Show R U U L I 1 IS 8 L E 8 will if isen AMES WILLIAMS 0 ben ames williams SYNOPSIS barbara sentry seeking to sober up her escort johnny boyd on the way home from a party slaps him and attracts the attention ot f a pol ceman whom the boy knocks down As he arrests him professor brace ot of har yard vard comes to the rescue and drives bar bara home on the way they see barbara a father driving from the direction ol 01 his office at 12 45 but when he gets home he tells his wife it is 11 15 and that he a been playing bridge at the club next day sentry r reports orts his office has been robbed and a miss w ames elmes former temporary employee killed the evening papers luridly confirm the story and sentry takes it hard mary elder daughter in love with neil bay ray young in terne at the hospital where she works goes off to d at gus loran a sentry a part ner with mrs loran lorans s brother jimmy endle mr and mrs sentry call on old mrs sentry and barbara alone receives dan fisher reporter who advises her not to talk phil sentry son at yale is d stubbed at the possible implications and suspicion of M ss wines absence from her rooms tor for three days during august he goes home to help sentry Is arrested and booked tor for murder dan fisher explains the evidence against him that the robbery was a fake the safe opened by one who knew the combination changed since miss wines employment there that a back door key a duplicate of sentry s was found in the girls girl s purse and that sentry too had been away those three days in august brace calls and backs up barbara in her denial that sentry could have done it because of the dis cre pancy of time between the slaying and their seeing sentry on the road phil show ing the police over the house finds his st strong rong box open and his gun which only his father knew of gone meanwhile the pol ce find the stolen stole n money burned in the furnace mrs sentry sees her husband who swears his innocence and tells her he had known of the robbery and murder the night before but tailed failed to call the police and came home at 12 30 mary quarrels with nell neil ray and runs away with jimmy endle to the car bebean linda dane friend of barbara and phu phil tries to comfort phil falkman noted criminal lawyer retained inspires hope but not admiration dan fisher whom barbara has been meeting at her grand mother mothers s tries to use influence to keep the family out of the papers and everyone shields barbara on the verge ot of a break down CHAPTER VI continued 15 one day when brace was to meet barbara at her grandmother grandmothers s for tea and arrived before the girl the old woman spoke to him of bar bara baras s condition said stoutly 11 I 1 wish someone would marry her and take her away from here I 1 she can t stand much more she chasn t the strength to go through all this she t have to do it I 1 he dissented gently people can cant t shirk such things barbara s sister did I 1 know but she will al ways regret it we have to accept our burdens our responsibilities face them squarely she said grimly maybe maybel no doubt you are a level headed young man but I 1 suspect you re too level headed for your own good he smiled tolerantly I 1 in sor ry he said but dear as barbara has come to be to me I 1 can t advise her to dodge or to evade dear to you is she veryl I 1 then marry her the old worn an counseled sweep her off her feet marry her and take care of her he said gravely I 1 hope to some day but if I 1 asked her now she might come to me just to escape I 1 want her to come to me because she wants me I 1 fiddlesticks it if you want her take her on any terms at all he shook his head I 1 I 1 shall have to be a witness at the trial you know he confessed the district attorney has warned me to be ready barbara need not know yet but if we were married and then I 1 testified she would blame me nev er forgive me get out of the reach of a sub poe boena poena na while you yop can I 1 can t do that I 1 ve given my word pah pahl if you ve the courage of a but barbara arrived putting a period to their words and after that hat mrs sentry did not attempt him agam again she found dan fisher more to her taste between these two something strong and binding had developed he came to her often even when barbara was not there once he came dispirited and she saw this and demanded what are you so down in the mouth about he grinned been barking down a rat hole he confessed and the rat wasn gasn t at home talk sense I 1 he hesitated well linda dane and I 1 have been putting our heads together trying to see some way out of this I 1 thought we had a lead old mr wines the dead girl s father told me that in her letters home the girl spoke of a