Show r i ire 0 NR HARRY A RY PUGH S s. s Ma Rs Me Mc ClURE To d INSTALLMENT THREE THREE The The Story So Far cb jm m and Shirley Maguire st t ged for lor some time With US t l 1 Sr gave up It dige J find and nd Jaird had no work s editor of the Clarion and end l JEB R t III Continued III-Continued Continued Je y might have kept the f the Rafter after they accepted dinner cried i station to iv Especially since lOr ioor it it ed to the bi bridge party ide Jl-Id Jl d nothing She simply bove bave e made t to express her- her s the thiL Ao ely ly y about her future w Mw w. w At least Mrs New- New O 0 OM posed to be that some- some ad add h Kathleen wondered if 0 would should marry Jaird To ley guessed as much ced at her engagement elVer ver mouth uth looked sudden suddenly Y YS ed d. d S ihl I. I ors twenty And sherd she shem Newsom m had been en- en rd nv j since ince she was eighteen tl They had expected toS to toas In as S soon as Jaird finished n Den I. I rs I ty ly 11 olio graduate d with honors lane 7 e pro Po Pi schedule But therel there l ID 12 wedding It was just juste Yes le e things for which no st blame Jaird had exo ex- ex o o o. o straight from schooler's school lier's liers ers er's factory He had sal- sal nice to get quite a e was learning t the the he busi- busi mJ r h he would eventually int in- in t If swing n school J Jaird aird found l' l world Completely disie disI dis- dis ie e forces of an industrial I He ic crisis He did dd not nott t L Lathers ather's business for the theon theon on that there was no ter losing money for lake always a aman ar r man decided to cut his Closed the factory He of an income to live on 1 at it was carefully exI ex- ex I f owned his own home ed d that his change of little rough on his son ras as s young said both his is lis mother He could aft afI af- af t I he and Shirley apparent almost that the Newt Newit New- New I t it t propose to be saddled Their attitude made f Eile for Jaird to marry CC was economically able wife And so Shirleys Shirley's had been hopelessly 1 i cious circle She and andon seen on tiptoe outside the stasy for three pa painful g years vears- A W w. w T IV IVan IV r ran J an go on day d. d ay in m in an and dd day dayto ay to fu Tib the last notch yet for- for Fc Td of f fulfillment without eq blade of the spirit Shir- Shir of ird ird had possessed some- some ed Jarp arp rp its rapture had been ish But the years and were were getting in hi their soul shuddered I a a terrible feeling that ev- ev made life a wild was dying in her herIng hering ing its high zest Grow- Grow hd nd ld savorless before she ut lit her lips to the cup r. r j was nothing she could do dor Nothing Not a muscle der r er r lovely controlled face Pfd r heart something wept mourning in the Wilder- Wilder gar agar who had no Ishmael ier exile knew ew the were fly R JY said Shirley quietly Rew ew Mrs Mays did not t Iier But I don dont don't t believe DUCT bit bit her lip You mean D s b fore afore she let on r hed he'd ed rather stay at home hometS homet'S I n f hits at's tS t'S love I suppose teen ileen Il t I IJ J M looked sharply away She Sheley l ley y was thinking that if iI laird had a home any- any Fould be heaven just to be d Kathleen athleen suddenly had a it ll N ging ing to do something m things Shirley desired and denied nied It 4 gs g's tI nt you and Jaird kick hole doghouse she deI dea de- de I A M a roughened voice I Ic f c and let his people like it 1 TAH 4 iad a strange white cirr cir- cir wilier her r mouth t do that she said a of the old she-cat she f shivered and walked over glow ow Kathleen stared afta aft- aft felt a little frightened It l Barest earest arest any of the family to putting into words the ble change which had oc- oc Mrs attitude year And Kathleen was how Shirley would I intrusion lU Fley ley staring down the tree- tree A rather shabby street inN in ine N C e Maguire house had for for- t J 6 l hleen n. n Shirley was think- think I drs mother who once had hadid roved id of Shirley but who Bp dr ad d complicated an already by an increasing to delay her sons son's mart mari mar- mar i t b fie e girl of his choice J i could not blind herself to toting toting ting truthIe truth ile le Jaird's mother hoped IliS I ever marrying Shirley mayor of Covington Mrs Maguire is giving a dinner for the Kathleen Kathleen Kath Kath- leen another daughter is helping her mother Laura Kathleen had just met an irritating stranger who kissed her Maguire In dozens of small