CHAPTER XXXVI.

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 222, 1 October 1887, Page 8

CHAPTER XXXVI.

ivlT-Y MAKCS VN'OTHBU IMPORTANT DISCOVERY, TriERE was nob much rosfcful sleep for Ruby that night. She lay thinking, and trying to decide what coiuso she ought to pursue all through the long, weary hours which seemed as if they would never end and bring the welcome dawn. She wondered if ib would do to go to Estelle, tell her what sho had overheard, demand that she confers t!ic plot, and exonerate V','altcr. Then bhe remembered what she had told Edmund Carpenter — that "torture would not dia\. the confession from her ;" sho and liei aocoj ljjlicc would, of couive, deny all knowledge of any such comcrsation, while she would ha\e only her own ,vord to piovc il, and tl {)' would bo two against one. If she (!;ue'l search amour;: her tester's things for that bill, and could find it, she would ha\e Himo t xngible proof of what she had heaid : but she shrank fiom doing anything of the kind, while she doubted if Estelle — Mho v>a- evidently veiy much troubled to have il in her possession— would allow it to be away !''o:n he; person a moment until Aie 00r.1.1 transfer it to Mr Carpenter. She iev<i.ed at la-c that t.he would wait and bee n she mailed a letter to him in the Hi ol mi.;.;. If --he did, she would go directly to Mr Lonant, tell him what she had learned, md if he took prompt and decisive mea^uici, the bill might be dncoveied on Edmund Carpentei's person, and thus tho guilt of the whole hansaction -would be tivweivu to him. She \»a- on t-ho alcit the next morning, and \.hui Tl.om;i> erne in to take the mail .-iio iw Estelle give him three letters, .^he \ws in i!ie upper hall, looking over the bt-nit-teia, and then &he waited until Mrs Gordon v, >. nl back iaio tho library, when hi.c tuuicd lightly downstair?, and flew out of doc.i- attei tlie man. "Thomas, Thomas, are you going without m\ letter.'" she called out, in her blight, thei'iy way, that had made every ~ei\ant in the houte her faithful fiiend. "Ko indeed, mi- I',"1 '," he said, turning b.-ck a- tlr.b\ came up to him holding out a note chat she had written to her friend rioien> c Vaih'rdge, " but T thought likely tl c kviei - weic all heie. "' l> Xo \.ondei,' --aid Ruby, glancing at tho^e in hi-* hand, '' for you have three already. 1 wonder who has been so la.oiutdbymy skier;" and, standing on tiptoe, .ihe pereln d hei head daintily on ove like a biicl, and tried to read the ip'ion. Tiic mm Was entirely unsuspicious of fho impo: ranee of the mail that morning, •md obligingly dipped the letters through hi-- ling ; •> for hei to read the addresses. Ye:-, tl^rc was one for Edmund Carpenter aiiion;: tliem. and a tkvh of excitement ched the lvi viii .-) cheek ;i> "ha read his name, l>. ":1k 1 w .is vaie it contained the stolen bill. Oh, if liio iMuld b>it get possession of it ! i^hv. 1 nin^h glanced at it, however, then lai'i l.c- <-\\n upon the otliers, while she said, huhtly, and with a smile, "ho sine }»iv i.iing back as many, Tlmmis ; I hv.en't had a letter for nearly a Week. " "It's no fault of mine, mis^ ; yo should lir.M 1 or> c r ry day if I could bring it jc," the man l^turneil, as ho touched his hat and walked away. Rub\ .sped back to her room, hastily diessfd he! self for going out, and then v, ni down to f hr- lioiary, where M.is <ioi- j d mi w ci - » aiding the moining j>aper. ''"Csti.^'o, I am going to town, to be iijp?siu(. 1 f r in} p nncr. r law n. TTave j'ou an^ ei'an'l- 5 ■> u v ould like me to do for you : she a-1." ' tr, ing to appear at lior cas(^ tbomjh In h.oaic was fluttering like a fi'ghten ■ 1 biid's. li O]\ k-ir, I wish you had told me you intcido'i ,md I would have gone \\\Ji .<>" i. ' Mis (iordon returned, looking di-a^]'oin''C(', for nhe v;ai both nervous and • kpris el. and would have been glad to c,et aw.i\ from her thoughts. '•Yon h i-.c always said you did not care \ go oii -nch warm days," Ruby replied, {lushing lightly. '• It is »') nvit'or now," said Mrs Gordon, wl'li -i we'll 1 / sigh. "But you may diop in f o f'ui-iier's, if ->ou have a mind, and G"-t me -owj ■ more of tlie flo^s." She took a skein from her woik-basket as she -ipoLo. tmd hold it out to her. Ru!>\ took it, avd hastened from the ronn, i fMim king soiaething about having to cMcb r <• ' . She Ind been afiaid that her sister would r>'-l; hjr io wait \,-h'le =;ho dre=sed to go with l.ci-, v lii h would soilously have interfered w liji lini1 in i i»lans. Sho went di'ectly to Mr Conant's office ps soo'i as ~hc reached the city, but heie •a hea* \ di-s.ippointmeuL awaited her, for .'h^ was {■)]([ that the gentleman had gone toChe-ter, to consult with Mr Richardson .ibout som i change- in the new buildings, and would not leturn till evening. .Sho •< .i> --cry much disturbed, for she had full} bchf.ed that iio would have set some onutovatch Edmund Carpenter and had him fn i ••-}-. d as c (^on as he should take that ettei" from the oliicee. Sh> would hay gone directly to Mr Riig_il<js, but she had not thought to a<-k In 1 !! w hi li- 1 he was stopping, therefore she di 1 not know where to seek him. She w\is poweile^s to do anything b> liOiself, ,-o she could only make up her mind 1o wait until tlio morrow, when she would make another effort to see Mr Conani ; but it wa 3 with a heavy heart that <he wen*" to match Mrs Gordon's {loss - she was too ut)>eL to g.» to her dressmaker's — and then returned homo, to wait with what patience she eonld. Sluj \, indore 1 about the house, li^tle^s and unlnppy, all day, avoiding her .sister i\ r much f-s possible, because, knowing her treachrrv, she feared she should betray something of the abhorrence that had taken po-j^e-sion of he: 1 . Aboi-t noon the wind changed, the sky clouded, and it soon- began to rain, and the evening clo-cd in gloomy and dismal enough. Thei'cn'uan uncomfortable chill in the air, and Mrs C'oxon had a cheerful woodli'o kindled in thp library grate, and thither Mis lioHon and IJnby icpairod, the former with her work, tho latter with a book ; for, if she read, she need nob talk. But a halt-hour had not elapsed when the bell i") ng and Edmund Carpenter was ushered into their p' % e3enco. Mrs <!oidon greotod him with evident pleasure, while Iluby flushed crimson and half aro-i? troin her chair ad if about to leave the room. "I hvi yon will nob disturb yourself, Mis^ (J.i.-don,* tho young man said, with «arca-,< k; bitterre^s. " 1 will rotreafc rather than have you retire ; bub," turning to Mrs

