Show I I THE LIFE OF THE PARTY BY ELIZABETH JORDAN Sortie O D. D Century Appleton Century Co Inc Ino I SYNOPSIS I Youn Young Rex Hale calls on Casper Kneeland Kneeland Kneeland Knee- Knee I land friend frend of his father in New York and md I finds finds him proudly successful but stran strangely preoccupied He tells Hale o of his wife's s I death while Insane invites him for the summer summer summer sum sum- mer to Halcyon Camp his home on Long Island and promises him he hc will be useful as his secretary there Hale Bale is Joined at lunch by Fred Ainsworth an do n unpopular college col col- college lege mate also at Halcyon who leaves him with a feeling of unpleasant mystery lIe He HeIs lIeIs lieis Is met at the train by Mrs Wilbur Nash whom he questions about the menage and experiences a disturbing premonition The premonition Is barely cased by the comfortable comfortable com com- hospitality of Hosanna Kneeland's elderly sister and her friend Ruth Forbes middle aged sophisticate In his room Hale lIale finds a soiled paper printed This plase Hale Bale meets the rest o of the strange group group Dr Craig psychiatrist friend of Bert Kneeland nervous young son o of Casper Casper Cas Cas- per and beautiful but moody Joan Kneeland Kneeland Knee- Knee land niece o of the house Ainsworth drops In at his room questions him about his reactions and tells him of Berts Bert's hopeless love for his heiress cousin and that Mrs Forbes is down and out The whole group seem to get on each others other's nerves Later Hale sees Hosanna furtively meeting a shabby man in the woods The maid tells I Io o of the recent poisoning of or a cat and dog Mrs Nash suggests that Ainsworth has some hold on them Returning from a n swim Hale finds in his room a clever sketch o of skull and crossbones Kneeland arrives for forthe forthe forthe the week end also curious about Hales Hale's re re- re- re actions CHAPTER HI III-Continued III Continued 8 S worried asked Knee- Knee land You are sir if I may say so So is your son So is your niece Your sister isn't I fancy At least theres there's no suggestion of it replied Hale Kneeland made a quick gesture If any worry trotted up to Hosanna Hosanna Hosanna Ho Ho- sanna it would trot off again with its tail between its legs She wouldn't even know it had been there Hosannas Hosanna's a pink sofa cush cush- ion Always has been always will be But what do you think of her friend Mrs Spencer Forbes Cold as ice hard as nails mildly amusing and not worried about any any- thing She enjoys seeing other pe people people peo peo- pIe worry though Im I'm not sure she wouldn't enjoy seeing them suffer suffer suffer suf suf- fer physically She and Ainsworth might have had a great time if they had lived during the Spanish t i on a nd 1 could 11 h a ve watched tho the vict vic vic- i AU gUU Y n Q u Y 60 tims Ainsworth yes I dont don't know much about Mrs Spencer Forbes though she's been with us off and on for years I guess youre you're right about her I hear you and Ainsworth Ainsworth Ainsworth Ains Ains- worth were at school together What sort of cub was he A bully of course He may have been at the cub stage Hale agreed He was doing doing doing do do- ing post-graduate post work when we were at Cornell He was a well- well behaved young man and very stu stu- stu- stu dious I Surely he wasn't popular No But there was no special I reason for his unpopularity beyond i his superior manner and his habit of I saying anything rude he wanted to He prided himself on that Its It's another another another an an- other trait he has in common with Mrs Spencer Forbes She's a better better better bet bet- ter sport She's willing to take as much as she gives Ainsworth He wants to ride over people roughshod roughshod roughshod rough rough- shod and have others treat him as tenderly as they would a baby The best way to handle him I should say Hale added deliberately would be to give him as good as ashe ashe ashe he sends He couldn't take it Hed He'd crumple under it God Id I'd like to see him crumple crumple crum crum- pie Kneeland broke in fiercely But Im I'm no good at what you young folks call repartee Never was Then why why why- Hale checked the question Kneeland finished the query query query que que- ry for him Why the devil do I have him around For just one reason in the world my boy Because I cant can't help myself Id I'd boot him from here re to New York if I could he went t n on n longingly Id enjoy y every every ev ev- ery kick But But well well I c cant nt Th That's ts t's all there is to it You dont don't mean mean- Rex stopped again again Kneeland Kneeland had started this and he must have a reason for doing so then so-then then continued You dont don't mean that the fellow is trying anything anything anything any any- thing in the nature of blackmail on you he ended No uNo not exactly One might call it something like that but I guess not That would hardly fit But dont don't lets let's talk about it Heres Here's what I started to say I told you I had a ajob ajob ajob job for you I have You can write a few letters for me but there wont won't be much of that till Im I'm here in Aug Aug- I handle my mail in my office and Ive I've got an efficient private