“She’s been too scared to study or anything, ever since Monday,” says Jill. “Do you think they’ll have a policeman take her away before she poisons us all? We heard Aunt Martha say they ought to.”
Say, they had the whole story, and more too. If there was anything about Madame Roulaire’s actions, her past hist’ry, or what people thought of her that had got by these two, I’d like to know what it was.
“Gee!” says I. “Talk about protectin’ you! What you need most is a pair of gags and some blinders. Now trot along off and do your worst, while I look up Pinckney and give him some advice.”
I was strollin’ through the house lookin’ for him, and I’d got as far as the lib’ry, when who should I see but Madame Roulaire comin’ through the opposite door. Someway, I didn’t feel like meetin’ them sleuthy eyes just then, or seein’ that smirky smile; so I dodges back and pikes down the hall. She must have had the same thought; for we almost collides head on halfway down, and the next thing I know she’s dropped onto a davenport, sobbin’ and shakin’ all over.
“Excuse me for mentionin’ it,” says I; “but there ain’t any call for hysterics.”
“Oh, I know who you are now,” says she. “You—you’re a private detective!”
“Eh?” says I. “How’d you get onto my disguise?”
“I knew it from the first,” says she. “And then, when I saw you with the children, asking them about me——Oh, you won’t arrest me and take me away from the darlings, will you? Please don’t take me to jail! I’ll tell you everything, truly I will, sir!”
“That might help some,” says I; “but, if you’re goin’ to ’fess up, suppose you begin at Chapter I. Was it the fam’ly jewels you was after?”
“No, no!” says she. “I never took a penny’s worth in my life. Truckles could tell you that if he could only be here.”