Show CHAPTER ELEVEN WHEN IT CAME TRUE the day was very still so still that priscilla could hear no found bound but the lie unending mutter of surf breaking on the ati southampton shore sho luy illy on a chalso chaise longue indolently watching tile just us its site she find watched it lolly dally froin annn her irindow ivl ivin ilow dow for hours on end through irti wc eks that lint ran rail into months without tier her heed upon tier her lop lap rested tin aln open book upon tile the look book a hand as white na as the fair roar gins bins of its pages nut but it vas not wore more colorless titan than ber face in tier her look there hero was a hint of resignation of patient weariness she lint had been a long ions time ill with ath en an illness which aunt esther persisted in calling brain fever though dr philip fosdick had fur for it it u conle less picturesque and for a longer time she hud had been la in a state that ayas by courtesy teri convalescence though it she making any real progress townie cont recovery it was syna imperceptible to solicitous ryes on oil the other end alre were no signs of retrogression cne cho remained in short quite simply in suspense us as one might hold life lir not worth the he trouble elther cither of living or of the lt llly of her toily tody cirild not vivid riv ither fould it 1 vall against liu aliv inertia of 1101 spirit sliu she existed nothing mure more po fo dick knew tills this lassitude could not vit lure forever the lay must blawn lint would see tier her cure cola coin filete Alean whIle lie he wits assiduous in ili liln attention unfailing lit in sympathetic understanding and so BO try fre it guest faut st of tho the villa that sul sel loin dom two ilaya days passed without seeing his vor car ut at its door today lie wits was tapping dipping nt at tier her door baroro priscilla knew he wilm in tile hoium e slip site recognized recognised ills his knock and lind field it 11 wall jiin millie of 0 welcome really ready fur for mm nothing in III liln ills ini inner suggest rd elf hint flint tile lie vinit was to prove extra or binary nn as lie sot down beside bealda tile the chalm c longue his linger finger tips upon tier her and nuil amiably ably recited the ritual of nf inquiries oncoming concerning her condition A little wenry weary phillp aishe told him in ili answer to ono stereotyped question 1 I began to wonder t if one ever CUT docs to recover from some things thrig such as hi ili sint stilled led things Th Ingi youve forbidden tile ani 0 to o talk about fosdick loid lck looked thought thoughtful itil 1 I dont know lio lie in III n speculative tone perhaps live ive been wrong about or perhaps the lio time hns has come when we r tany talk in fact I 1 rather think it hils ausit if you feel strong enough Mc meaning aning I 1 pros pres urne slie she said with n quiet euille auvo youve to tell me 3 fell III alg lie ile laughed ju jut t that it was no good our talking till I 1 it hisil it d lint hut now 11 lie ile drew from a pocket a handful of old lettera let tern alio tilt solution of the lie mystery till s cry tic lie announced nt lost I 1 dont tease enso tilt IHL 1 11 I wont but first I 1 must explain ains 11 its it ever occurred to you to wonder how low drewsand An andrews anil I 1 happened to be with adario that hint morning when we found you lit in the cabin with carne came linn ive wondered yes wondered whether it was waa true or not all that thile seems so be unreal na its I 1 recall it ive wondered often it perhaps it weri were nothing but another kind of oc dream something I 1 thought I 1 lived gli while I 1 ans actually lually nc lit in bell bed delirious no it wits was all true enough hut but le let ame ino tell you the afternoon you disappeared I 1 lind biad spent out of town trying to interview an inmate of la home ciomo for the aged up near ilaw ling nn an of old old woman registered on tile the records of the institution us at mr leonora oglore Oi OS lore I 1 mother NI other ondrel OM Ob orol Drel the ilie same on the clue you gave e tile me of at that fiume andrews traced her dor to the home boine she refused to talk to film she refused to talk to me inc I 1 tried ark bribery but money tempts tempt tier her she had enough for tier her small needs anti and took it a malicious pleasure I 1 foncy in watching nic ine struggle with my temper when sho she talk however tier her very taciturnity told no me she eho must have something to tell and I 1 hoped that you posing to her os as leonora on tile lie strength of the resemblance might worm borin the secret out of lier her at till nil events dents wo we were on tile the right trail so go I 1 hurried back to town and found you missing mrs trowbridge in hysterics tho the lock broken on oil the studio door tile devil to pay nil all round andrews had run up to kingston to hunt for marlo on tile strength of your dream in ili which you heard hint tell leonora lie must hurry to enfelt ills his train there when I 1 gut li home between three and four fit n tile the morning after a night of fruitless searching for you sou I 1 found a long distance call from froin kingston walt waiting ilig for hip hie andrews reported that alint lie he hall liina located the calip which cuilo lind hall rented tor for ills his honey honeymoon on oil the ot off chanco chance lint flint tie lie might inight have anve been concerned in your disappearance I 1 rest of course and it was something tiling to do 1 I jumped into my cor atilt arrived at kingston about I 1 line in the morning andrews had a road antip with tile the location or of tile hun gillow clearly marked ne N e struck back