The Haunted Fountain
Page 24
CHAPTER XXIII
Lorraine’s Confession
Everything was not all right, as Judy soon discovered. When she awokePeter was not there, and neither was her father. She had a youngernurse—a student whom she did not know. “Are you feeling well enough tohave visitors today?” the nurse was asking. “Mr. and Mrs.Farringdon-Pett are here to see you.”
“Arthur! Lorraine!” exclaimed Judy as they came in. “I’m happy—sohappy you came together.”
She did not ask if their differences were all mended. Lorraine saidsimply, “We’ve been talking with Horace.”
“How is he?” asked Judy. “The sound of his typewriter has been likemusic—”
“Not to me,” Lorraine interrupted.
Arthur gave her one of his frosty looks and answered Judy’s question.“He looks about the same as usual. He was treated for shock andsubmersion and sent home.”
Judy laughed. “I am in a fog. I don’t even know what day it is.”
“Time passes quickly in a hospital. It seems ages since we had luncheontogether. Did you know Arthur had asked Peter to arrange it?” Lorraineasked. “Arthur didn’t trust me, either, I guess. He’s always arrangingthings for me. But we don’t want to burden you with our troubles. Webrought you some flowers.”
“Oh, thank you!” exclaimed Judy. She took the roses Arthur gave her andbreathed in their fragrance. “I can breathe now,” she told him,“without that awful pain in my chest. Dad says I’ll be as good as newbefore long, and so will Horace. But how are you, Lorraine? You were sofrightened the last time I saw you.”
“I’m still frightened. Oh, Judy! Judy!” cried Lorraine. “How can I everexplain things to Arthur?”
“What is there to explain?” he asked coldly. “Peter has given me allthe facts.”
“I don’t mean facts!” Lorraine cried. “You see, Judy, he doesn’tunderstand. He doesn’t want to listen when I try to tell him. He sayshe’s heard enough about that terrible gangster. He could have killedyou, Judy—”
“He didn’t, Lorraine. I’m very much alive.”
“He killed something else then. He killed Arthur’s love for me. Thatbeautiful ring was a symbol of his love, and I gave it to that awfulman. I thought I had to keep him quiet. I don’t expect either of you tobelieve it, but when Falco telephoned me and made all those threats, Ithought he’d expose Arthur and the whole family would be disgraced if Ididn’t give him the ruby. Then he said it wasn’t enough, and I wentback and gave him more of my jewelry. He called himself Falco and saidhe was fighting crime.”
“Who was I?” asked Arthur. “The criminal?”
“Well, no—not exactly, but he did make me think you were cheatingpeople, misrepresenting everything, building all those new houses inRoulsville and even the Farringdon post office, out of defectivematerials.”
“You believed all that—of me, Lorraine?”
She admitted it with a nod. Tears were streaming down her face. Judytried to comfort her. But she said the wrong thing. She mentioned thering, only to learn that the police had been unable to recover any ofthe jewelry Lorraine had foolishly given to Falco.
“That ruby has caused a lot of grief,” Arthur said bitterly. He seemedstunned by Lorraine’s confession. They kept looking at each other as ifthey were strangers instead of the devoted couple Judy had believedthem to be. Finally Arthur said, “We’d better go now. We shouldn’t haveupset you with our problems, Judy. May I apologize for both of us?”
Lorraine was still crying when they left. The nurse hurried in with Dr.Bolton. She said something to him about the visitors being bad forpatients and he agreed. Judy did feel weak. She was glad when visitinghours were over and she could rest.
Lorraine was alone the next time she came to visit Judy. In themeantime Judy’s mother, Peter’s grandparents, his sister Honey, andmany of Judy’s friends and neighbors had been in to see her. Horace hadvisited her while he was still in the hospital, but now he was out onthe trail of more news.
“I miss hearing his typewriter,” Judy told her father, who was therewhen Lorraine came in.
“Is it all right?” she asked, peeping through the half-open door. “Thenurse at the desk downstairs said I could come up for a little while.”
“Of course it’s all right. You two girls may have the room toyourselves,” Dr. Bolton told them. “I’m on my way out. I’ll see you athome, Judy girl.”
“Did he sign you out?” asked Lorraine when he was gone. “That’swonderful, Judy! I guess you won’t be needing these.”
The room was filled with flowers. Judy added the bouquet Lorraine gaveher to the collection. “I’ll take them all home. People have been sogood to me.”
“I haven’t,” Lorraine said. “I didn’t mean to upset you the other day,but I’ve been so mixed up. You solved everything else. That man will goto prison—”
“Not Dick? They aren’t going to send him back. Peter talked with hisparole officer. He understands how it was.”
“Arthur doesn’t,” Lorraine said with a deep sigh. “He thinks I shouldhave suspected those signatures were forged. I could have written tothe Brandts.”
“Peter did get in touch with them,” Judy told her. “They didn’t leasetheir estate. They left Stanley to take care of it, and he allowed thegang to move in. Falco must have bribed him or something. I think theBrandts hired Roger Banning, too. He was supposed to repair thefountain.”
“It wasn’t repaired when we were there,” Lorraine remembered.
“I know. Roger was forced to work for the gang, instead. They made himbring his friend along. Dick didn’t know what they were up to at first,but when he found out it was extortion he refused to have any part ofit. He told Horace all about it.”
Judy had seen the papers and read her brother’s story, but there werestill a few pieces of the puzzle that didn’t fit.
“The police didn’t find the jewels they were looking for,” shecontinued. “I told Peter they should have looked in the fountain.Lorraine, there is a locked room down under it. The loot from theirrobberies might be stored there. Peter knows about it now. He’ll getback your ring.”
“I hope he will. Lois said there wasn’t anything you couldn’t solve,”Lorraine remembered, “and I guess that goes for Peter, too. Everybodyelse knew I was doing wrong before I did. I don’t expect Arthur toforgive me, but if we had the ring back he might unbend a little andstop being so cold and polite all the time.”
“He’s that way because he’s hurt,” Judy explained. “Most men are likethat. Girls cry, but men just hold it all in and hurt back, or elsethey get angry and shout. I think Peter would get angry.”
“I wish Arthur would get angry! I deserve it after all the trouble I’vecaused.”
“Lorraine,” Judy said, taking her hand, “did it ever occur to you thatyou felt exactly the way Falco intended you to feel? Peter says that’sthe way confidence men work, and Falco was a confidence man as well asa jewel thief and an extortioner. Roger Banning, the Cubberlings, andDick Hartwell were all victims of his vicious lies. He should be behindbars for a long, long time.”
“I guess he will be, but that doesn’t solve my problem. I don’t thinkthere is a solution,” Lorraine declared. “Arthur knows I deceived him.I told him I went to the movies with you the night I met Falco. I evensaid I was calling from the movies when I was actually calling from theBrandt place. He and Peter had arranged to trace the call. They knew itwasn’t true. Now Arthur will never trust me.”
“Do you trust him? I mean completely?” asked Judy. “Before thishappened, weren’t there a few little doubts in your mind? Weren’t youafraid to let him have friends for fear he’d like them better than you?Be honest with yourself, Lorraine, and be honest with him, and I thinkeverything will work out in time.”
“I hope it will,” Lorraine replied, as she rose to leave.
“You might trust the rest of us a little bit, too, while you’re at it,”Judy added. �
��Just keep on believing the stolen jewels will be found andwe’ll keep on trying to find them. Peter hasn’t given up yet, you know.And pretty soon I’ll be well enough to help him.”
“It isn’t just the ring,” Lorraine said, “but it would help if I hadit. ’Bye, Judy, and thanks—for everything.”
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