OCR Text |
Show EEl by OCTAVUS ROY COHEN - - r - if r- n -tm i - ii n n -- ... n 0 Copyright by Octavus Uny rnhin WNTJ Sfrvlco, I " " 1'' r,""'"1 fancied that she knew the voices . . . the girl's sweetly shrill answers. Then there was silence. Tony was of no mind to Interrupt n campus romance. Unless . . . She remained motionless for several sev-eral minutes; her face a study In worried concentration. Why didn't they speak again? She wished to be sure. She thought. . . . And then her doubt vanished. From behind the shelter of trees and vines came a man's voice: rich and soft and freighted with caresses. "Little sweetheart," he said, "you're the most bewitching thing I've ever seen." Tony's lips pressed to a firm, angry line. It was Pat Thayer all right; Pat making love, In his suave, polished, deferentially superior supe-rior way to someone. Then the childish voice of Thay er's companion ; a voice which trem bled with eagerness of a first girlish girl-ish passion "Oh, Pat," said the girl, "you you're so wonderful !" Tony's face grew stern. She hes Itated no longer. She circled the great oak tree and shoved aside the curtain -of honeysuckle vines. The man met her eyes. But he continued to hold the girl tightly In his arms. Ele smiled sardonically sardon-ically at the Intruder over the flufTy golden hair of his companion. "And who," he Inquired with mocking politeness "Who Invited you. Tony?" There was fierce hostility In the glance which passed between Tony Peyton and the tall, too well- best for you to keep away from Pat Thayer." ' "Why? What's so terribly wrong with him? Or maybe you think I've never been kissed before. Is that It?" "No, If It was anyone else. . . ." "But it Isn't, Tony. It's Pat. And I'm asking you why he's so dangerous. danger-ous. I'm trying to be nice, and It Isn't very easy. The only thing I'll say is this: If you can't tell me what you're hinting at, then I'll stick with Pat as long as he wants," Tony's eyes flickered to Thayer's sardonic face. "Why don't you do the decent thing, Pat? Why don't you call It off?" Why should he?" Inquired Ivy. Then she turned toward the man. "Tell me, Pat what Is there between be-tween you two?" "Ask Tony," he repeated. "She'll tell you what she wishes you to know." Jealously, Ivy faced Tony Peyton. Pey-ton. She opened her lips to spenk, and closed them again, for the expression ex-pression she saw on the face of the slender senior flashed a message that whatever might exist between Tony and Pat Thayer it certainly was not akin to love, Tony was staring straight at Pat and there was no mistaking the loathing In her glance. Paterson Thayer was an outstanding out-standing figure at Marland university, univer-sity, -lie had entered as a Junior the preceding year, and this was his final senior semester. He was twenty-three years of CHAPTER I Af AT day Is of outstanding lm portance In the scholastic year of a southern college. It marks definitely the end of a long grind; It comes quietly and unobtrusively, unobtru-sively, and students who on April thirtieth have looked upon the se mester as never-ending are sudden ly awakened to realization that In a very short time there will be an exodus ex-odus and the great buildings will become mere hollow shells. And tills May day was perfect A brilliant suu smiled down from an unflecked sky; spring flowers peeped flirtatiously from the hillsides; groups of students lolled under the trees chatting Idly or not talking at all. It was a day for dreaming; for Idly wandering thoughts. Twelve hundred students of both sexes succumbed to the spell. Worries Wor-ries were disslpnted. Spring had come late to this Jewel-like campus of Marland university In mld-AIa-baraa; but had atoned. In the glory of Its coming, for all Its tardiness Over on the hill a scant quarter mile beyond the Bowl stood the women's dormitory, and Immediately Immediate-ly before It was a lilac bush in radi aut blossom. A girl stepped from the hallway into the sunlight and paused by the lilac bush. Then, with the assured deliberation of a senior, she proceeded to violate a college rule. Antoinette Peyton picked a spray of iliac, plucked the flower boldly, indifferent to any eyes which might behold her. Then she gazed across a tiny, verdnnt valley toward the j inatlve youths and girls who were flattered by the friendship of this man of the world. Tony knew him. She knew him more thoroughly than anyone else on the campus. She knew that he was arrogant and weak and a poseur. This affair with Ivy Welch I Tony liked Ivy Welch. She was wholesome and genuine but, after all, she was only seventeen years of age, and to seventeen the first amorous palpitations of the heart are to be taken very seriously and not to be lightly intruded upon. As Ivy herself would have expressed ex-pressed it, Pat Thayer had her running run-ning around In circles. She bitterly resented Tony and didn't care how quickly Tony knew it "I still don't see where this Is any of your business." "It Isn't exactly. . . ." "Then good-by. There's