?" " I say, it's very good of you to take all this trouble and whatever it has cost you in time, we shall be pleased to put right." Mr. Hamper spat in his right palm, and nibbed his hands together, appreciatively. " Make it five bob ! " he said. " Wait downstairs," directed Dunbar, pressing a bell-push beside the door. " I'll get it put through for you." " Right 'o 1 " rumbled the cabman, and went lurching from the room as a constable in uniform appeared at the door. " Good momin', guv'nor. Good mornin' ! " The cabman having departed, leaving in his wake a fragrant odor of fourpenny ale: — "Here you are, Sowerbyl " cried Dunbar, "We are moving at last! This is the address of the late Mrs. Vernon's maid. See her; feel your ground, carefully, of course; get to know what 72 THE YELLOW CLAW clothes Mrs. Vernon took with her on her periodical visits to Scotland." "What clothes?" " That's the idea ; it is important. I don't think the girl was in her mistress's confidence, but I leave it to you to find out. If circumstances point to my surmise being inaccurate — you know how to act." " Just let me glance over your notesj bearing on the matter," said Sowerby, " and I'll be off." Dunbar handed him the bulging notebook, and Sergeant Sowerby lowered his inadequate eyebrows, thoughtfully, whilst he scanned the evidence of Mr. Debnam. Then, returning the book to his superior, and adjusting the peculiar bowler firmly upon his head, he set out. Dunbar glanced through some papers — appar- ently reports — which lay upon the table, penciled comments upon two of them, and then, consulting his notebook once more in order to refresh his memory, started off for Forth Street, Brixton. Forth Street, Brixton, is a depressing thorough- fare. It contains small, cheap flats, and a number of frowsy looking houses which give one the im- pression of having run to seed. A hostelry of sad aspect occupies a commanding position midway along the street, but inspires the traveler not with cheer, but with lugubrious reflections upon the hor- rors of inebriety. The odors, unpleasantly mingled, of fried bacon and paraffin oil, are wafted to the wayfarer from the porches of these family residences. "CABMAN TWO 73 Niunber 36 proved to be such a villa, and In- spector Dunbar contemplated it from a distance, thoughtfully. As he stood by the door of the pub- lic house, gazing across the street, a tired looking woman, lean and anxious-eyed, a poor, dried up bean-pod of a woman, appeared from the door of number 36, carrying a basket. She walked along in the direction of the neighboring highroad, and Dunbar casually followed her. For some ten minutes he studied her activities, noting that she went from shop to shop until her basket was laden with provisions of all sorts. When she entered a wine-and-spirit merchant's, the detective entered close behind her, for the place was also a post-office. Whilst he purchased a penny stamp and fumbled in his pocket for an imaginary letter, he observed, with interest, that the woman had purchased, and was loading into the hospitable basket, a bottle of whisky, a bottle of rum, and a bottle of gin. He left the shop ahead of her, sure, now, of his ground, always provided that the woman proved to be Mrs. Brian. Dunbar walked along Forth Street slowly enough to enable the woman to over- take him. At the door of number 36, he glanced up at the number, questioningly, and turned in the gate as she was about to enter. He raised his hat. " Have I the pleasure of addressing Mrs. Brian?" 74 THE YELLOW CLAW Momentarily, a hard look came into the tired eyes, but Dunbar's gentleness of manner and voice, together with the kindly expression upon his face, turned the scales favorably. "I am Mrs. Brian," she said; "yes. Did you want to see me ? " " On a matter of some importance. May I come in?" She nodded and led the way into the house; the door was not closed. In a living-room whereon was written a pathetic history — a history of decline from easy circum- stance and respectability to poverty and utter disre- gard of appearances — she confronted him, setting down her basket on a table from which the remains of a fish breakfast were not yet removed. " Is your husband in?" inquired Dunbar with a subtle change of manner. " He's lying down." The hard look was creeping again into the wom- an's eyes. " Will you please awake him, and tell him that I have called in regard to his license?" He thrust a card into her hand : — DETECTIVE-INSPECTOR New Scotland Yard. S. W. DUNBAR, C. I. D. IX The Man In Black MRS. BRIAN started back, with a wild look, a trapped look, in her eyes. "What's he done?" she inquired. " What's he done? Tom's not done anything I " " Be good enough to waken him," persisted the inspector. " I wish to speak to him." Mrs. Brian walked slowly from the room and could be heard entering one further along the passage. An angry snarling, suggesting that of a wild animal disturbed in its lair, proclaimed the arousing of Taximan Thomas Brian. A thick voice inquired, brutally, why the sanguinary hell he (Mr. Brian) had had his bloodstained slumbers disturbed in this gory manner and who was the vermilion blighter responsible. Then Mrs. Brian's voice mingled with that of her husband, and both became subdued. Finally, a slim man, who wore a short beard, or had omitted to shave for some days, appeared at the door of the living-roomi. His face was another history upon the same subject as that which might be studied from the walls, the floor, and the appointments of the room. Inspector Dunbar perceived that the shadow of the neighboring hostelry overlay this home. 75 76 THE YELLOW CLAW "What's up?" inquired the new arrival. The tone of his voice, thickened by excess, was yet eloquent of the gentleman. The barriers passed, your pariah gentleman can be the completest blackguard of them all. He spoke coarsely, and the infectious Cockney accent showed itself in his vowels; but Dunbar, a trained observer, summed up his man in a moment and acted accordingly. " Come in and shut the door I " he directed. " No " — as Mrs. Brian sought to enter behind her husband — " I wish to speak with you, privately." "Hop it!" instructed Brian, jerking his thumb over his shoulder — and Mrs. Brian obediently dis- appeared, closing the door. " Now," said Dunbar, looking the man up and down, " have you been inta-the depot, to-day? " " No." " But you have heard that there's an inquiry? " " I've heard nothing. I've been in bed." " We won't argue about that. I'll simply put a question to you: Where did you pick up the fare that you dropped at Palace Mansions at twelve o'clock last night? " " Palace Mansions 1 " muttered Brian, shifting uneasily beneath the unflinching stare of the tawny, eyes. "What d'you mean? What Palace Man- sions ? " " Don't quibble ! " warned Dunbar, thrusting out a finger at him. " This is not a matter of a loss of license; it's a life jobl " THE MAN IN BLACK 77 " Life job I " whispered the man, and his weak face suddenly relaxed, so that, oddly, the old re- finement shone out through the new, vulgar ve- neer. " Answer my questions straight and square and I'll take your word that you have not seen the in- quiry!" said Dunbar. " Dick Hamper's done this for me I " muttered Brian. " He's a dirty, low swine 1 Somebody'U do for him one night I " " Leave Hamper out of the question," snapped Dunbar. " You put down a fare at Palace Man- sions at twelve o'clock last night? " For one tremendous moment, Brian hesitated, but the good that was in him, or the evil — a conscious- ness of wrongdoing, or of retribution pending — respect for the law, or fear of its might — decided his course. " I did." " It was a man? " Again Brian, with furtive glance, sought to test his opponent; but his opponent was too strong for him. With Dunbar's eyes upon his face, he chose not to lie. " It was a woman." "How was she dressed?" "In a fur motor-coat — civet fur." The man of culture spoke in those two words, " civet fur " ; and Dunbar nodded quickly, his eyes ablaze at the importance of the evidence. 78 THE YELLOW CLAW "Was she alone?" " She was." " What fare did she pay you ? " " The meter only registered eightpence, but she gave me half-a-crown." " Did she appear to be ill? " " Very ill. She wore no hat, and I supposed her to be in evening dress. She almost fell as she got out of the cab, but managed to get into the hall of Palace Mansions quickly enough, looking behind her all the time." Inspector Dunbar shot out the hypnotic finger again. " She told you to wait I " he asserted, positively. Brian looked to right and left, up and down, thrusting his hands into his coat pockets, and taking them out again to stroke his coUarless neck. Then : — " She did — yes," he admitted. " But you were bribed to drive away? Don't deny it 1 Don't dare to trifle with me, or by God ! you'll spend the night in Brixton Jail ! " " It was made worth my while," muttered Brian, his voice beginning to break, " to hop it." " Who paid you to do it? " " A man who had followed all the way in a big car." " That's it! Describe himi! " " I can't ! No, no I you can threaten as much THE MAN IN BLACK 79 . as you like, but I can't describe him. I never saw his face. He stood behind me on the near side of the cab, and just reached forward and pushed a fiver under my nose." Inspector Dunbar searched the speaker's face closely — ' and concluded that he was respecting the verity. " How was he dressed? " " In black, and that's all I can tell you about him." "You took the money?" " I took the money, yes "... " What did he say to you ? " "Simply: ' Drive off.' " " Did you take him to be an Englishman from his speech? " " No ; he was not an Englishman. He had a foreign accent." "French? German?" " No," said Brian, looking up and meeting the glance of the fierce eyes. " Asiatic ! " Inspector Dunbar, closely as he held himself in hand, started slightly. "Aire you sure? " " Certainly. Before I — when I was younger — I traveled in the East, and I know the voice and intonation of the cultured Oriental." " Can you place him any closer than that? " " No, I can't venture to do so." Brian's man- 8o THE YELLOW CLSW ner was becoming, momentarily, more nearly that of a gentleman. " I might be leading you astray if I ventured a guess, but if you asked me to do so, I should say he was a Chinaman." "A Chinaman? " Dunbar's voice rose excitedly. " I think so." "What occurred next?" " I turned my cab and drove off out of the Square." " Did you see where the man went? " " I didn't. I saw nothing of him beyond his hand." "And his hand?" " He wore a glove." " And now," said Dunbar, speaking very slowly, " where did you pick up your fare? " " In Gillingham Street, near Victoria Station." " From a house ? " " Yes, from' Nurse Proctor's." " Nurse Proctor's! Who is Nurse Proctor? " Brian shrugged his shoulders in a nonchalant man- ner, which obviously belonged to an earlier phase of existence. " She keeps a nursing home," he said — " for ladiek" "Do you mean a maternity home?" " Not exactly; at least I don't think so. Most of her clients are society ladies, who stay there peri- odically." " What are you driving at? " demanded Dunbar. THE MAN IN BLACK 8i " I have asked you if it is a maternity home." " And I have replied that it isn't. I am only giving you facts; you don't want my surmises." "Who hailed you?" " The woman did — the woman in the fur coat. I was just passing the door very slowly when it was flung open with a bang, and she rushed out as though hell were after her. Before I had time to pull up, she threw herself into my cab and screamed : ' Pal- ace Mansions ! Westminster ! ' I reached back and shut the door, and drove right away." "When did you see that you were followed?" " We were held up just outside the music hall, and looking back, I saw that my fare was dread- fully excited. It didn't