Show MURDER masquerade by INEZ HAYNES IRWIN copyright toe inex barn birne ibria SYNOPSIS mary avery aery a widow who lives to a the barter barbor town of 0 situa max mass with two negro ace maids sarah darbe and bexie bessie williams writes a describing the famous second head murder which occurred on her estate next to mary live mr and nd mrs mr peter stow who every yer year give a summer masquerade party one ot of the guests ol of this function in murdered nearby live dr and tire mr geary and their married daughter edith and her busand b alfred bray doctor myron marden and b his step caro prentiss a beautiful young girl who was born in france next live paul and lora eames and their daughter molly molly was engaged to the ibe murdered man ace blaikie she had been engaged to walter treadway who had bad been the murdered mans secretary but the enga engagement gemen t wax was suddenly broken and he bad left town other neighbors neighbor are the fairweather inert flora a hopeless invalid and margaret all but the latter two attended the masquerade marys marya eight cearold ye arold niece sylvia sard is ii visiting her for the summer the wooded part of 11 mary arys estate is ii called the spinney in it is ii a tiny lot log cabin near a stone atone wall Is a tiny circular pond called the merry mere thit this is i the day of 0 the masquerade and excitement it is high mary decides decide to take sylvia who Is an unusually observe observant nt child caro prentiss and molly esme eames drop in ia during curing the afternoon soon blaikle doctor marden harden and bruce lexson a friend of aces arrive molly is impatient to leave and they all excuse themselves elvei at the party sylvia dentine fie each of the masked guests guesta its as they arrive arrive ace comes garbed as jul juliua ius caesar molly eames appears as a snow queen accompanied compa nied by a man in a armor whom sylvia identifies as walter treadway they dance together continuously caro prentiss and met marden arrive dressed in revolutionary costumes the doctor wearing jeweled shoe buckles when the guests guest unmask ace walter and molly have disappeared when mary avery leabra the party a little after two neither molly and walter or ace blaikie had returned ret urn ed sarah darbe confides to mary that someone apparently parent ly had spent the night in the little house and returns screaming she has found ace blaikie stabbed to death in the spinney spinner mary summons patrick obrien chief oi of police who had been a schoolmate chool school mat matt of hers hera and acea ace her manuscript recalls early impressions of ace how hor he had been wealthy the mos most t popular boy I 1 in n town how bow he had gone to 99 paris to study medicine became an aviator in the world war returning to practice in how he was recklessly generous and the principal in scores of love affairs bruce bexson had bad come back from the war with ace he was a lawyer a man of private means and had bad got religion become a virtual recluse SUNDAY continued 8 sobs died down suddenly sats sh became her composed quiet self 1 I dont like to tell things about people she explained quietly 1 I never give away the secrets that my friends tell me and I 1 always keep the white peoples secrets I 1 ever mentioned what im going to tell you but to one other person mrs avery I 1 suppose patrick said good good guess Pat Patric kt I 1 put in 1 I told mrs avery saturday morning sarah said perfectly composed she told patrick the story of her discoveries in the cabin again sarah burst into tears now now dont think about it any more you go back to your work sarah and dont give this another thought you got anybody into trouble I 1 knew who it was au all the time 1 I would have told you patrick what sarah has just told you I 1 said after sarah had disappeared you see I 1 think of it yesterday the murder paralyzed my mind temporarily oh I 1 know have told me patrick dismissed my explanation in an offhand off hand manner do you know yet how ace came to go into my spinney patrick I 1 asked oh yes I 1 got that last night he went there to meet tony torriano 11 the bootlegger I 1 said yes it seems that of course you know that for years ace has been spending money like a drunken sailor hes really been up against it lately he paid tony for months he owed him three hundred dollars tony went over to the blaikie house yesterday and I 1 guess he staged a pretty good scene sam was cleaning silver in the butlers pantry and he could hear tony storming way off there he got frightened and came into the dining room to listen he said that tony grew pretty violent in his threats he heard ace tell tony to meet him about half past ten in your spinney that hed have the money for him then and so you suspect not a chancel just think it overt overl ive known tony au all my life hes au all right we went to school together ive played tag tops marbles baseball and football with him tonys as good as they come did you arrest him no but I 1 told him to stick wound round because I 1 might have to arrest him and hes sticking around who spent the night in my little house I 1 asked next walter treadway pat answered im as sure as I 1 can be that he did anyway he go home that night somebody saw him and molly motoring early yesterday morning sarah guessed that I 1 said after a while our maids always know everything before we do outside a motor crunched on the driveway in an instant sarah appeared its miss molly mrs avery she announced and mr treadway before I 1 could speak tell them to come int patrick said I 1 had not seen walter treadway tot jor over a year and yet I 1 did not look at him for an instant it was not the fact that molly came through the door first that held my attention on her it was so something in molly herself it seems to me I 1 had never seen her look so beautiful molly swept into the room good morning aunt mary she called buoyantly good morning mr obrien surprisingly she came over and kissed me I 1 had a feeling that she had intended in that sweep of the room to kiss patrick too but thought better of it buoyancy in molly 1 and ace dead patricks answerl answering rig good m orning morning molly came together with mine like a chorus then still like a chorus we added good morning to aning walterl walter I 1 walter treadways Tread ways look had changed too I 1 have known walter treadway au all his life