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Show t and be r I , THUS KAR. "Alicia pleasant Grove in rJto Uie afternoon Tom K i V ,,d they u,ke.d , Mtk Mel wai upset, K ?" her "dar,,nf'; V'L ,nd her father at Win otber. e remember- ",,. Mt late the night A do KT" ihe Anally jldvou?" She was stunned. ,u6Sest. d they make a K '" that I ... ou o, Vnforiet you were trystlnf tlde ' I her breath and could W she had spoken, though ,eemed to quiver In let-K let-K between them. Her fa-Ked fa-Ked with a little jerk. His white and hard and his veiled, so that she could his thoughts. Moment that seemed a cen-V cen-V I eyes met hers, and : very softly, "No, my H "But that's perjury," she whs. pered faintly. Her father's face darkened angrily an-grily "Don't be an idiot! You did not kill her. Neither did I. So what possible difference can It make-if nobody knows that we went tor a walk? I'm absolutely positive that I wasn't seen; I feel equally sure you were not. So where's the harm If we protect ourselves in a situation situa-tion that could easily become very unpleasant?" She hesitated and he said quietly "Because. Megan, if It becomes known that you and I were not In bed and asleep that you were out on the Rl.iye with Fallon it's not only going to be extremely unpleasant unpleas-ant for you, but It's going to finish him, once and for all. He'll never be able to get another Job as a teacher no matter how Innocent and accidental your meeting was. People Peo-ple will remember Alicia's little thrust about your spending 'hours together on the Ridge,' and people are good at adding two and two and getting six or seven." Megan said quietly, "Where were you, Father?" with the thing that was in her heart; : the thing that had been there-whc couIq say how long'-but whos. Presence she had not discovered un 01 under the shock of Alicia's death "I like to talk to him. Miss Meggl. ! yo' think he Bin' comin' anv how, how 'bout yo' calling him u 1 and askin' him to' So I could tall to him?" Annie was grave-eved anf1 portentous Megan, jerked out of her unhapp ' abstraction by Annie's tone, looker up at her curiously. "Why, Annie, what's wrong? Wh' do you want to talk to Mr. Larry?' she asked, puzzled. Annie drew herself up a little an. there was a gentle, yet implacahl dignity about her as she said flrml "It'l a private matteh. Miss Meggl but it's powahful Important. Yo call him f0' me"" "Yes, of course, Annie," Megai answered and Annie thanked he and went out of the room, paddint softly In the heelless felt illppen that she wore to "ease" her feet. But Megan did not have to cal Laurence, for at about four o'clocl I j ,i" it was a shocked, ln- gasp that came scarcely breath. "How-how can -think-" fcer lifted his shouldera in that was not quite a shrug led coolly. "Why not? You erfectly willing to believe Dad." In that breathless U endearing diminutive ilv from her tongue. "I ik'vou had-I couldn't ever m had" ou put the question very reminded her dryly. M only that I heard you last night a little after minutes after you came rcember," said her father is eyes never leaving her raged face. se we make a bargain, my an." Her father'a voice :, low-pitched, scarcely rnisper, in the tone of one ir to another. bargain, Father?" she faintly. , led. "You forget that I was bouse I'll forget that you trysting with Tom Fallon dge," he said in that gen-omehow gen-omehow terrifying drawl, it of crimson poured over ad reached from the collar it cotton print frock to the he came down the road and turnec in at the gate grinning at her warmly and happily. "I came over with the coroner and some of the county officers," he told her cheerfully, dropping down on the steps at her feet and baring his head to the soft wind. "Pleasant Grove's certainly getting" her name in the papers. There was a newspaper correspondent for one of the Atlanta papers at the inquest." Megan asked, after a moment, "What what did the inquest And" : "Death by means of a sharp Instrument In-strument at the hands of a party or parties unknown," answered Laurence, Lau-rence, looking up at her white, drawn face with surprise. "Oh look here, darling, I had no idea you were such a close friend of hers." "I wasn't, really." admitted Megan. Me-gan. "But I knew her and it's been a shock" "Of course." said Larry gently He took her hand In his and held It closely. "We won't talk about it" "Yes!" said Megan so sharply that Laurence turned surprised eyes upon her. Megan managed a faint smile and said, "I I really want to know whatever they could learn " "Well, It wasn't much," said Laurence. Lau-rence. "No trace of the weapon, a knife or a dagger of some sort. No trace of robbery or anything of that kind. The girl at the bank said she had cashed her usual monthly Income In-come check for fifty dollars, a few days ago, and her purse was found with more than thirty dollars in it. They feel sure that if she had surprised sur-prised a burglar at work, he would not have left the purse. They believe be-lieve that she was killed by someone she knew or at least, someone she was not afraid of. There were no signs of a struggle in the place " Megan sat very still, her hands locked tightly in her lap. Killed by someone she knewl Someone she was not afraid ofl "There was one sensation," said Laurence after a moment, not looking look-ing at Megan. His eyes .were on the garden, where, despite the fact that it was almost Christmas, a few late zinnias and marigolds were still in bloom and the chrysanthemums were great shaggy things of glowing beauty. "That was when the telegram tele-gram from her husband arrived" -Her husband?" she repeated incredulously. " 'Scuse me, suh but could I talk to yo' fo' a few minutes?" He aat very still for a moment, his eyes clinging to hers, and she