"How much farther?" "Soon now." "Anyone else living round the old Norman place, besides Miss Lu?" "Who?" "That woman, the Creole who was with him when he died." "Do you know her?" "Hmm." "Anyone else living there?" "No people." "There it is." "Here." "Come back for me in two hours, hmm?" "Uh-uh." "No more ride for you tonight." "Tomorrow." "But listen..." "Oh." "How do you do, Mr. Crosby?" "How are you, Miss Lu?" "Are the others here?" "Not yet." "Clock's fast." "It stopped when the master died." "You let it remain just that way for 10 years?" "Nothing has been changed here." "Everything is just as he left it." "He would've wanted it that way." "Yes, and everything will be the way he wanted it tonight." "We'll read his will in the library at midnight, just 10 years from the time he died." "But that's the end, Miss Lu." "A dead man can't stop the clock forever." "There'll be a change from now on." "Yes." "You ought to be glad." "It must've been rather lonely here all these years." "I'm never lonely." "I've got my friends." "Friends?" "Yes, my friends!" "From the other world." "There are always murmurs." "The house is full of murmurs." "They tell me things." "Oh, you believe in spirits, huh?" "Well, have they told you that the heirs and I have to stay here all night?" "I've prepared for it." "Some of them are coming now." "You've got sharp ears, Miss Lu." "Why, it's not at all involved." "We are second cousins once removed." "Our great aunt Elizabeth was very..." "Well, how should I put it, very, uh..." "Prolific?" "Well, at any rate, she had a large family." "Twenty-nine." "Don't exaggerate, darling." "Thirty." "What are you talking about?" "Crocodiles!" "Alligators, to you." "Why did old man Norman want to live in this dismal place?" "Well, of course, Cyrus was somewhat eccentric." "What you mean is plain cuckoo." "Young man, have you no respect for a dead relative?" "None whatever, unless of course he happened to make me his sole heir." "I doubt that." "Cyrus always professed a great weakness for me." "Yeah, you said he was eccentric." "Say!" "There it is, just as Mr. Norman put it there 10 years ago." "Exactly as he put it there." "Hello, this envelope has been tampered with." "Both of them." "Somebody must have opened the safe and read the will." "How could they?" "Nobody knows how to open the safe but you." "Well, I didn't do it." "You aren't suspicioning me, are you, Mr. Crosby?" "Well, if anyone tried to change it, he wasted his time." "I made a duplicate of the will, at Mr. Norman's request, and put it in the vault of the Trust Company in New Orleans." "Someone at the front door." "See who it is." "And mind you, say nothing about this." "Good evening." "So, you're still here." "Hello." "Wait." "Huh?" "I know Miss Tilbury, and you, Miss Cicily, but who are you?" "Fred Blythe, one of the family." "You must be the old boy's housekeeper they talk about." "I was very devoted to Mr. Norman, which is more than his family can say." "Really?" "I don't think I'm going to like it here." "Shh." "Don't say a word." "Are we the first to arrive?" "Lawyer Crosby is in the library." "What happened?" "Sometimes they get into the machinery." "Sometimes who gets into the machinery, Aunt Sue?" "How should I know?" "Oh, so it's you, Miss Tilbury." "Cicily." "Evening, Fred." "Hello." "Excuse me." "Hello." "Hello, Charlie, nice to see you again." "Thanks, Mr. Crosby." "Same here." "He's pretty, isn't he?" "Does he belong to us?" "Yes, dear, second cousin twice removed on his father's side." "Hello, Aunt Susan." "Charlie." "This is your cousin Cicily." "I'm so glad." "How do you do?" "And here's Fred." "Oh..." "Do we have to shake hands?" "Oh, come now, boys, whatever the quarrel is between you two..." "No quarrel on my side." "No?" "Mmm-mmm." "All right, skip it." "When are you going to read the will?" "As soon as the others arrive." "What others?" "Of course, there's Joyce." "Yes, Joyce Norman." "Joyce..." "Is she the one that draws pictures for the magazines?" "Mmm-hmm." "The other's Wally Campbell." "Wally Campbell, the actor?" "On the radio?" "The original flutterbrain." "Well, maybe I'm going to like this place after all." "Hey!" "I'm not really frightened, I'm just naturally nervous." "Eating in restaurants all the time, up half the night playing Chinese checkers." "Besides, this is my first sea voyage." "You seem like the jolly type, Clarence." "Do you like jokes?" "You don't mind if I ramble on, do you?" "It kinda keeps my mind off the malaria germs." "Anyway, here's one." "A farmer had a cow, see, but he couldn't afford to feed it alfalfa, so he fed it sawdust." "He saved a lot of money, all right, but he sure wasted plenty of time getting the splinters out of the milk." "Doesn't that just..." "Splinters, milk." "Don't you get it?" "Hmm." "Heard it last year." "Jack Benny Program." "Yes, Cyrus Canby Norman died in that room across the hall, hating all his close relatives." "Well, he certainly didn't hate me." "And if Cyrus turned against any of us, I know where to put the blame." "It was the influence of that..." "What is it, Miss Lu?" "Mr. Campbell is here." "Introducing your favorite and mine, Wally Campbell." "May I join the party?" "I was invited." "I hear old Uncle Cyrus's ghost is holding bank night." "Oh, I'm sorry, just a pleasantry." "Hello, Mr. Crosby." "Hello, Wally." "This is your cousin, Miss Susan Tilbury." "I'm charmed." "How do you do?" "He's the actor." "Your cousin, Cicily Young." "How do you do?" "Fred Blythe and Charlie Wilder." "Nice to see you." "Thanks, thanks." "Well, where's the leading lady?" "Leading lady?" "Young man, did you inherit the streak of insanity that runs in this family?" "What was that leading lady crack?" "Oh, nothing really, but all this, midnight, the alligators..." "I mean, the heirs, and the family lawyer all gathering to hear the reading of the will." "It reminds