Stranger in the House | Change of Address - The Mysterious Traveler

[00:00:15] This is The Mysterious Traveler, inviting you to join me on another journey into the realm of the strange and the terrifying. I hope you will chill a little, so settle back, get a good grip on your nerves and be

[00:00:56] comfortable if you can as we follow the nerve-wracking adventures of a young couple in search of a home. It's the story I call Stranger in the House. The scene, the small village of Woodford in Vermont.

[00:01:25] It's nine o'clock in the evening and the main street of the village is deserted. A car comes speeding through the village and with a squeal of its brakes comes to a stop before the home of Dr. Samuel Stewart.

[00:01:38] A young woman, obviously distraught, gets out from behind the wheel of the car and hurries up the walk to the doctor's home. Dr. Stewart? Yes, yes, won't you come in? Thank you. Doctor, you've got to help me. I can't stand it anymore. Of course I'll help you.

[00:02:08] Here, let me have your coat. All right. Now, what appears to be wrong? I don't know how to tell you about it. You'll think I'm insane, but I'm not. I'm not. I'm sure you're not. Now, why not start from the beginning and tell me what's troubling you?

[00:02:26] Well, I suppose it all began the day my husband and I left this village to look at a house in the country that was for sale. Yes, I can recall how happy we were as we drove through the countryside.

[00:02:41] Oh, Roger, darling, I do hope this will be the house we're searching for. Oh, look, we're coming to the old colonial graveyard the agent told us about. He said the house was a quarter of a mile beyond. Yeah, that's right.

[00:02:55] At the end of this curve, there should be a small bridge over stream. Small bridge over stream? Mm-hmm. Look, there it is. Now, the house should be just a little beyond. Roger, I don't recall the agent having mentioned the bridge. Why, you must have, darling.

[00:03:12] How else would I have known it was there? Now, look, there's the house. Oh, Roger, isn't it beautiful? Oh, what a view it commands. Now, look, Jane, you mustn't get too excited about the place. It's probably all fallen to ruins inside. Oh, not, darling.

[00:03:27] You can see it's one of those early colonial houses built to endure for centuries. Oh, it's just what we've been dreaming. Yes. This place certainly looks wild and desolate, doesn't it? Well, naturally. The agent said it's been empty for years. Come on. Uh-huh.

[00:03:45] What I do with a key now. Roger, look at this old engraved plate set in the wall. I can barely make it out. Wickford Manor. Oh, that's a lovely name. Yeah, here we are. Here's the key. Wickford Manor. Oh, I know I'm going to love this place.

[00:04:05] There you are. After you, Mrs. Barden. It's cold and clammy in here. Yes, yes, but look at that staircase, that beautiful staircase and those ceiling beams. Janey, honey, you were right. This place was built to endure. This house is in wonderful condition. Yes, but it seems...

[00:04:30] And it's just the size house we need with four rooms upstairs. Four rooms upstairs? Uh-huh. How do you know, Roger, that the agent ever mentioned how many rooms the house had? He didn't. Well, there's only one way to find out then. Let's go upstairs and look.

[00:04:45] Come on, Janey. These stairs are as sound as the day they were built. This house would require very little in the way of repairs. Yes, but it hasn't any electricity, Roger. So what? We could use lamps so a line could be run to the house. There.

[00:05:02] Now, you see what I tell you? There are four rooms upstairs. Yes, so there are. It's as though you'd been in this house before. Well, as a matter of fact, I almost have a feeling I have been. Maybe that's the reason I like it.

[00:05:16] Hey, darling, what's the matter? You've been ever so quiet since we entered the house. Don't you care for it? Oh, it's lovely, Roger, only... Only what? I don't know. It seems... unfriendly. Unfriendly? Who ever heard of a house being unfriendly?

[00:05:37] And you were crazy about the place when we drove up to it. Yes, yes, I know, but that was before we entered it. Well, honey, it's even nicer inside than it is outside. Yes, I suppose so. And think of what a bargain it is at $5,000, Jane.

[00:05:53] We've looked at houses that cost twice as much and weren't as nice. It... It is a bargain. But you still don't like it, do you? All right, then we'll keep looking till we find a house we both like. Oh, nonsense, darling. Well, we'll never find anything nicer.

[00:06:11] Now, that room with the southern exposure will be our bedroom, and that will... Jane, Jane, you're wonderful. And we will be happy here, honey. I know we will. In the weeks that followed, I was too busy with the repairs and furnishings of the house

[00:06:33] to give any thought to my misgiving. But they all returned in overwhelming force that first evening in our new home. I left Roger sitting in the study and made my way up the dark, winding staircase to our bedroom.

[00:06:47] After tossing for what seemed hours, I fell into a pitful sleep. I awakened to hear the clock in the hall striking the hour. It was four o'clock, and Roger's bed was empty. Quickly slipping on my robe, I left my room and started down the stairs to the study.

[00:07:16] As I reached the foot of the stairs, I stopped. Who are you? To my astonishment, I heard Roger's voice in the study. You missed it. I slowly approached until I was at the door. I can make you all clearer. It's so difficult. Mist obscures your face.

