light in the room disconcerted him. It occurred to him that
it would be easier in the dark. Reaching out his arm, he turned the
electric button, and the room was immediately plunged into darkness,
except for the moonlight which entered through the windows, imparting a
ghostly aspect to the scene. On the other side of the room, behind the
screen, a red glow from the open fire fell on the sleeping form of
Howard Jeffries.

Slowly, deliberately, Underwood raised the pistol to his temple and
fired.

CHAPTER VIII.

"Hello! What's that?"

Startled out of his Gargantuan slumber by the revolver's loud report,
Howard sat up with a jump and rubbed his eyes. On the other side of the
screen, concealed from his observation, there was a heavy crash of a
body falling with a chair--then all was quiet.

Scared, not knowing where he was, Howard jumped to his feet. For a
moment he stood still, trying to collect his senses. It was too dark to
discern anything plainly, but he could dimly make out outlines of
aesthetic furniture and bibelots. Ah, he remembered now! He was in
Underwood's apartment.

Rubbing his eyes, he tried to recall how he came there, and slowly his
befuddled brain began to work. He remembered that he needed $2,000, and
that he had called on Robert Underwood to try and borrow the money. Yes,
he recalled that perfectly well. Then he and Underwood got drinking and
talking, and he had fallen asleep. He thought he had heard a woman's
voice--a voice he knew. Perhaps that was only a dream. He must have been
asleep some time, because the lights were out and, seemingly, everybody
had gone to bed. He wondered what the noise which startled him could
have been. Suddenly he heard a groan. He listened intently, but all was
still. The silence was uncanny.

Now thoroughly frightened, Howard cautiously groped his way about,
trying to find the electric button. He had no idea what time it was. It
must be very late. What an ass he was to drink so much! He wondered what
Annie would say when he didn't return. He was a hound to let her sit up
and worry like that. Well, this would be a lesson to him--it was the
last time he'd ever touch a drop. Of course, he had promised her the
same thing a hundred times before, but this time he meant it. His
drinking was always getting him into some fool scrape or other.

He was gradually working his way along the room, when suddenly he
stumbled over something on the floor. It was a man lyin