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The abandoned house one. The blinding
rain, which had been steadily falling for

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the last hour, cut and stung
our faces, and the wind, wheezing

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through the trees about us, rocked
our little car until it made progress almost

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impossible. An illuminating streak of lightning, followed by a deafening crash of thunder

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caused me to cower down in the
seat and cover my ears with my hands.

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Well, here's our finish, exclaimed
my brother, who had valiantly striven

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to pilot the machine in the storm. There's a tree lying directly across the

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road. He brought the car to
a standstill and turned a spotlight on the

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dark object blocking our path. It
was a huge tree, evidently stricken down

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by the lightning, and it covered
the entire road. What on earth are

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we going to do? I sobbed
hysterically. We can't stay atless storm like

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this, and we're miles and miles
away from anyone. We had been steadily

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climbing an upward grade, and the
cavern like ravines on either side and the

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depths of blackness behind me struck a
chill in my heart. I wish which

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we'd never come out on this crazy
motor trip, I wailed, New York

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is good enough for me. Alan, what can we do? I'll see,

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he answered, Keep your hand on
the brake. This is a pretty

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stiff hill and the road is slippery. If the car starts skidding, it's

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good night. He spoke jocularly enough, but I knew he was worried.

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Climbing out of the machine, he
went around to the big supine tree and

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examined it. It's no use now, he called to me, pitching his

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voice above the roar of the wind. I can't budget. In the brief

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light caused by a second flash of
lightning, I saw the stark, bare

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outlines of a two story house,
possibly a hundred feet ahead of us.

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On my right, Alan, there's
a house, a house up there,

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further on the hill, I cried
wildly. You're right there is. It's

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either an empty one or its occupants. Hit the hay early. I'll pull

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the car out onto the side of
the road and we'll make a run for

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it. He got back into his
car, and with a few careful maneuvers

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of the wheel, succeeded in bringing
the machine around to a spot where it

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might stand in safety. Then he
searched in the dark until he found a

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rock, which he placed under the
wheel in case something should start it rolling

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down grade. Turn up your collar. The rain feels like ice water when

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you're out in it. The house
is probably farther off than it looks.

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Taking my hand, he helped me
out. My feet went into deep mud

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and I almost lost my balance with
a little shriek. I clutched him to

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save myself. Then we started to
run. It was uphill all the way,

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a much steeper and longer climb than
I had anticipated, and as Alan

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had said, the rain was like
ice water, beating against the back of

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my neck and shoulders. I was
shaking and shivering like a drowned cat.

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By the time we reached the stoop
on the front of the building. The

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house was barren a fence and surrounding
trees, and stood on a sort of

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null at the side of the hills. No light was visible anywhere. Alan

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used his pocket flash and that guided
us to the front door, which was

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swinging dismally back and forth on one
hinge, making a doleful creaking noise distinguishable

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above the wind. We did not
stop to knock, feeling pretty certain the

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house had no occupant. Or the
door would be locked on a night like

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this for such shelter, let us
give thanks Allan chuckled grimly, pushing me

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in first. He closed the door
after us to shut out the rain,

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but it immediately swung open again.
We found ourselves in a long, wide

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hall which evidently divided the house through
the center. At the extreme end was

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an old fashioned staircase with banisters.
The floors creaked and gave with the weight

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of our bodies as we walked,
and I fancied a rat scurried across my

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foot. There was an odor of
mustiness and damp about the place, as

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though it had not been occupied for
years. There were no furnishings of any

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kind, no blinds to the windows, and most of the panes of glass

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were missing. But even in the
dim light that Alan's spot afforded, we

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could see that it had an old
time elegance. Probably at one time,

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monstrous log fires had burnt in the
massive brick fireplaces at the end of the

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two rooms opening off the separating hallway. The woodwork appeared to be of black

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walnut. The floors unquestionably had been
highly polished, though now they were worn

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and earth stained. The ceilings were
falling, and the wall paper hung in

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great strips from the plastering. A
more uninviting place could not be imagined.

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I clung to Alan's arm, half
afraid to venture farther. I'm awfully cold,

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I whimpered, through chattering teeth.
Do you suppose there's a stove in

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the kitchen? Maybe we can find
some paper and start a fire if there

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is. Alan did not answer,
but led the way to the back of

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the house before some swinging doors.
He hesitated a second, then flung them

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open and entered. I followed.
It was an old fashioned, brick floored

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kitchen. In one corner stood a
battered, rust covered coal range. The

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chimney was disconnected, and part of
it lay on the floor before the open

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oven. Piles of old rags and
broken bits of twigs and newspaper filled a

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box near it. Alan thrust the
spotlight into my hand and pounced upon the

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debray. In a little while he
had a fire burning in the old stove,

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and the kitchen was filled with sooty
smoke and blessed warm. I stripped

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off my soggy motor coat and flung
it across the box to dry out.

