Show r The Strange Romantic Adventures B By H. H L. L GATES l P J 0 A N N A A. a A b a J a Copyright 1926 b L. L GATES of I the F Flapper 1 a p p e 1 Yo You It K Know 0 W Published First National ty by arrangement ri- ri Pictures r g ent Inc with I CHAPTER 1 1 Be good little girls Dab your our noses oses and put on your our smiles Good Morning l is coming It was a wonderfully sweet voice and solemn But Dut there was the flavor haVOr fla fla- ha- ha vor YOI o of oll a laugh lauh hidden In Iri hi the mock solemnity That was a trick of Jo Joannas Jo- Jo annas She had adopted it i from someone Joanna adopted all al tricks t Of f manner that promised to be successful successful suc sac additions to her own original store Hore of them Obediently the young women who flanked Joanna behind the silk sik counter counter a bevy of sheer sinuous young oung persons made in variations of at the incongruous pat pattern rn of ot the day clay dabbed their noses noes softened the craftiness in their wise too-wise eyes and shaped smiles about their grotesquely grotesquely grotesquely gro gro- scarlet lips Ups It I was each days day's preparation for tor what was a adaily adal dal daily ceremony the ceremony the 10 o'clock visit t to t the e silk sik counter of ot Good MornIng Morning Morn Morn- ing Good Morning it I may be ex explained ex- ex was In a more definite way ay Mr ll Lero Leroy Harkness an imposing im im- im- im posing gentleman genteman of sleek groom- groom tUg risen to the dignity of a long- long tIle tailed 1 coat cant and tremendously Impressed Im Jm- pressed te sed by his responsibilities as of the worlds world's events and f El I Incidentally the autocratic buyer I IQ o r rules les the destinies of the silk sik l department Promptly at 10 o'clock j morning the morning the store opened at tresh freshly magnificent S 9 Mr lr Harkness cent tapped his fingers on the spread of the silk sik counter encompassed encompassed encompassed passed each of the young women behind it i with a friendly condescending condescending conde conde- glance and nd said to them collectively Good morning There was much rivalry among the tho to servitors of satin as to which of them first would see Good Morning down the aisle alse and announce an an- pounce his coming And if by any chance Mr 11 Good Mornings eyes I rested a little longer on one rouged face tace than on another among his silk ik counter nymphs why there was a full ful days day's scandal ahead It I happened often oten too often oren Jo Joanna Joanna Joanna Jo- Jo anna herself had been bothered a abI abit abit bit bI of ot late because Good Morning had fallen talen Into the te habit of ot looking t her more and more speculatively The morning before she had decided ed she could not Ignore that meanIngful meaningful mean meaD se look in the buyers buyer's eyes any longer and had tilted her chin at him She was wa prepared to do it i again But strangely Good Morning was wag not approaching In hi his usual languidly majestic manner His Hi expression was stern as If I he carried carried car car- ried ned new ne- matters maters of ot Importance He didn't stop atop at the next counter but came came right along Good Lord exclaimed the young person jerson erson on Joannas Joanna's right He has hasa a grouch Somebody's in for tor it i Joanna struck her pose Joanna had many poses one for tor every cir cr- cr cir cir- For Good Morning be had rehearsed a a way of ie b her chin putting her hand had to tot t the he back back of ot her head so that her elbow and forearm would show off offwell offwell of we well and fixing the other on her hip The effect in her mirror had been extremely satisfactory But Buther Buther Buther her hand fe fell from her hai haIr and the one ofie at her hip flopped d down suddenly Mr Harkness Harkness' had no mornings for tor any of them He He walked directly direct direct- ly h to where Joanna stood and stopped abruptly facing her There was neither smirk nor smile smie in his closed at-closed eyes Once he had In Interrupted interrupted interrupted in- in an unfortunate shoplifter and had looked at the trembling young woman In just that manner Miss Joanna he said his words sharp rp and evenly cold Have Hae the goodness to go at once to Mr Graydon's Graydon's Gry Gray Gray- dons don's office You are to be spoken to to by Mr r. r Graydon himself At it if please once you Pencils dropped to the floor be behind behind belind be- be hind lind the silk counter unnoticed E Eyes es stared Blank faces turned turne upon pon the startled girl girl And she stared Into the fatuous face of ot the theman theman man man across the counter as 03 I I 1 h he had nad woven her in some Iome ev evil spell Mr Ir Harkness was no longer Mr Good Morning He was an ogre the serf of a tyrant and andi i J bearer of ot a tyrants tyrant's summons He stood there cold immovable piercIng piercIng piercing pierc Ing Waiting waiting for Joanna Joanna of the gold old brown hair hall that had witched v him on other mornings mornings morn- morn ings to hurry away at this unheard of bidding For so far as the record was re remembered remembered remembered re- re at the silk sik counter no other girl had been summoned sum- sum mimed into the awful presence of the Old Man Man It I augured but buton butonE butone on one onE thing That