Part 27 (1/2)
Mr. Forbes spoke persuasively, and kindly.
Alicia burst into a storm of tears and sobbed wildly. Bernice, her face hidden in her handkerchief, was crying too.
Dotty sat stiffly erect in her chair, her little hands clenched, her big, black eyes staring at Mr. Forbes in a very concentration of wrath.
Dolly was limp and exhausted from weeping.
With quivering lips and in a shaking voice, she said:
”Maybe one of us is a kleptomaniac, then, after all.”
”Ah, a confession!” said Mr. Fenn, with his cynical little smile. ”Go on, Miss Fayre. Which one has the acc.u.mulating tendency?”
”You do make me so mad!” exclaimed Dotty, glaring at him. ”Uncle Forbes, can't we talk with you alone?”
”Oh, no, little miss,” said Fenn, ”Mr. Forbes is far too easy-going to look after this affair by himself! He'd swallow all the stories you girls would tell him! I'll remain, if you please. Unless you have something to conceal, you can't object to my presence at this interesting confab.”
Dolly came to Dotty's aid. She looked at the secretary with a glance of supreme contempt.
”It is of no consequence, Mr. Fenn,” she said, haughtily, ”whether you are present or not. Uncle Forbes, I agree with Dotty. You said yourself, you have an acquaintance who can't help taking treasures that are not his own. It may be that one of us has done this. But, even so, the jewel must be in the house. None of us has been out of the house since we were in this room yesterday afternoon. So, if it is in the house, it must be found.”
”Ha! You HAVE hidden it securely, to be willing to have a thorough search of the house made!” and Fenn looked unpleasantly at her. ”Own up, Miss Fayre; it will save a lot of trouble for the rest of us.”
Dolly tried to look at the man with scorn, but her nerves gave way, and again she broke down and cried softly, but with great, convulsive sobs.
Dotty was furious but she said nothing to Fenn for she knew she would only get the worst of it.
”Come now, Dolly,” said Mr. Forbes, in a gentle way, ”stop crying, my dear, and let's talk this over. Where did you lay the earring when you took it from your dress?”
”On--on--the t-table,” stammered Dolly, trying to stop crying. But, as every one knows, it is not an easy thing to stem a flood of tears, and Dolly couldn't speak clearly.
”Yes; what table?”
”This one,” and Dotty spoke for her, and indicated the table by the south window.
”Where,--on the table?” persisted Uncle Jeff.
Dolly got up and walked over to the light stand in question.
”About here, I think,” and she indicated a spot on the surface of the dull finished wood.
”Why didn't you hand it back to me?” queried Mr. Forbes, in a kind tone.
”I d-don't know, sir,” Dolly sobbed again. ”I'm sure I don't know why I didn't.”
”I know,” put in Dotty. ”Because just then, Mr. Forbes showed us a bracelet that had belonged to Cleopatra, and we all crowded round to look at that, and Doll laid down the earring to take up the bracelet.
We didn't suppose we were going to be accused of stealing!”
”Tut, tut,” said Mr. Forbes. ”n.o.body has used that word! I don't accuse you of anything,--except carelessness.”