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Show - 1 HIS LOVERS TWO 1 . $ H By WILLIAM MacLEOD RA1NE j'- tCopyrlght, Ford Iub, Co.) "You'ro nfrold." "I'm not." "You aro! You nro!" Her laughing oyes challenged him to deny It. "Well, perhnps I am," ho ndmltted. "You must remember that he used to be my professor of zoology. I can't get over my nwo of him nil nt encc." "To think that 1 should havo been so deceived In you," sho mourned. "Why, tho heroes of your stories would march forward to denth with fcnrlesB trend for their loves." Henry Hilton condemned his croa-tions croa-tions cheerfully. Tassle lied up tho stnlrwny, laughing laugh-ing at him over hor shoulder. "Good-by "Good-by I And I hopo papa won't cat you up. You'll find mo In tho trcllla sent when you got through If you're still alive." Ho contemplated pursuit,' but decided decid-ed that Ineffective chase would bo undignified. So ho Btood with his band on tho door knob till she hnd disappeared, then turned the hnndlo nnd went Into the room, A half-hour later Henry Hilton emerged from tho room with n shining shin-ing exaltation In his eyes and a sense of lifted rcsolvo In his heart. Tho young man mado his way to tho trellis scat at tho end ot the garden and camo quietly round the lllnc bushes, expecting to take the girl unawares. un-awares. Hut sho wub not thine. Thero was, howovor, a penciled note pinned by a roso thorn to tho lattlco work. "Jean Willis has Just como to call. She Is ringing tho doorbell now, and I must scamper to tho house, Will bo back when sho leaves." Hilton, In largo content, sat him down nnd basked In the sun-beat which so generously contributed to his sonso of being wrapped about by a ,wnrm happiness. Through tho lilacs ho saw Tassle speeding Miss Willis on her way, Tho girls chatted together, for ft minute min-ute or two on tho porch beforo Hilton hoard tho front door closo igaln. Ho gavo Tassle five minutes, ns a concession conces-sion to n girl's diplomacy of dolay, to reach tho arbor seat whero -ho was. nut tho flvo minutes passed, and ten moro on top of them. Tho young mnn's Impationco Bent him sauntering toward tho houso. In tho hnll a maid met him with n scaled noto from Tassle, "Go away, plenBo! I don't want to see you now, I don't think I over want to sco you ngaln." Thnt was nil, Tho young man stared at It with a mind dazed, scarco comprehending oven jvhtle tho shock of it mado his heart stand still. Presently, Pres-ently, though his mind groped in vain for causes, tho significance of tho words camo homo to him. Sho did not want to soo him now did not want ever to boo him again. Rut why? What could It mean? What had ho done? He tore a lent from his noto book and sent If up to Miss Fnrrar by tho maid, who prcsontly re-turned re-turned with another noto, "I can't seo you. If you nro kind you will go nwny." Hilton left sadly, perplexed and worried to tho bottom of his heart. His mind cast back and forth for tho causes of her strango conduct. Ho tried to reason, but his loglo could find no ground on which to stand, In tho end he sent n messenger boy with a letter begging for an Immediate explanation. Ho paced the floor In a stress ot emotion till tho boy returned. Tho Incsscngor brought a noto from Tns-slo. Tns-slo. Tho envolopo contained also nn-other nn-other Inclosuro. Hor noto had neither heading nor signature. "I found this letter by tho hall treo whoro it must hnvo fallen from your overcoat. The envelope was nddressed to you In my handwriting, nnd I supposed sup-posed it to bo ono of my old letters to you, For fun I began to read It, nnd then You will understand why I do not enro to seo you again. Your letters will bo roturncd nt ouco." Hilton opened tho envelope of tho Inclosed letter nnd found within It n note thnt he must havo slipped Inside tho wrong onvelopo Inadvertontly. Ho could imagine how Tassle had looked at It first In a puzzled bowlldor-mont bowlldor-mont and then in tho sudden horror ot a sbamoful dlscovory, neartdt I'rince IJnl-W'by liavo you not been to see mo to-day. you bad boyT Irft me see, It's twb duys since you have 1 'tivn-'m-rei ?t Dint 'n 'iinj1-to-vrror TWir werthrartT And you promised on your word of honor, ulr. that you would at-wnys at-wnys bo mine. Have you fAruolten how you told nie I was your only lover? Am IT I bellevn thero ! another slrl. There inre stories to that eftect. and some of 'them have renched me. llae n care, sit! I bid you to conio up at onco and explain ex-plain to Your Sweethenrt. I'KrjClY AIINET. A great relief clenred Hilton's troubled face. Hero wns something tangible to lay hold on. something to bo explained and cleared up. At lenst ho knew now whero ho stood. Fifteen minutes Inter another scrlbblod noto went up to Tassle, and this tlmo sho came down in person to moot the young man waiting below, nut Hilton saw, at onco that the last two hours ' had made Its mark on her. She faced him crltlonlly now, white-faced Judge, no longer vivid nnd alert, but cold as marble. She