Chapter One<br > N GUARDI<br >George Henry Aylwin Saunders， twelfth<br >ford， took up a fencing stance and thrust. The ferrule of<br >his umbrella stopped one inch from his butler s waist-<br >coat. "Yield， villain<br > "Certainly， my lord." Merryweather， the butler， relieved<br >his master of the umbrella and his overcoat~ "An enjoy-<br >able cinematographic entertainment， my lord."<br > "Tophole. Errol Flynn is terrific. You really ought to<br >go and see it."<br > "Thank you， my lord， but I prefer to pass my leisure<br >hours with an improving book~"<br > "I can t honestly believe you need any improvement，<br >Merryweather."<br > "Thank you， my lord." Merryweather vanished into<br >the background.<br > "You know， Daddy， you ll have to stop doing things<br >like that to Merry. I m sure he feels it s lowering to his<br >dignity."<br > Lady Geraldine Saunders crossed the big oak pan-<br >died hall and tucked her arm through her father s. She<br >was petite， vivacious， red-haired， with a tip-tilted nose and<br >deceptively innocent large hazel eyes.<br > "Don t know what you mean， my dear. Never done<br >anything like that before~"<br > "Maybe， but last month you were calling him an or-<br >nery horse stealer and pretending to beat him to the draw，<br >and before that threatening to squeal to the cops about<br >his bootlegging operation in the cellar."<br > "Ah， that was during my cowboy and gangster Pe-<br >riods. I ve gone off those now."<br > "Well， can t you go off swashbucklers， too?"<br >2<br > "No fearl Couldn t if I wanted to iust no <br >The manager of the Bijou s booked the new<br >sore for next week---especially for me. Unco<br >of him."<br > "He s just trying to keep you away from l<br > They went into the drawing-room. Gel<br >down on the sofa， while Lord Burford p0ure<br >whisky and soda.<br > Gerry said， "I honestly think the talkies<br >the place of guns in your affection."<br > "Oh， no. Basically my collection ll always<br > ~ thusiasm was dampened a b<br > I adnut my en But it ~<br > of em was used to commit a muruc~.<br > " " II<br > In the meantime I m very much enloym hay<br > else to do. And I must say， they re remarkab<br > in these places. Manager meets you in the<br > you to your seat. Pretty little gal brings free<br > interval. Amazin how they can keep up su~<br > "They only do it for you， Daddy."<br > Lord Burford looked surprised. "Really?<br > "Quite. You wouldn t know. As a rule，<br > other customers are in by the time you g<br > you happen to be a peer of the realm. AJ<br > get many. It must do wonders for the box (<br > tle place like Westchester--especiallY when<br > in a chauffeur-driven Rolls in full evening dr(<br > "Bless my soul." Lord Burford squared<br > "You think people still care about that so<br >the 1930s?"<br > "Certainly they do."<br > "Well， that reporter chappie certainly<br >ested."<br > "Reporter?"<br > "Yes. Young feller from the Westshi<br >waiting for me when I came out. Said f<br >do a piece about the county s newest fil<br >how it was I d only recently started going<br >I explained no one had ever told me ho<br >got. I saw those jumpy old silent things<br >boy and didn t think much of them. So I<br > again--"<br > "Until a few months ago you found ~.<br > eouplo of hours to kill in London， no1<br > 3<br ><br >