Queen of the Flaming Diamond Read online

whichhe was about to trust his tender body and with a shake of his headmounted the long flight of steps.

  Jim Drake stepped hard on the accelerator and sped away towardWildwood Zoo.

  * * * * *

  Once on the grounds he had little trouble finding the section of openair cages that housed the small animals. Wildwood was built with acomplete lack of eye appeal. Down a tarred path he passed throughtangled brush and approached a short line of ugly wired cages.

  The silver fox was crouching at the rear of the last cage. She stoodup as he came near and started to trot slowly back and forth in frontof him. Looking around carefully, Drake saw that he was alone.Afternoon crowds had long since deserted this uninteresting section.

  His imagination told Drake that there was something feminine about thesmooth motions of the animal's body. The black eyes werepleading--Sylvia Fanton's eyes.

  "Please," the girl in the car had said. "I must have the fur."

  The walk was deserted. He leaned over the fence and said softly.

  "Sylvia--Sylvia Fanton."

  The fox continued its restless pacing.

  Drake doubted his own sanity. If anyone heard him standing here alone,talking to an animal.... He shook his head in disgust and started toturn away.

  From the corner of his eye he caught the sudden flash of smooth, humanflesh. Whipping around, eyes wide, Drake was sure that for a fractionof a minute a lovely nude girl appeared in the cage where the fox hadbeen. _It was Sylvia Fanton._ A flash of nude limbs moldedbreathtakingly, snatched at his breath. Warm pleading eyes, full richlips that seemed to cry beseechingly.

  "Help me. You are the only one...."

  Then the vision was gone. The silver fox stood silently in its place,head bent forward. Jim Drake suffered all the emotions of a man aboutto go mad. He knew it was all a crazy dream, and yet.... Last nighthe had been drunk. Now, here in the harsh light of late afternoon ithad been so real.

  Hurried footsteps crunched loudly on the tar walk. He slipped quicklyout of sight into the brush that grew beside the fox cage. Feelinglike a fool, Jim waited. The heavy slouching figure of George Lardnerheaved into sight. One of the keepers, trimly uniformed, was at hisside. They stopped before the cage and engaged in hurriedconversation. The keeper nodded several times and Lardner passed him abill.

  "Tonight," Drake heard him say in a low voice. "Make sure it'sunlocked."

  They were gone up the little incline when he stepped out on the pathonce more. Drake had been forced to make a decision.

  * * * * *

  In spite of his addiction to the bottle, Jim Drake's body was hard andsupple as he raced toward the car. Digging around in the trunk hebrought out a sharp file. Thank God for Puffy Adams and his early safecracking days. Returning to the cage he made sure no one was about.The door was a strong affair behind the inner building, hidden on theside of the hill. He started to file hurriedly on the Yale that heldthe bolt in place.

  The fox came toward him and sat down patiently just inside the door.Its eyes never left his face as he worked. The curve of the lockseparated and with a quick motion he tossed it from him. The animalcame out swiftly as he opened the door. It trotted at his heels andthey kept to the underbrush, running toward the car.

  Pushing the door open with shaking hands, Drake said, "In--quickly,and stay on the floor."

  The beautiful animal leaped and settled close to the floor boards.Drake rounded the car and in a minute they were purring swiftly towardthe main highway.

  From behind him somewhere in Wildwood Zoo, a sharp cry of alarm wentup. His theft had been detected. In five minutes the roads to townwould be blocked by police patrols.

  Jim's forehead wrinkled into tight furrows. The coupe was doingeighty-five. With one hand he reached down and petted the fox's smoothhead.

  "You snap at me," he warned, "and I'll send you back to your cage."

  A warm tongue touched his hand softly.

  The police sirens were dying now, and he breathed with relief as theypassed the city limits and swept into heavy traffic. Slowing down alittle, his forehead smoothed out and a sly smile swept across hisface. Fifteen minutes later Drake eased the car into the alley behindthe apartment hotel.

