The Trail of the Green Doll

by Margaret Sutton

  CHAPTER XIX More Revelations

  Peter had been in the next room making plans with the children. Judyknew, even before she asked him, that they were going to explore theruins of the Riker mansion. It did surprise her, though, when he saidthe magician was going with them.

  “For goodness sake, why?” she wanted to know. “Does he think he can wavehis wand over it and make it rise up out of the ashes?”

  Peter just grinned in that impish way Judy loved. He had found outsomething important, but so had she.

  “I can hardly wait to tell you,” she said, “but first you must tell me.Are we really on the trail of the real green doll? It _was_ Sita. I’msure of it now. And more than ever I want to bring Rama and Sitatogether. It may not be bad luck to separate two statues, but it surelyis to separate two people who love each other.”

  “I know what you mean,” Peter said. “I heard you and Helen Rikertalking. She’s told you something important. I can see it in your eyes.”

  “Yes, Peter, she has.” Judy was still too filled with the hypnotic storyof Rama and Sita to tell Peter much about it, but she did say, “She toldme Philip and Paul Riker were twins and that she loved them both. It wasPhilip who took the statue of Sita and gave it to her. She knew it wasstolen, but it was hard for her to gather up enough courage to bring itback. She was afraid of old Mr. Riker, and no wonder! Now she thinks hewas hiding in a cave under the vault on purpose to scare people. She’safraid of meeting him or anyone—”

  “She’ll have to meet the magician,” Peter broke in. “I told you he isgoing with us.”

  “If you don’t mind,” Helen Riker said, coming into the room just then,“I’d rather not go. Why don’t you take the children and let themexplore? I’d rather stay here and rest.”

  “We could do that. What do you say, Angel?”

  “You mean me?” Judy asked.

  She had been off on a flight of fancy. If Peter could have known herthoughts he might have called her Cupid instead of Angel. “If we couldonly find Paul Riker and patch up the old romance,” she was thinking.Aloud, she said to Peter, “There must be some way of finding out what wewant to know without resorting to magic. I’m not at all sure I approveof inviting the magician to go with us.”

  “Penny and Paul approve, don’t you think?”

  Their approval was almost too enthusiastic.

  “He can do anything,” Penny insisted.

  “You ought to tell them this magician, whoever he is, can’t workmiracles,” their mother said a little impatiently.

  “Maybe he can,” Peter replied, his eyes twinkling.

  “I’m afraid I don’t like this sudden power he has over the children,”Mrs. Riker said. “Why did you go there, Paul? Tell me the truth, now!”

  “I had to, Mom,” he replied. “I wanted him to pick Penny for the magicshow. We’re going to join the club and wear black spots on ourforeheads—”

  “But that’s the sign of the Destroyer,” Judy said.

  “We know,” Paul said, “and it was the Destroyer on Uncle Paul’s tomb.Are we going back there? When are we going to start?”

  “Right now,” Peter told them, “with your mother’s permission, of course.Better wrap up good and warm. It’s going to be a cold climb up thosesteps to the vault. The cave underneath, if we can find it, may be evencolder.”

  “Is Blackberry going?” Paul wanted to know, when they were ready tostart.

  “It looks that way,” replied Peter. “Judy has him in the car. He’swaiting for you on top of the back seat. Come along now, and keep himcompany.”

  Judy felt a little uneasy about leaving Mrs. Riker by herself, andtelephoned her mother before she left. Mrs. Bolton agreed to come overand meet her and keep her company while the doctor went out on hiscalls.

  “Is it all right if Horace and Honey come along with me?” Judy’s motherasked. “They’re here now. We all went to church together.”

  “I went to Sunday school, but only long enough to listen to one hymn.Mrs. Riker will tell you about it. That is, if she feels like talking.If she doesn’t, don’t urge her. She may just want to rest. We’re leavingright now, Mom, and much as I love him, I don’t want Horace with us.We’ll give him another stick full of news. Tell him that and bless you,Motherkins, for doing a good deed and being my guardian angel.”

  Mrs. Bolton sounded a little baffled as she hung up. Judy could hear aprotesting noise over the telephone.

  “Mom should be used to me by now,” she told Peter as she climbed in thecar beside him. “I think she rather enjoys being mystified. Seriously,though, I don’t think it’s fair to make children believe in magic. Theyshould be told a little about how stage tricks are performed—”

  “The trouble is,” Peter said, “I don’t know myself how they’reperformed, do you?”

  “No,” she replied, giggling.

  “Well, here we are,” Peter announced, a little later, stopping before arambling ranch house.

