The Mystery at Dark Cedars Page 3

  CHAPTER III _Suspects_

  "Let's sit down again while you tell me every single thing that happenedhere yesterday," suggested Mary Louise.

  Elsie took off the white coat and folded it carefully. Then she removedher hat.

  "But I can't sit down in this silk dress," she objected. "I might get itdirty, and I don't want to take it off till I see myself in a mirror. Imight not have another chance to put it on all day long!"

  "You can sit on the paper," advised Jane. "That will protect it. Besides,the ground is dry, and these needles are a covering."

  Very cautiously Elsie seated herself, and turned to Mary Louise, who haddropped down beside her on the ground.

  "Begin when you got up in the morning," she said.

  "That was about seven o'clock," replied Elsie. "But really, that doesn'tmatter, because I'm sure Aunt Mattie counted her money after you girlsbrought the kitten back. I heard her. And she stayed in her room untilafter lunch."

  "Does this safe have a combination lock?" inquired Mary Louise.

  "No, it doesn't. Just a key. John Grant suggested to Aunt Mattie that shehave one put on, and she refused. She said people can guess atcombinations of figures by twisting the handle around, but if she keptthe key with her day and night, nobody could open the safe.... But shegot fooled!"

  "The lock was broken?"

  "Yes. But the door of the safe was closed, so she hadn't noticed it untilshe went to count her money this morning."

  "Do you know how much was taken?"

  "No, I don't. Plenty, I guess. Only, there was one queer thing about it:the thief didn't take the bonds she kept in a special drawer."

  "Overlooked them, probably," remarked Mary Louise.

  "Maybe. I don't know. Well, as I said, Aunt Mattie was in her room untillunch time, and then she went out on the front porch. About two o'clockin the afternoon Aunt Grace and her son John drove over."

  "John--Grant," repeated Mary Louise, consulting the list in her notebook."He's your aunt Grace's oldest son?"

  "Yes. He's about forty, as I said. Fat and a little bit bald. An oldbachelor. Probably you'd recognize him if you saw him, because he's onthe School Board. Aunt Mattie likes him because he does little repairjobs for her around the house that save her spending money for acarpenter.

  "Yesterday he went upstairs and fixed a window sash in her bedroom."Elsie paused thoughtfully. "So you see John had a good chance to open thesafe and steal the money."

  "Why, he's the guilty one, of course!" cried Jane instantly. "It's justtoo plain. I should think your aunt would see that."

  Elsie shook her head.

  "No, it would never occur to Aunt Mattie to accuse John. He's the oneperson in the family she trusts. She always says she is leaving him allher money in her will--so why would he bother to steal it?"

  "He might need it now, for some particular purpose," replied Jane. "He ishandy with tools, you say--and had such a good opportunity."

  "We better get on with the story," urged Mary Louise. "Any minute Elsiemay be called in."

  The girl shuddered, as if she dreaded the ordeal of meeting her auntagain.

  "Was your aunt Grace in the bedroom at all during the afternoon?"questioned Mary Louise. "By herself, I mean?"

  "I don't know. She and Aunt Mattie went up together to look at the windowafter John finished fixing it, but whether or not Aunt Grace was therealone, I couldn't say. Anyhow, there's no use worrying about that. AuntGrace just _couldn't_ steal anything."

  "According to the detective stories," put in Jane, "it's the person whojust _couldn't_ commit the crime who always is the guilty one. The oneyou suspect least."

  "But this isn't a story," said Elsie. "I wish it were. If you knew howdreadful it is for me, living here and having everybody think I'm athief!"

  "Why don't you run away, now that you have some decent clothes?"suggested Jane. "I just wouldn't stand for anything like that!"

  "But I have nowhere to go. Besides, running away would make me lookguiltier than ever."

  "Elsie's right," approved Mary Louise. "She can't run away now. But we'llprove she's innocent!" she added, with determination.

  "There's something else that happened during that visit," continuedElsie. "I mean, while Aunt Grace and John were here. Part of aconversation I overhead that may give you a clue. Aunt Grace said heryoungest son--Harry, you remember--had gotten into debt and needed somemoney very badly. She didn't actually ask Aunt Mattie to help him out:she only hinted. But she didn't get any encouragement from Aunt Mattie.She told Aunt Grace just to shut Harry out of the house till he learnedto behave himself!"

  "So this Harry Grant is in debt!" muttered Mary Louise, making a note ofthis fact in her little book. "Could he have stolen the money?"

  "Yes, it's possible. After Aunt Grace and John went home, Harry came overto Dark Cedars."

  "What time was that?"

  "Around four o'clock, I think. I was out in the kitchen, helping Hannahshell some peas for supper. We heard his car--it's a terribly noisy oldthing--and then his voice."

  "What's he like?" asked Mary Louise.

  "I told you he was the youngest of Aunt Grace's children, you know, andhe's rather handsome. He treats me much better than any of the otherrelations, except Aunt Grace, but still I don't like him. He alwaysinsists on kissing me and teasing me about imaginary boy-friends. Iusually run out into the kitchen when I hear him coming."

  "Is he here often?"

  "Only when he wants something. He tries to flatter Aunt Mattie and teaseher money away from her. But, as far as I know, he never gets any."

