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Show : t LEADING zt A Jjra.il a SM 1 GERALDINE BONNER STORY FROM THE START While despondent over the enforced en-forced hiding of her fin nee, Jim p:i!lp.s, slayer In self-do fen so of Homer I'nrklnson, member of an influential family, Sybil Saunders, popular actress, is engaged to play Viola fn a charity performance perform-ance of "Twelfth Nifrhi" on Gull island, on the Maine coast. After the play, which is a big hit, Wal-I Wal-I y Shine, official photographer, learns something of the jealousy (xistiiitf in the company. 'J' he company prepares to depart. CHAPTER II Continued i They stopped at -the steps and Joe Tracy made tils good-bys. lie was go- ng camping in the woods with his friend .'limmy Truvers, who was to i.ect him ut Bangor tonight. They'd nay there twenty-four hours getting their stuff together, then be off for the iioi'Lheni solitudes no beaten tracks for them. He left, Jauntily swinging' his kilted skirts, a whistled tunc on his lips. Soon after, Stokes tli-parted. saying he was going to change his clothes. A door to the right opened into the I'D! ranee hall. Here he and his wife iiccupied a ground-Moor room. He listened lis-tened ut the panel before he entered, then softly turned the knob, and, inside, in-side, as softly closed the door. Shut In and alono his languid pose fell from tiim like a cloak. An avid eagerness sharpened his features and directed his hands, pulling open his valise and taking from it a small leather case.-Moving case.-Moving back from the window lie pushed up his sleeve, took the hypodermic hypo-dermic from the case and pressed' in tin- needle. When he had restored the bag to Us place, be threw himself on the hod and lay with closed eyes feeling feel-ing the ineffable comfort, grateful as an iutltix of life, vitalize and soothe his tortured being. .Mrs. Cornel) and Shine rose up and followed him. Mrs. Cornell had her packing to get through and wanted , Miss 1'inkney's help. Shine was going f to see If the pantry would do for a dark room, intending to take some flashlight photographs of the company I hat evening. He had found in a cabinet all the flashlight requisites and taoiight it would be an interesilng ineiiicnto of their visit each of them to hav e a picture. . "They've got everything here," lie said iis lie pointed to the corner where he had made his fine. "Not alone all the supplies, but two first-class cam-( cam-( eras and a projector. I suppose some ; of the family took it up for a fad." t Shine, who was domiciled in the but-' but-' ler's bedroom, disappeared into the ad- I joining pantry and Mrs. Cornell trod 1 resolutely on into the kitchen, being ; one of the fe;v members of the company com-pany who was not afraid of the housekeeper. house-keeper. Miss I'inkney, who was sitting upright up-right In a stiff-backed chair, rose respectfully. re-spectfully. She was a lean slab-sided woman of fifty, with tight-drawn hair mid a long horse face. She had disapproved disap-proved bitterly of the intrusion of the actors upon the sacred precincts of (lull island and though she had been rigidly polite hoped that her disapproval disap-proval had got across. Mrs. Cornell broached her request mid Miss l'itikiiey agreed. She was ,. even very pleasant about It, showing a brisk, friendly alacrity with the helper gone they'd only be a cold supper sup-per and she could disli that up in two shakes. Together they left the kitchen and on tiie stairs Mrs. Cornell hooked her plump arm Inside Miss I'inkney 's bony one and said when Mr. Shine took the flashlights that night he must take one of them as the "feeder" a.oi the other as the "fed." Bassett had gone into the house, too. As he crossed the living room lie no tlced its deserted quietude, in contrast to the noise and bustle that had possessed pos-sessed It an hour ago. lie opened the door Into the ball, where again all was quiet, none of the jarring accents that occasionally rose from the Stokes' room, lie walked across the gleaming parquetle to the library which he hud used for his olhce. n'wo long French windows framed -. view of the channel ami llayvvotui dreaming among Its elms, lie went to one of the windows and looked out. The girls were slill sitting sit-ting there, and, as be looked nt them. a expression of Infinite tenderness lay ke a light on Ids face. It was the light Shine had notned. allowed to break through clearly now that no one was there to see. lie sat down at the desk ; there were letters for htm to answer, addenda of tiie performance to cheek up. He moved the papers, looked at thorn, pushed them away, and, resting bis forehead on his hands, re!ni'u!shed himself to a deep pervading happiness. happi-ness. Yesierday Ai.oe had promised to r.mrry Inn. His mind, held i;'.i day to ids worK. now tlevr to her memories oi her face with the down-bent lids as he had asked her, and the look In her eyes as they met his. Brave beautiful eyes with her soul In them. It had been no light acceptance for her, It meant the surrendering of her whole being, her life given over to him. He heard her voice again, and bis face sank Into his hands, his heart trembling In the passion of Its dedication to her service. serv-ice. Anne, whom be had coveted and yearned for and thought of far beyond be-yond his reach his I He would be worthy of her, and he would take such care of her, gird her round with his two arms, a buckler against every ill that life might bring. She'd had such a hard time of it, struggling up by herself with Joe hung round her neck like a millstone. At the memory of Joe he came to earth with a jarring Impact. He dropped his hands and stared at the papers, his brows bent in harassed thought. Bassett had heard something JfBFl m 3 fill WMn He Vent to One of the Windows and Looked Out. that morning from Sybil which must be looked into something he could, hardly believe. But Joe being wtaat he was, you never