like the stows and Eames rameses es the older treadways Tread ways are contemporaries and intimates I 1 a always I 1 w ays say that walter is handsome perhaps he is not really handsome certainly he is interesting he is very tall very slim blade like he has regular features and he has beautiful teeth A quality in walters face always delights me something gay something not so much mischievous as puckish As a young boy he was rai F i ab I 1 I 1 I 1 W all ile he said that tony grew pretty violent in his threats extremely shy that shyness disappeared of course with maturity but even as a young man he was quiet and reticent he had a charming sense of humor quiet and reticent too and well ill go back to that word puckish yes walter is handsome As molly looked different walter looked different but his air air showed a sternness almost an austerity st sit down childre childrens nl I 1 ordered what can I 1 offer you at this hour of the morning coffee t mouy molly answered promptly your just famous coffee aunt mary loads of itt I 1 rang the bell sarah appeared tell bessie to make a big of coffee and serve it in herel im glad youve come molly patrick began at once and you too walter when I 1 got to your place last night molly your mother said that gone home with one of the girls shed forgotten which one so she get in in touch with you and your people walter even know that been in I 1 told them that spent one night at least in mrs averys little house that 0 K yes walter replied without any hesitation 1 I spent two nights there after a pause he volunteered thursday and friday night my apologies aunt mary im sure you understand 1 idol I do I 1 answered patrick made no comment on this byplay by play but why walter went on in in an inquiring voice did you want to see me and why molly echoed in an indifferent one did you want to see me to get your patrick was beginning A blade of intuition cut through me oh you hearal I 1 walled wailed heard what they both questioned oh molly I 1 took it up moll molly y darling weve got something frightful to tell youl hollys face turned to marble my mo therl she whispered not your mo mother therl I 1 said swiftly ace ace molly questioned hes dead she answered herself instantly st ace is dead deada molly said this in a kind of solemn question a kind of solemn statement she stared at me I 1 could not speak I 1 bowed my head ace dead molly repeated ace deada why how could ace die ace was so full of life tell me what it is aunt maryl mary he kill himself tell roe me everything teu tell met mal she had arisen from her chair as she pleaded came speeding like a blown flower across the piazza to me As swiftly walter followed her he put his arm about her he was murde murdered I 1 could say it in no fuller phrase or in fewer words Murde murdered redl molly screamed it walter pulled in a long hissing issing li breath his wide eyes still on my face he drew molly close she dropped her head to his shoulder deadened her hysterics there patrick swung in the body was found in mrs averys spinney yesterday afternoon he had been stabbed to death with the sword he wore at the masquerade doctor geary says he died about midnight afy my god walter said in a stupefied tone As long as youre here walter patrick went on steadily 1 I want to ask you a few questions perhaps r like to lie down for a while walter led her to a couch he seated himself beside her hollys handkerchief went up to her face she began to shake but in silence e no sobs came walters walteri arm went about her 1 I must warn you both first patrick said that anything you say now can be used later in evidence against you walter looked with a fierce worship down into hollys face molly looked with a worship up into his ask us anything you want I 1 they said in unison you went to the masquerade walter it patrick began in a knights costume armor coat ot of mailor mail or whatever you call it yes what time did you get to the p party arty oh a little after ten I 1 should say did you dress in the little house houe walter yes what time did you go to the little house friday night it was saturday morning by the time I 1 got there walter answered that is to say almost saturday morning it was just before sunrise patrick made no comment on this was molly at the party when you got here yes did you dance with her often about a half dozen times what time did you leave A little after eleven perhaps before the unmasking d yes did you go alone no who was with you mouy vt f patrick turned to molly then you two left the party some time after eleven yes what time did you get to th stow house molly A little after ten you left with walter yes what did you do when you left the house we got into my runabout and drove about where did you drive Sa marshland M marshland arsh land beach handsbury Hanes bury handsbury Hanes bury beach and what have you patrick turned his attention to walter how long walter would you say you were driving well we left the party for the sake of easy arithmetic let us say eleven I 1 was back in the little house about five that would make it six hours were you with him all that time molly yes did you see ace blaikie blaik e at the party walter ayes yes did sou speak with him vp no 11 did you dance with ace molly 11 yes twice did you speak to him not as ace blaikie we talked as the characters we represented he called me ice empress patrick continued after you stopped riding around walter where did you take mouy molly to the marden housel what road did you take round to the beach and over the head in what room did you sleep in the marden house mouy molly 1 I slept in the room with caro prentiss a big chamber at the front with two beds did you wake her when you came in no she was awake she had ju just st got in herself she ask you where been she ask me but I 1 told liar her that I 1 had been riding all night with walter now patricks air became brisk brisk we left you walter at the marden house tell me what you did then 1 I walked straight down to ta the little house I 1 cut across cat park and got onto the path just back of mrs averys house and continued on to the little house took off your armor first 1 I suppose patrick suggested yes I 1 had already taken oft off the cape and helmet and hood when I 1 got into the runabout and put on a sweater but I 1 took the rest of it off then and wert to sleep on the couch TO RE BE CONVINCED |