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Show SYNOPSIS THE STORY SO FAR: Running away (rem marriage to Ned Paxton, rich but a (ay blade, Janice Trent becomei secretary secre-tary in an Alaska wilderness camp over the protest of Bruce Harcourt, a long , time friend. Bruce li chief engineer, succeeding Joe Hale, deposed for negll-; negll-; gence. Mllllcent Hale, his wife, li also attracted to Bruce. Janice tells Ned Paxton she Is married to Harrnurt. The j latter overhears ber and Insists on an i Immediate marriage. The newlyweds are I Interrupted at home that night by Mrs. Ilale who says ber husband has been shot dead. She exclaims: "If you had ; only waited Bruce." Bruce spends the j night Investigating the murder. When ' Jlmmle Chester, Milllcent's brother, runs off In plane Bruce brings him bark. , In the meantime, Ned Paxton Invites i the women to his yacht. Janice and be, and two natives, leave In a launch to view a volcano closer. Suddenly It erupts. The boat Is stranded on a lonely ! beach. The two natives run off with the ' launch. Paxton and Janice spend a fear-j fear-j ful night. Their fire keeps the wolves away. i Now continue with the story. CnAPTEE XVII - I Paxton reassured Janicet "It is safer than staying ?iere with the fire dying. With those great gaps in the base boards, the shack instead in-stead of being a safety zone might prove a trap. As we came up the hill I saw a big log by the side of i the brook. It will last till dawn If I can get It here. It's not far. There are no eyes glaring from that direction. Keep between the shack i and the fire." I "I'm going with you." j "Janice. If you want to help, do as I say." His eyes burned like twin blue lights In his soot-streaked face. This night must have been a grueling, gruel-ing, muscle-racking experience for a man who had for years lived softly. soft-ly. She capitulated with sympathet- I ic understanding. "I will do whatever you say, Ned. I'll keep the home fires burning." "That's the stuff. See those two humps on the trees that look like misshapen heads hoisted on petards? pe-tards? The log is under those. I noticed it when we came up the brook. Hang on to the revolver but don't waste a shot. Watch out. If you see points of light between me and the fire, yell like a maniac but don't shoot" "Ned, before you go I want to take back what I said about your never having earned anything. To-night To-night you have earned my unwavering unwaver-ing respect and friendship." "Friendship! Think I'll be satis-fled satis-fled with that?" Slow seconds dragged Into Interminable Inter-minable minutes as she waited, watched, listened. The rain had stopped. A warning howl rose from beyond the fire. Heart in her mouth she sensed swift, stealthy movement, green eyes shifting. The beasts had discovered Ned. Suppose she yelled. What help would that be to him? Fire, only fire would keep them back. Wood! Wood was what she needed. Could she pull a board from the shack? No. She might bring the whole wobbly thing down and be buried in the ruins. The doorl She seized it Within her welled a terrific physical impulse. She wrenched the bullet-riddled thing from the one rusty hinge. Dragging, lifting, jerking, she dropped it on the coals. It flamed brightly. Thank God for that. Instinctively she looked up. Were her eyes deceiving de-ceiving her or were those stars? Stars, like a million lighted windows. win-dows. They gave a sense of home glowing through the darkness, sent her courage soaring like a captive .balloon let loose. All her life lighted light-ed windows had fascinated her. A touch on her shoulder. She started to her feet. A sob of relief tore up as she looked into Ned Pax-ton's Pax-ton's grimy, weary face. "How did you get back?" "After you threw the door on the fire we didn't need that log. Crawled back. There is a pink light in the east The wind has changed. It's blowing the smoke away. They will find us soon. Meanwhile " he cleared the huskiness from his voice to suggest practically, "let'i sit on the log. You may feast on that broken cracker. I'll smoke the last cigarette." She smiled at him tremulously. "Ned. I like you better than ever Deiore. You seem so so different. His mouth was grim. "Different! I have been different since you told me that I bought everything I wanted. want-ed. Don't