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Alan removed his coat and did likewise. Now, if I just had a

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cup of coffee in a sandwich,
I wouldn't be at all unhappy, I

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said, forget it. He laughed, nothin doin. It's a lucky thing

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for us. This old barn is
well built. If it wasn't, I

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could see visions of that wind lifting
it off its pins and tossing it down

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into the cavern. I shuddered,
Let's not think about it. The car

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may not even be there in the
morning. To kill time and to get

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our minds off the storm outside,
I suggested that we rummage around a bit

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and see what the place was like
upstairs. As we stepped into the long

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open hallway, a gust of wind
whipped through the swinging door and carried with

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it a perfect torrent of rain that
made little puddles at our feet. Fearfully,

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I followed Alan up the long,
broad flight of stairs, feeling that

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uncanny something that is so often present
in an old, unused house. I

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half expected some specter of the past
reach out and lay clammy unearthly hands upon

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me, or a shadowy something to
greet us on the landing, where we

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paused and looked about there were six
doors leading off of the corridor, all

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exactly alike, with the exception of
one. They were slightly ajar. The

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sixth appeared to be locked. Curiosity
prompted me to go toward it. First,

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the knob turned in my hand,
but the door stayed close. Bluebeard's

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den laughed, Alan, take care
that you are on another ann It's locked,

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obviously, I wonder why, possibly
for the same reason that all the

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others aren't. The owner when he
left the place didn't take the trouble to

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unlock it. I twisted and turned
the knob, trying to force an entrance,

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but the lock held in spite of
its age and rustiness. Alan laughed

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at my efforts. Then he pushed
open the door to his right, which

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was slightly ajar. His exclamation of
surprise called my attention from the bolted door.

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What is it? I gasped by
George, Now look here two.

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I followed him into the room.
My surprise equaled his own at what I

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saw. In direct contrast to the
barrenness of the rooms below, this one

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was beautifully furnished, with rich draperies
covering the crumbling walls and rugs upon the

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floor. The furniture was evidently new, and, though a trifle gaudy,

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not without taste. A table in
the center of the room, covered with

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a damask cloth, china and silver, was spread as though for a meal.

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There was a half emptied bottle of
wine and two glasses, one glass

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still contained the liquor. Even a
loaf of bread and some cold cuts and

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salad remained. An open lunch kit
rested in a chair near the table.

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I looked at Alan in amazement.
He gave me a glance of equal astonishment.

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I don't quite understand it, he
murmured. Do you suppose it is

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possible that someone lives here? I
shook my head, with the whole lower

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floor going to rack and ruin and
overrun with rats. No, it isn't

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possible. Now this bread is soft. He lifted the loaf and thrust his

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finger into the crust. Then he
glanced half apprehensively over his shoulder at some

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velvet draperies which covered the double doors. I don't know why, but I

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shivered, judging from their juxtaposition.
Those doors led into the room, which

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was bolted from the hallway. Alan
lowered his voice as he spoke, someone

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is either in this house, or
has been here but a short time ago.

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He said, this food is fresh. For some reason, it's not

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been eaten. I gave a little
cry, half of protest, half of

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fear, as he parted the draperies
and drew back the heavy paneled doors behind

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them. Then I cried out in
horror. Lying across the canopied bed was

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a man in evening clothes. It
needed no second glance, even in the

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small light. Allan's spot afforded to
show us that he was dead, that

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either suicide or murder had caused his
death. For on the white bosom of

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his shirt was a hideous red spot, and the blue satin and lace of

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the bedspread was stained with blood.
My god, Alan whispered hoarsely, as

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if dick accentuate the gruesomeness of the
picture and its surroundings. A streak of

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lightning flashed directly upon that supine figure
on the bed. The burst of thunder

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which followed seemed to rend the sky
into the wind, careening madly around the

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house rocked and banged the shutters of
the one window. Let's try to go

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on. I sobbed. This is
awful. I can't stand it here like

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this it looks like murder, he
muttered. Seemingly compelled against his will,

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he advanced towards the bed. I
watched him in fascination as he let his

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light play upon the features of the
man lying there. Then, more fearful

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of the shadows behind me and the
blackness of the room we had left,

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than of dead, I crept close
to him. Almost of one accord,

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we exclaimed Judge McPherson, a tall, lean man with reddish gray hair,

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a trifle long, a sandy beard, and no mustache, keen, cruel

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eyes with crisscross wrinkles about them.
McPherson in life was a man not easily

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forgotten, if once known, and
not to be mistaken for anyone else,

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even in death. The man stretched
out before us was unquestionably Judge Macpherson.

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Then, too, I recognized an
unusual sapphire and diamond ring on his finger,

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which I had admired at a dinner
party not a month before. It

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00:10:13,480 --> 00:10:18,440
is murder, Alan said, he
hasn't been robbed either. I wonder if

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there's a telephone here, why to
call up the police? Of course there

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isn't any I'm sure of it.
I was right, though the two rooms

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we had just entered, were furnished
and appeared to have been recently occupied.

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All the others were in the same
state of decay as the lower floor.

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There was no telephone in any of
them. After a while, Alan closed

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the double doors and drew the velvet
hangings. Then, silently, dazed and

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horror stricken, we retraced our steps
to the kitchen. The fire we had

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built at least had life and a
certain cheerfulness, and the horror of the

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thing we had discovered made it impossible
for us to stay in the furnished rooms

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upstairs. We can't go on tonight, he said. With daylight we may

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find a dear but we can't risk
it. In the dark, we don't

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00:11:01,879 --> 00:11:05,320
know how close the road is to
the edge of the ravine. I could

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not banish the picture of the dead
man lying upstairs, weltering in his own

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blood, amidst all the garish luxury
of velvets and satin, with the uneaten

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meal spread so near to him.
Such a short time ago he had sat

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00:11:18,480 --> 00:11:22,200
at the same table with us,
a genial host, though a bit sardonic

166
00:11:22,240 --> 00:11:26,000
in his humor. Knowing him to
have been a hard, cruel administrator of

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justice, I never doubted for an
instant that he had been murdered. Alan,

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00:11:30,360 --> 00:11:33,919
I whispered, half fearful of being
overheard by ears forever deafened. Who

169
00:11:33,919 --> 00:11:37,320
do you suppose killed him? He
shook his head. Any one of a

170
00:11:37,440 --> 00:11:41,799
hundred people might desire his death.
Revenge is unquestionably the motive behind it.

