The Orchard Secret

  CHAPTER XV The Alarm Bell

  When it came to writing letters home, each girl approached her familyfrom a different viewpoint, naturally. Arden, who was the mostinteresting writer of the three, was inclined to dramatize. Her missivewas filled with descriptions, reflecting the fears they had felt at Sim'sdisappearance and their resentment at the punishment inflicted by thedean. All this was set forth vividly.

  Terry was diplomatic in her letter. Her mother, she knew, would worryneedlessly if she felt that the girls were in any danger. So she madeprominent mention of the good times they were having, culminating in amistake they had mutually made which resulted in a curtailment of some oftheir privileges.

  Sim was writing rapidly, her eyes bright and her lips compressed into astern, determined line. She finished first, and after closing theenvelope and sealing it, she scratched on the address and turned to herfriends.

  "I may as well tell you, before you hear it outside," Sim began andhesitated, "but I've written to my father for permission to come home!"

  "Sim! Not to stay! Don't leave us now, when things will be so dull herefor Arden and me if you go!" Terry begged.

  Sim looked uncompromising.

  "Please don't go, Sim! Don't mail your letter. I feel as though I am toblame. Anyhow, Sim, there'd be nothing for you to do at home. Three weeksaren't so long." Arden arose and patted Sim maternally on the shoulder.

  "It isn't just three weeks. It's the whole school year!" Sim declared."It will take a long time to fix the pool, even if they get the money.Besides, I was told by my math teacher that I'd probably flunk out atmid-year if I didn't improve, and I'd rather go home before thathappens."

  "But we can help you, Sim," Terry promised. "Won't you think it over?Even if we are campused, I know of a few parties the girls have planned,and they'll be fun."

  Arden decided to try a new method of approach.

  "Sim, I wouldn't mention it if I didn't want you to stay," she said. "Butyou got us into this, even if you meant it all for the best, and even ifyou do leave, Terry and I will still be campused. There are lots of otherthings to do besides swimming, and, don't forget, we have a mystery herethat no one dreams about but us."

  "I am sorry about you and Terry, but right now I don't feel like being agood sport. I'll go to Tiddy and ask her to let you two off." Simhesitated. "But I want to go home, Arden. Don't ask me to stay."

  "If you feel you must go, Sim, all right. But what I ask you to do is notto mail your letter for a few days. Write another in its place, at leasttemporarily, and say everything is settled. And then, if you still feelthe same way----" Arden shrugged and turned aside.

  Sim left her desk and walked slowly to a window. The peacefulness of thescene below, framed by the trees in their bright autumn array, must havehad some influence on the perturbed girl. For, after a few moments ofsilent contemplation, Sim swung around and exclaimed:

  "All right, Arden. I'll think it over. You can hold this letter for threedays, and I'll write another to send home. But it's only because of myfriendship for you both that I'm doing it."

  "That's great, Sim! You won't be sorry. We'll forget about it nowand----"

  A small shuffling noise stopped Arden in the midst of her exultation. Itcame from the direction of the door, and, even as the three looked, abright blue and white envelope was pushed under the portal. Terry pickedup the missive and opened it.

  "Why!" she exclaimed in delighted surprise, "it's an invitation for aparty tomorrow in the gym. The sophomores are giving it to the freshmen,and we must," she was rapidly reading the note, "all wear some sort of acostume. Oh, how precious!" She was gleefully excited.

  "What fun!" With the suddenness of youth Arden closed her mind to thesubject of Sim threatening to go home and she began to plan for theparty.

  "What can we wear?" asked Terry.

  "We haven't much in the way of costumes," Arden admitted. "I suppose,though, we can wear riding habits or blacken our faces and slick back ourhair. We'll probably have more fun that way than if we wore draperies."

  "Oh, yes," Terry agreed.

  "It will be a little break for us after what we know is in prospect,"said Sim in a low voice.

  After lessons, the next day had been gotten through in some fashion and,following supper, the three hurried back to their room. Sim put onTerry's riding clothes, which were much too big, and Terry wore a part ofSim's sport suit with a woolly cap belonging to Arden. As for Arden, sheput on a short, tight skirt and a sweater belonging to Jane Randall andknotted a scarf about her throat, Apache style.

  Then, using a soft eyebrow pencil, the girls adorned their lips withvillainous mustaches.

  "How do we look?" asked Sim, trying to pose in front of a mirror thatshowed only part of her.

  "Terrible!" laughed Terry.

  "That's the way we want to look," decided Arden.

  Down in the large gymnasium crepe paper was used to cover the steampipes, and many streamers, in the college colors, disguised the barewhitewashed walls. The room was crowded with noisy, laughing girls. Atone end a portable phonograph was playing, with the loudest needleobtainable, a popular dance tune.

  Arden and her two particular friends were met at the door by theirsophomore tormentors, Toots Everett, Jessica Darglan, and PriscillaMacGovern.

  Toots came forward and gave Sim a large paper carton made in imitation ofa traveling bag. It was adorned with huge purple and green paper bows.

  "A gift for our most widely traveled freshman!" said Toots with a laugh."You must keep this with you until refreshments are served. Those are therules."

  Sim smiled grimly and accepted the box gracefully. So her story was knownall over college in spite of the dean's prohibition?

  Arden and Terry received large, blank exercise books in which to keep arecord of their engagements: gentle sarcasm when it was evidently knownthey couldn't make any for three weeks at least.

  One by one the freshmen were given articles to show up their variousfaults, failings, and follies.

  The party was soon well under way and progressed happily. The girls whocould lead were the most popular dancers that night. In fact, those girlswere booked well ahead as partners.

  Arden was dancing with Jane Randall at the far end of the gymnasium whenshe happened to glance up at one of the windows. What she saw startledher so that she made a mis-step and caused Jane to exclaim:

  "Look out!"

  Arden wanted to say she was looking with all her eyes, but she did notdare call her partner's attention to what had so disturbed her. For, asshe glanced up at the window, Arden saw gazing down at her with strangemalevolence a mocking, smiling face. Then, in a second, it was gone, andonly the black square of glass remained.

  Arden was almost shaking with fright, so much so that she faltered in thedance. She glanced quickly at Jane to learn whether she had noticed theface, but now Jane was smiling over Arden's head at the antics of somecapering freshman.

  As she circled the room with Jane, Arden's fears subsided somewhat, andshe resolved to say nothing about it to Jane. Then, when the record hadplayed itself out, that dance came to an end. For a moment following thelast strains of the music there was a lull in the noise of talk andlaughter.

  Then, suddenly, breaking in on the happy, peaceful silence, as though ithad been planned, came the slow and mournful tolling of a heavy bell.

  Dong! Ding-dong! Ding-dong!

  "What is it?" questioned several.

  "Do we unmask now?" others wanted to know. They thought it a signal.

  "I've never heard a bell ring like that since I've been here at CedarRidge," said a demure little sophomore in a low voice.

  "It hasn't rung--in a long time," said one girl in a low voice.

  "But what is it?" Arden demanded.

  "Why does it ring now?" Terry wanted to know.

  "Come on!" called the impulsive Toots Everett. "There's something wrongsomewhere."

  "That old
outside fire-alarm bell hasn't been tolled since we had themodern telephone system installed," said one of the teachers who wasovertaken in the hall by a rush of students from the gymnasium. The dancewas momentarily forgotten.

  "Oh, a fire!" gasped Terry.

  "Let's hurry out!" proposed Sim.

  They were all hurrying.