Page:Frank Owen - Woman Without Love (1949 reprint).djvu/159

, then he said: "The court finds that the defendent is without the shadow of a doubt, Mary Blaine, sister of Templeton Blaine, and is therefore rightfully entitled to share in his estate. There has been some mention made here today of a certain woman known as Louella Leota. The court is not sure that such a woman exists or ever did exist, nor does it concede the relevancy of establishing her identity. It is Mary Blaine who is on trial and it gives me rare pleasure to award her the verdict."

As court broke up, Dorothy threw her arms about Mary Blaine's neck.

"You are very precious to me!" she sobbed. "Jimmy is waiting downstairs in the Rolls-Royce. We've come to take you home."

"I'm glad," sighed Madame wearily, "because my bunion hurts. First, though, I want to find Ivan, the Terrible. He is far more terrible than I ever imagined."

But Ivan could not be located. He had already left the court. Clive Reardon, too, had slipped away unnoticed. For the first time in his life he was delighted over the fact that he had lost a case.

As Mary Blaine drove uptown with Dorothy and Jimmy, she said: "Apparently everything ended happily but I am sad, too. Nobody will ever wed Dorothy now. Some day this case is bound to come out and if Dorothy married without telling her husband she'd live continually in fear that her disgrace would become known. So she'll have to die a spinster or else pay some fellow to marry her. Even her money is no inducement. Her life is ruined."

Jimmy swallowed several times, "Ruined, hell," he laid. "I'd love to marry her, if for no other reason than that I could be related to you. You're great."

"Are you going to marry me or Dorothy?" asked Madame quizzically.

"I'm going to marry Dorothy."

"Thanks for mentioning it," said Dorothy curtly.

"You shut up," cried Jimmy. "I'm talking to your aunt."

"When are you going to be married?" asked Mary Blaine.