| Show I t j.- j. hi n J J nr- nr D e y- y 0 Td J Jf- Jf X 1 L' L r PIR TE i i EA y l lt t tt t d lJ I S SABEL A B E L WA IT T WN U I ir Go I THE TUE STORY SO Sp pAR eAR Judy Jason ts Who ho ii is telling the story alory receives an letter enclosing SOO and ask ask- In J tog her to bid ld for en ji abandoned church to toT auctioned the thc next day The body of ofa a L man Identified ed as Roddy Lane la III found u In a chest In the basement o of the lee church but disappears rs a few hours boors later Victor Quade fins finds Hugh Norcross' Norcross golf roll club near the chest A fish shed burns barns apparently oUy an old man man named Brown Uncle Wylie pipe Is found near the shed ned Suspicion hovers around Uncle Wylies Wylie's hUd head as he be tells of his only meeting meeting meet meet- I ing with old Is man Brown BrownlIe lIe Wylie t Speaking peaking Now continue with Judy's Jody's story L CHAPTER IX LX Told me he had permission to today stay day In that shack long as he liked Didn't ask him who from None of ofray my ray business Old shed aint been used since days when the police rounded up a cache of liquor liquor- Hush Wylie That aint got noth- noth in to do with this You only saw the poor old feller once after that didn't you Time he was fish In off the rocks mean Funny thing about that my ray uncle ruminated Cloudy day and end he was over near the Pirates Pirate's Mouth I was afraid he might f fall ll In Theres There's a path but its it's mighty dangerous 1 I yelled at him and by thunder thunder maybe a coincidence but but he looked around and saw me Then he disappeared I tore after him but he wasn't In the Pirates Pirate's Mouth Climbed up the other side I guess Anyway I saw his light time Ume I got back Do you ou mean that old man got back to his shack before you did Beat you to it Victor asked in incredulously in- in credulously Not exa exactly Uy It was cloudy and dark the way it suddenly does when its it's fixin up to thunder but I could see he wasn't in the Pirates Pirate's Mouth nor sloshing around in the waters below I wanted to take a look at atthe atthe atthe the church knowing about the auction auction auction tion and all Nella Nella Mrs Mrs Gerry's always hankered after that location I was If pay to turn the building into a bungalow and sell the inn Nella aint so spry as as- as I dont don't see see see- Bessie Norcross got no farther The police will see plenty Victor Victor Victor Vic Vic- tor said Mr Gerry you'll certainly certainly thinly give them much to think about Thank you for tor telling us about this mysterious Mr Brown who's neither short nor tall wears thick glasses uses an earphone but turns when hes he's unexpectedly yelled at comes from nowhere just before things begin to occur on the Head is la old and apparently feeble yet could climb into and out of that Pirates Pirates Pirate's Pi rates rate's Mouth so rapidly that hed he'd disappeared by the time you reached the spot though you tore after him very interesting dont don't you ou think Mr Quincy Beats the way I manage without without without with with- out my chair I was having a conniption over what Uncle Wylie Wylle had said about buying the church It was ridiculous ridiculous ridiculous lous to suppose hed he'd sent me methe the money I leaned over and whispered into Uncle Wylle's WylIes ear Did you ou send me that mazuma Huh I repeated the question only substituting substituting substituting sub sub- the word money He acted dumb as anything and started fishing fishing fish fish- ing in his pocket and drew out some change How much you want Only got 73 cents I 1 excused myself and ran rm into the house It was high time I told Victor Victor Vic Vie Vietor tor about that letter He could do stunts with it make moke them all write their names and compare the penmanship penmanship pen pen- manship or something The rooms were a mess Wed We'd have bave to quit this business and clean cleanup cleanup cleanup up the inn hID and start lunch pretty soon lioon Some of the beds had been treen tossed together In my hasty search for tor Roddy's diamond ring but that was aU My own room didn't even have U Unclothes clothes airing I flung them back Iu iIi ina a heap and ran to the bu bu- real reau The letter was gone gonel I Couldn't believe belleve it Maybe It wasn't the top drawer where I stuck It un under er the paper lining I tried the others o knowing the futility Then I went back to the top one again tossing my belongings helter There was no doubt about it I got down on my hands and knees and looked under the bureau I even moved it from the wall wal No dice What a sap Id I'd been to leave it In n my room Well anyway I 1 could repeat the contents But now there'd be no way to get a slant on the wr writing Ung I recalled how sprawling sprawling sprawl sprawl- ing it had been backhanded and every every every ev ev- ery which way in the attempt to disguise it There could no longer be doubt about