Show e aror to VT lay root ct d by fhIl lips oppenheim by little drown ac co hylt My lt MotI ZUBIN from coln a stepfather tep father an unhappy sa ana a proposed husband it to testa t a myrelle Myr young i girl stands in a country the v verge vt of desperation on tire two exploded an hy by tta lord gerald aid L and christopher bent A tracee 4 1 by y tile the girls dlo did appearance sho bhe bogs bag d ake her a way away from tier her to 4 if in a spirit of adventure advento re do so convey conveying ing her to carlo alo and leav leaving ing tier her with 0 da myrtele aspea speaks ks Lin english glish having been a an n edu hr sees aea a gerald derald 1 woman 4 a 1 woman in the ticul young S bling rooms and la Is faset learn that I 1 but can only pauline de tailed ailed ih IS aunt lie he la Is un her ith j I 1 U secure an introduction action copher to and gerald decide back to h her er shall not go all tile als lady jady mary geralds B L secretly in love with chris tr ber disapproves oves of tile tho young guardianship of myrelle Myr a makes the ac dombey rd d of pauline Paull no ile he Is tt olance aid by the astrof air of mystery and on surrounding surround lne tier her llla folls in love ve with gerald li would marry y myrelle Myr ger interested in pauline PTER AFTER VI continued 7 would be wonderful 8 she he muri but you mus must t not prevent my iny to a the he party i ardle atlle lie pointed out the young would moot meet there 0 i whom you ot it fit at to know I 1 what harm can they do met mer rolsted 1 I know that they are arc ece ce but what does it mutter matter 14 will take cure care of me dopher ros to ills his fe feet et there certain hopelessness about lila ills bithe itt he was slowly beginning to ibe ie he be said it Is time wo we went ook his arm as they scrambled into ho tile the road n are not cross with me ribe ahe ventured a little tim timidly ialy look so BO gloomy even a little ble ie 11 she went on clinging to and looking up nto into his face it i very great trouble to you I 1 are je you not sorry that you ever t me away am not sorry yet myrtile he and tred 1 I only hope that I 1 never bil r nood mood suddenly changed angea ch she el gayly h la a la I 1 she cried 1 if I you took um I 1 shall sing and dance to you in the road as we do at festival gerald says that I 1 must have ng lessons es sons lie he Is going tp send 0 a woman here e pirouetted lightly on one foot acle ie ot of buoyancy and grace then ent U vidde tily rigid tock her place awe and clutched at his big arm past them on ar UP the hill gerald was lean ock k in the low driving sent tho the gleaming on ills hla dark closely ed hair his head bead bent toward companion canlon pauline sat a little haughty dohty unbending her beautice beaucl cold unrelieved by any light pathy athy or interest hit crest iler her eyes teate el essly lessly over christopher and inton as they passed gerald ven see them ho iq she myrelle whispered 0 one ie knows much about her b P ber replied she and her have e the next villa tw toi geralds she ilie calls herself mademoiselle alere e atlle laughed quietly she was dy herself again demoiselle demol nol selle Is a very stupid girl ec lared red Gerald waa was looking at lad site she looked only at the road does not care gerald will find 4 4 came to the tennis co courts arts an all aso so later and played sev several eral st in silence lie ile took chris one side during one odthe of the ot of rest and flung ills his arm w shoulder 4 old man lie ho confided 1 I to you ive a few words I 1 want to Y christopher rejoined lined mill on tills this set gerald pointed ito ills his afeei feet lets be alone rl then ciros grill at eight chapter VII n tinner dinner and tho ahe aiulu s started the c arsa I 1 splint lamew sw flat lint abrupt question alto exactly what do f ci do dont S blin hitov in her er re 4 S tatter of fact neither do d I 1 dearede tied NS ano Q little bitterly she to io introduce alk myself down 84 E ds bel e ow tho the villa vl eil n for toi and d she e it a ald ali vl ahme mo in the car CT aoa 1111 ce yet she does tati ry lt it I 1 met meet iier her with 01 ol c to ta not allowed to speak to I 1 am aho t 10 cull 11 II nt at the villa I 1 where S they ole come from I 1 ina her i nationality I 1 bt v allt for nty y few auf th the I 1 llave sl h n sam ord id fan nad J it IL alares but r I 1 honestly 1 io nestly cannot wo place these two luell ll alint what Is mademoiselles s attitude toward you wilen when you are alone asked ridiculously reserved 01 gerald answered SI 1 I once touched tonel led tier her lingers fingers and I 1 thought slie she would havu have struck inc humiliating though it may bo be I 1 rill nin half inclined to believe that it IN 14 tha motoring alone alono which attracts tier in the slightest degree and that I 1 represent very little wore to lur her than tile lie man who Is driving the car ol 01 their conversation was momentarily interrupted hy by tile arrival in the place of it 11 newcomer n stranger to both the young oun men inon lie iio wits was tall anil and brond I 1 shouldered should pred sallow skinned with ivi th n amass of lilack black hair good features but with hard bard elmost brutal il mouth louth lin lie had been relieved of ills his cont tic lie ninde made tits lila way to tile lie bar drunk two cocktails in succession and lit a cigarette then lie he wandered to tile the table adjoining the one lit at which tit the two young men wore were p bated tei ted and having given ills order for dinner busied himself making calculations calcut lotions upon some borne scraps of paper which lie tore up lip as aa soon ns its were figures gerald spoke to the utter who served them with whom lie he was well acquainted A stranger here Clin charles ries the man glanced over ills hla shoulder and lowered hla his tone A russian gentleman milord lie he announced staying tit nt the hotel de aulls paris Mons monsieur leur lie he calls him self they say that he ling has been playing very heavily russians who play piny high are no great novelty here gerald remarked under his breath there tire are not so many of 0 them with money nowadays though chris lie he went on as the man left them you asked yesterday what was the matter with me ill tell you its tills this uncertainty about