The Cry at Midnight Read online

  CHAPTER 2 _"NO TRESPASSING"_

  "Someone _is_ inside that building!" Penny exclaimed, recovering fromstartled surprise.

  Tensely, the girls waited, but the sound was not repeated.

  "It was a woman's scream," Louise whispered after a moment. Nervously,she clung to her chum's hand as they stood in the shadow of the big irongate. "What can be happening in there?"

  Penny stared at the dark monastery, uncertain what to do. Nowhere was alight visible, yet she felt that not only was the building occupied, butalso that alert eyes were watching them from somewhere in the gloomyinterior.

  "Someone may be in trouble and need help," she said in an unsteady voice."Let's rap on the door and ask."

  "At this time of night?" Louise tugged at her chum's hand, trying to pullher away. "Let's go, Penny! It's really none of our affair what goes onhere."

  "But someone may be ill and in need of a doctor."

  "It wasn't that type of scream," Louise replied with a shiver. "That crygave me the creeps!"

  Penny allowed herself to be pulled from the gate, only to pause and gazeagain at the darkened windows of the ancient monastery.

  The only daughter of a newspaper owner, she had been trained to inquirethe who, when, why, where, and how of anything unusual. Penny neverwillingly passed up an opportunity to obtain a good news story for the_Riverview Star_. She knew that if the old monastery were occupied afterstanding deserted so many years, the readers of her father's paper wouldbe interested.

  Furthermore, she reasoned, a scream from a darkened house, always calledfor investigation.

  "Louise," she said with sudden decision. "We can't leave without tryingto find out what's wrong here! I'm going inside!"

  "Oh, Penny--please don't! This place is so far from other houses. Ifanything should happen--"

  "Something _has_ happened," replied Penny grimly. "You wait here, Lou.I'll be right back."

  Despite her chum's protest, she returned to the big iron gate, andpushing it farther open, stepped inside the grounds.

  Intuition warned Penny to proceed cautiously. She sensed rather than sawa dark figure crouching in the arched doorway of the circular stonegatehouse to the right of the snow-banked driveway.

  Before she could decide whether the form was real or a product of herimagination, a large, savage dog darted from inside the gatehouse. Hislow growl warned her it might be dangerous to attempt to pass.

  "Come back!" Louise called anxiously. "He'll tear you apart!"

  Though no coward, a second glance at the dog convinced Penny that theanimal had been trained to guard the property. Rapidly, she backed away.

  Her hand was on the latch of the gate, when in the gatehouse doorway, shebeheld a grotesque, deformed human figure.

  The sight so startled Penny that for an instant she forgot the dog.

  Plainly silhouetted against the gray stone was a hulk of a man with largehead and twisted back made unsightly by a hump.

  Though his eyes were full upon the girl, he remained motionless, speakingno word.

  "Call off your dog!" Penny said sharply.

  Only then did the figure move from the doorway into the moonlight.

  "Quiet, Bruno!" he ordered in a rasping voice. "Lie down!"

  As the dog obeyed, Penny caught her first plain glimpse of the deformedman's face. His skin was heavily lined and fell in deep folds at hisstocky neck. But it was the dark, intent eyes which sent a shiver downher spine.

  "Good evening," she said uneasily.

  The gateman did not respond to the greeting. Instead, he demandedgruffly:

  "What you doin' on this property?"

  "Why, I was only investigating because the gate was unlocked," repliedPenny. "I didn't know the house was occupied."

  "You know it now. See that sign!" The gateman turned on his flashlight,focusing it upon a freshly painted placard tacked to a nearby tree.

  The sign read, "No Trespassing."

  "I'm sorry," Penny apologized, but stood her ground. "Are you the newowner of this place?"

  "No, I ain't. I'm the gateman."

  "Then who has taken over the building?"

  "What's it to you?" the hunchback demanded unpleasantly.

  "I'm interested, that's all."

  "This place is being turned into an institution," the hunchback informedher. "The new owner moved in yesterday. Now git along, so I can lock thegate."

  The gateman's eagerness to be rid of her made Penny all the moredetermined to remain until her curiosity was satisfied.

  "Perhaps I fancied it," she remarked, "but a moment ago, I thought Iheard a shrill scream from inside the building."

  "You may have heard the howl of the wind."

