I suddenly felt I could not stay there a moment longer. I banged on the door and called out: "Let me out. Help."
I kept my back on the thing that was hanging there. I had an uncanny feeling that it might come to life, detach the rope about its neck and come over to me and then ... I knew not what.
The cider was having an effect on me—making me a little lightheaded. It was no ordinary cider. I believed that they had deliberately given me too much of their strongest brew. They hated me, those Cringles. Who was the boy who had shut me in the barn? A Cringle, I was sure. It must be. I had heard there were two sons and a daughter.
I started to hammer on the door again. I went on shouting for help.
My eyes slewed round. It was there ... that horrible grinning thing.
I must try to be calm. I asked myself what this could mean. The Cringles had done this. They wanted to frighten me. They must have told the boy to bring me out here and lock me in. For what purpose? Did they intend to keep me here? To kill me perhaps?
That was too preposterous, but I was frightened enough to think anything possible.
I must get out of here. I could not bear to stay in this barn with that horrible grinning thing looking at me as it swayed on its rope.
I shouted again. I banged on the door until it shook under my blows. What a hope! Who would pass this way? Who would hear me? How long must I stay here shut in with that thing?
I leaned against the door. I must try to think rationally, calmly. I had been locked in here by a mischievous boy. But what was the significance of that hanging figure? Why should the boy bring me here with the story of a trapped cat? Boys were mischievous by nature. Some of them enjoyed playing unpleasant practical jokes. Perhaps the boy had thought it would be funny to lock me in here with that thing. It was the boy I had seen when I arrived at the farm. He must be a Cringle. He could have hung up the figure there and then waited for me. Why? There was some meaning behind it, I was sure.
I could not stay here forever. I should be missed. But who would know where to look for me?
If I went to that thing ... examined it more closely ... But I could not bring myself to do that. It was so uncanny, so horrible in the gloom. It was like a ventriloquist's dummy. But there was something about this one. ... It seemed alive.
I hammered on the door again. My hands were grazed. I shouted as loudly as I could for help.
Then I Listened tensely, and my heart leaped with hope, for I heard a voice.
"Hello... . What's wrong? Who's there?"
I banged with all my might on the door. The barn seemed to shake.
Then there came the sound of horse's hoofs and the voice again. "Wait a minute. I'm coming." The horse had stopped. There was a brief silence. Then the voice was closer. "Wait a minute." Then the bolt was being drawn. I heard it scrape out of the sheath. A shaft of light came into the barn and I almost fell into the arms of the man who was coming in.
"Good Lord!" he cried. "What are you doing here, Susannah?"
Who was it? I did not know. In that moment I had time for nothing but relief.
He held me against him for a moment and he said: "I thought the barn was coming down."
I stammered: "A boy lured me here and ... bolted the door. I looked up and saw ... that."
He stared at the thing swaying on the rope.
He said slowly: "My God! What a trick to play ... what a foolish joke."
"I took one look at it and thought it was a man. The face was round the other way then."
"Will they never forget? ..."
I did not know what he was talking about, but I was now realizing that I had been brought out of a terrifying situation into a very dangerous one.
He had gone over to the figure and was examining it.
"It's one of their scarecrows," he said. "Whatever made them string it up like this?"
"He told me his cat was trapped in here."
"One of the Cringle boys, was it?"
I took a chance. I gathered I ought to know the Cringle boys. I nodded.
"This is too much. Some people would have had a heart attack. You're made of stronger stuff, Susannah. Let's get out of here, shall we? Have you your horse nearby?"
"Yes, near the approach to the farm."
"Right We'll go back. I came this morning. Heard you'd gone out round the estate and thought I'd come and look for you."
We came out into the sunshine. I was still trembling from my experience but I had recovered sufficiently to take stock of him. He was tall and what struck me most about him was an air of authority. I had noticed it and admired it in my father and I realized in that moment that it had been lacking in Philip. The man's hair was dark and there was a penetrating look in his brown eyes which would have warned me if I had not been in such a state of shock. He seemed to notice my scrutiny, for he said: "Let me have a look at you, Susannah. Have you changed much since your circumnavigation of the world?"
I avoided his gaze and tried not to look as uneasy as I felt.
"Some people seem to think I have ... a little," I said.
He was looking at me intently and I took off my hat, shaking out my hair as I did so, for because of my fringe I fancied I resembled Susannah more hatless.
"Yes," he said. "You're mellowed. That's what travel does for you. Especially your sort of travel."
"You mean I've grown older?"
"Haven't we all? It's been nearly a year ... more than that. I didn't see you when you came back from school. How long were you here then?"
"It must have been about two months."
"And then this wild notion to go to Australia took you. You were going to find your father. You succeeded, I know."
"Yes, I succeeded."
"Let's find the horses and go back. My word, you do look shaken. That wretched scarecrow! They're a vengeful crowd, those Cringles. I never liked them. Why should they blame you for Saul's death? I know you were always getting at him. It's a pity you got on the wrong side of them. All that religious fanaticism. Old Moses is a self-righteous old devil, for all that he fancies himself an angel. I think he gave those boys a dance when they were young. And where has it led them? Saul to a rope in a barn and Jacob ... turning into another such as his father. He's a fool too, if he had a hand in playing that trick. He should be more careful now that you're in control. He should think of losing the farm. They're all scared of the changes you'll make. As for that girl of his, Leah ... Is that her name?"
"Yes, that's her name. I saw her this morning... ."
"I'll bet she has a hard time of it. She looked frightened out of her wits."
I was growing more and more bewildered. So Saul Cringle had hanged himself in a barn! And because of this I had been shut in with that scarecrow hanging from the rafters. There was some secret in the Cringle household and Susannah was part of it.
I suddenly felt very much afraid.
In the meantime I had to discover who my rescuer was.
We rode back to the castle. He was talking all the time and I was desperately working hard not to betray myself.
When we came to the stables I had my first piece of luck of the morning.
One of the grooms called out: "So you found Miss Susannah then, Mr. Malcolm."
Then I knew that my companion was the man whom I had cheated of his inheritance.
As we came into the castle Janet was in the hall.
She said: "Good day, Miss Susannah, Mr. Malcolm."
We acknowledged her greeting and I noticed that she was studying me intently.
"Luncheon's in an hour," she said.
"Thanks, Janet," replied Malcolm.
I went to my room and it was not long before Janet came knocking on my door.
"Come in," I called. She came and I was aware of that alert look on her face which I had noticed in the hall.
"You've no idea how long Mr. Malcolm will be staying, Miss Susannah?" she said. "Only Mrs. Bates was asking me. He used to be fond of saffron flavor and she's run out of it. It's not all that easy to get hold of."