me of a lot of melodramas and murder mysteries I played in." "It does?" "Thanks." "And in every one of those plays, there was a leading lady, young, beautiful, modern, charming..." "Would you take this for me, please?" "Thanks." "Well, I got here." "Oh, I'm terribly sorry to be so late." "Oh, dear Aunt Susan." "And Cicily." "Well, this is like old times." "Charlie, they told me you weren't coming." "It's good to see you." "And, Fred." "Hello, honey." "And..." "Well, of all people, Wally Campbell." "Well, don't you remember?" "The little girl you took to a high school dance and deserted." "You used to call me the twerp." "The twerp?" "Joyce Norman!" "Say, when did you grow up and get pretty?" "Have I kept you waiting?" "I'm so sorry." "That's all right, my dear." "Now, shall we proceed?" "What a house." "Isn't it?" "That's Uncle Cy." "Hello, Uncle Cy." "They tell me he was so crooked that when he died, they had to screw him into the ground." "Shh." "Quiet." "Oh, sorry." "Here you are, Joyce." "Thank you, Charlie." "Now as soon as we're all comfortably settled, we'll begin." "Here." "Thanks." "Mr. Norman made his will in two parts." "I will now read the contents of envelope number one." "Oh, tell me." "Tell me." "Miss Lu?" "Miss Lu?" "Tell me the name, Master." "The name." "Miss Lu!" "What?" "What was that noise, like a gong?" "It's the warning." "It came just before the master died." "You know, I've been thinking there's no use in my staying here." "After all, I've never inherited anything, except hay fever." "So if nobody objects, I think I'll swim back to the mainland." "You're going to stay right here..." "Yeah, but I can..." "I have a million questions to ask you." "Yeah, well, ask her one for me about those seven bells." "They are the spirits." "They mean seven may live." "There are eight people in this room." "One will die before morning." "I feel very faint." "Yeah, well, it's been nice knowing you all but honestly, it's hot in here," "I have to get some air." "I..." "Now, wait, wait." "Stop all this, Miss Lu." "Do you want to frighten these ladies out of their wits?" "There's not much danger of that." "It has happened." "The insane asylums are full of people who've lost their minds through fright." "Oh, may we hear the will, please?" "Yes, let's hear it." "I'll bet you two to one that Joyce is the heir." "What's that?" "Oh, did I speak out of turn?" "What was at the back of your remark?" "Oh, why, nothing." "Come on, you know something." "Oh, nothing really." "Well, it's just that in practically every mystery play I've been in, the leading lady turns out to be the heir." "You have the power." "Yes, I..." "Me?" "There are spirits all around you." "Well, could you put some in a glass with little ice?" "I need it badly." "Don't you ever stop babbling?" "Attention, please." "Usual date and so on." ""I, Cyrus Canby Norman, being of sound mind and body," ""do hereby bequeath all my money, bonds, securities and estate" ""under the following provisions." ""Whereas I believe a streak of insanity to be in the family," ""in the event that the heir hereinafter named" ""should prove to be of unsound mind," ""or if said heir should become insane" ""or should meet death within a month of inheriting," ""then my estate is to be given to the person" ""whose name is contained in envelope number two."" "Was that his idea or yours?" "What's wrong with it?" "Well, that will is practically an invitation to commit murder." "Murder?" "Certainly." "What's behind that "meeting death or insanity within a month of inheriting"?" "That's easily explained." "Mr. Norman was afraid that the shock of inheriting the fortune might prove too much for an unbalanced brain." "And it's also a strong encouragement to the number two heir to do everything possible to unbalance the brain of the number one heir." "Fred, come off." "You're talking a lot of nonsense." "Yeah?" "Murder is committed frequently for less money than old Cyrus left." "That, gentlemen, is precisely the reason why the name of the alternative heir was sealed in this envelope, so that no one should know his identity." "Yeah?" "You know who it is, don't you?" "Naturally, I drew the will." ""I therefore will that my entire estate be divided equally" ""among such descendants of mine of sound mind and body" ""who are assembled in my library at midnight" ""on the 10th anniversary of my death," ""who bear the surname of Norman."" "Norman?" "Well, I'm the only one here with that name." "What did I tell you?" "I knew it." "It becomes my pleasant duty to proclaim you the sole heiress of the Norman fortune and the new mistress of this old house." "And I sincerely trust that this second envelope shall never be opened." "Thank you." "Oh, it's wonderful, Joyce, I'm so glad." "Thanks, Charlie." "I congratulate you with all my heart, Joyce." "Well, that's sweet of you, Fred." "It's so unexpected, I can hardly believe it." "I wish I couldn't believe it." "I'm sorry, Cicily." "You're not a bit sorry." "I know I shouldn't be if I were the heir." "Well, I congratulate you, dear, with definite reservations." "Oh, thanks, darling." "Well..." "Well, aren't you going to congratulate me?" "Oh, sure." "I'll do more than that." "I'll recommend a nice, quiet bombproof cellar to you for the next 30 days." "Thanks." "Here are the keys to the house, Miss Norman." "Oh, well, won't you remain as my housekeeper?" "Mr. Norman told me to give this letter to the heir after the will was read." "How did he know you'd be here?" "I told him I would be." "It's the first I've known of it." "Well, what do you suppose..." "That's probably about the buried treasure." "Buried treasure!" "What are you talking about?" "Yeah, well, there's always a buried treasure, isn't there?" "You know a pot of gold, or a diamond necklace, or a..." "Don't pin me down." "It's very peculiar that you should mention a necklace." "Yeah?" "Why?" "There