Btood near tho door. "I received re-ceived your card saying that thero Is n mistake you can explain. I am waiting." Her attitude told Mm that oho was willing to bo set right, but that sho believed hl tusk imposslblo of accomplishment "I can show you better than I can QTidiiln Thorn l n. rnrrlnra nt tlm uSoTriluTnr'uTkeTymffT go with US." "I don't understand. Wltat explanation explana-tion can you glvo? The letter I found was yours, was it not?" "Yes, it was mine, nut the fncts aro not as you think. If you would only trust mo" "1 think wo well not speak of. trust until this Is explained." "1 mean that If you will go with mo and your fnthor I om Buro that It will bo nil right. You will understand at onco what 1 can not oxplnln very well In words, I think you owe mo n chanco to sot myself right." "Whoro do you want md to go7" Tho level look of her steady grny eyes ha met fully. "I wont you to go with mo to moot tho lady who wrote thnt letter to me. I give you Iny word thero can bo no possible humiliation for you In going." A hope thnt Bho might bo misjudging misjudg-ing him warmed her heart. 'Then I will go, Hal," His heart leaped at her uso of his first nnmo, but outwardly ho was Imperturbable Im-perturbable ns over. '"Thank you." he said, gravely. Tho carriage stopped at a neat cot-(ago cot-(ago well back from tho strcot. A small mold came to tho door In answer to their ring. "How do you do, Maggie? Will you tell Mrs. Arnot thnt I would llko to bring somo friends In to see her If sho feels well enough?" Tho mold returned presently ' to usher them Into n light p1ensa,nt room so well windowed thnt It caught tho sun nt nil times, ot the day. Mrs. Arnet wns tied so helplessly helpless-ly to her Invalid's chair' that sho could not oven rise to greet her guests. Hut ns tho girl looked at her she thought she hnd navor seen anybody moro Intensely nllve. Her cngor eyes nnd her fresh voice went oddly with tho whlto hnlr nnd the pallor pal-lor of 111 health. Hut nolther pallor nor ngo had sulllced to blot out nn Inherent In-herent whimsical gayety that bubbled bub-bled In her. To Miss Fnrrar It was nt onco apparent ap-parent that Hnrry Hilton wns very denr to her nnd that ho supplied hor with n piquant Interest that fortified her against the bad days of pain that sometimes camo to her. Prof. Farrar showed nn Interest In tho garden, and tho old lady, ordored Harry out poromptorlly to exhibit It to him. 'You need not hurry back, sir. I want to talk to Miss Farrar," sho commanded. Hor mood changed Instantly when tho man had gono. "Ho Is very good to mo, my dear. I don't think I could do without him. Ho reads mo what ho writes and talks over his Ideas with mo because ho knows what an Interest it lends me. Sometimes ho works hero, nnd ho always visits mo two or thrca times a week, Thero nro not many young men who would enjoy the society of a crippled old woman, but ho Is ono out ot hundreds. Tnsslo kissed her Impulsively, "Oh, I'm bo glad. You can't think how glad. I've been horrid to him to-day,l and I have been so unhappy, but you havo made It all right now. That Is,! it ho will forgive mo. It seems to, mo I know him better than over bo-j foro and appreciate him moro. And It, is all through you." "Then you must como to seo mo oft-, en, my dear. Mako Harry bring you-, you-, I'm old enough to need now friends,! and not too old, thank heaven, to. make them. Wo havo "got to llko each' other on nccount of Harry, though I am suro I will like you for yourself,' too. You'ro very pretty, my dear, and I think you nro qutto unspoiled. Now: you mny run Into tho garden nnd tell Harry to send In your father. I don't often have a professor ot zoology in my rooms nnd I'm not going to let him wnsto his tlmo out thero." Tassle Farrar walked along beside Hilton and did not heed his somewhat InconBcqucntnl and embarrassed botanical bo-tanical ramble. Sho was full ot contrition, con-trition, nnd presently she broko Into speech whllo tearing tho petals from a daffodil. "I'm awfully ashamed ot myself,' Hal. You'll think me nJoalous llttlo silly. I Hn not fooling Just proud of myBOlf for io wny I did." "Denr girl, you could not havo dono anything olso under tho clrcumstnnces, Tho letter did not lenvo you any option. op-tion. Hut I did not want to explain It to you. I wanted you to meet Mrs. Arnot nnd understand tor yourself. You do see now, don't you?" asked Hilton. Tho girl began on another1 daffodil. "Yes, I bco how Imposslblo my suspicions sus-picions were nnd how flno you are, dear. I" lovo the way you troat hor, and I'm going to love her, too If you'll let mo In and chango It to a triple alliance," bIiq finished, with a -M dilanJiuini 1 V j , , - , "I guess we'll let you In." Tho young man looked nt hor with glad shining eyes, "You'ro a trump, Tass. Somd girls wouldn't havo understood, but I (mow you would. It Isn't ovsry mnn that Is privileged to havo two lovers and neither of them Jealous." Ho laughed In sheer Joy and sho echoed back his. laughter. |