[00:07:33] Who are you? Why don't you say something? Roger! Roger, unlock this door! It's Jane! I can hardly see you. Don't go. Come back. Please come back. Darling, please unlock this door. Please! Roger! Oh, Roger. What is it, Jane? I was so frightened. Who were you talking to?

[00:08:03] Talking to? Yes. Well, I don't know. I must have been dreaming. Yes, you must have been. There isn't anyone... Roger, is that perfume in here? Perfume? Why, yes. Isn't it the perfume I gave you for your birthday? No, it isn't my perfume. It smells like... Narcissus? Yes.

[00:08:32] Darling, what were you dreaming about? Well, it was night and... all around me was a mist. A mist so heavy I couldn't see more than a few feet. There was a woman. A woman? Yes, yes. I could barely make out her face in this swirling mist.

[00:09:01] But it was a beautiful face. The most beautiful I'd ever seen. How strange. Of course it was a dream. Yes, of course. We both agreed it was a dream. But in our unspoken thoughts, it was more than a dream.

[00:09:24] The next day, I entered the study several times to find Roger sitting at his desk, staring into space. The scent of Narcissus was gone. That night, Roger tossed and turned in his bed, unable to fall asleep. Just before dawn, I awoke to find his bed empty.

[00:09:44] A cold terror swept over me as I left my room and started down the stairs to the study. And then I heard that which I most dreaded to hear. Roger's voice! Who are you? On this mist... If only you'd come closer. Bridge the distance between us.

[00:10:07] I've seen you before, haven't I? And yet... Where? Yes, yes, I can see much better now. You are beautiful. Who are you? Roger! Roger, please open the door! Why are you leaving? No, no, no, please don't. Come back, please come back!

[00:10:35] Darling, let me in! Please open the door! Roger, are you all right? Yes, of course I'm all right. The scent of Narcissus... The study is filled with it. Why did you wake me? You saw her again, didn't you? The Narcissus... It's her scent.

[00:10:58] If you only hadn't awakened her. Roger, what are you saying? If only she'd... She'd spoken to me. What are you saying? It is a dream, isn't it? It must be! I don't know. I don't know. When... When twilight comes, I...

[00:11:16] I feel her presence in the house, in this room. It's your imagination, it must be. Yes, but the scent of Narcissus... Where does that come from? I don't know. I don't know, but it's evil. The house is evil, we must leave it. Leave it? No.

[00:11:33] No, no, we can't leave it. I've got to see her again. I've got to find out who she is. Roger, we must leave! I don't understand what's happening to us, but it's evil, I can feel it. No, no, I won't leave, I can't!

[00:12:00] Roger, unlock this door, I want to talk to you! Roger! What do you want? I thought I told you I wasn't to be disturbed. I must talk to you, make you realize that you... I can't, Jane, she was closer to me than ever before,

[00:12:15] so close I could almost touch her. I spoke and she started to reply, and then you... Roger, what's happening to you? She's from another world, a phantom, an evil one! No, no, she isn't evil. She couldn't be, she's too beautiful. Darling, look at me.

[00:12:30] You can't let her come between us, I'm your wife, I love you. I don't want your love. Roger, listen to me. You must come away from this house, we must leave at once. No! I insist! And don't come back! I'll never leave her!

[00:12:54] I fled from the house, Doctor. I could still hear him shouting. I'll never leave her! You must help me, Doctor, you must! I'll do what I can, Mrs. Barton. You don't think I'm losing my sanity, do you? No. That which you fear may well be.

[00:13:16] Look, there's a history to Wickford Manor, though few people are familiar with it. A history? Yes. The house was built in 1811 by Martin Wickford for his bride, Marie Duval. It was considered one of the finest houses in New England. A year later, Marie's sister Isabelle

[00:13:33] came to live with the Wickfords. From some of the old records, letters, it was said that she was a remarkably beautiful woman. So beautiful that Martin Wickford fell in love with her, and she with him. Then what happened? One day, while Martin was hunting in the mountains,

[00:13:50] he was killed in a fall. When his companions brought his body back to Wickford Manor, they found Marie, his wife, dead. She'd been poisoned. Poisoned? Yes. At the sight of Martin's body, Isabelle went to pieces and confessed to the poisoning of her sister. Before she could be arrested,

[00:14:09] she did away with herself. In the study. In... in the study? Yes. There's a quotation in the Bible to the effect that a murderer shall find no peace in the hereafter. Isabelle Duval was a murderer. Then you do believe her spirit is in the house?

[00:14:30] In the years that followed the tragedy, Wickford Manor had a succession of tenants, all of whom left after a brief residence. They saw her too? Well, the tenants made no claims of seeing anyone, but their fear of an unknown element in the house led to their leaving.

[00:14:44] But if the other tenants never saw her, why should Roger see her? Mrs. Barton, have you ever visited some place for the first time, had the feeling you'd seen the place before? Oh, yes, but that was imagination. Can one be sure it is imagination?

