(26) Escape - The Vanishing Lady

Summary

Harold’s Old Time Radio – Episode 26: Escape - The Vanishing Lady

Date: August 8, 2026
Episode Focus: A dramatization of the legendary “Vanishing Lady” story, set in Paris during the Great Exposition, reimagined in the old-time radio tradition.

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Episode Overview

This episode of Escape revisits one of the most enduring and unnerving legends of suspense: the mysterious disappearance of a woman in a foreign land, and the chilling conspiracy to convince her daughter that she never existed. Crafted as a suspenseful period drama, the story follows Cynthia Winship as she recounts the traumatic disappearance of her mother in Paris decades prior, with atmospheric performances and classic radio touches.

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Key Discussion Points and Story Flow

1. Family Tea & An Age-old Secret (02:27–03:53)

• Cynthia, her husband Bruce, and their daughter Alice are enjoying a quiet English tea at home.
• Alice asks about her grandmother, noting the family’s history on her father's side but an unexplained silence about her mother’s mother.
• Cynthia is hesitant but decides it is finally time to reveal the story.

2. Setting the Scene: Paris at the Exposition (04:12–07:23)

• Cynthia recalls being a young girl recently bereaved of her father in India.
• She and her mother travel to Paris, facing language barriers and the uncertainty of a crowded city during the Exposition.
• Relief is palpable when they find their room at the Grand Hotel Universelle.

3. Sudden Illness & the Quest for Medicine (07:50–11:26)

• Cynthia’s mother suddenly falls very ill.
• A doctor and the hotel manager are called; she is told her mother must rest for days.
• The doctor insists that medicine can only be fetched from his home—and asks Cynthia herself to make the difficult journey, as there are “no reliable messengers in Paris” due to the Exposition.

4. A Journey of Frustration and Foreboding (13:30–17:36)

• Cynthia embarks upon a bewildering cab ride through Paris, feeling lost and growing anxious.
• Arriving at the doctor's home, she is detained by the doctor’s wife.
• She hears a telephone ring, despite the doctor’s earlier insistence he had none—her suspicions mount.
• The errand ultimately takes over two hours.

5. Return to a Changed World (17:53–21:27)

• Cynthia is driven to the wrong hotel, creating a commotion before being rescued by an Englishman, Bruce Stanley.
• Upon returning to her actual hotel, the staff deny any knowledge of her, her mother, or their registration.
• Even the bellboy swears he’s never seen her, and the room register contains no trace of their names.
• Cynthia is forced by exhaustion to accept Bruce’s help and temporarily abandons the search.

"But don't you remember me? I'm Cynthia Winship...You were standing there when we arrived. You handed my mother the pen with which she registered."
— Cynthia, pleading with the hotel manager (20:50)

6. Desperation & Doubt (21:48–25:47)

• Over a meal, Cynthia describes the details of the hotel room to Bruce, clinging to these specifics as proof of her sanity.
• Bruce offers to use his embassy connections but must postpone action until the next day.
• Cynthia remembers the doctor's address and Bruce agrees they should visit him.
• The doctor denies all knowledge, speaking only French and refuting her story.

7. A Final Confrontation with the Room (25:47–27:17)

• The next morning, the hotel manager’s attitude is now courteous.
• Room 342 is completely different: furnishings, drapes, and décor bear no resemblance to her memory; the clock is running, the walls are a different color.
• Cynthia is pushed to the brink of her sanity.

"Now, Bruce, you shall see the yellow bedspread..."
— Cynthia, clinging to hope (26:44)

8. Aftermath and a Long Withheld Truth (27:26–30:50)

• Cynthia relates how she lost all memory of the following weeks and was brought to England in a fragile state.
• Alice and Bruce comfort her, but Bruce finally reveals the truth:
  • Cynthia’s mother died of the bubonic plague 20 minutes after Cynthia left for the doctor’s home.
  • To avoid a citywide panic and the ruin of the Exposition, Parisian authorities conspired to erase all evidence and memory of the event—even involving the embassy.
  • The entire cover-up included bribery, redecorating, and gaslighting, with Bruce compelled to comply by higher orders.
  • Cynthia’s mother’s body was burned within half an hour of the death.

