Show th py by RUPERT HUGHES VA n by harapat fc drouen CHAPTER I 1 I 1 continued 15 sirs mrs romilly finished tier her wholesale order and wheezed out like a grand old automobile or of an early model when they were alono alone tho the partners gazed jeard tit nt daphnes list and then tit at each other oilier what on earth made you toko take it mrs exclaimed you know we c cant nil fill it were going to fill it hut but haw ill it if I 1 know but well weil well fieve to get it a lot of sowing sewing women in andrit and sit up nights but put the material wo we cant buy those things on off credit bredl t 11 then ill borrow cosh cash and pay for IV it borrow where you said you trouble your brother im not cot responsible for what I 1 have said or may inny sa siy basi besides des I 1 dont mind going to bayard now flow that I 1 can go with success ill call on oil him flint lu in n business way and offer him interest find and nil all flint I 1 guess mrs mis Rom Illys name Is good goodenough enough collateral all unconscious of oe daphnes Da affairs bayard was approaching appi caching ills A mrs romilly finished her wholesale order and came wheezing out like a grand old automobile of an early model with the brisk manner of a triumphant capitalist but that was bluff for outward efre effect elt ile iio was wag actually dizzy with loss of bearings and dont control rol bayard had carried heavier burdens than clay and under the king of leilas whip tin had taken greater risks for higher prizes the crush crash in tho the street had found him so BO extended flint lie he could not recover without additional help that very morning ono one of his brokers hade tilled on him for a renewal of margins lie ile had to have five thousand dollar doglii rs or lie ho would lose fifty rebuffed from every door bayard had gone to Wethe office a mys ter herlous lous sort eort of place surrounded rounded Bur by guards find and secret service men to ward off the menace of spies epics real and imaginary bayard had unusual difficulty in passing the lines the reason lie he soon heard A new man was in charge in Wethe place pined a retired british officer whose natural and affected gruffness wa was aggravated by the unpleasant nature of ills his tasks only one eye lie ile made bayard describe who and what lie ho was and what lie ho wanted only Ba bayaras bayards yards desperation gave him strength to ask this old cyclops for on an advance on oil now new contracts baard went awny away in a stupor ile ho lind had intelligence enough to feel that lie ho could less safety safely attack W wetherell et berell now than before yle lie would seem to be implicated in the follows fellows mal malfeasance felis lip would only advertise to his creditors that hla his taunted contracts were worthless business men will endure much to such publication of their wrongs bayard kept ills hla head high till lin h reached his own office then lie ho fei fe into his chair and propped ills his elbows on hla his desk and gripped ills his lot hot brows in his fits hands as if lie ii were libl holding holdt ding ng lila fits skull together it Is the ilia business bu mans A attitude of prayer player it if was thus that daphno found him when she elie opened the door narrowly and closed it behind ber no ng softly as la tosca sho she wasIe aMing with affection and importance and when at her mischievous bayard looked lookia up tip she was so pretty that lie ho forgot himself long enough to smite aniie and rush forward to embrace tier her silo was wan wonder hig how low to tier her errand when tho the rang it stil stickled kled bayard strangely gely ile iio caught it to ills his ups as a toper lifts a glass lle pressed the pe receiver celver to his ear anti and evidently recognize tho the voice joice that sald alello Ll ello frum rum lie ite allm eved in monosyllables of the least importance once but daphne aimard floom iri them bayard hung up lip tho the receiver pushed the ho telephone way away as a bitter cut cup mid and laugh ed sheepishly great convenience tile tho telephone 1 just teamed learned that flint ive io dropped moro more money than I 1 ever hoped to have tor for want of a null the shoo ans lost oil 01 well veil it savea saos me ino from spending tt it foolishly but if id hod hild fio thousand dollars my godl god I 1 if rd id had five nua dollars daphne could think of nothing more helpful to say than it casual hows leila dont ask mel binel bayard baard smiled tell uie me what can I 1 do for you ou honey before I 1 go to take soine nasty medicine from the president nothing dear I 1 had to come downtown on an errand so I 1 thought id run in mid say hello 1 11 well veil liello hello 1 ile iio kissed her and patted tier her hack back avith doleful tenderness and sho she went out of his office into tile the elevator its iron barred door and its clanking chains gae gave it a congenial prison feeling and the bottomless pit tt it dropped cilito llito seemed even more appropriate CHAPTER daphne v wanted anted to run away from tier her thoughts find and sho she valkie valk cid for a mile or two up lip the deep ravine V of broadway Broadw ny sho she dared not go back to mrs chivvis just yet ct with whit tier her had bad news she thought of asking clay for a loan sit slip swept tho the appalling iden idea from