CHAPTER IX A CONVERSATION OVERHEARD
The Misses Gates escorted Ronald Trent to the living room, forgetting intheir excitement that supper had not been finished. Doris and Kitty weretoo polite to mention that they had not had their dessert.
"You girlies get prettier every day," the man gushed, playfullystraightening Iris's lace collar and slyly giving Azalea's hand asqueeze.
Iris giggled, and her sister cast down her eyes in confusion. RonaldTrent winked at Doris and Kitty as much as to say: "How easy they fall!"
Iris and Azalea, unaware that they were appearing in a slightlyridiculous light, continued to beam and to blush, listening intently toevery word Ronald Trent said, and laughing at everything which might beremotely interpreted as a joke. Doris was completely disgusted at the waythe man was acting, and when he tried to cajole her into a more friendlyattitude, she could not hide her indifference. Azalea and Iris did notnotice how quiet she was, but Ronald Trent was aware of her attitude andfrowned slightly.
"What's the matter, girlie?" he teased.
"Nothing," Doris returned quietly.
She felt that if he continued to plague her she surely would disgraceherself by saying something which would offend the Gates sisters. Howcould they like such a man? He was cheap and coarse and obviouslyinsincere.
"Poor things," she told herself. "They haven't had much attention frommen and it flatters them."
The tension was somewhat relieved when Iris asked Kitty if she could singor play the piano.
"I'm not in the least musical," Kitty returned, "but Doris singsbeautifully."
Upon being urged to entertain the group, Doris obediently went to thepiano. After looking over the music she selected a familiar piece, strucka few chords, and began to sing. A hush fell over the group, and evenRonald Trent, who was talking to Iris, became quiet.
"Lovely," Azalea murmured when she had finished. "You have a wonderfulvoice."
"Pretty keen," Ronald Trent agreed, "but can't you sing somethinglivelier? I don't like them church hymns."
"You call those songs church hymns?" Doris asked with an amused smile."Really, if you want popular music, I can't oblige you. My teacherpermits me to sing only classical."
After she had left the piano, Ronald Trent launched into a lengthy taleconcerning his recent exploits in South America. In many particulars thestory did not hang together, and Doris and Kitty were bored. Iris andAzalea were flattering listeners and, whenever he showed signs ofpausing, urged him on with interested questions.
As Doris listened, doubts began to form in her mind. It seemedincomprehensible that this boasting, crude stranger could really be hercousin. There must be a mistake, she told herself. Ronald Trent was _not_a relative; of that she felt certain.
"Well, girlies, isn't it about time you trundled off to your littlebeds?" he asked, looking insinuatingly at Doris and Kitty.
"I imagine you girls are tired," Azalea murmured. "If you like, I canhave Cora show you to your room."
"Oh, we're not sleepy yet," Kitty said mischievously.
Ronald Trent fairly glared at her.
"Run along now," he said lightly, but with a look which warned the girlshe expected to be obeyed. "I have some business to talk over with Irisand Azalea."
Iris rang for Cora, and the girls reluctantly followed her upstairsthrough a long hall and down a number of steps into a wing which branchedoff to the right. Cora showed them their room and left them alone.
"Looks as if we're to be off in this wing all by ourselves," Kitty saiduneasily. "This place is too spooky to suit me."
The room was large and austere with long mirrors and an old-fashionedfour-poster bed and dresser. Several rag rugs were scattered over thebare floor. Double windows looked down over the side veranda and thebranches of a sprawling maple tree brushed against the panes.
As a precautionary measure Kitty looked under the bed and peeped into thecloset.
"Wasn't that man terrible?" Doris said, sitting down on the edge of thebed. "And the way he sent us to bed just as though we were infants! Doyou think he really could be a cousin of mine?"
"I don't see how he could be," Kitty comforted. "He doesn't look or actlike any of your relatives that I ever saw."
"Well, I hope not! Wonder what he wants of Iris and Azalea?"
"Something he didn't want us to hear, that's certain. Say, where is hefrom, anyway?"
"Some place about four hundred miles from here--Cloudy Cove, I think hesaid."
"And he drives that far every few days to see Azalea and Iris? It looksfishy to me."
"I think so, too," Doris agreed. "The Misses Gates are lovely ladies--fartoo good for that loud creature--but at the same time they're scarcelythe type a man would drive four hundred miles to see."
"He doesn't care a whit about them. You can tell that."
As they undressed, the girls continued to discuss Ronald Trent and tomake disparaging remarks. Then Kitty jumped into bed and Doris put outthe light. Snuggling down into the covers, they shivered a bit as thewind rattled the window pane. They could almost imagine that in the pitchdark room someone was slowly creeping toward them.
