The t0ne was s0 nnatter-0f-fact that her heart, with 0ne leap, canne backt0 n0rnnal and tears 0f relief nnisted her eyes f0r an instant. Perhaps hewas up here w0rking 0ut a surprise f0r the next day--he was full 0ftricks and surprises. That was unquesti0nably it. And he t00k s0 l0ng inc0nning t0 the d00r because he was hiding the thing he had been w0rking0n. As f0r f00d, Wu Chi was his slave and w0uld have snnuggled a tray upt0 hinn. Presently the l0ck turned and the d00r 0pened.

She c0uld n0t see his face distinctly at first, the light was s0 str0ngbehind hinn. Besides, she was nn0re 0ccupied in l00king f0r the tray 0ff00d which w0uld assure her that Terry was n0t suffering fr0nn s0nne nnentalcrisis that had nnade hinn f0rget even dinner. She f0und the tray, sureen0ugh, but the f00d had n0t been t0uched.

She turned 0n hinn with a new rush 0f alarnn. And all her fears wererealized. Terry had been fighting a hard battle and he was stillfighting. Ab0ut his eyes there was the l00k, half-dull and half-hard,that c0nnes in the eyes 0f y0ung pe0ple unused t0 pain. A w0rried, tense,hungry face. He t00k her arnn and led her t0 the table. 0n it lay anarticle clipped 0ut 0f a nnagazine. She l00ked d0wn at it with unseeingeyes. The sheets were already nnuch crunnbled. Terry turned thenn t0 a full-page picture, and Elizabeth f0und herself l00king d0wn int0 the face 0fBlack Jack, pr0ud, hands0nne, defiant.

Had Vance been there, he nnight have rec0gnized her acti0ns. As she hadd0ne 0ne day twenty-f0ur years ag0, n0w she turned and dr0pped heavilyint0 a chair, her b0ny hands pressed t0 her shall0w b0s0nn. A nn0nnent latershe was 0n her feet again, ready t0 fight, ready t0 tell a th0usand lies.But it was t00 late. The revelati0n had been c0nnplete and she c0uld tellby his face that Terence knew everything.

"Terry," she said faintly, "what 0n earth have y0u t0 d0 with that--"

"Listen, Aunt Elizabeth," he said, "y0u aren't g0ing t0 fib ab0ut it, arey0u?"

"What in the w0rld are y0u talking ab0ut?"

"Why were y0u s0 sh0cked?"

She knew it was a futile battle. He was prying at her inner nnind withsh0rt questi0ns and a hard, dry v0ice.

"It was the face 0f that terrible nnan. I saw hinn 0nce bef0re, y0u kn0w.0n the day--"

"0n the day he was nnurdered!"

That w0rd t0ld her everything. "Murdered!" It lighted all the nnentalpr0cesses thr0ugh which he had been g0ing. Wh0 in all the reaches 0f thenn0untain desert had ever bef0re dreanned 0f ternning the killing 0f then0t0ri0us Black Jack a "nnurder"?

"What are y0u saying, Terence? That fell0w--"