ard. I'll lie
first." Her lovely little face clouded up as though she were going to
cry.

"You'll do nothing of the kind!" I insisted. "We know Helen didn't do
it. Don't we?"

"Ye-es." Her tone was not convincing.

"Well, then, whatever we say can't hurt her. And we're bound to find
out who the guilty persons are."

"But, Bupps, who could it have been?" she asked anxiously.

"I still think it was Zalnitch and the men who were with him, but it
might have been Woods. I'm going to find out everything he did last
night. It may throw some light on the case. After all, he is the one
who had the most to gain by Jim's death, and his words of last night
were mighty queer."

I paid the waiter and we left the cafe. On the way to Mary's I stopped
at the undertaker's and made arrangements for Jim's burial. The man in
charge was the saddest looking person I have ever seen. He had a
woebegone look about him that was infectious--made you want to weep for
him or with him. He discussed the funeral arrangements in a hushed
voice and finished by whispering, "I sincerely hope what the papers are
hinting is not so."

"What's that?" I asked.

"The noon edition of _The Sun_ says, 'The finger of suspicion points
very strongly to Mrs. Felderson.'"

I hurried out to the car and jumped in.

"Mary, we've got to work fast."

"Is Helen suspected?" she asked.

"Yes. _The Sun_ is more than hinting."

The news seemed to bring out the fight in Mary.

"Well, we'll prove her innocent."

When we reached the Pendletons' we hurried into the house and went at
once to the room where Jim and Helen had their argument. The revolver
was not there.

CHAPTER EIGHT

IT LOOKS BAD FOR HELEN

I drove Mary to the hospital with my spirits at lowest ebb. If _The
Sun_ were going to try to convict Helen of the murder, I realized that
we had a hard fight ahead of us, for that yellow sheet was most zealous
in hounding down any one who happened to be socially prominent, and in
demanding punishment. The blacker the scandal, the deeper they dug,
and the more details they gave to their gluttonous, filth-loving
public. They would be particularly eager here, for they had no love
for Jim, due to the stand he took against them during the war.

I knew the reporters would be hot on my trail and that sooner or later
they would interview Mary. So I determined that Mary should spend as
much time as possible at the hospital, feeling sure th