Show X map 0 0 0 C emilie loring service SYNOPSIS 61 brooke Fley cleyburn burn visits the office ot of jed I 1 stewart a lawyer to discuss the terms of estate she has inherited from mrs mary an n amanda dane unwittingly she overhears jed jd talking to mark trent a nephew of mrs rane ane who has been disinherited mrs van dane had lived at lookout house a huge structure on the sea built by her father and divided into two for her and marks latter father brooke had been a fashion expert and d mrs birs dane a shut in hearing her on th eradio radio had invited her to call and developed a deep affection tor for her mark discloses that mrs dane had threatened to disinherit him if 11 he married lola from whom hom he Is now divorced he says he does not trust henri and clotilde jacques mrs danes servants he says he is not interested in an oner offer of brookes to share the estate with him leaving her depart department departie me tit store job brooke refuses an offer to go stepping with jerry field a carefree young man icho bo wants to marry her CHAPTER II 11 continued 3 do you dislike mark trent dont dislike him just dont want to think about the man all my sister daphne went cockeyed about him and he turned her down hard like a perfect gentleman of course but it got my goat 11 are you sure he turned turne her down sure im not blaming him im ashamed for her all he was probably fed up with her type his ex wife e was never quite sober ive heard daphne fell for him the minute she saw him she had worried me by her crazy ideas of freedom for a girl shed picked up a postwar post war germ somewhere all talk of course and when trent came along she stopped drinking and staying out till morning at night clubs I 1 was relieved then he sidestepped side stepped forget it I 1 dont know why I 1 told you nice street this it brooke nodded assent as they passed houses whose polished windows violet paned some of them screened by laces of unbelievable fineness regarded her with inscrutable calm thoroughbred dogs proudly conscious of their gay collars and smart breast straps decorously escorted their young masters shining limousines waited before charming old doors in the distance rose the faint far sound of traffic as a mighty flood which never rolled nearer here we are at your door sure you wont change your mind and go stepping the boyish quality was back in fields v voice oice grand old house pity it was turned into apartments do you realize that you never have invited me to meet the family wrong ashamed of your home or me neither what a beastly suggestion jerry if you must know I 1 told them about our friendship I 1 have the finest family in the world but their bump of humor is overdeveloped over developed it a bump its a coconut what is there about me a joke nothing dont be so touchy I 1 decided to be a little mysterious all sam resents it if I 1 ask asi him m a question about his friends thinks I 1 am treating him like a boy when he is almost two years older than 1 I and since I 1 got lucette the chance to model and she is financially independent she scorns my interest I 1 Is your mother like that no mothers a dear but she is 1 so 80 bound up in her children that I 1 she has no real life of her own its s a pity because she is a comparatively ively young woman she sounds old fashioned and motherly Inot herly to me grade A in moth ers rs I 1 like that kind cant I 1 come in and meet her I 1 had planned to i celebrate with you now that youve turned me down I 1 any pl place ace to go you carry off that aggrieved littleboy little boy pose well jerry but it leaves me cold you with your crowd browd capital C having nowhere to go that s the funniest thing I 1 ever heard I 1 intend to devote the next two hours to making plans with 1 the ti I 1 a uw Y but when were settled ill invite te you to lookout house good night sorry the front door slammed with a I 1 lorce force which shook the house sam of 01 course the atmosphere tingled r when he ap appeared he w was as whis aling u 8 as us ual al good looking boyl HIS nis horn rimmed spectacles added i 4 4 touch uch of distinction she patted i MS sleeve as he stopped beside her t 7 had hada a nice ce day sammy 1 I not too good taking off A the play tomorrow our dear public see it he pulled open the elevator door hop in As it clanged shut he asked all through being a working girl brooke swallowed a lump in her throat and nodded it will seem queer being a lady of leisure leisure you dont know the first letter of the word I 1 can see you wondering what do next leisure your line plunge into classes and sports there wont be hours enough in a day for you the elevator stopped A voice seeped through the cracks around the apartment door sam reyburn grinned say listen lucetter Luc ettes on the air and how oh dear her grievance now brooke whispered and put her key into the lock she tried to appraise with the eyes of a stranger the high large living room she entered A connoisseur of portraits would know that grandfather reyburn over the mantel had been painted by a great artist that the portrait of his daughter on the opposite wall was a choice bit of work that the duchess of argyle in her 44 V MIN go S 41 9 I 1 do you dislike mark alark trent sables green satin and emeralds was a masterpiece always she had wanted to decorate a room as a background for the picture now she could the duchess was hers the mahogany and maple was sadly in need of rubbing up but no amount of wear and tear could d disguise is its period and value her eyes lingered on her mother perched on the arm of a couch she did young things like that her hair was a sheeny platinum her eyes were dark her skin was clear and smooth her figure in the amethyst crepe frock was round without in the least suggesting fat there was a quizzical twist to her lovely ma mouth uth as she looked at her younger daughter who with legs thrust straight out before her was slumped in a chair her red beret which matched the bellof her slim green plain frock was on the floor her hair was black and wavy her eyes were brilliantly dark her painted lips drooped at the corners brooke recognized the symptoms sam had been right lucette was on the air she said as she