Country homes -- Fiction; Middle-aged women -- Fiction; Murder -- Investigation -- Fiction; Mystery fiction
Anne had had no children of her own, and on Lucien she had lavished all
her aborted maternal instinct. On one thing she was determined,
however: that was that Aubrey Wallace should educate his boy. It was a
part of her devotion to the child that she should be ambitious for him:
he must have every opportunity. And so she came east. She drifted
around, doing plain sewing and keeping a home somewhere always for the
boy. Finally, however, she realized that her only training had been
domestic, and she put the boy in an Episcopalian home, and secured the
position of housekeeper to the Armstrongs. There she found Lucien’s
father, this time under his own name. It was Arnold Armstrong.
I gathered that there was no particular enmity at that time in Anne’s
mind. She told him of the boy, and threatened exposure if he did not
provide for him. Indeed, for a time, he did so. Then he realized that
Lucien was the ruling passion in this lonely woman’s life. He found out
where the child was hidden, and threatened to take him away. Anne was
frantic. The positions became reversed. Where Arnold had given money
for Lucien’s support, as the years went on he forced money from Anne
Watson instead until she was always penniless. The lower Arnold sank in
the scale, the heavier his demands became. With the rupture between him
and his family, things were worse. Anne took the child from the home
and hid him in a farmhouse near Casanova, on the Claysburg road. There
she went sometimes to see the boy, and there he had taken fever. The
people were Germans, and he called the farmer’s wife _Grossmutter_. He
had grown into a beautiful boy, and he was all Anne had to live for.
The Armstrongs left for California, and Arnold’s persecutions began
anew. He was furious over the child’s disappearance and she was afraid
he would do her some hurt. She left the big house and went down to the
lodge. When I had rented Sunnyside, however, she had thought the
persecutions would stop. She had applied for the position of
housekeeper, and secured it.
That had been on Saturday. That night Louise arrived unexpectedly.
Thomas sent for Mrs. Watson and then went for Arnold Armstrong at the
Greenwood Club. Anne had been fond of Louise—she reminded her of Lucy.
She did not know what the trouble was, but Louise had been in a state
of terrible excitement. Mrs. Watson tried to hide from Arnold, but he
was ugly. He left the lodge and went up to the house about two-thirty,
was admitted at the east entrance and came out again very soon.
Something had occurred, she didn’t know what; but very soon Mr. Innes
and another gentleman left, using the car.
Thomas and she had got Louise quiet, and a little before three, Mrs.
Watson started up to the house. Thomas had a key to the east entry, and
gave it to her.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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