Show THREE SHUTTERED HOUSES By BEN N AMES WILLIAMS Copyright SERVICE SYNOPSIS Driving home through a torrential rain young oung well do lo do Clint picks up a girl scantily clad running In terror stricken night light down the road She rides a n short ways leaves the car carand carand and runs Into the woods He decides to talk to his dear friends Inspector Tope and Miss Moss about his adventure Clint still thinks s of her as Miss Moss his former guardian though she and the Inspector are arc married Clint having bavIng settled down now manages the estate himself In three shuttered houses all gloomy and forbidding on Kenesaw II Hill Bill III near where Clint picked up the frightened girl lived three families In one house lived old Denman his wife who had been EUa Ella and andr r p his daughter Kitty Leaford and her daughter June Living in a second house was Aunt Evie Tame Uncle Justus and brothers flab Rab and Asa The third held Id old Matthew Bowdon and his wile wife LIv Ing on the estate was a aman man mm known only to June as Uncle Jim Following their usual custom the three families gathered In the Hurder home Saturday night Kitty Junes June's mother retired early with witha a headache She was given warm milk and Insisted on taking two sleeping tablets tablets tab tab- lets one more than usual Strangely upset June slept fitfully and In the middle middle mid mid- dle of the night went In to see her moth er cr Her uncomfortable position warned June that her mother was not sleeping She was dead Panic stricken June ran from the room out the unlocked door and Into the storm to get Doctor Cabler It was here bere that Clint Jervies picked her ber up CHAPTER IV 4 4 Inspector Tope and Miss Moss had found In marriage the calm happiness happiness happi happi- ness of middle age The Inspector had bad looked all his life on violence yet with gentle comprehending hending eyes For a score of years or more he was at the head of the Homicide Bureau at Police Headquarters and 1 won for himself himsel there a reputation not soon to be forgotten Miss Moss was in a different fashion as shrewd as he While they were away on their le leisurely surely honeymoon Clint had planned a surprise for them There was among the properties of the Jervies Trust a story one-story six room house bouse sandwiched on a narrow lot lotin lotin lotin in Longwood hidden in a backwater water away from the traffic arteries with four trees on this lot and room for tor fora tora a flower Dana Jervies Clints Clint's father had taken his bride there thirty years ago and he had kept it afterward for the sake of sentiment Clara and Mat lodged In this house for a while after their marriage and when Inspector Tope and Miss Moss came home from their honeymoon Clint met them at atthe atthe atthe the station and drove them to this thus familiar door Miss Moss with tears of pleasure in her ber eyes protested but Clint said strongly Why of course you'll come here rl This is where all the J Jervies family starts housekeeping you know Cant Can't g go gd against tradition And when she argued she was not of the Jervies family he be insisted gently Youre the only mother I 1 can remember you know now She yielded at last said they would stay a l little while but Clint said they should lodge here till he wanted the house for his own bride And that will be a long time by byall byall byall all the signs he promised On the morning after Clints Clint's ride over Kenesaw Hill he rang the bell bellas as they were about to sit down to the breakfast Miss Moss had prepared prepared pre pre- pared and Tope in an old blue gown dressing and slippers the morning paper crumpled in his hand opened the door for him He greeted Clint and he called j over his shoulder Mrs Tope heres here's Clint for breakfast She appeared for a moment In Inthe Inthe inthe the room dining door to smile a welcome and bade them both sit down at the table Almost ready she promised She watched these two for a second a deep fondness in her eyes before she disappeared into the kitchen again When she presently returned with the coffee in one hand and a platter of eggs and bacon in the theother theother other Tope said Wait Clint Start over now And he said to Miss Moss Mrs Tope Clints Clint's had a curious ture See how it sounds to you And Clint told them how driving back to town h he had overtaken a airl girl irl In her nightgown running I through the rain upon that lonely c J road rondo Now what do you make of that he asked challenging them i Miss Moss reflected I know mow a little about that place she told them I know there are three houses side by side Matthew Bowdon Bowdon Bow Bow- don lives in one Hes He's a lawyer trust law mostly The firm is Bowdon Bowdon Bow Bow- don and Taine Tame Mr Bowdon must be an old man now Two of his i grandsons are in the firm with him and Justus Tame Taine his son in Clint exclaimed Well what I 1 want to know is who was v this girl What had frightened her The Inspector got up and crossed to the t telephone I wonder if it Charley Charley Char Char- ley Harquail is downtown m he said lIe He might know if anything has happened out there Charley was a reporter and he and the Inspector were old friends Tope called the newspaper office and Miss Mis Moss