tier her braai in lin t alth it a pull puff of derision besides lio lie N aits nits as out of town bayard igaard lind had site sho thought of asking tom dunne dimne for it sao is m tried boblow to blow that idea front from tier her mind but it kept drift ing hack back like a bit of stubborn stub boin thistledown silo she could not it at length sho she grew so desperate that tha slie she stopped at a telephone booth mid and brazenly called up tip duanes number ile he clinn ced to bo be tit nt hoine whon when lie ho heard tier her voice li he cried oil oh lord its good to hear you slug sing again sing again nightingale ill 1 im no nightingale im a business woman 0 frering you an investment site sho told him the whole story tit the name of mrs romilly made him wills tle tie old gor gorgon on zola lie he called her mid added youre a made woman but the clothes arent made nod nid I 1 cant can I 1 t make cut cm till I 1 get some money would you could you advance TOO me it little on tile tho roost most excellent security I 1 illow how much to do you want vaut where shall I 1 bring it mall two pr er five hundred dollars to tho the shop will you and I 1 can never thank you enough allush its zile me that thanks you dont you want more no thanks it ivill ft bo be there in tho the early mal mall nna and I 1 may call round later to put a mortgage or something on tile tho place goodby good dby by sho aho chuckled and hung up tip the receiver silo sho was crying softly ns as she stole from tho the blessed booth a and nd she looked less alko a successful business woman than ever eer something made tier her think of ercil croll silo stopped off at bayaras bayards Ba yards floor and rang tile the bell lelias leilas new butler admitted lier with pomp no walked past him into the alio drawing room loom lelia leila and wetherell Wc therell were ero standing there ki hi heavy coats they seemed to be a shocked nt at seeing daphne she wits was horribly hurt nt at feeding feeing them but she chirruped chirrup ed just como come in just going out leila answered kissing daphno daphne nervously where daphne asked with intrepidity as she shook hands with wetherell Wc therell a prize fighters preliminary lini handshake it was oil oh cr just motoring about a bit thanks id lovo love IV daphne dared to say almost as much amazed as they were hero at hearing tier her accept the invitation that had not been given silo sho was quito shameless from their point of view but she ho felt that it would mould bo be unpardonable to let tier her brothers wife go or nt at least unaided and on oil a cruise iba BO perl perilous Idus to reputation if not to character watlo she was at fhe miserable business she decided to makon makela good job when they went down don to tile clirsie squeezed lit in between L latla la SI find and wetherell Wc therell lelia leila blanell blanched ed etli th jealousy and cold rage they dined at long bench beach and watched the dancers in hullen mood wetherell Wc therell ordered much champagne and would not listen to lelias leilas pleas that ho be lot let it alono ile ho frightened tier lier a by ills reckless 3 mood and daphne began to read dread the journey home in the dark with champagn cd hands on an the steering wheel after daphne find and ho he bad executed a funeral dance lelia leila was emboldened to step out with him they anih talked eff very and lie seemed to horrify tier her by what lie he bald to tier lier daphno daphne could not imagine what it way wn bayat d had not told tell her of ercles cris downfall from power Ife therell confessed its ills disgrace to leila in the tb 0 dance and leila was sickened with the sordid irio of tier her ro inane she had played with ira firo anti got soot on her ter hands she quit the dance and asked to be taken home hoine i 1 10 wetherell felt that cliot site had find turned against him and lie ho reached for tile lie lust of the wine to fling it down ills thront throat lelia leila grittily grimly took it from ills his infers and emptied it in ili tile tho aco aco bucket chauffeurs unit champagne tire n bad combination isho laughed but there wits a sneer on her ter lips I 1 oil Oh very bellil wetherell Wc thorell sneered in turn lie ile paid tor for the dinner find tipped the waiter with the ho of a bankrupt ho tipped lavishly lavisky tho the man who guarded his ear car find ani swung out into tho the road with nn an instant speed that would linao been prettier it there had boon been less danger Dop daphne linel anti leila were good sports but they were not merry furnished nil all the merriment ment and ills his wils froni from wine find despair it wits was the 00 wine alno that brought out the truth lie HP had to tell daphne alint lie lind had told leila ot of its ills misfortune with lit ills bull bally old government go eminent ile he asked daphne to explain to to buy bay aird how low sorry lio lie was that lie was involved in the crisli or I 1 it 1 your broth Ba bayaras bayards yards sawfly nice fell miss skip lies iles got nice nicest t UT wife in worl norl rood good UT ull girl straight us its it string st straight ns its they inako ia 1 i I 1 cull cm no lious ellse about ill 11 lell L 1 1 I 1 just lova her lion orble love rd id do it finy thIng lif in worl for lell leill or aill miss daffy or ol 01 broth tell