  "What wind?" Penny inquired pointedly. "It's a comparatively quiet night. I distinctly heard a scream."

  "Then you got better ears than I have," the gateman muttered. "Will yougo now, or do you want me to call the master?"

  "I wish you would!"

  Grumbling to himself, the hunchback stepped into the gatehouse andpressed a button which rang a bell inside the building.

  A light went on in a downstairs room, and a moment later the front dooropened. Framed on the threshold stood a very tall man in dark, hoodedrobe.

  "What's wrong, Winkey?" he called. "You rang?"

  "There's a girl here wants to see you," shouted the hunchback. "She saysshe heard a scream and wants to know how-come."

  Treading lightly in the loose snow, the thin man came down the drivewayto the gate. His long, brown robes were impressive, his demeanor pious.Penny suddenly felt very foolish indeed.

  "Is anything wrong?" he asked in a kindly, silken-smooth voice.

  "This girl's tryin' to get in," announced Winkey. "Says she heard ascream."

  The hooded monk studied Penny with an intent gaze.

  "You live near here?" he inquired.

  "In Riverview. I was out skiing with a few friends when I passed this oldbuilding and heard the scream. Your gateman tried to tell me it was onlythe wind."

  "My child, doubtlessly you did hear a scream," the monk replied. "It wasOld Julia, a poor woman, who unfortunately sometimes becomes disturbed inher mind."

  "This isn't a mental institution?" gasped Penny, regretting that hercuriosity ever had taken her inside the grounds.

  "No, my child," responded the monk. "Winkey should have explained. Wehave opened up the old monastery for the purpose of restoring an ancientorder in which members dedicate themselves to a life of poverty, goodwill, and charity."

  "The one you call Old Julia--she also is a member?"

  The monk sighed deeply. "Old Julia is only an unfortunate whose twistedmind never can be healed by doctors. Because she had no home--no friends,I have taken her beneath my roof."

  "I see," nodded Penny. "I'm very sorry to have troubled you."

  "A natural mistake, my child. Is there anything else you wish to know? Wehave no secrets here--only serene faith and hope for a better world."

  "I might inquire your name."

  "Members of my flock call me Father Benedict. My baptismal name is JayHighland. And yours?"

  "Penny Parker. My father owns the _Riverview Star_."

  "A newspaper?" The monk's inquiry was sharp.

  "One of the best in the city," Penny said proudly.

  "Your father sent you here, perhaps?"

  "Oh, no! I was just passing by and noticed the buildings were occupied."

  "To be sure," murmured the monk. "I trust you will use discretion inmentioning our work here. Should we become too well known, a path will bebeaten to our door, and the privacy of our order will be no more."

  "I'll scarcely mention it," Penny half-heartedly promised. "Good night."

  Retreating through the gate, she closed it behind her.

  A few paces away, Louise, who had heard only part of the conversation,waited in the darkness.

  "Who were those men?" she demanded, falling into step with her chum."What did you learn?"

  Penny repeated everything Jay Highland had told her.

  "He seemed rather nice," she added. "But when you sum it up, he didn'ttell much about the order he is founding here."

  "And the scream?"

  "Oh, he explained that. It seems an old woman named Julia lives in theinstitution. She's demented."

  "Must be a nice place!" The girls now had reached the car and Louisestood aside for her chum to unlock the door. Quickly they stowed theirskis and poles in the rear and then Penny started the motor which poppedand sputtered in the frosty air.

  "It's snowing again," she observed, switching on the windshield wiper."We didn't get started a minute too soon."

  Before the girls had traveled a quarter of a mile, huge, wet flakespelted the glass. Once as the wiper stuck, Penny had to get out and clearthe windshield with a handkerchief.

  "This is really getting awful!" she exclaimed, as they drove slowly onalong the narrow, curving country road. "I can hardly see."

  "Be careful," Louise warned a moment later. "You're close to the ditch."

  Penny brought the wheels back onto the main track. But a dozen yardsfarther on, she saw directly in her path, a bent figure struggling alongunder the weight of a heavy suitcase. Her head was held low against thewind and snow.

  Unaware of the approaching car, the pedestrian was walking almost in thecenter of the road.

  "Look out, Penny!" screamed Louise as she too saw the girl with the heavyburden. "You'll run her down!"