Coulee City dispatch. [volume] (Coulee City, Wash.) 19??-19??, 1937-08-26
BANNERS

Lookout House was cut in two,
Mark"
1T wasn't. Grandfather Trent had
two houses built exactly alike, one
for his daughter, Mary Amanda,
and one for his son, my father; the
Other House, the family called ours.
Not satisfied with that, he had them
set side by side on a rocky promon-
tory-he intended them for summer
homes only-with doors through the
library downstairs and the hall on
the second floor and connecting bal
comics; he was a glutton for balco-
MES. Aunt Mary Amanda recently
has lived there the year round. I
inherited Fathers house, but I
haven't lived there since-well, for
three years. It has been closed.
haven't rented it because thought
it might be unpleasant for my aunt
to have strangers near when she
was wheeled into the garden which
serves for both places. Now, see
what she does to me. She picks up
this girl and later, while I'm start
ing branch Office in South Amer
lea, leaves her her half of the real
estate and all her money. Well,
I'll be off. I have date"
Don't 60, Mark. I asked Miss
Reyburn to come here this after
noon to tell her what financial ar
rangements have been made for
her, but principally to get you two
face to face so that we could
straighten out this mess about the
personal property in the house."
"Mess! Do you call a sound, un-
breakable will a mess? Aunt Mary
Amanda Dane warned me that if I
married Lola she would cut me off
with the proverbial shilling; then,
when my divorce became neces-
sary, she was more opposed to it
than she had been to the marriage.
Can you beat that for inconsistency?
I've always had a bunch that the
French man and wife who have
worked for and worked Mary Aman-
da for years might hypnotic her
into leaving all her property to them
Il warned her against them and
somehow they found out and have
hated me ever since-but l didn't
think she would leave it to a COM
parative stranger. In my opinion,
Clotilde and Henri jacques are no
better than a couple of bandits;
they'll bear watching. I don't trust
the Reyburn female either, her fine
Italian hand crops up all through
that will, but l don't like the idea
OF girl living in the same house
with them. However, she'd prob
ably think had an axe to grind if
I warned her"
yellow journals and hectic fic-
ton to the contrary, lawyers don't
talk about the affairs of a client,
even to their best friend, fella."
Don't blow up like a pouter pig
con, Jed. Of course I didn't ex-
pect you to tell me; equally, of
course, wouldn't try to upset that
will. My aunt's High Church con-
victions wouldn't permit her to ap-
prove of my separation from wife
who had been sordidly unfaithful.
I thought she might soften toward
me when Lola married the third
time, but evidently not. If she
wanted to bequeath her house, her
money, and her jewels to a girl she
had picked up via radio, okay. But
why didn't she tell me about the
Reyburn female? Why not ask me
to meet her before I went to South
America? That's what makes me
suspicious. The secrecy of their
friendship. Was the girl afraid that
if knew 1 would try to influence
my aunt against her? If was so
dense, how do you suppose she got
wise to Mary Amanda's fortune? I
understand that she had supper and
spent night with her once week,
the night the companion-nurse had
off. She must have had a strong
motive to commute 20 miles after
business hours. She's a fashion adj
wiser in one of the big shops, isn't
She?"
"Yep. Worked up from model.
Mary Amanda Dane tuned in on
the radio one morning just as
Brooke Reyburn was giving her
fashion talk. She fell in love with
her voice, and wrote to the girl ask
ing what the well-dressed invalid
tied to a wheel chair was wearing.
Miss Reyburn answered with such
sympathetic understanding that
your aunt invited her to Lookout
House."
ITO BE CONTINUEl)