slipped out of het hei lapin coat in the valley of despond again lucette had a nice day mother mrs reyburn smiled and nodded she would make her homecoming home coming children think she had had a nice day if the heavens had fallen she was like that lucette answered her question be in the valley of despond sp ond if you had had the day ive had brooke reyburn im dead to the world A woman came into the sports shop with three daughters showing clothes all ii and kept me the afternoon gosh my feet ac ache he like teeth gone nervy did she buy much not that baby she bought that little blue number only for petes sake why does sam have to whistle when hes under the shower showery the walls of this apartment are regular sounding boards bear up lucette you will be out of it soon it if we cant sublet this apartment well shut it up spoken like a lady and a multi brooke darling and after that what you wont have to model for fussy women and have a dressing room of your very own mr stewart has told me that I 1 may take possession of lookout house as soon as I 1 like mark the magnificent has given the jovian nod he wont contest the will im going there tomorrow with a plumber A bath for every bed will be my battle cry silence followed her words a si clience fraught with significance brooke caught her sisters look at her mother before she sat up straight and tense she knew that posture she was preparing for a skirmish lucette said defiantly glad you brought up that subject brooke news flash im not going to the sticks with you not if you offer me a gold tub with diamond settings I 1 spent one night at the home of the late mary amanda dane and so far as I 1 am concerned the name means look out and not go there again that sealed door in her living room gave me the creeps sam she dashed to the hall as the telephone rang lucette reyburn speake speaking ng she answered eagerly yes yes he is ill call him P her voice was as flat as de bubbled champagne she pounded on the bathroom bath room door phone for you sam how do I 1 know its the girl who always calls just as youve stepped under the shower all right she returned to the phone hold the line hell be here in a minute back in the living room she dropped into a chair with elbows propped on her knees chin in her palms she stared at the floor in bathrobe and slippers sam answered the phone cant make it no its not another girl its a family confab sam reyburn signing off goodby good by he slammed down the receiver and I 1 know of no reason why I 1 should explain to you what im doing he growled under his breath hi sammy the shower dames name lucette called her brother scowled at her theres about as much privacy in in this apartment as there is in t the he bandstand on the common cheerio darling have privacy and how if you live with brooke ashes going house owner in a big way if theres to be a bath toi foi every bed of course there will be a sound proof telephone booth with every room what did you say the girl friends name was its none of your business kiddo who calls me hands dee deep p in in the pockets of his hectic bathrobe sam paced the living room floor his mother laughed softly she patted the couch stop walking the floor like a hungry lion and sit down sam lucette started something just before becore the phone rang she should have known better than to start anything in in the reyburn family before it has been fed but now that she has better finish it what ayou mean by started mother brooke perched on the arm of 0 a chair at the desk she faced them all most of the time she could tell quite well what they were thinking she answered her brothers question before her mother could she means that lucette announced that she did not intend to live at lookout house with me and that you were not going either sam lucette finished triumphantly arent you sam say listen brooke dont you see how it is I 1 have to be at the theater early im late when I 1 get through rehearsing all the morning twenty miles is a long way to commute 1 I had planned to buy you the snappiest convertible coupe on the market dont make me feel like a brute dont you see of course I 1 see sammy you want to be on your own I 1 do understand dont worry about his being on his own darling lucette cut in bi bitterly no one can be on his own in 1 n this family the great adviser intends to stay right here to look after his little sister brookes eyes met her brothers he nodded lucette flamed on and mothers going to stay to look after both of us mother brooke echoed the word with shocked incredulity but ive planned the most wonderful things for mother Is it true celia Rey burns eyes shone through a mist as they met her elder daughters her lips curved in a lovely trembly smile when you say mother brooke I 1 think it the most beautiful word in the world but I 1 will not make my home with you at present first because lookout house is yours and you should assume the responsibility and direction of it you will do it more easily if I 1 am not there second I 1 want to stay in the city not so much because of the children but because now that your financial future is assured I 1 shall feel that I 1 may use a little of the money your father left me I 1 want I 1 want to be in the heart of things ill have an experienced maid ill have the right clothes and and ill go places im dying to go places her impassioned voice broke perhaps im selfish perhaps you children think im a silly old woman p sam flung his arm about his mother hooray for the spirit of 56 S sorry orry I 1 have mentioned your age celia reyburn dont worry that you wont get enough of your family brooke ill have to drag these two giddy girls off to the country for rest occasionally arent sore at us aide are you brooke dont feel that we have let you down to go on alone of course I 1 dont you old dear why each one of us do as we like now that there is some money back of us because I 1 feel that I 1 must carry out mrs danes wishes is no reason for dragging the rest of you into the count country r y lets get busy planning if you are a r e all sold on staying in the city well have a bigger apartment I 1 may want to spend a weekend week end away from the sticks myself TO BE CONTINUED |