“An alligator!” Penny exclaimed aloud. “Such a horrid, ugly creature! And to think, I nearly put my hand in that water.”
She shivered and watched the movements of the alligator. Its head scooted smoothly over the water for a short distance. Then with a swish of its tail, the reptile submerged and the pool was as placid as before.
“Eight feet long if it’s an inch,” estimated Penny. “Why would any person in his right mind keep such a creature here? Why, it’s dangerous.”
She felt enraged, thinking how close she had come to touching the alligator. Yet justice compelled her to admit that she had only herself to blame. Deliberately, she had disregarded the warning not to explore the forbidden trail.
“The Kippenbergs keep nice pets,” she thought ironically. “If anyone fell into that pool it would be just too bad.”
Now that her curiosity was satisfied, Penny had not the slightest desire to linger near the lily pool. With another glance down into the murky depths she turned away, but she had taken less than a dozen steps when she paused. Her attention was held by a bright and shiny object which lay in the dust at her feet.
With a low cry of surprise she reached down and picked up a plain band of white gold. Obviously, it was a wedding ring.
“Now where did this come from?” Penny turned it over on the palm of her hand.
Startled thoughts leaped into her mind. She felt certain Grant Atherwald had taken this same path earlier in the afternoon. It was logical to believe that the ring had been his, intended for Sylvia Kippenberg. Had he lost the band accidentally or deliberately thrown it away?
Slowly, Penny’s gaze roved to the lily pond. She noted that the coping was so low that one who walked carelessly might easily stumble and fall into the water. It made her shudder to think of such a gruesome possibility, yet she could not avoid giving it consideration. For that matter, Grant Atherwald might have been lured to this isolated spot. The mysterious message—