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Show 1 i V vSffizaMA Jordan TVNO-Ta CopWKHT BY THE CXNTURY CO. "ODD NOISES?" SYNOPSIS. Incapacitated, mentally, by shock, as a result of experiences during the World war, Renshaw makes a proposition' proposi-tion' to David Campbell, wealthy, elderly man of leisure, that for a year he assume responsibility for him (Renshaw) practically "buy" him. Doctor Stanley, lifelong life-long friend of Campbell's, Indorses In-dorses the proposition, which Campbell, with some natural misgivings, accepts. The arrangement ar-rangement is that the young man becomes an Inmate of the Campbell Camp-bell household, with the nominal duty of secretary. Renshaw meets Verity. Campbell's granddaughter, granddaugh-ter, and gets the impression that she does not like him. Jenks, the butler, Renshaw also feels, Is distinctly hostile. Nevertheless. Neverthe-less. Renshaw went down to dinner din-ner feeling quite normal, for him. CHAPTER II Continued -A Another reflection followed the first, and was far less agreeable. He wondered won-dered if Campbell had told his granddaughter grand-daughter the peculiar relation in which he, Renshaw, had entered the family. That he should f-'ive this detail a thought was surprising. That he should have the moment's concern that now followed it was nothing short of amazing. He was actually hoping that the girl did not know, that old Campbell Camp-bell had not told her! The reflection, though vivid in its little instant of life, perished almost as soon as It was born. What difference differ-ence did it make what the girl or any one else knew or thought? He turned oft the lights, opened his door and strode out into the hall. Again, as In the corridor down-pf down-pf airs, he caught around a corner the flutter of a disappearing bit of white slulf a natural enough phenomenon In any house, he reflected, and inter esting only because of the impression of flight it conveyed. His attention to the incident was fleeting. Evidently Campbell's servants were a curious lot, and the arrival of a stranger in this Isolated house was to them an event out of all proportion to its importance. He entered the living room at exactly ex-actly one minute before eight, and as he opened the door felt behind him the figure of Jenks, coming to announce dinner. Campbell and his granddaughter grand-daughter were already in- the room, the latter before a grand piano, which Henshaw, in his abstraction, had not observed during his first visit. The girl had been playing or singing, he assumed, though he had heard no music. mu-sic. Now, seated sidewlse on the piano-stool, she was absently turning the sheets on the music rack and lending lend-ing an ear to the monologue of an old lady who sat with Campbell before the fireplace. Her resemblance to him placed her as the old man's sister, but she had entered the world ten or twelve years later. Like Verity, she was in full evening dress. She wore a superb diamond-and-pearl collar; and half a dozen diamond, sapphire anil emerald rings relentlessly called attention atten-tion to the enlarged joints of iter fingers. fin-gers. Her white hair was as elabo rately waved and puffed as if she were going to a ball. As Renshaw went toward to-ward her he heard the conclusion of her monologue, delivered on a high-pitched, high-pitched, plaintive key and without the slightest pause: "Of course you will belittle the matter mat-ter Davy as you always do but I've told you before and I tell you again that your habit of leaving so many details de-tails to the servants will eventually drive us out of house and home as to the way they act some of them didn't get in till after twelve last night though where they could have been is more than I know unless .lames drove them to town in the service car which Verity has expressly forbidden him to do without permission but they never ray any attention to what one orders anyway so what is the use of giving them orders " Old David Campbell raised a ibin hand. "One moment, Kitty," he said good-lumioredly. good-lumioredly. "Let me present my new secretary, Mr. Henshaw. Renshaw, "'Is lady is inv sister. Mrs. Pardee, and she's got more troubles than any one you ever met before. She'll tell them all to you, too; vou mav be sure of that." He chuckled over his own joke. while Renshaw bowed over the wrinkled wrin-kled hand that lay in his own. The voice of Jenks placidly repealed the announcement of dinner, and David Da-vid Campbell offered his arm to his sister. Renshaw hesitated. Was he expected formally to escort Miss Cnm.ibell? Or would she resent such B" Kssiuuptlon on his part? She was as proud as the devil, that girl every line of her and every glance of her eyes proved that. Also, she was really amazingly lovely. Feeling very unsure of tipiB,.t i,e approached her and for- I I o Ms arm. on which she j ""rfect Vaiid. Together they walked the length of the long room and, crossing the hall, entered the dining room on its opposite side. Like the living room, it was large and beautiful. There was spaciousness spacious-ness in all the rooms of the old house, and a beauty of furnishing for which the somewhat confused architecture of the exterior had not prepared one. Four high-backed and carved Florentine Floren-tine chairs waited for their occupants at the round table, whose tall orange candles, aided by the firelight, gave the big room its sole illumination. Renshaw began to feel very much as if he were in a dream. In the mood in which he had approached Campbell that afternoon he would have agreed to clean out furnaces and work around the grounds. As it was, he stood committed to any task he was offered, however menial. Yet here he was, an intimate part of a charming group, seated at the right of old Mrs. Pardee, and with the beauty of Verity Campbell opposite him on which to feed his eyes. He acknowledged the beauty, but let his eyes drift past it. It was there, but it had no message for him. Once, looking across the table, he suddenly met Verity's eyes and for an instant held them. There was a momentary mo-mentary dancing light in them like a flicker of sunshine on the surface of a dark pool. Also, the corners of her mouth quivered in a half smile, which passed even as it came. Mercifully he was spared overhearing the comment Verity made to her grandfather a little later under cover of the continued babble bab-ble of Mrs. Pardee. "I think your bondman is going to cheer us up." she murmured. "Cheer us! That young monument to gloom !" The