CHAPTER IV
On the day following that upon which she arrived in Paris, Grace Duvallsallied forth, determined to find out two things--first, the positionoccupied by Alphonse Valentin in the affair of the kidnapping; secondly,the identity of the man who had stolen the box of cigarettes fromValentin's room, and gone with them to the house in the Avenue Kleber.The latter incident seemed trivial enough, at first sight; yet shereasoned that no one would risk arrest on the score of burglary, tosteal anything of such trifling value, without an excellent reason.
She had a short conference with Monsieur Lefevre, before she left thehouse, and told him of the events of the previous night. The Prefectseemed greatly interested.
"Could you identify the man who stole the cigarettes?" he asked.
"Easily. I had a splendid view of his face."
"Then go to Mr. Stapleton's house and take a look at all the servants.You may find him among them."
"I had intended to do so, this morning."
The Prefect smiled. "I do not know what your investigations will leadto, but they seem promising. I have a dozen men working on the case; yetso far they have not made the least progress. Their efforts, however,are directed toward finding the child. They are searching the city withthe utmost care. We believe that by discovering the missing boy, weshall also find the persons who committed the crime."
"Have you no one under suspicion?"
"No one. The nurse, Mary Lanahan, is of course being closely watched;also the chauffeur, Francois. My men report, however, that he gave themthe slip for an hour, last night. I have an idea that he may prove to bethe one who took the cigarettes."
"Can you imagine any reason for his having done so?"
"I confess, my child, that I cannot. It seems utterly absurd; unless,indeed, there was something else concealed in the box."
"What?"
The Prefect laughed. "I cannot imagine. But if you can identify theman, we shall no doubt find out. As for the matter of Alphonse Valentin,we have already had him under observation. So far as we can learn, he ismerely a chauffeur, out of work, who seems to be somewhat in love withthe nurse."
"Then his actions have not been suspicious, during the past week?"
"Not in the least. He has hung around the Stapleton house for severaldays, asking for news of the Lanahan woman; but that is all. Weattribute his actions to a natural anxiety over her illness."
Grace left the house, by no means satisfied with the progress she wasmaking. Her interview with Mary Lanahan, and subsequent visit to thescene of the crime, told her nothing she had not already known. Hergreatest disappointment, however, came when she had Mrs. Stapleton bringin Francois, ostensibly to question him about his part in the affair.She saw at once that he was not the man who had broken into AlphonseValentin's room on the night before. This man had been heavily beardedand tall. Francois was smooth shaved and rather short. Mrs. Stapletonassured her that none of her servants resembled in the least herdescription of the burglar. She left the house, greatly dissatisfied,after satisfying herself that this was the case.
Her visit to the house of Alphonse Valentin that afternoon wasproductive of no greater results. The man was out. The woman who openedthe door--the same one who had admitted her the previousevening--regarded her with ill-concealed suspicion, and informed herthat she had no idea when her lodger would return. Grace left,determined to try again the following day.
Throughout the whole evening she hung about the Stapleton house, hopingagain to see the man with the heavy beard who had disappeared within thenight before; but he did not put in an appearance. Grace began to feeldiscouraged. She thought of her lilac bushes, at home, of Aunt Lucyfeeding the chickens, of the dogs, the sweet call of the wood robinsamong the poplar trees on the lawn, and half wished that she had stayedat home and left to Richard the apparently hopeless task of finding theabductors of little Jack Stapleton.
What, after all, could she hope to do, where the entire police force ofParis had failed? The thing was absurd. Monsieur Lefevre had overratedher abilities. She heard the sound of church bells, striking the hour often, and decided to go home and forget the whole affair until tomorrow.Tomorrow--the day Richard must arrive! How she longed to be with him!This stupid interruption of their honeymoon seemed peculiarly cruel, nowthat over a week had elapsed since they had seen each other. Shewondered if she would meet him, the next day. Then she thought of herchanged appearance, of her hair, dyed a jet black, and worn in a new andto her mind unbecoming fashion, of her darkened complexion, herextremely French costume, her heavy veil, and laughed. If Richard didsee her, here in Paris, when he fully believed her to be peacefullytending her flower beds at home, he would never believe the evidence ofhis senses.
She was strolling toward the Champs Elysees, lost in thought, whensuddenly she heard the soft throbbing of a high-powered motor car, as itcame up the street behind her. She turned and glanced toward it; but thebrilliant glare of the electric headlights blinded her. She could seenothing, except that the car was moving very slowly.
Suddenly it stopped, almost abreast of her, and a tall man leaped to thesidewalk. Before she had an opportunity so much as to glance in hisdirection, he came swiftly up behind her, threw his arm about her neck,and choked her into unconsciousness. Her last sensation was of beinglifted bodily into the already moving car, and then the feeling of rapidmotion, quickly blotted out by the coming of insensibility.
When she returned to consciousness, it was broad daylight. She lay upona small wooden bed, in a low-ceilinged little room, the only furnitureof which was a small chest of drawers and a chair. Upon this chair sat alarge man, his face so thoroughly hidden by a mask that his featureswere quite unrecognizable. He was regarding her with keen scrutiny.
"Oh--what--where am I?" she gasped.
The man hesitated for a moment, then slowly spoke. "Where you are,mademoiselle, is of no importance. Attend to what I have to say."
