A voice spoke behind her. "Is there a problem, Marie?"

  The door inched open again, revealing a white-haired woman standing in the foyer.

  The maid gestured toward Seth and Dinah. "These people—"

  Seth stepped forward. "We're looking for Alan Saunders. We were told he lived here."

  The elderly woman stepped forward, dismissing the maid with a gesture. "I am Mrs. Harold Bradford, and I have lived in this house for the past twenty years. I'm afraid I don't know anyone by that name. Perhaps someone gave you the incorrect address."

  Seth moved as if to leave, but Dinah wasn't ready to give up so easily. "He's in his late twenties, blond with a neatly trimmed mustache. He's about this tall." She held up her hand to indicate a spot two inches above Seth's head. "Do you know anyone of that description?"

  Mrs. Bradford smiled and shook her head. "I'm sorry. I really can't help you." She closed the door with a note of finality.

  Back on the sidewalk again, Dinah stared at the house, going over each detail point by point. Everything matched what Gladys had told Mrs. Purvis exactly. "I don't understand. Why would he tell Gladys this was his home when he doesn't live here and no one even knows him?"

  Seth wore a grim look that matched her unsettled feelings. "Maybe he just wanted to impress her?"

  "Maybe, although that seems a strange way to go about it. But that was my last hope for finding Gladys. What do I do now? Do you think we ought to go to the police?"

  Seth considered her question, then nodded. "Let's catch the next streetcar. I know where the nearest station is."

  * * *

  "You say she's been gone how long?" The burly police sergeant puffed at his pipe, sending a thread of smoke spiraling toward the ceiling.

  Dinah resisted the urge to wave the pungent cloud away. "Ten days. She left our boarding house without giving a forwarding address, and her parents haven't heard from her since. They are very concerned, and they've asked me to help locate her. But we've already tried everything I can think of. I don't know where else to turn."

  The sergeant scribbled on the paper in front of him, then leaned back and regarded Dinah with a bleak expression. "I don't want to dash your hopes, but there isn't a lot we can do for you."

  He held up his hand when Dinah started to protest. "Ever since the exposition opened, we've been buried under a pile of missing persons reports. This is just one of thousands we've received."

  "Are you saying you won't do anything about it?" Seth asked.

  "I'm saying I can't." The policeman toyed with the buttons on his uniform and gave another pull at his pipe. "I'll pass along the information you've given us on your cousin, Miss Mayhew, but we have our hands full trying to solve serious crimes. We simply don't have the manpower to track down every person reported missing."

  He stood, indicating the end of their interview, and gave Dinah a kindly look. "You'll probably be able to do just as much on your own as we can. The best of luck to you."

  Outside the station, Seth slipped his arm around her shoulders and gave her a light squeeze. "That didn't turn out to be much help, did it? What do you want to do next?"

  "I'll have to write Aunt Dora and let her know I'm still looking." She leaned her head on Seth's shoulder, drawing from his strength. "I hate having to tell her and Uncle Everett something that will cause them even more worry. If my uncle were in better health, I know they'd both be on the next train, coming to look for her themselves."

  Her shoulders sagged under the weight of the situation. "But they can't, and so it's my responsibility."

  Seth crooked his finger under her chin and raised her head so her gaze met his. "Not all yours. I'm in this too, remember?'

  Dinah closed her eyes, wishing they were on the gondola again, back in that moment when only the two of them existed and thoughts of her troublemaking cousin were far away. "It seems like we've hit a dead end everywhere we've turned. There's only one person I can think of who might be able to help."

  Seth's brow darkened. "Alan?"

  Dinah nodded. "We have to find him. But how?"

  "Let me check with a friend of mine. Maybe he can help me find something to go on."

  21

  Seth watched Mac slip out of an alleyway and saunter up the walk as if he had no particular destination in mind. When he drew near, he looked around with elaborate care and settled next to Seth against the wood-framed building.

  "Were you able to find anything?"