[00:15:02] Perhaps you had seen that place in the long ago as another person. As another person? Yes. You... you mean Roger as another person had once known Wickford Manor? How else do you account for his remembrances of things he'd never seen in this life? I don't know.

[00:15:21] Doctor, you're trying to tell me something. What is it? All I know is we must return to the manor at once. The spirit that's abroad in that house is one to be feared more than death itself. Oh, please. Please come closer. There's nothing to be afraid of.

[00:15:40] She's gone. Oh, please, there are only the two of us now. You're beautiful. You're so beautiful. We... we have met before, haven't we? Yes. We have met before. You spoke. I've spoken. I've spoken. I've waited so long for you, Martin. Why... why do you call me Martin?

[00:16:28] My name is Roger. It was Martin. Ben. Ben? What do you mean? Look at me, Martin. Look into my eyes. Don't you remember? Yes. Yes, but where? When? Think, Martin. Think. Time is the barrier between us, but we shall overcome it. Think back into the dim past

[00:17:03] when you lived in this house and we loved each other. What? Isabel. Isabel! Yes, Martin. Isabel. Do you remember now? Yes, yes, yes. I remember everything up to the... up to the day I... I went hunting in the mountains and I fell. What happened to me, Isabel?

[00:17:34] What happened to us? To our love? Don't think about a cursed day, darling. What? Think of the future. Our happiness together. Yes, yes, Isabel. Our happiness together. Just the two of us. In this house, I have waited so long for you to come back, Martin.

[00:17:54] But at last we are together. Yes, it's startling forever. Roger, please open the door. She's come back. She's come back. Isabel, don't go. Darling, don't leave me. I must, Martin. No, no, come back. Come back. Please come back. Roger, unlock the door. What do you want? Who's he?

[00:18:18] Oh, this is Dr. Stewart, Roger. Doctor, this is my husband. What in the devil did you bring him here for? Roger, please, I thought perhaps he could help us. What do you mean help us? I don't need anyone's help. Your wife has told me everything, Doctor.

[00:18:28] My wife has quite an imagination, Doctor. Roger. Lately she's taking to imagining all sorts of things. I'm beginning to believe she's become unbalanced. I'm not. How can you say such a thing? I wish you'd trust me, Mr. Barton. Allow me to try to help you.

[00:18:42] I must warn you, the spirit of the woman you see in this study is an evil one. One that will lead you to disaster. I told you I don't need help from you or anyone. Now get out, both of you. Roger. Come along, Mrs. Barton.

[00:18:52] All I ask is to be left alone. Oh, Roger. Please, please, don't cry, Mrs. Barton. You saw him. It's as though he were possessed. Yes, I know. We must do something. We must. We shall, but not tonight. I must have time to think about it.

[00:19:09] You'd better return to the village with me. No, no, I don't want to leave him in the house alone. Something might happen to him. Are you sure you want to stay? Yes. Very well. I'll return late tomorrow afternoon. When I do, we will take action.

[00:19:30] Look at her, Martin. Lying there in her bed, asleep. So defenseless. If you want me, you must get rid of her. Hurry, Martin, it is almost dawn and I must leave. There's no time to waste. Yes, yes, yes, Isabelle, yes. We can't let her come between us.

[00:20:03] I'll do as you say. Who's there? Roger. For a moment I was frightened. What time is it? What? It's just dawn. I have to do it, Jane, I have to. No, Roger, don't. I can't let you come between Isabelle and myself. Not now.

[00:20:26] Not after we've found each other again. Tighter, Martin, tighter. Until she's out, struggling and still forever. Isabelle, Isabelle, don't leave me. Isabelle, where are you? Isabelle! Roger! Come back, Isabelle, come back! Roger, don't you see what she's doing to you?

[00:20:45] Tonight she'll be back again and she won't let you fail. Isabelle, darling, don't leave me now. Please don't leave me, Isabelle! Roger, Roger! And then he stopped choking you, ran out of your room and down to the study? Yes. Where is he now? He's still in the study.

[00:21:07] He's been there all day. I should have known better than to have let you remain in this house last night. She knows that if he murders you, he'll join her cursed spirit forever. Oh, look, it's growing dark out. Soon she'll appear before him again.

[00:21:19] Doctor, we must do something. Last night you said you'd help me. And I will. This woman, Isabelle, has been denied the peace of the grave because her sister's blood is on her hands. She belongs neither to the living or the dead, only to this house.

[00:21:33] If we could get your husband to leave, it might break the spell she's cast over him. Yes, but he absolutely refuses to leave. Then we must force him to. Force him to? Yes. I can very quickly give him a hypodermic, render him unconscious.

[00:21:46] Yes, then we could carry him away. To make sure he never returns to this house. Burn the house? Yes. Unless, of course, you don't want to. Oh, yes. Yes, we will burn it and the evil that's in it. Then if you'll lead the way to the study.

[00:21:59] All right, Doctor. Have you the hypodermic ready? Yes. And when your husband opens the door, just gain his attention for a moment. Long enough for me to give him the hypodermic. Very well. Shall I knock now? Yes, I'm ready. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God.

