“I reserved the room by letter,” the woman informed him coldly.
“It was never received here I am sure.”
“No doubt the letter was lost.”
“You are certain it was sent?”
“Of course I am,” Mrs. Leeds declared icily. “My daughter mailed it. Didn’t you, Alicia, my dear?”
A queer expression passed over the girl’s face. It struck Penny that she probably had forgotten to post the letter. However, Alicia staunchly maintained that she had.
“It’s most provoking that you have misplaced the reservation,” Mrs. Leeds said irritably to the clerk. “But of course we can have the room?”
“I am afraid that is impossible, Mrs. Leeds. The room you wanted was reserved for two young ladies.” With a nod of his head the clerk indicated Penny and Rosanna.
Mrs. Leeds and her daughter turned to stare somewhat haughtily.
“What other room can you give us then?” the woman demanded angrily.
The clerk cast Mr. Nichols a despairing glance. He knew he was in for trouble.
“Practically everything is taken, Mrs. Leeds. In fact the only available room is on the top floor.”
“And you expect us to take that?” Mrs. Leeds cried, her voice rising until everyone in the lobby could hear. “I never heard of such outrageous treatment. Call the manager!”
Penny had risen to her feet. She moved quickly forward.
“There’s no need to do that,” she said pleasantly. “If Rosanna doesn’t mind, I am perfectly willing to exchange rooms with Mrs. Leeds.”
“Why, of course,” Rosanna agreed. “It doesn’t matter to me where I sleep.”
Satisfied at having her own way, Mrs. Leeds quieted down. She even thanked the girls graciously for the sacrifice they had made. The clerk gave out the keys.
“Why did you do that?” Mr. Nichols asked gruffly as he and the girls followed a bellboy to the elevator. “Your room up by the roof will be hot as blazes.”
“I know, but I didn’t see any sense in making such a fuss over a room, Dad. Besides, it’s only for one night.”
“I’d insist that you girls take my room if it had a double bed.”
Penny shook her head.
“No, you came here for a rest. Rosanna and I really won’t mind.”
The three entered the elevator and a minute later Mrs. Leeds and her daughter likewise stepped into the lift.
“I hope you girls will not find it uncomfortable on the top floor,” Mrs. Leeds remarked, trying to make pleasant conversation.
“It isn’t very warm tonight,” Penny returned politely. “Besides, it will only be for one night. We’re going on to Raven Ridge in the morning.”
The elevator was whizzing them upward.
“Did you say Raven Ridge?” Mrs. Leeds questioned sharply.
“Yes.”
A queer expression had come into Mrs. Leeds sharp, blue eyes. She seemed on the verge of speaking, then apparently changed her mind.
The elevator stopped at the third floor. Without a word, the woman urged her daughter out the door, following her down the hall.
CHAPTER IV
A Face at the Window
The little room on the top floor of the hotel was as hot and unpleasant as Mr. Nichols had predicted. Even with all the windows open wide the air still seemed close.
“Rosanna, I shouldn’t have forced you into this,” Penny said apologetically.
“I’ve slept in far worse places than this,” Rosanna laughed. “We have a comfortable bed and a private bath. I didn’t fare half so well at Mrs. Bridges.”
“You’re a good sport anyway, Rosanna. That’s more than could be said for Mrs. Leeds or her daughter.”
“I wonder how old the girl is? She looked about our age.”
“I’d guess she was two or three years older,” Penny returned. “She had so much paint on it was hard to tell.”
Both girls were tired from the long day’s drive. Rosanna immediately began to undress. Penny sat on the edge of the bed, thoughtfully staring into space.
“Did it strike you as queer the way Mrs. Leeds acted when I mentioned we were going to Raven Ridge tomorrow?” she questioned her companion.
Rosanna kicked off her slippers before replying.
“Well, come to think of it, she did look a little startled. She put on such a scene downstairs that I didn’t pay much attention.”
“We’ll probably never see her again.” With a shrug of her slim shoulders Penny arose and began to unpack her overnight bag.
According to the plan which they had worked out with Mr. Nichols, the girls expected to leave for Raven Ridge the next morning directly after breakfast. It was their intention to motor to the mountain resort, inspect the Winters’ property and see if they could learn anything concerning Rosanna’s uncle. They intended to return either the next night or the one following.