"Your mother died 20 minutes after you left the hotel... She died of the bubonic plague. She'd caught it in India before she sailed. The doctor recognized the symptoms... They agreed that the matter must be kept completely secret..."
— Bruce Stanley, revealing the true conspiracy (28:11–29:17)

9. Emotional Resolution (30:12–30:50)

• Cynthia reacts with sorrow and anger, demanding to know why Bruce kept the secret.
• He gently tells her he could only do so now, since she has finally brought up the event herself.
• The family, subdued and somber, shifts back to everyday life as Cynthia asks to speak to her husband alone.

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Memorable Moments & Quotes

• The horror of collective gaslighting:

  “I am afraid that mademoiselle is mistaken. I have never seen her before in my life.”
  — Hotel Manager (19:58)

• Desperate hope for proof:

  "Oh, if I could only get into that room, you'd see. I'm not making this up. I'm not."
  — Cynthia (22:44)

• Bruce’s word of comfort and complicity:

  "I was acting under orders... I had to let the last act of the dreadful farce play to its dreadful end."
  — Bruce (29:43)

• The cost of secrecy and state interests:

  “If the news leaked out that there was a case of plague in Paris, the city would have been emptied of visitors and the Exposition would have been a failure.”
  — Bruce (28:26)

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Timestamps of Major Segments

• (02:27-03:53): Conversation over tea / Cynthia’s secret
• (04:42-05:24): Arrival in Paris, hotel relief
• (07:48-08:45): Mother’s sudden illness
• (10:00-11:26): The doctor’s instructions and Cynthia’s errand
• (13:30-17:36): Cynthia’s torturous journey across Paris
• (18:20-21:27): Return, denial at hotel; total gaslighting
• (21:48-23:36): Cynthia’s breakdown, Bruce’s support
• (25:47-27:17): Inspection of the changed hotel room
• (28:11-30:50): Bruce reveals the true conspiracy and aftermath

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Tone and Language

• Classic radio suspense: reserved, cultured, but fraught with underlying dread and despair.
• The dialogue is earnest, slightly formal, with clear distinctions in class and nationality.
• The unraveling of Cynthia’s sanity and the climactic reveal keep a tense, eerie rhythm familiar to old-time radio mysteries.

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Episode Impact

This “Escape” dramatization showcases a master class in mounting tension and psychological suspense, mixing the uncertainty of a foreign land, the terror of disappearance, and the chilling machinery of collective cover-up. With memorable performances and a resonant final reveal, “The Vanishing Lady” stands out as a prime example of the Golden Age of Radio’s power to unsettle, intrigue, and move audiences even generations later.

Transcript

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[Narrator/Announcer (Escape Show Host)]

The Adventures of Christopher Wells program, formerly scheduled at this time is now broadcast at a new time on Tuesday evening. Tune in for the Adventures of Christopher Wells next Tuesday and every Tuesday at 6:30pm Pacific Standard Time.

[Narrator/Announcer (Escape Show Introduction)]

You are alone in Paris, unable to speak the language, unable to cope with a gigantic conspiracy which seeks to convince you that you are mad. You are the victim of a plot from which there is no escape.

[Narrator/Announcer (Escape Show Host)]

Escape. Produced, directed and tonight written by William N. Robeson and carefully contrived to free you from the four walls of today for a half hour of high adventure.

[Narrator/Announcer (Escape Show Introduction)]

Tonight we escaped to Paris at the time of the great exposition and one of the recurring legends of our time in Alexander Wilcott's version of the story of the Vanishing Lad.

[Cynthia Winship]

Another cup of tea, Bruce?

[Bruce Stanley]

No, thank you, my dear. I just light up my pipe now and have a look at the Evening Standard.

[Alice Winship]

I'd like another, please, Mother.

[Cynthia Winship]

All right, Alice. Only one sugar, dear. We must watch our figures, you know.

[Bruce Stanley]

What nonsense. A growing girl like Alice needs plenty of sugar.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

See, Mother?

[Alice Winship]

Daddy approves.

[Cynthia Winship]

Perhaps, but Mother is still boss.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

Yes, Mother.

[Cynthia Winship]

There's a dear.

[Alice Winship]

Mother.

[Cynthia Winship]

Yes, dear?

[Alice Winship]

I've been thinking.

[Cynthia Winship]

Yes, dear?

[Alice Winship]

I've been thinking about my grandparents. Oh, I know all about Daddy's parents. How Grandfather Stanley commanded a dreadnought at the Battle of Jutland.

[Bruce Stanley]

It was not a dreadnought, Alice. It was a heavy cruiser.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

Oh, yes, heavy cruiser.