take me long to find out that the cause of her excitement was a big limousine, three or four back in the block of traffic. The driver was some kind of an Oriental, too, although I couldn't make him out very clearly." "Good!" snapped Dunbar; "that's important 1 But you saw nothing more of this car? " . . . " I saw it follow me into the Square." " Then where did it wait? " " I don't know; I didn't see it again." Inspector Dunbar nodded rapidly. " Have you ever driven women to or from this Nurse Proctor's before? " " On two other occasions, I have driven ladies who came from there. I knew they came from there, because it got about amongst us that the tall 82 THE YELLOW CLAW woman in nurse's uniform who accompanied them was Nurse Proctor." " You mean that you didn't take these women actually from the door of the house in Gilllngham Street, but from somewhere adjacent?" "Yes; they never take a cab from the door. They always walk to the comer of the street with a nurse, and a porter belonging to the house brings their luggage along." " The idea is secrecy? " " No doubt. But as I have said, the word was passed round." " Did you know either of these other women? " " No ; but they were obviously members of good sodety." " And you drove them ? " " One to St. Pancras, and one to Waterloo," said Brian, dropping back somewhat into his coarser style, and permitting a slow grin to overspread his countenance. " To catch trains, no doubt? " " Not a bit of it ! To meet trains ! " "You mean?" " I mean that their own private cars were wait- ing for them at the arrival platform as I drove 'em up to the departure platform, and that they simply marched through the station and pretended to have arrived by train ! " Inspector Dunbar took out his notebook and foun- THE MAN IN BLACK 83 tain-pen, and began to tap his teeth with the latter, nodding his head at the same time, " You are sure of the accuracy of your last state- ment? " he said, raising his eyes to the other. " I followed one of them," was the reply, " and saw her footman gravely take charge of the luggage which I had just brought from Victoria; and a pal of mine followed the other — the Waterloo one, that was." Inspector Dunbar scribbled busily. Then : — " You have done well to make a clean breast of it," he said. " Take a straight tip from me. Keep off the drink 1" X The Great Understanding IT was In the afternoon of this same day — a day so momentous in the lives of more than one of London's millions — that two travelers might have been seen to descend from a first-class compartment of the Dover boat-train at Charing Cross. They had been the sole occupants of the compart- ment, and, despite the wide dissimilarity of character to be read upon their countenances, seemed to have struck up an acquaintance based upon mutual ami- ability and worldly common sense. The traveler first to descend and gallantly to offer his hand to his companion in order to assist her to the platform, was the one whom a casual observer would first have noted. He was a man built largely, but on good lines; a man past his youth, and somewhat too fleshy; but for all his bulk, there was nothing unwieldy, and nothing ungraceful in his bearing or carriage. He wore a French traveling-coat, conceived in a style violently Parisian, and composed of a wonderful check calculated to have blinded any cutter in Savile Row. From beneath its gorgeous folds protrudedi 84 THE GREAT UNDERSTANDING 85 the extremities of severely creased cashmere trous- ers, turned up over white spats which nestled coyly about a pair of glossy black boots. The traveler's hat was of velour, silver gray and boasting a par- tridge feather thrust in its silken band. One glimpse of the outfit must have brought the entire staff of the Tailor and Cutter to an untimely grave. But if ever man was bom who could carry such a make-up, this traveler was he. The face was cut on massive lines, on fleshy lines, clean-shaven, and inclined to pallor. The hirsute blue tinge about the jaw and lips helped to accentuate the virile strength of the long, flexible mouth, which could be humor- ous, which could be sorrowful, which could be grim. In the dark eyes of the man lay a wealth of experi- ence, acquired in a lifelong pilgrimage among many peoples, and to many lands. His dark brows were heavily marked, and his close-cut hair was splashed with gray. Let us glance at the lady who accepted his white- gloved hand, and who sprang alertly onto the plat- form beside him. She was a woman bordering on the forties, with a face of masculine vigor, redeemed and effeminized, by splendid hazel eyes, the kindliest imaginable. Obviously, the lady was one who had never married, who despised, or affected to despise, members of the other sex, but who had never learned to hate them ; who had never grown soured, but who found the world a garden of heedless children — of chU- 86 THE YELLOW CLAW dren who called for mothering. Her athletic figure was clothed in a " sensible " tweed traveling dress, and she wore a tweed hat pressed well on to her head, and brown boots with the flattest heels con- ceivable. Add to this a Scotch woolen muffler, and a pair of woolen gloves, and you have a mental pic- ture of the second traveler — a truly incongruous companion for the first. Joining the crowd pouring in the direction of the exit gates, the two chatted together animatedly, both speaking English, and the man employing that language with a perfect ease and command of words which nevertheless failed to disguise his French na- tionality. He spoke with an American accent; a phenomenon sometimes observable in one who has learned his English in Paris. The irritating formalities which beset the return- ing traveler — and the lady distinctly was of the readily irritated type — were smoothed away by the magic personality of her companion. Porters came at the beck of his gloved hand; guards, catching his eye, saluted and were completely his servants; ticket inspectors yielded to him the deference ordi- narily reserved for directors of the line. Outside the station, then, her luggage having been stacked upon a cab, the lady parted from her com- panion with assurances, which were returned, that she should hope to improve the acquaintance. The address to which the French gentleman po- THE GREAT UNDERSTANDING 87 Htely requested the cabman to drive, was that of a sound and old-established hotel in the neighbor- hood of the Strand, and at no great distance, from the station. Then, having stood bareheaded until the cab turned out into the traffic stream of that busy thor- oughfare, the first traveler, whose baggage consisted of a large suitcase, hailed a second cab and drove to the Hotel Astoria — the usual objective of Amer- icans. Taking leave of him for the moment, let us fol- low the lady. Her arrangements were very soon made at the hotel, and having removed som? of the travel-stains from her person and partaken of one cup of China tea, respecting the quality whereof she delivered herself of some caustic comments, she walked down into the Strand and mounted to the top of a Victoria bound 'bus. That she was not intimately acquainted with Lon- don, was a fact readily observable by her fellow passengers; for as the 'bus went rolling westward, from the large pocket of her Norfolk jacket she took out a guide-book provided with numerous maps, and began composedly to consult its complexi- ties. When the conductor came to collect her fare, she had made up her mind, and was replacing the guide- book In her pocket. 88 THE YELLOW CLAW " Put me down by the Storis, Victoria Street, con- ductor," she directed, and handed him a penny — the correct fare. It chanced that at about the time, within a minute or so, of the American lady's leaving the hotel, and just as red rays, the harbingers of dusk, came creep- ing in at the latticed widow of her cozy work-room, Helen Cumberly laid down her pen with a sigh. She stood up, mechanically rearranging her hair as she did so, and crossed the corridor to her bedroom^ the window whereof overlooked the Square. She peered down into the central garden. A common-looking man sat upon a bench, apparently watching the labors of the gardener, which con- sisted at the moment of the spiking of scraps of paper which disfigured the green carpet of the lawn. Helen returned to her writing-table and reseated herself. Kindly twilight veiled her, and a chatty sparrow who perched upon the window-ledge pre- tended that he had not noticed two tears which trembled, quivering, upon the girl's lashes. Almost unconsciously, for it was an established custom, she sprinkled crumbs from the tea-tray beside her upon the ledge, whilst the tears dropped upon a written page and two more appeared in turn upon her lashes. The sparrow supped enthusiastically, being joined in his repast by two talkative companions. As the last fragments dropped from the girl's white fingers, she withdrew her hand, and slowly — very slowly — her head sank down, pillowed upon her arms. THE GREAT UNDERSTANDING 89 For some five minutes she cried silently; the spar- rows, unheeded, bade her good night, and flew to their nests in the trees of the Square. Then, very resolutely, as if inspired by a settled- purpose, she stood up and recrossed the corridor to her bedroom. She turned on the lamp above the dressing-table and rapidly removed the traces of her tears, contem- plating in dismay a redness of her pretty nose which did not prove entirely amenable to treatment with the powder-puff. Finally, however, she switched off the light, and, going out on to the landing, de- scended to the door of Henry Leroux's flat. In reply to her ring, the maid, Ferris, opened the door. She wore her hat and coat, and beside her on the floor stood a tin trunk. "Why, Ferris!" cried Helen — "are you leav- ing?" . . . -. " I am indeed, miss 1 " said the girl, independently. "But why? whatever will Mr. Leroux do?" " He'll have to do the best he can. Cook's goin' too! " " What! cook is going? " " I am! " announced a deep, female voice. And the cook appeared beside the maid. " But whatever — '" began Helen ; then, realizing that she could achieve no good end by such an at- titude : " Tell Mr. Leroux," she instructed the maid, quietly, " that I wish to see him." Ferris glanced rapidly at her companion, as a man appeared on the landing, to inquire in an abysmal 90 THE YELLOW CLAW tone, if '■' them boxes was ready to be took." Helen Cumberly forestalled an insolent refusal which the cook, by furtive wink, counseled to the housemaid. " Don't trouble," she said, with an easy dignity reminiscent of her father. " I will announce my- self." She passed the servants, crossed the lobby, and rapped upon the study door. " Come in," said the voice of Henry Leroux. Helen opened the door. The place was in semi- darkness, objects being but dimly discernible. Le- roux sat in his usual seat at the writing-table. The room was in the utmost disorder, evidently having received no attention since its overhauling by the police. Helen pressed the switch, lighting the two lamps. Leroux, at last, seemed in his proper element: he exhibited an unhealthy pallor, and it was obvious that no razor had touched his chin for at least three days. His dark blue eyes — the eyes of a dreamer — were heavy and dull, with shadows pooled be- low them. A biscuit-jar, a decanter and a syphon stood half buried in papers on the table. " Why, Mr. Leroux ! " said Helen, with a deep note of sympathy in her voice — " you don't mean to say "... Leroux rose, forcing a smile to his haggard face. " You see — much too good," he said. " Alto- gether — too good." . . . " I thought I should find you here," continued the THE GREAT UNDERSTANDING 91 girl, firmly; "but I did not anticipate — " she indi- cated the chaos about — " this I The insolence, the disgraceful, ungrateful