was one." "See!" "Well, did somebody tell you about it?" "Now let me think." "Oh, it must have been my mother." "The last time you saw your mother, you were three years old." "Yeah, I was just..." "I doubt if you'd remember the conversation." "What sort of a necklace was it, Aunt Susan?" "Diamonds and emeralds, worth a fortune." "After Cyrus had it made, it was stolen." "Who stole it?" "Well, don't look at me." "I just got here." "I've never believed it was stolen." "I always thought Mr. Norman hid it here in this house." "Why would he do that?" "Because he was a nut." "There's food in the dining room." "I don't want anything to eat." "Personally, I've changed my plans and I'm leaving." "That's impossible, there are no more trains out until morning, even if you could get to the mainland." "Why can't we get to the mainland?" "Because of members of Local Number 2 of the Bayou Canoe Paddlers and Putt Putt Pushers Union won't putt after midnight." "You mean we've got to stay here whether we like it or not?" "I arranged it that way and I think you'll all be very comfortable." "So shall we eat, drink and be merry?" "For tomorrow, we..." "It's on the house." "My house, come on." "Cicily." "I could use a drink." "Yeah, I could, too." "I think I could stiff." "Might as well be a live stiff as a dead stiff." "Since we are all to be prisoners in this terrible house until tomorrow morning," "I suggest that you and I sleep together." "I suggest we all sleep together." "Miss Lu knew we'd have to stay here and..." "Oh, Miss Lu." "I don't know much about the house yet, but are there rooms for everyone?" "Yes, Miss Norman." "The main bedroom, your bedroom, is here." "Mr. Campbell, at the head of the stairs, Lawyer Crosby..." "What happened?" "They do that when you don't pay your bill." "Are you all right?" "Yes, of course, but..." "Well, how am I?" "I'm all right, I always shake this way." "Don't..." "Well, what in the world's the matter, Miss Lu?" "Miss Lu?" "Did you have to break one of those old crystal glasses?" "I didn't break it." "It was knocked out of my hand." "Come on." "Don't take it so big." "Go ahead." "Keep your shirt on." "I'm just telling you, you keep away from Joyce." "What's the matter?" "Not afraid of a little healthy competition, are you?" "I'm not afraid of anything you've got to offer." "I'm just warning you." "Yeah?" "What's this all about?" "I wouldn't know." "Better ask Fred." "Why blame it on me?" "Two grown men, it's too absurd." "Fred, I want to talk to Charlie." "Oh?" "I'll just be a minute." "Same old Casanova." "Well, I'll be in the dining room, if you need me." "Now, Charlie, once and for all..." "Joyce, why do you hate me?" "I don't hate you, Charlie, I..." "You were in love with me once." "No." "Yes, you were." "Darling, can't we..." "We had this all out a long time ago, Charlie." "Give me another chance, Joyce." "I won't fail you this time, I swear I won't." "You can forget that girl." "No, it wasn't just that, it was..." "We can't thrash it out tonight." "Tomorrow, then." "Tomorrow is better." "Yes, tomorrow is much better." "Here you are, Cicily." "Oh, thank you, Wally." "You know, I've always wanted to be an actress and now, just think of it, some of the same blood that flows through my veins flows through yours." "Yeah, it's gruesome, isn't it?" "Let's change the subject." "I may not see you people in the morning," "I have a luncheon engagement in New Orleans." "I have to get up early." "Early?" "Well, you certainly don't expect to sleep in this terrible house." "Don't big, empty houses scare you?" "Not me, I used to be in vaudeville." "Oh..." "Here." "Oh, Wally, you give me such a comfortable feeling." "First this old house gave me the creeps." "But with you here, I don't know what fear is." "That's right, nobody's afraid of an old house except a coward." "Turn out the lights." "What is it?" "I don't know." "He's coming toward the house." "Oh, Cicily." "What are you doing?" "It's the only way to stop a scream." "Oh, is that so?" "With me, it's for sneezing." "With me, it's for screaming." "Oh, I didn't..." "I got it." "Hold it." "Cicily!" "She's all right." "She's okay." "We thought we heard some shots." "We thought we did, too." "Well, hadn't we better investigate?" "Say, maybe you're right." "You may be wrong, though." "Well, I want to go, too." "No, you'd better stay here with Cicily." "Come on, Wally." "Oh, no." "I'm awfully sorry." "I screamed..." "What is it?" "Could I talk to you a moment, sir?" "Well, come in." "I don't want to alarm you folks, but..." "But what?" "I'm the head guard over at Fairview." "Fairview?" "The insane asylum?" "Yes, ma'am." "One of our patients got away from us this afternoon." "That's all we needed." "Well, anyway, he'll feel right at home here." "Is he a dangerous maniac?" "Yes, ma'am, he's..." "He's a killer." "Oh!" "How did he escape?" "I wish I knew." "We followed him into the bayous, but then we lost him." "But you took a couple of shots at something out in the garden." "I thought I saw him, but the shadows fooled me." "What does the poor fellow look like?" "Say, don't waste any sympathy on him, mister." "He'd just as soon rip you wide open as not." "Oh, please, please." "There are ladies are present." "Oh, I'm sorry, ma'am." "We're still waiting to hear what he looks like." "Oh." "Well, he's about 40, but strong as a tiger." "He has sharp teeth and long fingers and fingernails like claws." "And when he's violent, he crawls around on all fours like a..." "Like an animal?" "Yes, sir, like a cat." "What some guys won't do for a laugh." "Look!" "Scat!" "That's a good joke on us, all right." "Yeah, I'll say." "That's better." "Well, I guess I'll be moving on." "Maybe he isn't even around here." "But if I were you, I'd stay in the house and be sure that all the outside windows and doors are locked." "I agree with you, locked and