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Show Ha i ' ' I The Trey Of Hearts R S A Norellied Veriion of the Motion Picture Drama of the- Sama Nama I H Produced by the Univeraal Film Co. R Dy LOUIS JOSEPH VANCE I B drtW r"TU fVrfun. H.nk,.""TI to Bott.""TU Dhck tUt." It. I H lllaitrittd with riioiof rapkt from tb Pict.rt PtoJotlloa I HH Copyright, IBM. by Loala Juttph Vaoca I7 8YN0P8I8. The 3 nt ltonrln In the "dentil li?n" cm. itiluyml liy Hcnr-cii Trine In tlm iirlvute wnr tif vongi'nnoi wlflcli. thrnUKli tlio iiicency ,pf III iluiiKliter Judith, n womnn of violent vio-lent luimloiw llko III own. he wae HKrtlrnt Alan I.nw, nn of the nmti (now (lend) whom Trine held responsible for the nrrldrnt which rendered him ft help, less rrlptde Alnn In In loo with Roue. Judlth'N twin nnd ilnubln, hut In nil tint her upiMiiilte. Judith vowa to cotnpam Alnn' ilenth, hut undir drnnmtlc clrcum-winner clrcum-winner he unveil her Hf nnd no. unwittingly, unwit-tingly, win her love Thereafter Judith In liy turn worked upon by the old hatred, ha-tred, the new love, and Jealousy of licr lister Itoe. CHAPTER XXII. ' The House Divided. Alono In that strango place of silence si-lence nnd shadows thnt den of tho devil's livery, crimson nnd black clinlned to the Invalid clmlr wherein, day In, day out, for yenrs on end, lio had Buffered tlio Promethean torment of the life that would not dlo out of .IiIh wretched, wrecked cnrctiHB, though without ceasing shnrp-benked envy, hatred, mnllco nnd nil unchnrltnblo-noH unchnrltnblo-noH pecked Insntlnbly nt IiIh vllnls: Uonecn Trlno snt waiting, with tho Impassivity Im-passivity of n Graven flguro wnltlng on tho Imminent hour of ultlmato avongoment for tho wrong that hnd mado him what ho was. "Another hour! ... In sixty mlnutcu morn they will bo hero, Judith and Mnrrnphat ami Hobo poor fool I and him! ... In sixty minutes more they wilt put him down before mo, bound nnd helpless, If not dend A slight pnuso prefaced wards thnt were a whimpered prayer: "(lod solid thai no bo not dead! Hnvo I lingered "S vbaVBak aaaaaaaBBBH - -jr """""Nrjf aVaVBH MK- u miH Rot Turned on Her Passionately, hero ll anguish nil theso weary years for tht fultlllmunt of my revenge only toVk to bu chentod nt tho end by Death? K Hod gmnt thnt Alan I-nw may bu laid H Jown still living huru nt my feet! BM , . Then . . I A bitter Hinllo twisted hU tortured features: "Then shall my will bu done to htm! And then, when I have seen 'lilin die as his father died then Ah, I (lod! then nt last I too may die! I There was a long silence, then n I groan of uxasperntod protest: "Why I do they not comuT Why does Judith I delay, when sliu knowB how I suffer? I Why have I been put off from day to I day with hur telegrams that bugged I for mora time ami promised every- 1 thtng but told nothing! until yestcr- 1 day. , . , Whero nro those mca- 1 nugcs sho sent me yesterday?" f Ills onu sound hand groped out like a claw nnd sought a mass of papers .jj on the desk besldo him, sorting out u from nmong them two yellow forms, 'I l'alnfully ho blinked over these nnd Mowly his pain-bent lips conned their wording; " 'Alan nnd Kosu Bafo with mo will j bring both homo tomorrow night with out fall," hu read the llrst nloud; and then tho second: "'llavo motorcar ;' wnltlng for mo tomorrow morning I from three o'clock till called for New i Ilcdford waterfront Judith.'" J "No!" he nlllrmcd with the forvor h of ono peratinded by his own desires: f "1 must not doubt tho girl! She has t promised, sho Iibh performed: t So still was he, Indeed, that ho i eeomed to sleep, but so doceptlvu was f (but semblnncu thnt hu was alert for I tho least sound, Tho girl entered soft- I ly, as If fearful of disturbing his slum- r bora; but sho fout.J !in, with head rrect and eyes nblazo, M "Judith!" ho cried, his groat vole - Ibratlng llko a brazen bull. "At Inst! U Whero Is be? You bavo brought him? B Whero Is hot" B With no more answer than a sigh, I the girl drooped her head and lot hur 1 hands linns limply with palms ox- E potiod. H After nn instant of incredulous dls- r iippolntment tho man shot a single, Wriuld qi i-Htlou nt her: 7jii jv fulled?" "I hnvo failed," sho confessed. "Why?" Sho shrugged slightly. "Who knows why ono falls? I did ray best: ho was too much for me, outwitted rao at every turn. Tlrno and again I thought I had Mm, but always ho escaped, either by his own wit nnd courage or with nnothor's nld. Only yesterday night they were nil three In the hollow hol-low of my hands but now I bring you cnly Rose." Sho faltered, nwed by tho glare of hi Infuriated eyes. "Let mo explain," she begged. Ho snapped her Bhort: "You cannot explain. Tho thing Is Impossible, that you should have failed. There Is something some-thing beneath this, something you will not tell mo." Sho endonvored to Bpenk, but ho enforced en-forced slloncn with n sonorous "No!" ills hand sought tho row of buttons on tho desk nnd pressed ono long. Almost Instantly n (servant glided noiselessly Into tho room. "My daughter Roso hnvo her brought hero to mo nt onco!" In another moment tho ropllcn of his dnughtor Judith was ushorcd Into his prcBonco. Upon this ono ho loosed tho lightnings light-nings of his wrath without ruth. Roso suffered him In sllenco. His most gnlllng recrlmlnntlon educed no retort from this ono. In n lull In Trlno's tirade, Judith cltosu to Intorject: "Don't bo so hnrd on tlio silly fool: she's not responsible; sho'a sick with lovo for thnt good-looking simpleton!" "And you!" Roso tur;ied on her paBslonntely "what about you? If I lovo Alnn I.nw, nt least I lovo him openly. I nm not nshnmed to own It nnd I don't pursue him, ns you do, protending pro-tending I mean to sacrlllco him to n wicked family feud, nnd then Hparo him every tlrno I meet him, to lend him to hellevo I haven't tho heart to Injure him ns you do, hoping bo to work upon Ills sympathies nnd earn n kindly word nnd a pat on tho head from his hand!" Fiercely sho leveled n denunciatory nrm nt her sister "There!" sho cried to her father "If you need to know there stands tho daughter who has betrayed your faith as I hnvo not, who hnvo never oven pretended to approve your villainy!" "I think," Trlno announced In a volco of Ico "I hnvo learned now what I needed to know." Ills fingers sought tho row of buttons; but-tons; nnd when a servant responded, ho Inquired: "Mr, Mnrrophnt has returned?" "Hu Is In tho waiting room, sir." "Conduct Miss Judith to htm and tell him I hold him personally responsible respon-sible for her vnfo-kcoplng. lie will understand." And for a long tlrno thereafter tho father, nlonu with tho daughter who had been estranged from him since birth by every Instinct of her nature, csrnyed In vain to breuk down her mutinous sllenco At last Trine summoned two of hi creatures nnd hnd her led weeping from the rooms to bo held prisoner In her bedchamber on tho topmost door of tho houso, CHAPTER XXIII. A Sporting Offer. Homo two hours later, that same evening, Mr. Alnn I -aw, very much nllvo nnd, In spite of a complete new outllt of ready-mado clothing, looking much moro llko himself than ho had In a fortnight, Issued forth from tho (Irani! Central station, hailed a taxi-cab, taxi-cab, nnd hnd himself conveyed to tho Hotel Monolith. Hut if he looked his proper self onco more, It Hpoedlly wns demonstrated thnt his wish wns otherwise: for nfter learning from the room-clerk of thu Monolith that n sultn wns being held In the name of Arthur 1-awrencc, thnt wns the name Mr. I-nw Inscribed