could tell. It had been u mistake to bring him, with Sybil a bunch of nerves and Stokes shunted unexpectedly Into their midst. And now he felt responsible, he'd have it out with Joe before be left. One more disagreeable scene before they separated tomorrow, and Bassett, like Mrs. Cornell, felt he'd thank Providence Provi-dence when they were all on the train in the morning. Meanwhile he'd go over his papers while he waited for the boy, who hail goue to his room to dress. The door was open and he could hear him as he came down the stairs. Anne was approaching the house, a slender crimson figure,' her hair in the sunset light shining like black lacquer. She was smiling to herself everything every-thing was so beautiful, not only Cull island and this hour of tranquil glory, but the mere fact of existing. Then she saw flora Stokes sitting on the balcony and realized that in tills golden world there were people to whom life was u dark and troublous affair. She wanted to comfort Flora, let some of the happiness In her own heart spill over Into that burdened one. But she knew- no way of doing it, could only smile at the haggard face the woman lifted from her book "Oh, Mrs. Stokes, reading," she cried as she ran up the steps. "How can yoa read on such an evening as this?" Flora Stokes said she had been walking about till she was tired, and then glanced at the distant rock: "You've left Sybil out there." There was no comfort or consola lion that could penetrate Mrs. Siokes' obsession. Anne could only reassure: "She's coming in soon. She Just wanted 10 see the end of the sunset.' She passed Into the hail, sorry oh so, sorry! But the library door was open and she halted, poised birJiike for one glance. The man at the desk had his back to her and she said nothing, noth-ing, yet he turned, gave a goiothered sound and jumped up. fo'ae shut her eyes as she felt his urins go about tier and bis kisses on her hair, her senses blurred In a strange Ineffably sweet confusion of timidity and delight. "Darling." be breathed, when the kiss was over, "I thought you were never coming." "1 had to stay with Sybil. She didn't want to be alone." - "But you wanted tj be here?" "Just here," she laid a finger on his breast and broke Into smothered, breathless laughter. He laughed too and they drew apart, their hands sliding together and inter-locking. inter-locking. fr was nil so new. so be- wilderingly entrancing, that they did not know how to express It, the man staring wonder-struck, the girl, with her quivering laughter that was close to tears, looking this way and that, not knowing where to look. "I ought to go," she whispered. "They'll be coming," but made no move. "Walt till they do." Then with a sudden practical facing of realities. "When will we be married?" "Oh, not for ages I I'm not used to being engaged yet !" "1 am I never was before but I must have had a talent for It, I've taken to it so well." "Oh, Hugh !" Her laughter came more naturally, his with it. They were like a pair of children, delighting in a little secret. "Won't they be surprised sur-prised when they hear? Nobody has a suspicion of it." She looked so enchanting with her eyebrows arched in mischievous query that he made a movement to clasp her again, and then came the creak of an opening door from the floor above. "Hist I" she held up a warning hand and slid away, her face, glancing back for a last look, beautiful in its radiant Joy. Bassett moved to the stair-foot. Once again he bad to come down to earth with a bump. He passed his hand over his face as If to wipe off an expression incompatible with disagreeable dis-agreeable interviews. This must be Joe. It was Joe, dressed for travel In knickerbockers and a Norfolk jacket, a golf cap on the back of his head. He carried an overcoat across his arm. In his hand a suitcase and a fishing rod done up In a canvas case. At the sight of Bassett he halted, and the elder man noticed a change in his expression, ex-pression, a quick focusing to attention. "Oh," he said. "Want to see me, Bassett?" "Yes, I want to speak to you before be-fore you go." . Joe descended. Stopping a step above Bassett, he set down his baggage bag-gage and leaned on the banister, politely polite-ly waiting. . Bassett spoke with lowered voice: "I heard something this morning that 1 can hardly believe an accusation accusa-tion against you. That you've been using your position here to act as one of the police spies who've beeu keeping keep-ing tab on Sybil." The boy looked at him with impenetrable impen-etrable eyes and answered in the same lowered key : "Who told you that?" "She did. She accuses you of having, hav-ing, come here with that intention, got the job knowing that no outsiders were to be allowed on the Island." Bassett was certain he had paled under the tan, but his face retained a niasklike passivity. "Sounds as if she might be losing her mind." "You deny It?" The boy gave a scornful shrug: "Of course I deny it. I shouldn't lliink it would be uecessary to ask that." "She says she came upon you examining ex-amining a letter of hers, holding it up to the light. And three days ago she found you in her room looking over the papers in her desk." "Ah !" he made a gesture of angry contempt. "It would make a 'person sick examining her letters! I was looking through the mail bag to see if i here was anything for me. If I took up one of hers by mistake does that prove I was examining It?" "How about the other thing?" "Being In her room? Yes, 1 was there. I went in to get a stamp. I had an Important letter to go when Gabriel took over the mail and it was lime for him. All the rest of you were out. Her room was next to mine anil 1 went in. I never thought anything about It, no more than I would have thought about going Into Anne's or yours or anybody else's. She's nutty, 1 tell you. You can't trust her word. And If she says I'm hired to spy on tier she's a d d " (TO HE CONTINUED.) |