Few guests were abroad when the detective joined the girls at breakfast. It was only a little after seven o’clock.
“Sleep well?” he inquired, looking over the menu.
“Not very,” Penny admitted truthfully. She might have added more had not Mrs. Leeds and her daughter entered the dining room at that moment. The two bowed slightly and selected a table in the opposite corner of the room.
“Social climbers,” Mr. Nichols said in an undertone. “I can tell their type a mile away.”
Breakfast finished, the girls prepared to leave for Raven Ridge. Their bags were already packed and downstairs.
“Now drive cautiously over the mountain roads,” the detective warned as he accompanied the girls to the waiting car. “If you can’t get back by evening send me a wire.”
As Penny took her place at the steering wheel she observed that Mrs. Leeds’ automobile had been brought to the hotel entrance by an attendant. Apparently, she too was making an early morning departure.
“You’re not listening to a word I am saying!” Mr. Nichols said severely.
“Yes, I am.” Penny’s attention came back to the conversation. “I’ll drive carefully and deliver your precious car back to you without a scratch.”
“I wasn’t exactly worried about the car.”
“Well, there’s no need to be uneasy about Rosanna or me. We’ll have no trouble.”
With a laugh of careless confidence, Penny started the car and drove slowly away. It was not the first time she had driven over mountainous roads. She handled the wheel exceptionally well and used due caution on all of the sharp curves. The brakes were good but she dared not apply them too steadily on the steep inclines.
“We’ll have to rush if we get back to Mt. Ashland this evening,” Penny announced, slowing down to read a signpost. “I declare, a mountain mile seems to be three times the length of an ordinary mile.”
They had gone only a short distance farther when a tire went down. Penny knew it instantly by the feel of the steering wheel. She pulled off at the side of the road.
“Now we are in it,” she said in deep disgust. “At least ten miles from a garage. I can change wheels on my own car, but I doubt if I can on Dad’s automobile.”
The girls waited for a few minutes hoping that someone would come along to help. When no one did, Penny dragged out the tools, and after considerable trouble succeeded in jacking up the rear axle.
“I see a car coming,” Rosanna reported hopefully.
“Let’s flag it,” Penny suggested. “I could do with a little masculine help.”
In response to her signal of distress, the approaching automobile slowed down. The driver was a man and there were no passengers.
“He’s stopping,” Penny said in relief.
There was a screech of brakes as the automobile came almost to a standstill. Then surprisingly, it speeded up again. But not before Penny had caught a fleeting glimpse of the driver’s face.
“Well, of all things!” Rosanna exclaimed indignantly. “I call that a mean trick.”
“I believe he was afraid to stop,” Penny announced excitedly. “I think I recognized him. It was the same man who stole the ring from Bresham’s Department Store!”
“Are you sure?” Rosanna demanded incredulously.
“I couldn’t be absolutely certain, of course. He was traveling too fast for me to catch more than a passing glimpse of his face. But if he didn’t recognize us, why did he slow down and then speed up?”
“He did act suspiciously. But what can we do about it?”
“Nothing, I’m afraid. We may as well devote our energies to this wheel.”
Rosanna was more than eager to help but she had never even seen a tire changed and had no idea how to go about it. After a little annoying experimentation, Penny got the wheel in place and tightened the lugs.
“There, it’s done,” she said in relief, “but my dress is a mess. I’m afraid we’ll have to stop at the first garage and have the old wheel fixed, for I don’t carry another spare.”
A signpost at the next bend in the road advised them that Simpson’s Garage was located only six miles away. They made it in a few minutes. There was no town, only a post office, one general store, and the garage which obviously was a remodeled blacksmith shop.
“I’m glad it’s nothing more than a tire which needs repairing,” Penny commented as the garageman came to learn what they wanted.
He promised that the tire would be ready in half an hour. Glancing at her wrist watch, Penny saw that it was already past lunch time. She inquired if there was a cafe nearby.
“Not in Hamilton, there ain’t,” the garageman told her. “Ma Stevens, across the street in the big white house, serves meals to tourists now and then.”
Rather than spend an unpleasant half hour in the garage, the girls walked over to the rambling white house. They were reassured to see that the yard was well kept and that everything appeared orderly and clean.
“Let’s take a chance on the food,” Penny decided. “I’m hungry enough to eat a fried board!”