on tho register On tho other hand, It wan his truo name thnt ho gnvo to tho person whom ho called upon tho telephone Immediately Immedi-ately nfter being shown to his rooms. Hut then hu wns speaking to his old friend nnd man of business, Mr. Dlgby. Within another ton minutes tl.'a last was In conference with his employer "I think you must bo out of your hend," ho Insisted nervously, onco their first greetings were over. "You might Just us sensibly throw yourself from tho top of the Metropolitan tow or ns como to Now York whllx Trlno lives nnd knows you're this sldo tho water." "Nonssnse!" Alan laughed. "Remember "Remem-ber this Is New York not the backwoods back-woods of Maine!" Alnn pausml and smota hW nw with a ramorMful iUt. "liy the r!tnr-its r!tnr-its I, I'm forgetting Ikirwts!' "lUreus?" Chap wbos boat J ebrUre4 In Portland brtr lack on wy pn: onu of the salt of ttw urtb. ftrt fcomuthlHg iut l itwM for tb bay' You've got lnHuBHe of mm sort In New llsdford, surely?" Ulgby rallwHwl: "Sow. Tlwre's George Rlalne. Jutle of tha peace" "I he v-r man it-leumjii ltw , liar-us' ntHreu imu.r.uteiy And i ' ' tolograph Rnrcus as woll sond him a hundred for cxpensco, nnd toll him to Join mo here In Now York ns quick as ho can!" "Your friend's nddrcss7" Dlgby Inquired, In-quired, mildly Ironic ns ho sat down nt tho desk and fumbled with tho supply sup-ply of stationery. "New Red ford Jail, of coursol" Alan chuckled but cut lila laugh In two as somothlng fluttered from tho pack of envelopes which Dlgby had disturbed nnd foil to tho floor botwoen tho two men. Faco up, It grinned sardonic mock-ory mock-ory of Alan's confidence: It wno a troy of hearts. "Now will you bellovo?" Dlgby demanded de-manded huskily. "In what? A Blmplo coincidence?" Alan flouted. "Not I! Who knows I'm In Now York or that tho Arthur Lawrence Law-rence for whom your ngont engaged theso rooms was Alan Law. No, rhy friend: It's n bit too thick for mo. Take my word for It, this Is nothing more nor lea than n eouvonlr of a poker-party poker-party hold by yesterday's tennnt of this BUltO." "Perhaps perhaps!" Dlgby assented, assent-ed, Btroklng tremulous lips. "Uut I'm afraid for you, my boy. Who knows that Trlno's spies were not watching my man when ho mado this reservation? reserva-tion? Who knows but that 'Arthur Lnwrcnco' wns too thin a dlsgulso for Alnn Lnw? I toll you, I'm frlghtoned to tho marrow of my old bones! Do mo this favor nt least, my boy: now thnt you'vo been wnrned, whothor by nccldent or design wo won't arguo thnt do lenvo town go Incognito to somo quiet place nenr by and wnlt there for tho snlling of tho noxt transatlantic trans-atlantic steamor. Oh, surely you can't dony mo this ono wish of my fond old heart, my boy!" "There's nothing on earth I would not do for you," ho Bnld: "you'vo beon a father nnd a mother to mo ovorelnco I can remember, oven If wo wore sopa-ratod, sopa-ratod, most of tho tlrno, by threo thou- w borhood of tho Rlversldo drlvo homo of his mortal enemy, a grim whlto houso that towered, stark and tall, upon a corner. His preliminary rcconnolsanco provided pro-vided little more than comfortless ox-erclse. ox-erclse. Hugo, still. Us wall bathed In tho milk nnd Ink of moonlight nnd shadow, nil Its windows dark but ono-and that ono, in tho topmost tior, showed only a fcoblo glimmer, so slight that Alan almost overlooked It. Ho bolloved with small doubt that Roso wns n prisoner within thoso wnlls; thnt Judith must hnvo conveyed con-veyed her there with nil speed. And, this being tho presumptive caso, that small, high window of the light might woll bo hers. Directly across tho street from trie Trlno residence, on tho opposlto corner, cor-ner, a colossal apartmont struoturo stood half-finished, etonowork to