Show SYNOPSIS enid maitland Malt land a frank f a and un polled young phal Phat ladelphia girl ts Is taken to 0 the colorado mountains by her bar uncle aobert obert maitland james armstrong alt lands falls in love with her his Is persistent wooing thrills the girl but the she hesitates and Armstron Arms 6 go s east tin on busl business ness without ditl out a definite answer enid hear bears the story of a min ng engi neer near new newbold bold whose wife fell ell off a cliff and was so seriously hurt that he was compelled to shoo her to prevent her be ing ng eaten by wolves while he went tor for kirkby the old guide who te la Is th the a etory story gives enid a package of letters letter which he says were found on the dead woman s body she reads the letters and et t tr kb ya request keeps them while bathing in m mountain ti stream enid Is at tacked by a be bear which Is hot shot A torm storm adds to the el gi Is I 1 a terror A sudden deluge transforms brook into aging raging torrent alich wl ich sweeps enid into gorge where she Is rescued bi a moun tain hermit after a ahr aling experience campers in great confusion upon dincov fag ing enids s absence when the storm breaks maitland Malt land and old I 1 birkby go in search ot of the girl en d d aco erg that her ankle is spra ned and that she is un able to walk her ifer mysterious rescuer carries her to his camp enid goes to sleep bleep in tie tl e strange man mans s bunk AM miner cooks breakfast tor for enid after whid they go on tour of inspection the her n I 1 it tells enid of I 1 a unsuccessful attempt to find the maitland Matt land campers he ile ad adnita hits that he Is also from Philadel pi a EL tl TI e hermit falls in love loe with enid the man comes to a realization of his love for her but naturally in that strange sol t de the relations of the girl and her rescuer be come annat iral and strained CHAPTER XV continued he ile did not know that women have learned through centuries of weakness that fine art of concealment which man has never naver mastered she timer let him see what she thought of him yet he was not without sus if that sulp cion grew grevi to dainty would ho he control himself then at first he had sought to I 1 beep out of her may a but ahe he had compelled him to come in the room that was kitchen and bed room and store room for him was cheerless and somewhat L cold save at night or when he was busy bus with father tasks outside they lived together toge thed in the great room it was always warm it was always bright it was alwais always cheerful there the little piles of manuscript she had nosed were books that he be hau had written he ile made no effort to con ceal such things from I 1 er he talked frankly enough about his life in the hills indeed there was no pos sibil ity of avoiding the als discussion of such topics on but two subjects pas gas he inexorably silent one was the pres ent state of his affections and the other was the why and dud uhe wherefore of bis his lonely life she knew beyond per adventure that be he loved her but she had no faint suspicion even as to the reason why he had become a recluse he ile had never given ghen her the sa s1 1 clew to his past save that admission that he had known kirkby which was in itself nothing definitive and which ehe she never connected with that pack age of letters which she still kept with her ta tie e mans mind was too active and fertile to be satisfied manual labor alone tl e books that he had written were scientific treatises in the main one was a learned discussion ot of the fauna and flora of the moun talus another was an exhaustive ac count of the mineral re burces and geological formations of the range he ile had only to allow a whisper a suspicion of his d of gold and silver in the mountains to escar escal e him and the canons and crests alike would be filled with eager prospectors still a third work was a scientific analysis of be water powers in the canons he ile had willingly allowed her to read them all much of them she he found technical and aside from the tact fact that he had written them dieni te resting but there was nas one book remaining in which he lip simply dis cussed the mountains in the various seasons of the jear 3 ear v when hen the snows covered them when the grass and the moss came again when the flowers bloomed when autumn touched the trees there was tre tte soul of the man poetry expressed in prose man like but none the less poetry tor for that this book pored over she questioned 4 him about it they d it as they discussed keats and the other poets those were harpy halpy evenings she on one side of the fire her finger wound will cloth to hold his gian giant tt amble fashioning for herself some winter garments out of a gay colored red white and black ancient and navajo blank ot st soft and pliable almost as an old fashioned piece of satin priceless it if ehe she had but known it which he put at her disposal while on the other ride side of the same homel homely blaze he lie made for her out of the skins of some of the animals that he had killed a shapeless foot covering half mocca bin sin and wholly leggin which she could wear vear over her shoes in her short abort excursions around the plateau and which would keep her feet beet warm and comfortable by her permission he smoked as he