Show 7 4 MEMO III J L ALA GEORGE WALSH SYNOPSIS jerry longwood Lons wood and nancy lee supposedly cousins seek shelter at their uncles els abner longwood they find and abner murdered but later the body disappears he then appears again alive and imprisons nancy in a musty cellar but the he escapes in running from rom jerry abner falls down the stairs dying instantly st the pair continue their search tor for the dallas heart mysterious object jerry says he be has come to claim in searching the cellar he finds the corpse they had originally found it is seafaring brother black sheep of the family faintly whom abner apparently murdered nancy reveals her true identity CHAPTER XII jerry a new idea was coming to me it if it is jacob and not abner who was stabbed then it was was 21 yes he nodded ed finishing for me it was jacobs body I 1 stumbled upon when I 1 first came to swamp hollow in the hall half light it was natural that I 1 should have mistaken him for uncle abner the family resemblance was still strong and I 1 seen abner tor for fifteen years but who killed him I 1 asked in a terrified whisper he stopped and frowned shaking his head sadly we can only guess he replied but there is no doubt in my mind uncle abner was the murderer he was always quick of temper and very irascible he hated his brother his unexpected return here may have alarmed him at any rate it is charitable to believe that they ther had a quarrel and that in the heat of passion uncle abner stabbed him I 1 shivered again recalling the picture of the dead man I 1 had seen on the dining room floor but how howd his body get in here I 1 added after a pause that easily explained jane he said smiling gently my sudden and unexpected appearance pe arance must have frightened abner and he fled in here opening the panel in the dining room to escape he could see and hear all that went on in the room he must have heard me implore the dying man to tell me where the dallas heart was and seen me in desperation shake him I 1 nodded understandingly and then you fled yes I 1 was a bit frightened at the murder afraid that if I 1 were found in swamp hollow I 1 would be accuse accused dof of killing uncle I 1 fled and got lost in the swamp the rest you know I 1 met you and the storm came up when we got here the corpse was still on the floor weltering in its own blood and abner heard and saw us undoubtedly through that peephole he saw and heard everything my coming back with you must have frightened him more he was afraid I 1 would report the murder moreover he knew that we had mistaken jacobs body for his 1 I jumped to my feet the solution of the whole mystery coming to me then then when we were in the library abner came through the panel and carried the body away I 1 cried Exact exactly lyl my explanation of the whole mystery the body was carried through here and hidden below the chances were that no one would ever find it until swamp hollow was torn down uncle abner knew he was sate safe how could we make a charge of murder against him it would be absurd of course especially as the charge would have to be that he was both murderer and victim of course resumed jerry after a pause the climax came when you accidentally saw uncle abner opening the panel concealed by the picture it was his own slip he expected to find you there when he heard me rummaging around in the tower the surprise must have been mutual yes it was I 1 assured him he was so startled at seeing me that I 1 would have had time to escape if I 1 slipped and fallen against the picture frame jerry nodded and gazed solemnly at me 1 I hate to think of the rest both my experience and yours it if you suffered while in his clutches I 1 suffered too I 1 was nearly crazy not knowing what had happened to you but he really have hurt me jerry do you think I 1 asked he just wanted to hold me until you left the house 1 I dont know jane he said frowning its hard to say what a desperate man would do under such circumstances he knew that you had found his secret hiding place therefore if any investigation followed you would betray it he afford to let you go no my dear I 1 dont know what he would have done to you I 1 dont like to think of it but there its all over we must try to forget it he rose crossed the narrow room and peered out into the library the first faint streaks of dawn were shining through the east window jerry describes the dallas heart we must be going he said 1 I dont like to be found here with two dead men there will be awkward questions asked jane and theres no reason why we should stay to answer them we were in no way mixed up with the murder let the authorities find out for themselves well leave the house just as it is some one will stumble upon the body of uncle abner and report it are you going to leave before you find the dallas heart jerry I 1 asked have you given that up uncle abner has a hiding place for it which may never be found he replied ive searched about everywhere of course a house of this size could have a hundred hiding places for a small thing like that its almost a hopeless job I 1 should have thought of that before how large is the dallas heart jerry and just