  Mac pulled his hat down low and nodded. "I asked some of the boys to check around. One of them came up with something I think you'll be interested in."

  Seth leaned closer, wishing he didn't feel like he'd just stepped into the pages of a dime novel.

  "He's seen a guy answering that description hanging out over near Muldoon's place," Mac went on. "But he doesn't always go by Saunders."

  "You're saying that isn't his real name?"

  Mac shrugged. "Who knows? From what I heard, it sounds like he has a whole raft of them. He may go as Saunders this week and something else the next. It's a pretty slick idea, when you stop to think about it. It makes him plenty hard to track down."

  "We've found that out."

  Mac stared straight ahead. "Another piece of news you might be interested in: He may have some connection with McGinty's bunch."

  A thin thread of unease coiled up Seth's spine. He knew the tough Irishman's reputation for being involved in any number of sordid activities around the city. Some of which included...

  He looked over at his friend. "Is McGinty the one who's putting pressure on you to take a dive?"

  Mac leaned away and spat in the street. "I thought we had a deal about you keeping your preaching to yourself. I'm just trying to help you find this guy Saunders, that's all."

  "We still need to know how to locate him. Any ideas?"

  "Johnny followed him and saw him use his key to go into a house near Halstead. It's a pretty sure bet that's where he lives."

  "I need an address."

  "Thought you might." Mac pulled a slip of paper from his hatband and handed it over.

  Seth pocketed it after a quick glance. "Thanks. You've helped a lot."

  Mac made as if to leave, then paused. "One more thing. He's got a woman with him."

  Seth whipped his head around. "At his house?"

  "Johnny saw her through the door."

  "What did she look like?"

  "I don't know. I can ask him and let you know tomorrow."

  Seth calculated quickly. The earliest he and Dinah could visit that house would be tomorrow evening. "That would be great. I'll meet you back here around noon."

  * * *

  The street lay quiet in the evening gloom. Dinah pressed nearer to Seth, which didn't bother him in the least. The warmth of her arm against his brought back memories of their gondola ride and the unspoken promise that hung in the air between them.

  "Remember," he cautioned, "we're only here to check things out. The man Mac's friend saw fits Alan's description, but there's no guarantee it really is him. We won't know that until we've seen him in person."

  "I can't decide whether I hope it's him or not. If it weren't for needing to find Gladys, I wouldn't ever want to see him again. The day I met him... well, the way he acted when Gladys wasn't around made me feel very uncomfortable."

  A slow anger started up inside Seth, but he tried to keep his voice calm. "That ties in with what I've heard." He wanted to bite his tongue when he saw Dinah's startled expression. "He doesn't sound like a very savory character, from all accounts. There may be a bit of criminal connection."

  Dinah shuddered. "I hate the thought of having anything more to do with him, but he's our only hope. We'll just ask him if he knows where Gladys is and then leave."

  "It may not be that simple." He wished there were some easier way to break the news. "He may have Gladys with him. A woman answering her description was seen in that house."

  "Then that could mean.... Oh, Seth!" Her fingers tightened on his arm like a vise. "She never told Mrs. Purvis she planned to leave. Everything was based on the note those men brought. What if he forced her to write it? What if..."

  He wrapped his hand around hers and squeezed it. "Let's leave the what-if's for now. It may turn out to be nothing like that." His inner conviction told him otherwise, but as distraught as Dinah appeared already, he wasn't about to tell her the rest of what he'd learned from Mac.

  "It turns out Johnny talked to one of the neighbors," his friend had reported during their noon meeting. "He said Saunders is an odd duck. He's only lived in that house the past six months or so. He keeps to himself, so no one really knows him. No one in the neighborhood, at least. He has a habit of showing up with a young lady every once in a while, a different one every time from the sounds of it. And he seems to have a lot of visitors late at night. The whole thing just doesn't sound right."

  Seth couldn't agree more. Everything about this situation put him on edge. He slowed when they reached the corner and checked the number on the nearest house. "It must be that one." He pointed to a neat, white dwelling three doors down on the far side of the street. "Are you ready?"

