Show I Tile The I Everlasting Whisper By Jackson Gregory Cop by Scribners Scribner's Son Service King Kins was ake a he A Awakening lie he trIed to move mo Ills utter weakness like a great reat weight bearing down upon him held him powerless But Buthis ut his mind slowly freeing itself from the shadows of ot sl sleep p was suddenly sudden Tery clear He lie could turn his head bead beada a little At first lie he did not see GlorIa but his eyes quested until at last they found her She Slie lay bythe by bythe the fire tire her ber head bead upon her tier arms sleeping The little huddled body looked weary beyond expression For a long time his haggard eyes remained with her She lay on oo the tn rocks without a blanket Ills His head bead moved weakly weakly- weakly there were blankets under him blankets covering him bIm his feet teet were wrapped In a blanket De Be looked again at Gloria at the th fire he saw saV sa V wood piled plIed near by For many minutes bo he puzzled the matter In the end it was obvIous even to a man as sick as King that she must have gone for tor wood Per Per- hap lisps more than once He knew now that lie he had bad been desperately hurt that wounded his fight with Bro Bro- Brodl die Bro dl die had bad brought him Wm very Terr near Dear a weakness from blood loss losa that waa wa-s pale twin to death And yet be h hwa was wa alive and warm worm be he bad had bad broth and blanket blankets and and- the tire lire had bad been kept blazing He lie managed to t lip a hand inside his shirt hirt before his fingers t found und It he bow w that th the bandagE was thee thee-e there Gloria bad done all II this GlorIa Gloris whom he had struck truck Ever since that blow the one act oX 01 his hi life lite which h hu he would hue liaT given 19 so much to have undone he h had bad been ashamed Ho had bad re- re rejoiced rejoiced In la lil Ills his battle with tho the men who had threatened d Gloria with worse than death r rejoiced that In some way ho might make reparation tIon But now beginning to un under understand stand all that Gloria had done for hIm how great were the sacrifices she had bad made for tor or him lying scions ot of all she did It seemed to t thim him that the thing that be had hod done was a Ii very small thing set In the th scales against her ber own nets acts He wanted to get up and go CO to her t to put his blankets about her to play pla the mans man's part and protect and an i nut But he could not so much mud I hl hI II nt raise lug Ills voice to call her to t I IGlorIa Gloria ns as is though she felt his eyes upon her lice stirred rose pushed I the holl hack from her yea eyes and como came quickly to him She Sho went down on her knees beside him and took his hand In her two and wd held It tight Everything Is nil all right Mark nd And you ar better are every time you wake nis Ills lips strove to frame words She Sho bent close to them and heard lila his wondering whisper per Ever thing nil thing nil right I Yes think thank God she whispered back to him Everything Bi I In all the wide wide Ido world I 1 No he could not understand that thaL I I She saw Mw perplexity In his eyes now I But Bot sho she did not mean to let him talk yet and It was time Ume for tor broth again But again he was whisper whisper- In lag ing whispering yours Blankets Blankets yours Yes Mark After you have had your nourishment When I need them i But when he had taken his cop of hot broth he slipped off orr to sleep again and GlorIa Gloria smiling a tender sat Ket by her tire fire watching himna him himas ns as n a mother watches a Q sick baby who the doctor has just Jurt told her will live CHAPTER XIV TUAT T HAT night Gloria listening now to Kings King's breathing now to the crackling of ot her lire ire grew restless In her henrt heart was still that new born new gladness In 10 her bosom there was still something singing like the liquid voice of a bird It had sung for tor the first time when first she had bad ministered to King w when n she had understood what loves love's service was when she sho had gone cone down the cliffs for tor firewood when because of ot her tireless nursing s she e ha had 1 been re- re rewarded re- re rewarded re rewarded warded by his opening eyes as the hours wore on It had grown Into a chant triumphant She Gloria had been unafraid and unswerving she had saved saTed a n mans man's life lite And that lire life was Mark Kings King's I She had made malle amends she had set her feet teet unfalteringly In a new troll trail through throughout out her being she was aglow with the consciousness of or one who had gladly done loves love's labor Now she waited alted only for tor the hour when again King must ha have e his broth She gave gate It to him smiled at him commanded him to go back to sleep promising to talk with him himIn himin himIn In the morning And when again he breathed with tho the quiet regular regularity ity of ot one sleeping she went