secretary secretary secretary sec sec- there there there-a a girl who's been with me ten ye years What I want you to tobe tobe tobe be here at Halcyon Camp is a sort of substitute host I want you to represent me when Im I'm not here I want you to help me out when I Iam Iam Iam am here I want you to do the sort of thing official entertainers do on shipboard and the sort of thing my myson myson myson son ought to be doing Entertaining the folks Stir em up Start things Give em a good time Try to the g general atmosphere here In short be the life of the party I 1 see seel Hale spoke flatly and with dis dis- dis- dis tn taste te He disliked the assignment I I I I I He told himself he disliked his housemates He disliked Halcyon Camp Most of all in that moI moment moment mo mo- ment he thought he disliked Casper CasperI Kneel Kneeland nd Kneeland could and should he reflected have left all that to Hales Hale's sense of his social obligations as a guest Naturally he would have done his best But to tobe tobe tobe be under orders as an official entertainer entertainer entertainer en en- and of such a group as this one around him was different There was something ghastly in its humor Kneeland eland read his thoughts Dont get restless he said This assignment is between you I and me inc No one else will know anything anything anything any any- thing about it Officially youre you're my home secretary You can give color to that by spending an hour or two a day in this study You can write your own letters in here But the main thing he went on straightening straighten straighten- ing suddenly and speaking with a y o 0 I. I What changed your opinion new quality in his voice is that theres there's a little string to all this Oh Hale began to see the light and to object mentally to what he saw Your real job Kneeland ended will be to find out what sort these people are Oh Hale repeated the word blankly You mean amateur detective detective detective de de- de- de work You mean that Im I'm to worm myself into their confidence confidence confidence dence dence- Nothing like it Kneeland interrupted interrupted interrupted inter inter- sharply In uIn the first place my lad you couldn't get into their confidence They're not a confiding bunch Moreover they're not talking talking talking talk talk- ing about their little plans They're just lust working st t them Little plans Do you know what those little plans are Of course I dont don't Kneeland jerked out impatiently If I did why would I be asking you to look into things I only suspect that Ainsworth Ainsworth Ainsworth Ains Ains- worth Craig and Mrs Forbes are up to something I believe they have axes to grind and that they're very busy grinding them These people are guests in my house They're eating my bread bread- and in one way or another Im I'm afraid they're trying to do me dirt It may be in some trivial thing or it may not If they're playing some skin game on me am I or am I Inot Inot Inot not justified in asking you to help me to find out what it is They're after something something something-my my money no doubt Perhaps they're helping Ainsworth Are you or are arc you not justified in pitting yourself against them if youve you've got the tIle ability to do A lt lL I think you are are and and I guess I Iam Iam Iam am Hale said slowly Good Will you tackle the job Yes sir I will Fine As to salary well we'll say a hundred a month and expenses till tillI I get here in August More after that when theres there's more to do A good bonus at the end of the summer summer summer sum sum- mer if youve you've succeeded in unearthing unearthing unearthing unearth unearth- ing anything I dont don't know Expenses paid of course You'll have to take trips to New York to find out some things about Ainsworth's recent activities activities activities ac ac- ac- ac and Craigs Ive I've looked up Ainsworth's professional record but you can find out more than I Ican Ican Ican can about his private life Mrs Spencer Forbes may be in it too perhaps I dont don't know You'd better better better bet bet- ter decide that yourself All satisfactory satisfactory satisfactory satis satis- factory so far Quite sir But dont don't imagine that Im I'm one of those super detectives you read about in mystery stories I hope youre you're not What we want is observation Youve You've got it We want common sense Youve You've got that We want some brains and you seem to have them Kneeland heaved himself out of his chair Now lets let's go back to the bunch and play contract he suggested He hesitated then added abruptly I may be all wrong about these suspicions of mine except in Ainsworth's Ainsworth's Ainsworth's Ains Ains- worth's case He and I understand each other all right The others may be just a harmless bunch of on hangers-on getting what they can out of me Perhaps Im I'm only a meal ticket to them Perhaps Im I'm getting rattled and ana suspicious Anyway he smiled with an effort not being the gay little group a man would choose for a house party No they're not Hale agreed Kneeland stood brooding for a mo mo- ment He seemed to have forgotten forgot forgot- ten the contract game Suddenly he threw up his head with a gesture gesture gesture ture oddly