[Alice Winship]

And he got the VC and how Grandmother Stanley was a volunteer nurse at Westall Arch when the Zeppelins came over. I know about your father, too. And how he died in India from his wounds. And how gallant he was at the Khyber Purse. But, Mother?

[Cynthia Winship]

Yes, dear?

[Alice Winship]

You've never. Never told me anything about Grandmother Winship.

[Cynthia Winship]

Haven't I?

[Alice Winship]

No. And I. I'd like to know something about it.

[Bruce Stanley]

Bruce, the child. 16. I think it's time she knew.

[Cynthia Winship]

But, Bruce.

[Bruce Stanley]

And you'd probably feel better to get it off your chest.

[Alice Winship]

What, Mother? What is it?

[Cynthia Winship]

Well, my dear, I've never talked about your grandmother because I. I've always half believed that someday, somehow, she would come down our garden walk and. I know it sounds silly and explain where she's been for the last 20 years.

[Alice Winship]

Why? What happened to her?

[Cynthia Winship]

I don't know. And I don't suppose I ever will.

[Bruce Stanley]

Cynthia, darling, if it's going to upset you.

[Cynthia Winship]

No, Bruce, you're quite right. It would be best to get it off my chest, as you put it. As you know, Alice, I was born and brought up in India. And I was about your age when my father was killed in the Kyber campaign. Mother decided to leave India for good and return to her old home in Warwickshire.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

However, since it was necessary for her

[Cynthia Winship]

to go to Paris to attend to some details of my father's estate, she decided that we should leave the P and O boat in Marseilles and proceed by train. You may imagine the timidity with which we two unescorted ladies traveled across France without the slightest knowledge of the language and without, indeed, assurance that we could find a hotel room in Paris. Though we had telegraphed for reservations from Marseille. You see, the great Paris Exposition had just opened. And the city was jammed with visitors from all over the world. You may imagine our relief when we arrived at the Grand Hotel Universelle and heard the clerk speak in quite understandable English.

[Hotel Manager]

Welcome, welcome. You will please to sign the register,

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

and you have our reservation.

[Hotel Manager]

Oh, indeed, yes. Most fortunate, madame, that you telegraphed for I have reserved for you the last room in the house.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

Oh, I'm so relieved. Here, Cynthia, you may as well learn now to sign a register for yourself.

[Cynthia Winship]

Oh, yes, Mama.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Where do I write?

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

There, in that line.

[Cynthia Winship]

Oh, yes, I see.

[Hotel Manager]

Voila. You are fatigue from your journey?

[Bruce Stanley]

No.

[Hotel Manager]

I shall have the boy show you to your rooms at once. Chasseur. Chasseur. Monsieur le Parent tois sont caron de pour mademoiselle et madame. In ship d' uut suite.

[Bellboy/Hotel Staff]

Bien, monsieur.

[Hotel Manager]

This is your baggage, madame. Yes, these six la voila baggage.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

You'd best carry the little one with the medicine in it.

[Cynthia Winship]

Yes, Mama.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Thank you.

[Cynthia Winship]

I'll take that one.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

The little red one.

[Bellboy/Hotel Staff]

This way, ladies.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

Keep your eye on that porter, Cynthia. I don't trust this Frenchman.

[Cynthia Winship]

Oh, Mama, I don't think he'll make off with our things. Here's the lift.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

I do wish we could have gone straight on to Southampton.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

But you'd only have had to come back across the Channel to see the solicitor. Mama, we really saved time.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

This way, I suppose. I mean, I wish we hadn't come to Paris at all. Such a sinister place.

[Cynthia Winship]

Oh, Mama.

[Hotel Manager]

Voila.

[Bellboy/Hotel Staff]

This way, ladies. To the right.

[Cynthia Winship]

Attendez.

[Hotel Manager]

Eh bien.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Thank you. Oh, what a lovely big room. And look, Mama, French windows. And the park out there. No, thank you. Oh, look at the river over there. And those beautiful, beautiful bridges. Oh, Mother, it's something out of a book.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

Yes, my dear. That's the trouble with Paris. It's so attractive, but underneath it's evil.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

And look at the furniture. The gilt clock and this lovely marble table. Oh, Mama, everything is so. So French.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

I'll be very glad to be on my way to where everything's English by this time tomorrow. Now come away from that window and help me get into something comfortable, there's a dear.

