_Conclusion_
Mary Louise brought the car to a stop at Stoddard House at a quarter to
one. Carrying the money and the jewels in her father's briefcase, and the
other articles in the basket, she and Margaret went into the hotel to get
ready for dinner while Mr. Gay returned the hired car to the garage.
"I'll notify the police that you're found, Mary Lou," he said. "Then I'll
call your mother. I think it will be best if she goes over to your
grandparents, Margaret, and tells them about you herself. They haven't a
telephone, and I don't like to frighten elderly people with telegrams."
Both girls nodded their approval to these suggestions and hurried into
the hotel. Mrs. Hilliard was waiting for Mary Louise with open arms; she
loved the young detective like a daughter.
"Now, run along, girls, and get ready for dinner," she said finally. "We
are going to have one big table, instead of all the little ones in the
dining room. With a tree in the center, and place cards, just like a
jolly family party."
"That's swell!" exclaimed Mary Louise. "It'll be real Christmas after
all."
"And thank you so much for the lovely handkerchiefs, dear," added the
manager. "It was sweet of you to think of me.... That reminds me, you
haven't had your presents yet."
"Put them at my place at the table," suggested Mary Louise. "And I'll
have presents for some of the guests," she added, with a significant
glance at the briefcase and basket.
When the girls returned to the first floor, after washing their faces and
powdering their noses, they found Mr. Gay waiting for them. For a moment
he did not see them, so intent was he in the newspaper he was reading.
"Want to see the gang's picture?" he asked when Mary Louise came to his
side.
"Oh yes! Please!"
In spite of the fact that it was Christmas Day, a large photograph of
Mrs. Ferguson and her six accomplices occupied much of the front page of
this Philadelphia paper. In an inset above the picture of the crooks was
Mary Louise's smiling face!
"Daddy!" cried the girl in amazement. "Are you responsible for this?"
"I am," replied her father proudly. "I want everybody to know that the
credit belongs to you, Daughter."
Other guests, who had not yet read their newspapers, crowded about Mr.
Gay eager for the exciting news. They all remembered Pauline Brooks, and
Mary Green; several of them identified the two transients who had stolen
the other things from Stoddard House.
A loud gong sounded from the dining room, and Mrs. Hilliard threw open
the doors. The room was beautifully decorated with greens and holly; a
long table stretched out before them, covered with a lovely lace cloth
and bearing a small Christmas tree as its centerpiece. Bright red ribbons
had been stretched from the tree to each guest's place, adding brilliancy
to the spectacle.
"Hello, Mary Louise!" said a voice behind the young detective, and,
turning around, Mary Louise saw Mrs. Weinberger behind her.
"Merry Christmas, Mrs. Weinberger!" she replied. "It's nice to see you
back here."
"I've come back to stay," announced the older woman. "I got lonely at the
Bellevue. And Mrs. Macgregor is here too, for Christmas dinner."
It was a happy group who finally found their places around the beautiful
table and sat down. Mrs. Hilliard was at one end, and Miss Stoddard was
honored with the seat at the other end. Mr. Gay was the only man present,
but he did not seem in the least embarrassed.
Mary Louise found her pile of presents at her place, and Margaret
Detweiler discovered a bunch of violets and a box of candy at hers. Even
in his haste, Mr. Gay had remembered the lonely girl.
The guests ate their oyster cocktails and their mushroom soup before any
formal announcement concerning the valuables was made. Then Mrs. Hilliard
rose from her chair.
"As you all know from the papers, our criminals have been caught by Mary
Louise Gay and her father, and are now in prison. But even better news
than that is coming. I'll introduce Mr. Gay, whom some of you know
already, and he'll tell you more about it."
Everybody clapped as the famous detective stood up.
"I'm not going to make a speech," he said, "and keep you waiting for the
turkey we're all looking forward to. I just thought that maybe some of
you would enjoy this wonderful dinner even more if you knew that you are
going to get everything back again which was stolen. My daughter found
all the valuables and the money this morning in Mrs. Ferguson's house at
Center Square, and she will now return them to their rightful owners."
As the newspaper had not mentioned anything about the stolen goods, the
guests were not prepared for this pleasant surprise. A loud burst of
applause greeted Mary Louise as she smilingly rose to her feet and opened
the briefcase and drew out the basket from under the table where she had
hidden it.