blip tit will you like a goo girl tell hoy bay nt at hlll 11 daphne grew furious site sho felt now that silo had justified tier lier presence here she held leila fast in tier her embrace lind commanded wetherell slow town down tit nt ongel do you yiu henr hear slow down this earl carl wetherell laughed bless It UT Theart heart ini coln take you home youre quite shado with nie ine quite jilin lau flints nestr born to bo be never drown or got get automo killed god goad word au ell eh Ny hylint lint they whipped round a somber jut in if tho rond road and ills his searchlight palti painted ted instantly in white outlines against the black world a of sleepy children returning from sent village church affair they were sin singing glug drowsily merrilea Merr lleo Ileo wo vo ro ift long ro 14 long daphne band and lelia leila seemed to dle die nt at once wetherell groaned oil oh my god the chil childen ren ill 1 there was nothing for wetherell to do but what lie he did lie ile spun his fits wheel mid and drove ills thunderbolt into nn an open concrete culvert there was a furious racket the car turned a somersault and crumpled in dering mass wetherell pinioned under tho the was knocked tills this way nind that unit nn and its his beautiful head cracked on oa tho the concrete crete like a china dolls dolla leila was snatched from ho to car ns as it if invisible hands had caught tier her exquisite body for a lash to flog a tele wetherell furnished all the arri ment and his was from wine and despair phone pole with then threw tier into a ilitch daphne was flung and battered and thrust under the car when it turned over and then the gasoline spilled from the shattered tank and caught fire CHAPTER 9 underneath tho the machine lay fly the relles relics of wetherell who would suffer buffer no more hero here close by was daphne daphno kip whom a brief unconsciousness gave a short furlough from torture she was not alive enough to bo be afraid of the alio long lean can fla names iries about tho the gasoline tank though they kept springing at tier her bliku liku beld in a leash they lind not yet quite reached her but they missca lit li erless tind nd less A small distance oft off leila jay still in almost tier her first attitude oblivious lor for a few of too the outrages tile blind forces of inot neu film lind wre liked on oil tier her with tile fury of a n hill sikes hikes trying tryllis to iq bt nt a No woman lutin to death the chauffeurs anti passengers of t cars that tant drew up in lengthening queues rau ran to tho the scene of Wethe I 1 disaster at first they hey could not see wetherell but they saw daphne nud anti her bior peril find they set frantically to work to drug tier her free but elio was so BO caught that they could not release tier her until they should the our they pulled find heaved hut but it ans jammed into lie ho culvert and the ho ditch so tight hat flint they could not budge it though hough they took risk enough trough and suffered sulTer cd blistered hands and charred clothes at last ono one filst fastened ened n glinin chain to the rear axle of 0 Wether vIls CUT ar find and to the front axle of ills his unit I 1 h hy y alternate backing all and swerving t dragged find and hoisted Wetherell ti car I 1 upward and d while other men inen snatched daphne front from beneath find away from tile names flames just lis 03 they were nibbling nt at tier her skirts shirts at the ho same time they disclosed the body of wetherell find with huge difficulty fetched it forth still others found leila in bl a heap u toy with broken joints the last thing Dil plino lind known was ivits tile sensation of being shaken to death a bel helpless pless infuso lit in a terriers til the next nest am knew was that she rhe was seated cited on tile tho edge of it ditch and leaning against the shoulder of it kneeling woman lit in evening dress A number of oc shadowy won men tin and women wavered against the scaring roaring glare of the ho gasoline they arrived aravad nt at last nt at a hospital 10 spItal daphne was lifted out and dell delivered vered into the possession of two curt youtie young Inter interned In ternes neg she rho ens stretched on oil it litter feet foremost into till nil elc cle vator down a corridor to a room rind rolled out on a bed two ceedee to undress lier her and bathe tier then tin an older doctor camo canto tit in find ex tier lier injuries site she blazed with shame ono one complete blush bluh but to him she ivas lia lividly idly more than a car brought to it garage ile iio nodded cheerfully alicer and said bald not ii n bono bone broken young lady find and no Inter internal rint derange derangements ments that flint I 1 can discover A tow hy burns nil all a big shock Is leila hurt much da daphno 1 line mum mumbled blod she Is hurt a trifle worse than you ou nut but shell como come round till nil right 1 I dont belleve youl said daphne tin and r sighed poor who la my aly brother her husband all ali the young nian who was tiko tho other oilier young man was not your husband the then daphne shook her head lie la Is no to relation a friend 11 perhaps wed better notify bayard W lints ills last namo name uns lias lie ho a telephone daphne muttered hla name and number then tier hond wits was lifted a cap sulo stile placed lither mouth and a |