thought he scarcely aeemed to breathe. And then he said casually, "I went for a walk." And as proof that he had had his say on the subject and no Intention of speaking again, he got up and left the room. She couldn't oelleve that her father fa-ther had killed Alicia Stevenson. It was an incredible thought; but he had been out of the house, and he was very anxious that no one should know about that. And she thought of herself and Tom Fallon, on the Ridge. And then he remembered his face tonight and the tone of his voice when that little word "darling" had lipped out - the look in hia eyes, naked and poignant and unashamed, un-ashamed, the warmth and tenderness tender-ness in his shaken voice that had been like a shining garment wrapped about her chilled body. "Oh, no no I won't hav it like that! I won't be in love with him I won't!" she wailed, deep in her frightened, stricken mind. But her heart went relentlessly on, "You , can't help It! You can't stop It. You didn't ask for It but you can , never deny It! He knows it too-ha too-ha feels as you do-you saw it In his eyes, heard it In his voice tonight , You love him a.id he loves you -and j he has a wife who has a greater claim on him than if there were children. Your love can never never nev-er mean anything except heartbreak and self-denial! You know that but you can't stop loving him! Any more than you can stop breathing! The inquest was held the following afternoon in the rickety, n" j little frame building where the Draft Board met. and it seemed that, e cept for the few bedridden in the town, everybody was there. Everybodv. that is, except Megan and her father. For contrary to Sim's uneasy fear, neither he nor Megan had been called to appear, l ittle Betty Hendrix, Bill Logan. Mrs Stuart and a few of the others wh" had been first on the scene had been called. Megan did not quite know whether to be more relieved, or more frightened that neither she nor her father had received order, to appear. But she had firmly . US Mr. Stuart', hearty tnv,-Ution tnv,-Ution that she go. anyway. MPKan made herself keep busy throughout a day that seemed age- ner beside Megan ana !!MlM Meg. "Suppose so; Annie. ' Megan - i of her hair. it trysting with Tom Fal-r Fal-r mouth twisted with dis-be dis-be thought, and the ImpU- u did meet him there " 'by accident!" she flashed, her smiled thinly. "I be-my be-my dear though 1 am a btful as to whether other Hid. if It ever became nec-I nec-I other people to know of accidental meeting." ber face in her hands for t and her father watched i curious tensity, (course, I can see no rea-nyone rea-nyone save the' two of ua w anything about it," he monthly. "Surely If my nd I wish to go for a H fresh night air, it is noisiness no-isiness but our own. Un-li Un-li in a murder investiga-it investiga-it many seemingly unre-I unre-I come out. Of course, 1 likelihood that we should way connected with tills ffair. Neither of ua had "to want Alicia out of the 1 I had none. I hoped her!" Id at him, caught by some Ml voice. And after a I answered the look in her curse If it should become at you were violently op-m op-m marrying her, that you e thought of having her "house, and had been un-ersuade un-ersuade me to give up my "tarry her-well " Once W his shouldera in that I as not quite a shrug. M an effective dismissal. few a long, hard breath. I couldn't possibly She set her breath against n Clutched at her throat. my dear-I know that "ipletely incapable of any violence!" her father i and there was i P was very close to ten-"""'voice. ten-"""'voice. 'But It won't 'nw that will count. Me- irovep hat We an pf0Ve !i huddled in a heap n' as though to think kM then he said quiet-why quiet-why I say there is no nyo-'e should be told 1 -e out of the house S?nately' not i0'ih-cral i0'ih-cral ""'Irs last night!" d,d you think I'd be likely ne asked him huskily, fnt m which she fought rseH together ao that , a Possible. a be an inquest, of u reminded her. "Un-(leB "Un-(leB as her closest neigh-f-pose her closest ac- be called to testi-'imply testi-'imply ay that we Uttle after ten" Laurence nodded. "That seemed as much of a shock to everybody there as it is to you," he told her. "But it seems that when the detectives detec-tives were going through her papers yesterday they found that she had a husband and that he was the one who was sending her fifty dollars a month. They wired him and the answer was brought to the inquest this afternoon. The husband Is somewhere In the west, but he's fly-ning fly-ning east to claim the body. Should be here tomorrow or next day. they thought" "But she was a widow! Megan protested, dazedly. "Apparently not," said Laurence, looking up as Annie appeared behind be-hind the screen door th; t led into the hall "Hello, Annie how about putting another plate on the table and letting me stay for supper? "Yessuh, Mist' Larry us sho' be glad to " she assured him, beaming, and tnen asked uneasily, '"Scuse me, suh-but could I talk to yo'-fo' , few minutes?" Laurence looked surprised, but got to his feet. "Of course, Annie don't tell me vou want to divorce Amos, after all fnese years!" he laughed, excusing himsHlf to Megan as he moved towards to-wards the screen door which Annie , held open for him I ain't suah. Mist' barr, , dat 1 ain't gwine git rid 0' dat shlf'lesa, no -count nigger, sho' nuffl" she assured as-sured him darkly as she led the way to the kitchen. Megan got up from the chair vhere.he had been sitting for more ian an hour. In the late after-noon after-noon the sunlight had been warm and pleasant here, but with the com-M com-M of dusk, a chill Uttle wind got I? and tiptoed through the trees. , L she went into the living room, ere she built up the fire, making , it hUk and cheerful. (TO BE CONTINUED) , 1 |