17
The next morning Mary and Pruella made their escape as
early as was possible. Since they had a name, Mary decided to take matters into
her own hands and make contact with Ms. Crumple as soon as she could. There was
no use going all the way back to London, she told herself. Besides which, if
she did then the Iggelsdins might move Cogsworth, or worse.
She and Pruella devised a plan that would allow them to
talk to Ms. Crumple without being found out. Mary figured if she walked up to
the house and asked to speak to the woman, word would get back very soon. The
two decided that even if Pruella did, it would seem so odd and out of place, to
have a total stranger call on one of the staff, that Mr. Iggelsdin would be
notified.
Instead they hired a car to drive them to the village nearest
the Iggelsdin house. There they found a boy and gave him a note to take to the
house and give to Ms. Crumple. The plan was very simple. The note told her that
she had a letter to sign for down in the village. Mary hoped that Ms. Crumple
would be able to come down at once.
They would not wait for her at the Post Office. Neither
Mary nor Pruella had ever laid eyes on the woman after all, so they decide they
would camp out some ways down the road from the house. Pirelli assured Mary
that the maid would walk down to retrieve the letter and not ride, although
Mary was not sure.
It was several hours before, just as Pruella predicted;
they saw a small figure coming down the road from the house.
Pruella walked up to the woman, who seemed startled to
see her.
“Are you Crumple” Pruella said. The woman’s face showed
skepticism.
“What if I am?”
“Sunny Crumple?”
“What of it?”
“My mistress wants a word with you, under that tree. I
swear it.” Pruella pointed to Mary, who smiled.
“What she want then?” Ms. Crumple asked, incredulous.
“Just to ask you a question… or two. There’s a fiver in
it for you.”
“Go on” Ms. Crumple began to walk away. “I don’t know
what you want.”
“Ms. Crumple” Mary yelled out, still smiling. “Please
stop, I only want to ask you a question. And yes, I’ll make it worth your
while.”
Ms. Crumple stopped and looked. She took a few steps
closer but stayed on the road, as if she thought doing so would protect her.
“Go on then miss, ask me a question.”
Mary sighed, she did not want to stand there yelling at
the woman, what if others were nearby. She took a few steps closer. Ms. Crumple
pulled her purse tight to her body even though Mary was still a few yards away.
“Please Ms. Crumple, no one is going to do anything to
you. I just wanted to ask you a question.”
“Ask from there then, right?”
“Very well. I represent, uhm some parties who are
interested in the house you work in.”
Ms. Crumple straightened up and looked around carefully.
“Interested? In what way? It’s a fine upstanding house I work in and I have no
complaints.” She said the last part especially loud, turning her head to look
around.
“No, no, of course not Ms. Crumple. But all we want to
know is if you have some information for us… about… well, house guests.”
“We’re closed up now and I best be off to pick up
something I have waiting.”
“Yes, yes, we know about your letter Ms. Crumple. We
sent the boy to you.”
Ms. Crumple stopped and looked at Mary, then glanced
back at Purella.
“Who are you?”
“We’re… friends of someone who is missing. A man, a man
by the name of Cogsworth.”
Ms.Crumple drew herself up to her full height.
“I work in a decent house whoever you are. It’s not like
we’re keeping anyone locked up in the basement. Best you bet getting back to
whoever you came from, ain’t nothing here for you.”
“Thank you Ms. Crumple.”
“I aren’t told you nothing, you know?”
“Yes, of course.”
The woman turned and marched back up the road. Mary ran
after her.
“Ms. Crumple, Ms. Crumple, aren’t you forgetting
something?”
The woman stopped. “What?”
“The letter?”
“The letter? But you just said-“
“I know, but if you go back now, so soon and without a
letter questions are bound to be asked. Plus, I think you will find the
contents of the letter being held for you at the post office quite…
interesting.”
Ms. Crumple opened her mouth o say something but then
closed it. Without a word she now headed back downtime road to the village as
Mary watched.
Pruella came up to beside Mary.
“Why did you tell her to go then? She’ll get that letter
and the prize inside for nothing.”
“Nothing?” Mary turned to glance at Pruella but then
continued to watch Ms. Crumple go down the road.
“She didn’t tell us about your Mr. Cogsworth.”
“Didn’t she? If there was no man there she would have
asked many more questions, instead she immediately jumped to a conclusion that
I thought he was locked up in the basement.”
“But she said he wasn’t…”
“Yes, so I conclude he is upstairs, maybe even in nice
accommodations but perhaps still locked up. At least he isn’t dead.”
“I dunno My lady, sounds like a slender thread to pull.”
“Yet I fear it is all we have. Back to London with us
then before the thread breaks!”
The two caught the very last train running back to
London and did not return until late at night. The General, The Colonel and
Liza all came in the handsome cab to pick the two women up. The two men had
stern and rather dour expressions on their faces. The General, upon seeing
Mary, started to say something but Liza cut him off, full of questions.
“So, tell us Mary! Did you find Mr. Weather?”
“No, I found Ms. Crumple. Ms Sunny Crumple.”
“Ohhhh, tricky, and did she cooperate?”
“Possibly. It was terribly tricky and I am not sure that
she entirely trusted us, but she did confirm our suspicions that there is a man
being held at the house. It has to be Cogsworth, right?”
The General hurumphed. “Knowing Iggelsdin he could have
five men locked up there.”
“Grandfather!”
“But I suppose you might be right. Come on, let’s get
back to the house. It is late and we need to get some sleep and regroup in the
morning.”
“Only if Mary tells us everything she knows on the way
home!”
[Part 18 posts Monday Dec 5!]
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