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00:11:43,720 --> 00:11:46,960
As he spoke, his eyes widened, and I noted a quick intake of

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00:11:46,000 --> 00:11:50,039
his breath. Then I saw what
had caused this. My motor coat,

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which I had left to dry,
was gone, though his still remained where

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00:11:54,600 --> 00:11:58,440
he had placed it. Someone's in
this house, I cried hoarsely. Yes,

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00:11:58,600 --> 00:12:01,759
the purse w who killed mac Pherson
is still here. What are you

176
00:12:01,840 --> 00:12:05,360
going to do? I wailed,
as he turned abruptly and started to leave

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the kitchen search for him. He
answered grimly, but you're unarmed. A

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00:12:11,440 --> 00:12:16,399
man desperate enough to commit murder wouldn't
hesitate to kill you. Then a peculiar

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00:12:16,480 --> 00:12:18,519
sound came to us above the roaring
of the wind and the drip of the

180
00:12:18,600 --> 00:12:24,240
rain. Unquestionably it was the buzz
of a motor We ran to the window,

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00:12:24,279 --> 00:12:26,679
and, regardless of the drenching we
received, the instant it was opened,

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we peered out into the darkness.
At first we saw nothing. Then

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darker against the dark sky, we
distinguished the outline of another building, not

184
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so large as the house we were
in, but beyond doubt a big barn.

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Our man is in there, said
Allan. He was in the house

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00:12:43,759 --> 00:12:46,720
when we arrived, and beat it
to the barn while we were upstairs.

187
00:12:46,200 --> 00:12:50,720
He is a car out there.
That's the engine we heard. Don't go

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00:12:50,840 --> 00:12:54,639
out, Alan, don't go out
there. But my protests were in vain.

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00:12:54,360 --> 00:12:58,759
A door opened from the kitchen to
a summer porch and a path which

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00:12:58,840 --> 00:13:01,039
led to the barn. Almost before
the words were out of my mouth,

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00:13:01,120 --> 00:13:05,000
he darted through this stoor and out
into the storm. There was nothing for

192
00:13:05,080 --> 00:13:09,840
me to do but follow. I
felt I would rather face a live murderer

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00:13:09,879 --> 00:13:13,159
than stay alone in that great house
with his dead victim. Before we reached

194
00:13:13,200 --> 00:13:16,960
the barn, a car, which
by its long, low outlines was just

195
00:13:18,080 --> 00:13:22,000
distinguishable in the darkness, swung out
into the road before us. Its lamps

196
00:13:22,000 --> 00:13:26,279
were unlighted, and we could not
see its occupant. Alan called out commandingly,

197
00:13:26,399 --> 00:13:31,879
with a bravery which was foolhardy to
an extreme stop, Stop where you

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00:13:31,960 --> 00:13:35,519
are. The car came towards us. The engine sputtered. The machine swerved

199
00:13:35,559 --> 00:13:39,320
a little, as though driven by
a drunken person or someone unused to handling

200
00:13:39,360 --> 00:13:45,159
a wheel. Alan gave his command
again, then deliberately stepped into the pathway.

201
00:13:45,480 --> 00:13:48,919
The car came to an abrupt stop. You can't go on tonight,

202
00:13:48,960 --> 00:13:52,039
Alan said, the road is blocked, and whoever you are, you'd be

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00:13:52,080 --> 00:13:54,720
a fool to attempt it in this
storm. The person at the wheel did

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00:13:54,720 --> 00:13:58,440
not reply, but instead swung the
car around and returned to the barn.

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00:14:00,039 --> 00:14:03,159
Followed. As we reached a doorway, a sudden gleam of light illuminated the

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00:14:03,200 --> 00:14:07,240
passage. It came from a kerosene
lantern held by a figure in a motor

207
00:14:07,279 --> 00:14:11,919
coat, which I recognized as my
own, a small, unquestionably feminine figure.

208
00:14:13,639 --> 00:14:16,759
I'll go back to the house with
you, she said, After all,

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00:14:16,799 --> 00:14:20,200
what difference does it make? The
woman who stood there, holding the

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00:14:20,279 --> 00:14:24,320
lantern above her head was the most
tragically beautiful creature I had ever seen.

211
00:14:24,879 --> 00:14:28,240
She did not appear to be very
young, possibly she was in her later

212
00:14:28,320 --> 00:14:31,919
thirties, but her small, almost
childish stature gave her the appearance of extreme

213
00:14:33,000 --> 00:14:35,840
youth. Great dark eyes, burnt
in a small, ashen, pale face,

214
00:14:37,080 --> 00:14:41,919
whose pallor was accentuated by her vivid
scarlet mouth. Masses of blue black

215
00:14:41,960 --> 00:14:46,679
hair tumbled about her shoulders and onto
the leather collar of my coat. Evidently

216
00:14:46,720 --> 00:14:50,360
the coat had been hastily donned,
for it wasn't fastened and exposed to view

217
00:14:50,440 --> 00:14:54,399
the shimmery satin of an evening gown
she wore. In a brief glance,

218
00:14:54,440 --> 00:14:58,360
I noted her sodden silver shoes and
the mud stained ham of her gown.

219
00:14:58,720 --> 00:15:03,159
This the overlace which bordered it was
mud stained and spattered with blood. A

220
00:15:03,240 --> 00:15:07,639
ponge cloak which she had evidently used
to motor en lay a drenched and soggy

221
00:15:07,679 --> 00:15:11,440
mass on the seat of the roadster. For a strained moment, we stared

222
00:15:11,440 --> 00:15:16,120
at each other, the fragile,
infinitely pathetic woman facing Alan and myself.