[Cynthia Winship]

Yes, Mama, of course.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

I don't know when. I've been so tired. I just can't seem to catch my.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Mama. Mama, what's the matter?

[Bellboy/Hotel Staff]

Mama?

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Mama, speak to me. Here, I'll get you up into the bed.

[Bellboy/Hotel Staff]

There.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Now, let me loosen your corset.

[Cynthia Winship]

Here.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Here, Mama.

[Cynthia Winship]

Here are the smelling salts. Breathe deeply, darling.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Mama,

[Cynthia Winship]

the telephone.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

I've got to get a doctor. Hello, operator? Will you please send a doctor up to room number. Let me see. Number 342. Will you please send a doctor to room number 342? A doctor. A doctor.

[Cynthia Winship]

While I waited for the doctor, I did everything I could to think of to bring my mother back to consciousness. I massaged her fingers and toes. I put wet cloths on her forehead. I waved the smelling salts under her nose. But she lay silent and white and unmoving, like one dead. Only the quick, shallow movement of her breast assured me she was not. And all the time, another anxiety possessed me. What if this doctor could not speak English? How should I tell him the circumstances of Mother's unexpected fainting? How should I understand his instructions for treatment? I'm sure it was not long, although it seemed like an eternity, before he arrived, accompanied by the manager of the hotel. And to my great relief, they both spoke English. The doctor felt Mother's pulse, took her temperature and did the usual things that doctors do. Then he turned to the tail coated hotel manager. While they talked in this language I couldn't understand, I looked from one face to the other, trying to read from their expressions how serious my mother's illness was. But they were as casual as though they were ordering dinner. Finally, I could stand it no longer.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

They must. You must tell me what is the matter with her.

[Doctor]

Mademoiselle, your mother is ill. Yes, seriously ill. It is a collapse, due perhaps to the strain of traveling. However, a week or two of absolute rest.

[Cynthia Winship]

A week or two?

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

We were to go on to England tomorrow.

[Doctor]

That would be out of the question. She cannot be moved for at least several days. Right now she must have a complete rest. The next 24 hours will be critical.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Oh, Mama. Poor Mama.

[Doctor]

Mademoiselle, you must not break down too. I need your help. Yes, Doctor, immediately. I need some medicine. Will you fetch it for me?

[Cynthia Winship]

Why, yes.

[Doctor]

I must not leave your mother for a moment during these critical hours. Here, I will write down this address and a little message to my wife.

[Cynthia Winship]

Your wife?

[Doctor]

Yes. I have the medicine already prepared at my home. It would be faster to go there for it than to a pharmacy where I have few chemists who have the ingredients.

[Cynthia Winship]

But couldn't you telephone?

[Doctor]

Alas, I have no telephone.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Well, then, a messenger, perhaps.

[Hotel Manager]

Oh, Mademoiselle, you do not know Paris. En fte with the exposition opening, nowhere can you find a reliable messenger. They are all selling souvenirs. No, Mademoiselle, you will accomplish the errand more rapidly yourself.

[Doctor]

Ah, vois il address. Here's the address. 24 Bis, Rue Val de Grace. And here is the message to give to my wife.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

But I don't know Paris at all. I'm a total stranger here.

[Doctor]

I'm sure the manager here will give the necessary instructions to the cabby.

[Hotel Manager]

Indeed I will, if Mademoiselle is ready.

[Narrator/Announcer (She's Birdie Sponsor)]

This episode sponsored by She's Birdie.

Every woman knows that feeling. And she's Bertie knows it too.

The just in case feeling. Just in case I hear something. Just in case someone tries the door, just in case I need to wake up fast.

It's not fear, it's awareness.

And Birdie Box from She's Birdie was

made for exactly that.

Birdie Box is a portable travel door

alarm designed by She's Bertie for hotels, dorms, Airbnbs, and anywhere you're staying away from home. It installs in seconds on the doorframe, and if the door is opened, it activates a loud siren and flashing strobe to help draw attention instantly. She's Bertie because peace of mind should check in with you. Birdie box by sheezbirdie visit she'sbirdie.com that's S-H-E-S-B-I-R-I-E.com and order your Birdie box before your next day away from home.

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[Cynthia Winship]

before I quite knew what was happening, I was seated in a rickety taxi cab outside the hotel with the doctor's message clutched in my hand while the hotel manager gave a valuable direction to the cab.

[Hotel Manager]

It is arranged, Mademoiselle. Jacques here is one of our most trusted cabbies. He will get you to the doctor's house and back in safety.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Oh, thank you so much, sir. And you will look after Mother, won't you?

