CHAPTER XXIII
TO THE RESCUE
“This way, officer. Here’s the suite. Judy!” Peter Dobbs shouted.
One of the policemen rattled the door.
“It’s locked,” he announced, “and nobody answers. Give me your nightstick, partner.”
The sound of splintering wood announced that the door was open. Thecenter panel, with Emily Grimshaw’s unique knocker, fell to the floorand revealed the face of Jasper Crosby, white as a ghost. Judy lay limpat his feet.
“He’s choked her!” Peter said between set teeth.
Before Jasper had time to turn his head he had him by the collar. Oneof the policemen clapped handcuffs over his wrists. The other twojerked him to a corner while Peter lifted Judy gently in his arms andplaced her on the sofa.
“Brave little girl,” he whispered and kissed her closed eyes.
She opened them, hardly believing that this was the same boy who hadshared so many adventures with her. She had imagined Arthur kissingher—sometime when they grew older—but not Peter.
“I’m always needing someone to rescue me,” she said, trying to laugh.
“And doesn’t it make any difference who it is?” he asked.
“Yes, a little,” she returned lightly. “I called you, didn’t I?”
He studied her face, looking sorry about something, and after a fewminutes he rose and said gruffly, “Come, we must hear what JasperCrosby has to say for himself.”
She followed him to the corner where the prisoner sat sullenly on achair. At first he would say nothing, but later when Judy questionedhim about the funeral his attitude changed.
“There’s no secret about that,” he declared. “My sister is the one whodied. I’ll give you the names of the doctor and undertaker to verifywhat I say.”
“Then the funeral was Sarah Glenn’s?”
Jasper nodded.
“But what became of Irene? We know she went to your sister’s house andwe know she never returned. Where is she?”
Jasper Crosby grinned. “I’ll tell you if you’re so anxious to know. Ithought she was a mite young to be traveling about New York. Yes, Miss,a mite young and irresponsible. So I sent her back to her father. Evenpaid her train fare and saw her off. Pretty decent of me, don’t youthink, seeing she’s a perfect stranger?”
“When did this happen?” Judy demanded.
Jasper Crosby let his eyes rove thoughtfully about the room before heanswered. He seemed content that the girl, not the policemen, wasquestioning him. As Judy’s questions were pertinent they, too, seemedcontent.
“I sent Irene to her father some time ago,” he said finally.
“You were seen with her yesterday morning,” said Judy.
“Ah, yes. Yesterday morning. That was it. I sent her home yesterdaymorning.”
“Your two stories don’t jibe,” one of the policemen snapped.
“Yesterday morning is some time ago to me,” Jasper Crosby repliedsuavely. “Much has happened since then. There has been a funeral,” hechuckled, “quite a funeral, too. Miss Grimshaw had a gay time of it allright, all right.”
“Did Irene attend the funeral?” Judy asked, ignoring his last statement.
He looked surprised. “Oh, no indeed. She did not attend.”
“You were pretty careful to keep her out of sight, weren’t you?”
“She was with my sister constantly,” he replied. “She had no desire toleave the house as long as my sister needed her.”
Judy turned to Peter. “It doesn’t sound true, does it?”
“It’s the blackest lie I ever heard,” he declared vehemently. “He can’ttell us that Irene stayed with a crazy woman of her own free will andmade no attempt to get in touch with her friends. There’s been crookedwork somewhere. If he sent Irene home, where is she now?” Peterquestioned.
“Perhaps she’s visiting someone else,” Judy suggested hopefully.
Peter shook his head. “I don’t believe it. In any case she would havebeen in touch with you.”
The policemen agreed that Jasper’s story was not a very convincing one.Dale Meredith came in while they were still questioning him. Horace andArthur were with him.
“I’ll get something out of this bird,” Horace declared. “Officer, haveI your permission to question him?”
“Fire away,” the policeman replied, “and more power to you!”
Horace turned to Jasper with flashing eyes.
“What did Irene say the day she came, and if, as you say, she is notyour niece how did she happen to enter your sister’s house?”
Jasper shrugged his shoulders and made a gesture indicating wheelsgoing around.
“They cast spells, you know. Crazy people do. My sister’s eyes tookpossession of Irene. Hypnotized her completely. I never saw two peopleso attached to each other. Crazy as loons, both of them.”
“Irene Lang’s mind was perfectly sound,” Horace denied.
“I tell you my sister hypnotized her,” Jasper maintained.
As Judy listened to the explanation that her brother drew from JasperCrosby, she found herself almost believing it. Sarah Glenn’s reactionto Irene’s sudden appearance had been similar to Emily Grimshaw’s, onlymore pronounced.
Jasper had been the one to open the door. Irene had inquired for hergrandmother, but before he could speak the poet herself had rushedforward, almost smothering Irene in a tearful embrace.
“My Joy! My Joy! I _knew_ you would come back.”
Then she had turned to Jasper with accusing eyes. “I told you the childwasn’t dead. Angels don’t die. My darling! Darling!”
Again Irene had submitted to her embrace.
No amount of reasoning could dissuade the old lady from her queerconviction. She had seen her daughter’s dead body, Jasper declared, butin spite of that she claimed this living girl as hers. Irene hadanswered to the name of Joy, pretended to remember touching littlethings out of the past, even fondled old playthings to please the poet.Like Golden Girl in the song she, too, had been a princess enthroned inher circular tower. There she had stayed. Jasper brought food,clothing, all the little things that a girl might need. He even moved abed into the tower room so that she could sleep there. He called herJoy, too, to please his sister and pretended to think that she was thedead Joy Holiday returned.
“But the last few nights,” he continued his narrative, “she caused sometrouble. My sister died, very peacefully, with Irene at her bedside.But after that the girl refused to go to her room. She had an obsessionthat the tower wasn’t safe and refused to sleep there.”
“Well, is it safe?” Peter charged.
“It’s been propped up ever since my sister tried to kill herself andset fire to the house. Sure, it’s safe!”
“As long as the props hold.”
Jasper Crosby gave a dry chuckle with no mirth in it. There wassomething maniacal about it—something that frightened Judy. She spoketo Peter in a low tone.
“He’s trying to prove that Irene is insane just as he tried to prove,years ago, that her mother was dead. This time we won’t let him getaway with it.”
“You bet we won’t!” Peter, Arthur and Dale joined in agreement.
The policemen promised to make a check-up of train passengers todetermine if any part of Jasper Crosby’s story might be true.
“He’s a mighty slippery prisoner,” one of them said. “If he hadn’tassaulted the girl there I doubt if we would be able to bring chargesagainst him.”
“Then I’m glad he did it,” Judy said unexpectedly.
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