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ft„ ..I \ ft 7 ? NEW CASTLE^^^^-AY, MARCH 23, 1951 11 Sheriff Poole launches an in vestigation into the death of Anne Delahay who was killed by a falling boulder while on a swim- ing party with Stella Moore, who is posing as Dorinda IaCroix in s Thorndyke home. Stella was d by Edward Thorndyke, to .*orm the hoax because, he id, it might be fatal to grand mother Thorndyke to learn that the real Dorinda is dead. But Mrs. Thorndyke learns the truth and dies of what is believed to have been a heart attack. Dor inda found lipstick traces on the old lady's pillow and feared she might have been murdered. There is a feeling that whoever pushed the boulder might have ^leen trying to kill Dorinda, mis- 'raking Anne for her. CHAPTER XIII \A regrettable accident occur red —\ Edward began but the sheriff interposed quickly. \Something occurred which appeared to be an accident. We're not certain that it was.\ \But what happened?\ Carol asked again. \Was anyone hurt?\ \A friend of Dorinda's was illed,\ Edward told her. \I don't hink you know her, Carol. There I was a miniature landside at the ' bluff. Miss Delahay was struck by a falling boulder.\ \A friend of Dorinda's.\ Her eyes turned to Dorinda in quick sympathy. \But how terrible for you! Oh, I wish I hadn't gone away. Maybe there was some- - thing I could have done.\ \There was nothing anyone g|ould have done,\ Dorinda said \ully. Poole crossed the hall to tbo •foot of the stair. He stopped in front of the girl who sat there, looking down at her. \You haven't thought of any thing else?\ he asked. She shook her head. \Rather an odd thing hap pened,\ he went on thoughtfully. \Yesterday it seems that Johnny Heffner, who makes deliveries ^for McGregor's, was out this way at about the time Miss Delahay was killed. He saw a girl walk ing along the road just outside the place. He thought she turned in at the gate although he had passed the house by that time. He took took this girl to be you. You weren't outside any time during the afternoon?\ \I didn't come UD from the beach at all until—\ Dorinda -stopped, her mouth tightening. W \That's what I understood. Queer, how a girl with yellow hair—who couldn't possibly be you according to your friends and relatives—keeps bobbing UD. You remember there was a yel low-haired girl with Taylor just before he had his accident.\ \That's what Mr. Hawley to'd us.\ FAY DISCOVERS DORINDA ^S KEEPING DOOR LOCKED \And now she shows up again 1 Miss LaCroix, you told me yes terday that you saw something yellow at the top of the bluff. Think hard, now, could that 'something have been a eUmpse of someone's yellow hair?\ Dorinda hesitated. \I don't know,\ she said slowly. \I think— it could have been. I didn't see anyone but if she, that girl, had —been crouched down behind the '•wall with just a little of her hair showing—I couldn't be sure.\ Pooled lips thinned to a straight line. \It begins to look • .as if this accident wasn't so ac- •cidental after all.\ There was a .'certain Satisfaction in his tone. \What are you talking abou+°\ Edward demanded sharply. \What's all this about Dorinda seeing yellow? It's th? first i 've heard of it.\ His face was crum pled by some inner aguauon. \Mr. Poole, my niece is a nervous, imaginative girl. I hope you'll not let anything she may have fancied she saw, at a time when ohe certainly must have been in a more or less hysterical state, influence you.\ Poole fumbled with his ciga rette papers. He glanced at Ed ward obliquely from under dust- colored brows. \H'm your niece may be imaginative—but there's certainly a few things about this affair that can't be laid to ima gination. She didn't imagine the girl at the Silver Slipper. She didn't imagine the girl who turned in at your gate yesterday.\ I Edward moistened his dry lips with the tip of his tongue. \Sure ly, Sheriff, you can't pay atten- , tion to such trifles, I know noth ing about the girl at the road- ; house. But as to such a person coming in here—after all, your delivery boy didn't actually see anyone, it was probably Dorinda herself. Possibly she has forgot ten.\ Poole's lips quirked. \Cleve Adams must have forgotten as well, then. He seems quite cer tain she was with him all after noon.\ His voice changed sud denly. \You seem very anxious, Mr. Thorndyke, that this affair shoud be considered un accident. .Surely, if someone deliberately pushed that boulder over the bluff, you want us to find out who it was.