that I began suddenly to be terribly who tried afraid Did the person to use me have any connection with the foul deeds which followed Was WasI I dealing with a killer A murderer who knew I still had half hall a thousand dollars of his In my possession why the Old Harry should a perfect per per- wish to present me Sect feet stranger with a tearoom anyway Not Aunt Nella Shed She'd never let anybodY do her bidding nor pass sum like that Uncle Wylie I n a on discarded carded Roddy Lane But why should he be want the old church He HeI because hed he'd said sod so I did I j Stew knew he was planning to Hed He'd also said I He Hed He'd d bid at the auction Prepare for some lively bidding hed he'd said that night at supper Would he mail mall me cash and then bid too Not likely Not unless unless could could he be that subtle subtle subtle sub sub- tle Could he have chosen this method method method meth meth- od for reasons of his own and be hiding around the Head In which case h hed he'd d blown up the bridge and killed Brown The fire might have been an accident but the hand Id I'd seen sc-cn in the sea chest wasn't Theres There's something about a dead hand hand Ugh I II I could feel little chills creeping up and down my spine Any minute I expected to hear a voice demand back its I ran Into the hall and as the old stairs creaked behind me I paced down nearly losing my balance and screaming as I went The whole piazza rose in a mass massand massand massand and came running to meet me Judy Aunt Nella cried the matter Judy Hugh met me at the stairs and caught me to him Are you all right Sure she's all right Bessie got between her brother and meI me I I rm Im I'm nervous I guess I faltered faltered faltered fal fal- fal- fal sitting down on the stairs Its nothing really Go Go-go Go go on with your See anyone upstairs Lily wanted wanted want want- ed cd to know Of course not Goodness I mustn't give way like that I dont don't know why I screamed Got to thinking thinking think think- ing of of-of of of of what I saw in the chest chest Were all pretty much keyed up Auntie said Judy you ou come out to the kitchen and help me start the chowder But I I signaled to Victor Victor Victor Vic Vic- tor Quade and when he came over overto overto overto to my side I whispered Just you Come I went on into my little office and he scattered the rest Didn't r II r. r V I 01 s Z S 1 t l I r iIi f t y ft c ec r rA O A Al rF Ir Told me be he had bad permission to stay in that shack they all want a breathing space Why not go in a body down to look at the Pirates Pirate's Mouth and also at atthe atthe atthe the golf goll club to see see if someone had i borrowed Mr Norcross' Norcross Would they wait for him Meet at the steps in intern tern minutes They would Unanimously Well Miss Judy what's botherIng bothering bothering bother bother- ing you Victor sat down in the theold theold theold old morris chair where Uncle Wylie often oHen retreated with his pipe when things got too warm for him In ln the kitchen I closed the door When I turned and saw Victor Quade's glowing eyes boring darkly into mine I was struck again by his odd resemblance to Roddy Lane 1 If 11 Lane had had a brother l I But I knew better And when he smiled at me how different from the Lane leer Such magnificent magnificent magni cent teeth I sighed faintly thinking thinking thinking think think- ing for a moment how now handsome the man was Then I plunged into the strange incident of the letter An anonymous letter you say It was merely signed signed A A Friend were forty twenty-dollar twenty bills May I see this epistle I felt full tull of confusion contusion What an Idiot Id I'd been to leave it In a bureau bureau bureau bu bu- bu- bu reau drawer the drawer the first place anyone would look I had to admit Id I'd been beena a chump that the letter was gone Victor began to rock backward and forward in the gawky old chair sitting slUing up on the edge of It now as asIf asif asif If the swaying movement helped him think He shook his head slowly and smiled at me You couldn't know of course but Im I'm afraid you did pull a 0 boner But he said Dont tell a soul Oh Im I'm not excusing myself I know it was stupid The sentimental reasons reasons' rea rea- reasons reasons reasons' sons' sons got me And that's another thing thing before before the auction when we the guests I mean were all discussing discussing dis dis- cussing bidding In In the Rev Jonas De Witt used those very words What words U Sentimental reasons Hed He'd like he said to own the old Quaker church for sentimental reasons Used to hold bold services there didn't he Said BO so Not since my time thou though h he had bad the Rockville con con- grega grega- Victor stopped me with a gesture I 1 know We want to get going with the rest of the crew We can Investigate the minister and his prison prison pris pris- on record later Think you could remember remember remember re re- re- re member