ways Mrs during the past year had lad insinuated that she thought each of them would be happier free She was forever hinting that long engagements engagements en- en were unfair to both parties par par- ties ties ies She lost no no occasion to flick Shirleys Shirley's sensitive pride on the raw Because Shirley did not betray the sting her adversary who was a ah ath th thick skinned h skinned k-skinned woman felt it necessary necessary necessary sary to make the attacks more pointed jointed No wonder Shirley of late had lad felt a little frantic If Connie Mays' Mays father didn't own half the town old hens like Mother would tear her reputation to o shreds burst out Kathleen sav sav- Her remark was apparently irrel irrel- evant But not to Shirley She felt as if she were walking barefoot on hot lot asphalt She had known for a along along long ong time that Jaird's mother hoped he ae would jilt Shirley for Connie Mays But Shirley hadn't known that hat Kathleen knew Though probably probably proba- proba bly ly everyone did Mrs was I not a subtle woman I Connie was the only daughter of Eugene Sugene Mays She was just nineteen nineteen nine- nine teen een and and freshly home from a swanky finishing school in the east She had always had everything un- un 1 1 She was just nineteen and freshly home from a swanky finishing school der the sun she wanted Especially if it was something she had no business business business busi busi- ness to want She was a thin nervous nervous nervous nerv nerv- ous rapacious s creature strikingly smart looking in an odd bizarre almost neurotic fashion At present she wanted Jaird She wanted him pretty terribly because he le belonged to Shirley Maguire and was not supposed to be for sale Sometimes said Shirley in a steady but rather lifeless voice I think Connie is a little to be pitied She never has been crossed Its It's not her fault if she has moral indi indi- Kathleen got to her feet with a gesture of baffled resignation It was no use Shirley would not condescend condescend condescend con con- descend to her opponents opponent's tactics Connie Mays merited no quarter at Shirleys Shirley's hands If she ever looked at a boy friend of mine in hi that way of hers Id I'd scratch her green eyes out so help me cried Kathleen with her own private venom venom and slammed the thedoor thedoor thedoor door behind her Alone Shirley stood very still Her heart beating in strange thick jerks Why hadn't she poured it all out to Kathleen The ache the festering pricks Shirleys Shirley's hands crept up and covered her burning eyelids What was it that locked her tongue so she couldn't speak To Kathleen Or to her Mother Shirley couldn't even with Jaird bring herself to discuss the thing that was poisoning her heart Was everything to be spoiled for her and Jaird Their happiness for years had been within the grasp of their straining straining straining strain strain- ing finger tips And yet it jeeringly eluded them They were forever being being being be be- ing brought up just short of rapture Tantalizingly jerked back baek from their desire by a checkrein No wonder their nerves were raw Laura Maguire stood in hi front of oJ the mirror in her bedroom and examined examined ex ex- herself with rather jaundiced jaundiced jaundiced jaun jaun- diced eyes She had dressed early because there were several min min last ute tasks to be done and Tom and Mary Etta would probably arrive before the others Tom was Lauras Laura's first-born first and although she never admitted admitted admitted ad ad- it he had a prior claim on her heartstrings But it was of Shirley Laura was thinking For Shirleys Shirley's sake it was Is liS Mt Nt r Q f m Tco Lath tM If 11 f tr f after he lie fixed the Sat flat tire of the Maguire Ma Ma- guire car Kathleen dislikes the patronizing patron izing zing Mrs The sisters are talking Kathleen is resentful that the are to leave early I S important that the ecru organdy should not betray the darned place I on the left shoulder which Laura had artfully covered with a n lace fichu resurrected from the red bag and dyed with coffee grounds Kathleen always insisted that her mother I could perform miracles if turned loose with a f few w remnants and anything anything any any- thing to tint them with Laura grinned She had to admit the lace fichu had been an inspiration It came out outa a rich golden-brown golden color and fairly saved the life of the ecru organdy She brushed her black hair till it lay sleekly against