nailed." "I'll handle that." "Won't we?" "I'll be around the neighborhood and let you know if we get the Cat." "The what?" "Uh, the Cat." "That's what the other inmates call him, but they're all crazy." "Well, good night." "Good night." "Listen, I don't think we better say anything about this to Joyce or Cicily." "That's right, there's no use in frightening them, too." "That's a fatheaded suggestion of yours." "If there's any danger, they ought to know it." "Well, somebody ought to go down and lock the cellar doors and windows, anyhow." "Yeah, well I'm going." "I'm..." "Don't rush me." "I'm going to ask you all not to tell the girls." "Have I your promise?" "Good heavens, do you think I'm the type that can't keep a secret?" "It's understood, then?" "Hey, what's going on?" "What are you all talking about?" "Nothing." "Nothing." "Well, I'm going to bed." "Good night, all." "Good night." "If you're going to lock up the cellar, you'd better do it now." "That's right." "Oh, that's right." "Is anything the matter?" "No, nothing's the matter." "Except there's a maniac loose in this house and we'll all be murdered in our beds." "That a girl." "Hold it right there." "Stay there." "Well, where's that cellar?" "Oh, say, in case I don't come up in about five minutes, better make it four, or even three, you..." "Is there a Brother Elk in the house?" "I'm not an Elk, but I used to be a Girl Scout." "Oh, good, then you can start a fire with sticks in case our feet freeze." "Come on." "Well, everything's fine." "Well, don't you people want anything more to eat?" "Uh-uh." "What's going on?" "Oh!" "Why..." "You go ahead." "I'll be with you in a minute." "Listen, Joyce..." "Uh-huh?" "You know how it is in a play, when just before the first act is over somebody always comes to the beautiful heroine and tells her that she's in great danger, and sometimes she is?" "What are you talking about?" "Yeah, I know it sounds kind of silly, but..." "Keep your eyes open, baby." "Thanks." "Well..." "Say, why don't you go to the library?" "It's much nicer in there." "The library, nicer?" "What are you..." "Well..." "Well, there's a lamp there." "It hasn't got the jitters like these lights." "Can't do more than explode." "Hey!" "I'm scared." "Aren't you coming?" "Did you find out?" "Can we go through that way?" "Uh-huh." "Oh, well..." "Well, I'll be seeing you, I hope." "This is the door all right, but it won't open." "The key, honey." "One turn..." "Oh." "Here's a switch." "Won't switch." "You want to go first?" "Yeah!" "No, no." "Certainly not." "Ladies always go first." "Oh." "Go ahead." "Thanks." "I think it was awful funny what Miss Lu said about the spirits being all around you." "What's funny about it?" "Well, I mean, I'm psychic, too." "I was in a trance once." "I know, I know." "When are you coming out of it?" "Just kidding." "It's awful spooky down here." "Do you believe in reincarnation?" "Huh?" "You know, that dead people come back?" "You mean like the Republicans?" "Shh, listen." "What's the matter?" "That noise." "Well, what kind of a noise?" "It sounds like wheels going around." "Shh." "Watch that step." "Watch that..." "Hey!" "Hold my nose." "I'm screaming!" "I can't." "Why can't you?" "It's got me." "It's got my hands." "It's got me." "What?" "It's got me." "I..." "Cheese!" "You're not hurt?" "No, this one here." "Look, look." "Hurry, hurry." "Oh." "My knee." "Oh, you're not hurt." "Come on." "We've got work to do." "That window's barred." "I like that." "I hear it now." "What?" "That noise you just heard." "It's in there." "Oh, that's it." "A home electric plant." "They're nothing but trouble." "How come you know?" "We had one down on the farm." "I used to fix it so the lights would go out when my boyfriend was calling on me." "Oh, yeah?" "Did anything happen when the lights went out?" "He always went to sleep." "Wally?" "Oh, Mr. Crosby." "Hello, Joyce." "You here alone?" "I don't want to worry you, but there's something you ought to know." "Well, won't it keep until morning?" "Tomorrow may be too late." "You know, Mr. Norman was a very eccentric man, and I've just made a discovery." "I've been going through some old papers of Mr. Norman's and I..." "And I've found something which..." "Well..." "It convinced me it would be dangerous for you to be left here alone." "Mr. Crosby, really." "Don't laugh, Joyce." "I know what I'm talking about, believe me." "I'm alarmed." "I want you to take me seriously." "Joyce, you're in danger, great danger." "Thank heaven I can tell you who they..." "I've heard so much about ghosts and spirits tonight that I..." "I'm getting jittery." "I'd rather not hear..." "Mr. Crosby?" "Mr. Crosby?" "Oh." "Where did Mr. Crosby go?" "I haven't seen him, miss." "But he must have passed you in the hall." "I haven't seen anyone." "Wally." "Charlie!" "Aunt Susan!" "Wally Campbell." "Coming." "Did someone call?" "Are you sure Mr. Crosby wasn't in the dining room?" "Positive." "And you didn't see him as you came downstairs?" "I did not." "What's wrong?" "Well, it's unbelievable." "A few moments ago I was sitting there," "Mr. Crosby was over there talking to me and suddenly he..." "He vanished." "Vanished?" "But, Joyce, people don't just vanish." "Well, Mr. Crosby did." "I ran to the door and Miss Lu was there." "I swear nobody left this room." "Are you sure he was in here?" "Well, of course." "You must've heard him talking to me." "I only heard you, talking to yourself." "Well, I'm afraid the strain of excitement's been too much for you, Joyce." "When a woman starts talking to herself, when she sees people vanish right in front of her..." "Oh, good heavens, what am I saying?" "You're inferring rather plainly that Joyce is losing her mind." "Really?" "Oh, dear." "You mean you don't believe me?" "Why, certainly we do." "Certainly." "But you do believe Mr. Crosby disappeared in front of me?" "Well, if that's my