Argosy All-Story Weekly — page 19: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

WHERE “ Don’t ask me!” the president snapped. “Tm not a woman, normal or otherwise. T have no idea what they never forget and I don’t give a—er—hang!” Mr. Bennett frowned in some distress. He is all just simple, conventional goodness, the sort that does the same thing at the same time every day for a hundred years if it happens to live as long as that, and this matter was getting beyond him. Probably, in all his. life, he had never encountered anything quite so odd. ‘This is—is very confusing, all of it,” he muttered. ‘ Won’t you please speak up, young woman? I mean to say, won’t you be quite frank?” ‘What am I concealing?” the girl de- manded, indignantly. “That’s just what we’re trying to find out and—no, no, not concealing, my child,” Bennett said hastily. “ But there is—er— something here of which you seem reluctant to speak and—” “Why shouldn’t I be reluctant, when Tom denies even knowing me?” ‘“* Er—just so, of course. Let’s put it in another way. Do we understand that you are making—making * certain definite charges against Mr. Berford?” The girl seemed puzzled and shook her head sadly. “Charges? No—not charges!” she mur- mured. “But you’re accusing him of some- thing?” “Well, all right, then!” Mr. Bennett said desperately. “ What is it?” A long, shuddering sigh came from the girl, Her eyes flashed at Mr. Berford for an instant and then dropped again. ‘Ask Tom!” she whispered. Mr. Bennett got out his handkerchief and dabbed his forehead, although it was not particularly warm in there. Craven snorted and stepped around to their side. *You’re not moving very far or very fast, Bennett,” he said sharply. ‘ Let me take charge of this, please.” “ Well, but—” The vinegar member of our board waved him aside and transfixed the girl with his hard old eye. WAS I? ites ‘“‘ My dear lady,” he began, “‘ the display of a little candor on your part will be to your interest. Pray be so good as to answer me directly and fully. You know Mr. Ber- ford?” ‘Know him!” the girl echoed bitterly. “Where and when did you first meet him?” The girl glanced up. ‘“‘ Ask Tom!” she said, “Tm asking you! Will you tell me?” “* Let. Tom tell you.” Moreland snickered. Mr. Craven’s eyes grew a little harder. ‘“In one way, I understand, I think,” he said. “ Young woman, I tender you the sacred pledge of every member of this board that whatever you may feel justified in tell- ing us will never be repeated. Also, I beg to point out that you have involved the president of this company in a mysterious way, which needs explanation, not for your sake alone or for his, but for the sake of a large corporation which has ever prided itself upon the spotless integrity of its of- ficers. In common fairness to all con- cerned, we must have the truth—and the whole truth, down to the very last detail!” He waited a moment for this to sink in. “Now!” he said. “ Just what relation existed—still exists, perhaps—between you and Mr. Berford?” The girl only gave another of these shud- dering sighs and failed to face him. ‘* Ask Tom!” she murmured. Isaac Craven gritted his teeth and then bared them threateningly. “You are serving yourself very poorly by taking this attitude,” he said. “ It seems clear that Mr. Berford is bent upon pro- fessing ignorance of your—er—very charm- ing self. That being so, if you wish justice —<which, in fact, | promise you to the very fullest degree—”’ I have said that Mr. Berford was a hard man to jar for any length of time. This little affair had shaken him more than any- thing I had ever seen happen to him be- fore, and very likely the reason for that was that it had come at a time when he was utterly happy and contented with things in general. But he was himself again now. He looked as calm and strong..as ever ADC Eom