BY CAROLYN WELLS Author of “The Luminous Face,” “The Come Back,” “In the Onyx Lobby,” “The Man Who Fell Through the Earth,” etc. NEW YORK GEORGE H. DORAN COMPANY COPYRIGHT, 1922, BY GEORGE H. DORAN COMPANY PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA...

It is, of course, possible, perhaps even probable, that somewhere on this green earth there may be finer golf links or a more attractive clubhouse than those at Headland Harbor, but never hope to wring such an admission from any one of the summer colony who spend their mid-year at that particular portion of the Maine coast. Far up above the York cliffs are more great crags and among the steepest and wildest of these localities, a few venturesome spirits saw fit to pitch their tents. Others joine

“Dad, you’re absolutely impossible!” “Oh, come now, Betty, not as bad as that! Just because I don’t agree to everything you say——” “But you never agree with me! You seem to be opposed on principle to everything I suggest or want. It’s always been like that! From the time I was born,—how old was I, Dad, when you first saw me?” Mr Varian looked reminiscent. “About an hour old, I think,” he replied; “maybe a little less.” “Well, from that moment until this, you have persistently taken the opposite

Doctor Herbert Varian stood slightly apart from the rest of the group, his observant eyes taking in all the details of the peculiar situation of his brother’s house. His eye traversed back over the short distance they had already come, and he saw a narrow, winding and exceedingly steep path. At intervals it was a succession of broken, irregular steps, rocky and sharp-edged. Again, it would be a fairly easy, though stony footway. But it led to the house, and had no branch or side track in any dir

Doctor Herbert Varian was a man accustomed to responsibilities; more, he was accustomed to the responsibilities of other people as well as his own. Yet it seemed to him that the position in which he now found himself was more appalling than anything he had ever before experienced, and that it was liable to grow worse rather than better with successive developments. Varian had what has been called “the leaping mind,” and without being unduly apprehensive, he saw trouble ahead, such as he shuddere

“What’s this pillow doing here?” the sheriff asked, as he picked up the yellow satin cushion. “This looks to me like a parlor ornament.” “I thought it was strange, too,” returned Landon. “But I can’t see any clue in it, can you?” “Anything unusual may prove a clue,” said Potter, sententiously. “You never saw this pillow before, Mr Landon.” “No; but I’m not familiar with the house at all. Maybe it’s a discarded one, handed down to the servants’ use.” “Doesn’t look so; it’s fresh and new, and very

When Bill Dunn went up on the porch of Mrs Blackwood’s bungalow that evening, he found a group of neighbors there, and was not at all surprised that they were discussing the dreadful affair of Headland House. Claire Blackwood greeted the caller courteously and asked him to go inside the house with her. “Let us all go,” said Rodney Granniss. “I want to learn all about this case, and we’re entitled to know.” “Come on, everybody,” Dunn invited, “I want to ask a lot of questions and who knows where

It was not until after the funeral of her husband that Minna Varian really came to herself. The three intervening days, she had been free from hysterics but had been in a state of physical exhaustion and incapable of any exertion. But on the day after the funeral, she seemed to take on a new vitality. “I have come to life,” she said, speaking very seriously. “I have at last realized what has happened to me. I was dazed at first, and couldn’t seem to get my senses. Now, we will have no more hyste

The Herbert Varians went back to their summer home, and Minna, left alone with her companion and her secretary, began what she called her campaign to find Betty. Some people thought Mrs Varian a little affected mentally by her awful griefs, but those who knew her best read in her determination and persistence a steady aim and felt a slight hope of her success. “Anything in the world I can do, dear,” Claire Blackwood said to her, “command me. I’ll go to the city for you or do errands or anything

When Granniss stepped off the train at Headland Harbor, there were but few other passengers who alighted at the same time. But one of these, a mild young man, came nearer Rodney and said, quietly: “Mr Granniss, may I speak to you a moment?” “Certainly,” Rod answered, after a quick glance at him. “I am a messenger from Mr Wise. I have with me the money for Mrs Varian. Shall I give it to you here, or go up to the house with you and carry it? No one seems to be observing us; take it if you like.” R