223
00:15:16,559 --> 00:15:20,799
Then she swayed, as if about
to fall. I started toward her,

224
00:15:20,840 --> 00:15:24,759
but she straightened up bravely and gave
a little laugh. It isn't very pleasant

225
00:15:24,759 --> 00:15:28,200
out here, she said, in
a musical voice. The house is a

226
00:15:28,240 --> 00:15:33,039
trifle better. Silently, we trudged
back through the overgrown grass and weeds,

227
00:15:33,200 --> 00:15:37,639
our feet sinking deep into the spongy
ground. Alan relieved her of the lantern

228
00:15:37,720 --> 00:15:41,720
and lighted us into the house.
I I'll return your coat to you,

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00:15:43,039 --> 00:15:46,840
she said, in a half apologetic
tone, going towards the stove, which

230
00:15:46,879 --> 00:15:50,120
still glowed red and cheerful from the
fire Alan had built. I shan't need

231
00:15:50,159 --> 00:15:54,159
it now. I really didn't mean
to steal it. I hoped to return

232
00:15:54,200 --> 00:16:00,000
it somehow, someway. I was
desperate as we were silent. She choked,

233
00:16:00,200 --> 00:16:03,679
and then, with an air of
bravado, continued, I'm sorry I

234
00:16:03,720 --> 00:16:07,000
cannot offer you any better hospitality.
But a wave of a very thin white

235
00:16:07,039 --> 00:16:14,399
hand expressed more than words could have
done offer us any better hospitality, Alan

236
00:16:14,480 --> 00:16:18,320
repeated dumbly after her. Yes,
this is my home, but it isn't

237
00:16:18,320 --> 00:16:22,960
the same as it was when I
lived here. I don't quite understand,

238
00:16:23,240 --> 00:16:30,440
I stammered three. A thin white
line settled about Alan's rigid mouth. I

239
00:16:30,480 --> 00:16:33,679
knew he was wondering what connection the
beautiful, pallid woman had with the dead

240
00:16:33,679 --> 00:16:37,919
man lying upstairs, if she had
herself killed him, or if she even

241
00:16:38,000 --> 00:16:41,919
knew of his existence. She seemed
to sense what I did, for the

242
00:16:41,960 --> 00:16:47,480
half born smile on her lips faded. The dark eyes became darker, if

243
00:16:47,519 --> 00:16:52,679
possible, as they widened. Her
hands fluttered upward, then dropped helplessly to

244
00:16:52,720 --> 00:16:56,600
the side of her orchid colored gown. Yes, she said, dully,

245
00:16:56,679 --> 00:17:00,039
as if in reply to a question, I killed him. I was in

246
00:17:00,039 --> 00:17:03,559
the closet up stairs when you went
into the other room. While you were

247
00:17:03,600 --> 00:17:06,480
in there, I stole out through
the door I had locked on the inside,

248
00:17:06,799 --> 00:17:10,000
and down the stairs. I took
your cloak and I ran out to

249
00:17:10,039 --> 00:17:12,480
the stable. I was going to
drive away when you called me back.

250
00:17:12,960 --> 00:17:18,359
Perhaps it is just as well you
did. It doesn't matter much one way

251
00:17:18,440 --> 00:17:22,400
or another. You killed Judge mac
Pherson. I gasped, Why you knew

252
00:17:22,480 --> 00:17:27,759
him very well? An enigmatical smile
played about her lips, full and softly

253
00:17:27,839 --> 00:17:33,359
rounded like a child's. That smile
held a world of wisdom and tragedy.

254
00:17:33,440 --> 00:17:37,839
In a moment's flicker. It made
her face strangely old and careworn. In

255
00:17:37,880 --> 00:17:41,400
the light of the oil lamp,
I suddenly seemed to be looking at the

256
00:17:41,440 --> 00:17:45,680
remnants of a once beautiful woman,
at a battered and bruised soul, not

257
00:17:45,799 --> 00:17:49,000
at the woman herself. I wondered
just how well you knew him? She

258
00:17:49,119 --> 00:17:52,079
said, as though to herself,
not as well as I did. At

259
00:17:52,119 --> 00:17:56,920
any rate, he was your lover, Alan asked. We lowered our voices

260
00:17:56,960 --> 00:18:00,599
as if taking our key from her. Curiously, I felt more of an

261
00:18:00,640 --> 00:18:04,680
interest in the woman herself than the
fact that she had killed Judge McPherson.

262
00:18:06,119 --> 00:18:10,240
She shook her head in replied to
Alan's question, and her lips curled scornfully.

263
00:18:10,839 --> 00:18:14,240
After a little she said, would
you like to have me tell you

264
00:18:14,279 --> 00:18:17,920
all about it? Somehow I feel
as if I should be relieved if I

265
00:18:17,960 --> 00:18:22,440
did so. I'm really very unnerved
and shaken. After all, it's a

266
00:18:22,519 --> 00:18:26,279
terrible thing to take a human life, to watch a soul leave a man's

267
00:18:26,319 --> 00:18:30,400
body, even though you know that
man to be a reptile and deserving of

268
00:18:30,480 --> 00:18:34,039
more than one death. I shan't
speak when I'm arrested. They can do

269
00:18:34,079 --> 00:18:37,720
as they like with me, but
I'll not have the newspapers and their ravenous

270
00:18:37,759 --> 00:18:42,119
readers gloating over my miserable downfall.
You do not know who I am,

271
00:18:42,200 --> 00:18:47,119
nor do I know you. We
shall never meet again, and something tells

272
00:18:47,160 --> 00:18:49,480
me that when morning comes, you
will allow me to go my way and

273
00:18:49,519 --> 00:18:52,559
you will go another. So I
should like you to know the truth.