Mrs. Stevens, a motherly looking woman in a blue checked gingham dress, opened the door. She looked slightly troubled at their request for food.
“It’s later than I usually serve,” she explained. Then noticing their disappointed faces, she added hastily: “But if you’re not too particular, I can find you something.”
The “something” consisted of a generous platter of mountain trout, fresh from the stream and fried to a golden brown, French fried potatoes, a salad, and cherry pie.
“Dear me, after such a meal, we may not be able to get to Raven Ridge,” Penny remarked, finishing her second piece of pie. “I never ate so much in my life.”
“Did you say you were going to Raven Ridge?” Mrs. Stevens inquired.
“Yes, we’re waiting now to have a tire patched.”
“You’re the second party through here today that’s heading for Raven Ridge,” Mrs. Stevens informed. “A man stopped for lunch about an hour ago. Only he thought it wasn’t cooked well enough for him.”
“He must have been particular,” Penny commented. “What did he look like?”
“He was tall and dark and he had a sharp way of watching one.”
“I wonder if it could have been that man who passed us on the road?” Penny mused. “Was he driving a gray coupé?”
“Yes, I believe he was.”
Penny was convinced that the man Mrs. Stevens described was the same person who had declined to help her on the road. She wondered what business took him to Raven Ridge. Could she have been mistaken in believing him to be the thief who had stolen the diamond ring?
Paying for the luncheon, the girls went back to the garage. The tire was ready for them. Soon they were on their way again.
They had driven for perhaps an hour when Penny observed that the road seemed to be leading them out of the mountains. She began to wonder if they had taken a wrong turn. She stopped at the next filling station to inquire. To her dismay, she was told that she had traveled nearly twenty miles out of her way.
“I thought this didn’t seem like the right road,” Penny declared ruefully to her companion. “Now we’ll be lucky to get to Raven Ridge by dinner time, to say nothing of returning to Mt. Ashland tonight.”
“I’ve put you to a great deal of trouble,” Rosanna said regretfully.
“Not at all. This trip to Raven Ridge is an adventure, and I like it. It will be more fun to stay over night anyway.”
An occasional road marker reassured the girls that at last they were on the right highway. The mountain curves were sharp, and Penny did not make as good time as she had anticipated. She became a little alarmed to see that storm clouds were rapidly gathering.
“It looks as if we may have rain,” Rosanna commented.
“A great deal of it, I’d judge. Those clouds are black as ink.”
In less than half an hour the storm struck them in full force. A great gust of wind dashed huge drops of water against the windshield, there was a vivid flash of lightning, then the rain came down in steady sheets.
Even with the wiper going Penny could see only a few feet ahead of the windshield. She pulled up under a huge oak tree at the side of the road. The girls waited a quarter of an hour and still the rain fell in torrents. At length, however, it slackened slightly, and not wishing to lose any more time, Penny cautiously drove on.
“It can’t last much longer,” Rosanna said optimistically.
Despite her hopeful words, the rain showed no sign of stopping. Penny reconciled herself to a slow pace for the remainder of the journey. She was beginning to grow tired. Her back and arms ached and it was a strain to keep such close watch of the road.
With the sun hidden from view, night came on early. Nervous at the thought of driving over unfamiliar mountain roads after dark, the girls did not stop for dinner. Nine o’clock, in a pouring rain, found them drawn up at a filling station to inquire how much farther it was to Raven Ridge.
“Why, you’re practically there now,” the attendant informed. “What place are you looking for?”
“The Jacob Winters’ estate,” Penny replied.
“Then keep on this road for about two miles more. When you come to the top of the ridge, take the gravel road to the left. It will lead you to the house. There’s no one there though, unless maybe a caretaker.”
“Oh,” Penny murmured, “then perhaps you can direct us to a place where we can spend the night.”
“The nearest is at the town of Andover, five miles beyond the Winters’ place.”
The girls thanked the man for his assistance, and once more followed the winding road up the mountainside.
“Shall we go on to Andover or stop at the Winters’ house?” Penny asked her companion.
“I don’t know what to do,” Rosanna faltered. “We’re both so tired.”
“The place surely must have a caretaker, Rosanna. Let’s take a chance and stop.”
At the top of the ridge they watched for the gravel road and were elated to find it. The entrance was barred by a white gate. Rosanna stepped out in the rain to open it.