what is it anyway why you oh I 1 forgot youre not nancy 1 he be laughed well jane the dallas heart is a wonderful string of pearls with a beautiful heart shaped diamond for a pendant old judge dallas bought it for his wife who wore it at a number of balls and dinners and it was known jar far and wide as the dallas heart the diamond heart alone is worth anore than the pearls it is so large and beautiful I 1 imagine that today it would sell for a small fortune why it if abner has no other living relatives wont you and nancy inherit swamp hollow 1 I suppose so and au all in it including the dallas heart yes he smiled if its here you could take your time ransacking the place for it then you you and nancy I 1 persisted why of course but what are you getting at jane youre holding something back but I 1 cant guess what I 1 smiled demurely at him 1 I was thinking I 1 added innocently that somebody else might search the house before you get possession of it and find the heart the police for instance they would take charge when they found m murder u r d e r had been committed they yes and its a fact they mig might I 1 lit stumble upon the precious thing no telling what do if they found it they might steal it youre right janet jane we ought to look further even at the risk of being discovered in the house by daylight he smiled and gazed quizzically at me X jane he said solemnly have you found it 1 I believe jane you know something talin g 11 he said slowly what do you know A lot of things jerry and one is that I 1 dont think a man is good at searching a room for a lost article now pause and think where would you hide such a treasure in here it if you were in uncle place womans comans intuition finds the pearls owhy why why I 1 dont know he stammered looking wildly around behind the clock maybe but there any clock in here or under a brick in the fireplace but theres there s no fireplace guess again I 1 laughed he was growing excited not knowing if I 1 were making believe or had some actual knowledge of the diamonds whereabouts jane he said solemnly have you found it no silly of course hotl I 1 seen it or touched it and I 1 dont know where its hidden but I 1 have a womans comans intuition A womans comans intuition he mused 1 I wonder if there is anything in that or if its just common acceptance of an old superstition suppose you test it jerry I 1 mocked all right where does your intuition say that I 1 ought to look to jerry I 1 said it if you went into a strange hotel room t ta sleep an and d you had a suspicion that sneak thieves were around where would you hide your money and watch and other valuables under the pillow where I 1 could grab them quickly he made a dash for the pillow at the head of the couch picking it up and crushed it between his hands not in it or under it he said womans comans Wo mans intuition wrong for once jane 1 I say it was there you jumped at conclusions now would uncle abner hide it there 1 I dont know I 1 give it up go poor jerry I 1 laughed now listen from time immemorial the hiding place for money and treasures at least according to fiction has been in stockings under loose firebricks fire bricks behind hall clocks or or where else he shouted when I 1 stopped 1 I did not answer but squirmed around in my seat uncle abner have a very soft bed to sleep on I 1 complained this mattress is terribly hard bard and bumpy it feels as if id been sitting on rocks or stones just feel here jerry what is it for a second he did not follow me then seeing something in my eyes that enlightened him he made a dive for the couch and began running his hands up and down the hard mattress an exclamation of eagerness escaped his lips he tore at the mattress cover with both hands ripping it to shreds and thrust a hand into the straw beneath when he withdrew it he held the dallas heart up for me to see janet janet jane he cried weve found it weve found it the dallas heart I 1 was more interested in seeing than in listening and I 1 hardly heard beard his words when he blew the chaff and straw from the precious bauble a string of pearls with a magnificent diamond heart spar kled and glowed in the dim from the oil lamp making everything else in the room seem dull dub and tawdry it was such a treasure as kings had fought for and women had bartered their souls to possess I 1 was dazzled by its wondrous lustre and jerry sat there stupefied holding aloft the precious thing his lips trembling his eyes bulging his hands shaking jerry and jane leave the swamp I 1 came out of my trance finally put it away I 1 commanded harshly hide it I 1 dont want to see it why jane its wonderful and yo you u helped me to find it take it away I 1 added in i tation rising to my feet irn I mij it ing its morning outside see toe suns bathing the swamp in a golden glow oh jerry its like a new world after the night come we must got go and nd so we did hand in hand through the swamp leaving swamp hollow behind with all its memories and sinister associations I 1 had found the dallas heart for nancy but more precious to me than any bauble was jerrys love which was mine to share with no one THE END ft V SELECTED FICTION B GIFTED AUT |