Its socond story, gaunt Iron skoleton rear-lng rear-lng abovo. To his Inflnlto disgust, Alan found tho guardian very wldo nwnko. very much on tho Job: no chanco here to Btcal unBecn Into tho building. This In ItBclf might hnvo boon deemed a suspicious clrcumstnnco: not for nothing does nn honest night watchman so deny tho laws of nature and tho tenets of his craft. Hut Alnn merely praised tho mnn whllo cursing tho very fact of his cxlstenco; nnd, nc-costing, nc-costing, overenmo with bank-notes what seemed nn uncommonly stubborn reluctnnco, nnd got his way. Ho could not know that another skulked behind a barrier of llmo barrels bar-rels nnd overheard all thnt pnsfled and, when Alnn hnd ducked smartly Into tho unfinished building, roso nnd stolo nfter him with footsteps ns nolsoloss ns n cat's nnd n fnco thnt hnd tho savagery sav-agery of a tiger's when It wns transiently tran-siently revealed In a shaft of moonlight. moon-light. At length Alan gained tho gridiron of girders on a piano with tho lighted window across tho wny, nnd crept Iwamma .ixtasBmanaaBm t tj..;?itftaajy.ag.t.'r'..i. A x '.'.r..ii :..;-""-" TMBff""",lWiHy biiB ukLiiiaiiEl eBWaaBBllWEataaJllJZjIMIIMIife'.fJ'BW. - !m B jHHa''HiBalB-HRsliaBuiaBtflikijlB mbe4iBar; JHe" jaHea " t Lfcr'kiXnlBsi!L T3B& pir . uTr gawawawawawawawawaVVVwL JEKw mHHnrrmmm , i a iiiniii r 'atfsaTiWatTll imi i o Vaii iiii trill islBfMaMi SBiTMaalaMaBaMliT Vv Alan's Appearance at the Hotel Monolith. sand miles of salt wnter Hut this thing I cun't do It, oven for you. 1 can't do it oven for myself. Roso Trlno Is hero In Now York, In tho hands nnd nt tho mercy of her father nnd sister: nnd you may Judgo what their mercy will be when you learn nil thnt sho has dono for mo. I won't go nnd I can't go until I find her and tnko her with mo. And that Is final." "Then," Dlgby struck In, grasping wildly nt n straw of hope, "I hnvo jour word you'll go, providing I flud and restore re-store Rooo to you?" "You hnvo my word to that, unquestionably. unques-tionably. Hrlng Roso to me. and I'll gladly slinko tho dust of New York from my hoes, nnd never return till Trlno Is put nway comfortably In his grave." "It shall bo dono," Dlgby promised. "It must!" "You bellovo that?" "In twelve hours Roso shall be ro-Btored ro-Btored to you." "Will you mako a book on It? I'll bet you something happens and hopo I loso Into tho bargain. If you believe you cun carry out your promise, wlro tho Whlto Star line to resorvo tho best nvnllablo suito on tho Oceanic, sailing tomorrow morning at ten nnd mnko nrrnngemonts for a mar-rlago mar-rlago before tho hnnt sails." "I'll go you." Dlgby agreed: "nnd If I fall, 1 forfeit the cost of the resor-vatlon. resor-vatlon. Hut about this marriage" Ho hesitated. "You'll havo to hato a llcenso In this Dtato and can't get one excopt by applying In porson with your bride-to bride-to bo. There won't bo time" "Thon we'll marry In Jersey !" Alan Insisted. "Dig up soino clergyman over there. If you don't know ono your-solf your-solf " "Oh, I'm well acquainted with tho very man I" CHAPTER XXIV. The Time o' Nloht. Not III pleased to be left to his onn device (whoee propod character IHttby would never have approved had be wj much as suspected tlietu) Alan Me the leas deferred action until after midnight. And espionage waa all be feared bb and excopt always, of cour fail ure to find hU Rose. It was about one In the morning when he urrlved lnonpiruouh i0ut not f math so as to e.j-m !.