“This may have been a foolish thing to do,” Penny admitted as they drove between tall rows of whispering pines. “We could have gone on to Andover only I dreaded driving down the mountainside with slippery roads.”
Rosanna huddled closer to her friend. The road was dark and the rustling of the wind in the pine needles made her uneasy.
Soon they came within view of the house. It was built of native stone, half hidden by the luxuriant growth of shrubbery and trees which surrounded it. No lights gleamed in the windows.
“There’s no one here,” Rosanna declared.
“Let’s knock anyway. The caretaker may be at the rear somewhere.”
They parked the car as close to the front door as possible and made a dash for the porch. Penny knocked several times on the massive door but there was no response.
“We might try your key, Rosanna,” she proposed. “If it fits I’ll begin to think there’s something to that mysterious letter you received.”
Rosanna groped in her pocketbook for the key. Impatient for action, Penny turned the handle of the door. To her astonishment the latch clicked.
“Why, the door is already unlocked, Rosanna!”
“But of course we won’t dare go in.”
“Why not?”
“Well, it doesn’t seem right. The people may not be at home.”
“Someone must be around or the door wouldn’t be unlocked. Besides, you have a key, Rosanna. And according to the letter, this is your inheritance.”
Penny swung wide the door. She peered inside but could see nothing. Her hand groped for the electric switch. She found the button by the door and pressed it. Instantly everything was flooded with light.
The girls found themselves in a long, narrow living room. The ceiling was beamed, the furniture was rustic, and a great fireplace occupied one end of the wall.
Penny crossed over to the hearth. There was no fire but logs were in readiness to make one.
“I don’t feel right about coming in here,” Rosanna said nervously.
“Nonsense, if it’s your property you’re not trespassing,” Penny insisted. “Besides, it looks to me as if you were expected, for everything seems in readiness for guests. I’m going to build a fire and see if I can’t thaw out my chilled bones.”
Reluctantly, Rosanna went to help her. Soon they had a roaring fire in the hearth. As they grew more comfortable they took more interest in their surroundings. The room was plainly but expensively furnished. Curious objects from many lands occupied the tables and bric-a-brac shelves.
“Your uncle must have lived an interesting life,” Penny commented, picking up a tiny ivory box from a nearby stand.
“Yes, Mother often told me——”
Rosanna’s voice broke in the midst of the sentence. Turning, Penny saw that her friend’s eyes were fastened upon the window. All color had drained from Rosanna’s face. Her eyes were dilated with fear.
“What is it?” Penny demanded.
Rosanna clutched her hand.
“I saw someone just then,” she whispered. “A man’s face at the window!”
CHAPTER V
The Lost Key
Penny turned quickly toward the window. She saw nothing save the rain trickling down the panes.
“You must have imagined it, Rosanna.”
“No, I didn’t. I know I saw a face.”
Rosanna huddled close to Penny. She was afraid.
“I’ll go and look out,” Penny proposed daringly.
Before Rosanna could stop her she moved to the door and flung it open. A man in oilskins confronted her. His face was half hidden by the felt hat which he wore low over his eyes.
“What do you want?” Penny asked nervously.
Without answering, the man stepped into the room. Under the electric light he did not look as terrifying as he had at first glance. Penny saw when he swept off his dripping hat that he was an elderly man although spry for his years. She felt slightly reassured.
“I came to find out what you mean by entering Mr. Winters’ house when he’s away?” the man demanded curtly. “Don’t stand there staring like a blind owl! Answer.”
Rosanna had completely lost her power of speech, so Penny tried to explain the situation. She told how they had been caught by the storm and mentioned Rosanna’s key and letter which gave her right to investigate the property.
“So you’re old Jacob Winters’ niece?” the man questioned gruffly, peering intently at Rosanna. “At least that’s what you say.”
“Of course he’s my uncle, although I never saw him,” Rosanna defended. “I can prove it by my letter.”
“Probably wrote it yourself,” the man snapped. “But let’s see it anyway.”
“Just a minute,” Penny interposed, feeling that it was time the newcomer answered a few questions of his own. “Are you the caretaker of this house?”
“Yes, and no. I’m a neighbor of Mr. Winters and he asked me to keep an eye on his house while he was away. I saw the light in the windows and came to see what was wrong.”
