THE CAT'S PAW
BY
NATALIE SUMNER LINCOLN
AUTHOR OF "THE RED SEAL," "THE UNSEEN EAR,"
"THE TREVOR CASE," "THE MOVING FINGER," ETC.
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY
NEW YORK :: 1922 :: LONDON
COPYRIGHT, 1922, BY
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY
Copyright, 1922, by Street and Smith
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
~By NATALIE SUMNER LINCOLN~
THE CAT'S PAW
THE UNSEEN EAR
THE THREE STRINGS
THE MOVING FINGER
THE NAMELESS MAN
THE OFFICIAL CHAPERON
THE LOST DESPATCH
THE RED SEAL
I SPY
C. O. D.
THE MAN INSIDE
THE TREVOR CASE
[Illustration: DROPPING THE CAT, SHE SPRANG TO HER FEET WITH A SLIGHT
CRY.] [page 27]
TO
EDNA LEIGHTON TYLER
THIS YARN IS AFFECTIONATELY
INSCRIBED IN TOKEN
OF A FAITHFUL FRIENDSHIP
CONTENTS
CHAPTER PAGE
I. KITTY! 1
II. THE SUMMONS 6
III. DETAILS 17
IV. SUICIDE? 35
V. AT THE MORGUE 52
VI. TESTIMONY 63
VII. MRS. PARSONS HAS CALLERS 79
VIII. THE CASE OF THE GILA MONSTER 94
IX. MRS. PARSONS ASKS QUESTIONS 116
X. RUMORS 127
XI. I. O. U. 139
XII. A WORD OF WARNING 155
XIII. BRIBERY 169
XIV. AND CORRUPTION 185
XV. BOUND IN RED TAPE 203
XVI. A STARTLING ENCOUNTER 215
XVII. "K. B." 223
XVIII. ELUSIVE CLUES 239
XIX. SUSPICION 252
XX. THE FEET OF THE FURTIVE 260
XXI. MOUCHETTE, THE SEVEN-TOED 270
XXII. GREED 287
THE CAT'S PAW
CHAPTER I
KITTY!
Miss Susan Baird let her gaze rest on her companion in speculative
silence. Apparently, her last jibe had failed of its mark, judging from
the man's unchanged expression. With a vexed sigh she proceeded to pour
out another cup of tea.
They were an oddly matched pair. Miss Baird, still erect in spite of
her seventy years, her small slight figure tucked into one corner of
the carved, throne-shaped chair which was her habitual seat when in
her library, appeared dwarfed in comparison with the broad-shouldered,
powerfully built man who faced her across the tea table.
"So you wish to marry my niece, Kitty," she remarked. "_You!_" And she
broke into shrill laughter.
Her companion flushed hotly. Her ridicule cut deeper than had any of
her previous comments.
"I intend to marry her," he answered, and the stubborn determination of
his tone matched his set features.
"So!" Miss Baird shrugged her thin shoulders. "You forget, my friend,
that until Kitty is twenty-five years of age, I am her legal guardian,
and that she is absolutely dependent upon me."
"You give her a home and let her work that she may contribute to your
support," he retorted.
At his words her eyes blazed in fury and her talonlike fingers fumbled
in the silver bowl for the few pieces of sugar it contained.
"I am her only blood relation. It is fitting and proper that she aid me
in my old age," she exclaimed. "My poverty," she paused, and a certain
dignity crept into both voice and manner, "is my misfortune."
"And Kitty," he began, but got no further.
"We will not discuss Kitty," she announced with finality. "Wait," as he
started to interrupt her. "Such discussion is totally unnecessary, for
Kitty will never marry you."
"Why not?"
"For two excellent reasons." She spoke with deliberation. "Kitty shall
not marry a poor man, nor shall she marry a man with an hereditary
taint."
The man regarded her steadfastly across the table, his strong capable
hands still holding the peach which he had been peeling. The silence
lengthened, but neither seemed inclined to break it. Suddenly, the man
laid down the peach and taking out his handkerchief, passed it across
his lips; then, still in silence, he picked up the fruit knife, cut the
peach in two and, placing the fruit in front of Miss Baird, rose and
left the library.
In the outer hall he paused long enough to pick up his hat and gloves
from the table where he had placed them upon his arrival some time
before. He had opened the front door and was about to step outside when
it occurred to him to light a cigarette. To do so, he released his hold
on the front door. His cigarette was just commencing to draw nicely
when a current of air from an opened window across the hall blew the
door, which he had left ajar, shut with a resounding bang.
As the noise vibrated through the silent house, the man glanced
nervously over his shoulder. Evidently, it had not disturbed Miss Baird
or the other inmates of her household, for no one appeared in the hall.
He once more started to approach the front door when he heard, through
the porti�res in front of the entrance to the library, Miss Baird's
voice raised in anger.
"Kitty!" she called. "Kitty!"
As the name echoed through the silent hall, it gave place to a scream
of such intensity, such horror that the man drew back aghast. It was
some minutes before he moved. With faltering footsteps he retraced his
way into the library and paused by the tea table.
Miss Susan Baird still sat in her throne-shaped chair, but the light
fell full on her glazing eyes and distorted features.
Slowly, reluctantly, the man bent nearer and forced himself to place
his hand upon her wrist. He could feel no pulse. When he stood erect
a moment later, his forehead was beaded with perspiration. Dazedly,
he glanced about the library--he and the dead woman were its only
occupants.
Again he compelled himself to gaze at her, and subconsciously took
note of her poor and patched attire. The incongruity of her string of
pearls and the diamond rings upon her fingers impressed him even in the
presence of death.
Step by step he retreated backward across the room, his glance roaming
upward toward the gallery which circled the library and the short
staircase leading to it, but always his eyes returned to that still and
lonely figure by the tea table.
A few minutes later the faint sound of the front door being closed
disturbed a large ball of fur. A gray Angora cat jumped from its
hiding place and, with its back arched in fright, scampered through the
porti�res, and fled along the hall and up the staircase to the attic.