Gordon, Sf it was such a lonesome, homesick night that I thought I Bhould enjoy a game of chess with you." "I am glad you came," the lady responded, with animation. "I was upon the point of subsiding into a fit of the blues myself. Come into the parlour — the table is there — and I will beat you with pleasure." 2 " Won't you be cold in the parlour, Eselle ?" Ruby asked, feeling thab ie would bo selfish to let them go away from the cheerful tiro. " jS t o, lam thoroughly warm, indeed the room has been getting rather close, and I shall be glad of better air." Mrs Gordon answered, and then they wont away, leaving Ruby in solitary possession of the library and the pleasant fire, much to her relief. She had only been pretending to read boforo Edmund Carpenter came in, but now the book dropped from her hands and she fell into a fit of troubled musing. Presently, Timothy, a handsome maltese cat of which sho had giown very fond and made a great peb since coming back to Forest vale, came purring to her side ; then, as she put out her hand to smooth his soft fur, ho made a low, satisfied noise, gavo a lea}") and settled himself cozily in her lap. She put her arms about him with a sense of comfort, and somehow did not feel quite lo lonely or friendless with him there She sat thus for a long time, until the fire burned low and tho charring embers dropped apart and, one by one, went out. Tho hou^c was very still, and she could not hear a sound, save now and then a low, briof " check " from the other room, where the chess-player.s wero absorbed in the gune, and the gon tie ticking of the marble clock on the mantel above her. Suddenly she was startled by a strango sensation upon her foot, and, glancing clown, bhe espied a tiny mouse perched upon the toe of her slipper. "She started involuntarily, and tho frightened little fellow sprang down, and flow over the carpet, disappearing behind the great, old-fashioned writing-desk on the opposite side of the room. " Timothy, wake up !" Ruby said, arousing the cat from his comfortable nap. "There's a prizo for you hero, if you will look sharp." She put him down upon tho floor : then, rising, went over to tho desk to rouso hi.* mouseship trom his hiding-place, and eivo tho cab a chance to catch it. Tho desk was a cumbersome piece of furniture, but it was upon rollers, and, by exerting her strength, Ruby succeeded in pushing it a little way out from tho side of the houso. This gave her a chance to squeeze in bohind the desk, and, bracing her knee against the back of it and her shoulders against the wall, she gavo a vigorous push, and it rolled out t ill farther. But the panel against which her knee was biaced suddenly gave way, and slipped dow u out of -ight into tiie desk. The poor little mouse, however, had boen frightened from his place of concealment, and Timothy, now all alert, captured him in the twinkling of an eye, and, growling out his satisfaction, bore him in triumph to the mat before the grate, where he performed all sorts of graceful antics with his squeaking victim. Ruby looked a trifle di&mayed over the mischief that she had wrought, and reaching forward into the aperture, she drew forth the broken panel with a view to seeing how it could be replaced. As she diil so, her hand came in contact with a paper which appeared to have clipped down behind a diawer. Sho drew this out also, and found it to bo an oili<;ml-looking envelope, coves ed with dust and cobwebs, and containing quite a bulky document. There was something written on the back. Brushing the dust from it, she held it towaul the light, and read :

