Show 0 I 1 t 0 the he real 0 0 0 0 0 adventure 0 0 0 0 A N 0 v E L 0 0 0 0 0 by 0 0 henry kitchell Kl webster 0 0 opy sighs IZA 11 botro vow pany CHAPTER continued 14 ale ate came A buffet of wind truck struck her as fhe phe closed the door bhend hr and whipped her unbuttoned ulster about but elio site did not emer un ler it nor tarn turn away stood otro her finely erect confronting confront lne it there wa something alert about her tier lx alx j he i coulden t eee see her tier face distinct idt that ehe site waa mas el lectia aly and then not aloud but very noddy roddy she aid sold lie ile tried to sheuk her name but hie his dry throat denied it utterance no bean to tremble lie came out of the tho shadow and she baw him nal an I 1 canie came to matt him lim twit poke his hili name 1 I aw saw you m ahen lien you went ent out she paid said 1 I I wae was afraid you lightn t wait malt I 1 hurried na as fast as I 1 could rhew rj so lony longer than i TOIL he ile managed at last to speak and As lie he ltd did so reached out and took her by the shoulders come home he bold laid 1011 loll inist come home at that she stepped lack and unit lbook her head hend hat but he lie hail discovered while ills his hands held her that eho she was trembling too the stage door opened again to emit ib in roup group of of the gonles pon tea les they stared curiously at dane and he the big 1 ann who stood there with mith her then scurried away down doun the alley we can t alk talk here he said wo we must go sonke where she nodded assent and they rooted moved off elde side by eldo aide after the three little but slower in on lotion of thadows ihn nha dows half nay ay down the tile alley he gripped her arm tight and the both viol still aitho next moment and without a word they roofed moed on again are you nil all right oddy 1 and the eho she to eny oily its it a it rood good many daye days place ive heard from portia and then suddenly waa wax it because anything had snap gone wrong that you co camel 1 I know you ete here until I 1 paw raw yen on the sta r 1 be said thill 11 wag all in wo da that pa passed ased until ho he looked about him in ft a sort of dozed dazed beil bewilderment derment when she alto stopped at la ht lai i at the stoop befito her door heres where I 1 live the bald sold I 1 acre chero you liver he lie echoed falin kly aver since I 1 went anway to california I 1 vo to been right here where 1 I eanid almost eee see the moke of your chimney 0 queer little room II 11 only ray lay throe dollars a week for it but butita it a big 1 enot gh to be alone itney in hose he eald said hoarsely A man came lurching pill ably down the street she shrank into th tho angle of the steps and rodney fol her faund her with hia his hands lia bad and heard ler voice peaking speaking breathlessly in to lie ile hardly knew what aho she wan ling saying it a bilen wonderful I 1 know we lini hagent ent talked well weil do that some other time somewhere where we cna hut but tonight walking along bilke that just as tomorrow row liall shall think it was all a dreana ank itose the thi only sound that came in on an oer was a lone tremulously Iti drawn b bernuth atu hut but presently her hand took lie ike avie e pa hie ids that had been clutch e tier shoulder eh and 1 ld d him up the 1 t pa 4 bhe opened the door with a latchkey and then thell behind her he made bis his way up two flights of narrow stain stairs who fulst creak v isdo ado nil ail the sourd there was in the L ack little corridor at nt the he top she unlocked another door ifill till I 1 light the pis 1 l she he she rho turned and looked into hie his face 1 eyes marching it as ds hia his were ere Or ching hera bem luminously and with a kindling ere her 1114 parted a little ln there wa as a rort port of booro oa on her tier ekin skin that became become more visible as the blood rave tave on atalo posting nelloR fl in behind it ae As for kodney rodney he was me sl me ician MAU who 1110 an bour tour ogo AM in thy the hod raged and writhed under what ht tic felt 10 0 o be an invasion of ills his tary righta tight in her HP ile have defined it that I 1 way to be itule in a with barev lake take would have dialed kit with the fi bof them that a husband had bod nay I 1 proprietary 11 elary rights in n hie big wife but not the intolerable eclie of f baring 1 be ome come nn all oba I 1 of deri ilou or contemptuous pity of being dis graml and of bet being ue graded coulon t derive from anything 1 I 1 bet but just that nave you anything here he asked ther dally baldea walt W alt win cu go in thet it was the surlene surl lne of hi his tone rather than the words themselves that starred her VO p she ho eald said puzzled of cour dot nov then throw then them into it quickly at MU and well lock tho the thins thing up do you owe any roadel Ro Roa dyl ebe she wid sold het t do you o 0 1 l lull to att ctt t out of ft this beastly place nov tonight were going home vi ae e can leare leave an address for the trunk rf it never comes so much the better again all ehe she could do waa was to ak ask him with a bewildered stam what he meant because phe he added 1 I can cant t go home yet ive only started Start started edl he be echoed do yon you think im I 1 in going to let this thi beastly farce so go any tiny further and nil with mith that he