Hallowell
pleases to give her. "
Miss Coates contradicted him sharply. "That is not so," she
said. She turned to her uncle, "You and my father," she
declared, "agreed in writing you would share the profits
always." Mr. Hallowell looked from his niece to his lawyer. The
lawyer, eyeing him apprehensively, nodded. With the patient
voice of one who tried to reason with an unreasonable child, Mr.
Hallowell began. "Helen," he said, "I have told you many times
there never was such an agreement. There was a verbal -- "
"And I repeat, I saw it," said Miss Coates.
"When?" asked Hallowell.
"I saw it first when I was fifteen," answered the young woman
steadily, "and two years later, before mother died, she showed
it to me again. It was with father's papers."
"Miss Coates," asked the Judge, "where is this agreement now?"
For a moment Miss Coates hesitated. Her dislike for Gaylor was
so evident that, to make it less apparent, she lowered her eyes.
"My uncle should be able to tell you," she said evenly. "He was
my father's executor. But, when he returned my father's papers"
-- she paused and then, although her voice fell to almost a
whisper, continued defiantly, "the agreement was not with them."
There was a moment's silence. To assure himself the others had
heard as he did, Mr. Hallowell glanced quickly from Winthrop to
Gaylor. He half rose from his chair and leaned across the table.
"What!" he demanded. His niece looked at him steadily.
Pages:
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40