imagination, where's Mr. Crosby?" "Well, he's probably out in the garden with Fred." "Come, Cicily, let's go to our room, pile the furniture in front of the door and go to bed." "With a house full of maniacs, what good is the bed?" "There must be some explanation." "Look, where was Crosby standing when he disappeared?" "Exactly where Wally is now." "Can you still see me?" "Wally, do go outside and see if Mr. Crosby's with Fred." "Outside?" "I'll go..." "Oh, but, don't you think I..." "I'll go." "Charlie, you look upstairs in Mr. Crosby's room." "All right." "We'll find him." "Don't worry." "Yeah?" ""You will open this envelope tonight in my room, where you are to sleep."" "That's the room where he died." "Oh, I didn't hear you come in." "The room is ready for you, if you aren't afraid to sleep there." "Unpack my bags, please." "I'll be right in." "Have they found Mr. Crosby?" "Nobody's going to find Mr. Crosby." "The demon in this house has got him." "Don't say such things." "Fred?" "Oh, Fred?" "Is that you, Fred?" "Are you catching cold?" "Your voice sounds a little hoarse." "Fred?" "Oh, it's you." "What do you want?" "I was..." "Hello." "Have you seen Crosby?" "No." "When did you come in from the garden?" "Who told you I was out there?" "Well, I was just..." "Why, everybody." "Everybody was wrong." "What's your game, Campbell?" "My game?" "Well, I shoot between 90 and 100." "I used to hook my drives but now I slice my putts." "Have you tried that..." "Whatever you're trying to do, keep away from Joyce." "Let her alone, see?" "Just let her alone." "I'll put these in the top drawer, miss." "Thank you." "When did Uncle Cyrus give you this?" "Ten years ago tonight, just before he died on that bed." "It's no use, miss, trying to keep it to yourself." "Keep what to myself?" "The thing that frightened you just before you ran in here." "Oh, that was only my imagination." "It was a warning." "I don't believe in spirits, Miss Lu." "You're afraid." "You're afraid the demon that got Mr. Crosby is coming after you." "Why, that's absurd." "What is it?" "Hello." "Oh, Charlie, what is it?" "Well, it's..." "Miss Lu, aren't you through in here?" "Yes." "Well..." "Joyce, you'd better lock your door tonight." "Why?" "Oh, just to be on the safe side." "Perhaps I'd better sleep in the library." "Oh." "Why should you do that?" "In case you need me." "Why should I need you?" "I don't know." "You might get nervous or something." "What about?" "Everyone seems to be acting so strangely," "I'm beginning to think I'm losing my mind." "Well, anyway, if you want me, call." "Thanks." "Oh, and, Joyce, don't forget your promise to..." "See you tomorrow." "Oh." "Don't worry about a thing." "You don't have to lock it, I'm here." "No, I'm rather glad you are here, Wally." "Oh, really?" "Yeah, it's nice seeing each other again like this after all these years." "Mmm-hmm." "How you feeling?" "Oh, I'm all right." "I'd feel better if they'd find Mr. Crosby." "Wally, tell me, what's going on?" "What are you all driving at?" "Oh, I don't know." "I don't know." "But whatever it is," "I just want to tell you that I'll protect you." "There isn't anything living that I'm afraid of, hardly." "Oh!" "It's only the clock." "Oh." "Oh, I thought my time had come." "I'm awfully sorry." "I guess this house is getting me." "Now what was I saying?" "Oh, yes." "I'm not afraid of..." "You know I'm lying, don't you?" "I'm scared stiff." "But I'm always like that." "I'm always nervous just before I go into action, so scared or not, you're gonna get protected." "You always did fight for me, didn't you, Wally?" "Even back there in Wickford." "Remember when you used to carry my books to school?" "Yeah, what a racket that was." "Yes, and the time Big Jim Daley pulled my hair and you flew at him and what a terrible beating..." "He gave me." "I'll never forget it." "Seems I always got licked fighting for you." "Well, maybe it was worth it." "Cicily!" "Oh, listen, Joyce, if there's a rumpus or anything, don't come out." "You just sit tight and yell like the devil." "Well, what will you do?" "Why, I'll..." "I'll run and get help." "Don't worry." "I don't worry when you're around, Wally." "Oh, really?" "Mmm-hmm." "Thanks." "Good night." "Good night." "Good night." "It just makes my heart ache to see her." "I'm afraid she's beginning to break." "Who, Aunt Sue?" "Joyce." "All she needs is one more shock." "A remark like that wouldn't sound very well, in case you happened to be the second heir." "If Cyrus hadn't been utterly incompetent," "I'd have been the first heir." "What's that?" "Mr. Crosby?" "No, sir." "This is Hendricks, from the asylum." "Can I be of any service to you?" "I thought you'd gone." "I can't leave, ma'am, till my men come back for me with the boat." "Oh." "Well, have you seen Mr. Crosby?" "He's the grey-haired gentleman you were talking to a while ago." "No, I haven't." "He disappeared." "He couldn't have gone far, unless he went swimming." "Would you mind looking about the grounds for him?" "It'll be a pleasure, ma'am." "Thank you so much." "Well, if you need me, just call." "My room is right up there." "Thanks, Fred." "I guess I'll be pretty safe tonight with all the men guarding me." "Charlie just told me the same thing." "So he was here." "Leave it to him to get anywhere first." "Shh!" "I wouldn't do that if I were you, beautiful." "Do what?" "Entertain any more people in your room tonight." "I won't." "Have you read the letter?" "No, I haven't." "Wally, come in here a minute." ""You will open this envelope tonight in my room," ""where you are to sleep."" "Don't do it." "Why not?" "I don't know." "My Aunt Minnie brought me up to always bite half dollars." "Look, Miss Lu says that Mr. Norman gave this to her." "But how do we know he did?" "Maybe Miss Lu is in cahoots with someone who wants to know exactly where he can find you tonight, while you're