CHAPTER TWENTY: Horrible Truth

Janelle had ittied only a few shaky steps from the like sheltering rookers of Frank Alexander when she began to wonder if going back to Rotherwood Manor was really such a horrorshow idea.

Outside the Red Lion, it was a very crisp and chill autumn nochy. And it was so dark, sisters, that Janelle could not viddy her shaking rooker in front of her pale white litso. Now for a minoota or two the luscious blonde devotchka just stood there, trembling in her high-heeled shoes. But then she shut her glazzies, and took a real deep breath of the icy night air.

So many things she remembered. Lubbilubbing with Frank, of course, but also smecking away with Sheila, and having real droogs and like a real home for the first time in all of her young jeezny. And she remembered all the crimes of her past, some of them even making her feel a bit sick. And then she said, "right, come on then," and ittied towards the light at the top of the hill.

Now when she got back to the mansion, Janelle viddied through the window that starry old Sir Humphrey was all on his oddy knocky, sitting in his book-lined study in front of a roaring fire. There was wine on the table, and veggies and steaming roast, and it seemed he was having his dinner in like lordly solitude.

"Ah, Janelle! Thank heavens! We were becoming quite worried about you, my dear. Do sit down and have a bite to eat."

"No, thank you." Janelle had to be very polite, sisters, to keep the sickness from like knocking her off course. "I only came to collect my things, Sir Humphrey, and to thank you and Lady Margaret for taking me in. But I don't feel that I can stay here anymore. You see, I know the truth about your experiments. And so does Frank Alexander."

"Experiments?" Starry Sir Humphrey said, his fatty red litso looking very befuddled and like bewildered. "What sort of rot is this? Sit down, my dear, and tell me everything from the beginning. Tell me what you've heard. And while you're at it, do have something to eat. You look ready to faint from hunger."

"It's not what I've heard," Janelle creeched, her temper flaring and making her feel just that malenky bit sick. "It's what I've seen. Medical files on a violent criminal named Alex – a criminal you and your wife used as a Guinea pig for illegal experiments!" Janelle's soft and ladylike goloss cracked a bit as she govoreeted that last bit, sisters. She sat down skorry, her Gulliver throbbing.

"But my dear, we were trying to save the young man, not destroy him." Sir Humphrey's watery gray glazzies filled up with tears as he filled Janelle's glass right to the top with vino or wine. "If only you could have seen the injuries the poor boy suffered after his suicide attempt. Did Frank Alexander tell you that he forced young Alex to jump out a window? That poor, poor boy!"

"That 'poor boy' raped and murdered his poor helpless zhena . . . I mean his wife!" Janelle felt very sick, and she viddied that she had to stop all this govoreeting about horrible violence and rape. She picked up her wine glass and took just a tiny malenky sip. The feeling she got was of lovely warmth flowing through her. "Frank has changed, sir. He really has. He's looking to put the past behind him. Maybe I can help him with that." Janelle took another sip, a longer one, this time thinking of Frank and like melting inside. "All I want, sir, is to help him find peace."

"By exposing Margaret and me, you mean." Sir Humphrey rumbled. He sloshed a bit more vino into the young devotchka's glass. "Poor Janelle, you've no idea how angry and bitter that man really is. He doesn't want to change. He wants to finish what he started. It's not enough to know his old enemy is a hopeless cripple. Frank still wants to kill the poor boy!"

"You mean that horrible criminal Alex is still alive?" All this time Janelle had just assumed that the boy who'd hurt Frank so badly was dead. Sheila said so. Everyone said so. Her rookers were shaking as she reached for her glass. This time she drank deeply.

"Of course he's still alive." Sir Humphrey began filling her china plate with yummy roast and veggies. "But he's bedridden, barely conscious. Margaret and I have been looking after him for years. We've spent a fortune on surgeries to help him get well. But it's no use. He's on life support. The doctors say it's only a matter of time before his respiratory system fails."

"Oh." Janelle picked up her silver fork feeling foolish and dim. She didn't know whether to be happy or sad that Alex was in such a state. She just felt like a heavy burden was finally sliding off her pletchoes. Poor Frank could finally be at peace. "But what about his organs?" she suddenly asked, forgetting her manners a malenky bit and govoreeting with her rot full. "The medical reports I read said that most of Alex's organs have already been harvested. Is that why he's been put on life support, Sir Humphrey? So you can steal the rest of his organs for yourself?"

"Eh, what?" For just a minoota the starry old man looked at Janelle as though she were a bit bezoomny. Then he leaned back in his chair and gave a real gromky smeck. "Dear girl, do I look like the sort of chap who wants to live forever? As it happens, I'm in perfect health." And he reached for a long cigar.

"Oh! Well . . . well, that's lovely to hear. But still, Sir Humphrey, I really must go. I'll just be gathering up my platties, my clothes I mean, and then I'll be ittying off . . . I mean I'll be going." Janelle was pushing away her plate, and then getting to her feet. But it seemed her long legs or nogas felt a bit wobbly. And then she heard an icy female goloss that made her krovvy run cold.

"Going? Don't be ridiculous, my dear. You're not going anywhere. Julian, prepare the laboratory. We have work to do."

"Lady Margaret!" Janelle's slim white rooker flew to her throat. She knew the truth now. It was horrible! She thought of fighting, but just thinking of fighting made her want to collapse and sick. She thought of running, too, but her lovely long nogas felt so weak. It was the wine. That was it. She took two steps and then just fell into the arms of old Sir Humphrey.

He really was quite fit for such a starry fatty old veck.

A/N: Thanks to everyone for waiting so long for a new chapter. Stay tuned for the exciting conclusion to our story!