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Show TRAILER GIRL By VERA BROWN wnu. I "Oh, Chuck, I've got to see you!" "Are you in trouble?" "Yes. I need you." Chuck paused a moment before he answered: "I'll fly in. Meet me at the airport tmorrow night" There were tears in Lynn's voice when she thanked him. "Don't tell anybody I'm in hiding. Just meet me there. I'm ducking everybody. I won't even go home," he said. CHAPTER XXX Continued 18 Lynn sank again into her chair. There were tears in her eyes. "But it will be awful. Everything will be raked up again, my engagement engage-ment to Wild! Oh, Mr. Mortimer, you can't do this to me!" His eyes bored into her pleading ones. "I suppose you know now why Helen Austin ran away?" Lynn's eyes were wide as she listened. I'll find her and I'll get that baby if it's the last thing I ever do!" She forced him to sit down and listen to her. "You've got to play fair. You'll never get that boy away from Helen Austin. I can tell you that right nowl" Chuck's eyes blazed: "This is all I wanted, a tip where they are. The rest is easy. Once I get him, she hasn't a chance." Lynn's fighting spirit was up: "That's what you think. Chuck, I shall go on the witness stand and tell everything that happened those first five months I was with your wife and baby. When I do, there isn't a court in the world that will give you that baby, Chuck!" Chuck looked at her unbelievingly. "No, Chuck. You'll never get that boy. There isn't any other man. I knew." He started to get up: "Why did you get me from Florida to tell me this fairy story?" "I'm telling you the truth." "Bunk. What's Mortimer paying you?" Lynn did not even bother to answer. an-swer. She just looked into Chuck's blazing eyes, her own full of contempt. con-tempt. Suddenly he was on the defensive. Lynn hung up the telephone and stood there staring at it. Now that he was coming, she was appalled at what she had done. Would he believe be-lieve her? Lynn went over and over what she would say. He'd be furious. furi-ous. He'd tell her to mind her own business and then go and find poor Helen and steal Buddy from her. After work the next day, she got the bus for Newark at the Hotel New Yorker. She was early. When Chuck's ship was called, she was so nervous that her knees shook. I He was first to get off, and he seemed glad to see her. "Well, here I am, Lynn." He was smiling, and his smile somehow reminded re-minded her so of Wild that her heart melted inside her. "Chuck!" Now that the time had come, she was in a complete panic. pan-ic. She was weeping openly. Through her tears she said: "Come to my "Charley Austin came to Palm Beach to join his brother. She thought he was in Europe. She saw him that day you were at the beach, driving his car in downtown West Palm Beach. Poor girl. She was frantic. She had to leave you stranded. strand-ed. She thought he knew she was there. She thought he might have seen her. She didn't even dare send for you." "Poor Mrs. Warren ... I mean Austin ..." Lynn covered her face with her hands. She could see the Helen Warren she knew with her son in her arms as she read him his bedtime story. She jumped up: "I'd hurt your case. They'd say I was just trying to get even with what the Austins did to me! They'd say I'd worked myself into their confidence! Oh!" "I've thought of all that, Miss Morrow. You're our best witness. "Why did you wait a year to tell me this? So you knew it all along when you were giving me all that sound advice up at Austin Manor!" i Lynn swallowed, thought hard before be-fore she made her answer: "I did not know that Helen was your wife until I saw her picture Austin charges his wife ran away with his best friend. You know where she was those first few months after she left Austin's house You are the only person who does " He went on and on. Every detail of Helen Austin's struggle to keep her son with her was recounted. Mortimer's eyes were hard as they watched Lynn. "You're going to do your duty, no matter how it hurts. It's the only decent thing to do. We can't let them get away with it!" Lynn sat with her face covered She could see the fight stretching on and on. How well she knew the Austins would never stop until they had Buddy! She flung out her hands- and Buddy's in the papers two days ago." She spoke simply, directly. Her level eyes forced him to look at her. He laughed loud: "Did Mortimer send you here to see me? He's tried hard enough to get me every way." "If Mr. Mortimer knew I was here telling you this, he'd be frantic." "Then you're working for him." "I am his witness, if that is what you mean. I am going to be honest t v L m , 1 It l.ry-r? ?1 rv Cf ;vi "Can't you make them make it all up? Can't you use your influence to get them together?" "How can I? He won't even talk to me! He's bitter and under the influence in-fluence of his family. If fte had any idea of where Mrs. Austin is. he'd He threw up his hands. "Very smart of Mortimer, but not smart enough. I'll have that baby in two days." Lynn was white now. She'd never forgive herself if this did not turn out right. She stood before him, her hands clenched together. "Helen's a decent woman! When I say she loves you, I mean it. You didn't use her right! I know so well what happened. She was a working work-ing woman. Leisure is hard for us. Your friends up at Austin Manor didn't care about me, either. They've got a closed union. They said from the beginning that your marriage wouldn't work. And they did everything they could to see it didn't." "That isn't true! My family did everything . . ." get that child if it took a company of State troopers! I don't trust them. They'd agree to conciliate and they'd doublecross. I know them!" Mortimer kept her there three hours without dinner. She gave a detailed statement of her life with Mrs. Austin, five months she spent with the woman and her son in the trailer. "It will be worth your while, Miss Morrow." Lynn dropped her pencil as he spoke. "What I am doing, I am doing because I must tell the truth 1 Mrs. Reanoud spoke casually of other things to Lynn. apartment. Nobody will bother us there, and we can talk." "What has happened?" Chuck's voice was alarmed. "Is it Wild'" "No." She tried, but her courage failed: "Chuck, let's wait until we get to my house. It's difficult" When they finally, walked into Lynn's poor little studio, Chuck felt something of the