mans man s having asked her to dinner I 1 start ed to check on him I 1 who was it aa I 1 can t very well 0 nonsense I 1 I 1 can keep my mouth hut when I 1 choose well it was mr loran gus loran she considered nodded he s an old goat she a agreed greed he never would have mar ned ried that endle woman otherwise go on what about him dan fisher said the thing looked locked possible at first I 1 fourd that mr loran was away in august I 1 at the same time miss wines was I 1 away but that blew up two ways it turned out that loran was in maine ive I 1 ve talked with his guide he has a camp on a lake up there flies up flies his own plane he was there he added and just to make sure I 1 checked on him for the night she was killed we know what time she went to mr sentry s of fice mr loran boarded a new york tram train about the same time went right to bed the porter saw him in his pajamas a little after eleven and the porter s sure loran didn dian t get off the tram train after that she demanded why couldn coulden t miss wines have been in maine too guide says no maybe he s lying didn dian t seem like a liar maybe she was near there maybe he flew over to where she was 11 he hesitated and she said sharply speak up mani miss wines wasn gasn t in maine he said reluctantly they ve found where miss wines was she was at a hotel in new jersey to the old woman s fingers twitched her eyes closed then opened again shrewd and keen she said in a ing she interrupted their discussion to say phil tell me truly do you think father killed her he was shocked into silence for a moment countered then gosh barb what do you take me for do youa she insisted no of course not I 1 read all the newspapers she said if he didn dian t how could all the things they say be true he said but you haven t read father fathers s side of it barb wait till he tells his story what is his story phila why he doesn doean t know anything about it at all 4 she looked away from him phil shall we all have to testify not mother phil replied probably not any of us he add ed mother can testify if she wants to though she probably will if he wants her to I 1 won tt tl well if he wants us to I 1 won tl t she repeated tensely eyes still averted no matt matter er who wants me to I 1 won t tl I 1 I 1 ll 11 cut out my tongue first I 1 her voice shook and he said whoa barb you re scared 10 46 why couldn coulden t miss wines have been in maine blaine low tone you re not looking at me I 1 suppose arthur was with her he nodded he said sald miserably but it its s barbara that gets mel she U 11 have to go through it all the trial everything she may even have to testify I 1 wish I 1 could marry her get her out of this to in love with her are you yes she demanded then why don t you dan looked at her quickly and he colored ani then he chuckled you re a girl after my own heart I 1 I 1 he declared I 1 d do it in a minute if she d have me but I 1 can t tl I 1 why not money he confessed and this is the only job I 1 ve got if I 1 could land a promise of a job some where else but these are tough times in the newspaper game finance you he grinned shook his head easy come easy go he remind ed her I 1 ve never been able to hold on to money unless I 1 earned it myself he added but I 1 d like to find some way to keep her out of this keep her out of the trial any way why don t you take her away yourself to europe or somewhere 9 the old woman said quietly the next trip I 1 take I 1 shall have to go alone dan he met her ea ees es honestly with out denial this must have hit you hard he assented the shock the worry the uncertainty she said half to herself there s no uncertainty I 1 ve accepted that it s more ellen s fault than his perhaps she shut him out of her life long ago he had to turn some where yet I 1 don t mean to blame her at least she went on living with him this is hard on her but it may change her soften her she added yet he is my son whatever he has done donel dan s eyes filled he gripped her hand she said with a sudden faint smile professor brace thinks it s barbara barbaras s duty to see it through I 1 judge you don t agree agreed he shook his head lord love ou nol no and his eyes began to blaze sometimes brace then he checked himself I 1 wish I 1 could take her away so in these days all ali their solid tude came more and more to cen ter upon barbara phil sought a in every way to cheer her and as christmas approached he tried to enlist her interest in planning some holiday observance that could be endued ensued they were ere in her room one night barbara abed ph phil I 1 sit ting beside her while them the groped I 1 for some sonae device when with no warn there s nothing to be scared kofl she looked furtively