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A iY i Y e e vertu 3 r SYNOPSIS r Brooke Reyburn visits the office of ot Ted Jed Stew Stewart rt a lawyer to discuss the terms of ot an nn estate sha she b has s Inherited Sa p from Mrs Mary Amanda Amonda Dane Unwittingly Unwittingly tingly she overhears Jed talking to Mark Trent a nephew of Mrs Dane Dana who has hu been been disinherited Mrs lira Dane had bad lived at at t Lookout House a huge structure on the sea built by her father and divided Into two for her and Marks Mark's father Brooke h had d been a fashion expert and Mr Mrs Dane a shut In in hearing her on the radio had Invited her to call and developed de a n d deep p affection for her Mark discloses that Mrs Dane had threatened to disinherit him If he married Lola LoIn from whom v he be Is now divorced He says rays he docs does not trust Henri and Clotilde Jacques Mrs bars Danes Dane's servants Ho He says Bays ho he Is not Interested In on an offer of ot Brookes Brooke's to share sharo the estate with him Leaving her department store Job fob Brooke refuses an offer to go stepping with Jerry Field Fjeld a Q carefree young man who wants wanta to marry her N t C CHAPTER H Continued n I 3 Silence followed her words a sl- sl Hence fraught with significance Brooke caught her sisters sister's look at ather ather ather her mother before sho sat up straight and tense She knew that posture she was preparing for a skirmish Lucette said defiantly Glad you brought up that subject subject subject sub sub- Brooke News flash 1 Im I'm not going to the sticks with you ou not if you offer me a gold tub with diamond diamond diamond dia dia- mond settings I spent one ono night at nt the home of the late Mary Amanda Dane and so far as I am nm concerned the name means look lookout lookout lookout out and not go Co there again That sealed door in her room living-room gave me the creeps Sam Isn't Isn't- Isn't She dashed to the hall as the telephone telephone telephone tele tele- phone rang Lucette Reyburn Heyburn speaking she answered eagerly Yes Yes he yes he Is Ill I'll call him WIn Her voice was vms as flat as de-bubbled de champagne She pounded on the room bath door Phone for you Sam How How do I know Its It's the girl who always calls Just as ns youve you've stepped under the shower All All right She returned to the phone Hold the line Hell He'll be here In a min min- ute Back In the room living she dropped into a chair With elbows propped on her knees chin In her ber palms she stared at nt the floor In bathrobe and slippers sUppers Sam answered answered an the phone Cant make It It No Its It's not another another another an an- other girl Its It's a family confab Sam Reyburn signing off Good byl He slammed down the receiver And I know of no reason why I should explain to you what Im I'm do ing he growled under his breath Hi Sammy What's the shower shower- dames dame's name Lucette called Her brother scowled at her ber Theres about as much privacy Inthis In Inthis inthis this apartment as there is in the bandstand on the Common Cheerio darling You'll have privacy and how If you live with Brooke She's going owner house-owner in ina a big way I If theres there's to be a bath for tor every bed bcd of course there will be a sound proof telephone booth with every room What did you say the girl friends friend's name was Its none of your business kId kiddo do who calls me Hands deep in the pockets of at his hectic bathrobe Sam paced the room living-room floor His mother laughed softly She patted the couch Stop walking the floor like a hungry lion and sit down Sam Lucette Lucette Lucette Lu Lu- cette started something just before the tile phone rang She should have known better than to start anything In the Reyburn family before It has been fed but now that sho she has you'd better finish It What mean by started Mother Brooke perched on the arm of a chair at the desk She faced them all aU Most of the time she could tell quite well what they were thinking She answered her brothers brother's question ques ques- lion tion before her mother could She means that tha t announced announced announced an an- that she sile did not intend to live at Lookout House with me and th that t you you you- Were not going either Sam Lucette Lucette Lu- Lu cette finished triumphantly Arent you Sam Say listen Brooke Dont Don't you eee see how it is I have to be at the theater early Im I'm late when I get through rehearsing all the morn mom mornIng Ing Twenty miles is a long lung way to commute I had planned to buy you the snappiest convertible coupe on the market Dont make me feel like Uke a brute Dont Don't you sec see sec Of course I see sec Sammy You want to be on your OVIl I do under under- stand Dont worry about his being Beine on his own darling darline Lucette cut In i bitterly No one can cnn be on his own VIl in this family The Great Adviser Intends to stay right here to look alter after his lit little Ue sister ter to Brookes Brooke's eyes met her brothers brother's he be nodded Lucette flamed on And Mothers Mother's going to stay to look after both of us Mother Brooke echoed the word with shocked Incredulity But Ive I've planned the most wonderful things for Mother Is it true 1 Celia urns urn's eyes s s- s sh shone h o 0 n e through a n mist as they met her II elder daughters Her lips