274
00:18:53,319 --> 00:18:57,640
She was strangely calm, only the
pallid whiteness of her face and a glitter

275
00:18:57,720 --> 00:19:03,200
to her dark eyes any of the
tumults seething within her. Alan and I

276
00:19:03,240 --> 00:19:07,839
both hung upon her words. Somehow
it seemed unnecessary for us to talk.

277
00:19:07,559 --> 00:19:11,519
She shivered without a word. Alan
pulled the box on which he had flung

278
00:19:11,559 --> 00:19:15,240
his coat nearer the fire, and
half assisted her to sit upon it.

279
00:19:15,920 --> 00:19:19,519
Shall I go upstairs and fetch you
a chair? He said, no,

280
00:19:19,519 --> 00:19:23,599
no, oh no. For one
instant she lost control of herself. The

281
00:19:23,640 --> 00:19:27,759
next moment she was as calm and
restrained as a society matron serving tea.

282
00:19:29,440 --> 00:19:32,960
Alan and I seated ourselves on the
floor at her feet. The thunder and

283
00:19:33,039 --> 00:19:36,519
lightning had ceased, and but for
the steady, dripped drip of the rain,

284
00:19:36,680 --> 00:19:40,519
the night was placid and quiet.
For a long time, it seemed

285
00:19:40,519 --> 00:19:44,799
to my overwrought nerves. The woman
sat there with her hands clasped loosely in

286
00:19:44,880 --> 00:19:48,680
her lap, her great eyes staring
at a red glowing spot on the old

287
00:19:48,720 --> 00:19:52,240
stove. Once or twice she glanced
apprehensively over her shoulder, as though she

288
00:19:52,319 --> 00:19:57,240
expected the man she had slain to
appear in the doorway behind her. I

289
00:19:57,400 --> 00:20:02,680
was born here, reared here,
and married in this house, she said,

290
00:20:02,680 --> 00:20:06,960
At last, my little boy was
born here. It was a beautiful

291
00:20:06,960 --> 00:20:10,720
old house then, seeing it now, you can scarcely realize what it was

292
00:20:10,759 --> 00:20:14,079
in those days when I was a
girl. It used to be full of

293
00:20:14,200 --> 00:20:18,799
young people, laughing, dancing and
enjoying life. We had husking bees in

294
00:20:18,799 --> 00:20:22,319
the barn, Halloween parties, dances
in the winter, sleigh rides and Christmas

295
00:20:22,359 --> 00:20:26,359
trees. Many's the time I've coasted
down that long hill and landed in a

296
00:20:26,400 --> 00:20:32,279
heap at the bottom. Then I
married a man I adored. He worshiped

297
00:20:32,319 --> 00:20:36,559
me, He placed me on a
pedestal as something just a little more than

298
00:20:36,640 --> 00:20:41,960
mortal. He was an intensely religious
man, perhaps a trifle austere. But

299
00:20:41,200 --> 00:20:45,279
because I loved society, young company, we continued to fill the home with

300
00:20:45,400 --> 00:20:49,680
guests. There was never a shadowy
corner in the house like there is now.

301
00:20:51,000 --> 00:20:55,279
The lights were always bright, There
were always laughing voices to be heard

302
00:20:55,319 --> 00:21:00,559
in music. She spoke very slowly
and in almost pedantic fashion, as though

303
00:21:00,640 --> 00:21:03,519
choosing her words and a bit uncertain
of them. It was as though she

304
00:21:03,599 --> 00:21:08,480
were speaking a tongue not quite familiar
to her. When my little boy was

305
00:21:08,519 --> 00:21:12,920
born, both my husband and myself
were overjoyed. Even the fact that he

306
00:21:14,000 --> 00:21:17,839
was a fragile little fellow did not
drown our happiness. For a year,

307
00:21:17,920 --> 00:21:21,920
we battled to keep him alive.
Then he began to grow sturdy and rosy,

308
00:21:22,039 --> 00:21:26,000
like the other children who came with
their parents to visit us. About

309
00:21:26,000 --> 00:21:30,640
that time, my husband became very
absorbed in this profession. He was compiling

310
00:21:30,680 --> 00:21:34,319
a historical volume of intense interest to
himself. Because I was lonesome, I

311
00:21:34,400 --> 00:21:38,599
used to go into the city quite
often to the theater, generally to matinees,

312
00:21:40,039 --> 00:21:42,240
and come back at dinner time.
Several times I went later in the

313
00:21:42,319 --> 00:21:47,920
day and remained overnight. I did
not realize then that he was jealous of

314
00:21:48,000 --> 00:21:52,319
me, that he was suspicious,
if only he had said something to me,

315
00:21:52,440 --> 00:21:56,720
but he never did until too late. I was very innocent in those

316
00:21:56,799 --> 00:22:00,960
days, principally because I did not
wish to disturb him or impose upon my

317
00:22:02,039 --> 00:22:04,799
friends. The few times I remained
overnight in the city, I stayed in

318
00:22:04,839 --> 00:22:10,839
a small hotel, walking to and
from the theater alone. Imagine my horror

319
00:22:10,920 --> 00:22:12,920
when one night, as I turned
to the corner to go to the hotel,

320
00:22:14,079 --> 00:22:17,039
which was in a side street.
A man put his hand on my

321
00:22:17,119 --> 00:22:21,160
shoulder, and before I could make
any protest, informed me that I was

322
00:22:21,240 --> 00:22:26,079
under arrest. Two dazed in bewildered
to demand the reason for this outrage,

323
00:22:26,160 --> 00:22:30,599
I did nothing but declare my innocence. I was dragged downtown to the police

324
00:22:30,599 --> 00:22:34,079
court and put upon the stand before
a grinning, gaping crowd of spectators.