insolence, of those women ! " " Dear, dear, dear ! " murmured Leroux, waving his hand vaguely; "never mind — never mind! They — er — they ... I don't want them to stop . . . and, believe me, I am — er — perfectly com- fortable!" " You should not be in — this room, at all. In fact, you should go right away." . . . " I cannot . . . my wife may — return — at any moment." His voice shook. "I — am expecting her return — hourly." . . . His gaze sought the table-clock; and he drew his lips very tightly together when the pitiless hands forced upon his mind the fact that the day was marching to its end. Helen turned her head aside, inhaling deeply, and striving for composure. " Gamham shall come down and tidy up for you," she said, quietly; " and you must dine with us." The outer door was noisily closed by the depart- ing servants. " You are much too good," whispered Leroux, again; and the weary eyes glistened with a sudden moisture. " Thank you I Thank you 1 But — er — I could not dream of disturbing "... " Mr. Leroux," said Helen, with all her old firm- ness — " Garnham is coming down immediately to put the place in order I And, whilst he is doing so. 92 THE YELLOW CLAW you are going to prepare yourself for a decent, Christian dinner! " Henry Leroux rested one hand upon the table, looking down at the carpet. He had known for a long time, in a vague fashion, that he lacked some- thing ; that his success — a wholly inartistic one — had yielded him little gratification; that the comfort of his home was a purely monetary product and not in any sense atmospheric. He had schooled himself to believe that he liked loneliness — lone- liness physical and mental, and that in marrying a pretty, but pleasure-loving girl, he had insured an ideal menage. Furthermore, he honestly believed that he worshiped his wife; and with his present grief at her unaccountable silence was mingled no atom of reproach. But latterly he had begun to wonder — in his peculiarly indefinite way he had begun to doubt his own philosophy. Was the void in his soul a product of thwarted ambition?. — for, whilst he slaved, scrupulously, upon " Martin Zeda," he loathed every deed and every word of that Old Man of the Sea. Or could it be that his own being — his na- ture of Adam — lacked something which wealth, social position, and Mira, his wife, could not yield to him? Now, a new tone in the voice of Helen Cumberly — a tone different from that compound of good-fel- lowship and raillery, which he knew — a tone which had entered into it when she had exclaimed upon THE GREAT UNDERSTANDING 93 the state of the room — set his poor, anxious heart thrumming like a lute. He felt a hot flush creep- ing upon him ; his forehead grew damp. He feared to raise his eyes. "Is that a bargain?" asked Helen, sweetly. Henry Leroux found a lump in his throat; but he lifted his untidy head and took the hand which the girl had extended to him. She smiled a bit un- naturally; then every tinge of color faded from her cheeks, and Henry Leroux, unconsciously holding the white hand in a vice-like grip, looked hungrily into the eyes grown suddenly tragic whilst into his own came the light of a great and sorrowful under- standing. " God bless you," he said. " I will do anything you wish." Helen released her hand, turned, and ran from the study. Not until she was on the landing did she dare to speak. Then:- — " Gamham shall come down immediately. Don't be late for dinner! " she called — and there was a hint of laughter and of tears in her voice, of the restraint of culture struggling with rebellious wom- anhood. XI Presenting M. Gaston Max NOT venturing to turn on the light, not dar- ing to look upon her own face in the mir- ror, Helen Cumberly sat before her dressing-table, trembling wildly. She wanted to laugh, and wanted to cry; but the daughter of Seton Cumberly knew what those symptoms meant and knew how to deal with them. At the end of an in- terval of some four or five minutes, she rang. The maid opened the door. " Don't light up, Merton," she said, composedly. '* I want you to tell Garnham to go down to Mr. Leroux's and put the place in order. Mr. Leroux is dining with us." The girl withdrew; and Helen, as the door closed, pressed the electric switch. She stared at her reflec- tion in the mirror as if it were the face of an enemy, then, turning her head aside, sat deep in reflection, biting her lip and toying with the edge of the white doily. "You little traitor!" she whispered, through clenched teeth. " You little traitor — and hypo- crite " — sobs began to rise in her throat — "and fool!" 94 PRESENTING M. GASTON MAX 95 Five more minutes passed in a silent conflict. A knock announced the return of the maid; and the girl reentered, placing upon the table a visiting- card : — DENISE RYLAND Atelier 4, Rue du Coq d'Or, montmartre, Paris. Helen Cumberly started to her feet with a stifled exclamation and turned to the maid; her face, to which the color slowly had been returning, suddenly blanched anew. " Denise Rylandl " she muttered, still holding the card in her hand, "why — that's Mrs. Leroux's friend, with whom she had been staying in Paris! Whatever can it mean? " "Shall I show her in here, please?" asked the maid. " Yes, in here," replied Helen, absently; and, scarcely aware that she had given instructions to that effect, she presently found herself confronted by the lady of the boat-train ! "Miss Cumberly?" said the new arrival in a pleasant American voice. "Yes — I am Helen Cumberly. Oh! I am so glad to know you at last ! I have often pictured you ; 96 THE YELLOW CLAW for Mira — Mrs. Leroux — - Is always talking about you, and about the glorious times you have together ! I have sometimes longed to join you in beauti- ful Paris. How good of you to come back with her I" Miss Ryland unrolled the Scotch muffler from her throat, swinging her head from side to side in a sort of spuriously truculent manner, quite peculiarly her own. Her keen hazel eyes were fixed upon the face of the girl before her. Instinctively and immediately she liked Helen Cumberly; and Helen felt that this strong-looking, vaguely masculine woman, was an old, intimate friend, although she had never before set eyes upon her. " H'm I " said Miss Ryland. " I have come from Paris " — she punctuated many of her sentences with wags of the head as if carefully weighing her words — "especially" (pause) "to see you" (pause and wag of head) " I am glad ... to find that . . . you are the thoroughly sensible . . . kind of girl that I . . . had imagined, from the accounts which ... I have had of you." . . . She seated herself in an armchair. " Had of me from Mira ? " asked Helen. " Yes . . . from Mrs. Leroux." " How delightful it must be for you to have her with you so often ! Marriage, as a rule, puts an end to that particular sort of good-time, doesn't it? " " It does . . . very properly . . . too. No man ... no man in his . . . right senses . . . PRESENTING M. GASTON MAX 97 would permit ... his wife ... to gad about in . . . Paris with another . . . girl" (she presuma- bly referred to herself) whom he had only met . . . casually . . . and did not like "... "What! do you mean that Mr. Leroux doesn't like you? I can't believe that! " " Then the sooner . . . you believe it . . . the better." " It can only be that he does not know you, prop- erly?"' " He has no wish ... to know me . . . prop- erly; and I have no desire ... to cultivate . . . the . . . friendship of such ... a silly being." Helen Cumberly was conscious that a flush was rising from her face to her brow, and tingling in the very roots of her hair. She was indignant with her- self and turned aside, bending over her table in order to conceal this ill-timed embarrassment from her vis- itor. " Poor Mr. Leroux ! " she said, speaking very rapidly; " I think it awfully good of him, and sporty, to allow his wife so much liberty." " Sporty ! " said Miss Ryland, head wagging and nostrils distended in scorn. " Idi-otic . , . / should call it." "Why?" Helen Cumberly, perfectly composed again, raised her clear eyes to her visitor. " You seem so . . . thoroughly sensible, except in regard to . . . Harry Leroux; — and d// women, 98 THE YELLOW CLAW with a few . . . exceptions, are fools where the true . . . character of a man is concerned — that I will take you right into my confidence." Her speech lost its quality of syncopation; the whole expression of her face changed; and in the hazel eyes a deep concern might be read. " My dear," she stood up, crossed to Helen's side, and rested her artistic looking hands upon the girl's shoulder. " Harry Leroux stands upon the brink of a great tragedy — a life's tragedy I " Helen was trembling slightly again. " Oh, I knowl " she whispered — " I know — " "You know?" There was surprise in Miss Ryland's voice. " Yes, I have seen them — watched them — and I know that the police think "... *' Police ! What are you talking about — the police ? " Helen looked up with a troubled face. " The murder I " she began . . . Miss Ryland dropped into a chair which, fortu- nately, stood close behind her, with a face suddenly set in an expression of horror. She began to under- stand, now, a certain restraint, a certain ominous shadow, which she had perceived, or thought she had perceived, in the atmosphere of this home, and in the manner of its occupants. " My dear girl," she began, and the old nervous, jerky manner showed itself again, momentarily, — " remember that ... I left Paris by . . . the first PRESENTING M. GASTON MAX 99 train, this morning, and have simply been . . . traveling right up to the present moment." . . . " Then you have not heard? You don't know that a — murder — has been committed?" "Murder! Not — not" . . . "Not any one connected with Mr. Leroux; no, thank God ! but it was done in his flat." . . . Miss Ryland brushed a whisk of straight hair back from her brow with a rough and ungraceful movement. " My dear," she began, taking a French tele- graphic form from her pocket, " you see this mes- sage? It's one which reached me at an unearthly hour this morning from Harry Leroux. It was ad- dressed to his wife at my studio; therefore, as her friend, I opened it. Mira Leroux has actually vis- ited me there twice since her marriage — " " Twice ! " Helen rose slowly to her feet, with horrified eyes fixed upon the speaker. " Twice I said ! I have not seen her, and have rarely heard from her, for nearly twelve months, now! Therefore I packed up post-haste and here I am! I came to you, because, from what little I have heard of you, and of your father, I judged you to be the right kind of friends to consult." . . . " You have not seen her for twelve months? " Helen's voice was almost inaudible, and she was trembling dreadfully. " That's a fact, my dear. And now, what are we going to tell Harry Leroux? " loo THE YELLOW CLAW It was a question, the answer to which was by no means evident at a glance ; and leaving Helen Cum- berly face to face with this new and horrible truth which had brought Denise Ryland hotfoot from Paris to London, let us glance, for a moment, into the now familiar room of Detective-Inspector Dun- bar at Scotland Yard. He had returned from his interrogation of Brian; and he received the report of Sowerby, respecting the late Mrs. Vernon's maid. The girl, Sergeant Sowerby declared, was innocent of complicity, and could only depose to the fact that her late mistress took very little luggage with her on the occasions of her trips to Scotland. With his notebook open be- fore him upon the table, Dunbar was adding this slight item to his notes upon the case, when the door opened, and the uniformed constable entered, sa- luted, and placed an envelope in the Inspector's hand. " From the commissioner! " said Sowerby, signifi- cantly. With puzzled face, Dunbar opened the envelope and withdrew