Worcester Democrat and the ledger-enterprise. (Pocomoke City, Md.) 1921-1953, 1936-09-25
CHAPTER s


you get the real Judith Whalen out
of the way during the last few months
How did you keep her from writing
to her father? How did you keep
her from coming down here as her
father had planned?"
"When Judith quit college and went
on the STAGE" Nancy Calden explain
ed, "she didn't tell her father. She
was afraid that the captain, who is
more or less old-fashioned, would OBJ
ject. She said nothing about it but
let him infer that she was still going
to the university. Then one day she
got a letter. She supposed it was
from her father. But Bennington had
forged it.
Gin that letter, Captain Whalen
told her that he had learned she had
gone on the stage, that he was cutting
off her allowance, that she had dis
graced him and that he never wanted
to hear from her again. Judith was
hurt, of course, but she took it stand
ing up and told me that she would
never write to him. A few days later,
when l was sure she would not COM
municate with her father, I radioed
the captain that Judith was on her
way to Panama"
Hawley digested that for a little
while. "What do you suppose would
have happened if Judith, in New
York, had read in the papers that
she had been kidnapped in Panama ?"
bennington thought of that, of
course" Nancy said. GAS soon as I
disappeared, Captain Whalen would
get a note saying that I was being
held for ransom and that if any of
the news agencies got hold of the
story of my disappearance, he'd new
er see me again. We trusted that
he would heed the warning and keep
quiet"
"H-m. Everything went smoothly,
didn't it,"
eyes. Until tonight"
"Until Les Kennedy in some man
ner tumbled to the fact that you were
not Judith Whalen."
"Put it this way" Nancy Calden
said. "Unless Les Kennedy tumbled
to the fact that Judith Whalen was
singing in the Palais Royale in Col
en-"
"The Palais Royale." Hawley gasp
ed. "You don't mean"
eyes. Georgette is Judith Whal-
en-"
"Georgette = is = is Judith Whal-
en!" Phil Hawley repeated in amaze
ment.
Of course! He knew it was true.
1t explained so many things-the like
ness of the two girls, the picture in
the possession of the captains for
mer aide, Georgette's excitement when
he had mentioned Judith Whalen.
After while Hawley asked breath
lessly:
"How in the world do you suppose
she came to be down here?"
81 haven't the faintest idea"
"Have you seen herr"
"No," Nancy Calden said.
"Did she know you were in Col
on?"
81 don't think so. When I left for
Panama 1 told her I'd got an engage
ment with a road company"
'Then she doesn't know anything
about the plot?"
"No."
Him." Hawley considered that
for while and then he asked: "Are
you going through with it,"
Eyes. have to-now. We hadn't
planned that l should disappear for
several weeks. But early last even
ing Les Kennedy got drunk. He talk
ed to Bennington, and talked too
much. Bennington got suspicious.
Then, quite by chance, Ben went to
the Palais Royale with some friends.
He recognized Judith. He knew her,
you know"
"But she told me tonight that she
knew no one by the name of Ben
nington.
"His stage name was Benson"
ooh, see."
Anyway, Bennington began to I'M
derstand what was behind some of
Les Kennedy's questions. He waE
frantic when he saw our plans about
TO fall through"
"And so he killed Kennedy"
eyes. Although 1 diln't know it
until hours afterward."
"And about that time 1 stumbled
into the picture"
GGVoe