Show I The Girl Who Came Back Beck BackBY BeckBY BY JACK WOODFORD f Copyright W N H U Service S CHAPTER Continued VIII-Continued VIII Continued 14 14 carelessly carelessly care care- replied the lady Ten Teo bud bucks lessly sly Lolita thought this exorbitant but nevertheless she slie took out a ten ten dollar dollar bill and Doll handed bonded It to her ber She driver bring up her ad the taxi set to un- un unpacking un unpacking and him hlin oft olT things s paid packing thankful that the lady I had bod out not recognized her Nobody seemed ever to connect her with the Lolita newspaper paper article some of the lew months ago ogo She Slie marveled a little tint people so quickly forget such things and ond yet iet et reflected that It was not unusual so many thine happened all nil the time line In Chicago She had given Cn her tier correct name with some satisfaction Balling under a specious flag was unpleasant It always made her er feel She decided how however however ever er still to write under the name of Margaret Farrar since the lie commer commer- commercial cial work she was doing might some someday someday day give gl way to really worth while work to which it woma De a to sl sign u her own name Dame without ln ba having people e connect It with the confes confer slops and other superficial storIes done merely for the money by Mar garet Farrar When she had her tier belongings straightened around to some sonic extent the sat down to read the remainder ot of her morning pap paper r Turning a page she was made almost breathless h by two pictures In the society column CIA Author Will W Wed Heiress the lie pic pIc- pIctures pictures tures were captioned One picture was aa on extremely good likeness of Don and the other was a n pho pho- photograph photograph which had evidently e been greatly retouched of Miss Pringle The story below belo the pictures told of ofa ofa oa a wedding scheduled for June with witha a prospective honeymoon In Europe to follow There was also the usual sen sen- sentimental sentimental blurb about Its being a love student student falling fulling In lo e with Instructor etc It also described Miss lIss Pringle as us a n young lady of un undisputed undisputed disputed talents since though she was wealthy the s-he had made a Journalist of herself by her own diligent wondered If Mr Ir could rend that part pari of the article without laughing She bit her lips to keep back the tears and got up and went to the window and stared oft off Into the park It was ns March In three months Mr Ir would be married would go away to Europe pith Miss Pringle Perhaps they'd they'll talk of her laugh over the little Idiot who got her herS herself self Into such an un awful mess She could almost hear henr rich voIce say And hAnd there was a time when I thought I 1 war wa In love with can her her you OU Imagine that dear Probably Miss Pringle would be unable un unable able uLle to Imagine It iL It and would have ha no backwardness about saying so with so The he hot tears rolled down dawn her lier face as ns she slie stood by bJ the wits will window dow dew and she realized that thai hat she slie loved lo Mr Ir WI just o aa much na ns ever ever- ever would always love lo him Life Ife wa war wae In Indeed deed deell cruel Determinedly she forced herself herselt tu to stop thinking In that strain put on her hat and und coat and walked out to In Jet get some breakfast somewhere After Atter br she slie boarded t a It car ar and went downtown to the main library An attendant pointed out the the Hie earl room and finding hiding the lie right drawer she came to not less than a u hundred and nud fifty or two hundred books bearing upon the subject of writing In Its every ev ey every ery possible phase She Slie selected three that she thought the most must Inter Interesting esting and waited while an on attendant got the lie volumes She Slie remembered the that she had stayed after otter class to get et Mr AIr to sign a library car card gUll guarantee ran tee for tor her ber recalled how he lint had remarked that she looked more like a butterfly than a bookworm bookworm- would bookworm would It ever er be possible to forget torget his husky bishusky laugh especially when one knew that some one else was hearing It the books came cume and sl she t went w out to take a car home As the car ur crawled olon along stopping almost ut ul every ery corner she slie forced her mind to busy Itself with somethIng mere substantial than husky laughs floating through her ber mind She de de- de- de decided decided that she would have to work harder hurder thun than she had ever eer worked be- be be before bero ro fore since ninety dollars was now about all she had hall and she wanted not only to make a living but to rove ElI up enough to pay buck back Gray Cray Eyes GrayEyes and feel teel under no obligations to hint him To get her mind completely oT off ot of Mr she elio began to mentally menIally plot out a II serial It would be bc a n story about u a girl I who had actually taken a misstep and who had come ome back So o many stories of ot the sort were about pale cringing little girls who skated alon along on 00 the edge ede of wrongdoing and finally were saved so ram It It would be wonderful to get a serial printed that would woul entourage encourage the mummy who hind hall actually taken wrong steps and needed help and oud encouragement and the Idea lilea that It not to kec keep on going golna down afterward Their pro problem was fore nore acute and more immure ho 10 seed of solution than thai that of ot girls who merely contemplated wrongdoing she remembered cy tin Torrence and what he bud bad represented to her lead had been u It time when she hon bun honestly estly il film loved ld him with all allet per er allper et apart and soul soul yet CI Ills his pass pass- Ing lag hall had meant little to her She saw now very clearly what hot really hap happened She had bad been lonesome ter ter ter- terribly Ably lonesome alone In a big city It had been easy then for tor to tomake tomake tomake make love to her ber How flow much better one felt to see and understand the thing In that light to- to In Instead stead of thinking that a deliberate tendency toward badness had caused her false step now low much more pen peo people pie needed education than condemnation tion If It only more time could be spent In acquiring learning Instead ot of acquiring a n specious knowledge ot of what hat persons should be for what their chances chanc's were for going to 10 bell hell If It they did this that that and the theother theother theother other thing tiling lolita fairly glowed as she slie laid out scenes and continuity for tor