  It was one of the more expensive homes in the new suburban development.Judy was surprised to find the Drans living in such luxury. The boysalways spoke of their parents as if they were in modest circumstances.

  “Is the magician Mr. Dran?” Judy wondered.

  Then the thought came to her that the boys’ mother might have married asecond time. Before she could explore this possibility the magicianhimself appeared at the door. A moment later he entered the car likeanyone else, without tricks. The door stuck a little and Peter had tohelp him open it. He was not introduced. Judy thought he seemed a littleuncomfortable at first, but the children’s enthusiasm was contagious.Soon he was answering all sorts of questions.

  It developed that he had studied magic in India and had learned some ofthe tricks discovered by ancient Hindu fakirs. He was telling thechildren that he could place a living head on a table and make it talkto them, when Judy interrupted.

  “Magic is all right in its place,” she said, “but don’t you think you’recarrying things a little too far? You’ve made the children believe youcan do practically anything.”

  “Aha!” he said. “Is that what they told you? I must be like themany-headed demon Ravana in the story. Is that what you think, you youngrajah?”

  Paul grinned as if he liked being called a rajah and said, “Mom knowsthat story, too. She told it to me because my name is Paul Riker for myuncle Paul, not the old uncle that built the tomb, but the young uncleshe used to play with. She didn’t tell Penny about young Uncle Paul,because Penny can’t keep secrets.”

  “Was it a secret?” the magician asked.

  “Oh, yes, Mom never told anyone but me. When you love two people and canonly marry one of them you have to keep it a secret that you still lovethe other. Besides, Mom meant to give back the statue of Sita, becauseit belonged in the collection. But now she can’t, because those bad menstole it.”

  “Where did she get it? Do you know?”

  “My father gave it to her when she was just a little girl,” Paulreplied. “I can tell it now, because I heard her telling Judy. I stilldon’t get it, though. In the story Ravana told Sita he could changehimself into Rama at will. But he wouldn’t do it, because he wanted herto love him for himself. Sita knew that would mean loving evil insteadof good, and so she kept repeating, ‘Rama! Rama! Rama! I seek theewithin me and my senses are sealed.’”

  “I know that part,” squealed Penny. “The name, Rama, magicked her so shecould see no evil, hear no evil, and speak no evil. We have the threelittle monkeys. They aren’t green like Sita. They’re on a desk blotterMommy bought in the ten-cent store.”

  “I’ve seen those three little monkeys on desk blotters lots of times!”exclaimed Judy. “Horace used to have them on his desk. I never knewwhere the idea came from, though.”

  The magician laughed.

  “Well, now you know. They were part of the monkey band who rescued Sitafrom the demon’s cave. You’ve taught us something, Penny.”


  Judy, turning around, could see a puzzled expression on the littlegirl’s face as she replied, “But you already knew.”

  Peter had appeared to be concentrating on his driving, but Judy couldtell he was listening with interest to the conversation that was goingon behind him. When Judy told how the children’s mother rememberedplaying the story of the “Ramayana,” the magician said, in an oddlydifferent voice, “Ask her to write it down just as she remembers it,please. We may have time to put it on as an extra attraction.”

  “That’s a wonderful idea!” exclaimed Judy. “I’d love to see it. But whowill take the parts? Do you think the children will have time to learnthem?”

  “A narrator can read them,” he replied, “but without the little idolsthe play may not have much meaning. We must all look for them.”

  There it was again! They were supposed to look for things in spite ofthe warning. Judy was determined to find out the truth.

  “We were warned not to,” she said. “Did you warn us?”

  Now the magician seemed puzzled.

  “Not to _what_?”

  “Not to look for it. We weren’t told what _it_ was we weren’t to lookfor. The voice came from the trees,” Judy told him.

  “The trees on your place?” he asked.

  They had reached their destination, but the conversation held them asthey started walking toward the ruined mansion.

  “Yes,” Judy replied. “I thought maybe you could throw your voice orsomething. Were you ever there?”

  “I can’t say that I’ve had the pleasure,” he replied. “The children weretalking among themselves about having a magic show in some barn orother, but I don’t remember throwing my voice for them. And we were nearno barn. Mr. Brown offered his home for the magic show, because it doeshave a large recreation room. I told him I would need a stage and hepromised to build one. Some of my tricks are rather elaborate. They needprops. But everything is there.”

  “Then it is just an ordinary magic show. Nothing unusual?”

  “I hope,” he replied, and Judy was sure he and Peter exchanged a glance,“there will be something very unusual. Something very unusual indeed!”