[00:22:16] Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Roger, open the door. I want to talk to you. What do you want? Why has he come back to this house? He's come to take me away, Roger. Take you away? Well, good. I'm glad to see...

[00:22:41] What did you stick me with? What's that in your hand, Doctor? Just a hypodermic, Mr. Burton. A hypodermic? Well, why? What do you want? You're trying to take me away from this house. From her. Well, I won't go. I won't go. Do you hear? You'll never...

[00:23:04] Doctor, quick, he's falling. I've got him, Mrs. Burton. Yes. Now, I suggest you take that lamp and smash it on the floor. Yes, let's burn the place to the ground. That's it. Now, you better help me carry your husband out of the house, Mrs. Burton.

[00:23:17] In a little while, this house will be a... In a little while, this house will be a mass of flame. No. He's regaining consciousness now, Mrs. Burton. Will he remember what happened? I don't know. Hello, Jane. Darling. I had a terrible dream. I was so confused and...

[00:23:54] Janey, darling, you're crying. It's nothing, darling. You've been very ill, but... Now you're going to be all right. Of course. Well, who are you? He's Dr. Stuart, Roger. He's been looking after you during your illness. Oh. Where am I? You're in my home, Mr. Burton. Yes, darling.

[00:24:18] Our own house burned down last night. It burned down? That's too bad. Why? We only had one night in our new home. One night? Yes, of course, Roger. Well, Mrs. Burton... In spite of the loss of your home, I think you were very fortunate.

[00:24:41] There are things far worse than fire. Yes, Doctor. And I can never thank you enough for breaking the bridge between the past and the present. What are you two talking about? Nothing. Nothing at all. Oh, darling, you've been humming that all day.

[00:25:13] Well, I'm just glad to be out of a sick bed and on my way to California. Look, we just crossed the state line into Kentucky. We've come almost... 600 miles since dawn. Yeah, it's getting dark. Don't you think we ought to stop now for the night?

[00:25:32] Anything you say, darling. Yeah, let's stop at the next motel. I guess I better turn my headlights on. Oh, darling, I've never been so happy. Roger. Hmm? What? Do you... Do you smell something? Yes, it's good country air. No, I... I don't mean that.

[00:25:59] Jenny, what's wrong with you? Don't you smell it? It's the smell of the country air. I don't know what you're talking about. Don't you smell it? Smell what? Oh, you mean... That... that perfume? Yes. It seems familiar. What is it? Narcissus. Narcissus. Wasn't that the...

[00:26:32] said in the study... that first evening? Yes. She's in the car, isn't she, Roger? She's followed us. Roger, answer me! What? Roger! Roger, you mustn't listen to her. She's trying to come between us. Darling, look at me. Look at me. Why are you slowing down? No. No. No!

[00:27:29] This is the mysterious travel again. Did you enjoy our trip? Poor Jenny. There are some ghosts you just can't escape from. Strangely enough, as Roger Barton was being hanged some six months later for his wife's murder, everyone noticed a strange scent of perfume about the gallows.

[00:27:47] Some people said afterwards it was the scent of Narcissus. I trust that if you ever see a house for the first time and it looks familiar, then you'll have the good sense to turn and flee. Perhaps... perhaps a ghost out of your past awaits in that house.

[00:28:02] A ghost that's been waiting for you a long time and he's... Oh, you have to get off here. I'm sure we'll meet again. I take this same train every week at the same time. Now you can follow other... Maurice Tarplin starred in the title role.

[00:28:40] Music under the direction of Emerson Buckley composed by Richard E. Page. This program came to you from New York. Meet a gentleman. I call his story, Change of Address. Have you ever seen a house that made you say automatically that house was just made for a murder?

[00:30:20] Of course you have. But until now, you've never wanted to own such a house. But now your name is Andrew Hollins. You're in your forties and all your life you've been ultra respectable. Now, suddenly, you feel trapped. Completely trapped by your marriage to your wife, Jo Castor,

[00:30:40] who rules you with an iron hand. That's why when you find this bleak, lonely house on the shore of the Pacific Ocean, your heart leaps with joy because it's a house just made for murder. But your story really starts many weeks before that and many thousand miles away,

[00:31:07] in another house, your ugly, uncomfortable home in Philadelphia. Andrew. Yes, Jo Castor? That's your fourth cocktail. There's only the third and they're very mild. Two cocktails before dinner, enough for a man of your age. We must think of your health. I'm only forty-seven. I'm only forty-six.

[00:31:29] I really don't believe I have one foot in the grave yet. Forty-seven, and it's no use taking chances. I'm sure Dr. Stevens would back me up. Dr. Stevens be hanged. If another cocktail is taking a chance, I'll take it. All my life I've lived safely and soberly.

[00:31:46] I feel as if I'd spent forty-seven years in a prison cell. It's been about as exciting there. Andrew. You're in a very strange mood. I was worried about you. Perhaps you need a tonic. Oh, yes, I do, Jo Castor. I do need a tonic. An exciting one.

[00:32:08] Or a vacation. Perhaps a little change of scene. We must consult Dr. Stevens. By all means, let's consult Dr. Stevens. He's had a pill ready for every emergency in the last quarter of a century. Let's see what he prescribes now. You must go see him tomorrow, Andrew.