\ \Naturally Edward agreed stiffly. He did not look at Poole. \But it seems absurd to believe anyone would want to kill that poor girl.\ \Perhaps no one did.\ Poole's tone was enigmatic. He looked down at the watch strapped about his wrist. \That's all for • now. But I'm depending on you ! folks to inform me if you think of anything I should know.\ \I think you can depend upon us to do that. Although I'm sure there is nothing—\. Poole closed the door upon Edward's words. Fay's blue eyes had darkened. \I'm beginning to think things are rather strange around here myself,\ she observed dubiously. \Nonsense!\ Edward barked. He looked at Dorinda, his eyes hard with suppressed anger. He opened his lips as if to speak, then turned and strode back in to the living room without a word. Carol started up the stair. \Come on up,\ she whispered io Dorinda as she passed her, and, with a glance at Fay who stood looking after Edward, the girl followed the nurse up the steps. \I want to know more about this.\ Carol said as they came into the upper hall. \If you'll wait for me in our room until I change, I'll be with you.\ In ten minutes Carol knocked softly and came in, wearing a red-and-white printed house coat, a red ribbon holding back the dark curls from her face. longer . . .\ She shivered. \Eut let's look out for accidents.\ She did not see Carol again. Lana had already departed in her car. Edward and Fay she met only at dinner, where Edward maintained an unbroken silence, and Fay, too, ignored her. Har riet was quiet as well, seeming ly absorbed in some deep siuay of her own watching her, his black eyes wide awake. \Be a good pup.\ She shut the door carefully behind her and went downstairs. I \Hello Dorinda, are you all right?\ Cleve sounded anxious. \Foole was here just a little while ago. He's all worked up over this business, and darn it, he's al most got me thinking that there's more to it than meets the eye. lliUl ^ u\s *w — - speak to Dorinda I don't believe it — not really — Fay did though as the girl excused her- I but I'm uneasy. I had to call \you and be sure everything was okay with you.\ \Of course, I'm all right, Cleve,\ she said. \But I'm glad you called. I've been blue and lonesome. And I think Uncle Edward is angry with me for talking to much — about what I saw at the top of the bluff. But it was true, Cleve.\ They talked for a quarter of I an hour longer and then Cleve ! dismissed her summarily with , the words, \Go on to bed, sweet. \ Goodbye until tomorrow.\ She opened the door of her room, bracing herself against Randy's probable onslaught. But no small dog leaped forward to , meet her. And then she saw the ', stream of spilled milk across the j rug and the overturned glass. He'd been a bad dog, she thought, and was hiding from her. She called to him softly but he did not come. She looked under the bed, behind the chairs, even opened the door of the closet and looked inside. He wasn't under the bed or behind the chairs, he wasn't in the closet, he wasn't in the room. She had left him here, shut in securely, but Randy was gone. Carol came to the door at Do- rinda'^j knock, her dark hair tum bled about her face, her eyes heavy with sleep. \No I haven't seen your dog,\ i she declared in response to Do- 1 rinda's inquiry. \I wouldn't ... , .. . worry. He's around somewhere, self from the table and was Pro bably he felt guilty after spil- a WjiJ? ,l e , ave the d l ni ?S room - ling your milk and when some- \I didn't know you locked your one opened your door, he darted door at night, Dorinda. I can j ou ^ a nd hid\ So, Dorinda told her. It seemed she almost knew the c tory °v heart now she had told it so of ten. When she had flnLhid, Carol sat silent for a few min utes, her dark face thoughtful. Then she rose and paced up and down the room, puffing furiously at her cigarette. \It doesn't seem as if it could be anything except an accident.\ • she commented, returning 1 to h3r I chair. \But I don't like it. I sup- J-pose I'll have to stay a day or two understand you were upset after what happened here yesterday but surely you're not afraid of anything — or anyone — right here in the house?\ \Why how did you know?\ \Greer told us about your . friend and I thought I'd come and speak to you. It wasn't lata when we came home, not much after ten. But your door wao fastened and I thought you must be asleep.\ DORINDA'S DOG RANDY SUDDENLY DISAPPEARS \I was — almost.