The Mystery of the Hidden Room

by Marion Harvey

  CHAPTER XII

  AN EXPLANATION

  When a human being has run the gamut of horror and suffering in a shortspace of time his mind ceases to be affected by further sensations. Atany other time I should have been appalled that Mr. Trenton could evenfor a moment believe his daughter guilty. As it was, I merely acceptedhis words as one more link in the chain of evidence against her.

  "My boy," he said humbly, "I know that you have held me responsible foryour misfortunes. And you are perfectly right to feel so. I, and Ialone, am to blame for all that has happened."

  He paused to wipe the moisture that had gathered on his forehead,showing what an effort he was making to control his emotion.

  "But if I am to blame in spoiling the boy, I have been punished beyondmy due. You do not know, I hope you may never know the anguish, thetorture, the awful horror, of learning that the being you haveworshipped and adored is worthless clay, a--a common murderer! I wasfrantic, crazy, and to save my boy I sacrificed my girl. And now, andnow--" He broke off with a sob and buried his head in his hands.

  "Mr. Trenton, don't. I'll stake my life that Ruth is innocent." I heldout my hand, touched as I had thought I no longer possessed the power tobe touched by his sorrow. Certainly if I had suffered, he had been inhell.

  "My boy, you give me new life," he said, raising his head and taking myhand. "I do not deserve your forgiveness."

  "It's all behind us, Mr. Trenton, and can't be undone. The task beforeus is to free Ruth. We will work together toward that end," I answered.

  He was silent a moment, evidently pondering mentally some question, thenhe said with the air of one who has arrived at a decision by which hewill abide whatever comes, "And the first step is to show you somethingthat I had hoped not to reveal. The very day of the murder I received aletter from Dick stating--but you had better read it yourself."

  He took from his wallet a single sheet of notepaper which he handed me.It was dated from Chicago two days before the murder and written inDick's unmistakable flowing hand.

  "Dear Dad," it began.

  "Philip Darwin has persecuted the Trenton family for the last time. I have a weapon to use against him which will free Ruth and myself from the bondage we are in to that cur. I am leaving for the East to-morrow and when my task is completed, I shall call upon you at Tarrytown.

  "Your repentant son,

  "DICK."

  When I finished reading I looked across at Mr. Trenton, wondering if tohim too had occurred the thought which possessed me. Could the weapon bemurder and the answer to the problem the fact that Ruth was shieldingher brother again? Then I shook my head.

  "If Dick was in the study how did he get away without my seeing him?" Isaid aloud. "He couldn't vanish into thin air."

  "Carlton!" The word was a cry. "No, no, he would not dare again!"

  "What did he mean by weapon then?" I inquired bluntly.

  "Not--not murder! I could not bear that! No. I am sure he meant that hehad learned that Philip Darwin was his uncle," he said low.

  "His uncle!" I gasped, horrified.

  "Yes, his uncle. But not Ruth's, Carlton! No, no, she was no relation tohim," he reassured me quickly.

  My head began to whirl. Affairs were growing too complicated for me. "Idon't understand what you are talking about," I returned wearily.

  "I'll explain. It all happened so very long ago that I never mention it,but the fact is that two years after Ruth's mother died I married PhilipDarwin's sister."

  "Darwin knew then that Dick was his nephew?" I asked when he paused.

  "No. No one knows it except myself. Philip Darwin could not have beenmore than ten or so at the time, and I doubt if he remembers that heever had a sister. You see when I met her I had no idea who she was, forshe was acting under an assumed name. She had been on the stage sixmonths and was heartily sick of it when I was introduced to her. We fellin love with each other and before the wedding she confided her story tome.

  "Her father, Frank Darwin, was a stern, unyielding, puritanical man, whohad no use for what he called the lure of the world. On the other hand,Leila was just eighteen, beautiful, proud, wilful. She had read of thewonders of the stage and when her father opposed her desire to become anactress she ran away from home. When he learned that she had actuallyjoined a theatrical company, he disinherited her and refused to haveanything further to do with her, forbidding his two sons, Robert, whobecame Lee's father, and Philip, from ever mentioning her name or seeingher again. She died when Dick was born, poor little girl, more thantwenty-five years ago, and I think I had almost forgotten therelationship. A quarter century is more than ample time to erase amemory," he ended with a sigh.