eagerly about her task They must have Te more meat tomorrow or the next day at nt latest for tor the steaks which hI l hn-l anti flu tron I to strength In InI Y 1 In lag ing rit it It into their sup sup- supply supply supply ply And il ii i knew Mirk Kin King well vell enough to tn li h he vary NY that the li liP IP itil i nil summon strength nong t i-i i hl his tottering ty In l I nil i I im n ti- ti two legs Ip IC s he be would I u- u uIt Itu It was u fur her to be before him It n tint snowed since 11 KIn King tI hl his lils kill site she could fol- fol follow fol follow low In I Hie Ill trail lie he had had made and It nl ill wil her unerringly ly to toI I the OJ surf st li lie he had lind left the rest ot of I till tic ie Site She had el e everything rea t-ifie t small packet of ot food eve even cn matches anti anil strips torn front from Ihl t i It In sack saik ark for tor her feet feL n In the gorse gorge clutching her rifle site she stood stool looking listening nut But there was no man In sight and andIn In the Intense determination possess possess- possess possess-In In lug her she throttled down all fear t I hou She Site turned up the gorge gorce a tiny I dark a figure ure In Immen an-Immen an Immense e white wil wll- wilderness I i The snow was u-as crisp I crunching underfoot sunny days daysI daysI I had thawed clear cold nights had bad I frozen and the crust had begun to form Before she had gone cone a n dozen feet teet she discovered this and Its ha- ha Im Importance to her where here Kings King's weight on the ilie snowshoes along a traveled twIce traveled trail had bad packed the snow and where now the sun and cold had done their work there was a crust which her slight weIght she could walk swiftly there was to be no more floundering She could run real realAnd I I And run rim she did when she sho had crested the first ridge and bad had start start start-ed ed down the tue tar far side It was lUte Uke I The crisp air cut her bel glow glowing ing lag cheeks her blood leaped looped alon along her veins she he breathed deeply aA a n nA A Great Gnat Uplifting Elation Bore Bor Her Along great uplifting elation bore her along God Love Love God Is smoothed love love the way before her tho the stars ran with her great blazing stars to which again and again she lifted her eyes ees De Despite I lle the tho rags about her bel boots boota her feet teet were Wee soon sly cold But always I there wa WM ivita the trail troll Kin King had had made lending her on where lie be had gone before she followed lie he had made slow pro progress seas ress seeking game and breaking trail trull she went swiftly on the packed Snow inow So she aho came clime at last to the final ridge whence looking down Into the canyon she saw the tho end of her trail trall hanging from a bent sap sap- sapling sapling sapling ling vas what she knew must bo be hl his boar Down n the steep slope she went halt half sliding half rolling roiling luthe lu In luthe Inthe the bed of or the ra ravine she landed Softly In the drift here hero she rested sitting Bitting In a n nest of ot snow And there etline suddenly out of ot the silence a strange strang quivering cry bursting out upon her a sobbing throbbing scream A woman I 1 cried Gloria aghast A woman In an agony of o terror she thought Suddenly terror leaped out upon her striking like a knife Into her heart Fear banished all 1111 this time her and clutched nt at her throat and paralyzed her muscles Blind panic gripped her herThen Then came the piercing scream again and with It enlightenment and Gloria sank back seeming to melt Into the snow about her Yon Yon- Yonder Yon Yonder der Just upon the next ridge where the moonlight carved In fine details a big bare hare boulder stood the thing that had screamed Long Long bodied and lithe small headed and merci merci merci- merciless merciless less steel-muscled steel and cIa chisel clawed chisel wed the bl big cat from froni snarling Jaws sent forth Its Ita almost human call to cut across va vat vast t still distances The mountain lion llon leaped down downward ward softly from stage to stage or of ortho tho canyon side paused under the pine lifted Its head head and sent forth again Its hungry cry cry cry- All this time Gloria sat cat breathless th fear fas I still held her powerless i She watched the animal crouch and gather Its strength and hurl burl Its lean body upward The lion fell tell back the ripping claws having ba missed the meat by some two or three feet null and Gloria heard the low rumbling growl Again It sprang prang again It missed But ut in iii the end feline craft found the way and the cat set Its Hs paws agaInst the tree trunk arid and hem began to climb Limbs broke under the tue two hundred pounds of weight the harl hark was torn under slipping paws but upward the sinuous body writhed Swiftly now It It would come to Kings ICings kill hilt roomed house on Woods Cross Cros TO BE CONTINUED |