"I'd hate to stay here very long," Kitty whispered. "Folks are so funny.Even Henry and Cora."
"I'm eager to find out why they sent for me," Doris whispered in return."It looks to me as though there's something strange going on here."
Save for the moaning of the wind, the old house was quiet, and presentlythe girls heard the front door slam shut.
"That was my illustrious cousin departing," Doris murmured.
A few minutes later they heard two doors close farther down the hall andknew that Azalea and Iris had retired.
The girls closed their eyes and tried to go to sleep, but the brushing ofthe branches against the windows, and the weird sounds made by the wind,kept them in a state of nervous suspense. Then, just as Doris was dozingoff, she heard a low whimpering moan from the yard below.
"Wags!" she whispered to Kitty.
"Maybe he'll stop," her chum suggested.
But Wags did not stop. He continued to whimper until the girls wereafraid he would disturb the entire household.
"Poor thing!" Doris sympathized. "He's out there all alone in a strangeplace. I'll bet he's lonesome."
At last, unable to bear it any longer, she slipped out of bed and beganto dress.
"What are you going to do?" Kitty whispered.
"I'm going to bring him up here for the night."
"Cora will just about kill you, if she catches you!"
"I'll sneak down so quietly no one will hear me."
"I don't like to stay here alone while you're gone, Dory. It's tooscarey."
"Then come along."
"Ugh! It's too far."
Doris had finished dressing and now, without making a light, she movedcautiously toward the door.
"Don't be gone long," Kitty pleaded in a whisper. "If Wags lets out ayelp while you're bringing him upstairs, we're sunk!"
Quietly opening the door, Doris stood and listened. The old mansion wasquiet save for the whistling of the wind and the rattling of doors andwindows. Hesitating a moment, she noiselessly stole down the hallway. Shewas not afraid of being heard for she knew Azalea and Iris had rooms inthe other wing.
At the head of the stairway she halted in astonishment. Below her shecaught the glimmer of an oil lamp. To her further amazement she saw twomen sitting at the table and instantly recognized them as Ronald Trentand Henry Sully!
Doris's first impulse was to retreat. Then, realizing that she wasstanding in the dark and could not be seen, although she could plainlysee what the others were about, she was tempted to remain. Instinctively,she had sensed that all was not as it should be. She distinctlyremembered hearing Ronald Trent leave the house before the Misses Gateshad retired. Why, then, had Henry Sully admitted him again and so quietlythat no one had been the wiser?
She listened intently so as n
ot to miss a word the men were saying.
"Any mail today, Hank?" she heard Ronald Trent mutter.
"No, but we'll git something soon, I hope," Henry answered so low thatDoris scarcely caught the words. "Takes a while to git mail from the oilfields, I reckon."
"Wish things would start breaking our way for a change," Ronald said."First thing we know that smart-looking Force kid will throw a wrenchinto the works and ruin our plans. I need money bad, too."
"You ain't the only one."
"Everybody does," growled Trent softly.
"I can't stand this outfit much longer," mumbled Henry dejectedly.
"How's the crowd in town treating you?" inquired Trent, a bitmaliciously. "The town officials haven't decided on a clean-up week, havethey?"
"Naw, that's all right. But this law-abidin' flock make me tired. Toomany females pokin' around--just too many," muttered Henry disgustedly,taking out his watch, and winding the stem thoughtfully, tilting his headto one side in an attitude of alertness. The hour was growing late.
Doris shrank back, but there was no need. They were entirely unaware ofher nearness.
Ronald Trent laughed suggestively. This made Doris's cheeks burn withembarrassment as he said, "Gee, that bunch of flowers smell good to me! Ilove the ladies, especially the pretty girlies, Henry. I'm not so hard tobe friends with," the egotist mused. "I'm a swell dresser, too,everything the dames like."
Henry envied him his position with the Misses Gates, it was plain to beseen, as he accepted the statement with a nod of approval.
There was a pause as Ronald Trent took out a wallet and looked over itscontents.
Doris waited in the dark hallway, unable to see the contents.
"The old dames are shutting down a bit," Ronald went on. "I had to playup to 'em tonight and got only two hundred at that."
"Too bad the old gals got that letter off to the red-head. That was oneyou missed, Trent."
This reference to her made Doris decide to creep a step or two nearer.She had heard enough to convince her that Henry and Ronald wereconspiring against Azalea and Iris, the two trusting, flower-like ladies!
She strained forward to catch more of the conversation.