Show r r- r The TLe Lovely Lady THERESE BENSON By 9 a Th Bobb U i-U were ata f 0 CHAPTER IX Continued IX-Continued Continued 11 11 Iray how holy d do you figure that out Madame As AI a matter of ot fact act It I Is III preposterous Mancuse's va vanity n It his spot Was ivaa touched Consider the tho situation tel Monsieur an and I 1 am sure mire you IOU will change your mini mind You Vou loudly announce your with Miss III Phelps You leave leavo your our home which M 11 II a II technical desertion of ot your our wife I f may point out She Sho demands demand money from fruits Miss MIllS Phelps helps as 88 a salve for a broken heart tIt Now whether the case calle la is settled set t tied In court or out of ot It who gets the money Your wife wife and her lawyer lal Not you ou Not a cent goes Into your yur hands You have hate no claim tin on n A d penny of ot It It You must appreciate hut that point And with the money secured what happens The Tho pretty lady Iny moves on to neno anti and another mate whether Mayer or can cnn matter mOiler little to you And a pretty figure you'll cut cUI cut Stone assured the II artist rUst Ironically left lea holding the hag You do not understand everything Monsieur look looked Id I'd at III Stone from under bent hent brows Once this Is JI over I shall effect a a reconciliation with my wife wIre When Immediately both hoth of ot you ou would be he arrested for tor blackmail assured him which Is a n criminal offense of ot Monsieur for tor some Bomo time ha had been growing Increasingly unhappy Many memories had been hren awakened that corroborated cor what he heard Ills Fits temper which had been brIll sizzling rose to n a boll holl when again Stone added his hili word Altogether you are elected elect ed td the th goat glint The room was small but the artist began hegan to pace rapidly up tip nn and down clown the contracted space and 11 to mutter to himself I lam am to he ho the tho i goat nat oot am amI amIT I IT n I am to lose all and gain nothing nothing noth noth- ing Ing- Ing Ho lie paused In front of ot and pointed an nn accusing finger at nt herBut her nut Hut you Madame you trifle with mI me You know that there will he ho no suit stilt The Tho rich father nn and mother of ot Mademoiselle Made Made- moiselle they will never permit that she ehe should figure In the tho nasty little picture papers Cant you see that that lint ha has i nothing to do with It so far as your our Interests are re concerned I assure you that my I advice to Mr and Mrs Ill I'll Phelps el pa would be to force the tho case Into the open open open- give Ie It the widest publicity possible Miss Usa Phelps would lose nothing by pub Rut nut you would woul cut a ridiculous figure You would be he laughed out of ot court The rhe threat t i of t ridicule was even more more painful to Monsieur than the threat of ot prison Moreover went on OD pitilessly pitiless pitiless- ly Iy I made It I plain lain to you before that Nut even If It mone money were to he ire paid pall against my ml advice you stood no chance of ot handling any of ot It It What about my wi wife's tos to's share Forget It sold said Stone Stono Just about that time you ou wouldn't have halo any wife wire It would be te Reno neno for her and then probably Hollywood This struck fire Did Old he ho say My so blazed No no that was for tor me Henri Mayer promised to get meon me meon meon on the films In Hollywood Just so soon as we got this money I do not consent consent con COD sent for tor her I 1 will not hn have ve my rude In pictures She Sho Is la too ton pleased with herself herselt already and Stone Stono exchanged triumphant glances I HI I guess that spills the tho beans III my toy good chap Stone told him There are two of ot us here to swear to what you JOu said Its It's prison for tor all of ot you If It we prosecute nut Hut tit Mrs Mason promised that you 1011 would never do that that the man protested protested pro pro- protested tested weakly sinking Into a chair and clasping his head hlad In his hands hans There was an nn exchange of ot glances between his visitors drew a along along along long breath and came Iame to a sudden sodden resolution If It you ou tell us the tho whole plan from the beginning she sho said I y m find a awa away away wa way of ot escape for you At present you IOU seem eem to be bo In a terrible hole Apparently reached the same conclusion had bad for he be final I ly began to speak In a flat Oat voice which h ShOWN showed more clearly even than his abandonment of ot all bluster that h he felt himself to be at their merr mercy The whole thing came about simply enough I 1 met Mrs AIrs Mason MasoD first when she shewa wag wa Val working with a charity organization or for the tho aid of ot my poor nation na nl tion after attEr the war She become Interested interested In in- In my amy portraits and unil volun volunteered teen d to help me mo find commissions It If I J paid her a percentage At first I 1 did dl didwell well then theo hard bard times struck the country country coun lOun try and luxuries were cut off oIT One day v we were talking about where all th the e mODe money had gone Mrs Mis Mason Iason MI said sh she e had bad cousins who had hIlJ millions and quite In Jes jest t we worked out a plan t to n get from then them an amount they would