worked enjoying the hour putting aside the past and the future and for a few moments blissfully content tawa sometimes he laid aside his pipe and whatever work he was engaged upon and read to her from some liamor immor tal noble number sometimes the en tell fell to her and she sang to him in her glorious contralto voice music that made bilm him sad once he could stand it no longer at tte end of a buist of song which filled the lit tie room he had bad rl igen 4 n to his feet while she sang compelled to the erect position b by the magnificent melody as the last notes died away and she smiled at him triumphant and expect tant of his praise and his approval he hurled himself out of the room and into the night wrestling for hours with the storm which after all was but a trifle to that which raged in his bosom while she left alone and de sorted quailed within the silent room till she heard him come back often and often when she slept quietly on one side the thin partition he lay awake on the other and some times his passion drove him forth to cool the fever the fire in his soul in the icy wintry air the struggle within him preyed upon him the keen loving ee eye of the woman searched his face lace scrutinized him looked into his heart siw what was there thera she determined to end it deciding that he must confess his affections she had no premonition of the truth and no consideration of any evil con sequences held her back she could give free range to her love and her devotion she had the ordering of their lives and she had the power to end ena the situation growing more and more impossible she fancied the matter easily terminable she thought she had only to let him see her heart in such ways is as a maiden may to bring joy to his own to make him speak she did not dream of the re aliby one night therefore a month or more after she had come she re solved to end the uncertainty she belie believed ed the easiest and the quickest way would be to get him to tell her why he was there she naturally sur that the woman of the the picture which she had never seen since the first day of her arrival was in some measure the cause of it and the only pa n she I 1 ad in the lt lation was the keen jealousy that u would obtrude itself at the thought of that woman oman r sitay V 1 t i s 0 J 1 rw a 1 bini o t 1 being ac 1 certai ce persons Ter soTis who drank abt ca ilu a A lamanca 0 V 0 ago C corgi r dign 1 jv ITH iff the 1010 waky 0 1 A illk evvs nosrat nos to Ss IN afi kiy V W ti 1 her and had helped her it was a belted tunic that tell fell to her knees the red and black stripes ran around it edged the broad collar cuffed the warm sleeves and marked the grace ful waist line it was excessively becoming to her he bad had been down in ito to the valley or the pocket for a final inspection of the burros before the night which promised to be severe fell and she had taken adian advantage tage of the opportunity to put it on she knew that she was b e her determination to make t this his eal even e ing count had brought an u unusual color to her cheeks an un boated td sparkle to her ber eye she stood U up as she heard him erter the other room she was vas standing erect as he came through the door and faced her he ile had only seen her in the now some p what shabby blue of her ord ordinary iDarY camp dress batore and her beauty fairly smote him in his face he ile flood before her rapped in his fur great coat snow and ice fee cling ng to it entranced the woman smiled at the effect she produced tale tal e off our coat she said gent ly approaching him here let me help you do you realize that I 1 have been here over oner a month now nowa I 1 want to have a little talk tall with you I 1 want w ant you to tell me something bom ething lug I 1 CHAPTER XVI the K ss on the hand did it ever occur to you began enid maitland Malt land gravely enough tor for she qute qu te realized the erious nature of the impending comers conversation atlon did it ever occur to you that iou jou know all about me while I 1 know practically nothing about youa ahe man bowed his bead head you may have baie that I 1 was not riot aware of it but in one way or another you have possessed yourself of pretty all of my short and until I 1 met you most uneventful life she continued newbold Is ew bold might ha have hae e answered that there was one act which had bew ca bally Jn by her upon of C occasion and to which ahe he had never again in referred but which was to him alge tl e most important of all subjects yon pon necked with her and that was the na ture of her relationship to one james armstrong abo e name although 4 to 7 1 yav M vj 60 V Z W f he stood entranced she remembered everything that he had said to her and she recalled that he had once made the remark that he mould treat her as he would have his wife treated it if he had one there fore whoever and whatever the pic ture of thia this woman was she was not his wife lie she he might have been some one he had loved but who bad had not loved him she might have died she was jealous of her but she did not tear fear her after a long and painful effort the woman had completed the winter suit she bad had made tor for herself he bad had ad he had heard leard it but once he had not forgotten the girl had been frank ness itself in following h a deft leads when