[Hotel Manager]

Oh, indeed I will. Of that you may be.

[Cynthia Winship]

When we left the hotel, we crossed a huge square with statues around it and turned into a wide avenue which led up a gentle incline, at the top of which was a huge arch. But before long we turned off to the right into narrower streets.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

It must have been 20 minutes later

[Cynthia Winship]

when we turned into another wide boulevard and I saw another huge arch up ahead. Or was it the same arch?

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Driver, haven't we passed that arch before? Driver, I don't want a sightseeing tour. I want to go to this address directly. Don't you understand? Please, now take me there at once.

[Cynthia Winship]

At last we turned into a narrow street and pulled up before a grim gray house. The blue enamel sign on the wall read number 24. Beast.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

I jumped out of the cab almost

[Cynthia Winship]

before it stopped, rushed up the three stone steps and pulled at the brass bell knob.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Oh, hurry, hurry, hurry.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

Oui.

[Cynthia Winship]

The doctor sent me for some medicine. Here.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Please read this. Thank you.

[Cynthia Winship]

The doctor's wife stood there reading and rereading the note as though she didn't understand it. And until I thought I would scream.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Oh, please, please hurry. Get the medicine. It's my mother. She may be dying. I must get back to her.

[Cynthia Winship]

Please hurry. I see.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

Y' est vous?

[Cynthia Winship]

She pointed to a chair and slowly walked down the hall and closed the door behind her. I waited and waited. And I wondered. Wondered about the time the taxi had taken to get here. About that arch that looked so familiar. And I was torn by the hundred nameless anxieties that torture you when your nearest and dearest is ill. And then I heard something that froze my blood. A telephone. A telephone clearly ringing somewhere in the house. But the doctor had said he had no telephone.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

That was the reason I must come

[Cynthia Winship]

all the way for the medicine. No, it couldn't be in this house.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

It must be next door or across the street. Of course, that's where the sound was coming from.

[Bellboy/Hotel Staff]

Hello?

[Cynthia Winship]

But. It was the voice of the doctor's

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

wife answering the phone.

[Cynthia Winship]

Oh, no.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

No.

[Cynthia Winship]

What monstrous plot was this? I felt my scab crawl with terror.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Brain pounded. My head felt as though it would burst. I wanted to scream, to run out

[Cynthia Winship]

of this awful house, to run all

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

the way across Paris to the bedside of my mother. Voila, mademoiselle.

[Cynthia Winship]

Oh, thank you.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Thank you.

[Cynthia Winship]

Au revoir, mademoiselle.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Now, driver, please, please, in the name of your own mother, hurry back to the hotel as fast as possible, please.

[Cynthia Winship]

But my pleading was of no use. Either it was misunderstood or ignored. We crawled across Paris just as slowly as we had come. And I was certain I saw that same white arch three times. But at last we crossed the Great Sword Square with the statues in it. And I knew we were close to the hotel.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Please, please hurry.

[Hotel Manager]

I'll feed the sauvignon.

[Cynthia Winship]

Will you just be on the great square? We turned up a narrow street which shortly entered a wide circle, in the middle of which was a tall, slender monument. The driver swung around the monument and pulled up before the entrance of the hotel, reached back and opened the door.

[Hotel Manager]

Voila. Voila, members.

[Cynthia Winship]

I jumped out of the cab. And then I saw the sign over the entrance. It said Hotel Ritz.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Driver, you've taken me to the wrong hotel. I'm staying at the Grand Hotel Universal. I Don't understand what you're saying, but will you please take me to the Grand Hotel Universal? You stupid, stupid man. Can't you understand my mother is ill? You've taken more than two hours to get me to that doctor's house and back. Can't you understand my mother is sick? Perhaps dying.

[Cynthia Winship]

A small group of passersby had stopped and were listening curiously to the argument. Then they joined in and started taking sides.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Everywhere I looked were foreign faces, strangers, enemies. And then, shouldering his way through the crowd, I saw a bare headed young

[Cynthia Winship]

man in tweeds with a pipe clamped in his teeth.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

And before he had a chance to speak, I knew help had come.

[Bruce Stanley]

I say, having some trouble?

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Oh, thank heavens you're English.

[Bruce Stanley]

All right, you are. What seems to be the matter?

[Cynthia Winship]

I told him rapidly as I could and he paid the mulish cabby.

