The Mark of Cain by Carolyn Wells

Author:Carolyn Wells
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781634210386
Publisher: Duke Classics

Chapter XIV - Two Suitors

*

"Oh, of course, that settles it" Pinckney was saying to Avice, as he watched for her answering gleam of satisfaction at his words. She had been telling him about the Hemingway letter, and had said he might use it in his newspaper story.

Avice was disappointed that the police had not been entirely convinced by the note she found, and while they searched for the unknown Hemingway, they kept strict surveillance over Kane Landon and a wary eye on Stryker.

But Pinckney agreed with her, positively, that Hemingway was the murderer, and that it was in accordance with the dead man's wishes that he should not be hunted down, consequently the matter ought to be dropped.

However, the young reporter had reached such a pitch of infatuation for the beautiful girl, that he would have agreed to any theory she might have advanced. He lived, nowadays, only to get interviews with her, and to sanction her plans and carry out her orders. They had evolved theories and discarded them time and again, and now, Avice declared, this was the absolute solution.

"Of course, Uncle Rowland looked forward to this fate," she said, her face saddened at the thought, and, "Of course," Pinckney echoed.

"Seems queer, though," put in Landon, who was present, "that the note just cropped up. Where was it, Avice?"

"In a pigeon-hole of uncle's desk, stuffed in between a lot of old papers,—bills and things."

"A fine search the police put up, not to find it sooner!"

"But it doesn't matter, Kane, since I came across it," and Avice smiled at him. "You must admit that the mystery is solved, even if we don't know who Hemingway is, and are asked not to find out."

"Oh, it's as good a solution as any," Landon said, indifferently; "but I don't take much stock in it, and Pinck doesn't either. Do you, old chap?"

"I see no reason to doubt that the probabilities point to the man mentioned in the note," Pinckney returned, a little stiffly. He was horribly jealous of Landon, and though not sure that Avice cared for him, he feared that she did. Kane Landon was a handsome fellow, and had, too, as Pinckney noted with concern, that devil-may-care air that is so taking with women. It was Landon's fad never to discuss anything seriously, and he scoffed at all theories and all facts put forth by Pinckney in his amateur detective work.

Moreover, Pinckney, who was not at all thick-skinned, couldn't help observing how Avice's interest in him flagged when Landon was present. Alone with the girl, the reporter could entertain and amuse her, but let Landon appear, and her attention was all for him.

So Pinckney reluctantly went away, knowing he would only be made miserable if he remained longer.

"What makes you act so about that note?" demanded Avice of Landon, after Pinckney left.

"Act how?"

"As if it were of no account. Why, Kane, if uncle wrote that, he must have known how he would meet his death."

"Yes—, if he wrote it?"

"What do you mean?" Avice looked startled.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.