girl's state of high tension, facing her in the light of Understand that I don't want your money! I couldn't take it" She was furious at the implication in his voice. "All this is terrible for me! You must know that. But as you say, I can't do anything else!" Tears trembled on her long lashes, and her odd gold-flecked eyes were swimming. It was terrible! There was no doubt that she must remain loyal to Helen Austin. She paced up and down the room, trying to see her way clear. She must see Chuck and talk to him. That was the only way. She must! No matter what Mr. Mortimer said. Chuck would listen to her. He had to! Next morning Lynn dressed with unusual care for work. She was early, so eager and so nervous over what the day might bring that she could eat no breakfast. "I'm not talking about your fam-. fam-. ily. Do you think that gang was nice to me when I was up there?" Chuck seemed surprised. "Of course they were!" Lynn laughed shortly. "Of course they were not! It's little things a man doesn't understand. But I could see how they'd eat into a girl's soul She wasn't interested in them-thought them-thought they were pretty dumb. And they resented her; thought she was dull." At least he was listening! There was a dead silence in the room. "Your wife ran away in a panic and left me stranded. That was because be-cause she'd seen you in West Palm Beach that day." Lynn felt she had to make the whole thing clear to him. "I didn't know. I never could understand. Not until two days the studio lamp. "It's a long story, Chuck. Be patient pa-tient with me." She was so appealing appeal-ing in her obvious panic, that Chuck was gentle with her. "Chuck, sometimes it is hard to do the things you have to do." "I've found that out" "Let me tell you something about part of my life you don't know anything any-thing about." Blindly, haltingly, she continued: "It's about Florida' and here. I didn't have a job. I was just out of school. One day here in New York I answered the ad of a woman in a Newark hotel." Lynn stopped: "Chuck, in spite of all that's happened do you have faith in me?" She broke down suddenly. Chuck, watching her bowed head, was mystified, but he felt sincerely sorry for her; "I have faith in you, Lynn. You're honest." During the morning she managed to find time to telephone Chuck, but she could not reach him. What she did not know was that every newspaper news-paper man in town was also trying to find Charley Austin. At noon she went to his office. When she walked into the reception room the clerk on duty straightened. Lynn was a breath-taking sight in her lovely clothes. She smiled and asked for Mr. Austin. "Mr. Charles Jr.," she added. "It is a personal call." "I'm sorry, but he's out of the city." 6 Chuck turned on Lynn. "If you testify, we'll tear you to shreds We'll bring up everything . Everything!" Ev-erything!" His eyes threatened her Lynn stood quiet, looking up at him. "I would expect you to do that Chuck. I m a working woman, we're fair game. But here's one that's going to stick to your wife' "Chuck! Chuck! Why do you want n,7 y Wh0n She'S done noth-ng? noth-ng? Why do you want to take Buddy from her when her greatest sin has been lack of understanding of your friends? What has sh CHAPTER XXXI His answer gave Lynn strength to go on. "I went to work for a woman. She had a trailer, and she wanted me to go with her down South, as a maid, help her drive, take care of her child. That was in October." Suddenly Chuck's face assumed a different expression. There was a sudden hardening of his eyes. Lynn seeing this, stood silent before him, beseeching him: "You must listen. Lynn's face clouded. She must reach him. Something in the clerk's eyes told her the truth. "May I leave a little note for him?" "Certainly, we'll be glad to forward for-ward it" Lynn wrote hurriedly: "Please see me, Chuck, as soon as you can. It is terribly important to me. I'm working at Mme. Reanoud's for two weeks." Then Lynn turned to the secretary: "This is very important to me. Will you please see that Mr. Austin gets it as soon as possible?" Chuck did not answer. He was breathing hard. He must walk war-lly- Ifhe once got the boy. they could all go hang- He'd take him where none of them would ever see him agin! e y2h What you're think'g-You think'g-You 11 steal him, and Helen will nev- nn JT r m .again!" There "as ag-ony ag-ony in Lynn's voice tnT' 1 begged Mortimer to try Bu t t yVkn0W to"8 Nation But he refused. He said you'd do just what you're planning to do"" Shecovered her face with her L stayed with that woman until February." Feb-ruary." She tried to choose her words carefully. "It was hard. She was a heartbroken woman. Chuck, I know. Night after night I heard her cry herself to sleep. We wandered wan-dered all over the South. I never knew much about her . . ." Chuck turned suddenly in his chair: "What was her name?" Lynn did not answer, for a moment mo-ment She came over to Chuck and slipped onto her knees beside him. "I'm throwing myself on your mercy. Chuck. You've got to play fair with me! You've got to!" He did not answer. She put her hand on his shoulder. "You've got to promise! You've got to." He stared at her for a long time. Finally he spoke: "It was Helen! wasn't it." His words were not even a question. "Yes." "Buddy?" "He was with us." "God!" Chuck covered his face with his hands for a moment Then he stood up: "Where are they now? What name was she using? I'll have every cop in the country after her. She went back to the shop, waiting and hoping that he might telephone. There was no word. Mme. Reanoud, realizing Lynn was under a great strain, spoke casually of other things to her and did not seek to learn the cause of her agitation. For which she was grateful. grate-ful. The next afternoon when Lynn had about given up in despair, Chuck telephoned to her. It was a long-distance call from Florida. "I got your note, air-mailed to me here Lynn, what's wrong?" I Uiought I knew you. I th0UEht you loved them both. I uZlhl you'd believe the truth when you heard it He warned me' nit i couldn't believe anybody woufd do that to any other human being!" h,HearVan dWn her face. She had tried so hard! She had believed she could work this miracle. Bitter ness swept over her "ter thi3hydMVry? I've ruined every- I wish Prien an,ed t0 he'P' oZ Chuck flared up at this: "Why d in you then?" Dy dld TO BE CONTINUED) |