\ She wouldn't tell Fay how frightened she had been. She spent the evening in her room, trying to read. Carrie came up at nine-thirty with her hot milk. \You look ghastly, Miss. You'd better go to bed,\ she said commkerat- ingly. So, soon after her departure, Dorinda undressed. After a rao- , ,.,„„„ ,,„,., ments'hesitation, shs p eked up , hadn>t come down the stairs ° £ e « U £5 ^i^Sw? Though, of course, there were been left on the bedside table '.up h act Qtnirc and shook two more of the small | n t f „ stair ' . . .. tablets into her glass of milk.! u But Ra . nd y wasn * * he ki *T She had to sleep, she had to for- ° hen 4 or storeroom or back porch, get. For a few hours at least. | Carrie, aroused, helped search. But, before she had time to DORINDA HAS STRANGE drink it, there was a knock, FX-PWRIFTVPF m ATTIC Greer's voice reached her from .EXPERIENCE IN ATTIC beyond the paneled door. I Dorinda went to bed with a \Mr. Adams is on the phone, heavy heart. Waking in the Miss Dorinda. I didn't know night, she would find herself lis- whether you'd retired or not.\ tening for Randy's impatient \Oh ask him to wait, please, bark outside the door. Once she I'll be right down.\ got up and looked into the dimly She slipped on a robe over her lit hall. But he was not in si?ht. thin night\ dress. Raaidy _ wasj Carrie came to her in the 'He isn't so afraid of me he'd do that.\ \Well maybe he ran out to look for you.\ Carol's face bright ened with a sudden thought. \You said you'd dissolved your sleeping tablets in the milk—I don't know what they are or what effect they'd have on an animal, but if he drank any amount of it he's probably curled up asleep somewhere.\ \I hope you're right. But who let him out, do you suppose? I'll ask everyone. I must find him.\ She started off down the hall, then turned back to inquire, \the sleeping tablets wouldn't hurt him, would they, Carol?\ \No I shouldn't think so. Though they'd probably put him to sleep.\ Both Fay and Edward, still down in the living room, denied having seen Randy. Greer, who who had been in the hall all the time Dorinda was absent from her room, declared the little dog • • i _ i morning while Dorinda was dressing. \I haven't seen him anywhere,\ she said soberly. \I think he must have got outside someway. Could be he's gone i back where he came from.\ \You shouldn't have anything I to do with me, Carrie,\ Dorinda (declared. \Everything — every one that comes near me meets with trouble.\ She blinked back the tears. 1 \Now Miss, I wouldn't say that. But someone in the house , did let your dog out. No getting away from that. I asked Mr. Greer this morning and he said he thought Mr. E'dward and Miss Fay were in the living room all the time you were downstairs, but either one of 'em could have gone through the dining room I to the kitchen and up the back r stairs. Though I can't think why they'd do that.\ | \Randy didn't bother anyone, I the girl choked. \If he's gone—\. I \Don't feel so bad, Miss. Mr. Cleve'll give you anoxner dog.\ Dorinda shook her head. \I don't want another one. It wouldn't be the same. Besides, I'd be afraid something might happen again.\ Dorinda could not believe he had wandered away. After break fast, she searched desolately through the house again, trying ,to think of some spot she had overlooked. Last night she and Carrie had gone over the base ment and even the outside ear- ages. But there was one place they hadn't searched—the big attic which covered the spread ing house like a cap. Carrie had tried the door and found it locked. \Well its no use looking up- there,\ she asserted. \Mr. Greer has the only key to that door. And even your Randy, smart as he is, couldn't crawl through a keyhole.\ \Seems queer, locking up an attic.\ Dorinda had to try the door herself before she was sat isfied. \Why do they do it?\ \Oh years ago Mrs. Thorn dyke found one of the maids tak ing her boy friend up there on the sly. So she ordered the door be kept locked and I guess it just got to be a habit. There's noth ing worth anything in there.\ But Dorinda thought now, it was the one place they hadn't gone. Randy could only be there if someone had shut him up de liberately. She couldn't believe that—not quite—but she must be certain even though she had small hope she would find him. Greer was polishing silver in the butler's pantry when she told him what she wanted. He detached the key to the attic door from his heavy key ring but hesitated before he handed it to her. \Wouldn't you like me to look for you, Miss Dorinda?\ he asked. \It's pretty dusty in the attic, I'm afraid. And I'm quite sure your little dog couldn't be there.\ (TO BE CONTINUED)