alone." "But who would that be?" "Well, the person whose name is in the envelope that Crosby has." "Whoever it is would become the heir, in case you were out of the way." "Wally, that's a horrible thought." "Yes, it is, isn't it?" "I got goose pimples." "Even my goose pimples have goose pimples." "Let's get a gulp of fresh air." "I'll bet there hasn't been any fresh air in this house for a long time." "There." "That's better." "Yes." "Oh, you're going to..." "I thought I would as long as you're here." ""To my unknown heir, man or woman," ""because I can take no earthly possessions with me" ""I am compelled to leave them to you." ""Your hour will come, too."" ""In your brief span of life," ""enjoy the glittering symbols of the world, which I now renounce."" "Ooh, that gives me the creeps." "Here's a verse." "It's a little more cheerful." ""Find the number beneath the vine." ""The sparkling gems will then be thine." ""O love, what number rhymes with mine?"" "It's a silly little verse." "Yeah." "Say, Wally, it's the key to the necklace." "Yeah." ""What number rhymes with mine?"" "Well, it ain't 10." "Nine. "Beneath the vine."" "That must be outdoors in the garden." "Why does he say "o love"?" "What does love have to do with it?" "Love, affection, Venus, the goddess of love." "Say, is there a statue of Venus around this joint anywhere?" "I don't know." "Wait." "Look." "The fountain." "Cupid." "Sure." "Venus' little problem child." "Let's go." "Let me get my jacket." "Wally." "Hmm?" "Look." "How funny." "How comforting." "Come on." "Which way?" "Up there at the end of the hall." "Shh." "There's someone in Mr. Crosby's room." "Maybe it's Mr. Crosby." "What are you doing in there?" "Waiting." "What's she waiting for?" "Certainly will be glad to get out of this terrible house." "Well, here's love." "The vine." "The vine." "Beneath the vine." "Yes, the vine." "Do you suppose we have to dig it up by the roots?" "I don't see any number nine." "Look, look, the knobs." "Yeah." "Maybe he meant the ninth knob." "Where do they start?" "I don't know." "One, two, three, four, five..." "Six, seven, eight, nine." "Wait a minute." "Here's one that's loose." "Now that we got it, what are we going to do with it?" "I don't know." "Turn it, pull it." "Nothing happens." "Well, Uncle Cyrus was left-handed." "Would that make any difference?" "No." "Well, maybe." "No, I guess the old boy was kidding." "It's no good." "Oh, dear." "Hey, look." "Say..." "What's the matter?" "Something soft." "Here, I'll get it." "No, I..." "Let me." "Say..." "Wow!" "I bet there's a catch in this somewhere." "Oh, Wally!" "Say, wouldn't it be a good idea to put it back in there where it'll be safe until daylight?" "Well, I don't know..." "No, I think it'll be safer with me." "Come on, let's go." "Isn't it terrific?" "Terrific." "Thanks for everything, Wally." "Uh, say, if you're gonna sleep with those pebbles tonight, you'd better take the gun." "You used to be quite a shot with an air rifle." "Remember the time you shot the hole in old Scrooge's silk hat?" "I haven't fired a gun since..." "Did you know this was empty?" "Empty?" "How do you like that?" "Hey, wait a minute, I was out there all alone." "Never in my..." "Oh." "I guess I'm beginning to see things." "What is the matter?" "I don't know, only..." "I guess, I think." "What's that?" "Think nothing of it." "Now, what were you saying?" "Keep talking." "It wasn't important." "It was only that I think every woman is happier when she has a lot of..." "Oh, be careful." "A cat." "Of all the ridiculous things I ever saw in my life." "You with the chair, creeping up to the window." "Wham!" "And a cat." "Take it easy." "Joyce!" "Joyce!" "Aunt Sue is loose again." "Joyce!" "Joyce, are you there?" "Open up." "Yes." "In a minute." "Come on." "Wait." "My mother brought me up never to be caught twice in the same lady's bedroom." "Joyce!" "Joyce, what happened?" "Just a minute." "Open the door, Joyce." "Are you all right?" "Oh, yes, I am all right." "It was so silly." "What?" "I wanted to get a breath of fresh air and the window stuck." "I broke it just as I was trying to open it." "Oh, is that all?" "How did you get the..." "But then I got all tangled up in the curtain with the cat." "The cat." "Miss Lu, will you please take your cat?" "Now I promise to go straight to bed and I won't disturb you any more." "Well, that window is barred, so I guess it's all right." "Good night." "Oh, wait for me, Fred." "Good night, dear." "Good night." "Did you say the window stuck?" "Yes, it stuck." "Okay." "Wally." "Wally!" "Come in." "Pretty good, huh?" "Ouch!" "Riding boots." "I suppose your Aunt Minnie taught you that cute trick." "No, I got that one from her boyfriend." "Oh, I'm sorry." "Well, I guess I'll run along." "Do you want me to lock the shutters?" "No." "Just don't make any more noise." "Oh." "Well, good night." "The road's clear." "Be sure and lock the door after me." "Don't worry, I will." "Good night, beautiful." "I didn't mean to be cross." "I'm getting so nervous, I could holler." "Would you like something to quiet you?" "A sleeping powder?" "No, thanks." "I have one in my bag." "Well, how about letting me have it?" "Good night, Wally." "Never mind the powder." "Who wants to sleep?" "Open!" "Please!" "Please, Wally!" "Joyce, open up." "Open the door." "Haven't you got another key?" "It's locked on the inside." "What's happened?" "We don't know." "She's alive, thank heaven." "Miss Lu, get a little brandy." "Please help!" "Please, oh, please!" "Help me!" "Wally!" "What happened, baby?" "I don't know." "My eyes were closed." "It was a hand!" "It came from the dark." "I felt it." "For heaven's sake, do try to be coherent!" "Well, it touched me!" "The necklace." "It's gone." "What necklace?" "Well, the necklace." "Wally and I, we found it in the garden." "Hanging from a tree, I suppose." "It's true, we did find