“My uncle is dead,” Rosanna said quietly. “I have inherited the estate.”
“Jacob Winters dead!” the man exploded. “Why, I had a card from him last week. Mailed from some place down in Africa. Let me see that letter you claim to have.”
Rosanna opened her pocketbook and searched for it. A troubled look came over her face. She was certain she had placed both the letter and the key in the inside compartment. Now she could find neither.
“So you haven’t got it?” the man said suspiciously.
“I must have it somewhere. I can’t imagine how I misplaced it. You remember the letter don’t you, Penny?”
“Of course. You had it in your pocketbook the last time I saw it. We’re telling you the absolute truth Mr.——”
“Caleb Eckert,” he supplied. “If you didn’t have a key how did you get into the house?”
“Why, the door was open—that is, it was unlocked,” Penny explained.
Caleb Eckert peered at her sharply as if trying to make up his mind if she were speaking the truth. Rosanna, who by this time had emptied her purse out upon the table, was growing more upset every minute.
“Oh, let’s leave this house, Penny,” she burst out. “I’ve lost the letter and the key and so we’ve no right to be here at all. I didn’t mean to trespass. I wish we’d never have come at all. That letter has caused me so much grief.”
Rosanna looked as if she might cry at any moment. Caleb Eckert softened.
“Now, I wouldn’t want you to go out into this storm. As far as I’m concerned you may stay here for the night.”
“We don’t care to intrude,” Rosanna said stiffly.
“It isn’t safe to go down the mountain in this rain,” the man declared, adopting a more friendly tone. “Now don’t be offended by the way I acted. My bark is worse than my bite.”
“We can’t blame you for being suspicious,” Penny admitted. “It may be that someone played a joke on Rosanna in sending her the letter and key. We were afraid of that from the first.”
Caleb Eckert’s eyes roved to the crackling fire, then to the splattered windows.
“Tell you what,” he proposed gruffly. “You girls stay here for the night. In the morning we’ll see if we can’t straighten things out.”
“But if Mr. Winters is alive we have no right to use this house,” Rosanna protested weakly.
“You’re his niece, aren’t you?” Caleb demanded. “Jacob Winters wouldn’t turn anyone out in a storm, much less one of his own kin folks. Have you had supper?”
The girls admitted that they had not had any food since lunch time. Caleb led them to the kitchen, showing them where canned goods were stored.
“If you’re handy with a can opener there’s no need to starve,” he declared.
The girls thanked him for his trouble. Rosanna timidly ventured a few questions concerning her uncle.
“Did you never see him?” Caleb asked.
“No, once I wrote him a letter but he never answered. I’ve heard Uncle Jacob was very eccentric.”
“Some might call him that. He liked to live alone and mind his own business which is more than most folks do. He traveled a lot too. I guess he must have visited every country in the world.” He added slyly: “If Jacob is dead, you’ll come into possession of some valuable things.”
“I hope that nothing has happened to him,” Rosanna said sincerely. “I don’t really care for riches. All I want is a home.”
“Jacob Winters never liked girls.”
“I know,” Rosanna sighed. “I guess that’s why he never answered my letter.”
“You counted a lot on the inheritance, didn’t you?” Caleb questioned shrewdly.
Rosanna flushed but did not deny the accusation.
“I thought that it might make my future more secure,” she acknowledged. “Since Mother died I’ve battered around from one rooming house to another. But even if I don’t come into the inheritance, I’ll be glad that my uncle is still alive.”
“I don’t know that he is,” Caleb Eckert said hastily. “He was alive when he sent that postcard from Africa. Since then we’ve had no word from him here at Raven Ridge.”
While the girls prepared food for themselves, Caleb sat by the kitchen stove watching. He showed them how to start a fire in the range but would not partake of supper when it was cooked.
“Had mine four hours ago. I’ll show you where you can sleep and be getting on home.”
“Do you live near here?” Penny asked curiously.
“Not far. If the rain would let up you could see my cabin through the dining room window. It’s perched on the edge of the cliff, overlooking Lake Chippewa.”
Rosanna remarked that the scenery around Raven Ridge must be beautiful.
“’Tis,” Caleb agreed enthusiastically. “You’ll have to walk down to the lake in the morning. There are some mighty pretty trails to follow too.”
