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disappointing. The stains were not human
blood, but fish blood.

On the other hand there was a state-
ment from Father Berard of St. Laurent,
that he’d heard of the Chaboyer killing
three days before the body was discov-
ered. The information had come from
Joe Ducharme, who insisted he’d heard it
from Armand LeRoux at a dance. As for
Desjarlais, Schepers was forced to admit
that the plot to lure him into indiscreet
admissions had failed dismally. Resent-
ing, apparently, the suspicions levelled at
him, he’d sought to seclude himself, be-
coming more morose and unapproachable
than ever.

As a boisterous March turned to a cold
and dreary April the communications
from Chartrand took on a new and omin-
ous turn. St. Laurent was under another
spell of terror. This time there were
criminal attacks instead of murder. A
hooded phantom, slinking like a Franken-
stein monster through the darkened for-
ests, would descend on some unprotected
woman whose husband was away, and
leave his victim bordering on madness yet
fearful to say a word.

Several women had been subjected to
nocturnal attacks by the hooded terror;
yet not one had dared whisper a hint as to
the identity of her assailant. In vain a few

of the bolder spirits had kept vigil in the
shadows with loaded shotguns. But,
though doors had been double-locked and
windows barred, the hooded phantom con-
tinued to prowl through the night each
week, adding more fear-stricken victims
to his list.

Martrers Get Worse

Commissioner Martin read the report
with grim-lipped anger, “ Well, things
seem to be going fom bad to worse,” his
grey eyes bored into Schepers’. “What do
you make of this?”

“T’ve a hunch,” the Constable hazarded,
“that the phantom prowler and the Cha-
boyer murderer are one and the same.”

“I don’t agree with you,” the Commis-

sioner shook his head. “I’ve an idea some:

crazed trapper or lumberjack’s loose
around the place. Probably gone bushed
at one of the camps around the lake.”

“Look here,” he paced the floor, “we've
got to get this mess cleaned up. I’m right
behind you, Pete. With your knowledge
of these people I figured you’d be the man
to handle this case. I still think so—but
the Crown Attorney’s getting impatient.
You can have Valder, Supeene—all the
help you want.’ Get down there right
away, and for God’s sake get this mess
cleaned up.”

It was pitch dark when Schepers anq
Supeene parked their car at the rear of
the village and sought out their deputy,
The six-foot-six Chartrand received them
with obvious relief. Only the night before
the phantom prowler had struck again,

“You must have someone in your mind, |

You know every mother’s son in the
district,’ Schepers’ tone was curt.
“The hell of it is,’ Chartrand reported, _
“not a doggone soul around here has the —
slightest idea, and the women are s
scared you can’t pry anything from them,
Every time I’ve been on the prowl,’
Chartrand continued, “trying to get the
low-down on this business, I’ve had a
hunch I was being shadowed. And twice
a bullet has whistled within an inch of my
head.” He pulled a flattened .22 slug from
his vest pocket. “I dug this out of a birch
(BREE, ,
TIGHT-LIPPED VILLAGERS

“How about Desjarlais?’ Schepers
face hardened. |

“He's lying doggo. T stepped in on him
three times when this prowler was on the ©
rampage, and each time he was home.”

“And Armand LeRoux ?”

“St. Pierre Lavalle swears he saw hin
twice sneaking into Yvonne’s place 4

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