  Dinah nodded, then grabbed his arm. "Wait!"

  She drew him back into the shade of a towering lilac bush. "Look, the door's opening."

  By the streetlamp's glow, Seth could see a blond man about his own age close the door behind him and trot down the steps. When he reached the walk, he turned and set off briskly down the street in the opposite direction.

  One look at Dinah's white, set face gave him his answer before he could ask the question.

  "That's Alan," she said. "Should we try to catch up to him?"

  "Why don't we scout around a bit first. Maybe we can find something to show us whether your cousin is there or not."

  Dinah's face twisted. "If she is, if he's done anything to her..." She drew in a long, shaky breath. "Much as we get on one another's nerves, she still family. I couldn't stand the thought of having to tell her parents something has happened to her."

  "Let's not borrow trouble. The woman Mac's friend saw may not even be there now. Or if she is, it may not be Gladys after all."

  She studied his face, then squared her shoulders. "You're right. Let's go."

  * * *

  Grateful for the clouds that added to the darkness, Dinah followed Seth from shadow to shadow. They flitted up onto the front porch on silent feet.

  "What are we looking for?" she whispered.

  "Anything that would give us some clue as to what's going on. I was hoping we could see inside, but the drapes are too heavy." He gave her a rueful grin. "I guess I'm not a very good snoop."

  His shoulders sagged. "It looks like we should have followed him after all. There's no telling when he'll be back."

  "If only the house could tell us something." Dinah reached out and grasped the doorknob. "I wish I could just walk right in there and—Seth, the door's unlocked."

  "Are you sure?"

  She wiggled the knob back and forth. "See?" Temptation seized her. "We can't just walk in, though, can we?"

  Seth eyed the door, then shook his head. "Much as I'd like to, I'm afraid we can't. Why don't we wait a while? If he doesn't come back soon, we can leave a—"

  The doorknob rattled under Dinah's fingers. She yelped when the door swung open wide.

  Gladys stood framed in the opening, her face a mask of shock. "What are you doing here?"

  With a glad cry, Dinah flew at her cousin and enveloped her in a hug. "You're all right!"

  Gladys pulled away and stepped back. "Of course. Why shouldn't I be?"

  Dinah followed her into the small living room. "I'm so glad we found you. Hurry now, you can come with us. We'll have you away from here before he gets back."

  "What are you talking about?"

  Dinah glanced around the room, frantic to be on their way. "Where are your things? No, don't worry about them. Things can be replaced. The important thing is to get you out of here. Come on." She tugged at her cousin's arm and started toward the door.

  Gladys planted her feet. "Have you lost your mind? What do mean by barging in here? And what makes you think I would want to leave my husband?"

  Dinah felt as though the ceiling had just fallen in on her. "Your..."

  "Husband." Gladys enunciated each letter of the word. "Have you lost your hearing as well?"

  The room swam around Dinah. "You're married? To Alan?"

  "You're sounding even more simpleminded than usual. I told you he wanted to marry me."

  Through her haze, Dinah felt Seth step up beside her and rest his hand on her shoulder. She struggled to make sense of a world suddenly gone mad. "When did this wedding take place? Why didn't you let anyone know?"

  "We were married the very day I left. The day after our... disagreement. As to why you didn't hear about it, I didn't think you would want to be involved after the way you attacked Alan. And quite frankly, I didn't care to have you there."

  The revelation stunned Dinah. "So quickly? But why?"

  "Alan proposed as soon as he heard I had left Mrs. Purvis's. He didn't want me to feel adrift, and under the circumstances, he saw no reason to wait any longer. A minister—a friend of his—performed the ceremony right here in this room."

  Dinah opened her mouth, but no words came forth. She cast a mute look of appeal at Seth. He squeezed her shoulder and stepped forward, his eyes full of compassion. "You may wish you had waited a bit longer when you hear what we've learned."