“If we have time before we go, we’ll surely explore,” Penny promised.
Caleb conducted them upstairs, opening the door of one of the bedrooms. It was stuffy and dusty but otherwise ready for occupancy. Penny turned back the coverlet of the bed and found that it was equipped with clean sheets and blankets. The furniture was massive and all hand carved.
“I guess you can make out here for one night,” Caleb said.
“We’ll be very comfortable,” Penny assured him.
Returning to the lower floor, Caleb lighted his lantern and prepared to leave. With his hand on the door knob he turned to face the girls again.
“Oh, yes, there was something I forgot to mention. If you hear queer noises in the night don’t be upset.”
“Queer noises?” Penny echoed.
Caleb nodded soberly.
“Folks around here claim the house is haunted but I never took stock in such stories myself. I just thought I’d warn you.”
And before the girls could recover from their astonishment, he firmly closed the door, disappearing into the rain.
CHAPTER VI
Midnight Visitors
“I wish,” Rosanna commented emphatically, “that I had never brought you to this queer old house.”
Penny laughed as she went over to the fireplace and dropped on another stick of wood. She stood watching the sparks fly up the chimney.
“I think Caleb Eckert was only trying to be funny when he warned us of ghosts,” she declared. “At any rate, I’m too tired and sleepy to care much whether the place is haunted or not.”
“It’s a good night to sleep,” Rosanna admitted, going to the window. “I believe the storm is getting worse.”
Rain pounded steadily upon the roof and the wind was rising. It whistled weirdly around the corners of the house. The tall maple trees which shaded the front porch bent and twisted and snapped.
For a time the girls sat before the fire. Presently Penny suggested that they retire.
“I don’t believe I can sleep a wink tonight,” Rosanna protested. “Even though Caleb Eckert said it was all right for us to stay here, I don’t feel entirely easy about it.”
“I don’t see why not,” Penny protested as they mounted the creaking stairs to their bedroom. “According to the letter, you’ve inherited the house. And you have a key.”
“I had a key you mean. I can’t understand how or where I lost it.”
In thinking back over the activities of the day, Rosanna could not recall taking either the key or the letter from her purse. However, several times for one purpose or another she had opened her pocketbook, and it was quite likely that the articles had fallen out unobserved. She thought possibly she might find them on the floor of Penny’s car. She intended to search in the morning.
The upstairs room was damp and chilly. The girls hurriedly prepared to retire. Penny put up the window, snapped out the light and made a great running leap which landed her in bed.
“Listen to the wind howl,” she murmured, snuggling drowsily into her pillow. “Just the night for ghosts to be abroad.”
“Don’t!” Rosanna shivered, gripping her friend’s hand. “I can almost imagine that someone is coming up the stairway now! I’m afraid of this lonely old house.”
“I won’t let any mean old ghost get you,” Penny chuckled teasingly. “I love stormy nights.”
Rosanna lay awake long after her companion had fallen asleep. She listened restlessly to the crash of the tree branches against the roof, the creaking of old timbers and boards. But the steady beat of rain on the windowpanes had a soothing effect upon tense nerves. Presently she dozed.
Suddenly she found herself wide awake. She sat upright in bed, straining to hear. She was convinced that some unusual sound had aroused her.
Then she heard it again. A peculiar pounding noise downstairs.
She clutched Penny by the arm.
“What is it?” the latter muttered drowsily.
“Wake up! I think someone is trying to break into the house!”
As the words penetrated Penny’s consciousness, she became instantly alert. She too sat up, listening. Someone was pounding on the front door.
“What shall we do?” Rosanna whispered in terror.
Penny sprang from bed and snapped on the light. “I’m going to dress and go down. It may be Caleb Eckert.”
“Or a ghost,” Rosanna chattered. “If you’re going down, so am I.”
With the appearance of a light in the bedroom, the clanging on the door increased in violence. Penny, who was dressing as rapidly as she could, began to grow irritated.
“Are they trying to break down the door?” she grumbled. “I should think whoever it is would know we’re hurrying.”
Without delaying to lace up her shoes, she ran down the stairs, Rosanna close at her elbow. Before snapping on the living room lights the girls peered out the window.
Slightly reassured by the appearance of the midnight visitors, they cautiously unbolted the front door.