care for that word 'like. I want your love, Jan." She laid her hand on his. Could he make him understand? "I love Bruce Harcourt." , The undisciplined spirit of the man to whom she had been engaged i flamed In his voice. "He can't have you. Think what I can give you. Jewels, travel, sables, homes anywhere any-where you want them." "A home means more than a house, Ned. Somehow I've learned that in these last weeks. I feel terribly old and wise tonight A home is built by mistakes and struggles strug-gles as well as by love. It means mutual sacrifices, mutual responsibilities, responsi-bilities, spiritual companionship. You can't buy a home." She felt the hand under hers clench. "I didn't mean that you were trying to buy my love now, really I didn't. You will believe me, won't you?" He looked down at the scorched, bruised fingers. His haggard eyes met hers. "I believe you. Jan ,a "larling, ! can't let you go!" Pasca clutched his arm. Pointed. Bruce Harcourt looked down at Chester lying on the cot in the cabin which had been built for Janice. Stephen Mallory bending over the unconscious man was real, so was the smell of antiseptics in the air. The coast missionary gave a final touch to the bandaged arm and straightened. "He'll be stiff for days, but nothing noth-ing more serious unless inflammation inflamma-tion sets in. Better get to bed, Harcourt, Har-court, you look all In." "All in! You don't know the half. I've had hair-raising adventures and escapes since I came into this north country but nothing equal to the hell of these last hours. Came down twice on the shore. Had to risk it, though I knew if my self-starter went on the blink I was done for. Radio wouldn't work. Compass useless. use-less. Chester half dead, I thought. Good Lord! Why am I living over that? It's behind me. If you are sure Jimmy is all right, I'll turn in." "I'll stay with him." Harcourt's tired eyes narrowed as he stepped out upon the board walk. Lights, voices In the dormitories at this time of night! What happened? Moonlight dappled the sparkling water wa-ter with silver. What did he miss? Paxton's yacht! Gone! Janice! He flung open the door of the H house. In the fanback chair, shoes on the rug beside her stockinged feet, sat Martha Samp. Her face was deeply lined, her eyes seemed to have been pushed back into her head with a sooty finger. "Where's Janice? Where's Grant? What's happened?" She patted the hand on her sleeve. "Sakes alive, Mr. Bruce, don't get scared yet." "Scared! What do you mean? Where's Janice? Has she gone witb with are you here to tell me?" Bruce dropped his head on an arm outdung on the mantel. Martha Samp explained quickly: "She's gone with Paxton, if that's what you mean, but not the way you think." "Where is Janice? Where the devil dev-il is Grant?" "He's gone -in the launch huntin' for Kadyama. That sneaky Indian Indi-an is out in his kayak an' Mr. Tubby is sure he knows somethin about the shootin'. Paxton took M's. Hale, Mary and Janice out for a sail. They were goin' to get as near that belch-in' belch-in' volcano as they safely could. It was a beautiful day when they started. start-ed. Along about four a storm came up, sudden. There was a great rum-blin' rum-blin' an' then a wave which seemed mountains high swept up. Almost reached this plateau." "Go on! Go on!" "Even then we didn't get anxious about the boat, 'tis such a big one. About two hours ago the radio station sta-tion picked up a message from the Captain." The color went out of her face. Her fingers picked nervously at his sleeve. "Well? Well?" "He said that the yacht was all right an' M's. Hale an' Mary, but that he was cruisin' round to pick up the launch." "The launch! The Modern Mariner's Mari-ner's launch! Who was in it?" "Janice and Paxton and two native na-tive pilots." "That message came two hours ago! Pasca!" The Eskimo swung open the kitchen kitch-en door in answer to his shout His beady eyes bulged in their slanted slits. His bronzed face was curiously curi-ously colorless. "Fuel the Sikorsky. Quick! Be ready to take-off." "Yes sirree, I hustle." Martha wiped away two big tears. Sniffed. "Sakes alive, I didn't know I could feel so sentimental Got all worked up 'cause Mary didn't come back. Now I know she's safe I'm kinder crackin'-up. I've got hot chocolate on the stove