The day book. [volume], March 20, 1917, LAST EDITION, Image 19

About The day book. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1911-1917

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aniseed from the service of Marevelli,
as I have told you.
I had only a small amount" of
money at my command and my first
idea was of going east', where I had
business friends. The thought of
Naomi deterred me. While her lat
est action had clearly repelled' me,
yet I could not readily forget Jier. As
w I left the Marevelli mansion I tried
to fathom- the cause of the drastic
action of its owner. Suspicion
seemed to be the'impelling motive of
his behavior; but why in my case?
I was aware that he had been the
victim, as a countryman of wealth,
of that mysterious league of villains
known as the "Black Band." I had
seen their letters menacing him, de
manding a large amount of money
as blackmail or his life. Outside of
the usual sordid motive of personal
gain of these- Bchemers I had heard
that Marevelli was especially detest
ed by these especial members of the
league on account of some political
differences reaching back to his for
mer career in Italy.
Always on guard against these
malevolent plotters, generally view
ing them with contempt instead of
fear, was it possible Marevelli sus
pected me as a possible spy in their
interest? Further, was it probable
that he had imparted these suspi
' cions to his wife, who in turn had
communicated them to Naomi?
I dwelt strongly, mentally, on this
phase of the situation. Several times
during the ensuing week I hovered,
about the Marevelli place. I caught
sight of Naomi only once. She was
.in the garden. I lifted my hat She
'bowed in return, sadly, I thought,
and went into the house. lwas ag
(A ' grieved, disappointed; but at least
she did not betoken her former cold-
different, everyday comments, he
eyed me keenly. -
"Had I better say something in my
mind I had to speak?" he inquired,
craftily.
"Why not?" I submitted.
"Very welL I know who you are
Adrian Noble, recently the victim of
a whim of, the hard tyrant m yonder,
Luigi Marevelli."
"I was his secretary once, yes," I
admitted.
"You cannot feel very kindly to
ward him. If I should tell you that
the nipping in the bud of a vait polit
ical conspiracy in which Marevelli is
involved is our object, and a thou
sand dollars cash will be yours for a
trifle of co-operation, what would
you say?"
I had my clue in an instant I
feigned the resentment toward my
employer which the stranger sought
to fan into a flame of rancour and
vengeance. To make a long story
short, I pretended blindly to accord
with the designs of the man and his
accomplifles, to whom he later in
troduced me.
What he wanted of me was a prac
tical use of the intimate knowledge
I had of the interior of the Marevelli '
home and the ways of its inmates.
There were certain papers in the
library they wished to secure, they
represented. A burglarious entrance
was necessary. I feigned interest and
willing co-operation in their plans,
expecting, sooner or later, to learn
the full extent of their motives until
the critical .moment arrived, acting
upon the same when they least ex
pected it
Thus it was that one night I found
myself with the trio in the cellar of
the Marevelli home. I had not in
tended to allow affairs to go so. far
without warning. Marevelli, but it was
too late to do that now. One of the
men left us in the cellar and as
cended Into the upper portion of the
house. He returned speedily, waving
a package of papers.
"Safe!" he announced, in malevo-
ness.
I had just finished a promenade
past the house one evening when a
sinister-faced man of foreign cast
swung along by my side. He was
specious and insinuating in his ad
dress. After dwelling upon a few in-.