thing shaped it- it Fel in Joannas Joanna's mind almost in in- in tanU She had offended a customer customer cus cus- tomer unconsciously perhaps but butof of offended tended one and an important customer one who had the ear of the mysterious unapproachable unapproachable thoroughly thorough unknown Oki Ok Man Ian And that meant dismissal The bu buyers buyer's els fingers began to drum warningly on the counter A summons to the office brooked no nc dea delays s He Ite didn't know what the summons was about nor why no not nor how the Old Oki Man so much as knew the name of the unimportant Joanna who despite that tat gold brown haland hair hal and the captivating poses was after all only Number 27 In the silks Graydon owner osner of at the city's largest larges department store was not the sor sort who knew certain ones of his hundreds hundreds hun bun of young oung women clerks by bj name A few tew of ot the managers manager were manager that sort not Graydon I believe I said at once Miss lIls Twenty-seven Twenty Mr Harkness l re repeated repeated repeated re- re icily I I should advise that tha you ou interpret that as meaning now And then he added the that brought quiver to the grotesquely scarlet lips Ups the quiver that the girl bit at and repulsed vi vJ- vJ I I fancy Miss that the theother theother theother other young oung ladles adles will wil the counter satisfactorily until you re return return return re- re turn from tram your interview Joanna could have choked him for that Even in her trouble she re remembered remembered remembered re- re the different tone of him and the different light In the eyes of him on the morning of the day before when she flushed under his fawning H He knew she reflected that she was going up to the tauntIng tauntIng tauntIng taunt- taunt Ing dignity of ot being dismissed b by the owner His code demanded that he have no consideration for even such sucha a one as she If i she were to go Into the owners owner's black book But Joanna was Joanna So sweet swee of Mr Graydon to send you ou along for tor me she murmured We e were discussing you just last as evening you know know know Mr Graydon and I. I I was telling him what a anice anice nice lUe boy you are are and and shall you run along now or shall you show me the wa way If I she was going to be discharged shed she'd leave behind her bet something to tobe tobe tobe be remembered by Shed She'd wanted a long time to shoot something like Uke that hat at the supercilious Mr Good Morning She gloried in the smothered gasp which choked in the throat of ot the girl next her Im Im 27 Did the Old Old Did Did Od-Did Did Mr Graydon want to ask my advice advie a about out the business today I The The secretary Ignored the affectation arec- arec atlon tation Oh Oh so you are Joanna she said simply I sent Mr lr Graydon's summons summons sum Rum mons to your department chief I dont don't now know wh what t it i is but Im I'm Im sure suret's its t's Is Important Ill I'll Il tell tel him youre you're waiting Joanna urged by the secretary found a chair Somehow the atmosphere atmosphere atmosphere atmos atmos- phere of the the- theOld theOd Old Od Mans Man's office warned worried wO war wor ried ned her It I wasn't what shed she'd e ex cx- Not at all al in keeping with wih the he most approved disclosures of old mens men's dens on the movie screens It I was vas bare and sold and sedate And the sec secretary wasn't as asan asan asan an owners owner's office assistant should be Not even pretty That is not I pretty according to the silk alk counter standards She was pale and needed needed needed need need- ed touching up at the cheek bones Joanna could have shown her hel how howo to o la lay on one of ot red red three of blue rub It i in and whiten with Florette's Florete's pink And she wore no bracelets or bangles angles or even the dangling jet earrings which were the mode Really RealY she must be stupid th that t secretary of ot the Old Od Mans Man's and with wih her ler opportunities Still Still something something about bout her fascinated Joanna Miss 27 7 caught herself rubbing at her lips Ups and nd wondering if It shed she'd marked them too oo red that morning New doubts new specters took their heir place in the parade that marched heavily a across ross the shop girls girl's Irl's brain The creditors those inexpressibly in- in little people who fatten on n the meagerness of ot the shop girls girl's girls purse with exorbitant prices for tor flimsy things dug in hi their prongs and nd faded awa away They were now of the yesterday For the first time time time- the he first time that she could remember ber Joanna waiting to be dismissed for some unknown offense against some unknown customer thought of tomorrow as as It i loomed within her own wn outlook Dismissed from one store tore the others would be for a atme time me barred to her And she had struggled long to attain the opulence opulence opu- opu lence ence of at salesgirl of the higher grades rades Had she been more accessible accessible sible ible moral morally she would have been more prosperous But Joanna stopped short of at a areal great real many things a stopping short too many people classing cassIng her heras heras as 9 one of at a genius the genius the ultra modern modem mod- mod em ern rn genius would genius