Part 21 (1/2)
Hunt remained silent for a moment, then said, ”Do I understand that you are making me a proposition?”
”I'm not laying myself open to a charge of blackmail, Mr. Hunt.”
”No,” jeered Hunt, ”I see you're a clever rogue. I might have guessed as much when you offered to investigate this matter for me.”
”A man must make a living,” returned Marsh.
”This is a cheap way to do it.”
”I haven't had your opportunities,” snapped Marsh.
”d.a.m.n you!” cried Hunt, leaping to his feet and shaking his fist in Marsh's face. ”I'll hand you over to the police.”
”And lose a good lieutenant, Mr. Hunt?”
”You're a dirty blackguard, Marsh,” stormed Hunt. ”You've worked your way into my confidence and now attempt to use your knowledge to hold me up. I admit that you've got me by the throat. A man placed in the position which you have made only too clear to me has only one way out. Of course, I could clear myself, but the stigma and suspicion would remain. All right, what's your price?”
Marsh stared in puzzled silence for a moment, as Hunt glared down at him. In some ways the outcome of the conversation was not exactly what he had expected.
”Mr. Hunt,” he said, rising, ”I'm in this thing for bigger game than a few hundred dollars.”
”I told you to name your price,” replied Hunt.
”As I told you before,” returned Marsh, ”I'm not laying myself open to a charge of blackmail. You think the matter over for a day or two; and in the meantime I'll take my coat and hat.”
Hunt hesitated for a moment, then struck a bell which stood on a small table by the davenport. A moment later his man appeared with Marsh's coat and hat and a.s.sisted him to put on his coat.
”Good night, Mr. Hunt,” said Marsh, smiling, and holding out his hand.
”Good night,” said Hunt, shortly, turning away and ignoring the proffered hand.
The servant opened the door and Marsh; pa.s.sed out. He hurried over to Rush Street and into the telephone booth in a nearby drug store.
He talked for a few minutes over the telephone and then took a street car for home.
A half hour later an observant person might have noticed a man lingering in the shadows of Oak Street.
CHAPTER XVII
WHAT THE CARETAKER SAW.
Early Monday morning Marsh started for Hubbard Woods, to carry out his investigations regarding the Merton house These investigations must be conducted along different lines from those he had contemplated on Sunday, for his last interview with Hunt had considerably changed his position in the matter. Hunt now regarded him with suspicion, and it might be considered probable that he had even gone so far as to warn the caretaker he had said was in charge, against admitting Marsh.
Marsh intended to have another look at the place, but only a surrept.i.tious one from the cover of the woods. His chief object now was to discover if neighbors knew anything about the place. As he came down the road he recognized the turn, which the day before had brought him directly in front of the gate, so he stepped to the side of the road, and approached the turn with caution, for he did not want anyone who might be coming from the house to find him near it at this time.
As Marsh walked slowly around the bend in the road he saw the rear of a closed car just disappearing between the gateposts. Only the guarded way in which he had approached had prevented the occupants of the car from seeing him. Marsh hurried to the shelter of one of the big stone gateposts and peered around it in time to note that the car was a large, black one of the limousine type. The next minute it was lost to view around a curve in the driveway, and Marsh paused for a moment to reflect. This might be Hunt's car bringing him up for one of the visits which he had said he was accustomed to make. On the other hand, it seemed too early an hour for a man of Hunt's habits. Moreover, Marsh had reason to believe that Hunt's car would be followed; and certainly there was no one else in sight now.
Marsh decided that the matter was worth investigating, and turned into the concealing shadow of the woods. He made his way with difficulty through the tangled underbrush, in what he believed to be the general direction of the house. His guess was correct, for the house was before him when he emerged, a few minutes later, from the woods. He was protected from the sight of anyone in the house by a screen of heavy shrubbery, which divided the lawn from the woods.
He found that in his unguided advance through the woods, he had approached the house to the south, so that he saw not only the house itself, but also had a good view of the garage at the back. The car had evidently just been run into the garage, for a man was closing the doors, while another stood nearby. A moment later, the two men approached the house and pa.s.sed out of sight. Marsh presumed that they had used the back door, which was out of his line of vision.