  Spurred by his comment, Dinah blurted out, "He isn't the kind of man your parents would approve of. His reputation is hardly the best."

  To her amazement, Gladys tossed her head and laughed. "Is this another warning like the one you gave me about his so-called philandering on the fairgrounds? Alan told me all about that. It wasn't the way you portrayed things at all, just another instance of your wild imagination taking hold." A sly smile crossed her face. "Like all the times you insisted your father was going to come back to take you away with him."

  Dinah pretended to ignore the jibe. Not for anything would she set Gladys see how it stung. "Fine. If you don't want to believe me, that's your choice. But why haven't you written to your parents? They're half out of their minds with worry."

  Footsteps sounded on the front porch. Alan Saunders stopped dead in the doorway and stared at the tableau in his living room. A glint of anger flashed in his eyes when he looked at Dinah, followed by a smile that sent chills up her spine.

  He stepped into the room and nodded like any gracious host. "Good evening. What a surprise to find you here."

  Gladys hurried to stand next to him and hugged his arm. "Isn't it? You'll think it even more of a surprise when you hear the reason why. They've come to rescue me."

  A sick feeling twisted inside Dinah's stomach. "Gladys, please."

  Alan's face went blank. Then he chuckled. "Rescue you? From what?"

  Gladys threw a triumphant grin Dinah's way. "They have some wild notion that I've gotten mixed up with some sort of criminal"

  Dinah wanted to sink right through the floor. It took all the courage she could muster to meet Alan's probing look. "Gladys's parents have been beside themselves because they haven't heard from her. They asked me to look for her." Remembering the setbacks they had encountered in their search, she added, "We went to the house you showed her when you went driving. Nobody there knew who you were."

  Alan played with a loose strand of Gladys's hair, winning an adoring smile. "Perhaps we made a mistake in not letting your parents know right away." Turning to Dinah, he added, "We were going to surprise them with a visit on her birthday, but I guess we didn't think it through very well. We got so caught up in each other, it's been as if nothing else existed." He pulled Gladys into his arms and rubbed his cheek across her hair. "After all, we are on our honeymoon."

  Gladys melted against him and smirked at Dinah. "So you see, your meddling has accomplished nothing at all. We already planned our trip back home to announce our marriage. While we're there for my birthday, we'll stop in and see Grandmother's lawyer and make arrangements for my inheritance to be sent to me here, in my new name." She turned within the circle of Alan's arms and beamed at him. "And then we'll come back here to our little honeymoon cottage."

  Seth's hand took Dinah's elbow in a loose grip. "It's obvious we're in the way. We'd best be taking our leave."

  "But that still doesn't explain..."

  Seth increased the pressure on her arm. "Good evening to you both."

  Dinah hung back long enough for one last appeal to Gladys. "You will write to your parents?"

  "First thing in the morning. I'll break the news to them about our wedding and let them know we'll be coming to see them in a couple of weeks. They may be a little miffed about not hearing about it earlier, but once they meet my darling Alan, I'm sure they'll be pleased."

  Clinging to Alan's arm, she turned an insufferably smug smile on Dinah. "By the way, aren't you going to congratulate me?"

  Dinah managed to dredge the word up past the obstruction in her throat. "Congratulations."

  This time she let Seth lead her outside to the street without resistance.

  22

  "I can't believe she would put us through all that worry without letting anyone know what was going on."

  Dinah stumbled over a stone in her path. Seth caught her before she could fall, knowing she was so angry she could hardly see straight. Her obvious pain cut him like a knife. More than anything, he wanted to make all her hurt go away. Instead, he walked on without speaking, knowing she needed this chance to get her anger out of her system.

  "How could she treat her parents this way? She's always been self-centered, but this reaches new heights, even for Gladys. And what about us? When I think of all the trouble we went through, how much I feared for her safety—and then to discover she's been hiding out here with that man. On her honeymoon, no less!" She spat out the final words, as if trying to rid herself of a nasty taste.

 

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