he talked with her about her self but she had shown the same re licence in recurring to armstrong that he bad had displayed in her about him the statement she had just made as to his acquaintance with her history was therefore aneli clentry near the truth to pass un challenged and once again be lie gravely bowed in acquiescence I 1 have withheld nothing from you went on the girl whatever wha tevel you want J ed to know I 1 have told aou ou I 1 had I 1 nothing to conceal as you have found I 1 out cut IN hy by you wanted to know about t n e I 1 am not quite sure it was because burst out the man impetuously and then he stopped abruptly and just in time enid maitland Malt land smiled at him in a may that indicated she knew what was behind the sudden check he had imposed upon himself whatever sour your reason your curl curi 0 sty ity don t call it that please your desire then has ha been grat idled now it Is my turn I 1 am not even sure about your name I 1 have seen it in these books and naturally I 1 have imagined that it Is yours it Is mine IN ell that Is really all that I 1 know about you and now I 1 shall be quite frank I 1 want to know more you evidently have something to conceal or you V would not be e living here in thia this w way ay I 1 hae sever never asked you about yourself or manifested the least curiosity to solve the problem aou ou present to find the solution of the mystery of your life perhaps said the man yon you didn dian t care enough about it to otake take the trouble to inquire you know answered the girl that is not true I 1 have been con fumed with desire to know A woman a curiosity not that was the soft answer that turned away his wrath she was indeed frank there was that in her way of uttering those two simple words that set his pulses bounding he ile was not altogether and absolutely blind come said the girl extending her hand to him we are alone here to gether we must help each other you have helped me you have been of the greatest ervice service to me I 1 can t begin to count all that you have done for me my gratitude only that 1 but that la Is all that you have ever asked or expected lan answered the oung woman in a low voice whose gentle tones did not at all accord the boldness and courage of the speech you mean meana asked the man star ing at her his face aflame I 1 mean answered answered the girl swift ly wilfully misinterpreting and turn ing his halt half spoken question another way I 1 mean that I 1 am sure that trouble has brought you here I 1 do not wish to force your confidence I 1 have no right to do so set yet I 1 should like to enjoy a it cant you give it to mea want to help you ou I 1 want to do my best to make some return tor for what hat you ou have been to me and have done for me I 1 ask but one thing he said quick ly and what Is that but again he checked himself io no be he said I 1 am not free to ask anything of you and that answer to enid maitland Malt land was like a knife thrust in the heart the two had been standing confront ing each other her heart grew faint within her she stretched out her hand vaguely as if ajor for support he ile stepped toward her but before he reached her she caught the back of the chair and sank down weakly that he should be bound and not freo had never once occurred to hep lip she had quite mis interpreted the meaning of his remark the man did not help her he could not help her ho he just stood and looked at her she fought valiantly for for self control a moment or two and then utterly oblivious ta tha betrayal of her feelings involved in the ques tion the moments were too great for cons de ration of such trivial matters she falter faltered d 1 li ou mean there is some other woman he ile shook his head in negation I 1 don dont t understand there was some other woman momand yes where is she nowa now dead but you ou said you were not tree free he nodded did ou care so much for her that now that now enid he cried desperately be lieve me I 1 never knew what love was until I 1 met you the secret was out now it had been known to her long on since but now it was publicly proclaimed even a man as blind aa as obsessed as he could not mistake the joy that 11 lumina laminated ted her face at this announce ment blat very joy and satisfaction produced upon him however d very different effect than might have been anticipated had be been free in deed be he would have swept her to hig his breast and covered her sweet face with kisses broken by whispered words of passionate endearment in stead of that he shrank back from her and it was she who was forced to take up the burden of the conversa tion barf oA rf A you say that she Is dead she began in sweet appealing bewilderment and that yori care so much tor for me and yet you I 1 am a murderer he broke out harshly there Is blood upon my hands the blood ot of a woman who loved me and whom boy as I 1 was I 1 thought that I 1 loved she was my wife I 1 killed her gleat god cried the girl amazed beyond measure or expectation by this sudden avowal which she had bad once suspected and her hand instinct ively wen to the bosom of her dress where she kept that soiled water stained packet of letters are you that mana I 1 am the man that did teat that thing for me ins I 1 don t deserre desee it and it started on the last journey I 1 WM was going |