[00:32:24] I will call and make the appointment. Now please, go dress for dinner. You go up to your room, Andrew. What's the use of rebelling? You're caught in a rut like so many men are caught, and there's no getting out of it.

[00:32:40] You stand staring at yourself in the mirror. Forty-seven, but well preserved, good looking still, still capable of playing a man's part in the world, if you had the chance. Then your thoughts are interrupted by a sound from the next room, Jo Castor's room.

[00:32:59] You know Jo Castor's downstairs telephoning. You tiptoe to the connecting door, open it quietly and look in. You see Julie, your wife's personal maid, opening the little wall safe where Jo Castor keeps her jewelry. She spins the dial back and forth in a professional manner,

[00:33:21] and the safe opens, at last you speak. Well, Julie. Mr. Hollins. Ah, so you're more than a lady's maid, huh, Julie? You're also a thief. Oh no, Mr. Hollins. Mrs. Hollins asked me to get out her necklace. Mrs. Hollins doesn't trust anyone with a combination to that safe.

[00:33:40] She's a very cautious woman, Julie. All right, Mr. Hollins. So she didn't ask me to get out the necklace. So I just saw this safe open and I was closing it. There, it's shut. And you can't prove anything, you're not so smart.

[00:33:56] I waited till I stole something if you want to harass me. Well, I didn't think of that. I was just wondering why you were doing it. I'm not in the mood for writing confession stories. I'll go get my things and leave. I'm quitting this job

[00:34:07] and you can tell Mrs. Hollins anything you want. I don't much care to tell Mrs. Hollins anything. Fine, I'm dandy, then we won't have any scenes. Goodbye, Mr. Hollins. I'm sorry for this, Julie. Sorry for you, I mean. Save your sorrow. I'm sorry for you.

[00:34:25] You're sorry for me? Why? If you don't know, it's too late to tell you. Now I'm going. No, no, wait. Yes? I mean, I want to talk to you, Julie. Not now. Later. About what? I don't know. I just want to talk to you. All right, Mr. Hollins.

[00:34:50] Meet me tomorrow. About five? The cocktail lounge at the Midtown Hotel. So Julie leaves and you, Andrew, wait until the next afternoon with much anticipation. It's the first unconventional thing you've done in 25 years, keeping a point with a woman, not your wife. And a thief at that.

[00:35:16] Well, Mr. Hollins, you showed up. Well, didn't you expect me to? No. Why? Why what? Why did you want to see me? I wanted to ask you what you meant. But why? By saying that you were sorry for me? You really don't know?

[00:35:34] Well, maybe I can guess, but tell me. You're a rather attractive man, Mr. Hollins. Thank you. I mean it. Of course, you are as tough as an old horse here, too. Thank you again. Well, you are, you know. Yes, I suppose I am. In fact, just recently,

[00:35:52] I've become unpleasantly aware that I am. Well, you're a rather attractive man made to that woman unable to call a brother your own, so I'm sorry for you. I can't help wondering how you'd have turned out if you'd married someone different. I can't help wondering myself.

[00:36:10] Well, then there's hope for you yet. Let's drink to that, hmm? To Mr. Andrew Hollins. Here's hoping. Right. But, Julie, here's hoping what? Here's hoping you get a little fun out of life. Everybody's entitled to some fun before they die. Of course. Look at me.

[00:36:32] Why, I'm a thief, sure. Sometimes. I started out straight, got married, my husband turned out to be a thief and he taught me to be one. We made a good team until he got killed. I see. Then I tried going straight,

[00:36:48] and when I took the job with your wife, I really meant to reform, but she drove me to it. I couldn't stand her. I wanted to steal her jewels just to show her. Of course, it does. It's insensible. But it does. I know exactly how you feel.

[00:37:02] You do? Yes. Yes, I do. Why, I think I hate Jo Castor. Yes, and I think how she's ruled me all these years. I hate her. Well, listen to brother Mr. Hollins talk. Don't call me that. Mr. Hollins. Don't call me Mr. Hollins. Call me Andrew. All right.

[00:37:25] Andrew. You and I will have to see more of each other. I wish you two had something in common. And you do see more of each other, Andrew. Julie is a very good looking woman. You're attracted to her. Very strongly attracted to her.

[00:37:47] We meet several times and Jo Castor suspects nothing. Andrew. Andrew. Oh, yes, Jo Castor. You're very absent-minded these days. Really? I hadn't noticed. I'm worried about you. The tonic Dr. Stevens prescribed doesn't seem to be doing much good. Doesn't it, my dear?

[00:38:07] I'm going to consult him about you. At your age we must take no chances. Of course not. No chances. We must never take any chances, Jo Castor. Not about anything. I don't understand what you mean. It's not sensible to take chances. Of course not. Everybody knows that.

[00:38:24] Well, you're talking queerly too. Yes, I'm certainly going to consult Dr. Stevens. You hear her go to the phone to call the doctor, Andrew, and you're elated because you've been making a plan and the plan is working.