-,'. n 'in r.f fritco sync Hanco, u, rr,e, along ono of theso, gingerly on his hnnds nnd knees, until ho enmo to Its end nnd might, If ho enred to, look down a hundred feet to tlio sidewalks. Thnt view, however, did not tempt; ho kopt his eyes level; nnd wnH rewarded re-warded with n baro glimpse of n prot-tlly.papored prot-tlly.papored wall, framed In the Inco of half-drawn curtains. And of sudden whether through fortuity, or Instinct, or tho psychological psycho-logical attraction of his steadfast concentration con-centration tho tennut of tho room enmo to tho window nnd stood there for a llttlo, looking pensively out, altogether alto-gether unconscious of tho watcher In his aerial coign. Again a horrible uncertainty har-nsBcd har-nsBcd him. Wns tho womnn Roso or Judith? That sho was ono of theso ho could plainly bco. Hut which? Dared he nssiimo his hopes fulfilled? With dllllculty ho dotnehed his hungry vision from her, nnd drawing from lifs pocket n small notebook, tore out a blank pngo. placet! this Hat on tho girder, found a pencil, nnd with tho asslstnnco of a ray or two of moonlight scrawled it messngo of nl-most nl-most stenographic brevity. When ho looked up from this task, sho had vanished. Sitting up, nstrldo tho girder, ho took hi watch a chenp nffnlr ho had plckod up when reclothlng hlmsolf In tho garmenta of civilized society, at Providence, thnt morning opened tho back of tho caso, nnd closed It upon tho folded meflsngo. Thon drawing back his nrm, ho brenthod n Bllent prayor to tho god of all truo lovors, nnd enst It from him with nil his might with such forco that It nlmost unscntod him nt tho end of tho awing. Hut nothing less would hnvo served to hrldgo thnt yawning chasm. And tho watch Hew straight and truo, squarely through thu lighted window win-dow nnd to tho further wall, At that vory Instant of hu exultation ovor nn obetnclo ovorcomo, ho heard a sound behind him of heavy breathing. Tho nssnsslu hnd coin thnt close upon his prey when Alnn turned nnd 1 discovered hla peril. 1 The same moonboam which had aided Alan In tho composition of his . metisago struck across tho other's face mid showed It llko n hideous Chlneae j innak of dondly hatred, with Its eyu. y balls glaring and Its lips drawn back from the naked blade gripped between Its teoth-a stiletto nothing short of a tout In lanath With a sharp, ntnrtled movement, Alan Bwung himself bodily about, bo that, seated again netrldo tho glrdor, ho faced tho assassin who sat up, Btraddllng tho girder, his feet hooked beneath It a stiletto poised In his right hand to strike Hut oven now Alnn wna In llttlo or no better caso than before. If ho faced tho thug, ho faced him with no nrms othor than hla bare hands. Ho had not even n pcn-knlfo In his pockots. With a low cry of desperation Alan snatched off his hat, a soft and shnpo-less shnpo-less felt nffnlr, nnd flung It squarely In tho follow'8 fnco. Ueforo ho could rocovor before, that Is, It dropped awny and cleared his vision, Alnn hnd bent forward and grasped tho wrlet of tho hand that held tho knlfo. Ho snatched simultaneously at tho othor hand, but It eluded him. Alan had this advantage ns long na tho knlfo might not strike thnt hla right arm was freo, while tho assassin hnd only hla loft. With this ho strovo persistently to rench his knife-hand nnd possess himself of tho wenpon. As porststcntly Alnn foiled his purpouo by dragging tho knife-hand toward him and swinging It far out to ono sldo. At tho same tlmo ho struck ropcntodly with hie clenched right fist nt tho other's oth-er's face. His blows did llttlo dam-ngo dam-ngo boyond disconcerting tho othor; but this proved a very considerable fnctor In tho duol. In tho end, they Borved together with thnt steady, r" slstlcss downward and outward dtn;, to break tho grip of tho man'B loc -cd legs. Abruptly ho pitched forward on his faco nloiig tho girder, kicking wildly, grnBpIng at tho nlr. Tho Btllctto fell from nn Instinctively relaxed grasp, and disappeared. And botoro Alan could release his hold, or caso tho Btrnln