at the Waffle Shop. You can't fly right if you don't take care of yourself. You stop there an have a cup. I'll fill a thermos bottle and pack a basket with food. When you find Janice, she'll be hungry as a bear, prob'ly. Now don't you worry. Remember Re-member there's a gate In every wall." A gate in every wall. Harcourt repeated the phrase over and over as the amphibian climbed. It kept at bay thoughts which almost drove him mad. The overturned launch! Janice hurt Janice suffering. Janice Jan-ice on some lonely shore with Paxton. Pax-ton. "You fly up play tag with stars, yes sirree." Pasca's guttural voice came through the ear-phono In I warning. "Gettin' day quick. Look see. We fin' dem now." "Watch the shore for signs of a fire. Pasca." Below, the white yacht steamed slowly, like a fabled bird floating on the breast of the water. Still searching. From a volcano-top In the east a column of smoke rose languourously, as though the force within the mountain was too exhausted ex-hausted from its orgy to do more than send out a puff of hot breath. "Look! See!" Harcourt leaned over the side to follow Pasca's shaking finger. Listed List-ed at a precarious angle, a launch was piled up on a beach under a cliff. He sent the Sikorsky wing-slipping wing-slipping down for a closer view. The launch from the Modern Mariner! Mari-ner! Each foam-tipped wave set the contents awash. Life preservers floated out with the receding tide. Harcourt strained his eyes till they seemed starting from their sockets, flew low over It Not a sign of life. No smoke rising from the woods near. That wrecked boat didn't mean necessarily that Jan had been in It when it struck. Paxton Pax-ton might have thought it wise to go ashore before. Paxton! "She's safe! I know she's safe!" Harcourt told himself savagely and climbed into the air. On toward the mountain. Pasca, who had been leaning over, looking down, clutched his arm. Pointed. Above a clearing clear-ing on the shore hung a blue haze. Wood smoke! No mistaking that. He leaned over. Shouted directions to the Eskimo. Could he land on that shore? He must. The great winged creature obeyed his lightest touch, came down and settled on the water wa-ter with the ease of a mammoth swan. On the, edge of the shore Harcourt touched the control which released the landing wheels. It taxied tax-ied smoothly up the sloping beach. He flung helmet and goggles to the seat before he climbed out Revolver Re-volver in hand, he gave a few curt directions to Pasca. "I do w'at you say. Your face white as crater-top. You fin' 'em pretty quick now. All fine an' dandy. dan-dy. Yes sirree." Harcourt nodded. His throat ached unbearably. If Janice were under that smoke haze she would have heard the plane. She would have rushed to the shore long before be-fore this. Perhaps she was hurt. Horror clutched at his throat he stumbled into a clearing. Stopped. Caught at a scorched spruce to steady himself. Were those real persons on the threshold of that blackened shack? Their clothes were scorched brown, their faces smooched as stokers'. The girl's head rested against one side of the door frame which leaned like the Tower of Pisa. The man was huddled hud-dled against the other. Were they Before his parched tongue could formulate the word, he had his hand on her shoulder. "Janice! Janice!" Paxton lifted heavy lids. Closed them. Mumbled sleepily: "Damn you, SakL Why you wake me?" He tumbled over flat as the girl sprang to her feet She held out her hands. Sobbed. "Bruce! I knew you'd find us." He caught her close In one arm. His hand tightened on his revolver. "Look up at me, Jan." She leaned her head back against his shoulder. The grime about her mouth was dented with dimples, laughter shone through tears In her sleep-clouded eyes. "Look at you! You don't have to growl that command. I never was so glad to look at anyone in all my life." "Thank God!" His heart swelled In a passion of gratitude. She was living, safe unharmed. un-harmed. He slipped the revolver Into its holster. The arm which held her tightened. She pressed her face against his breast before she confided confid-ed with unsteady gaiety: "I hate to seem grossly material at this climactic moment but you don't happen to have a broiled live lobster or sea-food Newburg up your sleeve, do you?" (TO BE COSTLWED) |