Show ftfe oarl in the I 1 MIRROR elizabeth jordan cowf ss SM CHAPTER X continued 14 at last a cheerful whistle in the regions drew him down a flight to what appeared to be an ider ground storeroom here a bulky challed cral led individual looming large in e semi da Anes stopped in hla labor pushing about some boxes and re crded laurie with surprise are you the watchman asked the briskly 1 am that ere you here last night 1 I was was anyone else here a wan ald you hear any noise daring the a bit were you 1 I was admitted alio watchman lifs voice was and eli with tolerant good fromor 1 I want to make a trade with you tie newcomer held out his silk hat you give me your hat or any old it youve got around tho place for Is I 1 will enad the watchman calmly tio agh good humored he seemed a an of few word and who might u be he added I 1 came in last night with mr shiaw id I 1 the night here when I 1 ile up added langlo dryly 1 I und that my host had moved ithe watchman sadly shook his head youre a young lad he aid with sympathy als a pity got into these habits laurio grinned at him had als ered that his money like his iii safe in his pockets taking out bill he showed it to his companion do you like the looks of that he quiren 1 I do admitted the watchman firmly S tell me all you know about shaw id take it for your trouble I 1 will promptly agreed the other i it not lucli yon 11 gt for your roey for ala little enough I 1 know ie roan youre about I 1 sup ise Is the fat fella with eyes you auld hang yer hat on that had the ick room on the ground floor that a the one then all I 1 know Is he moved in ree days ago and he moved out two IUM ago what he did between men I 1 dont know but he paid tor e room for a month in advance so body a mournen mour his loss dad he say why he was going or here dall a word did he say he was a hurry that lad he had a gang three men with him and they had ie place empty in ten minutes I 1 rt em a hand an he agne me a dol r and tints the last I 1 baw of him sudden thought struck the nn where was you all the time asked with interest tn the cellar the watchman nodded understand alt loure too young for that sort of iloe me boy now im no teetotaler t alf he went on glass once in a while Is all a roan knows to stop but itow about that hat interrupted ie reathe victim of this homily bave you got one handy have ahe watchman disappeared into B corner and returned with a littered derby an a tine grand hat it Is I 1 he ir nestly assured the newcomer aa handed it over aarle took the hat and put it on i head where being too sirell for in it perched at a rakish angle he the bank noto into lis own ik hat and handed them to corn anlon who accepted ahmu without alle emotion brief bugli hia aitay itay in the building had en herbert ransome shaw had ac its watchman to surprises airles last glimpse 0 the man as a hurried away showed him with ex enie ed clency and the swift samul fineous uie of two well trained hand handt t the silk hat on his head and ie bill in his pocket rushed through the early t side streets he was not often at this hour and even in his it surprised him to discover ivr anny were abroad BO early in ie morning the streets full F pretty girls hastening to factories nd offices and of briskly stepping ion and women representing types int also would ordinarily catch the of the young playwright t lie had neither thought nor ei for them iau urgent needs were alist the as arance that doris was safe and next e privacy of his own rooms a bath tid a change of clothing obviously e could not present to aft sketchy ensemble he present tl row or could be he decided that he could and must to remain in his present state 0 suspense a moment longer than he need do waa unthinkable in a surprisingly short time he was in the studio building facing the man sam lind called henry a yawning night elevator man who regarded him and his questions with a pessimism partly due to the lack of sleep and f these combined influences led him to making short work af pf getting rid of this unkempt and able caller no sah ho said alas mayo don recene no callers at dla yere hour no anh sam don come on tell eight no sih I 1 chint take no to no ladles what aint out dey beds alt I 1 got to dese ere folks I 1 has he ended austerely the caller peeled a bill from hla eer ready roll and the face of the buildings guardian angel changed and softened chaps I 1 could acs knock on bayog do he suggested after a thought filled interval all I 1 want agreed landle knock at her door and ask her if mr devon may call at nine and take her out to breakfast tell her he has something very important to say to her taa sah the guardian was all humility lie accepted the bill and almost elmul alie elevator rose out of sight the interval before its was surprisingly short but too long for the nerves of the caller laurie the lower hall filled it with apprehensions and visions which brov the blood from his heart he could have embraced henry when the latter appeared wearing an expansively reassuring grin its mayo sho bay he briefly reported under alie dorco of the nervous reaction he experienced laurie actually caught the mans arm shea there he caked out youre sure of iff yaa bah henry spoke booth angly by this time he had made a diagnosis of the callers condition which agreed with that of the night watchman laurie had just interviewed she say he repeated 1 I done say what you tol me and sho say tell de benman jes like dat all right laurio nodded and strode oft for the first time he was breathing naturally and freely she was there she was safe in a little more than an hour he would see her in the meantime his urgent needs were a bath and a change of clothing As eoon as he was dressed he would go back to the studio building and keep atch in the corridors until she was ready then after breakfast h would personally conduct her to the security of louise Ord ways home louise need not see her if she did not feel up to it but she would sure ly give her asylum after hearing lau rles experiences of the night that was his plan it seemed a good one he did not admit even to himself that under alie air of sang frold lie wore as a garment jevery in in liam was crying out for the sound of doris voice also aa he hurried along he was conscious that a definite chainge was taking place in his attitude toward herbert hansome shaw slowly reluctantly but fully he had now accepted the fact that bertie represented a force that must be reckoned with he inserted the latch key into the door of his apartment with an inward prayer that bangs would not be vis ible and for a moment he hoped it had been granted but when he en acred their common dressing room he found his chum there in the last stages of ills usual careful toilet he greeted laurie without surprise or comment in the detached absent man ner he had assumed of late and lau rie hurried into the bathroom and turned oo 00 alie hot water glad of the excuse to escape even a tete a tete that greeting of bangs added the final notes to