the commissioner's note. It was very brief: — " M. Gaston Max, of the Paris Police, is joining you in the Palace Mansions murder case. You will cooperate with him from date above." " Max! " said Dunbar, gazing astoundedly at his subordinate. Certainly it was a name which might well account PRESENTING M. GASTON MAX loi for the amazement written upon the inspector's face ; for it was the name of admittedly the greatest crimi- nal investigator in Europe 1 " What the devil has the case to do with the French police? " muttered Sowerby, his ruddy coun- tenance exhibiting a whole history of wonderment. The constable, who had withdrawn, now reap- peared, knocking deferentially upon the door, throw- ing it open, and announcing : " Mr. Gaston Max, to see Detective-Inspector Dunbar." Bowing courteously upon the threshold, appeared a figure in a dazzling check traveling-coat — a fig- ure very novel, and wholly unforgettable. " I am honored to meet a distinguished London colleague," he said in perfect English, with a faint American accent. Dunbar stepped across the room with outstretched hand, and cordially shook that of the famous Frenchman. " I am the more honored," he declared, gallantly playing up to the other's courtesy. " This is De- tective-Sergeant Sowerby, who is acting with me in the case." M. Gaston Max bowed low in acknowledgment of the introduction. " It is a pleasure to meet Detective-Sergeant Sow- erby," he declared. These polite overtures being concluded then, and the door being closed, the three detectives stood I02 THE YELLOW CLAW looking at one another in momentary silence. Then Dunbar spoke with blunt directness: " I am very pleased to have you with us, Mr. Max," he said; " but might I ask what your presence in London means? " M. Gaston Max shrugged in true Gallic fashion. "It means, monsieur," he said, " — murder — and Mr. King! " XII Mr. Gianapolis > IT will prove of interest at this place to avail our- selves of an opportunity denied to the police, and to inquire into the activities of Mr. Soames, whilom employee of Henry Leroux. Luke Soames was a man of unpleasant character; a man ever seeking advancement — advancement to what he believed to be an ideal state, viz. : the pos- session of a competency; and to this ambition he subjugated all conflicting interests — especially the interests of others. From narrow but honest begin- nings, he had developed along lines ever growing narrower until gradually honesty became squeezed out. He formed the opinion that wealth was un- obtainable by dint of hard work; and indeed in a man of his limited intellectual attainments, this was no more than true. At the period when he becomes of interest, he had just discovered himself a gentleman-at-large by rea- son of his dismissal from the services of a wealthy bachelor, to whose establishment in Piccadilly he had been attached in the capacity of valet. There was nothing definite against his character at this time, save that he had never remained for long In any one situation. 103 I04 THE YELLOW CLAW His experience was varied, if his references were limited; he had served not only as valet, but also as chauffeur, as steward on an ocean liner, and, for a limited period, as temporary butler in an American household at Nice. Soames' banking account had increased steadily, but not at a rate commensurate with his ambitions; therefore, when entering his name and qualifications in the books of a certain exclusive employment agency in May fair he determined to avail himself, upon this occasion, of his comparative independence by waiting until kindly Fate should cast something really satisfactory in his path. Such an opening occurred very shortly after his first visit to the agent. He received a card instruct- ing him to call at the office in order to meet a certain Mr. Gianapolis. Quitting his rooms in Kennington, Mr. Soames, attired in discreet black, set out to make the acquaintance of his hypothetical employer. He found Mr. Gianapolis to be a little and very swarthy man, who held his head so low as to convey the impression of having a pronounced stoop ; a man whose well-cut clothes and immaculate linen could not redeem his appearance from a constitutional dirtiness. A jet black mustache, small, aquiline features, an engaging smile, and very dark brown eyes, viciously crossed, made up a personaHty incon- gruous with his sheltering silk hat, and calling aloud for a tarboosh and a linen suit, a shop in a bazaar, or a part in the campaign of commercial brigandage MR. GIANAPOLIS 105 which, based in the Levant, spreads Its ramifications throughout the Orient, Near and Far. Mr. Gianapolis had the suave speech and smiling manner. He greeted Soames not as one greets a prospective servant, but as one welcomes an esteemed acquaintance. Following a brief chat, he proposed an adjournment to a neighboring saloon bar; and there, over cocktails, he conversed with Mr. Soames as one crook with another. Soames was charmed, fascinated, yet vaguely hor- rified; for this man smilingly threw off the cloak of hypocrisy from his companion's shoulders, and pre- tended, with the skill of his race, equally to nudify his own villainy. " My dear Mr. Soames! " he said, speaking al- most perfect English, but with the sing-song intona- tion of the Greek, and giving all his syllables an equal value — "you are the man I am looking for; and I can make your fortune." This was entirely in accordance with Mr. Soames' own views, and he nodded, respectfully. " I know," continued Gianapolis, proffering an excellent Egyptian cigarette, " that you were cramped in your last situation — that you were mis- understood "... Soames, cigarette in hand, suppressed a start, and wondered if he were turning pale. He selected a match with nervous care. " The little matter of the silver spoons," contin- ued Gianapolis, smiling fraternally, " was perhaps io6 THE YELLOW CLAW an error of judgment. Although" — patting the startled Soames upon the shoulder -r-" they were a legitimate perquisite ; I am not blaming you. But it takes so long to accumulate a really useful balance in that petty way. Now " — he glanced cautiously about him — " I can offer you a post under condi- tions which will place you above the consideration of silver spoons! " Soames, hastily finishing his cocktail, sought for words; but Gianapolis, finishing his own, blandly ordered two more, and, tapping Soames upon the knee, continued: " Then that matter of the petty cash, and those trifling irregularities in the wine-bill, you remember? — when you were with Colonel Hewett in Nice?" . . . Soames gripped the counter hard, staring at the newly arrived cocktail as though it were hypnotizing him. " These little matters," added Gianapolis, appre- ciatively sipping from his own glass, " which would weigh heavily against your other references, in the event of their being mentioned to any prospective employer "... Soames knew beyond doubt that his face was very pale indeed. " These little matters, then," pursued Gianapolis, " all go to prove to me that you are a man of enter- prise and spirit — that you are the very man I require. Now I can offer you a post In the estab- MR. GIANAPOLIS 107 Ushment of Mr. Henry Leroux, the novelist. The service will be easy. You will be required to attend to callers and to wait at table upon special occasions. There will be no valeting, and you will have undis- puted charge of the pantry and wine-cellar. In short, you will enjoy unusual liberty. The salary, you would say? It will be the same as that which you received from Mr. Mapleson "... Soames raised his head drearily; he felt himself in the toils; he felt himself a ruined man. " It isn't a salary," he began, " which "... " My dear Mr. Soames," said Gianap-olis, tapping him confidentially upon the knee again — " my dear Soames, it isn't the salary, I admit, which you en- joyed whilst in the services of Colonel Hewett in a similar capacity. But this is not a large establish- ment, and the duties are light. Furthermore, there will be — extras." "Extras?" Mr. Soames' eye brightened, and under the be- nignant influence of the cocktails his courage began to return. " I do not refer," smiled Mr. Gianapolis, " to perquisites! The extras will be monetary. An- other two pounds per week "... " Two pounds ! " " Bringing your salary up to a nice round figure ; the additional amount will be paid to you from an- other source. You will receive the latter payment quarterly "... io8 THE YELLOW CLAW " From — from "... " From me ! " said Mr. Gianapolls, smiling radi- antly. " Now, I know you are going to accept; that is understood between us. I will give you the ad- dress ^ — Palace Mansions, Westminster — at which you must apply ; and I will tell you what little serv- ices will be required from you in return for this addi- tional emolument." Mr. Soames hurriedly finished his second cocktail. Mr. Gianapolis, in true sporting fashion, kept pace with him and repeated the order. "You will take charge of the mail!" he whis- pered softly, one irregular eye following the move- ments of the barmaid, and the other fixed almost fiercely upon the face of Soames. " At certain times — of which you will be notified in advance — Mrs. Leroux will pay visits to Paris. At such times, all letters addressed to her, or re-addressed to her, will not be posted ! You will ring me up when such let- ters come into your possession — they must all come into your possession ! — and I will arrange to meet you, say at the corner of Victoria Street, to receive them. You understand? " Mr. Soames understood, and thus far found his plastic conscience marching in step with his inclina- tions. " Then," resumed Gianapolis, " prior to her de- parture on these occasions, Mrs. Leroux will hand you a parcel. This also you will bring to me at the MR. GIANAPOLIS 109 place arranged. Do you find anything onerous In these conditions? " " Not at all," muttered Soames, a trifle unstead- ily; " it seems all right " — the cocktails were begin- ning to speak now, and his voice was a duet — " simply perfectly all right — all square." " Good ! " said Mr. Gianapolis with his radiant smile ; and the gaze of his left eye, crossing that of its neighbor, observed the entrance of a stranger into the bar. He drew his stool closer and lowered his voice : " Mrs. Leroux," he continued, " will be in your confidence. Mr. Leroux and every one else — every one else — must not suspect the arrange- ment "... " Certainly — I quite understand "... " Mrs. Leroux will engage you this afternoon — her husband Is a mere cipher in the household — and you will commence your duties on Monday. Later In the week, Wednesday or Thursday, we will meet by appointment, and discuss further details." " Where can I see you? " " Ring up this number: 18642 East, and ask for Mr. King. No! don't write it down; remember it! I will come to the telephone, and arrange a meeting." Shortly after this, then, the interview concluded; and later in the afternoon of that day Mr. Soames presented himself at Palace Mansions. He was received by Mrs. Leroux — a pretty no THE YELLOW CLAW woman with a pathetically weak mouth. She had fair hair, not very abundant, and large eyes; which, since they exhibited the unusual phenomenon, in a blonde, of long dark lashes (Mr. Soames judged their blackness to be natural), would have been beautiful had they not been of too light a color, too small in the pupils, and utterly expressionless. In- deed, her whole face lacked color, as did her per- sonality, and the exquisite tea-gown which she wore conveyed that odd impression of slovenliness, which is often an indication of secret vice. She was quite young and indisputably pretty, but this malproprete,- together with a certain aimlessness of manner, struck an incongruous note; for essentially she was of a type which for its complement