and Clint listened to the sided one conversation When the old man turned back to them again there was a quickening interest In his eyes and Clint caught him by the arm demanding demandIng demand demand- Ing I What Is It Inspector What did I Harquail say Tope sat down at the breakfast ta ble again I need another cup of coffee Mrs Tope he said To think this over And while she poured it he began to explain You heard h-eard me ask Charley If 11 Denman Hurder had any children he reminded them and he chuckled chuck chuck- led That surprised Charley he said with a certain gratified vanity In his tones Charley wanted to know how I 1 got onto It and I asked him what he was talking about He hesitated said soberly This Is s what he told me Mr Hurder had a daughter named Katherine She eloped twenty-odd twenty years ago I with a man named Jerry Leaford Leaford didn't amount to much Charley said He said there was a arow arow arow row at the time and finally she and Leaford went home to live with J i 8 e. e br brI I rr R Under the pretext of or inspecting the tires Clint looked attentively at the three houses bouses her folks and then Leaford left her and disappeared for good and all He added and his tones were somber now The reason Charley had all this stuff so pat Mrs Leaford Lea Lea- ford died last night and hed he'd been getting up an obit for her Died Clint cried She was alive alive alive- It wasn't her you saw Tope reminded reminded re re- re minded him She must have been past forty now You asked something about children Miss Moss prompted I asked Charley if il she had any children Tope explained He I didn't know They just got a flash j jabout about her death from the district man out there and they wanted to give her a good obit because of course Hurder is a big advertiser I Charley said the district man was going going go ing to get all the dope children and so on The others sat thoughtful watchIng watching watch watch- Ing him and the Inspector was si silent silent sl si- lent for tor a moment He said at last with an apologetic glance at Miss Moss think Im I'm seeing things at night but but theres there's theres something wrong out there Miss Moss urged slowly Why do you think so Mrs Leaford was sick and the telephone was out o of order and they sent someone for lor fora lora a doctor Isn't that all Tope shook his head No one runs for a doctor no matter mat ter how big the hurry Is without putting some clothes on What was the matter with Mrs Leaford Ch Charley said he heart trouble Tope explained But that covers a alot alot alot lot of ground If Ii a man gets shot or stabbed he dies of he heart trou ble as far as that goes Heart failure will kill a person yes But it takes something to make a heart I fail Takes quite n i a lot too These hearts of ours ours go on pumping pumI pretty pretty pret- pret pret pret- ty steadily unless something happens hap I pens to them Id I'd like to know what made her heart fail He took up the telephone and Miss Moss moved to his side Inspector tor she urged it isn't our busi busi- ness He smiled at her Let me poke my nose in he begged I cant can't I keep out of a thing till I know I He used the phone for a while turned back to them again That was Inspector Heale he said At Headquarters out there He hadn't even heard about Mrs Leaford being dead I guess its it's nothing He grinned at Clint Son he demanded what do you mean coming In here and stirring us up this way Cant Can't a girl go for fora a walk in her nightie along a country road in the rain W without starting so much talk I 1 dont don't believe there was v any girl anyway How much did you drink last night young fellow fellow fel fel- low Clint chuckled Had one high hleb highball highball b ball he confessed It bores me meto meto meto to see sec kids lu lushing it up the way they do He spoke to Miss Moss This girl I took home Mabel Mabel Ma Ma- bel she Gaye-she she was tight Bound shed she'd kiss me good night Wanted me to stay stay stay-It Miss Moss smiled at the austerity behind his words Shell be grateful grateful grate grate- ful to you today she suggested Tope said In a mirthful tone And you no sooner get rid of her than another one comes out In her nightgown to waylay you Clint Wh What is this strange power of yours Clint laughed and then the telephone telephone tele tele- phone rang Tope went briskly across the room He said Hello 1 Yes Inspector A silence while he listened Then Yes thanks Another silence and then Tope said Why Ill I'll come out and see sec you and bring him along Sure He put up the receiver and turned back to them and Miss Moss saw that his eyes shone What Is it Clint demanded Inspector Heale tells me he called up the Medical Examiner Tope explained Doctor Derrie had had no report on the death so Heale called the family doctor Doctor Doctor Doc Doc- tor named Cabler He says Mrs Leaford died from tan an an overdose of some sleeping He added after atter a moment Accidental Accidental Miss Moss repeated repeat ed in a flat tone There was a moments moment's silence and then he added Inspector Heale wants to know how I knew about it And he wants to talk to you Clint I think you'd better drive us out there CHAPTER V Clint swung the car oft off the main thoroughfare This