The Lone

' -IJ J II COPYKiQwrtP ,694 Br TrtE AiTMOR CriPTER XV. 1 "You see I was right, " said Merricé i when I met him at the station. "Yoa have been right in every inetance, " I answered. "The inspector here quito agrees with rne that you should be a detective. Where axe your prisoners?" "No, no! Not prisoners,' replied Merriok, shocked at the word. "They are niy guests. traveling cümpanions - what you ■wilt, but not prisoners. " "Still I see my detective attends on thera both, ' ' said I as Strent and Roso Genion carne along the platform. "It is well to tnke all precautions. How is Fraucis Briarfleld?' ' "Rather downcast. He is afraid of teing arrested f or the murder. ' ' "No fear of that, " answered Merrick, casting a glance at Strent. "This gentleman's evidence will exonérate him fully." Strent, smooth and unctnous as ever, rubbed bis hands aud bowed, but Rose Gernon turned her back on him with a gesture of disgust. Evidently she had not f orgiven his hurried departure from the inn. "What are we waiting for?" she said eharply. "Let us go on to the inquest. I wish to get it over as soon as possible and return to town. ' ' We took the hint and walked along to a roora adjoining the morgue, where the inquest was being hold. I introduced Merrick to the inspector, andafter a short conversation they went into the morgue to examine the body. Not caring to see so ghastly a sight, I remained outside with Francis. In a quarter of an hour the doctor and the inspector returned, the former rubbing his hands with a well pleased expression, the latter looking somewhat astomshed. What had passed in the morgue I know not, as Merrick refused to gratify my curiosity. "Wait till you hear the evidence of Strent, ' ' he said significantly. The jury was made up of well to do llarshruinster tradesmen, who took a profound interest in the proceedings, as the dead man was the brother of Miss Bellin's future husband. The Bellins were the great people of the neighborhood, and the tradesmeu hoped to serve the hall when Mr. and Mrs. Brairfield gettled there. They were, therefore, excessively poli te to Francis, but their frequent marks of attention only di-ew frnm him a bitter smile. "Would they treat me in this way if they knew all?" he whispered to me. "They will never knowall, " I answered in the same tone. I had spoken to the inspector, and he iu his turn had talked seriously with the coroner. The latter had been told the -whole story, and though astonished at the folly of Francis yet found it in his heart to be sorry for the young man. He said he would not question Francis more than was uecessary, and we hoped to carry through the inquest without exposing the underlying romance. The first witness called was a local doctor, who deposed to having examined the body of Felix. He gave it as his opinión fchat the young man had died of poison and explained the state of the blood with a lot of medical techiucalities which none of the jury uuderstood. It was, said the doctor, a case of blood poisoning, and the deceased had been wounded in the hand by some sharp inBtrumeut which was steeped in poison. I eame next and narrated how I had staid at the Fen inu on that night and had met there Francis Briarfteld, who was waiting there for his brother. Then I told of the discovery of the corpse and the finding of the arrowhead in the iire. place. I said nothing about my tracking the trail to the pool, and if possible we ■vished that portion of the evidence to be passed over in silence. Fortunately the jury were a dull lieaded lot and submitted quietly to the guidance of the coroner. He only asked questions pertinent to the death without going i too deeply into the subject. At this point I produced the arrowhead. Francis explained that he had arrived from Chile on the 6th of June and had gone at once to the Feu hm at the request of his brother Felix. His brother had uot arrived on that night, and he had gone to bed. He was unable to eay how his brother had come to his tragic end. Then came the critical point which we wished passed over in silence. "Did you see your brother at the Fen inn, Mr. Briarfield?" asked the coroner. "I did not see my brother alive, " was the evasive answer. "Perhaps the body had been put in the pool by the murderer, ' ' said one of the jurymen, "in which case Mr. Briarfield would not see him. " "I did not go to the pool on that night, " replied Francis, adroitly evading the remar k. "It was later on that 1 learnprl mv hvnthpr's hnrlv was thère and at once gave instructioiis that the pool was to bo dragged. ' ' At this point Mr. Briárfield was asked to staud dowu, and the inspector's evidence was taken. He deposed to the faot that Mr. Briarfield had instracted him to drag the pool for the body, and that it was fouud there. This piece of evidence quite put the jury off the scent, as, if Francis had pl?ed the body in the pool, he would not have told the inspector where to find it. The critical point was thus glided gently over, and the coroner called Rose Gernon. Once the jury knew how the crime had been committed, and they would forget all about the hiding of the body in the pool, so that the folly of Francis would not be made public. 