her head touched the lobes of her ears with the cutglass cutglass cutglass cut- cut glass stopper of her old-fashioned old scent bottle and grimacing a little used the tip of her finger to apply a ah h hint nt of rouge to her humorous lips I Belle simply must not nott be t e allowed to patronize she told herself with a grin thinking of Kath Kath- leen Actually Laura found it difficult I Ito to smile when she thought of Shirley Shirley Shir Shir- ley Icy and Jaird's mother The boy was everything desirable His father father father fa fa- fa- fa ther was a just dust though rather obtuse obtuse ob ob- ob- ob I tuse man But Laura had known Bell all their lives and Found little excuse for her being I The key to her character lay in the fact that she had never been sure of herself Even as a girl she had hadnot hadnot hadnot not been popular And she had envied envied envied en en- vied others who were although she toadied to them Jaird had the good sense to inherit none of his mothers mother's foibles He was more like his maternal grandFather grandfather grandfather grand- grand Father who had been a simple unpretentious unpretentious unpretentious un un- un- un pretentious laboring man Belle did not like to be reminded that until her marriage she had not belonged to one of Covington's first f Families milies But to Lauras Laura's relief Jaird had no tendency to false pride On her way downstairs Laura stopped in for a look at her daugh daugh- Shirley was absent in the bath bath- room But Kathleen in and anda a ridiculous band of silk and lace that passed for a brassiere was just stepping into her dress It was crisp white net embroidered in red dots with a long bouffant skirt and tiny puff sleeves and a brief silk slip that stopped just below Kathleen's dimpled knees and had saucy cherI cher cher- I ry-colored ry ribbons for shoulder straps Kathleen grinned at her through the mirror Downstairs Laura found Hulda in full possession of her somewhat limited Emited lim lim- faculties The dining room looked quaint and charming Laura lit the long yellow candles She loved the play of soft flickering lights on delicate old china and thin slender slender slen slen- der glasses The purple irises made madea a rich tapestry against the satin of fine damask and linen lace Its HIts not bad Laura told herself thinking again of Shirley and Belle and of the fact that Hulda must be cautioned about the weak handle on the gravy dish If only everything holds together reflected Laura the cant can't help believing we are less than is generally supposed At that minute she heard a car draw up at the curb and her heart quickened She hadn't seen Tom in almost a month Although the city was only a couple of hours away he and Mary Etta did not come out to Covington a lot They never had Mary Etta was not fond of Toms Tom's mother It was one of those things Laura did her best not to think about It was impossible to contemplate without without without with with- out rancor And so Laura did not if she could help it indulge in hi introspection introspection introspection intro intro- on the subject It was awkward awkward awkward awk awk- ward enough for Tom to have his wife wile full of sore thumbs where his mother was concerned Laura had no desire to harass him with painful reactions on her part She had seen men pulled to pieces between conflicting conflicting conflicting con con- loyalties Laura hurried into the hall and Tom came to meet her Hullo Hub darling she cried and thought with a pang that he looked tired and much too thin although she did not say so How are you Mary Etta Quite well thank you Mrs Ma Ma- guire Toms Tom's wife had never called Laura mother nor did she offer her lips They were very scarlet and andas as uncompromising as her clever black eyes Mary Etta too was thin From choice She looked like a fashion drawing And that's exactly exactly ex ex- how she wanted to look A Abit Abit Abit bit angular but very smart Im so glad you all aU came early Laura said and realized she was gushing gushing-a a criminal offence in Mary Ettas Etta's eyes We left sooner than usual so as asto asto asto to try out the new bus Tom re re- re- re marked You HYou have a new car Laura ex ex- claimed How perfectly elegant Mary Etta has Tom corrected her Laura glanced at him quickly But he did not meet her eyes Probably Probably Probably ably he was afraid they would reveal reveal reveal re re- re- re veal the bitterness which rankled within him TO UE llE CONTINUED |