[Hotel Manager]

Merci.

[Cynthia Winship]

Monsieur popped me into another cab and five minutes later we walked into the lobby of the Grand Hotel Universelle. The manager was behind the desk.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

My mother, is she all right?

[Hotel Manager]

I beg your pardon?

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

My mother. Mrs. Winship in 342. Is she all right?

[Hotel Manager]

Rapazil must be mistaken. There is no Winship in 342.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

What?

[Hotel Manager]

342 is occupied by Monsieur Auguste Noaille, a permanent guest.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

But don't you remember me? I'm Cynthia Winship. 2 hours ago you put me into a taxi to go to the doctor's

[Cynthia Winship]

house for some medicine for my mother.

[Hotel Manager]

I am afraid that mademoiselle is mistaken. I have never seen her before in my life.

[Bruce Stanley]

Well, look here. What is this?

[Cynthia Winship]

Listen, I swear it to you. It's just as I say. We signed the register less than three hours ago.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

We got in on the train from Marseilles.

[Bruce Stanley]

Well, let's have a look at the register.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Yes, I'll show you. I'm in 342. Where is the register?

[Hotel Manager]

It is there, mademoiselle. You may see it for yourself. See today's date. 14 guests registered. But I don't see any mademoiselle or Madame Green ship, do you?

[Cynthia Winship]

No.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

What have you done with my mother? What have you done with my mother? Please, mademoiselle, you have done something with my mother.

[Bruce Stanley]

We'll get to the bottom of this.

[Hotel Manager]

Perhaps Rosie's mistaken. Perhaps she is registered at some other hotel.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

No, this is the hotel, the Grand Universal.

[Alice Winship]

You.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

You were standing there when we arrived. You handed my mother the pen with which she registered. You came to the room with the doctor. You put me in the taxi.

[Hotel Manager]

But I assure you, Mademoiselle these are fantasies.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Wait a minute.

[Bruce Stanley]

What is it?

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

That bell boy there, he carried our baggage. He'll remember.

[Bruce Stanley]

Garcon.

[Bellboy/Hotel Staff]

Oui, monsieur. No, monsieur.

[Cynthia Winship]

There were six pieces. Don't you remember?

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

You wanted to take them all. And I insisted on carrying the jewel case. It was a little red one.

[Bellboy/Hotel Staff]

Oh, no, mademoiselle.

[Bruce Stanley]

He says he never saw you in his life before.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

But this is monstrous. It's impossible. My mother is somewhere in this hotel. What have you done with her? What have you done with her?

[Bruce Stanley]

Now then, how do you feel, Miss Winshear?

[Cynthia Winship]

Better, thank you. This soup was very nourishing.

[Bruce Stanley]

Won't you have something else? Salad? A bit of roast?

[Cynthia Winship]

Thank you, no. A cup of tea, perhaps?

[Bruce Stanley]

Certainly. Garcon. Monsieur. Un toast d'. Teu. Poor Mama. Zeut, Monsieur.

[Cynthia Winship]

I don't know how to thank you, mister. Do you realize I don't even know your name?

[Bruce Stanley]

It's Bruce. Bruce Stanley.

[Cynthia Winship]

I'm glad to meet you, Mr. Stanley.

[Bruce Stanley]

It's a pleasure, Ms. Winship.

[Cynthia Winship]

Mr. Stanley, you believe me, don't you?

[Bruce Stanley]

Of course I do, Miss Winship.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

We did register at that hotel.

[Cynthia Winship]

We were in room 342.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

I can even describe the furnishings. There was a big window that went from the ceiling to the floor.

[Bruce Stanley]

Well, every hotel room in Paris has windows like that, Miss Winship.

[Cynthia Winship]

Oh, they do, yes.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Well, in this room, the draperies were plum coloured. There was a marble table. Black marble, it was. And a gilt clock.

[Cynthia Winship]

It had run down.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

The hands had stopped, I remember, at

[Cynthia Winship]

20 minutes past 3.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

The walls were covered in rose brocade

[Cynthia Winship]

and the bedspread was a washed out yellow.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Oh, if I could only get into that room, you'd see. I'm not making this up. I'm not.

[Bruce Stanley]

I'm sure you aren't. Perhaps I can find a way to make them let you in the room.

[Cynthia Winship]

Oh, can you?