Mrs. Everett Leeds and her daughter Alicia, swept into the room. Both were bedraggled and obviously out of sorts.
Mrs. Leeds shook the rain from her cape, flung her wet hat into the nearest chair, and then coldly surveyed the two girls.
“What are you doing here, may I ask?” she inquired.
“We were sleeping,” Penny smiled.
“I mean, what are you doing in this house?”
“It seems to belong to Rosanna,” Penny said evenly. “She inherited it from her uncle, Jacob Winters.”
Mrs. Leeds’ expression was difficult to interpret. For an instant she looked stunned. But she quickly recovered her poise.
“Nonsense!” she said shortly. “This house belongs to me. Jacob Winters was my cousin. He died recently, leaving me everything. I have a letter and key to prove it. Naturally I couldn’t use my key to get into the house for you had it bolted from the inside.”
Mrs. Leeds looked accusingly at the girls as she offered the letter to Penny. A casual glance assured the girls that it was identical with the one Rosanna had received and lost.
“It’s too late to go into this tonight,” Penny protested. “Let’s discuss it in the morning.”
“Very well,” Mrs. Leeds agreed coldly. “Where are we to sleep?”
Penny informed her that there were several empty bedrooms upstairs. She led the way to the upper floor. Opening the door of one of the rooms, she was surprised to see that it was not as well furnished as the bedroom which she and Rosanna shared. Mrs. Leeds uttered an exclamation of disgust.
“Surely you don’t expect me to sleep here, Miss Nichols. The room is dirty. Positively filthy.”
“Look at that long cobweb hanging from the ceiling!” Alicia added indignantly. “I’d have hysterics if I slept here.”
“Perhaps the adjoining room is better,” Penny commented.
An inspection revealed that if anything it was even more neglected.
“I’m afraid you’ll just have to make the best of it for tonight,” Penny declared, “unless you care to drive on to the next town.”
“We’ll stay,” Mrs. Leeds decided instantly. “I’d prefer to sit up all night, rather than brave those horrible mountain roads again.”
“We slipped into a ditch coming here,” Alicia informed. “That’s what made us so late. We’ve had a terrible time.”
In a closet at the end of the hall, Penny and Rosanna found blankets and linen. As they made up the beds, neither Mrs. Leeds nor her daughter offered to assist. It was after one o’clock when the girls went back to their own room.
“Mrs. Leeds means to make trouble about the inheritance,” Penny remarked in an undertone as they snapped out the light once more. “I wonder if by any chance she could have picked up your letter and key?”
“Oh, I doubt it,” Rosanna returned. “I remember when we were at Mt. Ashland she dropped the hint that she was going to Raven Ridge. At least, she acted strangely when we mentioned the place.”
“Yes, she did. I had forgotten for the moment. Oh well, in the morning we’ll learn exactly what she intends to do.”
Penny rolled over and soon was sleeping soundly. Toward morning she awoke to hear a clock somewhere in the house chiming four. At first she thought nothing of it, then it occurred to her that no one had wound any of the timepieces the previous evening. While she was musing over such an odd happening her keen ears detected the sound of soft footsteps in the long hall outside.
“It’s probably Mrs. Leeds or her daughter,” she reasoned.
The sounds persisted. At length Penny quietly arose and tiptoed to the door. She looked out into the dark hall. No one was within sight. Mrs. Leeds’ door was closed.
Penny went back to bed, taking care not to awaken Rosanna. Scarcely had she pulled the blankets up than the soft pad of footsteps could be heard again.
“I hope it isn’t that ghost Caleb warned us about,” she thought uneasily. “Oh, bother! I know there aren’t any ghosts!”
Penny closed her eyes and tried to sleep but found it quite impossible. Even after the noise in the hall ceased she caught herself listening for the footsteps. At a quarter to seven she dressed and stole downstairs to see what she could find for breakfast.
At eight o’clock when Rosanna came into the kitchen, Penny had coffee, cereal and crisp bacon ready.
“The larder seems very well supplied,” she informed cheerfully. “Someone left milk on our doorstep too. I imagine it must have been Caleb.”
“I’m hungry enough to eat anything,” Rosanna declared. “Shall I call Mrs. Leeds and Alicia?”
“Yes, do, although I don’t know how they’ll take to my cooking.”
Rosanna went upstairs to rap on Mrs. Leeds’ door. She returned a minute later, reporting that neither of the guests would be down for breakfast.