upon tho right nrm of the as-sassln, as-sassln, this last hnd slipped bodily from tho glrdor nnd hung holpless In spneo, dangling nt tho end of Alan's nrm with no moro than tho grip of flvo fingers between him nnd denth. Tho shock of thnt unpreenged turn brought Alan forwnrd nnd flat on his stomach. And tho strain on his left nrm wns terrific. Ho doubted If ho could mnlntnln It for nnother mlnuto Nor was there nny reason why ho should retain it. Tho end ho had designed de-signed for hla victim waa merely hla Just desert. And yet Alan could not let him go. Thus tho battle began nnow but now It wna n bnttlo with a mnn half-ernzed half-ernzed nnd struggling so madly thnt ho well-nigh frustrated tho efforts of tils rescuer. In tho upshot tho assassin lay llko n limp rag ncross tho girder, head nnd arms dangling on ono side, legs nnd feet on the other, spent with hla tor-rlllc tor-rlllc cxcrtlona nnd physically sick with terror. And in this state Alan loft him: ho had dono enough; let tho man shift for himself from this tlmo on, CHAPTER XXV. Changeling. In tho vague, chill gray of that dull and dcsolato dawn, Judith stirred abruptly ab-ruptly on tho couch of n sleepless night, nnd with tho rapidity of ono who hns nrrlvcd nt n sottlcd purposo after a long period of doubt and nor- plexlty, rose nnd bathed and drcesed herself in negligee. In tho ndjolnlng room eho could hear smnll, Btcnlthy noises tho sounds mado by her sister moving nbout and preparing ngalnet tho unguessnblo moment mo-ment when her rcscuo would bo attempted, at-tempted, according to tho Information conveyed In thnt midnight messngo. Kor chnnco had conaplrod with her Insomnia to etntlnn Judith In tho recess re-cess of her darkened window, Idly viewing tho gaunt framework of tho unfinished building from an nnglo which, whon Alnn edged out along tho girder, showed him plainly In silhouette silhou-ette against tho sky. Sho had Been him throw tho walch and had heard tho doublo thump of Its Impact with tho wall and floor of Rosu'b bedchamber. Tho clock waB striking six ns sho loft her room: ncross tho street work-Ingmen work-Ingmen were etrcnmlng Into tho building build-ing to begin tho labors of tho day. Hrushlng unceremoniously past the drowsy nnd Indifferent gunrd In tho corridor outsldu tho door to Rosu'b room, Judith turned tho key thnt remained re-mained In tho lock on tho outsldo. removed re-moved It, entered, and locked tho door behind her. Without nny Burprlso sho found her Blstor already dreseed to tho point of donning her outer garmenta, Rendered half-frantic by this unex-pected unex-pected Interruption, threatening ns It did tho perilous scheme thnt Alnn had proposed, Roso greeted her slBter with n countenance nt onco nghust nnd wrathful. "I Insist that you lenvo this room at onco!" "Insist by nil moans-mid bo dnmned! 1 mny lento this room and I mny not, dear llttlo sister. Rut ono of us will nuvor lenvo It nllvo." "What do you menu? vnu' ennnot Jmlith?" "",rl0r ",0 '" C,a bl00'1' "Not I!" Judith laughed harshly. Hut, sliico it linn pleased Doatlny to d.croo that we must both lovo ono man-let U.wtiny decide Iralwaon us and boar the Maine of murdor'" "Judith!" Ono moment!" Croeslng t0 ,,, tame.Judlthtcmkupnfiia.afrninn tray that held n illver wntor-pltchor and returned with It to the table that occupied the middle of the iloor At the name time ahe opened a hand tin then aat clenched and disclosed .,, Mil bottle with a red label shrieking iho warning poisdn' 1 Strychii.ne m,, .., ,, (fif) posedly, "In solution." mIZ I the bottle Into tho glass. nr't,!' A measure of courago return... Roso. "Do you oxpoct to b, 'm4 I mako mo drink thnt?" ehe LI u contemptuously. ueaandn "Not I-but Destiny, f t . o hero." From a pocket of her 1H I