Ups curved In a lovely trembly smile When you say Mother Brooke I think it the most beautiful word Inthe Inthe in inthe the world But I will not make my home with you you you-at at present First because Lookout House is yours yours and you should assume the responsibility ity Sty and direction of it You will do doIt doIt doit It more easily J If I am nm not there Second I want to stay in the city not so much because of the children children chil chil- dren but because now that your financial future Is lJ assured I shall feel that I may use a little of the money your father left me I want wantI I I want to be in the heart of things Ill I'll have an experienced maid Ill I'll have the right clothes and and and-and and Ill I'll go places Im I'm dying to go ao places Her Impassioned voice broke Perhaps Im I'm selfish perhaps you children think Im I'm a silly old wom worn an r Sam flung his arm about his moth moth- er Hooray for the Spirit of 56 Sorry I shouldn't have mentioned your age Celia Reyburn Dont Don't worry that you wont won't get enough of your family Brooke Ill I'll have to drag these two tw-o gid giddy iy girls off oft to the country for rest occasionally Arent Aren't sore at us are you Brooke Dont Don't feel that we have let you downto down downto to go on alone Of O course I dont don't you old dear Why shouldn't each one of us do as we like now that there is some money back of us Because I feel teel that I must carry out Mrs Dane Danes wishes Is no reason reason for dragging the rest of you Into the country Lets Let's get busy planning I If you are all sold on staying hi Inthe the city well we'll have a bigger apartment I may want to spend a week-end week away from the thee sticks myself CH CHAPTER PTER in Through the open transom above the the office office door camo came the hum of typewriters Mark Trent behind his desk scowled in hi the direction of the sound He had paid good money for those machines on the understanding understanding understanding under under- standing that they were noiseless Curious that he never had hal l been annoyed annoyed an an- noyed by them before Must be this confounded note In his hands He read again Dear Mr Trent- Trent Many times limes your aunt has told me of the Thanksgivings you spent with her at Lookout House Wont Won't you dine here on the coming holiday My mother sister Bister and brother will be bc with me There ore are many family treasures which you should have I would like liko to go co coover over them with you and more than all aU I want to thank you for pulling puUing me out from under that car I really wasn't so eo ungrateful as os I sounded This Is a 0 late Invitation In because I have been bolstering up my courage to ask you Please come Bury the hatchet or accept the tha olive branch or however peace pence between ene cne though mies-though though I am nm not for a moment your enemy enemy is Is being belne accomplished now Sincerely yours Brooke Reyburn Lookout House He dropped the note and frowned at the ilie red carnations In a crystal vase on his desk He lived over the Instant he had seen a girl go down downin in the street h had ld seen a speeding car almost upon her How had he managed to save her Colorless and dazed as she was he ho had thought her the loveliest thing he ever had seen as she looked up at him As for a n second h he had steadied steadied stead stead- her in his arms his brain had fought against her ber attraction and the live warmth of her body had prompted him to growl at nt her No wonder she had been angry and ond no wonder he admitted honestly honestly- Mary Amanda Amnnda Dane had been t taken in it by her Well one victim in the f family was enough She shouldn't hypnotize him He drew letter p paper toward him and picked up a pen Hed He'd settle settle settle set set- tle this question of friendship between between between be be- tween them for good and nIl all Little schemer Dear Miss Reyburn he wrote As he hesitated as to how to word his regrets another picture of the girl as she had appeared between the hangings In Stewarts Stewart's office flashed in his mind with startling clarity He must get along with that note His frowning regard of the opening door changed to a n welcoming smile I as n a head poked InCome inCome in Come in in Jed What's on the little little lit lit- tle tIe mind now Jed Stewart perched on n a corner of the flat desk He pulled one of the red carnations from the vase and drew the stem through the buttonhole buttonhole but but- of the lapel of his checked coat I Tm Im m taking a Jad lady to t tea a nee need a posey to make milk me look like a mil million lion Uon to so combined utility with buss business business busi busi- ness and came here Knew you always always al nl- al- al ways way had them the business If U What youve you've b been sent lent again to ask me to take half halt of ot that- that Hold Bold everything that's that a all 11 washed up The matter has not been mentioned to me since the day you and Brooke Reyburn met In my of of- fice fico co I guess you killed her interest interest interest in in- terest in you by your Infernal sarcasm sarcasm sar sar- Hope you'll enjoy the house and fortune Miss Reyburn Happy landings land land- fags ings Perhaps Id I'd better say safe InfO landings sea you Oh you think so sot Read that Jed Stewart frowned