the minor symphony life was playing for him this morning As he lay back tn the hot water relax ing hl stiff bruised body the thought came that possibly he end rodney were really approaching the final breaking point bangs was not ordinarily dina rily a patient chap he was too impetuous and hagli strung for that bet be had brea wonderfully patient with this friend of his heart if it were true that he friendship waa dying under the strain put apoi it and laurie knew how possible this was and how swift and were bang reactions ufa henceforth however full it might be would lack an element tint had been vital and comforting ho tried to think of what future daya would bo without bangs exuberant personality to fill theia work and color but b could not picture them and the effort merely added to the gloom that enveloped him he abandoned it and again gave himself up to thoughts of doris As he hurried into his clothes a strong temptation came to him to tell banga the whole story then bangs would understand everything and he baurle would bay the benefit of advice and help in untying doris tangle dorial again the acaru into the foreground of hla consciousness with a vividness that made his benses censes tingle he was sitting on a lacing his shoes and his fingers afook as he finished the task he dressed with almost frantic haste urged on by a fear that despite his efforts was shaping itself into a mental panic then hairbrushes hair brushes in hand he faced his familiar mirror and recoiled with an exclamation doris was not there but her window was and hanging from its center catch was something bright that his eye and instantaneous rec it was a small roman alth a narrow vald stripe CHAPTER XI doris takes a journey within five minutes he was in the studio building across the square frantically punching the elevator bell outwardly he showed no signs of the anxiety that racked him but presented to sam when that appreciative youth stopped his elevator at thi ground floor the sartorial perfection which sam always vastly admired and sometimes dreamed of imitating but for such perfection sam had no ees today at this early hour it was not much more than half past eight he had brought down only tivo passengers and no one but baurle was waiting for the upward journey when the dorla was not there but her win dow wa and hanging from its center was something bright that caught his eyo and instantaneous recognition two tenants of the building had walked far enough toward its front entrance to be out of earshot sam grasped I 1 aarle s arm and almost dragged him into the car As he did so he hissed four words she gone mist benl gonel where when baurle had not expected this he realized now that he should hae done so his failure to take in the of her going was part of his in fernal optimism of ills inability even now to take her situation at its face lalue sam was answering his ques bout eight jes after henry went and I 1 come on an aut mobile stop in front de do an dat man ald de eyes he come in I 1 try stop him turn taken do car but he push me on one side an order me up like he was allson hasselt bo I 1 took him to de top ho but when we got dere an he went to miss mayo a do I 1 jes kep de car right dere an watch him good boy what happened he knock an happen den lie call out doris doris jes like dat on she come an talk to him but ehe dlan t open de do could ou hear what else he said no sali after dat he whisper to her like a snake laurie set his teeth even sam felt the ophidian la shaw go on he ordered den I 1 reckon miss mayo h pat on a coat an dat man wait I 1 fought he was gwane leave an I 1 ho wai glad but he stood acre walten an anft to split his bald recognized the grin dout two three minutes she come out sam went on she had a alf fur coat an a veil on blie look awful pate an when dey got in de elvator she dlan say a word dey gasn wasn nobody else in de car an it seem lak I 1 coulden couldn t let her BO olt without evyln so I 1 bay you gwane away miss mayol de man he look at me mighty cold an hard an she only nod ehe speak at alir aso sab she aint say a word she jes stood stiff an still an he took her out to de car an acy bobe bofe got in aa it a limousine a closed car bah did the man himself drive it no sah ne eat inside ald miss mayo alio man what drove it was younger what did ho look alel 1 I see auch 0 him he had a big coat on an a cap but bis hair was ballah I 1 aarle recognized the secretary which way did they gor east they were standing on the top landing by this time and lauri strode forward take a look around her roona she left some message sam accompanied him and thourl he had not desired this continued companionship baurle found a certain solace in it in his humble way this black boy was doris friend he ana doing his small part now to help her it as he evidently suspected there was something sinister in her departure entering the familiar studio laurie looked around it with a ping unlike the quarter shaw it remained unchanged the room facing north as it did looked n little cold in the early light but it was still stamped with the impress of its former occupant the flowers he had given her only yes hung their heads in mod est welcome and halt a dozen eye flashes revealed half n dozen homely little details that were full of reassurance here open and face down on the reading table was a book she might have dropped that minute there was the long mirror before which she brushed her wonderful hair and yes the silver backed brushes with which she brushed it on the writing table were a pencil and n torn sheet of paper as it sho had just dashed off a hurried note in short everything in the room suggested that the owner whose presence still hung about it might return at any instant and yet there in the window where ho had half jokingly told her to place it hung the brilliant symbol 0 danger which he himself had selected lie walked over and took it from the latch in doing this he ered that only halt the scarf hung there and that one end was jagged as if roughly and hastily cut off lie put tha scarf into hs pocket aa he did so his pulses leaped pinned to its folds was a bit of paper so small and soft that even the alve eie of sam following his every motion failed to detect it baurle turned to the black boy we d better get out of here ha suggested trying to speak carelessly and leading the way as he spoke miss mayo may be back at any moment sams aies bulged till they rivaled shaws you don t ink she gone he stam why should we she haa gone leurle tried to acrin at him perhaps ashes merely taking an au ride or an early train for a day in the country certainly nothing here looks as it she had gone away for good people usually pack don t alicy sam dropped his eyes ills face human till now took on its familiar look he followed mist deon into the elevator in silence and started the car on its downward journe but as ills passenger was about to depart with a nod sam presented him with a reflection to take aft ay with him TO OB CONTINUED |