'As you can see,' she concluded, handing the document to Miss Weller, 'he has signed it.'
Miss Weller gazed at the paper, nodded, and then passed it to Mr. Norman. He glanced at it and handed it to Deborah, who held it the longest before returning it to Mrs. Ironwood. Looking as satisfied as a raccoon with its belly full, she sat back in her chair.
'You may offer your defense now,' Mrs. Ironwood said.
I turned toward the panel. 'I don't doubt that Mrs. Gray saw someone go to the boathouse last night at seven- thirty, and I know she believes she's telling the truth, but she is mistaken. I was not in there. I was—'
'I'll tell them where you were,' we heard. I spun around in my chair to see Miss Stevens leading Louis through the door.
'What is the meaning of this?' Mrs. Ironwood demanded.
I think I was just as shocked as she was. Louis, in a jacket and tie, his hair brushed neatly, nodded.
'I'm here to testify for the defendant' He smiled in my direction. 'Ruby Dumas,' he said. 'May I?'
'Of course not. This is a school matter and I—'
'But I have information pertaining to the case,' he insisted. 'Is that the witness chair?' He nodded in the right direction.
Mrs. Ironwood threw a furious, hot glance at Miss Stevens and then looked at the panel, all of whom were looking at her and waiting.
'This is highly irregular,' she said.
'What's irregular about it? This is a hearing, and a hearing is the place to bring evidence, is it not?' Louis asked. 'I'm sure you want to get at the truth,' he added with a smile.
Everyone looked from Louis to Mrs. Ironwood. Louis moved toward the chair when she was silent. He sat down and pulled himself up comfortably.
'My name is Louis Turnbull. I am Mrs. Clairborne's grandson, and I reside in the Clairborne mansion, as it is known.' He turned in Mrs. Ironwood's direction. 'Do I have to give my age, occupation?'
'Don't be ridiculous, Louis. You have no business being here.'
'I have business being here,' he replied firmly. 'Now then, as I understand it, the issue is whether or not Ruby Dumas was at the boathouse last night at seven-thirty and after, correct? Well, I can assure the panel she wasn't. She was with me. She arrived at seven-fifteen and remained until nine o'clock.'
A leaden silence fell over the room, making the tick-tock of the grandfather clock seem much louder than it was. 'Isn't that the issue?' Louis pursued.
'Very well. If you wish to carry on like this: How can you be sure of the exact time?' Mrs. Ironwood challenged. 'You are blind.' She gave the panel a look of superiority.
Louis turned to the panel as well. 'I have, it is true, been suffering with an eyesight problem. But of late, I have made significant progress,' he said, then glanced toward me and smiled. He turned toward the grandfather clock in the corner of the office. 'Let's see. According to my cousin's office clock, it is now four-twenty . . . two,' he said. He was exactly right. I looked at the panel. All of them were impressed.
'Of course, I can have you verify all of this by calling in our butler, Otis, who greeted Mademoiselle Dumas and saw her out at the end of the evening. He also served us tea while she visited. So you see, there is no physical way for her to have been at the boathouse last night at seven-thirty, eight, eight-thirty, nine,' he chanted.
'A well-respected member of my faculty says otherwise, and I have a signed confession—'
'Please go out to the car and ask Otis to come in,' Louis said to Miss Stevens.
'That won't be necessary,' Mrs. Ironwood countered quickly.
'But if my testimony is under some doubt . . .' He turned toward Mrs. Ironwood. 'If need be, I'm sure I can convince my grandmother to corroborate my testimony too.'
She stared at him. The fury that built in her face had turned her cheeks red and spread down her neck, making it crimson as well.
'You're not doing anyone any good, Louis,' Mrs. Ironwood muttered.
'Except Mademoiselle Dumas,' he said.
She bit down on her lower lip and then sat back, swallowing her rage.
'Very well. Under the circumstances, with this contradiction of facts, I don't see how we can ask our panel to render a clear judgment. I'm sure you all agree,' she said. Mr. Norman, Miss Weller, and Deborah, her eyes wide, all nodded.
'Accordingly, I am declaring this hearing ended without concluding the question. I want to emphasize that this is not to say that the student in question has been exonerated. It's merely a declaration that a clear conclusion is not possible at this time.'
She looked at me.
'You are dismissed,' she said. Then she turned away, her frustration causing her to fume so intently, I thought I saw smoke come out of her ears. My heart was pounding so hard, the thumping echoing in my ears, I was sure everyone in the room heard it as clearly. 'I said, the hearing is ended,' Mrs. Ironwood snapped when I didn't get up quickly. I stood up.
Louis rose and walked out with me and Miss Stevens.
'Why did you bring him, Miss Stevens?' I asked as soon as we were out of the inner office. 'Mrs. Ironwood is so angry she's liable to take it out on you.'