"I'll begin at the beginning," she said. "With the vase and the
silverware belonging to Stoddard House." She carried these articles to
Mrs. Hilliard, amid appreciative hand-clapping.
"Next, Miss Granger's picture and her fifty dollars," she continued.
Tears actually came to the artist's eyes as she took the painting from
Mary Louise's hands.
"You keep the fifty dollars, Miss Gay," she said. "My picture is what I
care for most."
"No, Miss Granger, no, thank you," replied the girl solemnly. "I am being
paid a salary for my work by Mrs. Hilliard, but I can't accept rewards
for doing my duty."
She picked up the watches next: Mrs. Weinberger's and Mrs. Hilliard's.
The Walder girls would get theirs when they returned from their holidays.
"And, last of all, Mrs. Macgregor's diamond earrings and her five hundred
dollars," she concluded, restoring the jewelry and the bills to the
delighted woman. "I believe that is all, for I am wearing my own
wrist-watch, and I have my purse with its five dollars contents."
Loud cheering accompanied the applause which followed. When it had at
last quieted down, both Mrs. Weinberger and Mrs. Macgregor tried in vain
to give Mary Louise a reward, but she remained firm in her refusal. Then
the turkeys were brought to the dining room, and everything else was
temporarily forgotten in the enjoyment of Christmas dinner.
When it was all over, Mr. Gay told Mary Louise to pack her clothing and
her presents while he returned the remaining valuables to the Ritz and to
the police. "For I hope we can make the three-thirty train," he
explained.
"But with that change at the Junction, we'd have to wait all night,
shouldn't we, Daddy?" inquired Mary Louise. Anxious as she was to get
back to Riverside, she had no desire to spend the night in a cheerless
railway station.
"No," replied her father. "Because there's going to be a surprise waiting
for you at the Junction."
"Max and Norman?" guessed Mary Louise instantly. "You mean that they'll
drive down for us?"
Mr. Gay nodded. "That isn't all," he said.
Mary Louise did not guess the rest of the answer until the train pulled
into the Junction shortly after eight o'clock that night. Then a war
whoop that could come from no one else but her small brother greeted her
ears, and she knew that her mother must be there too. Yes, and there was
her chum, Jane Patterson, grinning at her from the boys' car! And her
little dog, Silky!
In another minute Mary Louise was clasping her arms around Mrs. Gay and
hugging Freckles and Jane and Silky all at once. Max, at her side, had to
be content with pressing her arm affectionately.
Questions, Christmas greetings, words of joy and congratulation poured so
fast upon Mary Louise's ears that she could scarcely understand them.
"You're home to stay, darling?" This from her mother.
"You'll go to the senior prom with me?" demanded Max.
"You're the most famous girl detective in the world!" shouted Norman
Wilder.
"You were a lemon to duck my party, but I'll give another one just in
your honor," promised Jane.
"Did you get your salary--your twenty-five bucks?" asked Freckles.
Mary Louise nodded, smiling, to everything. Then she got into Max's car
beside him, with Jane and Norman in the rumble seat. Mr. Gay took the
wheel of his sedan, with his wife beside him; Margaret Detweiler, who was
quietly watching everything, sat behind with Freckles.
The drivers of the two cars did not stop for any food on the way; they
sped along as fast as they dared towards Riverside. Old Mr. and Mrs.
Detweiler were waiting up for their precious granddaughter, their lost
Margaret.
A little before midnight the cars pulled up in front of the old couple's
home, and everybody in the party went inside for a moment. The greeting
between Margaret and her grandparents was touching to see. Even Norman
Wilder, who prided himself on being "hard-boiled," admitted afterwards
that the tears came to his eyes.
Mrs. Gay discreetly drew her own party away, back to her home, where a
feast was waiting for the travelers. This, Mary Louise felt, was her real
Christmas celebration--with her family and her three dearest friends. Now
she could tell her story and listen to the praises which meant so much to
her.
"But the best part of it all," she concluded, "is that I'm a real
professional detective at last!"
* * * * * *
Transcriber's note:
--Retained publication and copyright information from the printed
exemplar (this book is public-domain in the U.S.).
--Obvious typographical errors were corrected without comment.
Possibly intentional spelling variations were not changed.
--A Table of Contents and a list of the series books were prepared
for the convenience of the reader.