all around phil she whispered do they know for sure when miss wines was killed the papers said at first someone heard the shot a little past one but mr hare said they think maybe she was killed earlier to phil hesitated I 1 don t think they re sure barbara but it wasn gasn t a shot that man heard they ve found a truck that back fired about that tune time and he said they know when miss wines ate dinner and they know about how long it takes food to digest so they go by that partly and partly by well things doctors look fir what time do they think she was killed he did not answer and she whispered phil father got home that night at quarter of one I 1 told dan fisher and dan told me not to tell anyone but I 1 had already told mr flood her voice rose was shrill I 1 won t t tell it again phil never I 1 won wn I 1 tl they can t make me I 1 he took her shaking in his arms intent to comfort her you won t have to barb I 1 wont won t let them bother you she clung to him cut out my tongue first don t get so excited barb I 1 but why did dan tell me not to tell phil phil said almost sternly now listen barb quit worry worrying it s all right what do you read the papers for where do you get them in at grandmother grandmothers s she con fessel I 1 have to phil no one ever tells me anything and I 1 have to know what s going on 11 and she cried desperately phil I 1 wont won t belll they can cant t make me can they he evaded answering say you re doing a great job on grandmother barb he said I 1 you surely take a load off mother and me of course we miss you at home but someone has to be with her Is she all right Is there anything she wants to and the shot at random was successful yes there is I 1 barbara remembered she told me to tell you she wants to see mr falk rani phil seized on this sure surel he cried get got in touch with him well we 11 take him in to see her this afternoon right away and the enterprise at once engaged them barbara went in town to make her grandmother ready and when at half past two phil appeared with the lawyer the old woman received him in state sitting very erect in her great chair but at once she sent phil and barbara out of the room and when they were alone she asked falkman questions watched him studied him he suggested at last you haven t been to see mr sentry to no to he asks otter often for you falkman told her 1 I shall be glad to tell him I 1 have seen you so hale and well 11 she eyed him shrewdly you want me to go see him 1 I know it would help him he admitted then I 1 will she promised in a curiously submissive tone the first fine day splendida he said beaming tt if you do mrs sentry I 1 guarantee everything else old mrs sentry tried to carry out her promise to see her son but I 1 shall want to be with arthur alone 11 she said then added yet id like for you for all of you to ride down with me wait for me outside my courage is good but I 1 m not as strong as I 1 used to be they waited for a fair day but that winter in boston was a bitter one not till the first week of february on the eve of the approaching trial did the season serve then came a day when spring seemed lust just around the corner and the sun shone warm old eh ell brought the ancient limousine barbara and the nurse helped mrs sentry dress phil and barbara steadied her t to the elevator and down and into the car she sat between barbara and mrs sentry phil on the small seat in front of them they drove through scant mid afternoon traffic to the jail and the old worn wom an s cheeks shone bright and brighter flushed and hot and barbara saw a pulse pound in her thin throat but she could not when the time came go in As the car stopped she collapsed suddenly not falling not even toppling sidewise but just shrinking down into herself so that she was small even their untrained eyes saw that she was ill that this was not faint heartedness in a sud den terror uncertain what to do phil and barbara stammered and fumbled but mrs sentry said steadily we U 11 have to take her home it was too much for her they all stayed in town that night with her for the doctor had fore warned them once the old woman spoke in m a surprisingly strong voice she said I 1 tell arthur I 1 loved him to and she added with no irony in her tones and tell mr falkman I 1 hope he c can a it use this aust as well 11 her death toward dawn made headlines sentry s mother stricken at jail said the morning paper mrs sentry dead on eve of trial said the afternoon editions her funeral occurred on saturday two days before the trial was to begin the brief and premature warm spell had ended in a blizzard that clogged traffic they followed her to the cemetery between banked walls of snow TO BE CONTINUED |