d never miss lula Pulaski kl Is a sharp lawyer lawyer law law- yer Ir It and nd at first he tie refused to ha have vo e anything to do with It Later Trude e talked to him an and he ho consented consented- That was WitS when tIe he sJ saw w that they'd they be secure If It they turned It from ruts purr purl purll l blackmail Into a case easo where the wife actually b believed lle ld that she wn was a wronged ana O demanded 11 legal relt release e fron roll her husS husband and as 2 1 consequence cried Stone I 1 was right You are elected the goat Stone had drawn drown his chair up tip to a little table IIII and taking a fountain pen peD from his pocket was writing busily on ona ona ona a sheet of ot drawing paper The thing for tor you to do ad advised advised the artist Is la to go n hack buck to your wife It at once Tell Ten her you found out that she sho was being sing headed for tor prison not for tor Hollywood by her friends elands Mayer and Tell her youve you've save saved her by taking all the tho blame on yourself y Stone toM was waving his finished prod product act In the tho air ale to dry the Ink but hut put pul putt i It t bock hak k on art the table and handed his hll pen pell to Now If It you'll read what Ive I've written written writ writ- ten and sign It It it he took tOlk up his rote roll Ill Til write you out an order for the miniature youre you're working on and a I large portrait of ot Madame Sal S ton aswell ns as I well which Is 18 to be done In the style of or another miniature miniature- This had been blen no part of ot their careful careful care carp ful plan pion and protested Of ot course doesn't deserve I Inny any leniency from us Stone Ignored her Interruption and went on Merrily sternly It happens that Ive I've seen work of ot his that pleases m me and what I 1 want wont Is la laa Isa Isa a really lifelike portrait of or my ray great great- g grandmother You'll pose peso poso for tor it It I 1 suppose you ou have no objection to that None Nono whatever she acknowledged meekly only heaven knows when Ill I'll find time to sit Id d suggest some of ot the hours you waste on Doctor Blanton Stone said m maliciously and at once turned t to who on the strength of nt such an unexpected boon was beginning to r revive ro Bence up be bo a n man forget torf your criminal past What you ou want now Is panache no lo home at once and act the tho master of ot the tho house as If It you were a star at nt Hollywood They left leet 1 expanding under uner this conception of ot the part port ho was to pIny play and gathering his few v belongings together preparatory to going home What about Mrs Mason Stone asked aske as they walked away from the house Nothing about her said post post- Her lIer claws are clipped Besides Besides Be Re- sides I know that Iam has had rather a bad Jolt to her Ideals In lu another case callo this year and I mean to spare her this Which Which reminds me whom me-whom whom did you know well besides Captain Mills Miles among the men who came over for Cintra's wedding CHAPTER KAs X K As the summer wore away awny grew Increasingly weary wenry of ot her hr chosen occupation Again an and again she made acknowledgement to herself that thaI It fell tell tar for short of ot furnishing the human In tn Interest terest the she had hoped for tor and confidently expected Meanwhile Mean Meanwhile while her family and acquaintances were drifting back to the city First to arrive his hla cure curo completed were Charles and Susan and Pam Iam at nt once told tier her mother all 1111 that she herself herselt knew of ot the predicament from rom which SliM had extricated her Susan was the tho earliest of ot Stabs viII via I tors the next day and those who saw her only as the tho very dignified and dl distant distant dis dis- tant hostess of ot her formal parties would not have hale recognized the grateful woman who kissed her friend fervent fervently ly Iy with tears In her eyes There are aro no words to tell you our gratitude she sho said It would have o broken our hearts to hate comeback come comeback back and found toun Iam nm altered In 10 any way In our circumstances Its It's not easy to bring up a ft girl and keep her herthe herthe the tho simple straightforward child Iam has always been blen The rich have 1 their own problems and we have been very proud of ot our success with Iam I 1 think she Is as good an excuse for our existence as ns a fine line painting or any other masterpiece I dont don't know hint him we a would I have o met this menace had hat we wo been hlen here I fear we wo would have han fallen Into a n panic what the time wretches hoped for or said grimly They thought an Immediate settlement wits was liS sure It seems to me It would have been as dangerous a lowering of Iama Iams s standards to permit penult her to pay Mark black mull mall as It would have hae been to 10 trail h hr her r through h the publicity of ot a trial I 1 went over o nit find over all the Ihl bullies and I 1 couldn't t t decide which would be he the worst confes confessed eilI eil I realized d that It wasn't such a weak scheme after all nil when I began hogun to sus suspect pert that Mr hind hall persuaded Mrs Mra Irs to enter suit tar for divorce simultaneously with the filing of nt papers pa pa- pets pers In the alienation suit That