1 must say that Rose Gernon gave her evidence very clearly. She said she was an intímate friend of Felix Briarfield, a statement which rather shocked the moral tradesmen of Marshminster. Felix asked her to go down to the inn, as he had prepared it for his brother and wished to see him there about a family matter. "Bnt the inn was a ruin, " intermpted a jurynian. Miss Gernon said that was vpiy true. Still it was habitable, and Mr. Felix Briarfield had sent on fuel and provisions. As the former proprietor had left all the furniture, the rooms were fairly comfortable. She oould not say why Felix did all this unloss it was that he wauted to see his brother privately. Such talk was very weak, and the IJuryruen looked significantly at one another. They knew the Fen inn and ionld not conoeive that any one could bo so mad as to dweil in it ren for a night. It was said to be hannffa, and, though such a superstition might be scoffed at, yet not one of those present would have passed 12 hours of darkness in that ill omoned place. ' ' Were you not afraid when yon saw the lone inn," asked a juryman. Rose shrugged her shoulders and langhed contemptuously. "I am afraid of nothing, " she said coolly. "There are 110 such things as ghosts. Besides I had my brother with me." "Your brother!" "Yes, Edward Strent. " The inspector gave a low whistle, and catching my eye nodded significantly. He remembered what I had said 011 the previous night, and now agreed with my theory that the secret of the committal of the crime lay in the relationship existing betweea Rose and Strent. They were, it appeared, brother and sister. I saw all kinds of possibilities now that such a tie was made clear. Meanwhile Rose proceeded with her evidence. "Mr. Felix Brairfield came to the inn, " she said, "after his brother had gone to rest. I saw and spoke with him and afterward went to bed myself. I understood that he was going to stay all night and see his brother in the morning. " "Was he alone in the room when you left him?" "No. He was with Strent. An hour or so after I retired Strent carne to my door and asked ine to go down stairs. I did so and found Félix lying dead on the floor. My brother had left the room, and on going out at the back of the house I found him mouuting the horse of Mr. Francis Briarfield. I asked him what had happeued, and he just said Felix was dead and advised me to fly lest I should be accused of the murder. " "That, I suppose, was also thereason of hisflight?" "So he told me when I saw him in London, but he then declared himself innocent of the crime. I was afraid I would be accused of the crime, so took the horse and gig in which we had come to the Fen inn and drove to Marshminster. From there I returned to London. ' ' "Why did you not give the alarm?" "I was afraid of being accused of the murder. " Here the inspector whispered something in the ear of the coroner. He nodded and again spoke to Rose Gernon. ""Why did you not teil Mr. Denham where to find Strent when he was apparcntly guilty?" "Strem is my brother, " said Rose quietly, "and as he tokl me he v.as innocent I did not wish him to be arrested for the crime. But that he visited me yésterday and was seeu by the men set to watch me he would never have been caught. " Her examiuatiou lasted some considerable time, but the coroner did not succeed in ehciting anything new from her. She persistently lield to the same story, so in despair the examiner desisted. aud she was told to stand down. In her place Edward Strent was called, and then for me bogan the most interesting part of the case. I knew all that had been said hitherto, but I did not know how the crime had been committed and waited to hear what Strent had to say. I quite believed him to be guilty, yet hardly thought he would accuse himself of the crime. He first corroborated the story of Rose as to going to the inn and narrated all that had occurred up to the time when lm wns Inff alone in the room with lix. "When I found inyself alouo with Briarfield, " he proceeded, "I had a quarrel with him. " "About what?" "About my sister. He had promised to marry lier, yet, as I well knew, was paying attentions to Miss Bellin. " .""But Miss Bellin was engaged to