Last Will axd Testament of RALPH CARPENTER, Oct 15th, 18—. All the colour faded instantly from the young girl's face, and a wild, startled look came into her blue eye-> as she comprehended the significance of tho-e -words. She know at onco that she had found the mining will, over which — or, rather, over tho absence of which — there had been so much speculation and comment. But- how had it come to be there, wedged between tho back of the desk and a drawer or compartment? Could it have slipped there by accident, or had it been helped into its hiding place by a pair of guilty hands ? What should she do with it now that she had found it ? Should she call Edmund Carpenter and deliver it into his possession, or should she keep her own counsel until '•he could confer with the gentleman who had been IMr Ralph Carpenter's lawyer? It v. onlcl seem that Edmund had the best right to the document, and she would not have hesitated a moment had she belie\cd him to be an honourable man. Tlve fact that a will existed proved to her that Mr Ralph Carpenter had bequeathed a share of his property to Walter, and knowing how Edmund hated him, how he bporudgecl him even a home, not to mention his recent persecution, made her feel that the man might even now do something despeiate to prevent him from coming into his share of the property. Something spemed to tell her that ib would not be safe to give it to him — that he might in a moment of passion, and reckless of consequences, destroy it before anyone could ascei tain its contents, and then the wrong that had been done would never be righted. These thoughts, and many ofchcra, passed through her mind as sho stood there holding that sacred doeumont in hor hand, her eyes riveted upon those thrilling words, " Last Will and Testament," etc. " What shall I do?" she said, over and over, to herself, while she kept glancing toward the door, as if fearful some one would enter before she could decide the important question. At last she lifted hor head with a resolute air. "I do not dare to give it to him tonight," she murmured. " I will conceal it somewhere, then I will call him and tell him I have broken his desk. If he knows of anything about this having been hidden there, ho will betray some anxiety and consciousness when he discovers the mischief I have done. If he does nob, I shall feel sure that he is innocent of having concealed it, and I will give ib to him, trusting to his sense of justice or fear of the law bo do what h right. Bub where shall I hide it?" she added, looking anxious and perploxed. Her eyes wandered around bho room in search of some safe place, until it finally fell upon a picture hanging over the mantel. Tho thin board which protected the canvas on tho back had become warped a little on one side, and stood out a trifle from the frame. Sho deftly slipped bhe envelope between this and tho canvas, pressed the board tightly back into place, and fastened it (here with a stout pin ; she then wont back to her chair, trembling like a leaf, and tried to calm her excited nerves somewhat before attempting the next act in the thrilling drama.