through the hills about live tolles miles front from our destination we met marlo atoot afoot you know what lie he lind had to tell us while we were talking it took bowe deome time to make hint him understand you text leonora and that we had find any right to butt in n boiled up tip the road in a high powered roadster making about forty miles nn an hour on oil a i stiff grade allent sw see us because well wed stopped just around a in tile tho road until he waa elmost on top of us lie ile got tits ills brakes on oil tn ill tim to stop step just short of my lily car which of courso coura wits blocking the rond andrews and marlo recognized recognize him instantly and ho he know knew murlo after as aa interesting a three cornered pistol fight us its I 1 ever care to see again nenon in tho the role of innocent bystander took cover in tile the woods ye nye pursued W took you for tho ghost ol 01 v leonora and ys y as convinced when tie lie failed to lilt yel aw once in five shots nt at close range yes vea balds mid the lio lust last thins thing before lie killed himself lie ho tier lier balue 11 fosdick resumed you a physical il Ill entill wreck I 1 hull hud to lilt till you u were strong enough to 0 o confront mother omire and theat cheat tile tho truth out of v tier her before you were out alit of bed mie aliu had and it a stroke alint put her vocal cords out of commission ink slon she klie have talked if she shed wanted to I 1 did everything that could be done for tier anti she clung to life with will tenacity in III one nn so aged but the second stroke strode cattle yesterday t und mid finished her I 1 had made tile lie in malinger alinger of the home a personal friend lie he telephoned telephone lit at once and I 1 run rail out to 0 o pawling tills this morning among tile lie old woi wo niina few effects we ive found these there letters fosdick offer to give them to priscilla id rather you ou rend read them thein yet he s fild rather affecting letters ln im afraid raid upset ill you ou later youre loure quite strong sonic some time thile they were written by your fattier father to your mother she wits was mother amores OM ores niece sho she met your our fattier aelier through poking for liani their mar chige wits was an affair of sudden impulse they loved lood each other devotedly but they jiey were ere never neer after the first few months ino nilis happy your mother lanil lit a strongly independent spirit she was out of ploce place in the society of your fathers friends know it saw how flow she handicapped hlin him and resented it bitterly she refused absolutely to try to mold herself to lila ills ways of life they quarreled hideously I 1 fancy she wanted to leevo lint and lie listen to it remember they were desperately desper in love eventually they left now new york on a forlorn hope planning to establish themselves in sonie some part of the country where they were not known and try to build up tip a life together that vaa oil a foreordained fore ordained failure your father was miserable away from ills his home hoine and ills his friends at ai last your nother mother took her fato fate in her hands and ran away she took with her leonora leanora leaving you to your father Leo leonora leonarn norn was n as my bister I 1 you were born dwilis in california several months before your mother ran away I 1 your father used avez bevery possible means to try to find your mettler and induce tier her to return to him but sho she eluded him till tho the end she died it would seem a year or so eo later leaving leonora in the care of tier her aunt mother ore these there letters were addressed to your mother in her care it would appear they were never answered 11 but priscilla was no longer listening and perceiving this fosdick paused sly sister 1 the girl exclaimed after ronny minutes of thought leonora aileonora I 1 that Is the lie explanation of the mys mis tery F affirmed that a strong psychic affinity exists between twins has haa long been a accepted fact tile the records of psychic research contain many instances of telepathic and tion between twins no record exists of a case came so extraordinary na as young to my knowledge still that to la tit the c true explanation hut but leonora did she know about tile nio I 1 mean did sho alto dream of me ine a ns s I 1 dreamed a I 1 ile 1 I of tier her I 1 woh der she did to some extent at least she told tell marlo about it of courso she had tho advantage of you because elie know knew slie she aind 0 sister aster hut but she had glimpses of your life alfo in III tier dreams now anti and then and envied you and resented relented your happler fortune so marlo ilario says pays A marlo larlo then you sou havo have seen been him today fosdick smiling in fact I 1 took him with me ine to po pawling wIllig weve grown to be great friends this r iles heb nix an extraordinarily fine fellow fe lie he wants to seo see you yell it f you think youre strong enough for the interview today priscilla got tip suddenly where Is lie he downstairs waiting lit in the library elfine nl fine the girl took two impulsive steps toward tin the door turned back with it a radiant face and flung out tier her haud hand to fomick Fowl lck oh philip she crit cik d tears of happiness lit in her eyes ees contrition quavering in tier her voice lie ile bowed above ber hands handi pressing them to his lips there dvar dear girl I 1 he sald releasing them ita happiness enouf enough for roe me to think hut but youre keeping alanto walting waiting do got gol fosdick stood with a bended head watching her rosa irosa i the threshold to that world where dromms come true THE END |