needs vivacity. Mr. Soames, a man of experience, scented an in- trigue and a neglectful husband. Since he was en- gaged on the spot without reference to the invisible Leroux, he was immediately confirmed in the latter part of his surmise. He departed well satisfied with his affairs, and with the promise of the future, over which Mr. Gianapolis, the cherubic, radiantly pre- sided. XIII The Draft on Paris FOR close upon a month Soames performed the duties Imposed upon him in the household of Henry Leroux. He was unable to discover, despite a careful course of inquiry from the cook and the housemaid, that Mrs. Leroux frequently ab- sented herself. But the servants were newly en- gaged, for the flat in Palace Mansions had only recently been leased by the Leroux. He gathered that they had formerly lived much abroad, and that their marriage had taken place in Paris. Mrs. Le- roux had been to visit a friend in the French capital once, he understood, since the housemaid had been in her employ. The mistress (said the housemaid) did not care twopence-ha'penny for her husband; she had mar- ried him for his money, and for nothing else. She had had an earlier love (declared the cook) and was pining away to a mere shadow because of her painful memories. During the last six months (the period of the cook's service) Mrs. Leroux had altered out of all recognition. The cook was of opinion that she drank secretly. Of Mr. Leroux, Soames formed the poorest opin- ion. He counted him a spiritless being, whose III 112 THE YELLOW CLAW world was bounded by his book-shelves, and whose wife would be a fool if she did not avail herself of the liberty which his neglect invited her to enjoy. Soames felt himself, not a snake in the grass, but a benefactor — a friend in need — a champion come to the defense of an unhappy and persecuted woman. He wondered when an opportunity should arise which would enable him to commence his chivalrous operations; almost daily he anticipated instructions to the effect that Mrs. Leroux would be leaving for Paris immediately. But the days glided by and the weeks glided by, without anything occurring to break the monotony of the Leroux household. Mr. Soames sought an opportunity to express his respectful readiness to Mrs. Leroux; but the lady was rarely visible outside her own apartments until late in the day, when she would be engaged in pre- paring for the serious business of the evening: one night a dance, another, a bridge-party; so it went. Mr. Leroux rarely joined her upon these festive expeditions, but clung to his study like Diogenes to his tub. Great was Mr. Soames' contempt; bitter were the reproaches of the cook; dark were the predictions of the housemaid. At last, however, Soames, feeling himself neg- lected, seized an opportunity which offered to ce- ment the secret bond (the too secret bond) existing between himself and the mistress of the house. Meeting her one afternoon in the lobby, which THE DRAFT ON PARIS 113 she was crossing on the way from her bedroom to the drawing-room, he stood aside to let her pass, whispering : " At your service, whenever you are ready, madam ! " It was a non-committal remark, which, if she chose to keep up the comedy, he could explain away by claiming it to refer to the summoning of the car from the garage — for Mrs. Leroux was driving out that afternoon. She did not endeavor to evade the occult mean- ing of the words, however. In the wearily dreamy manner which, when first he had seen her, had aroused Soames' respectful interest, she raised her thin hand to her hair, slowly pressing it back from her brow, and directed her big eyes vacantly upon him. " Yes, Soames," she said (her voice had a far- away quality in keeping with the rest of her per- sonality) , " Mr. King speaks well of you. But please do not refer again to " — she glanced in a man- ner at once furtive and sorrowful. In the direction of the study-door — " to the . . . little arrange- ment of " . . . She passed on, with the slow, gliding gait, which, together with her fragility, sometimes lent her an almost phantomesque appearance. This was comforting, in its degree ; since it proved that the smiling Glanapolis had in no way misled him (Soames). But as a man of business, Mr. 114 THE YELLOW CLAW Soames was not fully satisfied. He selected an evening when Mrs. Leroux was absent — and in- deed she was absent almost every evening, for Le- roux entertained but little. The cook and the housemaid were absent, also; therefore, to all in- tents and purposes, Soames had the flat to himself; since Henry Leroux counted in that establishment, not as an entity, but rather as a necessary, if un- ornamental, portion of the fittings. Standing in the lobby, Soames raised the tele- phone receiver, and having paused with closed eyes preparing the exact form of words in which he should address his invisible employer, he gave the number: East 18642. Following a brief delay: — " Yes," came a nasal voice, " who is it? " " Soames ! I want to speak to Mr. King ! " The words apparently surprised the man at the other end of the wire, for he hesitated ere inquir- ing: — " What did you say your name was? " " Soames -^ Luke Soames." "Hold on I" Soames, with closed eyes, and holding the re- ceiver to his ear, silently rehearsed again the exact wording of his speech. Then : — "Hullo!" came another voice — "is that Mr. Soames? " "Yes! Is that Mr. Gianapolis speaking?" " It is, my dear Soames ! " replied the sing-song THE DRAFT ON PARIS 115 voice; and Soames, closing his eyes again, had be- fore him a mental picture of the radiantly smiling Greek. "Yes, my dear Soames," continued Gianapolis; " here I am. I hope you are quite well — perfectly well?" " I am perfectly well, thank you; but as a man of business, it has occurred to me that failing a proper agreement — which in this case I know would be impossible — a trifling advance on the first quar- ter's " . . . "On your salary, my dear Soames I On your salary? Payment for the first quarter shall be made to you to-morrow, my dear Soames 1 Why ever did you not express the wish before? Cer- tainly, certainly I " . . . "Will it be sent to me?" " My dear fellow ! How absurd you are ! Can you get out to-morrow evening about nine o'clock? " " Yes, easily." " Then I will meet you at the comer of Victoria Street, by the hotel, and hand you your first quar- ter's salary. Will that be satisfactory?" " Perfectly," said Soames, his small eyes sparkling with avarice. " Most decidedly, Mr. Gianapolis. Many thanks." . . . " And by the way," continued the other, " it is rather fortunate that you rang me up this evening, because it has saved me the trouble of ringing you up." ii6 THE YELLOW CLAW "What?" — Soames' eyes half closed, from the bottom lids upwards : — " there is something "... " There is a trifling service which I require of you — yes, my dear Soames." "Is it?" . . . " We will discuss the matter to-morrow evening. Oh! it is a mere trifle. So good-by for the pres- ent." Soames, with the fingers of his two hands inter- locked before him, and his thumbs twirling rapidly around one another, stood in the lobby, gazing re- flectively at the rug-strewn floor. He was working out in his mind how handsomely this first payment would show up on the welcome side of his pass- book. Truly, he was fortunate in having met the generous Gianapolis. ... He thought of a trifling indiscretion committed at the expense of one Mr. Mapleson, and of the wine-bill of Colonel Hewett; and he thought of the apparently clairvoyant knowledge of the Greek. A cloud momentarily came between his perceptive and the rosy horizon. But nearer to the foreground of the mental pic- ture, uprose a left-hand page of his pass book; and its tidings of great joy, written in clerkly hand, served to dispel the cloud. Soames sighed in gentle rapture, and, soft-footed, passed into his own room. Certainly his duties were neither difficult nor un- pleasant. The mistress of the house lived appar- THE DRAFT ON PARIS 117 ently in a hazy dream-world of her own, and Mr. Leroux was the ultimate expression of the non-com- mercial. Mr. Soames could have robbed him every day had he desired to do so; but he had refrained from availing himself even of those perquisites which he considered justly his; for it was evident, to his limited intelligence, that greater profit was to be gained by establishing himself in this house- hold than by weeding-out five shillings here, and half-a-sovereign there, at the risk of untimely dis- missal. Yet — it was a struggle ! All Mr. Soames' com- mercial instincts were up in arms against this voice of a greater avarice which counseled abstention. For instance: he could have added half-a-sovereign a week to his earnings by means of a simple arrange- ment with the local wine merchant. Leroux's cigars he could have sold by the hundreds; for Le- roux, when a friend called, would absently open a new box, entirely forgetful of the fact that a box from which but two — or at most three — cigars had been taken, lay already on the bureau. Mr. Soames, in order to put his theories to the test, had temporarily abstracted half-a-dozen such boxes from the study and the dining-room and had hidden them. Leroux, finding, as he supposed, that he was out of cigars, had simply ordered Soames to get him some more. " Er — about a dozen boxes — er — Soames," he had said; " of the same sort! " ii8 THE YELLOW CLAW Was ever a man of business submitted to such an ordeal? After receiving those instructions, Soames had sat for close upon an hour in his own room, contemplating the six broken boxes, containing in all some five hundred and ninety cigars; but the voice within prevailed; he must court no chance of losing his situation; therefore, he "discovered" these six boxes in a cupboard — much to Henry Le- roux's surprise! Then, Leroux regularly sent him to the Charing Cross branch of the London County and Suburban Bank with open checks! Sometimes, he would be sent to pay in, at other times to withdraw; the amounts involved varying from one guinea to £150! But, as he told himself, on almost every occasion that he went to Leroux's bank, he was deliberately throwing money away, deliberately closing his eyes to the good fortune which this careless and gullible man cast in his path. He observed a scrupulous honesty in all these dealings, with the result that the bank manager came to regard him as a valuable and trustworthy servant, and said as much to the assistant manager, expressing his wonder that Le- roux — whose account occasioned the bank more anxiety, and gave it more work, than that of any other two depositors — had at last engaged a man who would keep his business affairs in order! And these were but a few of the golden apples which Mr. Soames permitted to slip through his fingers, so steadfast was he in his belief that THE DRAFT ON PARIS 119 Gianapolis would be as good as his word, and make his fortune. Leroux employed no secretary; and his MSS. were typed at his agent's office. A most slovenly man in all things, and in business matters especially, he was the despair, not only of his banker, but of his broker; he was a man who, in professional parlance, " deserved to be robbed." It is improbable that he had any but the haziest ideas, at any particular time, respecting the state of his bank balance and invest- ments. He detested the writing of business letters, and was always at great pains to avoid anything in the nature of a commercial rendezvous. He would sign any document which his lawyer or his broker cared to send him, with simple, unquestioned faith. His bank he never visited, and his appearance was entirely unfamiliar to the staff. True, the man- ager knew him slightly, having had two interviews with him: one when the account was opened, and the second when Leroux introduced his solicitor and broker — in order that in the future he might not be troubled in any way with business affairs. Mr. Soames perceived more and morel clearly that the mild deception projected was unlikely to be discovered by its victim; and, at the appointed time, he hastened to the corner of Victoria Street, to his appointment with Gianapolis. The latter was prompt, for Soames perceived his radiant ismlle afar off. The saloon bar of the Red Lion was affably pro- 120 THE YELLOW CLAW posed by Mr. Gianapolis as a suitable spot to dis- cuss the business. Soames agreed, not without certain inward qualms; for the proximity of the hostelry to New Scotland Yard was a disquieting circumstance. However, since Gianapolis affected to treat their negotiations in the light of perfectly legitimate busi- ness, he put up no protest, and presently found him- self seated in a very cozy corner of the saloon bar, with a glass of whisky-and-soda on a little table be- fore him, bubbling in a manner which rendered it an agreeable and refreshing sight in the eyes of Mr. Soames. " You know," said Gianapolis, the gaze of his left eye bisecting that of his right in a most be- wildering manner, " they call this ' the 'tec's taber- nacle!'" " Indeed," said Soames, without enthusiasm; " I suppose some of the Scotland Yard men do drop in now and then? " " Beyond doubt, my dear Soames." Soames responded to his companion's radiant smile with a smile of his own by no means so plea§- | i ant to look upon. Soames had the type of face j j 'I which, in repose, might be the face of an honest man; but his smile would have led to his instant arrest on any racecourse in Europe : it was the smile of a pick-pocket. " Now," continued Gianapolis, " here is a quar- ter's salary in advance." THE DRAFT ON PARIS 121 From a pocket-book, he took a little brown paper envelope and from the brown paper envelope counted out four five-pound notes, five golden sovereigns, one half-sovereign, and ten shillings' worth of silver. Soames' eyes glittered, delight- edly. "A little informal receipt?" smiled Gianapolis, raising his eyebrows, satanically. " Here on this page of my notebook I have written: ' Received from Mr. King for service rendered, £26, being pay- ment, in advance, of amount due on 31st October 19 — ' I have attached a stamp to the page, as you will see," continued Gianapolis, " and here is a fountain-pen. Just sign across the stamp, adding to-day's date." Soames complied with willing alacrity; and Gianapolis having carefully blotted the signature, replaced the notebook in his pocket, and politely acknowledged the return of the fountain-pen. Soames, glancing furtively about him, replaced the money in the envelope, and thrust the latter care- fully into a trouser pocket. " Now," resumed Gianapolis, " we must not per- mit our affairs of business to interfere with our amusements." He stepped up to the bar and ordered two more whiskies with soda. These being sampled, business was resumed. " To-morrow," said Gianapolis, leaning forward across the table so that his face almost touched that 122 THE YELLOW CLAW of his companion, " you will be entrusted by Mr. Leroux with a commission." . . . Soames nodded eagerly, his eyes upon the speak- er's face. " You will accompany Mrs. Leroux to the bank," continued Gianapolis, " in order that she may write a specimen signature, in the presence of the man- ager, for transmission to the Credit Lyonnais in Paris." . . . Soames nearly closed his little eyes in his effort to comprehend. " A draft in her favor," continued the Greek, " has been purchased by Mr. Leroux's bank from the Paris bank, and, on presentation of this, a check- book will be issued to Mrs. Leroux by the Credit Lyonnais in Paris to enable her to draw at her con- venience upon that establishment against the said order. Do you follow me? " Soames nodded rapidly, eager to exhibit an in- telligent grasp of the situation. " Now " — Gianapolis lowered his voice impress- ively — " no one at the Charing Cross branch of the London County and Suburban Bank has ever seen Mrs. Leroux ! — Oh ! we have been careful of that, and we shall be careful in the future. You are known already as an accredited agent of Le- roux; therefore" — he bent yet closer to Soames' ear — " you will direct the chauffeur to drop you, not at the Strand entrance, but at the side entrance. You follow?" THE DRAFT ON PARIS 123 Soames, almost holding his breath, nodded again. " At the end of the court, In which the latter en- trance Is situated, a lady dressed in the same man- ner as Mrs. Leroux (this Is arranged) will be waiting. Mrs. Leroux will walk straight up the court, Into the corridor of Bank Chambers by the back entrance, and from thence out into the Strand. You will escort the second lady Into the manager's office, and she will sign ' MIra Leroux ' instead of the real MIra Leroux." . . . Soames became aware that he was changing color. This was a superior felony, and as such it awed his little mind. It was tantamount to burning his boats. Missing silver spoons and cooked petty cash were trivialities usually explable at the price of a boot- assisted dismissal; but this — ! " You understand? " Gianapolls was not smiling, now. " There Is not the slightest danger. The signature of the lady whom you will meet will be an exact duplicate of the real one; that Is, exact enough to deceive a man who Is not looking for a forgery. But It would not be exact enough to de- ceive the French banker — he will be looking for a forgery. You follow me? The signature on the checks drawn against the Credit Lyonnals will be the same as the specimen forwarded by the London County and Suburban, since they will be written by the same lady — the duplicate Mrs. Leroux. Therefore, the French bank will have no means of detecting the harmless little deception practised 124 THE YELLOW CLAW upon them, and the English bank, if it should ever see those checks, will raise no question, since the checks will have been honored by the Credit Lyon- nais." Soames finished his whisky-and-soda at a gulp. " Finally," concluded Gianapolis, " you will es- cort the lady out by the front entrance to the Strand. She will leave you and walk in an easterly direction — making some suitable excuse if the man- ager should insist upon seeing her to the door; and the real Mrs. Leroux will come out by the Strand end of Bank Chambers' corridor, and walk back with you around the corner to where the car will be waiting. Perfect?" " Quite," said Soames, huskily. . . . But when, some twenty minutes later, he returned to Palace Mansions, he was a man lost in thought; and he did not entirely regain his wonted compo- sure, and did not entirely shake off the incubus, Doubt, until in his own room he had re-counted the contents of the brown paper envelope. Then : — " It's safe enough," he muttered; " and it's worth it!" Thus it came about that, on the following morn- ing, Leroux called him into the study and gave him just such instructions as Gianapolis had outlined the evening before. "I am — er — too busy to go myself, Soames," said Leroux, " and — er — Mrs. Leroux will shortly be paying a visit to friends in — er — in THE DRAFT ON PARIS 125 Paris. So that I am opening a credit there for her. Save so much trouble — and — such a lot of — correspondence — international money orders — and such worrying things. Mr. Smith, the manager, knows you and you will take this letter of author- ity. The draft I understand has already been pur- chased." Mr. Soames was bursting with anxiety to learn the amount of this draft, but could find no suitable opportunity to inquire. The astonishing deception, then, was carried out without anything resembling a hitch. Mrs. Leroux went through with her part in the comedy, in the dreamy manner of a somnam- bulist; and the duplicate Mrs. Leroux, who waited at the appointed spot, had achieved so startling a resemblance to her prototype, that Mr. Soames be- came conscious of a craving for a peg of brandy at the moment of setting eyes upon her. However, be braced himself up and saw the business through. As was to be expected, no questions were raised and no doubts entertained. The bank manager was very courteous and very reserved, and the fictitious Mrs. Leroux equally reserved, indeed, cold. She avoided raising her motor veil, and, immediately the business was concluded, took her departure, Mr. Smith escorting her as far as the door. She walked away toward Fleet Street, and the respectful attendant, Soames, toward Charing Cross; he rejoined Mrs. Leroux at the door of Bank Chambers, and the two turned the comer and en- 126 THE YELLOW CLAW tered the waiting car. Soames was rather nervous; Mrs. Leroux quite apathetic. Shortly after this event, Soames learnt that the date of Mrs. Leroux's departure to Paris was definitely fixed. He received from her hands a large envelope. "For Mr. King," she said, in her dreamy fash- ion; and he noticed that she seemed to be in poorer health than usual. Her mouth twitched strangely; she was a nervous wreck. Then came her departure, attended by a certain bustle, 'an appointment with Mr. . Gianapolis ; and the delivery of the parcel into that gentleman's keep- ing. Mrs. Leroux was away for six days on this oc- casion. Leroux sent her three postcards during that time, and re-addressed some ten or twelve let- ters which arrived for her. The address in all cases was: c/o Miss Denise Ryland, Atelier 4., Rue du Coq d'Or, Montmartre, Paris. East 18642 was much in demand that week; and there were numerous meetings between Soames and Gianapolis at the corner of Victoria Street, and nu- merous whiskies-and-sodas in the Red Lion; for Gianapolis persisted in his patronage of that estab- lishment, apparently for no other reason than be- THE DRAFT ON PARIS 127 cause it was dangerously near to Scotland Yard, and an occasional house of call for members of the Crimi- nal Investigation Department. Thus did Mr. Soames commence his career of du- plicity at the flat of Henry Leroux; and for some twelve months before the events which so dramat- ically interfered with the delightful scheme, he drew his double salary and performed his perfidious work with great efficiency and contentment. Mrs. Leroux paid four other visits to Paris during that time, and always returned in much better spirits, although pale and somewhat haggard looking. It fell to the lot of Soames always to meet her at Charing Cross; but never once, by look or by word, did she proffer, or invite, the slightest exchange of confidence. She apathetically accepted his aid in conducting this in- trigue as she would have accepted his aid in putting on her opera-cloak. The curious Soames had read right through the telephone directory from A to Z in quest of East 18642 — only to learn that no such number was published. His ingenuity not being great, he could think of no means to learn the address of the mys- terious Mr. King. So keenly had he been impressed with the omniscience of that shadowy being who knew all his past, that he feared to inquire of the Eastern Exchange. His banking account was grow- ing handsomely, and, above all things, he dreaded to kill the goose that laid the golden eggs. Then came the night which shattered all. Hav- 128 THE YELLOW CLAW ing rung up East 18642 and made an appointment with Gianapolis in regard to some letters for Mrs. Leroux, he had been surprised, on reaching the cor- ner of Victoria Street, to find that Gianapolis was not there I He glanced up at the face of Big Ben, Yes — for the first time during their business ac- quaintance, Mr. Gianapolis was late I For close upon twenty minutes, Soames waited, walking slowly up and down. When, at last, com- ing from the direction of Westminster, he saw the familiar spruce figure. Eagerly he hurried forward to meet the Greek; but Gianapolis — to the horror and amazement of