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Show - 93 - told me of his deep devotion to her. I remember when they were young and came running down the hill, hand in hand. I knew even then that they were destined for one another, but I am afraid that Dirk was betrayed." "Betrayed! By whom?" exclaimed Penny. "Was it Claudine?" "Of course, you know that she promised to wed another man. That is not news to you." said Chang Lin. "Is that not betrayal of the man she loved?" "Yes," said Penny, hesitatingly, "But Claudine thought she was doing the right thing. She did it for her parents. But I'm sure that Dirk was her one and only true love." "Perhaps you are right," said the Oriental.A look of sadness came over his wrinkled face. He didn't seem to want to pursue the subject any further. He half smiled and then continued. "Yes, I was an old man even in those days, but Dirk treated me kindly. When I was crippled with rheumatism and could not work in the gardens anymore and was going to be thrown out with no means of support, he provided for me. He paid me a small sum monthly so I could stay on here because I had nowhere else to go. To this day I am taken care of by a fund which he set up for me. So you see, I owe him much and can never repay him. Soon I will die, as my time is growing short, but I will never do or say anything that would harm him." "Harm him," repeated Penny. "Where's Dirk? Do you know?" Chang Lin only looked at her and gave no answer to her question. The young girl realized that if she could succeed in getting Chang Lin to help her, perhaps she would be able to start unravelling the mystery. She now knew that this old man had played an important part in Dirk's life, but would he help her? It would take time because she detected a feeling of animosity in him when she mentioned the ghost's name. In some way, she must convince him that Claudine did not betray Dirk. |