it." "But it's gone." "The hand took it." "Hand." "What hand?" "Oh, I don't know." "Just a hand." "It came out of the wall." "Oh." "We'd better send for a doctor." "An alienist would be better." "The poor child's gone stark staring mad." "Shut up." "Every one of you thinks just the same as I do, that Joyce has lost her mind." "But I haven't." "You must believe me." "How can we, Joyce?" "After all, when someone starts concocting a story about a hand coming out of a wall..." "You can't..." "You don't really think that I..." "Susan's right." "Every one of you feels exactly as she feels about me, only..." "Only they haven't got the courage to say it." "I don't." "I know you don't, Wally." "I've been through enough tonight to drive anyone mad." "But I'm not." "Now listen." "Wally and I found the necklace that Cyrus left me in the garden." "Then he said good night to me and I got ready for bed." "Someone was watching me." "I know that now." "Someone who was trying to frighten me." "Then..." "Just as I was falling asleep," "I felt somebody in the room." "I opened my eyes, a long claw-like hand came out of the wall!" "And it came nearer and nearer to me..." "I couldn't move and it touched me." "Very sad." "You'd all like to prove that Joyce is crazy, wouldn't you?" "Because that would give you another chance at old Norman's dough." "That's pretty rotten talk, Wally." "Well, that's the way I feel." "Personally, I believe Joyce." "You believe that fantastic story?" "Haven't you clucks ever heard of secret passageways and panels?" "Panels." "Well, how else could the hand that Joyce saw come through the wall?" "Let's see this." "It came from right there, Wally." "Well, there's nothing here." "Wait a minute." "This is loose." "Hey, what's this?" "Listen, baby, don't be surprised if we discover an old skeleton in here." "Crosby." "He's dead." "What a terrible thing." "Poor Mr. Crosby." "It might just as well have been any one of us." "Can you imagine being in bed with a hand reaching for your throat?" "Quiet!" "Where's Joyce?" "Miss Lu and Wally took her into the dining room." "The poor kid." "What she's been through." "Isn't anybody going to do something?" "Well, if you mean isn't anybody going into that dark passage to argue with a maniac, the answer is no." "You know, I doubt very much that it was a maniac." "Whoever it was in that secret passage acted quite sanely." "That's right." "What would a lunatic want with a necklace?" "Don't ask me." "You've got to be loony to answer that question." "Just what's in your mind, Fred?" "Well, I..." "Wait a minute." "If somebody's trying to drive Joyce out of her mind, it's no impromptu affair." "Well, one of our little family party has called the turn on everything that's happened here tonight." "Uh-huh, Wally Campbell." "That's a lot of hooey." "Yeah?" "Don't you remember he wanted to bet you that Joyce would be the heir?" "Yeah." "Well, he was with Joyce when she located the necklace." "But he wasn't with her when it was taken." "And he knew where to find that secret panel in the wall, too." "If you're hinting that Wally Campbell murdered Mr. Crosby," "I don't believe it!" "Neither do I." "Oh, darling, are you better?" "Yes, I'm all right but what were you saying?" "Go on." "I want to hear it." "Well, I was just..." "Go ahead, Fred." "I'm just saying, suppose Wally knew that his name was in that second envelope." "As the alternate heir?" "Well, that's ridiculous." "How could he know?" "How could anyone?" "Someone knew." "Both envelopes had been opened before Lawyer Crosby got here tonight." "Now I know what happened to Crosby." "There must be an entrance to that secret passageway from this room." "What?" "Yeah." "Crosby knew the danger Joyce was in, and while he was warning her..." "Somebody pulled him in behind the panel and strangled him." "The explanation is so obvious to anyone with an ounce of brains." "You don't have to get insulting about it." "It was a pleasure." "Maybe you and I had better finish this conversation outside." "All right." "Fine." "Hey, now." "Cut it." "Listen, you gave Wally plenty of reason for any crack he could think of." "Now cool off!" "A fight won't prove who killed Crosby." "That's the important thing right now." "There's that clock." "It isn't the clock." "Oh." "Five." "Six." "The warning has come again." "Oh." "Nothing can stop it." "Oh." "Last time that gong rang, Mr. Crosby..." "All right, take it easy, Cicily." "I'm going to my room." "If Charlie will walk upstairs with me." "Certainly." "And we'll be glad to have you, Joyce, if you care to join us." "Thanks." "Listen, everybody, until we can notify the police, nobody, under any circumstances, is to go into that room where Mr. Crosby is." "Who wants to?" "Whether you want to or not, that's the law." "Meanwhile, I'll try to find Hendricks and send him for the police." "You know this whole thing has a phony ring to me." "A killer who thinks he's a cat." "Have you ever seen a man who looked and acted like a cat?" "A woman, yes." "But a man..." "Anyway, how do we know a lunatic escaped from an asylum?" "Well, the guard, Hendricks." "Yeah, but how do you know he is a guard?" "Just because he wears a cap and a badge?" "You can rent them at any costumers." "All right." "But why?" "To frighten you out of your beautiful wits, baby." "Yes." "But why should he?" "Why should he?" "I don't know." "I wish I knew who that next heir is." "Maybe it's a woman." "Let's see." "What women have we?" "There's Miss Lu." "Miss Lu, how about her?" "She must know a lot about that secret panel." "Why has she lived here all these years if she didn't expect to..." "What's the matter?" "I'm going into that bedroom and get that envelope out of Crosby's pocket." "The name of the second heir is in that envelope, and the name of the second heir is the name of the murderer." "Oh, if it turns out to be my name, I'm only