old man shook his head. "I'm afraid he's going to get i horribly on our nerves." He experienced anew the sensation t that this acquisition of his had already too frequently supplied, though their w is Together They Walked the Length of the Long Room. association was so brief an emotion of mingled admiration and resentment, unusual and unsettling. To banish it. he turned to Verity. "Is Madame Hroeslef having one or her sick headaches?" "Yes. poor dear." Renshaw pricked up bis ears. There was still another member of the fam-ilv. fam-ilv. then, or a guest. Whoever she was Miss Campbell liked her. The modulations of the girl's voice on the three words she had spoken made that quite clear. When dinner was over. Campbell led ,l,e wav hack to the living room, with some lingering hint of resentment in the stilT lines of bis shoulders, and lmost curtly commanded Verity to S"1Kenshaw heard the command with l,is nearest mental approach to re-,ief re-,ief r.nt. at least. It would eliminate the' necessitv of a treneral conversation conversa-tion lie dropped into a chair in a corner near the pia:m. amf rn.M.ui. -wis aware of the unwisdom of his course, let himself sink into tlie black hyss that always awaited bis un-"u-irtled moments. '"After all. had be done right to come lu,ro' Hadn't he. instead, added the llstone to the towerine structure of h isP'miserv? For he had offered himself him-self and now ,t was too '7'; e was bought, and committed to Ho knPw what enterpnse-for ho Stanley and Campbell bad "" l..tt 1,1. new life, if he ente-od upon it. mish, hold more than the routine p. 'lened himself up -a -dden ascent to the present. Sometldng n, happening to hlm-someth,ng as wonderful won-derful as that hour of sleep had been, : " stream of music had been flowln. I past him: and now, as he began to listen. It seemed to lift him and bear ! him on It to another world, a world of love and passion and beauty. The girl was singing and the girl's singing sing-ing was unlike any he had heard before. be-fore. What she was singing was a Russian folks-sng, whose accompaniment accompani-ment was like swiftly flowing water. When she had finished. David Campbell Camp-bell was asleep; hut the plaintive voice of Mrs. Pardee broke tl e momentary stillness : "I do wish Verity that you'd learn some cheerful songs such as other girls sing gay and bright you know from the musical comedies there must he cheerful music in the world though we never hear any " Renshaw rose abruptly and went to the piano. "Thank you very much." he said. "And good-night." For an Instant her deep eyes met his. their expression as remote as hia own. "Good-night, Mr. Renshaw," she said casually. Renshaw crossed back to the little old lady by the firf1. "I'm slipping off to my room." he explained. "If Mr. Campbell should want me " "He won't he'll s'.eep till ten and then James will come in and take him to bed how he can sleep so much at his age 1 don't know T myself don't average five hours a night last night T lay awake from twelve to five that's how I happened to hear those servants come in " In some way Renshaw stemmed the verbal tide and made his escape. As he approached the door of his room. It opened and two persons came out Jenks and a woman. The woman was immaculate In a white gown, white cap. and white apron, but she was not the trim housemaid of one's dreams. She was past middle age and inclined to stoutness, and the expression expres-sion of her plain face was rather dour. "This Is Annie, sir. the chambermaid. chamber-maid. We've been airing your room and putting hi fresh linen" Jenks spoke so quickly that Renshaw, Ren-shaw, who in his abstraction would have passed the pair almost without noticing them, looked at them with closer attention. It then occurred to him that the enterprise of changing the linen in his room hardly called for the efforts of two servants, hut he did not dwell on the thought. Also, Annie was contributing her modest share to the verbal report. "You wid always find extra towels on the shslf of this closet, sir." she said primly. "I leave the extra supply sup-ply for tlv? floor there, because there's no place 'in the bathroom but the one rack." "And and excuse me, sir, but there's another thing." Jenks was speaking again, and Annie, vith fitting humility in the presence of her superior, moved a little to one side. "Might I speak frankly, sir?" Jenks was almost humble. "Of course." Renshaw waited with his detached air. . The man wet his lips. "There's there's some queer things going on in the old house, sir. If you hear odd noises during the night, it's best to pay no attention to them." Renshaw frowned. "Odd noises?" lie repeated. "What kind of noises?" "That's oil' I can say, sir. And I'm exceeding my duty, sir. In saying that much. But it's well meant." Renshaw nodded, his half-formed Interest In-terest relaxing under a memory of certain sentences in his interview with Campbell to which he had attached no great importance at the time. , "All right, Jenks. Thank you," he m nnil nnssed on. As he olosed his door he glanced back. Roth Jenks and Annie were standing where he had left them, staring after him. Caught in the act. they started down the corridor cor-ridor and parted at its end. Jenks descending de-scending the staircase, the woman disappearing dis-appearing around a distant corner. The flutter of her skirt as she went stirred Iteiisbnw's memory. Surely twice before today be bad seen the final whisk of that skirt. He entered his room, still slightly frowning. Kverything was in order. It was all reassuringly natural, and vet what the deuce was there about jenks' manner that got on one's imagination imag-ination and made one exaggerate the Importance of the simplest trifles? lie undressed slowly, hut instead of going to bed he slipped on his dressing gown and, after turning off the lights, sat down in the chair before the lire. There, claspinc his hands behind bis head, he leaned back and grimaced at himself. The simple truth was that he did not quite dare to go to bed. Under the surface atmosphere of comfort com-fort and normality that iay over the house, something bud been Injected, something intangible. Of course bis illumination was playing tricks with him At the hack of his head was the thouirln of a mystery at which both Stanley and Campbell bad hinted, and which, of course, had to do with the warning just received from Jenks. Renshaw sees Verity is a beauty, but woman's beauty has no message for him. Will that ast? (TO BE CONTINUED.) |