  There was no one on duty at the freight elevator. With the silver foxin his arms Drake made a hurried entrance and shortly they reached theprivate floor of his apartment. He placed the animal carefully on thefloor and with his key opened the door.

  Puffy Adams was stretched across the bed. His eyes opened with a jerkat the sight of Jim's passenger, and he drew himself toward the safetyof the far end of the bed.

  "Well," Puffy said hesitantly. "If you go for this kind 'a thing it'sokay with me. Just keep that four-legged Dracula away from me. No moreblood-letting this week, please."

  Jim ignored him. He locked the door swiftly and turned on the fox.

  "You can come out now," he said. "It's safe here."

  * * * * *

  The animal crossed the thick rug with a bound, pounced to the bedwith a stealthy spring and curled into a little ball of fur. Its eyesclosed and it was motionless.

  "I'll be damned." Drake slouched down in the leather chair beside thecocktail table and dragged out a much smoked pipe. "That's gratitudefor you."

  Puffy gazed with growing respect and admiration for the faults of theinsane.

  "I suppose," he suggested, "that you expected that pint-sized bundleof fur to kick one foot, toss off her coat and do a snake dance righthere in the bedroom?"

  Drake sat motionless. Smoke drifted in lazy circles around his head.

  "What about the diamonds?" he asked. "Get any dope?"

  Adams edged carefully away from the bed and glided safely away fromthe sleeping fox. He dipped a slip of paper from his wrinkled pocketand started to read mechanically.

  "Largest diamond came from Africa--weight one pound and aquarter--didn't get the name of it, because I couldn't pronounce itanyhow." He looked up anxiously. "Is that enough?"

  Jim put the pipe away carefully.

  "For brevity," he admitted. "It's perfect. But it will do."

  "So?"

  "From what I saw of that diamond last night," Drake continued, "itmust have weighed at least two pounds. Perfectly cut and yet by no onein this country. Puffy, we've a perfectly swell mystery on our hands."

  "And the fox?" Adams added, with a suspicious look at the drowsyanimal on the bed. "What in hell's bells made you bring it here?"

  "George Lardner," Drake said slowly.

  "_What?_"

  "Lardner was at the zoo this afternoon," Jim explained. "He paid alarge sum of money to make sure he could steal the fox tonight. IfLardner wanted it that bad, what could I lose?"

  He didn't mention the sudden vision of Sylvia Fanton he had seen,haunting and lovely in the cage.

  "So he thinks Sylvia had the rock?" Puffy's face awakened with newangles.

  "So do I," Drake admitted. "At least she knows a lot about it."

  He jerked upright suddenly, caught by the sudden movement on the bed.Adams wheeled, his eyes following Jim's.

  "Holy Ned!" he shouted. "The girl...."

  * * * * *

  The silver fox was gone. Sylvia Fanton, more lovely than ever wasstretched comfortably across the bed, her slim limbs partly covered bythe fox cape. She was real this time. Drake caught the look ofgratitude in her eyes.

  "Then you _are_ real," he went toward her in long strides. "I wasbeginning to wonder."

  She crouched away from him slightly, trying to stretch the short furto cover her rounded limbs. The task wasn't very successful.

  "I'm sorry," she whispered. He knew she _was_ sorry. Sorry for all thetrouble she had caused him.

  "But why...?"

  She sat up, shielding herself carefully.

  "It's very simple," she explained. "I am doomed to wear the body of afox during those hours when the sun is high.
At night...." Shemotioned toward the window with slim fingers.

  Drake turned, saw that the sun had drifted behind the distant skylineand darkness had come down on the city. He smiled, only partlyunderstanding.

  "At night you become a very lovely woman. I know that much."

  Sylvia Fanton blushed.

  "Thanks!"

  Puffy whistled.

  "Leave it to Cinderella Drake," he grinned. "Man, you sure hit thejack-pot this time."

  Drake sat down on the edge of the bed.

  "Please tell us about yourself," he begged. "There's something Ishould know? Some way I can help?"

  She shook her head sadly.

  "I'm sorry. I owe you an explanation,