gown Judith produced a sealed l' Playing cards. "Let the 0 Zu k.tCf will of Destiny toward us. f S? lhj tho aoal. Bhumo tho cards and h J sho explained, suiting actio iS "Tho ono who gets the trcj , !0rl will drain that b1M8. , u !" gain?" " a "Never! Oh, now I know that .. are altogether mad I" m Whipping a small revolver frnm . other pockot of her dressing.,,, ? displaced It on the table Bo''YO(Uw.l.Bhootmolt,donotco "Not you but him. if you ... llttlo sister I w... shoot "aU'uI dead when ho comee to keep hli ! polntmont with you." f he a BhUddor "0B0 b0ed hur "Dcnl," sho muttered fearfully -m mny God Judge between usl" Ono by ono sho stripped the carii from tho top of tho dck, dealing firT to Roso, thon to horeelf. Ono by ono thoy fluttered to th, I table on either sldo the glass of paW nnd fell fnco uppermost. Tho troy of hearts fell to Judith I There wns nn instant of silent dre.l ended by Roso, na Judith's hand nwed steadily toward tho glass. I ,"Judlth!" Bho Implored. "Don't- I beg of you I didn't mean it I ui I back my consent " I "Too late!" said Judith, lining th glass nnd eyeing its contents lth a I strnngo emllo. H 'j Judith I you cannot mean to drink I "Cnn't I, though?" tho other laughed I mirthlessly, "Just watch mo!" With a strangled cry Roso corered I her faco with her hnnds to shut ost I tho sight, Btood momentarily swaying, H and dropped to tho floor In a complett I faint. Dolaylng only to recognize this ph I nomena with n pitying smtlo for the I weaknesB of spirit that caused It, Ju- I tilth's glanco darted through the win- I dow and Raw thnt which caused her to I stay hor hand nn Instant longer. On tho topmost tlor of girders of tha I building opposlto, Alnn Law stool amid n llttlo knot of amused and ant- I mated laborers, ono foot In tho great steel honk of thu hoisting tackle, both linmls clasping tho chain that linked It to tho gigantic block. And ne Judith stared, ho smiled at somothlng said by one of thoso about him, looked bach, nnd waved a aui to Homo person Invisible Immediately tho arm began to lift. the tacklo to move slowly through th blocks. Vory gently ho was swung op nnd outward. . . . With a cry Judith flung the pottos heedlessly from her, leaped acroas thi room, and matched up the street gap nicnto norm had dropped at her slater'i entrance. In another moment sho was strop glltig madly Into thorn. lloforo tho shadow of Alan, cllnrjni to tho hook and chain, foil athwart tha Bat w BHl vBB H aaaaTaaaaaasHasaBkas-'ai? H ftaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaBlV ' aVaSaSaSaSaSlBaSaSaBlS ' "Not I but Destiny, If It Willi" window, sho wua dressed and clai i bored out upon tho sill. , H , "Sweothenrt! My bravest l""' womnn!" . H Tho hook hung atoadlly within w m Inchon of tho wlndow-ludgo. Alan ' ! tended hla arm. . ,, 1) "Nothing to fear, except lest I 1 H you too tight, dear ono!" Without n word Judith sot her ion ms besldo his In tho hook. Minrendorea h hla oinbrnco, nnd closod hor oyos. Immcdlntoly they wore swung j M J from thu window, ovor toward Mr m poslto Bldownlk, and gently lowerea w mt tha street, .. "Mnybo this Isn't n good &'?: M Alun exulted In tho Innocence i ol w h heart. "Hut I think It Ib. And tbew H worklngmon think It n great W I told thoin tho nlmplo truth, ou ' that wo wore eloping!" . Hy way of nnawor Judllh brw" only a word of tendorneaa. . And that Inr.tnnt tho hook r' nnd Alnn atnppod off upon the 18 wnlk' . . o! ' "Hnfo and nound and not( a "T over there the wiser as yt' u dared with u deiielve uod "' home of Trine. "Come along i"'' h llmoualiie walling In w" .7,, u'xia.wH'll be at the ferry. 1" r"r'T In Jr.y, within an h.ur 'M"" wi'blr 'i""- In his snf. ' F' 1 (T l'i ffi ' 'M '"' iMiiwiMiiMiiiiiiM iiiw. 11 KMaMaaBlavjaaaaaa |