made alade ce do Pon lere its an absolute torment to me inc its getting on my nerves Is it tile he character and reputation of these indies concerning which you cannot make up your mind or Is it made mol mols selles elloA lack of reciprocation to your overtures which you find distressing for G ds sake chuck that legal tosh I 1 gerald begged its both I 1 christopher laughed quietly there were people who called gerald the most spoilt youns young man in london N v T the a boy mado made a prompt Appe appearance arando mid and stood cap in hand waiting for his order and his present predicament had its humorous side gerald himself made a little grimace its nil all very well christopher he said but I 1 am a great deal too near being in earnest over this pull yourself together and suggest some way of getting hold of the truth if the girl herself wont help you christopher cepil replied ed how can anyone else I 1 1 I suppose youre right gerald assented gloomily the had bt become couie very crowded indeed A small orchestra was playing in the far corner several everal c unattached young indies naho preserved an air 6 of haughty indifference towards ti the ib company generally but seemed to be on remarkably kably glod terms with the head waiter had brought color into th alie little hs assembly the law nan man wh who 0 wa reputed to be a rt ju hall had called for pen and ink and between the courses was writing a lotar ater TIA the daltre dh otel who knew anew gerald stooped and whispered in ills car monsieur tile large lar 1 gentleman c tic you disked me about m milord flord lie announced has bas just won two million francs over tit nt tile the caino soule some or of these people have followed mal him over he roust must have the money in his 19 pocket e to Christ christopher ophir tile the scene was 11 novel one and ho he leaned forai forward ird in hs his seat scat two boling ladles had seated coated themselves at the next ernle to the MR russian and th the nearest was tentatively at him now and then without however evoking the slIght slightest c pt response people from ial ell quarters were whispering together and alid glancing ta to ward him tile the object of ull all these lit at en tlona continued to write hla his letter 1 I presently he called for it a cluB cur brust hr hla letter lette into an envelope and addre addressed 4 sd it the boy made a aD apoe Dearance arance and stood MP in n und abr MB conlen ort lers the man inan who luid just list won two million francs franca handed hani the letter gave him sonie some brief directions find and a handful of collis coins the I 1 ho saluted diluted and hurried off gerald gripped ills coln by the arin did you hear that chris ho he whispered 1 I heard nothing christopher ro r plied 1 I saw tho the tid dress too gerald cont continued limed eagerly the letter tier Is 19 to aind Mad nnie nille do villa violetter Vio lettel tile dispatch of tho the lottor letter was the lie signal sl nal for certain imperceptible advances on tile part of those who lind had been tile the great mail the young lady nt lit the next table loaned leaned over tint and congratulated ichii on lits its good fortune nn an overture which ans received cd it 11 little gruffly and all without enthusiasm A beedy looking slid front from ills stool loaned over the table tableland tab leand i and whispered n few words worda in the Ilus Itus ear tic ho was a sandy haired man with runy checks an and a nonous nervous ins ills clothes had once been well hell but were now shabby lie ile luid hall the ramblers gail ahlers restless festl als or sir tie to beggin forgive my addressing you 1 what do you sou want was the blunt rejoinder 1 I stood behind your chair in the rooms I 1 latter flatter myself that I 1 brought you fortune no na I 1 have brought it to ninny others I 1 willed milled to win will have lost loht as much at tile tables ns as you lieve won will you grant nie me the loan of a apal go to h 1 1 was waa the brutal reply 1 I have nothing to do with cadgers hadgers cad gers the man inan staggered ns as though ho he had received it n shock lie ile was used to rebuffs but not such rebuffs as this monsieur he stani stammered perhaps five hundred or even two hundred francs 1 not it sou son and be off do you want me to complain to the manager the young man edged away gerald smiled sallied aslie as lie saw hlin him cross the floor horribly bad character that lie he remarked to christopher 1 I missed him here last season and asked where lie he was they told me that lie he was in prison for stabbing tits fits mistress I 1 suppose I 1 shall get it in tile neck chris but ive got to talk to the old brute I 1 cant MUM afford to miss an opportunity of speaking to some one who knows pauline 1 I if I 1 were you christopher advised you see he in the humor to talk to anybody and if there really Is any mystery about the de Pon leroi leres lie wont care about being f risked questions about them thein gerald was for him blin however determined the fellows manner Is brutal but I 1 believe hes a personage I 1 shall try my luck in a moment or so gerald waited for several minutes until his neighbor had entered upon another course then he be leaned toward him you ore are a russian nus gerald ventured it Is my mv hf y it ie is as III lr at to ar ere le t a t monsieur had so BO for far met geralds tentative overtures with the cold rudeness of one who recognizes an equal at his last words however a look almost of fury flashed into his ace face ile he struck the table with his fasl 1st I 1 1 I ought to have remembered the sort of people by whom I 1 was likely to be surrounded here he declared arel I 1 ro you who look as you ought to know better cast sneaking glances over my shoulder should pi to read the superscription of a private letter what a riffraff riff roff I 1 gerald bit his fits lip he kept ills his temper perfectly 1 I saw raw the address I 1 assure you entirely by accident lie he said 1 I happen to be acquainted with one ona ot of the ladles or the name would not haye baye attracted THY my notice dilme All idame and mademoiselle occupy the next villa to mv iny fil fathers EvId evidently enily pauline Is a personage in the great world but where who la Is she and what Is the mystery that surrounds her hera TO BE CONTINUED |