325
00:22:34,480 --> 00:22:40,759
I was asked obscene questions by that
man lying upstairs, sneered at because of

326
00:22:40,799 --> 00:22:45,119
my protestations of virtue, then thrown
in a cell with two drunken prostitutes and

327
00:22:45,160 --> 00:22:49,759
a half insane old woman. I
was so ashamed, so horror stricken,

328
00:22:51,119 --> 00:22:53,720
yet so certain of my release in
the morning, that I did not telephone

329
00:22:53,720 --> 00:22:57,480
my husband of what had happened.
It never occurred to me that I would

330
00:22:57,519 --> 00:23:02,480
be branded as a woman of this
streets and sentenced to prison. But I

331
00:23:02,720 --> 00:23:07,519
was. I was. Judge McPherson, a man of the world who should

332
00:23:07,519 --> 00:23:11,920
be able to distinguish between women,
laughed at me, and with one wave

333
00:23:11,000 --> 00:23:15,880
of his smug hand, with one
word, sentenced me to six months confinement

334
00:23:17,000 --> 00:23:19,720
and a lifetime of hell. Never
so long as I live, will I

335
00:23:19,759 --> 00:23:25,400
forget his face. That same night, my baby was taken ill. My

336
00:23:25,480 --> 00:23:29,440
husband tried to find me. His
search discovered to him the fact that I

337
00:23:29,519 --> 00:23:34,079
was in jail for soliciting on the
street. Then the jealousy, the suspicions

338
00:23:34,079 --> 00:23:37,880
he had felt for me, burst
into flame, making him ready to believe

339
00:23:37,920 --> 00:23:42,160
the worst of me. I never
saw him but once after that. That

340
00:23:42,359 --> 00:23:48,200
one time he denounced me as a
woman unfit to live, as a thing

341
00:23:48,480 --> 00:23:52,359
too vile to breathe the same air
as my child. Then he told me

342
00:23:52,400 --> 00:23:56,319
the boy was dead. Of course, he secured my release, but it

343
00:23:56,359 --> 00:23:59,960
was too late. When I came
out of prison, I went to Judgemcphearson

344
00:24:00,039 --> 00:24:03,559
since home. I remember he was
sitting at dinner. He was very annoyed

345
00:24:03,559 --> 00:24:07,599
at having his meal disturbed by a
pale, but draggled, slovenly looking woman.

346
00:24:08,000 --> 00:24:11,480
He was at no pains to hide
his annoyance. I told him what

347
00:24:11,559 --> 00:24:15,079
he had done to me, an
innocent woman, and I demanded that he

348
00:24:15,200 --> 00:24:19,480
right this wrong. There was the
same smiling sneer on his face as when

349
00:24:19,480 --> 00:24:22,920
he sentenced me. Just how can
I do this, my dear lady,

350
00:24:23,079 --> 00:24:26,799
he said, Go to my husband. I cried wildly. I had not

351
00:24:26,920 --> 00:24:32,720
learned to restrain myself. Then tell
him that I am innocent, absolutely innocent.

352
00:24:33,200 --> 00:24:36,200
My baby is gone, but there's
still a chance for me. If

353
00:24:36,200 --> 00:24:38,960
he will take me. You must
explain it to him. You must make

354
00:24:40,039 --> 00:24:45,759
him understand. He laughed, laughed
at me. Oh stuff, my dear,

355
00:24:45,200 --> 00:24:49,680
he sneered, old stuff. Why
can't you women think of something original.

356
00:24:49,960 --> 00:24:53,680
Of course you're all innocent. None
of you will even admit to a

357
00:24:53,759 --> 00:24:57,880
first offense. I'm sorry if your
child is dead, that is, if

358
00:24:57,920 --> 00:25:03,400
you had one. But I certainly
won't help to hoodwink a man who evidently

359
00:25:03,480 --> 00:25:07,200
is a person of principle. If
you don't want to suffer, behave yourself.

360
00:25:07,519 --> 00:25:11,319
That's all I have to say.
Good evening. Then he showed me

361
00:25:11,359 --> 00:25:15,839
the door. I think I went
insane. I remember standing outside and pounding

362
00:25:15,880 --> 00:25:21,720
on it, screaming maledictions on him, shrieking to him that he must clear

363
00:25:21,799 --> 00:25:26,039
me, he must give me back
my good name. Then someone seized me

364
00:25:26,079 --> 00:25:29,519
and I was dragged away to the
station house again. I left it with

365
00:25:29,599 --> 00:25:33,400
a six month sentence for disorderly conduct. When I got out, this time,

366
00:25:33,599 --> 00:25:37,799
dazed, broken, aged, I
realized that nothing I could ever do

367
00:25:38,000 --> 00:25:42,240
or say, would reinstate me.
This second arrest, caused by the man

368
00:25:42,279 --> 00:25:47,480
who had ruined me, had branded
me forever and ever. I learned my

369
00:25:47,599 --> 00:25:51,640
husband had divorced me, disposed of
everything in our home, and sailed to

370
00:25:51,680 --> 00:25:56,279
France. Those who had been my
friends passed me on the street without recognition.