Just room In the Bower for two." "(Jet this. Ivy " Tony spoke rather more sharply than she Intended. In-tended. "I don't give a hang what Pat Thayer does. Right now I'm thinking of you." "That's a laugh." "I fancy," Interrupted the man, "that she's really thinking about your brother Larry." Tony did not evade the challenge. chal-lenge. "Perhaps that's true, Pat." "You see, Ivy," he said, "she figures fig-ures that as a potential member of your family, It's up to her to protect pro-tect Innocent you from villainous me." Ivy smiled with genuine amusement. amuse-ment. "Can. you beat it?" she inquired. in-quired. "Can you even tie It? Say, listen, Tony you don't really think I need protection, do you?" "Yes. From Pat Thayer." "You know what, Tony? You give me a pain in the neck. What's It all about?" "Pat can explain," said Tony. "I didn't ask him. I asked you." "I'd rather not say anything." Ivy stamped her foot. "You've got to say something. I have a right to know." "What right?" An Incongruous sort .of dignity settled about Ivy's girlish shoulders. "Pat and I are engaged," she an nounced. A light of genuine fear dawned In Tony's deep, black eyes. Her lips were without a smile; her expression ex-pression stern and accusing. She spoke directly to Thayer, Ignoring the girl. "Have you really gone that far, Pat?" knoll upon which were situated the academic buildings of the university. univer-sity. Tony Pejton was a pretty girL She was more than a pretty girl. There was strength of character In her vivid face with Its tiny, scarlet mouth and great, lustrous black eyes. She gave an Impression of gorgeous vitality. She touched the sprig of lilac to her mouth and smiled. She smiled into the sprig, and the campus smiled back at her. She stared off across the tops of the pine trees toward the knoll on which the academic buildings reared their Imposing forms. All of a pattern; red brick and white stone; nine ot them standing like Indomitable sentinels about the natural stadium which had been converted Into the Bowl. Marland wasn't a big college Its total enrollment en-rollment was less than twelve hundredbut hun-dredbut it was proud. Its campus was mellow with rich southern tradition; tra-dition; its archives yielded records of undergraduates who had gone off In the first bitter days of C1 to join the Confederate forces; In ihe hall of Old Main was its World war roll of honor. There were records, too, of graduates who had risen to positions of Importance in the fields of science and art. i And perhaps the students attached at-tached just. a wee bit too much lm portance to the eminence recently achieved by the Marland football and track teams. Just a little bit too much importance . . . but this morning Tony Peyton could understand under-stand that, because as she looked down into the almost empty. Cowl she saw In her mind's eye n picture which had Impressed itself Indelibly Indel-ibly upon her eighteen months be fore when Marland's greatest grid-Iron grid-Iron team, under the leadership of Larry Welch, had smashed and battered bat-tered Its way to a legitimate claim to the mythical national champion ship. That had been a day ; twenty thousand fanatics gone wild In the Bowl; a riot of color and n welter of sound. . Tony glanced at her wrist watch and sighed. With a conscious effort ef-fort she rid herself of the spell. With a quick eager stride she started down the hill Into the val ley which must be crossed before one could mount the other hill the hill upon which the college buildings stood. She moved through the tiny val ley, fiend thrown back, sprig of lilac-held lilac-held In her right hand lips moving slightly as she hummed n popular melody. The magic of the day was upon her and she approached the Hill with a feeling of reluc tance that the spell mnsi be broken And then--quite suddenly she stopped. Just before her was a huge oak tree. Tony knew that particular' tree; It stood sentinel before a forest nook affect innately known by nil students at Marlnnd as tire Bower; a tiny, .secluded spot sheltered by giant trees, enrppted with violets nnd embowered In honeysuckle. Voices came to her from that nook: voices of a man and n gin Tony's tfe1h . pressed tlsht together and a startled, worried expression leaped Into her eyes. She was afraid hut she wasn't sure. . A man In yonder- -with a girl Nothing In that to dispel the glor of the day. It would have been a matter for more wonder had thi-Bower thi-Bower been unoccupied. . But she "You heard what Ivy said." "I'm asking you." "Yes It's true." Tony walked very close to him. "You've got to cut it!" "Who says so?" "I do." "And what right have you to give orders?" "I have plenty of right. You know 1 have, Pat Thayer. You've got to quit this thing and quit it quick, It was bad enough when J thought you were carrying on with a kid. Dut to let her think she's engaged en-gaged to you. . . ." "Tony," broke In Ivy, and there was real distress In her voice, "1 .wish you'd tell me " "Oh I I could tell" you plenty. This