  "What did he want yesterday?"

  "He said he wanted a loan. He didn't bother to talk quietly: I could hearevery word he said from the kitchen."

  "And your aunt refused?"

  "Yes. She told him to sell his car if he needed money. As if he couldsell that old bus!" Elsie laughed. "You'd have to pay somebody to takethat away," she explained.

  Mary Louise tapped her pencil again. She hated to get away from theall-important subject.

  "But how do you think Harry could have stolen the money if your auntMattie was with him all the time?" she asked.

  "Aunt Mattie wasn't. He had a fine chance. Something had gone wrong withhis car, and he had to fix it on the way over. So his hands were alldirty, and he went upstairs to wash them."

  "Oh!" exclaimed Jane significantly.

  "Looks bad for Harry Grant," commented Mary Louise, "because he had amotive. Daddy always looks for two things when he's solving a crime: themotive, and the chance to get away with it. And it seems that this youngman had both."

  Elsie nodded.

  "Yes, he had. And he was upstairs a good while, too. But then, he's anawful dandy about everything. You never see grease in Harry Grant'sfinger nails!"

  "Did he go right out when he came downstairs?" inquired Mary Louise.

  "No. He laughed and joked a lot. I heard him ask Aunt Mattie to lend himher finger-nail rouge because he had forgotten his. Then he said he'dlike some cookies, and I had to make lemonade."

  "So, if he took the money, he must have had it in his pocket all thistime? He didn't go upstairs again?"

  "No, he didn't. And I know Aunt Mattie had a good deal of it in gold, soit must have been terribly heavy. Still, men have a lot of pockets."

  Mary Louise nodded. "Yes, that's true. But you'd think if he really hadtaken it he'd have been anxious to get away. That story about asking forcookies and lemonade almost proves an alibi for him."

  She sighed; it was all getting rather complicated. "Did anything elsehappen yesterday?" she asked wearily. "I mean, after Harry went home?"

  "Not till after supper. Then Mrs. Pearson and her daughter walked over tosee Aunt Mattie. They used to be rich, but Mr. Pearson lost his job, andthey had to sell their car. So now they have to walk wherever they go."

  Jane let out a groan.

  "So every one of those five relations of Mis
s Grant was here yesterdayand had a chance to steal that money!" she exclaimed.

  "Yes," agreed Elsie. "Every one of them!"

  "What are the Pearsons like?" asked Mary Louise.

  "Well, Mrs. Pearson looks like Aunt Grace--she's her daughter, youremember--but she isn't a bit like her. She isn't religious; in fact, shedoesn't seem to care for anything in the world but that nasty daughter ofhers. Corinne, you know. Have you ever seen Corinne Pearson?"

  "I think I have," replied Mary Louise. "Though she never went to ourschool. I believe she attended that little private school, and now shegoes around with the Country Club set, doesn't she?"

  "Yes. Her one ambition, and her mother's ambition for her, is to marry arich man. I hate both of them. They're so rude to me--never speak to meat all unless they give me a command as if I were a servant. Last nightCorinne told me to bring her a certain chair from the parlor, because shethought our porch rockers were dirty. And the tone she used! As if Iought to keep them clean just for her!"

  "I always imagined she was like that," said Jane. "I was introduced toher once, and when I passed her on the street the next day she cut medead."

  "Once she told me to untie her shoe and see if there was a stone in it,"continued Elsie. "In the haughtiest tone!"

  "I'd have slapped her foot!" exclaimed Jane. "You didn't obey her, didyou?"

  "I had to. Aunt Mattie would have punished me if I hadn't. She dislikesCorinne Pearson and her mother, but she hates me worst of all.... So youcan easily see why I run off when I see the Pearsons coming. I went backinto the kitchen with Hannah, but Aunt Mattie soon called me to bringsome ice water. And the conversation I heard may be another clue for you,Mary Louise."

  "Oh, dear!" sighed Jane. "We've got too many clues already."

  A voice sounded from the house, making the girls pause for a moment insilence.

  "Elsie! Oh, Elsie!"

  "It's Hannah. I'll have to go in a minute," said the girl, carefullygetting to her feet, not forgetting her new dress. "But first I must tellyou about this conversation, because it's important. It seems Corinne wasinvited to a very swell dance by one of those rich Mason boys, and shecame over to ask Aunt Mattie for a new dress. Aunt Mattie laughed ather--that nasty cackle that she has. And then she said, 'Certainly I'llgive you a dress, Corinne. Go up to my closet and pick out anything youwant. You'll find some old party dresses there!'

  "Well, I could see that Corinne was furious, but she got up and wentupstairs. And she did pick out an old lace gown--I thought maybe she wasgoing to make it over. Perhaps she was just using it to hide the money,if she did steal it.... Anyhow, she and her mother went home in a fewminutes, carrying the dress with them."

  Mary Louise closed her notebook in confusion. "You better run along now,Elsie, or you'll get punished," she advised.

  "All right, I will," agreed the younger girl as she gathered up herthings. "You know all the suspects now."

  "All but the servants," replied Mary Louise. "And if I can, I'm going tointerview Hannah immediately."