most of that letter Where was it postmarked Notice the thc date Three questions The postmark had been Boston The date was blurred but Id I'd found It In the letterbox letterbox letterbox let let- the day before the auction which was as he knew July 3 3 Good heavens I Was it only yesterday yesterday yesterday yester yester- I day Victor nodded prompting So the letter came in the regular mail July 2 Who has come to the inn since then Nobody but you I said Roddy came at suppertime that night Victor considered m H his strong white hands patting noisily noisily noisily ly together Quite a coincidence You get the wherewithal to buy the church from an unknown Roddy Lane arrives Theres There's rumor hes he's hidden bank funds somewhere on the Head Lane disappears though hiscar his hiscar hIscar car is still here An old recluse Is burned to death who may have discovered Lanes Lane's secret horde or seen him uncovering it it But youre you're youre you're forgetting the diamond ring I cried never leave that Mr Quincy noticed noticed noticed no no- it that night and said it was wasa a very valuable stone remember Judy before you do anything else jot down do the letter Ill I'll go along out now You might tear out the page of signatures in your Inn register Copy that couldn't you Maybe the writing of one of them would give you a clue I began to shake You think one of our guests did It It-a It a double murder murder mur mur- der Dont go jumping to conclusions like that Weve We've only one corpus delicti There may be another inthe In Inthe inthe the sea If U ever we get Into communication communication com com- with the mainland we may find out out If U we had some mush wed we'd have some mush and milk If we had some milk Exactly Meanwhile whether Lane killed Brown and swam the gut or vice versa or whether one ope of the inn crowd did them both Inand in ln inand and is still with us the fact tact remains remains re rea re- re mains your letter is probably connected connected con con- with It itt The police will tear the church to pieces Dig up the basement Blast the cliff You get that letter down and suppose suppose- He checked himself staring at me In a frowning way that made me wonder won wonder won won- der where Id I'd failed tailed until he said The rest of that money Five hundred Judy he be may want It back That the keep-the-change stuff I might not go for so large a sum My very thought Have you ou a safe here I laughed at the idea Were poor I reminded him Taking boarders Well dont don't keep it t on your per per- son Were they new bills In sequence sequence sequence se se- quence In sequence The numbers I didn't think to look at them very closely They weren't new Old I IId Id I'd say Not in order as you might I get them from a bank They wouldn't be Whoever sent them is far too clever Put them back In your our drawer Might be a good idea to tell everybody about the letter you received its loss and that whoever took it would find the cash In the same place ploce I dont don't want you to go away by yours yourself ell after this Keep with somebody youcan youcan you youcan can trust all the time time like like your aunt or your uncle It was then I confessed Aunt Nella was really no relative of mine nor her husband either I could trust him Victor said and the way he glanced at me made me blush till I was afraid hed he'd see It I reached for the register to hide my confusion and opened it at the blot blot- ter Mr Quade look All the signatures signatures signa signs tures tires have been torn out We examined the torn tom ledger hunting fruitlessly in the wastebasket waste bas ket Victors Victor's eyes gleamed where he made a boner Did Did Did-did did Lane register that night No I put his name down though See back here He was only a meal meal- er cr One supper supper 75 75 cents cents' There it Is ls And I suppose everybody's been In here to telephone Uh Even you you when when you found the wires were cut cut He inquired then when Id I'd missed the letter and I had to admit Id I'd only just discovered it wasn't there when I went up to get It to show to him I hadn't looked at It since I hid it under the paper lining In ln my bureau drawer Somebody wasn't taking any chances of having his or her signature signature signature signa signa- ture compared with the writ letter ing Maybe he was afraid of not disguising some peculiarity enough Experts can tell every time But now theres there's only the contents as 88 you remember them to go by Then how did he be make a boner Just uJust this If 11 Old Man Brown came carne in here hed he'd have been seen by one of the guests Mr Quincy is usually on the piazza That Tha Kendall woman Is ubiquitous No Brown didn't get in I doubt If 11 Lane did His handwriting wasn't there you say But somebody's was Somebody Somebody Somebody Some Some- body who was sparring for time till he found and destroyed tho letter hed he'd sent lent you TO BE DE CONTINUED |