is the road It Ithe he said Ill show you And he drove more slowly studyIng studying study study- ing the way Woodlands shut them In on either side before he stopped at last where there was a path and anda a house among the trees This is where I let her out Ithe It he explained Tope nodded looking toward the house Probably Doctor Cabler lives there he suggested How far tar had she ridden with you I 1 was coming down this hill Clint explained and he drove on said presently It must have been along here somewhere that I overtook over took her Tope commented No houses anywhere near on top of the hill Clint replied He put the car swiftly up the grade and the three houses came into view Tope said In a low tone as though he might be overheard Drive slowly Clint Ill stop Clint amended He pulled up the car beside the rO road ld and got out under pretext of inspecting inspecting in in- the tires but at the same time under the brim of his hat he be looked attentively at these three houses by the road So did Tope and II Miss Moss too There was an undertakers undertaker's garland garland gar gar- land attached to the door of the house in the middle and a car with a doctors doctor's tag stood beside the road The day was warm and fine after the shower yet nowhere did Clint see a window open Some of f the shutters ers were closed and at other other oth oth- oth er windows thick curtains hung Behind the houses the woods were dark and still When Clint presently drove on he looked at Tope to see what Impression impression sion the older man had received Well there they are he said What do you think Tope answered with a slow smile Why I get notions Fool notions maybe Clint but Ive I've got in the habit of ot believing them It feels eels to tome tome tome me as if it the people that lived in those houses were afraid The girl was afraid maid Clint agreed But what would they be afraid of on Well Tope reminded him his I tone suddenly grim A woman died diedo o of poison In there last lasi night If shed she'd known it was going to happen happen happen hap hap- I pen shed she'd have had a right to be afraid So Clint wasp was was silenced silenced and they came on into the suburban town that was their destin destination tion and found Police Police Po Po- Po lice Headquarters Miss Moss elected elect I ed to stay in the car while they went Inside Inspector Heale came to meet them He was lean and gray and his brows were extravagantly I bushy He shook Topes Tope's hand and spoke some hearty word Might have known you'd be around he said humorously You old buzzard How do you hear about these things so soon I didn't even know Mrs Leaford was dead till you called me up I Done anything Tope asked se see Inspector Heale bade them come into his office and closed the door and he shook his head No he confessed Doctor Derries Derrie's gone to look her over of course Doctor Cabler hadn't notified him Cabler was called in l late last night slept late this morning That's why he hadn't phoned Doc Derrie He said there wasn't any hurry And he explained Mrs Leaford had been taking this dope for years She took an overdose once before and came near passing out This time tune it was nearer than that Dead when Doctor Cabler got there Tope Inquired Before that I guess Heale ex ex explained x and he be looked at Tope and then at Clint inquiringly But I 1 want to know how you heard about it he reminded them and Tope bade Clint tell the tale of his adventure adventure ad ad- venture the night before So Clint repeated his story and Inspector Heale listened without interruption interruption in in- till he was done The girl was Miss Leaford he explained then Mrs Leaford's daughter She found her mother dead and the telephone was out of order on account of the shower so soshe soshe soshe she ran to get the doctor He grinned I didn't know she made the trip In her nightie he ad ad- a queer lot up there and she's as queer as the rest of them that way about everything everything every every- thing Inspector Heale insisted You take electric lights Hurder put them in his house here a few years back and then the others hooked his meter to save meter de de- de posits The light company kicked but those folks on the Hill they mostly get their own way when they W want It Old Mrs Bowdon Bowdon- she's seventy if she's a day you day you youcan can argue with her till youre you're blind and she dont don't give an inch And Mrs Taine's as bad Heale continued one of these thin stringy women in a black dress and she talks in hi a kind of whisper as if it butter Dutter wouldn't melt In her mouth She can strip the hide off oft you and r neve-r never raise her voice She's I Ia a worker too Shell She'll put on overalls over over- overalls alls and go right at it Do anything any any- thing For Instance she wired her own house and Bowdon's and hooked up the wires in Hurder's cellar I If I 1 didn't know they had money Id I'd think they didn't have havea a dent cent ent the way she works all the time Clint began Miss Leaford Leaford- The Inspector said guardedly Why she might be all right for all I know She's always slipping around through the woods alone alon like a wild animal and she never speaks to you P Passes you right by byI by- by I TO BE CONTINUED |