Page:Raymond Spears--Diamond Tolls.djvu/55



ELIA looked at the diamond case. On it was stamped the name of "Ofsten & Groner," in gilt letters. The envelopes were of stiff linen paper, lined with tissue, and each one contained a diamond, with a few rubies held apart from the others by a rubber band.

"What does it mean?" Delia breathed. "I don't understand!"

She repacked the diamonds in their case and hid them on her own boat, under the floor in one of the traps. Then she worked all day with her housecleaning. As she cleaned, she wondered what thing had befallen her? The money—tens of hundreds of dollars—was more than she had ever dreamed of having. She carried the newspapers to her own cabin and began to read them. Everyone of them was turned to a page that contained an article or item about the mysterious disappearance of Obert Goles, a jewellery salesman, with his stock in trade.

She realized, then, that she had come upon the gems which Obert Goles had carried. She wondered if she 49