would not have credited credit- credit ed d her with ith She counted frantically and ant estimated estimated est est- esti esti- mated h herself one week of idleness without being too deep In trouble Of course If I the worst came to the he worst she could pawn the fur furI I wrap Cohen wouldn't know But J Joanna anna didn't want to pawn wn I that coat At any of at the landing I places to which the boys bos took ook ler tel It would be missed immediately tel tely Oth Other r girls are observant of at such things and really realy a fur CUlt ur wrap is a necessary mark of at caste no now trail lys None one of the boys bos would be coming around for tor her if I she showed owed up UI lP any place with wih her old and coat None one that Is Is except John John She quarrelled with wih him only last lat night night agaIn again She told him h he h wa was wa entirely too muggy to keep up the pace with wih her Somehow the thought of John with whom a quarrel was never worth a second thought since none lasted from one evening to the next comforted her She look looked d suddenly at the theOld theOld theOld Old Mans Man's quiet unimpressive sec sec- She smiled a little lUe Inwardly Inward Inward- I ly with wib the thought that she the secretary would be about the sort of girl John pretended to want h her herto herto r to be Fancy the glorious Joanna with wih th the shimmering gold brown hailand halt hail halt and the flash of ot scarlet across a afield afield afield field of ot velvet pinks like that She almost laughed when the other girl girlin in response to the purr pur of a a buzzer nodded at her and said hats Mr 11 Graydon Hell He'll Hel see you now Wont Won't ont you ou go In Tha Th vision o or of John and the silly siy spectacle of herself herselt trying to be beUke belike belike like Uke the quiet softly self effacing secretary tar just to to please him had cleared Joannas Joanna's brain of ot the imminence imminence im imminence im- im of oh tragedy Her head was up and so RO was her bar bel heart when she went through the door and stood Inthe in inthe inthe the presence She expected to face the living image of or sinister cartoons shed she'd seen When she realized that the elderly rather port portly gray haired man who stood behind a great mahogany ma ma- bogany table to receive her was The Old Man Ian and that he was actual actually smiling across to her she wrinkled her brow Then a great light came into her mind So THAT was it i She might have known She was alert shrewd cunning all al at once She braced herself hersel for tor the fen fencing The fur wrap could go hang There'd be no difference between the owner owner owner own own- er who ho could summon her and Mr 11 Good Morning who had to come to her counter with wih his fawn fawn- ing ipg Did you send for me Im I'm from the silks silks silks-No No o. o 27 Her tone was wasa a challenge The Old Mart Man pointed to a chair Wont Vont you sit down he asked pleasantly Twenty seven stands tor fot fol Joanna doesn't it She She answered shortly shorty Joanna Manners She wondered how long longi i It would take him to show his hand Her resentment grew more bitter bIter each minute More and more she was convinced that there was only one and a commonplace motive for tor the genial reception of a salesgIrl salesgirl salesgirl sales sales- girl and a pretty one ona on such as she knew lehew she was by the wealthy powerful owner of the store The man across the table settled himself In his chair and faced her hir A curious expression played about his us gray eyes Ah h yes es lie he murmured Joanna Jonna Joan Jon na na Manners I understood that was the name Would oud you mind I Joanna telling teUng me Inc where where and and how you rou you live lve Joanna narrowed her lids I live lve ive alone and not in a palace palace either And the rest of of it i is Im I'm Im Her employer seemed not to noice notice no- no ice tice the irritation Then you ou dont don't live lve at home Not with wih your family I haven't any family tamly she answered answered answered an an- him still biting her words As an afterthought she added But ButI I can take care cre of myself as well wel as a family could and I do the The he elderly man smiled at this He Je began to recognize the toms oms I am sure of that my dear he said softly So lets let's speak of ot your our friends What that kind kindI I I mean have you you- you you many many She bad r d caught that what kind She stiffened in her chair and looked him full in the face She Sha was vas embittered anew by that curious curl curi cur ous expression under his gray eye eye- brows rows I hav haven't nt any friends par- par besides a bunch of at boys who vho are as light in the head as are on their feet teet but if i I want any anymore anymore anymore more Ill I'll Il pick them out for myself Graydon darted a quick look at her He was silent for tor a minute toying with wih a a jade paperweight When he spoke he had resolved eident evidently to shorten his approach approach's f to whatever It was as he had to sa say sayto sayto to the salesgirl from the silk counter counter counter coun coun- ter who was not disposed to be humble in his presence I must say a that you 0 Impress me me he said as if voicing a profound con conclusion as one who would not hesitate to dismiss friends |