told her what had bad happened in bis his office hat that afternoon told her of the attitude of his hi friend fri endo how nil all known about it undoubtedly had come to see for and out of pity or con tempt told mm him he ile told her how hed bed ailt sitting there in the theater lit he accused her tier in As bs b wrath barned brighter of 81 lecter the thing to do to that would hurt him mot wort mott t of having borne a grudge agi dinst mm hm and oven 4 it it waa was the tho Ig noblest moment of ills his life and he lie know knew it the acius eions he wax was against her were nothing to that were mere storing up in hie his mind him elf lie ile look at her as he tallied talked and eho she interrupt mid said no word ord of denial or define the big outburst spent itself he lapsed hilmi into an dunmey got himself together again and went nent on trying to restate his grievance this mur reasonably retracting a little hut but under her tier con continued tinned allenc tl lenc lio lie grew weakly irritated again ban achen at list ohp eh ecole he be turned his hi eyes to burd her tier and saw a ort sort of frozen look in her dull white face that he had never seen in it before her intonation aas monotonous her voice scarcely audible 1 I guess I 1 understand ehe she sold 1 I don t kr whether I 1 lh I 1 were dead or not nol if I 1 id it died when the bables were born but im lad ind I 1 came away when I 1 did and I 1 in at 1 I 11 she gave a faint shudder there at t alternative 1 lm I in glad ive lye sot a joa j and that I 1 can pay back that hundred dollars I 1 owe you I 1 ive ve had bail it quite a n while but ive kept it hoping yon you might find out where I 1 wa wax ard come to ire tre as you did and that we might have a chance to t ilk I 1 thought I 1 1 d I tell you how I 1 id it earned it and that be a littleproud little proud with ith me about it proud that I 1 could pay it back so soon she smiled a little over that it smile he had to turn abny froni front 1 I suppose be glad some day that it all happened ened that I 1 met you and load and had hail the babies even though ite ita all had to end eho she blind dered again like this it till he med vied to speak that her app apparent arnt calm waa was broken then with a frantic terror la in her 1 0 1 I presently she came eyes she begged him not to begged him to EU go away it he be had any mercy for her at all till quickly and without a word in a eort sort of duie due he be obeyed her the tardy winter morning looking through her grimy window found her tier hitting sitting there just as shed been when be he closed the door CHAPTER Frede frederic rices par tax two day days later rodney walked la in on frederica ederica IT at bIt fast alone Itel hello lol t frederica eald said holding out a hand to him but not riot rising juat just tn in time dont ring he mid sold quickly ive had all I 1 want my train got tn in an hour ago and I 1 had a try at tho the eta sta alan resta restaurant urano i we well I 1 pit it down dom anyway enid said frederica abe reached out a cool oft hand and laid told it on one of rod neye which rested limply on the table there wa was rather a long silence tea t ee condi per hap then how did you end out about rodney arced iel they were both too well accustomed actu to these telepathic shortcuts short hort cuts to take any y note of this one abed se been enthat that he knew just with her erst glance at him there in the doorway and colne thing a little and gentler than most of her about this ono on told hia him that ehe she did harriet a back dhe the aid said she got in day beford yesterday constance mid Ita wm ething to her about it thinking she he knew thought all along that you and ind I 1 knew too and then I 1 now how did yon you find end out about it roddy inho bo told you N one he eald said in a voice unnaturally level and dry 1 I went to ree the show on the recommendation of a country client and there ehe she was ins on the stage oh I 1 cried frederica a e muffled barely audible cry ct of passionate 8 sympathy ym then youve seen her tier on rf the stage talked with her 1 I dida t ask her to explain wild e ild rodney 1 I asked her to come home and cho she ob oh its wicked I 1 ehe she cried it its 8 the most abominably selfish thine thing I 1 ever heard oft of 1 I 1 pull up freddy I 1 be he said rather gently though for him there theres no good going on like that thal and besides you were mere ayling harriet arriet II would do anything in to the world orld for me well th theres erets nom something ething you can do youre you re the only person I 1 know who can her ifer answer r vos ras as to come around be hind hia his chair put bar cheek doan down beside hide haq 1 ami slid reach for hn 11 annl lets ret get away witty from this miserable table she the said come up to where I 1 live where wo we can bo be barely by ourselves then tell me about it in front of her boudoir fire are look took ing down on her aa as she pat sat in her flowered wing chair nn an enormously dis dl tended rug covered pillow beside her knots knets waiting for him to drop down doin on when ho be felt like it he began begun rather cautiously to tell her what he III tell yoi yo i the reason renon why ive lye come to you bo he bigan and then a on II 11 pee do ou n member m arly two year years ago tb thi nigh I 1 