Soames — affected not to know him I He stepped aside to avoid the stupefied butler, and passed. But, in passing, he hissed these words at Soames : — " Follow to Victoria Street Post Office ! Pretend to post letters at next box to me and put them in my hand!" He was gone! Soames, dazed at this new state of affairs, fol- lowed him at a discreet distance. Gianapolis ran up the Post Office steps briskly, and Soames, im- mediately afterwards, ascended also — furtively. Gianapolis was taking out a number of letters from, his pocket. Soames walked across to the " Country " box on his right, and affected to scrutinize the addresses on the envelopes of Mrs. Leroux's correspondence. Gianapolis, on the pretense of posting a country THE DRAFT ON PARIS 129 letter, reached out and snatched the correspondence from Soames' hand. The gaze of his left eye crookedly sought the face of the butler. "Go home I" whispered Gianapolis; "be cau- tious 1 " XIV East 1864a IN a pitiable state of mind, Soames walked away from the Post OfEce. Gianapolis had hurried off in the direction of Victoria Station. Some- thing was wrong! Some part of the machine, of the dimly divined machine whereof he formed a cog, was out of gear. Since the very nature of this ma- chine — its construction and purpose, alike — was unknown to Soames, he had no basis upon which to erect surmises for good or ill. His timid inquiries into the identity of East 18642 had begun and terminated with his labored perusal of the telephone book, a profitless task which had occupied him for the greater part of an evening. The name, Gianapolis, did not appear at all; whereas there proved to be some two hundred and ninety Kings. But, oddly, only four of these were on the Eastern Exchange ; one was a veterinary sur- geon; one a boat-builder; and a third a teacher of dancing. The fourth, an engineer, seemed a " pos- sible " to Soames, although his published number was not 18642; but a brief — a very brief — con- versation, convinced the butler that this was not his man. 130 EAST 18642 131 He had been away from the flat for over an hour, and he doubted if even the lax sense of discipline possessed by Mr. Leroux would enable that gentle- man to overlook this irregularity. Soames had a key of the outer door, and he built his hopes upon the possibility that Leroux had not noticed his ab- sence and would not hear his return. He opened the door very quietly, but had scarcely set his foot in the lobby ere the dreadful, unforget- table scene met his gaze. For more years than he could remember, he had lived in dread of the law; and, in Luke Soames' philosophy, the words Satan and Detective were in- terchangeable. Now, before his eyes, was a pal- pable, unmistakable police officer; and on the floor . . . Just one glimpse he permitted himself — and, in a voice that seemed to reach him from a vast dis- tance, the detective was addressing him! . . . Slinking to his room, with his craven heart missing every fourth beat, and his mind in chaos, Soames sank down upon the bed, locked his hands together and hugged them, convulsively, between his knees. It was come ! He had overstepped that almost invisible boundary-line which divides indiscretion from crime. He knew now that the voice within him, the voice which had warned him against Gianapolis and against becoming involved in what dimly he had perceived to be an elaborate scheme, 132 THE YELLOW CLAW had been, not the voice of cowardice (as he had supposed) but that of prudence. And it was too late. The dead woman, he told himself — he had been unable to see her very clearly — undoubtedly was Mrs. Leroux. What in God's name had happened! Probably her husband had killed her . • . which meant? It meant that proofs — proofs — were come into his possession; and who should be involved, entangled in the meshes of this fallen conspiracy, but himself, Luke Soamesl As must be abundantly evident, Soames was not a criminal of the daring type; he did not believe in reaching out for anything until he was well assured that he could, if necessary, draw back his hand. This last venture, this regrettable venture — this ruinous venture — had been a mistake. He had entered into it under the glamour of Gianapolis' per- sonality. Of what use, now, to him was his swelling bank balance? But in justice to the mental capacity of Soames, it must be admitted that he had not entirely over- looked such a possibility as this; he had simply refrained, for the good of his health, from contem- plating it. Long before, he had observed, with interest, that, should an emergency arise (such as a fire), a means of egress had been placed by the kindly architect adjacent to his bedroom window. Thus, his depar- ture on the night of the murder was not the fruit of a sudden scheme, but of one well matured. EAST 18642 133 Closing and locking his bedroom door, Soames threw out upon the bed the entire contents of his trunk; selected those things which he considered in- dispensable, and those which might constitute clues. He hastily packed his grip, and, with a last glance about the room and some seconds of breathless lis- tening at the door, he attached to the handle a long piece of cord, which at some time had been tied about his trunk, and, gently opening the window, lowered the grip into the courtyard beneath. The light he had already extinguished, and with the conviction dwelling in his bosom that in some way he was become accessory to a murder — that he was a man shortly to be pursued by the police of the civilized world — he descended the skeleton lift- shaft, picked up his grip, and passed out under the archway Into the lane at the back of Palace Man- sions and St. Andrew's Mansions. He did not proceed in the direction which would have brought him out into the Square, but elected to emerge through the other end. At exactly the moment that Inspector Dunbar rushed into his va- cated room, Mr. Soames, grip in hand, was mount- ing to the top of a southward bound 'bus at the cor- ner of Parliament Street ! He was conscious of a need for reflection. He longed to sit in some secluded spot in order to think. At present, his brain was a mere whirligig, and all things about him seemingly danced to the same tune. Stationary objects were become unstable in the eyes 134 THE YELLOW CLAW of Soames, and the solid earth, burst free of its moorings, no longer afforded* him a safe foothold. There was a humming in his ears; and a mist floated before his eyes. By the time that the motor-'bus was come to the south side of the bridge, Soames had succeeded in slowing down his mental round- about in some degree; and now he began grasping at the flying ideas which the diminishing violence of his brain storm enabled him, vaguely, to per- ceive. The first fruits of his reflections were bitter. He viewed the events af the night in tmer focus; he saw that by his flight he had sealed his fate — had voluntarily outlawed himself. It became fright- fully evident to him that he dared not seek to draw from his bank, that he dared not touch even his modest Post Office account. With the exception of some twenty-five shillings in his pocket, he was pen- niless! How could he hope to fly the country, or even to hide himself, without money? He glanced suspiciously about the 'bus; for he perceived that an old instinct had prompted him to mount one which passed the Oval — a former point of debarkation when he lived in rooms near Kennington Park. Someone might recognize him! Furtively, he scanned his fellow passengers, but perceived no acquaintance. What should he do — where should he go ? It was a desperate situation. EAST 18642 135 The inspector who had cared to study that furtive, isolated figure, could not have failed to mark it for that of a hunted man. At Kennington Gate the 'bus made a halt. Soames glanced at the clock on the corner. It was close upon one A. M. Where in heaven's name should he go? What a fool he had been to come to this district where he was known! Stay! There was one man in London, surely, who must be almost as keenly interested in the fate of Luke Soames as Luke Soames himself . . . Gianapolis ! Soames sprang up and hurried off the 'bus. No public telephone box would be available at that hour, but dire need spurred his slow mind and also lent him assurance. He entered the office of the taxi- cab depot on the next corner, and, from the man whom he found in charge, solicited and obtained the favor of using the telephone. Lifting the receiver, he asked for East 18642. The seconds that elapsed, now, were as hours of deathly suspense to the man at the telephone. If the number should be engaged! ... If the ex- change could get no reply! . . . " Hullo! " said a nasal voice — " who is it? " " It is Soames — and I want to speak to Mr. King!" He Jpwered his tone as much as possible, almost whisperihg his own name. He knew the voice which had answered him; it was the same that he 136 THE YELLOW CLAW always heard when ringing up East 18642. But would Gianapolis come to the telephone? Sud- denly — '^ " Is that Soames? " spoke the sing-song voice of the Greek. "Yes, yes!" " Where are you? " "At Kennington." "Are they following you?" " No — I don't think so, at least; what am I to do? Where am I to go? " "Get to Globe Road — near Stratford Bridge,' East, without delay. But whatever you do, see that you are not followed 1 Globe Road is the turning immediately beyond the Railway Station. It is not too late, perhaps, to get a 'bus or tram, for some part of the way, at any rate. But even if the last is gone, don't take a cab; walk. When you get to Globe Road, pass down on the left-hand side, and, if necessary, right to the end. Make sure you are not followed, then walk back again. You will re- ceive a signal from an open door. Come right in. Good-by." Soames replaced the receiver on the hook, utter- ing a long-drawn sigh of relief. The arbiter of his fortunes had not failed him ! " Thank you very much! " he said to the man in charge of the office, who had been bending over his books and apparently taking not the slightest inter- est in the telephone conversation. Soan^^s placed EAST 18642 137 twopence, the price of the call, on the desk. " Good night." " Good night." He hastened out of the gate and across the road. An electric tramcar which would bear him as far as the Elephant-and-Castle was on the point of start- ing from the comer. Grip in hand, Soames boarded the car and mounted to the top deck. He was in some doubt respecting his mode of travel from the next point onward, but the night was fine, even if he had to walk, and his reviving spirits would cheer him with visions of a golden future! His money! — That indeed was a bitter draught; the loss of his hardly earned savings! But he was now established — linked by a common secret — in partnership with Gianapolis; he was one of that mysterious, obviously wealthy group which ar- ranged drafts on Paris — which could afford to pay him some hundreds of pounds per annum for such a trifling service as juggling the mail ! Mr. King! — If Gianapolis were only the serv- ant, what a magnificent man of business must be hidden beneath the cognomen, Mr. King! And he was about to meet that lord of mystery. Fear and curiosity were oddly blended in the anticipation. By great good fortune, Soames arrived at the Elephant-and-Castle in time to catch an eastward bound motor-'bus, a 'bus which would actually carry him to the end of Globe Road. He took his seat on top, and with greater composure than he had 138 THE YELLOW CLAW known since his dramatic meeting with Gianapolis in Victoria Street, lighted one of Mr. Leroux's ca- banas (with which he invariably kept his case filled) and settled down to think about the future. His reflections served apparently to shorten the journey ; and Soames found himself proceeding along Globe Road — a dark and