hat shone in the stranger's
eyes! Faint, yet unmistakable, the shimmering radiance pulsed from the
necklace in an aura of nameless evil.

And with the coming of that aura of weird light at her throat, a
strange trance was swiftly sweeping over Leah. She sat there now as
rigidly motionless as some exquisite statue of ivory and jet.

Gordon stared at her in stark bewilderment. He knew the history of
Leah's necklace. It was merely an oddity, and nothing more--a freak
piece of costume jewelry made from fragments of an Arizona meteorite.
Leah had worn the necklace a dozen times before, without any trace of
the weird phenomena that were now occurring.

Dancers again thronged the floor to the blaring jazz of the negro
orchestra while Gordon was still trying to force his whirling brain to
a decision. He was certain that Leah was in deadly peril of some kind,
yet the nature of that peril was too bizarre for his mind to imagine.

Then the stranger with the glowing eyes took matters into his own
hands. He left his booth and began threading his way through the
dancers toward Leah. As he watched the progress of that slight
gray-haired figure Gordon refused to believe the evidence of his own
eyes. The thing was too utterly absurd--yet Gordon was positive that
the strong oak floor of the dancing space was visibly swaying and
creaking beneath the stranger's mincing tread!

* * * * *

The stranger paused at Leah's booth only long enough to utter a brief
low-voiced command. Then Leah, still in the grip of that strange
trance, rose obediently from her seat to accompany him.

Dave Redding rose angrily to intercept her. The stranger seemed to
barely brush the irate director with his finger tips, yet Redding
reeled back as though struck by a pile-driver. Leah and the stranger
started for the door. Redding scrambled to his feet again and hurried
after them.

It was then that Gordon finally shook off the stupor of utter
bewilderment that had held him. Springing from his booth, he rushed
after the trio.

The dancers in his way delayed Gordon momentarily. Leah and the
stranger were already gone when he reached the door. The narrow little
entrance hallway to the Hut was deserted save for a figure sprawled
there on the floor near the outer door.

It was the body of Dave Redding. Gordon shuddered as he glanced
briefly down at the huddled figure. A single mighty blow from some
unknown weapon had crumpled t