[Bruce Stanley]

Yes, I. I'm with the Embassy, you know, under secretary sort of thing. I. I believe the British Empire has enough influence to change the mind of an obstinate Paris innkeeper.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Then let's do it right away.

[Bruce Stanley]

Well, I. I'm afraid the might of Britain can't move that fast. It's past dinner time. But tomorrow we'll see.

[Cynthia Winship]

Tomorrow?

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

But I must get into that room tonight.

[Cynthia Winship]

I have no money, nowhere to sleep.

[Bruce Stanley]

We can do nothing with the people at the hotel. You saw that. We'll just have to be patient until tomorrow. I'm. I'm sure I can find a room for you tonight in a pension near the Embassy.

[Cynthia Winship]

You're so Very kind. How can I ever thank you, Mr. Stanley?

[Bruce Stanley]

Well, dear, you might begin by calling me Bruce.

[Cynthia Winship]

Thank you, Bruce.

[Bruce Stanley]

Thank you, Cynthia.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

Oh.

[Alice Winship]

Oh.

[Bruce Stanley]

What is it?

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

I just thought of something. The doctor.

[Bruce Stanley]

The doctor?

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Yes, the one the hotel manager brought

[Cynthia Winship]

in to look after Mother.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

I still have his address somewhere here in my purse.

[Cynthia Winship]

Yes, here it is.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Oh, we must go there immediately. He can tell us about mother.

[Bruce Stanley]

I see. 24 bis rouval de grasse. Well, that's not far. It's just off the Boulevard Ross Bay, near the Luxembourg.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

How long would it take to get there by taxi?

[Bruce Stanley]

Oh, about 10 minutes, but

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

took over

[Cynthia Winship]

an hour this afternoon.

[Bellboy/Hotel Staff]

Voila, Monsieur van Cat biss rue Val de Grace.

[Bruce Stanley]

Well, here we are.

[Cynthia Winship]

Yes, this is the place.

[Bruce Stanley]

Attendez, mon vieux.

[Cynthia Winship]

The house is dark.

[Bruce Stanley]

That's quite late.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Well, I don't care. We've got to find out tonight.

[Cynthia Winship]

Where is he?

[Bruce Stanley]

There, at the upstairs window. Monsieur le doctor. Cette Mademoiselle Stanley. El VEZ vous proporteur de sa mer.

[Bellboy/Hotel Staff]

Stanley.

[Doctor]

Jean Papman was ill, Stanley.

[Bruce Stanley]

He says he doesn't know you.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

But he must. He must. Doctor, don't you remember this afternoon you sent me to your house for medicine for my mother.

[Bruce Stanley]

He says he doesn't understand English.

[Cynthia Winship]

Oh, the liar. The dreadful liar.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

He does.

[Cynthia Winship]

He speaks perfect English.

[Bruce Stanley]

I'm sorry, Cynthia.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Oh, Bruce, what am I going to do? What am I going to do?

[Cynthia Winship]

If it hadn't been for Bruce, I'm certain I should have gone out of my mind. He found a room for me at a pension near the embassy where I spent a sleepless night of anxiety almost beyond endurance. Bruce called for me at half past ten the next morning and took me back to the hotel. To my surprise, the attitude of the manager had changed completely.

[Hotel Manager]

But of course, Mademoiselle may inspect room 342. We are only too glad to convince mademoiselle that her mother is not and never was in the Grand Hotel Universelle. Why, I. I personally will escort you to the room. This way, please. To the assance.

[Cynthia Winship]

Oh, Bruce, that terrible man.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

That horrible, horrible.

[Bruce Stanley]

Don't let him upset you, Monsieur was.

[Cynthia Winship]

Now remember what I told you last night, Bruce. You'll see plum colored draperies, black marble top table, rose walls and a gilt clock with a hand stopped at 20 minutes past 3.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

You'll see.

[Bruce Stanley]

Yes, Anthony.

[Hotel Manager]

Voila. Etoisier. This way, gentlemen. It was room 342 you wish to see, mademoiselle?

[Cynthia Winship]

Yes, that's right.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Third door to the right.

[Cynthia Winship]

So you see, Bruce, I know where it is.

[Bruce Stanley]

Yes, madame.

[Hotel Manager]

Here we are. Voila. Enter, please.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Now, Bruce, you shall see the yellow bed spread.

[Hotel Manager]

Oh, not quite the room you just described in the elevator, mademoiselle. The drapes are royal blue, a little dusty. I fear I must have this room renovated. You see, there is no marble top table.