“They were quite put out at being disturbed so early,” she told Penny ruefully.
“We’ll let them get their own breakfasts then. Come on, we’ll have ours anyway.”
Penny had learned to cook very well under the tutelage of Mrs. Gallup. She had done remarkably well with the meager supplies at her disposal and Rosanna declared that the breakfast was excellent.
The girls had finished the dishes and were stacking them away when Alicia came down the stairs.
“Mother and I will take our breakfast now,” she informed.
Rosanna started toward the kitchen, but Penny neatly blocked the way.
“Sorry,” she said cheerfully, “but we’ve just finished ours. You’ll find supplies in the kitchen.”
Alicia started to reply but without waiting to hear what she might have to say, Penny and Rosanna went out the back door.
“While she cools off we may as well look over the grounds,” Penny laughed. “If Mrs. Leeds and Alicia expect to get along with me, they’ll have to learn that this household is going to operate on a cafeteria basis.”
From the rear door a sandstone path led down a steep incline to the brow of a high cliff. A river wound its way directly below, emptying into a crystal blue lake. Deep in the pine woods, some distance from the path, a cabin could be seen. The girls decided that it must belong to Caleb Eckert.
While they were admiring the rugged scenery, someone came up behind them. They wheeled about to face Caleb himself.
“Well, well, you both look bright and gay this morning,” he greeted heartily. “Sleep well?”
“Quite well,” Rosanna told him shyly. “That is, we did until the visitors arrived.”
“Visitors?”
Rosanna explained about Mrs. Leeds and her daughter while Penny added omitted details. For some reason they both were beginning to feel that Caleb was their ally.
“All this talk about letters and keys and inheritances certainly has me puzzled,” he proclaimed, shaking his head. “It’s hard to believe that Jacob Winters is dead. I think I’ll walk back to the house with you and have a little talk with Mrs. Leeds.”
“Did you leave milk at our doorstep this morning?” Penny questioned as they returned together.
Caleb admitted that he had placed it there.
“You’ve been very kind,” Rosanna said gratefully. “I want to thank you before we leave.”
“You’re not aiming to leave today?” Caleb asked quickly.
“Well, yes, I imagine we will. I don’t feel right about staying here.”
Caleb lowered his voice. “Take my advice, Miss Winters, and don’t leave while that other woman and her daughter are here. From what you’ve told me, I think they mean to grab the property.”
“But what can I do?” Rosanna asked helplessly. “I’ve lost my letter and the key. I haven’t any proof that the property was left to me.”
“Maybe this Leeds woman hasn’t any proof that it was left to her either,” Caleb said sagely. “Anyway, we’ll find out what she has to say.”
At first, Mrs. Leeds, accosted in the living room of the old house, had little comment to make. She was out of sorts from lack of sleep the previous night, and the breakfast which she and Alicia had endeavored to cook had not been a success. Nor was she impressed with Caleb who wore high boots, an old pair of dirty trousers and a crumpled felt hat.
“I don’t see why I should discuss my business affairs with you,” she said aloofly. “I have inherited this property from my cousin and I mean to remain here in possession of it indefinitely if necessary.”
“May I see the letter which you say you received?” Caleb inquired.
Mrs. Leeds hesitated, then reluctantly handed it over. Caleb studied it briefly and returned it.
“You will require more than this as evidence of Mr. Winters’ death,” he said quietly. “For all I know, you may have forged this letter.”
“Preposterous!” Mrs. Leeds snapped. “I refuse to discuss the matter with you further. I shall send for my attorney and he will straighten out everything.”
“Not without the will, he can’t,” Caleb returned grimly. “And there’s no telling what became of it.”
“The will?” Mrs. Leeds caught him up. “Are you sure there was a will?”
“Mr. Winters told me once that he had made one and hidden it somewhere in the house.”
“Then of course it can be found.”
“Mr. Winters wouldn’t want anyone prying around in his private papers,” Caleb insisted. “Until I have definite word that he is dead, I can’t let anyone hunt for it.”
“I shouldn’t call searching for the will exactly prying!” Mrs. Leeds retorted indignantly. “What right have you to say what is to be done here? Are you the caretaker?”
“Well, not exactly, but Mr. Winters asked me to look after things until he got back.”