Part 14 (1/2)
”But--”
”I consented to stay on at Daylight Park, only on the solemn assurance of the Governors that no aniain within the Park precincts I detest anis And now I see my dislike is not mere prejudice May I ask what the owners and--and the harborer--of the cur e? Notice, please, that I a this vital question I--”
”It is my fault,--or rather, it is a mistake,--that Lad is in the Park,” spoke up the Master ”Mr Harmon is wholly innocent in the matter I can testify to that If there is any fine or other penalty in connection withhere, I'm ready to settle for it But if you expect e to your manuscript and your collection and your room,--why, that's absurd!
Utterly absurd! Lad, never in his life,--”
”The courts will think otherwise!” blazed Garretse, losing a fraction of his hard-held selfh every court in the land, since you persist in this idiotic denial of a proven fact I warn you, I shall--Look there!” he broke off, furiously, leveling a shakily vehe around, even now, in search of s to injure He--”
The author finished his sentence by catching up a heavyit back as if for a throw His muscles flexed
The Mistress
The Master, for the moment, lacked presence of mind to do even that much for his canine chuly at Lad
The sedate collie, after following the bevy of excited huravely, just inside the threshold; looking with keen interest froroup
Then, as a sharp whiff of that saan a new tour of the room
The odor was fresher than before And Lad's curiosity was roused to the full He sniffed to right and left, exploring the floor rubbish with inquiringdesk
It was then that Garretse called attention to him And it was then that Lad's nose suddenly pointed skyward In another erly toward one of the s,--thethat was slightly open from the top
From that direction, the scent now came; and it was more potent than at any earlier tiroup followed Lad ard, those sa of the open space at the 's top
Into the roo with eel-like speed
Thence, it leaped to the floor For the fraction of a second, the intruder crouched there; peering about, to determine into what coray ed and withered of aspect
His paws and forearms were black with half-dry ink Here and there, all over his fuzzy gray body, ink-blobs were spattered In one skinny paw he still clutched the splintered frag huood look at the monkey, Lad was at him Here at last was the solution of that alloped toward the wizened and ation than on attack The ile leap, he was on the spatteredcurtains and swar up to the rod at the top There he squatted, well out of reach; gri in simian wrath
”It's--it's a devil!” sta as he sought to take in the motley details of the creature's appearance ”I--”
”It's Mrs McMurdle's pest of ayour pardon The one sheaway, last month, when all beastees was barred from the Park It must 'a'
strayed back from where she sent it to, the crafty little nuisance!
It's--”
”Incidentally,” said the Master, ”it is the creature that wrecked your room See the ink on it And that bit of porcelain it's brandishi+ng at us looks like a ot in here, I suppose, through that , earlier,--and--”
”No,” corrected the Mistress, wiser at deduction ”Through the doorway, downstairs Fro the dining-roos; as monkeys love to And Laddie struck its trail and followed it up here
It heard Lad coh theThen, just now, soain I wonder if--”