  I was silent for a while and then asked him why he had not told PhilipDarwin that Dick was his nephew, thus avoiding all the dire consequenceswhich had followed Darwin's threat of exposure.

  "Because it would have made no difference to him at all," answered Mr.Trenton. "He wanted Ruth and if she had refused him he would haverevenged himself by exposing Dick, knowing that we would suffer far morethan he. Besides, he would have demanded proofs. I had none which Icould give him."

  "What about family resemblance?"

  Mr. Trenton shook his head. "They are both dark and about the samebuild. That is as far as the resemblance goes, and that's no proof, forRuth is dark, too."

  "And you really think that Dick--"

  "Yes, I do. I believe that in some way the boy learned that he wasDarwin's nephew and hoped to use the knowledge to force Darwin todivorce Ruth," he interrupted.

  This time it was I that disagreed. "But you said yourself that theknowledge would cut no ice with Darwin," I said, impatiently.

  "But Dick wouldn't know that. He is young and to him it would seem onlynatural that an uncle should desire to shield his nephew. The husbandbound to secrecy to preserve his good name would be unable to fightproceedings if Ruth brought suit for divorce against him. At any rate,that is how I read it."

  I did not like to say so, and thus shatter his fool's paradise, for hewas entitled to any consolation which he could draw from his deductions.To me, however, there were two flaws in his reasoning. In the firstplace, if Mr. Trenton was the only one who knew his wife's identity andhe had almost forgotten it, how in the name of all the gods had Dicklearned it? And in the second place, I was firmly convinced that Mr.Richard Trenton stood in no ignorance of Mr. Philip Darwin's truecharacter and would be under no delusions as to the exact reception suchknowledge would receive.

  No, Dick had some other weapon in mind, and the only one which wouldfree both himself and Ruth at one stroke was the death of Philip Darwin.Dick had killed a man once under less provocation. What was to preventhis repeating the act when he realized the injustice that had been doneRuth in forcing her to marry such a man? But in that event why had henot come forward to free Ruth from jail? Surely he had not sunk so lowthat he would permit her to pay the extreme penalty for his act. It'strue that she was allowed to shield him once, but I very much doubtwhether Dick knew anything of it until after the wedding when hiscoming forward would certainly have created a terrible scandal withoutin the least bettering conditions for Ruth.

  Besides, the whole thing was illogical. If Dick killed Darwin to freeRuth, it was ridiculous to suppose that he would then run away and leaveher to face the consequences. I was more inclined to believe that theboy had discovered some counter-knowledge which would buy his freedomfrom exposure. He had been in New York the day of the murder, or shouldhave been, according to his letter. Why then did he remain in hiding, orhad he returned to Chicago without making use of his "weapon" when helearned that Darwin was dead? On the other hand, that would also be asenseless proceeding, for Darwin dead, he, Dick, had nothing further tofear.

  The whole affair was a muddle and growing more complicated at everyturn, and I heartily wished that Dick would show up to settle all doubtson his score at least.

  As if in answer to my thought, the phone in the
hall rang sharply andJenkins appeared to announce that Headquarters would like to speak withme. I sighed. What new evidence had they discovered now, I thoughtsavagely, and my "hello" must have sounded like a roar in theInspector's ear.

  When he was through explaining I leaned limply against the wall andwiped my forehead with a trembling hand.

  "Jenkins!" I said hoarsely. "Ask him if--if--it's really true!"

  Jenkins took the receiver from my nerveless hand and spoke into thephone. "Yes, sir. I'll tell him, yes, sir." He rang off and turned tome, his long face graver than ever.

  "He says there is no mistake, sir. And he'd be obliged if you and Mr.Trenton would receive Detective Jones and give him all necessaryinformation, sir."

  "Would you tell him--now?" I asked dully.

  "It would be far kinder, sir," answered Jenkins. "I'm very sorry, sir."

  I went slowly back into the library wondering how best to break the newsto Mr. Trenton. My face must have told him much, for he sprang toward mewith a sharp exclamation.

  "Dick!" he cried. "You have news of Dick?"

  I nodded, for I was unable to speak.

  "Don't keep me in suspense, Carlton! What is it? Have they--" Then heturned away and sought a chair. "You need not tell me," he said veryquietly. "I know that he is dead."

  "Yes." I found my voice, but I hardly knew it for my own. "Yes, he--hedrowned himself in the East River early this morning!"