uninviting highway — almost before he realized that London Bridge had been traversed. It was now long past one o'clock; and that part of the east-end showed dreary and deserted. Public houses had long since ejected their late guests, and even those argumentative groups, which, after closing-time, linger on the pave- ments, within the odor Bacchanalian, were dispersed. The jauntiness was gone, noWj from Soames' man- ner, and aware of a marked internal depression, he passed furtively along the pavement with its long shadowy reaches between the islands of light formed by the street lamps. From patch to patch he passed, and each successive lamp that looked down upon him found him more furtive, more bent in his carriage. Not a shop nor a house exhibited any light. Sleeping Globe Road, East, served to extinguish the last poor spark of courage within Soames' bosom. He came to the extreme end of the road without having perceived a beckoning hand, without having detected a sound to reveal that his advent was ob- served. In the shadow of a wall he stopped, rest- EAST 18642 139 ing his grip upon the pavement and looking back upon his tracks. No living thing moved from end to end of Globe Road. Shivering slightly, Soames picked up the bag and began to walk back. Less than half-way along, an icy chill entered into his veins, and his nerves quiv- ered like piano wires, for a soft crying of his name came, eerie, through the silence, and terrified the hearer. ^ " Soames f . . . Soames/" . . . Soames stopped dead, breathing very rapidly, and looking about him right and left. He could hear the muted pulse of sleeping London. Then, in the dark doorway of the house before which he stood, he perceived, dimly, a motionless figure. His first sensation was not of relief, but of fear. The figure raised a beckoning hand. Soames, conscious that his course was set and that he must navigate it ac- cordingly, opened the iron gate, passed up the path and entered the house to which he thus had been summoned. . . , He found himself surrounded by absolute dark- ness, and the door was closed behind him. " Straight ahead, Soames ! " said the familiar voice of Gianapolis out of the darkness. Soames, with a gasp of relief, staggered on. A hand rested upon his shoulder, and he was guided into a room on the right of the passage. Then an 140 THE YELLOW CLAW electric lamp was lighted, and he found himself con- fronting the Greek. But Gianapolis was no longer radiant; all the in- nate evil of the man shone out through the smirking mask. " Sit down, Soames ! " he directed. Soames, placing his bag upon the floor, seated himself in a cane armchair. The room was cheaply furnished as an office, with a roll-top desk, a revolv- ing chair, and a filing cabinet. On a side-table stood a typewriter, and about the room were several other chairs, whilst the floor was covered with cheap linoleum. Gianapolis sat in the revolving chair, staring at the lowered blinds of the window, and brushing up the points of his black mustache. With a fine white silk handkerchief Soames gently wiped the perspiration from his forehead and from the lining of his hat-band. Gianapolis began abruptly : — "There has been an — accident" (he continued to brush his mustache, with increasing rapidity). " Tell me all that took place after you left the Post Office." Soames nervously related his painful experiences of the evening, whilst Gianapolis drilled his mus- tache to a Satanic angle. The story being con- cluded : "Whatever has happened?" groaned Soames; " and what am I to do ? " " What you are to do," replied Gianapolis, " will EAST 18642 141 be arranged, my dear Soames, by — Mr. King. Where you are to go, is a problem shortly settled: you are to go nowhere; you are to stay here." . . . "Here!" Soames gazed drearily about the room. "Not exactly here — this is merely the office; but at our establishment proper in Limehouse." . . . " Limehouse I " " Certainly. Although you seem to be unaware of the fact, Soames, there are some charming re- sorts in Limehouse ; and your duties, for the present, will confine you to one of them." " But — but," hesitated Soames, " the po- lice " . . . " Unless my information is at fault," said Gianapolis, " the police have no greater chance of paying us a visit, now, than they had for- merly." . . . " But Mrs. Leroux "... "Mrs. Leroux!" Gianapolis twirled around in the chair, his eyes squinting demoniacally: — " Mrs. Leroux! " " She — she " . . . "What about Mrs. Leroux?" "Isn't she dead?" " Dead ! Mrs. Leroux I You are laboring un- der a strange delusion, Soames. The lady whom you saw was not Mrs. Leroux." Soames' brain began to fail him again. " Then who," he began. . . . 142 THE YELLOW CLAW " That doesn't concern you in the least, Soames. But what does concern you is this : your connection, and my connection, with the matter cannot possibly be established by the police. The incident is re- grettable, but the emergency was dealt with — in time. It represents a serious deficit, unfortunately, and your own usefulness, for the moment, becomes nil; but we shall have to look after you, I suppose, and hope for better things in the future." ^e took up the telephone. "East 39951," he said, whilst Soames listened, attentively. Then : — "Is that Kan-Suh Concessions?" he asked. " Yes — good ! Tell Said to bring the car past the end of the road at a quarter-to-two. That's all." He hung up the receiver. " Now, my dear Soames," he said, with a faint return to his old manner, " you are about to enter upon new duties. I will make your position clear to you. Whilst you do your work, and keep your- self to yourself, you are in no danger; but one in- discretion — just one — apart from what it may mean for others, will mean, for you, immediate ar- rest as accessory to a murder ! " Soames shuddered, coldly. " You can rely upon me, Mr. Gianapolis," he pro- tested, " to do absolutely what you wish — abso- lutely. I am a ruined man, and I know it — I know EAST 18642 143 it. My only hope is that you will give me a chance." . . . " You shall have every chance? Soames," replied Gianapolis — " every chance." XV Cave of the Golden Dragon WHEN the car stopped at the end of a short drive, Soames had not the slightest idea of his whereabouts. The blinds at the win- dow of the limousine had been lowered during the whole journey, and now he descended from the step of the car on to the step of a doorway. He was in some kind of roofed-in courtyard, only illuminated by the headlamps of the car. Mr. Gianapolis pushed him forward, and, as the door was closed, he heard the gear of the car reversed; then — silence fell. " My"%rip I " he began, nervously. . . . " It will be placed in your room, Soames." The voice of the Greek answered him from the darkness. Guided by the hand of Gianapolis, he passed on and descended a flight of stone steps. Ahead of him a light shone out beneath a door, and, as he stumbled on the steps, the door was thrown suddenly open. He found himself looking into a long, narrow apartment. . . . He pulled up short with a smoth- ered, gasping cry. 144 CAVE OF THE GOLDEN DRAGON 145 It was a cavern I — but a cavern the like of which he had never seen, never imagined. The walls had the appearance of being rough-hewn from virgin rock — from black rock — from rock black as the rocks of Shellal — black as the gates of Erebus, Placed at regular intervals along the frowning walls, to right and left, were spiral, slender pillars, gilded and gleaming. They supported an archwork of fancifully carven wood, which curved gently out- ward to the center of the ceiling, forming, by con- junction with a similar, opposite c-urve, a pointed arch. In niches of the wall were a number of grotesque Chinese idols. The floor was jet black and polished like ebony. Several tiger-skin rugs were strewn about it. But, dominating the strange place, in the center of the floor stood an ivory pedestal, support- ing a golden dragon of exquisite workmanship ; and before it, as before a shrine, an enormous Chinese vase was placed, of the hue, at its base, of deepest violet, fading, upward, through all the shades of rose pink seen in an Egyptian sunset, to a tint more elusive than a maiden's blush. It contained a mass of exotic poppies of every shade conceivable, from purple so dark as to seem black, to poppies of the whiteness of snow. Just within the door, and immediately in front of Soames, stood a slim man of about his own height, dressed with great nicety in a perfectly fitting morn- ing-coat, his well-cut cashmere trousers falling ac- 146 THE YELLOW CLAW curately over glossy boots having gray suede uppers. His linen was immaculate, and he wore a fine pearl m his black poplin cravat. Between two yellow fin- gers smoldered a cigarette. Soames, unconsciously, clenched his 'fists: this slim man embodied the very spirit of the outre. The fantastic surroundings melted from the ken of Soames, and he seemed to stand in a shadow-world, alone with an incarnate shadow. For this was a Chinaman! His jet black luster- less hair was not shaven in the national manner, but worn long, and brushed back from his slanting brow with no parting, so that it fell about his white collar behind, lankly. He wore gold-rimmed spectacles, which magnified his oblique eyes and lent him a terrifying beetle-like appearance. His mephisto- phelean eyebrows were raised interrogatively, and he was smiling so as to exhibit a row of uneven yel- low teeth. Soames, his amazement giving place to reason- less terror, fell back a step — into the arms of Gian- apolis. " This is our friend from Palace Mansions," said the Greek. He squeezed Soames' arm, reassur- ingly. " Your new principal, Soames, Mr. Ho-Pin, from whom you will take your instructions." " I have these instructions for Mr. Soames," said Ho-Pin, in a metallic, monotonous voice. (He gave to r half the value of w, with a hint of the presence of /.) ' He will wremain here as valet un- CAVE OF THE GOLDEN DRAGON 147 til the search fowr him becomes less wrigowrous." Soames, scarce believing that he was awake, made no reply. He found himself unable to meet the glit- tering eyes of the Chinaman; he glanced furtively about the room, prepared at any moment to wake up from what seemed to him an absurd, a ghostly dream. " Said will change his appeawrance," continued Ho-Pin, smoothly, " so that he will not wreadily be wrecognized. Said will come now." Ho-Pin clapped his hands three times. The door at the end of the room immediately opened, and a thick-set man of a pronounced Arabian type, entered. He wore a chauffeur's livery of dark blue; and Soames recognized him for the man who had driven the car. " Said," said Ho-Pin very deliberately, turning to face the new arrival, " dhu hin'a — Lucas Effendi — Mr. Lucas. Waddt el — shenta ila beta oda. Fehimtf " Said bowed his head. " Fdhim, effendi," he muttered rapidly.- "Mafihsh." . . . Again Said bowed his head, then, glancing at Soames : — " Tdala wayyaya! " he said. Soames, looking helplessly at Gianapolis — who merely pointed to the door — followed Said from the room. He was conducted along a wide passage, thickly 148 THE YELLOW CLAW carpeted and having its walls covered with a kind of matting kept in place by strips pf bamboo. Its roof was similarly concealed. A door near to the end, and on the right, proved to open into a square room quite simply furnished in the manner of a bed- sitting room. A little bathroom opened out of it in one corner. The walls were distempered white, and there was no window. Light was furnished by an electric lamp, hanging from the center of the ceil- ing. Soames, glancing at his bag, which Said had just placed beside the white-enameled bedstead, turned to his impassive guide. " This is a funny go ! " he began, with forced geniality. " Am I to live here? " "Ma'lesh!" muttered Said — " m«7