[Bellboy/Hotel Staff]

No.

[Hotel Manager]

The clock, as you notice, is running.

[Alice Winship]

No.

[Hotel Manager]

And right on time. It says the walls are not rose brocade, but yellow flowered wallpaper. Now, my dear mademoiselle, you see how thoroughly mistaken you are.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

No.

[Alice Winship]

No.

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

No.

[Cynthia Winship]

They had tried to make me think I was mad. They succeeded. I remembered nothing until I awoke in my aunt's house in England two weeks later, thanks to Bruce, who never left my side during those terrible days when my sanity hung in the balance. Well, that's the story, Alice. That's why I've never been able to talk about your Grandmother Winship. Oh, Mother, how horrible. Because all these years I've clung to the foolish hope that somehow she'd come back and tell us herself what happened.

[Alice Winship]

You poor dear.

[Bruce Stanley]

You may as well dispel that hope forever. Cynthia.

[Cynthia Winship]

What?

[Bruce Stanley]

Since you have at last brought yourself to discuss your mother's disappearance, I think it's time you knew the true fact.

[Cynthia Winship]

Bruce.

[Bruce Stanley]

Your mother died 20 minutes after you left the hotel on that fool's errand for the doctor.

[Cynthia Winship]

Oh, no.

[Bruce Stanley]

She died of the bubonic plague. She'd caught it in India before she sailed. The doctor recognized the symptoms the moment he examined her. He told the hotel manager in French, in your presence. They agreed that the matter must be kept completely secret. If the news leaked out that there was a case of plague in Paris, the city would have been emptied of visitors and the Exposition would have been a failure. Oh, Bruce. The conspiracy of silence began in the hotel. The bellboy was paid to claim he never saw you. The taxi driver was paid well to take you to the doctor's house by the most roundabout route. The note to the doctor's wife advised her to detain you as long as she could. And the taxi driver added his own imaginative touch by returning you to the Ritz instead of the Universelle. I shudder to think what might have happened if I hadn't come through the Place Windome just then.

[Cynthia Winship]

But you didn't know.

[Bruce Stanley]

Not then.

[Cynthia Winship]

When did you find out?

[Bruce Stanley]

Next morning. By then, the conspiracy had grown to international proportions. The embassy had been advised if the Exposition was a failure, the franc would fall, the pound sterling would be affected. That sort of thing. I knew when we went back to the hotel, you would not find your plum drapes and rose colored walls and black marble topped table.

[Cynthia Winship]

And you let me go through with a. What?

[Bruce Stanley]

What could I do? I was acting under orders. I knew that the hotel had completely fumigated and redecorated the room overnight and everything was in readiness to repudiate your story. I had to let the last act of the dreadful farce play to its dreadful end.

[Cynthia Winship]

Mother. What did they do with Mother?

[Bruce Stanley]

Her body was removed from the room less than 30 minutes after you left it and immediately burned.

[Cynthia Winship]

Why? Why didn't you tell me this years ago?

[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

Why did you let me go on all this time?

[Bruce Stanley]

This is the first time you have ever mentioned your mother since then. My dear.

[Mama (Cynthia's mother)]

Alice.

[Alice Winship]

Yes, mother?

[Cynthia Winship]

There's a new issue of the Tatler in the library, dear. Wouldn't you like to look at it?

[Alice Winship]

But Mother, I want to.

[Cynthia Winship]

Now, dear. Want to have a talk with your father?

[Narrator/Announcer (Escape Show Host)]

Escape, produced and directed by William N. Robeson, has brought you the Vanishing lady by Alexander Wolcott. Adapted for radio by Mr. Robeson. Cynthia was played by Joan Banks. Bruce was played by Haver I. Averback. The hotel manager and cab driver were played by Ramsey Hill. The musical score was conceived and conducted by Cy Fuer. Next week,

[Narrator/Announcer (Escape Show Introduction)]

you are deathly afraid of snakes. And between you and a fortune between you and escape Yawn the white jaws of a deadly cottonmouth.

[Narrator/Announcer (Escape Show Host)]

Next week we escape with Irvine S. Cobb's famous story, Snake Doctor. Good night then, until this same time next week, when again we offer you Escape. This is cbs, the Columbia podcasting system.

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[Cynthia Winship (younger or same as F, possibly alternate narration)]

We the ones still showing up holding hands when times are tough, show up

[Narrator/Announcer (Community Organization)]

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