[00:38:41] When you see Julie later that day, you tell her what you're planning. Well, Andrew, you're looking like a new man. Well, I'm feeling like a new man, Julie, my dear. I've been working on something. Yes? I've been persuading our family doctor that I badly need a vacation.

[00:38:58] He's promised to convince Jo Castor, but today he'll tell her. Jo Castor faithfully follows every suggestion he makes. She'll urge me to take a vacation, a long one, and you see? I think so, Andrew, but tell me anyway.

[00:39:13] It'll give me a chance to get away from Jo Castor without her suspecting anything. I'll start out in the car and just disappear. I'll change my name. You and I will meet in California, and we'll start a new life together. You and I, Julie.

[00:39:27] A life with some fun in it. Bravo, Andrew! But, my dear, can't you just leave her? Isn't that simple? No, no, I can't. You don't know Jo Castor. She's a pillar of righteousness, a tower of convention. She'd hound us some way or other.

[00:39:43] She'd punish me for my sin of leaving her. Believe me, she would. But, Andrew... No, no, I'm right. Every time I've gone against her wishes, I've suffered for it. She's a devil, that woman. Beneath all her prim conventionality.

[00:39:55] My only hope is to slip away from her before she knows that I've escaped. Well, Andrew, if you're sure... Yes, I'm sure. The only question is, will you do it? Join me, I mean. Take up a new life with me. Yes. Yes, Andrew. Yes, I will.

[00:40:19] So it's all arranged, Andrew. You're going to make a clean break with your old life. With Jo Castor. Everything. When you start to think, it seems a little fantastic. You falling in love with Julie, a thief. And she with you.

[00:40:39] But it's happened, and it's your chance, as Julie says, at last to get some fun out of life. That night, Jo Castor brings up the subject of your vacation. Oh, um, Andrew... Yes, Jo Castor? Will you please put down that newspaper? I want to talk to you.

[00:40:56] Very well, my dear. I saw Dr. Stevens today. Oh, yes? What did he say? Well, he said that in his opinion, you were on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Oh, nonsense. Run down, perhaps, but that's all. I respect Dr. Stevens' opinion. You must take no chances.

[00:41:12] Now, he recommends that you take a vacation. Indeed? What kind? With something completely different from your life here in Philadelphia. He suggested a long motor tour, perhaps a few months in California. Absurd, Jo Castor, absurd. I wouldn't dream of any such thing.

[00:41:28] Dr. Stevens says it's necessary, so it is all settled. We will leave in a week. We will leave? Of course, Andrew. I'm going with you to look after you. You are in no condition these days to be left alone. So your plan has backfired, Andrew.

[00:41:52] Jo Castor is going with you. It completely ruins everything, doesn't it? You can't talk her out of it. Your hatred for her becomes a consuming fury as you tell Julie what has happened. I tell you, Julie, that woman is a devil, a fiend.

[00:42:06] She's going with me to look after me, she says. I could strangle her. Andrew, listen to me. Just walk out on her. Make a clean break. She won't be able to do a thing. She will, I tell you. You don't know her. She's capable of anything.

[00:42:19] She'd ruin our lives somehow, all legally and respectably. She really has you beaten, hasn't she? There's nothing we can do. I guess we'd just better forget the whole thing, Andrew. No. No, I'll think of something. I won't let her beat me.

[00:42:37] Not if I have to kill her to prevent it. There, Andrew, you said it. It's out. Subconsciously, you've wanted Jo Castor dead for years. Now you realize it. You realize that to be free of her, you'll have to take matters into your own hands.

[00:43:00] The idea doesn't shock you in the least. The only question is how. You don't know how, but you're determined to find a way. You arrange with Julie to go to San Francisco and wait to hear from you. Then you and Jo Castor start out by car.

[00:43:23] You drive across the country, wondering every hour how you can kill Jo Castor and get away with it. You reach California. You're desperate. Your hatred for Jo Castor is almost too much to conceal. Then you find it. Mr. Smalley, the real estate agent

[00:43:42] from the tiny seacoast town of Port Aurore, shows it to you. The house. The house that was made for murder. There it is, folks. There it is. The house I was telling you about. Villa Vista. Isolated. An ocean view. A beach of your own. Quiet. Seclusion. Sea air.

[00:44:04] Just the thing the doctor ordered. Well, it doesn't look too bad at that, does it, Jo Castor? Are you out of your mind, Andrew? That house is the last place in the world I would live in. Oh, come now, Jo Castor. It needs painting, fixing up.

[00:44:19] Otherwise it wouldn't be available these days, would it, Mr. Smalley? Certainly not, Mr. Hollins. There's a housing shortage these days. And inside, Mrs. Hollins, it's very snug and modern. Really it is. Besides, my dear, look at the ocean. The beach. The ocean is cold and gray.

[00:44:34] I always thought the Pacific was blue. The beach is stony and dirty. I see nothing whatever to attract me to this. Habitation. Well, we mustn't be hasty, darling. At least let us see the inside. And so the little real estate agent shows you through the house, Andrew.