371
00:25:56,720 --> 00:26:00,000
There was no one in the world
I could turn to practically, without

372
00:26:00,079 --> 00:26:03,720
means to be sure. I owned
this house, but I did not have

373
00:26:03,759 --> 00:26:07,559
the money to keep it in repair, and I could not live in it.

374
00:26:07,039 --> 00:26:12,119
The memories it recalled were maddening.
Then two, I felt everyone knew

375
00:26:12,119 --> 00:26:18,039
my story and I could not face
their scornful glances. Time and again I

376
00:26:18,119 --> 00:26:22,960
was tempted to kill myself, but
one thing always held me back, my

377
00:26:22,319 --> 00:26:27,119
undying soul eating hatred for the man
who had passed judgment on me. One

378
00:26:27,200 --> 00:26:32,559
day I realized why this monstrous thing
had happened to me. I was to

379
00:26:32,559 --> 00:26:37,039
be the instrument with which to save
innumerable women from a fate similar to mine.

380
00:26:37,160 --> 00:26:41,480
It was to be my task to
rid the world of the viper who

381
00:26:41,559 --> 00:26:47,599
destroyed innocence and laughed at his handiwork. I almost became happy in contemplation of

382
00:26:47,640 --> 00:26:51,160
what I would do. What did
it matter to me that to accomplish his

383
00:26:51,240 --> 00:26:56,279
destruction, I must accomplish my own
the thing he had branded me, I

384
00:26:56,319 --> 00:27:02,160
became In reality, I was beautiful. I learned I was desirable and I

385
00:27:02,200 --> 00:27:06,759
could be fascinating. I studied all
the arts and wiles of the oldest profession

386
00:27:06,759 --> 00:27:10,640
in the world, and determined to
sell myself to the highest bidder. My

387
00:27:11,039 --> 00:27:15,240
education, my knowledge of society,
my culture all stood me in good stead.

388
00:27:15,960 --> 00:27:18,680
Understand, I always stayed within the
law. I was never crude.

389
00:27:19,119 --> 00:27:23,480
I took no chances of another arrest
my new name though when I adopted.

390
00:27:23,519 --> 00:27:27,759
When I became of the Demi Monde, I kept unsmirched, if you could

391
00:27:27,799 --> 00:27:32,559
call it that. I became a
leader in the set where mistresses laughed at

392
00:27:32,599 --> 00:27:37,200
wives, and where lovers were more
popular than husbands. I discovered, to

393
00:27:37,240 --> 00:27:42,160
my intense delight that, although austere
and apparently religious, Judge Macpherson's besetting sin

394
00:27:42,359 --> 00:27:47,599
was women, that he used the
timeworn excuse of an invalid wife to cover

395
00:27:47,680 --> 00:27:51,160
his indiscretions. You don't know it, of course, as he kept the

396
00:27:51,160 --> 00:27:55,559
scandal quiet. But it was I
who brought about his divorce. It took

397
00:27:55,599 --> 00:27:59,400
me three years to secure an introduction
to him, but it took less than

398
00:27:59,440 --> 00:28:03,200
three hours to hopelessly ensnare him.
It was not strange that in the smiling,

399
00:28:03,440 --> 00:28:07,559
elegantly blaise woman of the world,
he did not recognize the half crazed,

400
00:28:07,599 --> 00:28:12,359
bedraggled woman of the police courts.
He was just at that most susceptible

401
00:28:12,400 --> 00:28:17,519
age where he felt that youth was
slipping from him, an old age waiting

402
00:28:17,559 --> 00:28:21,319
to claim him had put a taboo
on affairs of the heart. With a

403
00:28:21,359 --> 00:28:25,880
desperate desire to remain young, he
flung himself headlong into my hands, never

404
00:28:26,000 --> 00:28:30,200
doubting that I was what I appeared, a divorcee whose misplaced affections had made

405
00:28:30,200 --> 00:28:34,119
her a trifle bitter toward men,
yet who was longing and looking for a

406
00:28:34,119 --> 00:28:38,559
loving protector. I played my cards
well. I used all the coyness of

407
00:28:38,599 --> 00:28:42,640
the angenoux, with the blandishments of
the courtesan to keep him on tenter hooks

408
00:28:42,720 --> 00:28:48,039
before he became that protector. After
that, it was easier. He did

409
00:28:48,039 --> 00:28:52,039
not realize why I suggested weekend parties, gradually making this house their setting.

410
00:28:52,599 --> 00:28:57,119
I had from the first determined that
as this was the home he had destroyed,

411
00:28:57,640 --> 00:29:03,000
so here he should be destroyed.
It was his money which furnished those

412
00:29:03,079 --> 00:29:07,039
rooms upstairs. Rather grim humor,
isn't it. Can you conceive of the

413
00:29:07,079 --> 00:29:11,000
loathing I felt at that man's touch, How I cringed as he embraced me,

414
00:29:11,480 --> 00:29:15,279
How I laughed and anticipated the climax
of it all. He called me

415
00:29:15,319 --> 00:29:21,079
a charming child with quaint ideas when
he first saw this place abandoned and decayed.

416
00:29:21,319 --> 00:29:25,599
The unusualness of our rendezvous appealed to
him as unique. Early I learned

417
00:29:25,880 --> 00:29:30,079
unwholesome things intrigued him. Tonight was
our third visit. We arrived just before

418
00:29:30,119 --> 00:29:33,640
the storm broke. As usual,
we brought a lunch kit with our dinner

419
00:29:33,680 --> 00:29:37,359
in it. That meal was never
eaten. I drugged the wine just enough

420
00:29:37,400 --> 00:29:41,160
to befog his brain and make him
like wax in my hands. Then,

421
00:29:41,240 --> 00:29:45,799
as he sat there, stupid,
dazed and inert, I told him who

422
00:29:45,839 --> 00:29:49,319
I was and why he was here. And I laughed, laughed at him

423
00:29:49,359 --> 00:29:53,480
as he had laughed at me when
he had me taken away kicking and screaming

424
00:29:53,519 --> 00:29:56,759
by the police. You would have
laughed too, had you seen his face

425
00:29:57,279 --> 00:30:00,640
when I showed him the revolver and
told him I was going to kill him.