kidding." "Wally, please don't go in there." "Suppose we've been overheard?" "Suppose the murderer knows you're on the right track?" "What good would an empty gun be?" "But it isn't empty now." "I found the bullets." "Where?" "In Miss Lu's room." "Here." "You keep it." "Well..." "Well, legs, let's get going." "Oh, Wally, how can you joke?" "I always joke when I'm scared." "I kind of kid myself into being brave." "Ain't that silly?" "Uh-huh." "Oh, easy, baby, easy." "I remember a situation almost like this in an old play called The Fatal Hour, or She Should've Known Better." "At the end of the second act, the leading man takes the heroine in his arms and kisses her." "Then, filled with new courage, he starts out after the villain." "And of course, he comes back in the third act?" "Oh, sure." "No, in the third act he's found dead in the bathtub." "Oh, well, that was just a play." "I'll leave the door open." "Say, if anybody comes down, don't let them know what I'm doing." "Wally!" "Wally, what is it?" "Wally!" "Somebody please!" "Wally." "What's happened now?" "I don't know." "I don't know." "Look, is he badly hurt?" "He's got a swell bump." "It's hard to say whether somebody hit him or whether it came from a fall." "What was he doing in here?" "He came to get the..." "To get my jacket." "Charlie?" "Hmm?" "It's gone." "What?" "Crosby's gone." "Oh." "Who could've done such a thing?" "The one who killed him." "The law can't convict you of murder if there's no corpse." "Help me up." "Who did it?" "I haven't the smokiest idea." "I was just..." "What became of Crosby?" "Are you sure you don't know?" "I'm not sure of anything." "Just when I get the whole thing figured out, it goes and gets itself all balled up again." "We saw Crosby fall to the floor, didn't we?" "Yes." "He was dead, wasn't he?" "Yes." "Uh-huh." "Ah-ha!" "What is it, Wally, what is it?" "How do we know he was dead?" "He was, wasn't he?" "Well, I suppose he was, but that doesn't prove it." "I couldn't swear he was dead, neither could you." "Could you?" "What are you getting at?" "Maybe the whole thing was only a plant." "Maybe he was faking all the time to frighten you and waiting in there to wallop me." "Oh, no, Wally." "No." "You don't think much of that?" "No." "Neither do I." "Oh, Charlie, did you find Hendricks?" "Yes." "He said the police can't reach here until morning." "He's still waiting for his own men." "They're lost somewhere in the bayou." "The telephone." "Either you don't know the nearest telephone is 20 miles away or else you should know more about this thing than is good for you." "Who?" "Me?" "Same place." "Why don't they have a telephone?" "People going around here bopping each other on the head, they need a phone." "What is it?" "Nothing, I just wanted to make sure you were all right." "Thank you, Charlie." "I can't stand another minute." "Oh, that's just what they're hoping for, honey." "But you can take it." "Come on, roll with the punches." "Let's go over here by the fireplace and relax." "There." "You know, what this party needs is more drinks and more laughs." "I'll tell you." "I'll bring a bottle of Scotch from the dining room and we'll sit around here and drink Scotch and make wry faces." "You get it?" "Scotch and rye?" "Here." "I don't need a gun with jokes like that." "Look, you play Jesse James and I'll play, well..." "Well, I'll play like I'm getting a bottle of Scotch." "Come on, relax." "All right." "Whoever it is, speak or I'll fire." "Speak or I'll fire." "I knew it." "Joyce!" "Joyce!" "Joyce, look here." "Wally?" "Wally, where are you?" "Wally?" "Wally!" "Joyce, I found it, the clue." "I..." "Joyce." "Joyce!" "Joyce!" "No, you don't." "One killing is enough." "Bringing guns and scaring women's one thing, murder's something else." "I'm all washed up." "Where's that necklace?" "That's all I want out of this." "Joyce!" "I wouldn't do that if I were you, Charlie." "Charlie!" "Don't move." "You robbed me of my inheritance." "I was the old man's favorite." "I should have been his heir." "I am the next heir." "Stop." "I've waited 10 years for this." "You poisoned old man Norman's mind against me." "I've always hated you." "And now I've got you." "Don't come any closer." "Don't take another step." "Joyce!" "Joyce!" "Wally!" "Where are you, Joyce?" "Joyce, are you all right?" "Yeah, she's all right." "Oh, boy." "Some fun." "Hold it." "Miss Norman, tell me..." "Oh, don't ask me questions, boys." "Wally, Mr. Campbell here, is the real hero." "Mr. Campbell, what was the clue you found?" "Hold it." "You'll get a better picture of me from a front angle, Rembrandt." "I knew all the time that whoever killed Crosby was the second heir." "And you found the second envelope?" "I found it in the coat that was covering Crosby's body in the secret passage." "It was Wilder's coat." "Say, you better get a couple of shots of Miss Norman and me together." "You're liable to need them very soon for your page of social events." "Yeah?" "Congratulations." "How did you know..." "Do you intend to live in your house," "Miss Norman?" "No, it's Miss Lu's now." "I'm giving it to her." "How did you know the Cat was Charlie Wilder?" "Well, I found something earlier in the night on the floor in the hallway." "What, a weapon?" "Patience." "You know," "I always suspected that the Cat was wearing a make-up." "As an actor I've often used sponge rubber in putting on a character make-up." "So, gentlemen, when I found this piece of sponge rubber..." "Sponge rubber?" "Have you got it?" "Let me get a picture of it." "Of course, my good man." "Shove off." "There they go." "Why don't we get started?" "Bye." "Goodbye, Joyce." "Bye, Wally." "Goodbye." "Bye." "Wally." "This rubber, it must have fallen out of my coat." "It's the eraser I use when I'm sketching." "What was that?" "What did you say?" "Oh, that's funny." "She says that's the eraser she..." "Huh?" "What?"