over the note Mark Trent tossed to him He read It through reread it Looked at athIs athis hIs bis friend Going Going I What do you think Mark answered a n buzzer Who Mrs Gregory Of course Ill I'll see her He explained hurriedly to Stewart Stew Stew- art Its an old friend of Aunt Mary Amandas Sho She sailed for tor Fr France nce a week before my aunt died She's a martinet one of those terrible terrIble terrible terri terrI- ble women who dont don't care where the lash of their tongue falls and a n confirmed matchmaker This is mighty good of you Mrs Gregory and its it's a clear case of thought transference not ten minutes minutes minutes min min- utes ago I was thinking of you A wave of feeling menaced the clarity of Marks Mark's voice as he bent over the white gloved hand of ot the woman who h had ld entered the office once She had been a vital part of the life at Lockout House which now seemed so Irretrievably far behind him aim A smile tugged at his lips as he observed that the floppy wide wide- brimmed picture hat was the model she had worn since as a boy he had admired the deeply waved blonde I hair It shadowed The hair was still faultlessly but it was i snow white I She settled d into a chair wIth the same rustle of taffeta he remembered remembered remembered and adjusted a diamond I brooch of a size end brilliance to tomake tomake i make a discriminating thief avidly flex supple fingers She peered up at him through a n Jeweled lorgnette with eyes once a brilliant blue now the tho color of faded larkspur Handsome as ever arent aren't you Mark In spite of f the way those two women let you down First that wife with a a grande com com- KV ri I i s 1 i I 1 f a S u iY Handsome as Ever Arent Aren't You plex and then Mary Amanda I dont don't wonder that y your ur hair at the temples s looks as If it had been touched by frosty fingers If you are only thirty Who's he She waved her lorgnette toward Stewart who back to the room apparently had been absorbed in a study study study-of of the calf-bound calf books on the shelf Stewart of the firm of Stewart and Stewart attorneys Jed come here I want to present you to Mrs Gregory my first love Flatterer I You always could coax my heart beart out of my breast with your wonderful smile and your voice Mark She pe peered red through her lorgnette as Jed Stewart Stewart Stewart Stew Stew- art took the hand she extended with the air of a sovereign Stewart and Stewart You were Mary Amanda Danes Dane's 1 lawyer a w y e r weren't you The contempt In her voice deepened deepened deepened deep deep- ened the color of Jed Stewarts Stewart's already already al 11 al- al ready sufficiently ruddy face I had that honor Honor 1 Do you call It an honor to help cheat heat her nephew out of his inheritance Re Really llly Mrs Gregory Jed cant can't be held responsible responsible- Hold your tongue Mark Ive I've Ivest st started and now I Intend to get rid of a few things that have been boiling bollIng bollIng boll boll- Ing and sizzling Inside me since the day I heard that Mary Amanda had cut you out In favor of that fashion adviser shed she'd gone crazy about Forget It Mrs Gregory I dont don't need the money money tt Of course cours you need it No one has money enough now because no noone noone noone one has a sense of financial security Didn't you take over all the lame ducks as your share of your grandfathers grandfathers grandfathers grandfather's grand fathers father's property so that your aunt wouldn't be worried by them Arent Aren't you ou making that wife ex of youn your an allowance Mary Amanda told me Vh What's lt's she been doing since she left you for that French count It was a French count year car wasn't want It They were buzzing round rich girls thick as wasps about a broiled live lobster She has married I understand Married After Atter she divorced the count The third time Getting to be bea ben a n habit Isn't It She Isn't entitled to toa toa toa a penny I dont don't wonder your aunt was furious when she found out that you were giving her money Perhaps Perhaps Per Per- haps bop that's that the real reason she cut you off oft though I thought It was because because because be be- cause she didn't believe In divorce on that subject she was stuck back in the eighties However that wasn't what I came here to talk about I Just wanted to tell you that J if I had known what was in that will I witnessed two days before I sailed for Europe Europe It It was Just a week before she died now died now Stewart Stewart Stewart Stew Stew- art dont don't look at me with your Jaw dropped as If I were a moron with a Medusa complex complex of of course I know that a person Isn't supposed to know the contents of f the will she sho witnesses but I still say that h had d I known that your aunt was leaving her money away from you Mark I would have cut off of my hand hane before I signed Mark Trents Trent's heart stopped and g galloped furiously on A will wItnessed witnessed witnessed wit wIt- a week before Mary Amanda's Amandas Amandas Amanda's Amandas Amanda's Aman Aman- das da's death The will which had been probated was of a date two months prior As he opened suddenly suddenly suddenly sud sud- sud- sud denly stiffened lips to reply he met Jed Stewarts Stewart's warning eyes eyes which seemed 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