Grace made no reply. There seemed nothing that she could say. She sat upand gazed at the man, half dazed. Her head swam. She felt that she hadbeen drugged.
"Ten days ago," the man went on, in a cold and menacing voice, "thechild of Monsieur Stapleton was taken from his nurse in the Bois deBoulogne. You are trying to find that child."
"But--" Grace made a movement of protest.
"It is useless to deny it. You have been watched."
Grace gasped in silence.
"I desire to send a message to the boy's father, and I have chosen youto take it to him. I have selected you, because to send one of my ownmen would doubtless result in his arrest. That is why you have beenbrought here."
"The--the child is safe?" asked Grace.
"Perfectly. You shall see for yourself." He motioned to the window.
Grace rose, and looked out. The view comprised a bit of garden,surrounded by bushes. She could see nothing beyond--nothing that wouldenable her in any way to identify the place. On the tiny plat of grassin the garden sat a child--a little girl, playing with a small black andwhite spaniel. Her dark hair was drawn tightly beneath a pink sunbonnet.Her dress, her whole appearance, was that of a peasant child.
Grace turned from the window, bewildered. "I see nothing," she said,"except a little girl--"
"That is the child of Monsieur Stapleton," the man said. "Now attend tothe message."
She sat down again, wondering.
"Tell the boy's father this: He will leave his house tomorrow evening,in his automobile, at eight o'clock. He will bring with him, in apackage, the sum of five hundred thousand francs--one hundred thousanddollars. He will have with him, in the automobile, no one but himselfand his chauffeur. He will leave Paris by the Porte de Versailles, anddrive along the road to Versailles at a speed of twelve miles an hour.Somewhere upon that road, among the many automobiles that will pass him,will be one, from which a blue light will flash, as it approaches him.It will also slow up. He will toss the package of bank notes into thatcar, and drive on. If the package contains the sum of five hu
ndredthousand francs, he will find his child at his house, upon his return.If not, or if these instructions are not carried out to the letter--ifthere is any attempt made at pursuit--the child will not be there, andyou can tell him that he will be given but one more chance. After that,the boy will die."
The man in the mask made this gruesome statement with the utmostcoolness.
Grace listened, aghast at the cruelty of his words, and at the same timestruck by the extreme ingenuity of the plan. To catch the perpetratorsof the crime, under these circumstances, seemed impossible. A rapidlymoving automobile--one of a hundred. An instant's flash of a blue lightin passing--the tossing into the car of the money--and it would speedaway into the darkness, beyond any hope of detection. Should Mr.Stapleton have others in his car--should he have his car followed by asecond, containing armed men, the occupants of the kidnapper's machinewould no doubt refuse to give the signal, and nothing would beaccomplished. It would be impracticable to line the road, for a possibledistance of twenty miles, with gendarmes, nor could their presenceaccomplish anything, beyond putting the kidnappers on guard, andpreventing the carrying out of the plan.
The weakest point in the whole scheme seemed, to Grace at least, thedelivery of the child to Mr. Stapleton, provided he paid the moneydemanded. Just how that was to be accomplished, without subjecting theperson who brought the boy to arrest, she did not see. A moment'sreflection, however, showed her that a stranger might be employed, atany point, who for a few francs would agree to take the child to thehouse. She turned to the man before her with feelings not devoid ofadmiration.
"How can Mr. Stapleton know that you will do as you say?"
The man shrugged his shoulders. "That is a chance he must take. If hedoes not believe that the child will be delivered to him, provided hepays the money, he had better not pay it. But if he does his part, Ishall do mine--and this I swear by the memory of my mother!"
Grace shuddered. A wretch of this sort, talking about the memory of hismother! "Very well," she said quietly, "I will take your message."
"Good! You will not leave here, of course, until it is dark--tonight.You will be blindfolded, and conducted to some point in the city. Fromthere, you can make your way to Monsieur Stapleton's house." He rose,and went toward the door. "Make no attempt to escape. It will beuseless. Any attempts on the part of the police to interfere with theplan I have outlined will result in nothing. Food will be sent in to youat once. Good morning."
It was close to ten o'clock that night, as nearly as Grace could judge,when she was led a considerable distance blindfolded, to a closedautomobile, and driven away. She could form no idea of her whereabouts.The car continued on its way, for over an hour. Once she attempted tosnatch the bandage from her eyes; but a hand was placed upon her arm byanother occupant of the machine, and a low voice warned her to desist.
After an interminable ride, the car suddenly stopped, and she felt theman at her side slip away from her and open the door. Instantly shesnatched the bandage from her eyes. The man had disappeared. She steppedto the sidewalk, and looked about. She was standing upon a brightlylighted street, which seemed somehow familiar to her. The man on the boxof the cab glanced down at her with a look of curious interest. She sawhis face clearly, in the light of the street. It was the heavily beardedman whom she had seen take the box of cigarettes from the room ofAlphonse Valentin two nights before.
Grace stood with the bandage which had encircled her eyes, still in onehand. Suddenly she saw a dark figure uncoil itself from the rear of thecar, and drop noiselessly to the pavement as the machine started off.She gave a low cry of surprise. The man came up to her, a grim smileupon his face. It was Alphonse Valentin.
The Blue Lights: A Detective Story Page 4