[00:44:55] First, the cellar. See, folks? You have a real cellar and a real furnace. Anytime it gets a little chilly, just light up a fire and there you are, snug and warm. The cellar's dirt floor. Damp too. Very unhealthy. Then the first floor. And finally the second floor.

[00:45:17] Then Mr. Smalley waits for your decision. My answer is no, Andrew. Positively no. Now this house is not made to be lived in. Why, it's only fit for a... for a murder. You look at her startled, Andrew. Has she guessed your thought?

[00:45:35] It is an ideal house for murder. Her murder. But no. She's merely using a figure of speech. You relax. Really, my dear, you're being too harsh. I find the atmosphere here very peaceful, and Dr. Stevens did say a few months of peace and quiet

[00:45:51] would do wonders for me. Yes, indeed. And a little paint and polish will make this house really quite livable. Will the owner fix it up, Mr. Smalley? Afraid not, Mr. Hollins, afraid not. Name's Wilton. Lives in Seattle. Won't spend a cent on the place.

[00:46:08] Has unhappy memories for him. Indeed. In what way? Retired, came down here to live. His wife left him, walked out, went back to her folks in Texas. Well, shall we draw up a lease? So it's done, Andrew. Jocasta gives in when you remind her of Dr. Stevens' advice

[00:46:29] and you sign a six-month lease. You're not sure how you're going to do it yet, but you know that here in the utter seclusion of this house you'll hit upon a way to be rid of Jocasta yet. You move in, but your wife keeps grumbling about the place.

[00:46:47] Really, Andrew, this house, there's something wrong with it. I know there is. Andrew, you're not listening. Put down that paper. Oh, yes, Jocasta? I said there's something wrong with the atmosphere of this house. I can feel it. Oh, now, pet, you're just prejudiced against the house.

[00:47:04] It's a perfectly good house. Needs a little fixing, that's all. It's damp and it's cold. I suggest you start a fire in that precious furnace the real estate agent made so much of. So you go down to the cellar, Andrew, and start a fire. Then you look around.

[00:47:25] It comes to you, complete, the whole plan. It's as if the house itself suggested the idea to you. You find a rusty pickaxe in the corner and you start digging a hole behind the furnace. Andrew? Andrew, what in the world are you doing?

[00:47:50] Just digging a hole, my dear, to drain off the dampness. It'll take more than that. That cellar needs a cement flower. Indeed it does. Someday it shall have one. I promise you that. Yes, Andrew, your plan is perfect. Your plan is complete at last.

[00:48:18] But before you can carry it out, you really need to own the house to be safe. So you finish digging your hole, quite a large hole. Then you stroll down to the village to talk to Mr. Smalley.

[00:48:32] Tell me, Mr. Smalley, the house, Villa Vista, is it for sale? Thinking of buying, Mr. Hollins? Like it as well as all that, huh? Indeed I do. My nerves are much better. I've decided to reside in California permanently. Glad to hear it.

[00:48:46] But Mrs. Hollins, I guess she doesn't agree with you. Said she hates the house and is going back to Philadelphia as soon as she can. That may be, but I shall stay. So is the house for sale? Well, I don't know.

[00:49:01] I'll have to phone Mr. Wilson in Seattle. He's never wanted a cell before. Hates the place, but won't sell. Wife left him there, you know. Yes, you mentioned that. Well, suppose I try and see. I'll let you know. Thank you. Funny thing, your wife was in today.

[00:49:18] She was? Wanted to know the present address of Mrs. Wilson, the owner's wife, the one who up and left him. Indeed? I wonder why. Said she wanted to write Mrs. Wilson about something. Wouldn't say what.

[00:49:30] Should have heard her lie to me when I said I didn't know the address. I can imagine. Well, thank you, and be sure to contact Mr. Wilson right away. You can just buy the house. You'll be free of Jocasta forever.

[00:49:49] Free of this woman who's controlled your every movement. You wait impatiently for word from Mr. Smalley. Andrew, what in the world is wrong with you? Why, you've been nervous as a cat lately. Nonsense, my dear. I'm fine. You are not, and it's this house.

[00:50:05] It's made your nerves worse, and we're leaving it very soon. I'm afraid we can't. We have a six-month lease. And I say we will leave. I've started the machinery motion. What do you mean, machinery? I've made a discovery, Andrew. A significant discovery. What discovery?

[00:50:20] I shan't tell you. You'll just poo-poo it. The way all you men are. Nevertheless, we will shortly be leaving this house, both of us. But I don't wish to leave. I like it here. No, that may be. I say we will leave. I will see to it.

[00:50:36] As soon as I... Telephone rings. Oh, the telephone. I'll answer it. Hello? Hello? This is Mr. Smalling. Yes, he's here. For you. That real estate agent. Hello, Mr. Smalling. What is it? News for you, Mr. Hollins. Good news. Mr. Wilson just phoned. He'd sell for cash.

[00:50:59] I see. I'm very happy to hear it. Two days ago, he said no, but he changed his mind. Seems he's in a little legal difficulty and needs cash for a lawyer. Well, that's too bad, but it's an ill wind and all that. Exactly, Mr. Hollins, exactly.

