“It was a bold attempt to forge success through dishonesty,” he concluded with humility.
Whether Ruth was altogether sure that Pike was quite honest in his confession or not, for Bella’s sake she could not be harsh with the old actor. Nor could he, Ruth believed, be wholly bad when he loved his child so much.
As he turned over to Ruth every scrap of manuscript, as well as the notebooks she had lost, she need not worry about establishing her ownership of the script.
When Mr. Hammond had examined her material he agreed with Ruth that in two quite important places Bella’s father had considerably improved the original idea of the story.
This gave Ruth the lead she had been looking for. Mr. Hammond admitted that the story was much too fine and too important to be filmed here at this summer camp. He decided to make a great spectacular production of it at the company’s main studio later in the fall.
So Ruth proceeded to force Bella’s father to accept two hundred dollars in payment for what he had done on the story. As her contract with Mr. Hammond called for a generous royalty, she would make much more out of the scenario than the sum John Pike had hoped to get by selling the stolen idea to Mr. Hammond.
The prospects of Bella and her father were vastly improved, too. His work as a “type” for picture makers would gain him a much better livelihood than he had been able to earn in the legitimate field. And when Ruth and her party left Beach Plum Point camp for home in their automobiles, Bella herself was working in a two-reel comedy that Mr. Hooley was directing.
“Well, thank goodness!” sighed Helen, “Ruth has settled affairs for two more of her ‘waifs and strays.’ Now don’t, I beg, find anybody else to become interested in during our trip back to the Red Mill, Ruthie.”
Ruth was sitting beside Tom on the front seat of the big touring car. He looked at her sideways with a whimsical little smile.
“I wish you would turn over a new leaf, Ruthie,” he whispered.