to-night is to make absolutely sure that all those fool
letters he wrote to Lollie have been destroyed."

"You've got them?" said the girl quickly.

"I had them?" said the colonel, "and I burnt them all except one when
the transfer was completed. And the question is, gentlemen," he said,
"shall we burn the last?"

He took from the bundle before him an envelope and held it up.

"I kept this in case there was anything coming, but if he's in a booze
home, why, he's not going to be influenced by the threat of publishing a
slushy letter to a girl. I guess his trustees are not going to be very
much influenced either. On the other hand, if this letter were found
among business documents, it would look pretty bad for us."

"Found by whom?" asked Pinto.

"By the police," said the colonel calmly.

"Police?"

The colonel nodded.

"They're getting after us, but you needn't be alarmed," he said. "King
is working to get a case, and he is not above applying for a search
warrant. But I'm not scared of the police so much." His voice slowed and
he spoke with greater emphasis. "I guess there are enough court cards in
the Boundary pack to beat that combination. It's the Jack----"

"_The Jack--ha! ha! ha!_"

It was a shrill bubble of laughter which cut into his speech and the
colonel leapt to his feet, his hand dropping to his hip-pocket. The door
had opened and closed so silently that none had heard it, and a figure
stood confronting them.

It was clad from head to foot in a long coat of black silk, which
shimmered in the half-light of the electrolier. The hands were gloved,
the head covered with a soft slouch hat and the face hidden behind a
white silk handkerchief.

The colonel's hand was in his hip-pocket when he thought better and
raised both hands in the air. There was something peculiarly
businesslike in the long-barrelled revolver which the intruder held, in
spite of the silver-plating and the gold inlay along the chased barrel.

"Everybody's hands in the air," said the Jack shrilly, "right up to the
beautiful sky! Yours too, Lollie. Stand away from the table, everybody,
and back to the wall. For the Jack o' Judgment is amongst you and life
is full of amazing possibilities!"

They backed from the table, peering helplessly at the two unwinking eyes
which showed through the holes in the handkerchief.

"Back to the wall, my pretties," chuckled the Thing. "I'm going to make
you laugh and you'll want some support. I'