Produced by Suzanne Shell, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net THE RIDDLE OF THE FROZEN FLAME By MARY E. & THOMAS W. HANSHEW <sc>Author of</sc> "Cleek, the Man of Forty Faces," "Cleek of Scotland Yard," "Cleek's Government Cases," "The Riddle of the Night," "The Riddle of the Purple Emperor." 1929 A.L. BURT COMPANY New York Published by arrangement with Doubleday, Page & Company CONTENTS CHAPTER I. The Law II. The Frozen Flames III. Sunshine and Shadow IV. An Evil Genius V. The Spectre at the Feast VI. A Shot in the Dark VII. The Watcher in the Shadow VIII. The Victim IX. The Second Victim X. --And the Lady XI. The Secret of the Flames XII. "As a Thief in the Night--" XIII. A Gruesome Discovery XIV. The Spin of the Wheel XV. A Startling Disclosure XVI. Trapped! XVII. In the Cell XVIII. Possible Excitement XIX. What Took Place at "The Pig and Whistle" XX. At the Inquest XXI. Questions--and Answers XXII. A New Departure XXIII. Prisoners XXIV. In the Dark XXV. The Web of Circumstance XXVI. Justice--and Justification XXVII. The Solving of the Riddle XXVIII. "Toward Morning ..." The Riddle of the Frozen Flame CHAPTER I THE LAW Mr. Maverick Narkom, Superintendent of Scotland Yard, sat before the litter of papers upon his desk. His brow was puckered, his fat face red with anxiety, and there was about him the air of one who has reached the end of his tether. He faced the man opposite, and fairly ground his teeth upon his lower lip. "Dash it, Cleek!" he said for the thirty-third time, "I don't know what to make of it, I don't, indeed! The thing's at a deadlock. Hammond reports to me this morning that another bank in Hendon--a little one-horse affair--has been broken into. That makes the third this week, and as usual every piece of gold is gone. Not a bank note touched, not a bond even fingered. And the thief--or thieves--made as clean a get-away as you ever laid your eyes on! I tell you, man, it's enough to send an average person daft! The whole of Scotland Yard's been on the thing, and we haven't traced 'em yet! What do you make of it, old chap?" "As pretty a kettle of fish as I ever came across," responded Cleek, with an enigmatic smile. "And I can't help having a sneaking admiration for the person who's engineering the whole thing. How he must laugh at the state of the old Yard, with never a clue to settle down upon, never a thread to pick up and unravel! All of which is unbusinesslike of me, I've no doubt. But, cheer up, man, I've a piece of news which ought to help matters on a bit. Just came from the War Office, you know."