got wet coming here to dinner the night you were mere going to marry me oft off to her blone woodruff we had a long talk after afterward and you said speaking of the chances people took getting roar mar ried that it me you worried about but the girl whoever pho elie might be who married jue 11 the little gesture she made admit led the recollection but denied its relevancy kel evancy shed have eald said something to that effect but he prevented her no ho lie insisted I 1 it just jut talk there was mas something in it af tir dirward ward when wo me were til ngn ged two or three times you gave me tips about things an I 1 since we ve been married well somehow I 1 ve bad had the feeling that you were on her side hat that you saw things her way things that I 1 dida t see little things pho she protested lit tie ile tiny things that possibly matter things that any woman noman would woul 1 I bo be on another womans side aide as you say about but she contradicted this statement abonce at once oh I 1 did love her herl I 1 she said fiercely not just because ahe loved you but because I 1 thought she was altogether adorable I 1 help it and aud of course what makes me so perfectly furious now that she should have done a thing like this to YOW you all right he said never mind about eliat this Is what I 1 want you to do I 1 baut you to go to see her and I 1 N want ant you to ask her in the firs place to try to forgive me it hat for aorl I 1 frederica demanded 1 I m want ant yeu to tell her he went on that its impossible that she should be more borri horrified fed at the thing I 1 did than I 1 am myself I 1 want you to ask her whatever she thinks my deserts are to do just one thing for me and that Is to let nio me take her out of that perfectly hideous place I 1 dont ask anything else but that she can make any terms she likes she can live lye where or how she likes only not like that mayto ia it a deserved punishment but I 1 cant c nt tand idill it I 1 there was the crystallization of n what hat little thinking he bad had mantled to do la in the two purgatorial days bed spent in a down state hotel in the in of fight lug off the memory of the dull frozen fruzen agony hed seen in lose itose a face as he left her frederica naturally waa was mystified absurd of course the she said paid gently you done anything to roae I 1 j be forgiven for IOU boull 11 just have to take my word for it he said shortly im rin not rating hut tint doddy she persisted you cju ajust u be searl bla ob its no wonder I 1 doure all worn out yen yea look as it you slept for eights what if aou ou were angry and lost your temper rind hurt her feelings heavens Heaven st I 1 you entitled to after what shed done and when hen shed left you to find and it out like that 1 I tell you ou dont know the first thing about it 1 I dont suppose you beat her did youl it was too infuriating having him meek like this I 1 ills ilia reply was baily bai bar ly audible 1 I might better have d ian i it IL frederica sprang to ler er feet well then tell you I 1 I 1 sk s eald sold 1 I won t so go to her ill ni go it if you it 11 give me A fren I 1 land and if let ma ro fa I 1 1 her whet I 1 think of what aldi done and the way the she a 3 done it not letting yon you know not a 0 t g giving IT in you on a chance aut B ut go and ber her to forgive yon you I 1 wont all right he paid said dully eully youre within your rights right ji ot course 1 the miserable scene dragged on a little longer frederica cried tried and pleaded and stormed without moving him at all he seemed distressed at her grief urged her ber to treat his request as if he made it but he lie explained nothing answered none of her questions it was an enormous relief to her and ale fancied to him for that when after a premonitory knock at the doer door harriet walked in upon them the situation dida didn need ranch much cx ex pla ining but frederica gummed summed it up while the other others exchanged their coolly friendly gratings gme tings with the statement rod a been trying to get me to fo lo to rose roso and bay say mat it aa all his ills fault faut and I 1 wont on V chy by not said harriet harriel hat earthly thing does it ma matter ater whose fault it Is ho lie can have it bis his fault it if he likes you know it frederica muttered rebelliously harritt seated herself delicately and in one of the curving ends of a little N victorian Ictor lan sofa and stretched her slim legs out in front of her tier certainly I 1 don t care whose hose fault it Is she bat bald lou biner get ona a where here by to decide a ille that hat im interested in la Is what can be dono done about it its not a cry lery nice nobody likes it at least I 1 1 should think elloso mould be pretty sick of it ty by now she the ina ani have bet bean n crazy for a betase career but bhea hot probably seui that tho the chorus of a third rate comedy won uon t take her an where liere the things simply a mess ineis ine is and the lie only thing to do la Is to clear it up as air quickly and na lis becenti de centi as we me can and it can be cleared up it if e go at it right of ourse the thing to do Is to get her tier out of that horrible ilace I 1 lace as soua soa so a an a wo so can and anil I 1 suppose the best way of doing it will be to get lur into elge 1 take herronn hei donn to rew new |