man Is no good, Ivy. lie's making a fool of you " Thayer's hand closed over Tony's arm. "Lay off I" he growled. "I've stood about all I'm going to stand." His manner was ugly and threat ening. but Tony faced him defiant ly. her cheeks blazing. "You've got me started. I'at and I warn you I'll carry through if you dou't call things off right here," "You haven't the nerve." "o? Try me and see." "1 shall. And get this, Tony: You can't bluff me. You've tried It before, and if don't work. Just one tiling I'll warn you: Pont you starl anything unless you're prepared to go through with it" "I'll carry It through right. I'at I've stood a good deal, but I'm not going to tolerate this. You've got this poor kid loco, and the sooner she knows what sort of rai you are. the sooner she'll come out of her trance." His face was livid. Once again : he grasped her arm. "That's enough I" "Take your hand away." "Are you going to butt out of here and stay out?" "Not until you promise me to keep away from Ivy." The man bent closer, until his face was on a level with Tony's Ills gray eyes nnJ her black one clashed like drawn daggers. Ivy Welch, complelc-ly forgotten, stared al them not understanding whai It was all ahout. but knowing thaj soniethlha very terrible was hap penlnu. There was something be tween I'at Thayer and this girl; something which her Immature mind knew must be very tragic. TO BE CONTINUED. groomed young man. The fluffy little girl whom I'at had been cuddling cud-dling in his arms -disentangled her-; her-; self and turned to face the Intruder. In-truder. There was an air about her which amounted tc defiance. Of embarrassment embar-rassment there was not a trace. Her wide-open blue eyes met Tony's squarely ; her trim little figure was taut with d sense of outrage and she made no secret of the fact that she was mad clear through. "Well," asked Ivy Welch sharply, "are we Intruding?" Tony paid no attention to Ivy. She spoke to the man. "Aren't you taking foolish chances, Pat?" she asked gravely. lie smiled and shrugged, "Why does that Interest you?" "You know perfectly well why It Interests me." "Jealous?" he mocked. Tony laughed. It was a short, bit ter laugh, and It stung. "Of you?" Ills face Hushed. "You better run along. Tony.'-' he ndvlsed. "and mlud your own business." "1 shall. And I'll take Ivy with me." The younger girl stared Incredulously. Incred-ulously. "Take me with you?" she echoed 'What are you talking about?" "You'll understand some time Ivy," said Tony gently. "If you just believe me now " Ivy stamped her foot Impatiently "Don't be silly, Tony. I'm not a child." . "No-o. Cut you're only seventeen . nnd " "And I'm getting older every day. Now listen here; I'm trying not to get sore. But my friends-ore friends-ore nobody's business." ! "Yes they are. This lime." 1 Ivy turned to Thayer. "What's the big Idea?" she demanded. de-manded. Ask her." suggested I'at. "It Isn't a very big Idea." said Tony. "And I cun t explain, exrept lo say that Put understands uhat I'm driving at. . I'm asking you to take my wnrrj that It wowl be age. lie was well over six feet In height; with a slim, well-muscled figure. His manner was that of a man of the world. Vague stories had trailed Pat to the Marlnnd campus. Rumor had It that hp had been Invited to resign from the two northern universities where he had done freshman and sophomore work. lie hadn't "been expelled exactly, but there were ugly stories having to do with certain cer-tain social activities which conscientious con-scientious student councils felt their colleges might well dispense with. lie had never been a part of Marland. Mar-land. He bore himself with a certain cer-tain aloof dignity, as though the en thuslasms and excitements of college col-lege life were for those younger and less experienced than himself. He dressed Immaculately and expensively, ex-pensively, but disdained Ihe extremes ex-tremes of tailoring so popular with the campus youth of the day. He had been elected to Psi Tun Thta at one of the other colleges and since arriving in the South had lived at the Psi Tau fraternity-house. fraternity-house. Apparently he had ample money, and in the classroom he experienced little dilliculty. The professors fell that Pat Thayer was above the av erage student in worldly expert ence; they resented his superior manner and his insouciance, yet even those who detested him most heartily could not fail to give him excellent grades. His campus reputation was neither nei-ther savory nor downright bad. Certain of the students spoke of him as a wild one. but no one had ever caught him In the act of being wild. The result was that he was the ruler at a court of youngsters who made humble obeisance to his superior wisdom and experience, lie was mature yet it was a queer twist In 'the man's nature that he had little contact with his class mates. They seemed to see him too clearly for his own peace ot mind, and so he contented himself with the blind Idolatry of freshmen und sophomores Immature. Imag- |