Granniss looked at the constable blankly. Then he said, “Oh, well, you may as well accuse me as anybody, for the present. Where’s Dunn?” “He’s coming,” replied Potter, angry at the young man’s indifference to his charge. “But you can’t treat this matter so scornfully, Mr Granniss. I’ve been thinking a whole lot about you in connection with all these mysteries up here, and I’m of the opinion you know more about some things than you admit.” “Quite right, I do,” said Rod, cheerfully. “But don’t arr

It was after luncheon, in the library, that Pennington Wise began his real business of the investigation of the Varian mysteries. First of all, he desired to look over the papers in Mr Varian’s desk, and with the assistance of Granniss, he was soon in possession of the principal facts to be learned that way. Moreover, he discovered some things not yet taken into consideration by the local detectives, and he read with interest a number of letters that were carefully filed, apparently for preserva

Pennington Wise himself assisted in the locking up of the house that night, for he was determined if any more burglars came, he would know how they got in. The money that Minna had in her possession he took charge of, saying he would be responsible for its safety. Long the detective lay awake in his pleasant bedroom that overlooked the sea. He could hear the great waves tossing and breaking at the foot of the cliff and he couldn’t free his mind from a queer obsession to the effect that those wav

Pennington Wise was at his wits’ end. His wits were of the finest type and had always stood him in good stead; but he had reached their limit, at least regarding this present case. Baffling was too mild a word for it. Uncanny it was not, for there was no hint or evidence of anything supernatural in the taking off of Lawrence North. He was a big, strong personality, and he had gone out of that house by natural means, whether voluntarily or not. That is, of course, if he had gone out of the house.

“Tell me more about Betty,” Zizi said, “that is, if you don’t mind talking about her.” “Oh, no,” Minna returned, “I love to talk about her. It’s the only way I can keep my hope alive!” Zizi was sitting with Mrs Varian while the nurse went out for a walk. There was a mutual attraction between the two, and the sympathetic dark eyes of the girl rested kindly on the face of the bereaved and suffering mother. “Tell me about her when she was little. Was she born in New York?” “No; at the time of her b

Pennington Wise came to the conclusion that he had now on hand the hardest job of his life. This knowledge did not discourage him, on the contrary it spurred him to continuous and desperate effort. Yet, as he told Zizi, his efforts consisted mostly in making inquiries here and there, in a hope that he might learn something indicative. “It isn’t a case for clues, evidence or deduction,” he told her. “It’s,—I hate the word,—but it’s psychological.” “If you can’t be logical be psychological,” said

“For the love of Mike, Zizi, what are you doing here?” exclaimed Pennington Wise, nearly struck dumb with astonishment at sight of the girl. “I ask you that!” she returned, looking at him with equal amazement. “Well, anyway, I’m glad to see you;” he smiled at her with real pleasure. “I’ve had a long, horrid and most unsatisfactory quest for the elusive L. N. and I haven’t found him yet.” “Any hope of it?” “Nothing but. I mean no expectation or certainty,—but always hope. Now, what’s your lay? Wh

When Wise and Zizi returned to Headland House, they found Doctor Varian there on one of his brief visits. Deciding that it was the best course to pursue the detective took the physician entirely into his confidence. The two were closeted in the library, and Wise related his discoveries regarding the Vermont hospital. “It is astounding! Incredible!” exclaimed Varian, “but if true, and it must be true, it explains a great many things. As a doctor, I can understand these things, and looking back, I

In a small but powerful motor boat Wise went on his voyage of exploration. The man who managed the craft was a stolid, silent person who obeyed Wise’s orders without comment. But when the detective directed that he go round the base of the headland, and skirt close to the rocks he grumbled at the danger. “Be careful of the danger,” Wise said, “steer clear of hidden reefs, but go close to the overhanging cliff, there where I’m pointing.” Skirting the cliff, at last Wise discovered what he was loo