like Hosannas Both Hale reflected might have inherited it from some Indian-fighting Indian New England ancestor Im going to treat you like a father father father fa fa- fa- fa ther he ended with his best smile Im going to refer sentimentally to old times and old ties tics Perhaps Ill I'll slop over a little What I want is to rub into these people the fact that youre you're my godson and the son of my best friend Youre You're at loose ends for the moment owing to the depression Im I'm giving you a little job and a restful summer for old times' times sake Then they wont won't be suspicious See Perfectly You'd make a pretty good detective yourself sir But there are a few leading questions Id I'd like to ask May I Of course Fire away Is it true that your son is in love with Miss Kneeland and wants to marry her Yes it is Hes He's asked her a dozen times He told me so Has she refused him Of course she has or he wouldn't have kept on asking her It was plain that Casper Casp r Kneeland was not as much pleased with his young friend as he had been a few minutes before His manner was truculent Is he very much cut up by her refusals Of course he is confound is-confound confound you you I dont don't see why you should mind answering these questions sir Isn't it true that part of the tension one notices in him may be due to the relations between those two two two-to to her refusals and his disappointment Yes it is Kneeland admitted more calmly In fact I thought at first it was just that What changed your opinion It didn't fit in with Berts Bert's char char- acter Hes He's in love with Joan He has been for years But he isn't the sort to moon around and make her life a burden because she turned him down Hes He's a better sport than that He might keep on trying but but not 1 if E it worried or annoyed Joan He hesitated then went on Berts liBerts a big puzzle to me this summer He graduated from Princeton a year ago this month and he loafed here all last summer Of course I expected that he would come into the factory in the fall faU Hes He's no young Napoleon of Industry Industry Industry Indus Indus- try but hes he's no fool either He could be mighty useful to me atthe at atthe atthe the factory I was looking forward to I it Everything seemed to be going all right till he brought his friend Craig here last August After that he changed completely He thought he wanted to go in for medicine Craig has filled him up with that idea He asked Craig here for the summer and Bert himself has been mooning around ever since To be frank what I suspect Craig of is using his influence with Bert to I keep him in the medical game I 1 think Bert has lost interest in it I even think he has lost a lot of in interest interest interest in- in terest in Craig He certainly goes off by himself day after day while I Craig works in the laboratory But Craig has no idea of being shaken off Perhaps he has dreams of Berts Bert's building a hospital for him some day when hes he's a rich man I dont don't know I dont don't know anything I only guess But my plan has al always always always al- al ways been to give my boy his head I cant can't put him into leading strings now 1 Hale nodded sympathetically and waited But Kneeland had said all he had to say R Rex suspected that he was regretting his frankness He asked conversationally Is Craig inlove in inlove in inlove love with Miss Joan too Kneeland seemed relieved by the change of subject He says he is You can form your own conclusions Anyway she has turned him down cold She's fond of Bert She loves him like a brother That's part of the trouble They were brought up like brother and sister No romance there on her part But she doesn't like Craig a little bit How cHow about Ainsworth I suppose hes he's in in love with Miss Kneeland I ICI too CI 1 1 1 1 1 He lit xie made a little mue drive Ul iut for her ner I but not a serious one She gave him his walking papers at the first sign of it Since then he hasn't bothered her Ainsworth is in love with himself and his schemes He doesn't pay any more attention to Joan and she detests him All right I guess Ive I've got what I want Now Im I'm ready for your contract game sir Kneeland was himself again His ill-humor ill had vanished If ClIf you can remember to say Uncle Uncle Uncle Un cle Cass it may help he sug sug- All right Uncle Cass Casso Its It's Uncle Uncle Uncle Un Un- cle Cass from now on Uncle Cass Kneeland grinned and his face grew young again the stuff he commend commend- ed He threw his right arm across his rus new employees employee's shoulder and in that friendly position they went back to the living CHAPTER IV Hale returned to his room toward midnight He and Kneeland had played some good contract with Herbert and Joan The remoteness of the other four playing at a second second second sec sec- ond table had clearly been a relief to the host In the intimacy of his family group his natural optimism optimism- and cheerfulness burst into full bloom He won several rubbers played successfully two little slams and enjoyed the evening He was sorry to tp have the party break up Hale was not Hale wanted wanted wanted want want- ed to be alone and to think over his new responsibilities TO BE CONTINUED |