Photoplay (Jul-Dec 1923)

Photoplay Magazine — Advertising Section was shot, but no one seems able to prove it." "No," Lloyd growled. "He managed to cover up his tracks, didn't he?" "It seem so. Of course I don't really know anything about the matter myself, and I have no reason to wish Jean any harm. We all think too much of him for that. But he has been going it a bit strong with Joy, and I thought, as a friend, I'd tell you." "But — what's he done — how far has the thing gone?" Arthur demanded savagely. "That's twice you've hinted — " "It really wasn't anything very terrible. If I tell you, will you promise, on your honor, never to repeat it?" "Yes." "Well — I overheard him tell her, one night, that she attracted him more than any woman he had ever met. He was holding her hands, and—" "The dirty hound!" Lloyd started to rise, but Mrs. Kramer stopped him. "Dear me," she laughed. "If you're going to carry on like that, I won't tell you another thing. It was perfectly harmless." "Harmless! I'd like to break his neck!" "But — you say you're not engaged to Joy." "I love her. Isn't that enough?" "Then listen to to me. I'm going to be very frank with you, because I like you — and I like Joy. I don't want to see her fallfor the sort of bunk Jean Romain hands out to women. So I'm going to help you. But you must see that to do or say anything openly would only result in harm. Joy would resent it, Romain might, in a spirit of anger, break his engagement, or Miss Gresham might, and then where would you be? You'd lose out all around. You see that, don't you?" "Yes," he muttered. "I suppose so." "It's true. But in another way, it may be possible to save Joy from doing anything foolish, and still not let the public at large know anything about it." "What way?" "I'll tell you. But — remember your promise. If you mention this to anyone — anyone at all — you will get us all in a peck of trouble." "I won't say anything. I've told you that." "\ TERY well. Now here's my plan. I want * you to follow out a certain line of investigations I'm not in a position to follow out myself, and see if you can't learn the truth about that night when Mrs. Romain was shot. Then, if you do, bring the results to me. With Romain in my power, I'll guarantee to prevent any possibility of an affair between him and Joy Moran. Will you do exactly as I say?" "Yes." "Good! Now I am going to tell you something no one else in Hollywood knows — something I should have told the police at the time, but, for reasons of my own, didn't. You may remember that at the inquest it was brought out that Mrs. Romain was shot several hours before her husband returned to the house. Margot Gresham's chauffeur, who drove him home, testified to that. The shooting, it was agreed, must have taken place about ten o'clo'k or half past, at which time, according to Miss Gre.ham and her maid, Romain was with her, at her bungalow." "Now here is the peculiar thing I am going to tell you. I was restless that evening — didn't know what to do with myself. Steve — that's my husband — had gone to a poker party. After I'd attempted to read a magazine, and gotten thoroughly bored, I decided to go out for a walk. It was a thick, foggy night. I walked for half an hour or more, and finding myself in the neighborhood of the Romains' house, decided to go in and call on them. Just as I was approaching the entrance gate, I saw a man going up the walk to the house, about fifty feet away from me." "Romain?" Lloyd asked eagerly. "No. It wasn't Romain. It was a smaller man, shorter, slighter. His back was toward me— I couldn't see his face. He went into the house, and it was Mrs. Romain who admitted him. I know, because as the door opened I saw her, silhouetted against the light from the inside, and wearing the same negligee she had on when she was killed. That was about nine o'clock." Lloyd's face fell. "I don't see what that proves," he said. "At least, nothing that could harm Romain. It might have been a tramp, as the papers suggested." "No. It couldn't have been a tramp — not even a stranger — for then you see, Mrs. Romain wouldn't have let him in. She closed the door after him, for I saw her, so it must have been someone she was expecting. A few moments later the lights in the living room went on, but the shades were down, so of course I couldn't see anything. And, having no suspicion of the tragedy that was about to happen, I gave the matter no further thought. You see, for all I knew at the time, Romain was in the house as well, and the visitor might have been some friend of the family. "But when the investigation snowed that Romain wasn't there, that he had gone right out after dinner, to meet Miss Gresham at her studio, I came to the conclusion that the man I had seen was more than a friend, that he was, in fact, Mrs. Romain's lover. "Now, let us suppose that he was. Mrs. Romain was a gay, pleasure-loving woman who used to be on the stage, and I guess she'd always been accustomed to having men in love with her. Now suppose this man was discovered there, later on, by Romain. And suppose Romain shot his wife because she had been unfaithful to him. What then?" "It sounds plausible enough, but why wasn't it all brought out at the inquiry?" "Because no one knew of the visit of this man but myself, and I didn't say anything. The man must have driven up in a car, but, if he did, he left it further down the block, and walked to the house. Apparently no one saw him but myself. You remember, it was a foggy night. How he got away, we don't know, but, if we could find that man, we could find out the truth." "If he would tell it." "He would tell it, I'm sure, if he knew that refusal to tell it, for our private use, would result in my taking my story to the police. And that, of course, we don't any of u^ want to do. I have not the slightest desire to injure Romain publicly. But don't you see that if we could get a confession from this man — a statement of what actually happened — we would never have to make it public? Romain would be helpless." "You don't like him either, do you?" Lloyd asked suddenly. ~K A RS. KRAMER'S long, oblique eyes became J-VJ. iike narrow slits of jade. "Oh yes, I do," she said carelessly. "Very much. And I really don't want to hurt him. That's why I've asked you to promise not to repeat what I've told you." "I can't see that it makes much difference," Lloyd replied grimly. "You saw a man enter the house, but what does that amount to? Unless you know who the man was, you're no further ahead than you were before, and to look for him would be like looking for a needle in a haystack." "Do you think so? Well, you're mistaken. I knew Mrs. Romain fairly well — knew the names of the men she was carrying on with. And at that particular time there were two. And I was able to find out that on the night in question one of them was in New York." "Ah!" Lloyd's eyes glittered. "Then you do know who the man was?" "Yes." "Tel' me his name?" Helen Kramer lazily spread out her huge ostrich-plume fan. "Not yet," she replied. "But if you find out that there really is anything in this talk about Romain and Joy — if you reach the point where you are ready to act, come to me, and I will tell you." She rose. "We'd better join the others, don't you think. They'll be wondering what has become of us." \ 123 The Celebrated YORK Saxophone Sent to You fvee trial The Easiest Instrument To Play Sent to You! It is a fact. You can now have the famous York Saxophone— the easiest instrument to play — shipped to your home on 6 (lays' free trial. Keep the instrument iorb full days. Play on it. Convince yourself of its nne quality and richness of tone. 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