a n serial that should ex express press this thought to girls who were condemning themselves es as ns bad be be- because because cause of some same misstep set them to lighting fighting back Instead of ot slipping down just jurt because Lecause they had done something wrong for which they were honestly sorry Suddenly some Impulse caused aused her herto herto herto to look out of ot the car window v and there before her eyes stood the bach elors elor's hotel botel where lived A terrific wave Rye of ot depression took her ber herIt It t seemed as though If It she were to stay In the car another moment s she r I I Life Was Indeed Cruel would suffocate She tried to request the Ile motorman to stop at the next cor- cor cor corner ner ncr but be slid the car ar by and It was not until the lie corner after atter that that h he did top i-top and she stepped down In Into into Into to the street streel and walked walked toward toward the curb She still had bad the the the sense almost of suffocation au and the dull murky nt at nt JM J here herc did dill not help It II any She laughed a n little bitterly to herself as she bhe turned Into the lie park reflecting upon what a tremendous us difference there was between the unquenchable feeling of love she now had for tor War IVar- rill and ond the lie weak weal anemic little love feeling that lint she hud had had f for Jr or Harvey ey Torrence and which she hind had for a 8 time lime mistaken for the real thing She Slie had walked several blocks along when suddenly with th the park paths her head down she almost ran roo Into a man who l blocked locked her way Shee stopped She stopped and looked up up Into the face at a 9 ot of young WI Completely los loss she Why I 1 I thought your father had bad sent you ou to Europe lie He 11 did returned Watterson In Ii a peculiarly dry tone but things have blown over o and I came come back Im I'm aw- aw awfully aw nw awfully fully tully glad I 1 met net you Ive I've wanted to tell you how liow deeply I 1 regret the terrible ble trouble 1 l got you Into Somehow she sensed a n change In him so pro pro- profound profound shocking almost found that It was She gave voice vole to the thought Youve YOU changed Yes Ive I've changed It was about time line wasn't It 7 Killing 1 a man ratan gives gl I cant can't get him a fellow quite a turn out of ot ay my mind and mind I couldn't get gel you out of my mind Im I'm through with the sort of ot life lite that I 1 used to live U on too much money May Ual I walk a little UlUe way ny with you 7 Why yes raid aId Lolita a little en- en un uncertainly certainly Ue He fell Into step beside her For about half a 8 block they walked In silence oDd and then be he turned to her ber and ond said There Is a whole lot that I 1 want to say to you His tone was as so un nn unmistakably wantI I mistakably earnest and so 80 different from rom his usual manner of ot speech that Lolita was profoundly moved CHAPTER IX The change In 10 Fred had haJ been not only subjective but also ob Apparently he had done less e drinkIng Ills HIs face no longer had the puffed massaged look and his eyes were stead steady even solemn Lolita acknowledged that he be was very handsome and very appealing In Inon Inan Inan on an Impersonal sort of ot way with his almost little boyish air of honest con contrition and subdued sorrow for what he had hud done When be he suggested that they drop Into Inlo the lie refectory In the park for tor a bite to eat she readily con con rented The big refectory was almost empty and ond they chose choso seats scats by a win windon don ow where they he could look out over the North pond toward a little bridge e that spanned It at a n narow v point With the leaden leallen skies sides above the glass glass- glasslike like glass like water waler reflecting the leaning trees at the edge of ot the pond the vista was one of distinct If somewhat sad beau beau- beauty beauty ty When they had bad ordered sandwiches sand sandwiches and coffee Fred leaned toward her ber across the table and spoke with a constrained air as ae a though somehow he were almost afraid to have her answer his bis questions What have bac you been doing since J last saw you fOU 1 Writing Writing Yes res short stories In fact tact Im I'm go- go goIng go going ing lag to start a n serial which I hope to sell Do you mean menn that you actually are supporting yourself from the proceeds of your Jour writing youre writing youre you're very young Yes Yes I am youn young she reflected that lint linthe he was hardly much over twenty five twenty himself himself but apparently very lucky still that's you unfair unfair you ace ece i I took part ot of a short story course undera under a a very excellent Instructor at nt Southwestern university who helped me wonderful wonderful wonderfully ly If I suppose that I 1 just have hal hall some latent knack for It all ail of ot the or time or perhaps Its It's Just that tint the I unusual experiences I 1 went through helped In some way ills eyes eJes searched her bel face tace anxious anxious- anxiously ly Iy Lolita felt he be was not satisfied with this answer to his bis ques ques- questIon ques- ques question tion ion But ut how did you get out of ot Jail how did you live immediately otter after you fOU got out of jail How flow did you Jou get the money to register at Southwest Southwestern ern lion ho did you support yourself f un until iii you Jou sold your first story ani anti where did dill you ou go to lay low while the newspapers were broadcast inn about you HIs Ills deep sincerity and anil entire lack lackI j I ot of the lie former flippancy lint lackI hind hac I marked him prompted her hN to tell him the whole story from from beginning It to end omitting only the part annul about Mr Jr somehow she slie could nut not brin brim herself to speak of hIm him hie she felt u though If die rue did dill a lump would co Conan Conan- Into conn-Into 1111 Into her throat and choke choko her SI Sit Sit- Sin even even told him enough about Torrence Torrence to enable him to guess the fliP rest which he did promptly but will out so much as n raised eJel eyebrow row of at condemnation And nd she ended Ive Ie blamed for what never you lint something penell something was almost tably ably tably bound to happen to me In I to wake woke me up lad Had It not been hen f poor I Harveys Harvey's a death Iea ih 1 I believe that dial t hn I should he almost t glad glai for cr what hn bali II I You sincerely loved rhent then i he quickly put In I f j No Im I'm ashamed to say Unit lint I didn't I sincerely thought that lint I did II however but hut I didn't Im IJ quite SUI- SUI sur of that now TO CC nu CONTINUED I |