would take It out of or the blackmailing class Legally e ally I mean Actually It never ne was anything else ef et madame are reunited and anti tiring 1111 ha hai together now Why did Carola larola Mason take the child to tn such suh a person fur for lessons 1 Susan who was no foul fool peered pem-d l up at t through tier her Oxfords She may have hate thought him a good goodteacher goodteacher teacher returnee returned but 11 she avoided avoid avoided l lId ed Id Susin's Susans piercing MUe ittle gray IMI rny eyes es lips lies really a talented Idiot He lie has s i painted an ao extremely distinguished portrait of ot me for tor Stone Stone- And who ho may Day Stone bet Susan In In- amazed Wh Why have I never heard of ot him before Smut laughed This was a question she was prepared to parry and It car tied the conversation safely a away way from Carola Carols Mason Stone Is II a distant cousin of ot ours Ive I've grown quite fond of ot him hire and I mean menn you ou to meet him soon lie Ile didn't really want a picture of ot me so 80 stop atop looking unspeakable things at lit me It happens that he ho has hns a miniature of ot otan an ancestor which certainly Is remark remarkably remarkably ably like me me an and he hf decided to have havea haven a n size life copy of ot It made marle 1 Knowing I f I could trust him I 1 had asked him to help me DIe out nut In 10 that affair of ot Cams Cam's and that's that how he came callie In contact with Monsieur I 1 agreed to pose because I felt sure BUrl an nn enlargement enlarge enlargement ment of ot a ft miniature a was ns doomed damned to he hI hea a silly footling tall failure allure U rl A miniature could be he copied ople from a II painting possibly pos poss sibly but a worthwhile result could coult not be bo reached working time the other way roil round nd lim sold said Susan and that was all for the tho time that closed the matter had devoted more than a little thought to what she was to do with her business She hardly saw lIaw how sh she e cou could live In Virginia and continue he her work In III New V York Passionately she to told herself herselt that Hut she could not give up Virginia Sli-i Sli was not called upon to allow her hu bustness bust bust- l. l ness to rule her out of ot all th the happiness happi ness she had looked forward to tu n at lit t when her duty to Cintra wa was e done dono In her mind she tried to buildup build buildup up satisfactory com compromises prom none n of t which was OS convincing Once at home she knew too well wIll that she would b h he had bad been petting It while she he was absent She took It from him with a murmur of thanks It was only when he he rose rose so to go that she spoke of ot It I 1 want a home for tor this little thing I 1 cant can't keep It at my hotel boteL They specially spa chilly bar pets I dont don't suppose you fOU know anyone who would take It do you Y Ylie lie He rose at once to the bait with what almost amounted t to eagerness although all he said was Will Ill take It myself She sent him away with the little creature buttoned within his coat Jot so sn that on only I Its bea head stuck out The next da day Comyn called her on the telephone He Ill must see ee her It was as Imperative She gave gate him an ap and she had scarcely greet greeted greeted ed him before he hI asked her to marry him hIm to to marry him at once onre This proposal came as a II shock hock to her business contacts were S so Impersonal to her Afterward she reproached re rp herself for tor having been beeD so en posit positive he In her refusal It If the she he ha had left him some glimmer of ot hope the outcome outcome out out- come ome might have been different dl He lie went directly back hack to his apartment apart apart- meat ment rang for tor his man to take the kitten and shot himself through the heart hrut ha had telephoned Doctor Newbold New New- bold at once on Alfred Comyn Comyns departure departure depar depar- departure ture worried over the possible result of ot her refusal The doctor had been greatly Interested In to the evidence of ot awakening emotion In his patient and Inclined to regard It as a favorable symptom Of course you couldn't marry him him a A L i She Had Scarcely Greeted Him Before He Asked Her to Marry Him HIm HIm- I to Marry Him Im at Once I so absorbed by her Interest In the place and the people that she would woul have nothing nit left lert for tor her enterprise In InN N New w York It would b become a hated task drugging dragging her away from all nil she loved And If It that were so she sh would J find herself una unable hII to supply the sympathy sympathy sym pathy and understanding which were what her clients n needed Strangely enough It was her nr first t failure thin that freed tree II her tier an and It was n It ruse case very similar to the one that flint lead had led bed her to think of or making herself of nt use uso In just that way The patient to her from Dr Henry New bold Ills name wa was Alfred enmin Comyn He lie was a year par or two younger er than she neither handsome nor the reverse alone In the world tall lilli thin precise In dress s and deport ment Interested In lu In nothing not even eten In his own symptoms which rarely fall roll to rouse a passing enthusiasm In the time egocentric human being The Th minis |