his brother, " remarked a jurynmn "I kuow that. It was about Miss Bellin he wished to see his brother E' üisisted that he shoulcl marry my sister, and he refused. We had hot word';. He was on one side of the fable, 1 on the other. Between us lay the arrowhesK which he had brought in his pocket. " "Why had he brought the arrowheat there?' ' "I don 't know, " replied Strent, ly ing with the utmost promptitude. "He took the arrowhead out of his pocket said it was Doisoned and laid it down on the table. "Do you thiuk he intended tokill his brother because he stood in his way with Miss Bellin?" asked an inquisitivo jurymau of a romantici turn of mind. "I realiy don't know, sir, " replied Strent, looking the juryman straight iu the face. "He said nothing to me. We were quarrelingover the shabby way iu which he had treated my sister, and the arrowhead was on the table between us. " "What was thepositioa of the arrowhead?" asked the coroner, prompted by Merrick. "It was leaning against abook which was on the table, and the point was nppermost. I said to Mr. Briarfield, 'Will you marry my sister?' and he said: 'No. I'm if I will. ' While saying this he bronsht down the open prJm of his hand on the arrowhead and gave a cry of pain. When he lifted hi hand, it had a ragged wound across it from the th'.mib to the little fineer. 1 wished to bind it up, but he pushed me away, crying out he was a dead mau. In three minutes h; was lyin,T dead on the floor. I tlirew the ïrrowhead iuto the fireplace and trt'd to revive him, but it was of uo use. He was dead. " "And you?" "I was afraid I would be accused of the death, as Mr. Deuham or Mr. Francis might have heard us quarreling together. I lost my hoad altogether and only thought of flight. I ran up to my sister's room and told her Felix was dead. Then I saddled the horse. When she carne to the door, I was mounting. I told her to take the gig and fly to Marshminster, and that I would explain all in London. " "You fled like a coward. " "I suppose 1 did, " said the man sullenly, '"but I was beside myself with terror. I rodo to Starby and gave the horse back to the livery stable keeper. Then I went to London and saw my sister. She agreed with me that it was best to keep quitt, so I did uot come forward to give evidence. Had it uot been tor that detective who watched my sister, I should uot be here now. " This evidonce practically ended the inquest. Merrick was called to prove that the wouad in the hand was such a one as might have been made by the downward stroke of the hand on a sharp point. This evidence was substantiated by the local practitioner, who had examined the body with Dr. Merrick. Thero was uo doubt that the affair had happened as Strent said. Felix Briarfield had slappcd his open hand on the table to emphasize his refusal to marry Rose Gernou. Unf ortunately it came iu contact with the poisoned arrowrhead. The flint had an edge like a razor, anc being steeped in virulent poison actec like a snake bite on the unfortunate young man. Felix had not been niurdered, but died by misadventure. That was the verdict brought in by the jury, and so the whole of this strange affair came to an end. Thanks to the astuteness of the inspector and the delicacy of the coroner, the jury were quite unaware of what had happeued betweeu the death of Felix and the uest. Tho reporters of the Marshminter Gazctte nierely put in a short statement of the afïair, and in a few days jeople ceased to take any interest in the ''en iuii crime. It was a lucky escape 'or Francia, but I don'tthinkthe lesson was thrown away ou him. Rose Gernon aud her brother went ack to towu the same eveniug. Inever aw Streut again, but frequently had he pleasure of soeing his sister performug on the stage. She is now engaged ;o be rnarried, but with the knowledge of her actious at the Fen inn I cannot ay I envy the bridogroom. After the burinl of Félix I went abroad with Frailéis, whose health was quite broken down by the strain put ou t during the last few weeks. He reiurned in six months and rnarried Oliva. She was told all that had taken jlace in the lone inn, but kept the iu'ormation to herself. Mrs. Bellin never tnew that Félix liad substituted himself for Francis. I was best man at the wedding by particular request and saw he happy pair start for their moon. I hope they will be happy and am sure they deserve to be, seeing thrcagh what tribulations they have passed. "What has beeome of the Fen mn?" asked Dr. Merrick one day when we were talking over thö case. "Oh, the Fen iim is pulled down, I believe!" was my reply "There will be uo more tragedies there. " "A fit end for such a shambles, " Báid Merrick, and I think he was about right. THE END.