Free The Boarded-Up House by C. Clyde Squires Page B

them with her. And when she had gone around shutting up the house, it was morning. As soon as it was daylight, she went out and got an old colored carpenter who lived nearby to come and board up the windows and doors. She had the boarding all in the cellar, for it had been made two years before when she went to Europe for six months. It took him nearly all day to finish the work, while she stood around and gave directions. I don’t see how she had the strength to do it! When it was all done, she locked the door, walked to the station, took the train for New York, and came to Mrs. Durand.” Joyce paused in her recital, from sheer lack of breath, and Cynthia took advantage of the silence.
    â€œSo that was the way of it! And we thought it was her brother, and that he’d done something awful,—committed a robbery or forged something! I don’t see why that young Fairfax should have been treated so! I think what he did was fine!”
    â€œYou must remember,” said Joyce, “that people felt so differently about such things in those days. We can’t quite realize it now, and shouldn’t judge them for the way they acted. I suppose Mrs. Collingwood could have forgiven him more easily if he’d committed a burglary instead! And Great-aunt Lucia says she was terribly high-tempered, too.”
    â€œI can’t understand it, even so!” insisted Cynthia. “But did your great-aunt say anything about those pictures?”
    â€œNo, but I asked her if Mrs. Collingwood Had any other children, and she said she understood that Fairfax had been a twin, but his little sister had died when she wasn’t much more than three years old. So that’s the explanation of the two babies in the other room. I suppose Mrs. Collingwood didn’t tell all,—in fact I said she didn’t tell any details about what happened that night. Probably she turned the portrait around and tore out the miniature when she was alone. But I haven’t finished my story yet!”
    â€œOh, do go on then!” implored Cynthia.
    â€œMrs. Collingwood stayed at her friend’s house two days,’ continued Joyce, “and then left for her old home in a little town in South Carolina and never came North again. Mrs. Durand never saw her again, either, but used to hear from her at very long intervals. But here’s where the awful thing comes in. After the battle of Shiloh, a year later, when the papers published the list of killed—Fairfax Collingwood’s name was among the first! So he did not live very long, you see. But what a terrible thing for the poor mother to think that she and her son. had parted in anger, and now were never, never to meet again, and make it all up! Oh, I can hardly bear to think of it!” Joyce’s eyes were full of tears, as she gazed up at the proud, beautiful face above them.
    â€œWell, that’s the end of the story, and that’s the tragedy and mystery about this Boarded-up House. Oh!—there’s one other thing,—Great-aunt Lucia says she thinks Mrs. Collingwood is still alive,—a very old lady, living down in the little old South Carolina town of Chesterton. She will never allow this old house to be touched nor let any one enter it. But she has made a will, leaving it to the Southern Society when she dies. That’s positively all, and you see everything is explained.”
    â€œNo, it isn’t!” retorted Cynthia. “You have n’t explained one thing, at all!”
    â€œWhat’s that?” asked Joyce.
    â€œThe mystery of the locked-up room I” replied Cynthia.

CHAPTER X
AN EXCITING DISCOVERY
    T HE autumn of that year ended, the winter months came and went with all their holiday festivities, and spring entered in her appointed time. The passing winter had been filled with such varied outside activities for the two girls, that there was little time to think of the Boarded-up House, and still less to do