[00:51:12] Well, I'll drop in tomorrow and settle the details. Goodbye, Mr. Smalling. What was all that about? There's nothing important. Jocasta, I have something to say to you. And I have something to say to you. Now, this house has been very bad for you, so inside of 48 hours,

[00:51:29] I am sure we will be leaving it, both of us. I just want you to get used to the idea. On the contrary, we're staying here, both of us, for a long time to come. In fact, I venture to say that you will be here permanently.

[00:51:45] Nonsense, Andrew. 48 hours at the most. You're wrong, Jocasta. Andrew, what in the world are you... It's over, Andrew. It's finished. Jocasta is dead. You've killed her. Now she's safely buried in the cellar behind the furnace, the dirt smoothed over, packed hard, leaving not a sign.

[00:52:21] You feel like a new man, free, exultant. You pack her things. Next morning you take them to the freight office, ship them back to Philadelphia. Then you drop in to see Mr. Smalley, give him a check for the house, and casually mention that you quarreled with your wife,

[00:52:38] and she's left you, gone back to Philadelphia. You don't say? Well, now, Mr. Hollins, I guess women just don't like that house. Perhaps the house doesn't like women, Mr. Smalley. Perhaps the house doesn't like women. Very apt, Mr. Hollins, very apt. You go back to the house, Andrew.

[00:52:59] You're filled with an enormous satisfaction. You're free. There's a new life ahead for you. For you and Julie. You call her on the phone in San Francisco. Yes, I know, darling, but it's all right now. Jocasta's left me, walked out on me, gone back to Philadelphia.

[00:53:21] Oh, that's wonderful! So we'll be together soon, very soon. How come today, Andrew? She spoke of a divorce. It won't take long. Excuse me, someone's at the door. Hold on a minute, Julie, will you? Yes? Mr. Hollins? Yes, I'm Mr. Hollins. I'm Sheriff Bigby. Is Miss Hollins in?

[00:53:43] Why, no, she isn't. Mind if I come in? Why, no. Of course not. Thanks. When will Miss Hollins be back? I couldn't find her. I'm afraid she's not coming back. I couldn't say. Well, it don't matter. I just thought I'd tell her her hunch was dead right.

[00:54:05] Her hunch? What are you talking about? I'm talking about Mr. Wilson, who owns this place, and how he killed his wife. Wilson killed his wife? That's right. Nobody guessed till Miss Hollins came along and put us on the track.

[00:54:20] We sure thought she was a little off her rocker, Mr. Hollins, begging your pardon, when she came to my office to talk to me along with the atmosphere of this house, and she was sure it was because Wilson was a murderer. She said that? She sure did.

[00:54:34] Everybody in town thought Miss Wilson up and left Mr. Wilson, but your wife, she wanted a right to Mrs. Wilson. Looking for an excuse to break the leash, she said, and nobody had Mrs. Wilson's address. I don't understand. Well, it's like this.

[00:54:50] Even the post office didn't have a change of address for Mrs. Wilson. You know what I mean? Well, your wife said any woman who left her husband would put in a change of address so she could get her mail. Instead, it's Auburn going to Mr. Wilson in Seattle.

[00:55:05] What does that... Your wife claimed this proved Mrs. Wilson was dead, murdered. Why, George, she was right. Wilson killed his wife? He sure did. We phoned Seattle, asked the police to question him. He thought they knew the story and broke down and confessed. He's in jail now.

[00:55:23] Real smart work on your wife's part. Well, a couple of my boys will be along any minute to dig up the body. What? Wilson said the minute he set eyes on the house, he felt it was a good place to commit a murder.

[00:55:35] So he killed his wife and buried her real deep, behind the furnace. Behind the furnace? That's right. Told everybody she ran off. What is it, Mr. Hollins? Where are you going? I... I left the phone off the hook. Julie? Yes, Arthur, what is it? What's wrong? I...

[00:55:58] I just want to say goodbye, Julie. Your castor is coming back. You have just heard The Mysterious Traveler. Now you can enjoy other tense and exciting stories of The Mysterious Traveler in the current Mysterious Traveler magazine. In our cast were Jan Minor, Wendell Holmes, and Owen Jordan

[00:57:44] with the title role played by Maurice Tarplin. Music is under the direction of Emerson Buckley and was composed by Richard DuPage. All characters in this story were fictitious. The story itself was dramatized from the pages of The Mysterious Traveler magazine. Russ Dunbar speaking.

[00:57:59] This program came from New York. Every day the news is different, and every day Mutual presents veteran reporters with the latest headlines. Weeknights, hear Gabriel Heater, Bill Henry, and Frank Edwards. Saturday and Sunday evenings, don't miss famed expert Cecil Brown and the news.

[00:58:23] This is the Mutual Broadcasting System. This has been a Cryptic County podcast. To check out our other storytelling podcasts like Let's Not Meet and Let's Not Talk, and odd trails, go to crypticcountypodcasts.com. We'll see you next time. You know what ought to happen next?

[00:59:02] If this was a horror story, what ought to happen next? It did.