426
00:30:00,880 --> 00:30:06,119
He cringed like a sick animal,
whimpering and begging for mercy, the

427
00:30:06,240 --> 00:30:10,559
kind of mercy he hadn't shown me. Still, I laughed. He staggered

428
00:30:10,599 --> 00:30:15,000
drunkenly to his feet and came toward
me. I don't think he felt certain

429
00:30:15,000 --> 00:30:18,359
that I meant what I said.
I whirled on him and backed him into

430
00:30:18,400 --> 00:30:22,039
the bedroom. Then, when he
made a lurch toward me trying to secure

431
00:30:22,079 --> 00:30:26,119
the pistol and stumbled against the bed, I fired and he fell across it

432
00:30:26,400 --> 00:30:30,200
dead. Where's the pistol, Alan
asked dryly. The woman's eyes narrowed.

433
00:30:30,640 --> 00:30:34,599
I flung it under the bed.
His blood smeared my gown. See.

434
00:30:34,759 --> 00:30:37,400
After a little, I went out
to drive the car to town, but

435
00:30:37,440 --> 00:30:41,039
it was raining so hard I became
drenched before I reached the barn. I

436
00:30:41,119 --> 00:30:45,119
came back to the house. Then
I heard you come in at the front

437
00:30:45,200 --> 00:30:48,960
door. I was frightened. I'd
fancied myself absolutely alone out here. I

438
00:30:49,000 --> 00:30:52,359
locked the bedroom door when I heard
you climb the stairs, you know the

439
00:30:52,400 --> 00:30:56,480
rest. We were silent for a
few moments. Then Alan said abruptly,

440
00:30:56,880 --> 00:31:00,279
I'd like to take a look at
him again. The woman rose slowly,

441
00:31:00,440 --> 00:31:03,680
and we all filed up the stairs
again. At the bedroom door, she

442
00:31:03,759 --> 00:31:07,559
laid a feverish hand on mine,
and I felt a shudder go through her.

443
00:31:08,039 --> 00:31:11,559
But when we stood staring at the
cold, dark figure before us,

444
00:31:11,720 --> 00:31:17,880
her face was unexpressive, emotionless.
Half entangled in the lace of the bedspread,

445
00:31:17,920 --> 00:31:21,640
where it had fallen or been thrown. As mc pherson stumbled against the

446
00:31:21,640 --> 00:31:25,599
bed was the revolver. The light
from the lantern, though not brilliant,

447
00:31:25,759 --> 00:31:30,079
illuminated more space than Allan's spot had
done, Hence it had been hidden from

448
00:31:30,079 --> 00:31:33,599
our view before. Allan looked steadily
at her a moment I could not read

449
00:31:33,640 --> 00:31:37,279
what was passing through his thoughts.
Then he motioned for us to follow him

450
00:31:37,319 --> 00:31:42,319
downstairs. The steady drip drip of
the rain made me drowsy. We huddled

451
00:31:42,359 --> 00:31:47,200
in silence on the floor before the
stove, the woman staring off in space.

452
00:31:47,839 --> 00:31:52,039
Presently I dozed, leaning against Alan's
shoulder. When I awakened, it

453
00:31:52,079 --> 00:31:56,880
was breaking day and she was gone, Alan, I cried, shaking him

454
00:31:56,880 --> 00:32:00,920
a little to waken him. She's
gone. Yes, I know I saw

455
00:32:00,000 --> 00:32:05,039
her when she left. But who
are we to judge, he asked slowly.

456
00:32:06,240 --> 00:32:09,000
Four two days later, picking up
a New York newspaper, I read

457
00:32:09,039 --> 00:32:15,480
the headlines Judson McPherson, well known
justice of the Criminal Court, commits suicide

458
00:32:15,519 --> 00:32:20,119
in an abandoned house in the Catskill
Mountains. Then followed a half column account

459
00:32:20,119 --> 00:32:23,640
of the act in detail. McPherson, having gotten into financial difficulties, had

460
00:32:23,680 --> 00:32:28,720
chosen the coward's way out, so
said the paper. A letter announced his

461
00:32:28,799 --> 00:32:32,079
intention of dying and gave the location
where to find his body. The paper

462
00:32:32,119 --> 00:32:37,480
also stated that the knowledge he had
recently married a young and beautiful actress came

463
00:32:37,519 --> 00:32:40,839
as a distinct surprise to his friends. A picture of his bride accompanied the

464
00:32:40,920 --> 00:32:46,359
article. The wistful, almost tragic
face pictured was unquestionably that of the woman

465
00:32:46,400 --> 00:32:50,839
who said that she had killed him. I stared at allan as I handed

466
00:32:50,880 --> 00:32:54,400
him the newspaper. Was she lying, I gasped. He shook his head.

467
00:32:54,920 --> 00:32:59,279
If so, she was a clever
actress, he answered, But one

468
00:32:59,279 --> 00:33:02,240
thing is certain, will never know
the truth either way. He brought about

469
00:33:02,240 --> 00:33:07,799
his own death and of the abandoned
house by Beulah Pointer