Show P A e RAD jt by ea evelyn velyn campbell copyright by evelyn campbell service CHAPTER VII 12 lovea loves labyrinths her step lagged a little but she site iffeney Miff t ened as aie he entered the hotel the L levator ele vitor was directly before her and he could hive haw gained it with a few steps she turned howen however er and walked toward the grilled enclosure where a gentleman a lesser gentleman with other it 1 amer figures was in stalled in tilt flat curious haughty si sl leuce lence tint thit Is lecul ir to high priced hotels I 1 inda s walls walk w is one of the rarest qi 91 sl st e possessed she was so till and slender slen ler that ste seemed al at ways about to bend and break under the demind of effort her wr aps were always slipping slip ting from her shoulders but never neer did her tier eyes half veiled ai at feared to see nothing but she had seen d stir fly the I 1 ks that followed and greeted her the bellboys on their bench eie ere W witching itching I 1 er furtively the second gentleman at the desk le ined on his pointed elbow to listen to her and w witch itch all of them saw tl e new expensive hat and the pearls slipping from her rich fur my letters please linda s voice was sweet and very low she spoke as little as possible to such persons as jhc thc these se 11 ile e letters were in her hand and an d she was turning away before she said thank you in a negligent toi e as though that grilled in group had no meaning for her they looked after her hopelessly she seemed rich and pros erous tie tl e clerk looked doubtfully at a letter that I 1 ad been separated from the rest finlly he tucked it away in a private pigeon hole it would not do to make a in stake in tl 11 is case but linda knew nothing of this she passed on to the elevator leisurely es ex amiling the letters in her hand linda no longer occupied cousin amy s house when the family were ariy the alisco of her marriage was a hilf told secret discreetly ignored by her relatives wt ose number seemed to have haie dwindled perceptibly it 1 14 one tl it ng to chaperon and champion a young gri g rl very beautiful and epithet leally poor but quite another to be responsible for a widow however young and beautiful whose affairs to say the least are in a muddle and deeply mysterious n amy I 1 alston told some of tl tie e oti otters ers that she always felt a cold chill down her back when she site beard I 1 lindas indas voice in the hill so it hip bened tint thit by degrees her own voice becque so cold so brief that linda not riot ing to give pain refrained al at most wholly from froin communication with her sensitive sen relations she had bad plenty of friends any moman free and pretty dressing more tl it an well and seen at her best every wl ere is bound to have haie friends and invitations imitations only to linda the people who bo took her about and entertained I 1 I 1 er seemed oddly less like friends tl if an adders ii les it was a curious feeling that had groan gro N n up n her lately she he was nas on guard always stand a ng off a little wl ie she sin sm led and talked softly it wis as if a hundred pairs of eyes were seel li it for a crack in her aimor almor which she was determined they sl st uld not find F for or a long time she had had q asplend d tin thi e she was not in the strict sense of the w id a worn wom n of s b clety hither rither she took blat wl at she wanted anted of soc ety and let the rest tl ti P bores it tie e lull parties the commit tees alone tl TI e people she was seen fill were usually 1 cl I aming trout tl some were a little vague about tien selves biere tl ere were abw avs plenty of h ats st libed hv bv the eise tl it e grace of I 1 in 11 f an I 1 her friends ml 1 0 were quite reida t i iy ay for the party I 1 I 1 art ad p sizzled tl 0 ei i all thit th it she had not married ag in I 1 here r rust have been plenty of men to rainy her rich dair I 1 lie le n en ell wl 0 could 1 bave ae I 1 er pr tl ti e setting she deserved but I 1 inda v VMS is f antly ai ause I 1 1 3 v tl if is won der T ilk of n arriage always ali dys brodi I 1 p iglai fly before her the vision of the ath of I 1 er tm twenty enty four hour one in n for it hid bid lasted no longer thin that thit she knew but after she met brim urlin anstey ansley she I 1 lein e in to tl it ink of in irria 1 e a again aln not ot ct asci tl couoh MarrI marriage ae as a form or carem 1 y did lid not enter her mind sl SIP e wo boll ill have haie elected tie if e alei i ae i in its I 1 trill if her consel us self had not been druger by the art ful s ib conscious atiat tl at knows so well liow how to take its victims unaware I 1 linda inda could have hane argued herself om of lov with a poor y ung ling in n if lov I 1 id not st len tell upon I 1 er and blinde I 1 lei eves ekes mith beauty and silenced hir hi r lips and deafened deif ened her with di dreams earns sl 11 e never nen er th t ht of lage I 1 ut she I 1 ean to chafe at the life she led the I 1 i n isome roon s she occupied strewn with costly trifles prisoner her tier restlessness she site wearied of going ging bout about and wearied of her tier keowns and th meal ment ingless ingles jargon I 1 her frien Is sl 1 I e begin to think of quiet cool coot sim situ ile ie si ts is to visualize whit she I 1 a never neer known she f und herself rei en ell I 1 ering every step t f that pit pil grinage mile with alth brim anstey ansley I 1 ii i tl it at snowy dusk an I 1 taste little houber u with gieir I 1 li i ps ane an red fires she hould arouse hersil from these mem mein ries try to elude I 1 leu et i try to hate them but it was as no ito use time and ime line i ga n tl if ey returned each time wilh tl tie e umble tumble of peace sl ste e dressed herself carefully for that first dinner with brian it would be simple because he must not spend much money entertaining her she contently cont antly remembered that he was poor she chose the plainest frock in her wardrobe and had f artune to look more lovely than ever against its plainness her beauty shone she had not quite lost that faint exah geri gention tion of every point that women always found a flaw at the last mo ment she flung the double strand of pearls aurtney roth s sardonic pres ent around her neck ste st e was trans formed at once to splendor but when she saw tl it is she tore them roughly off and tossed them into their case she wanted nothing like that to have a place in their hour she knew from the first that brian adored her and so sweet was tto tt A knowledge of tl ti Is unaccustomed gift that she yielded deliberately closing her eyes to consequences she thought she could draw back in time one I 1 there was a party with the ren Pen tresses and she watched the pretty blond girl grow pale pate and flush under a word or look from brian who was entirely unconscious of it all sl SI e loves him thought linda poor little thing I 1 sl SI e has everything she has done everything to please and I 1 who have done nothing I 1 ste sl e felt suddenly humbled Jand J and ashan ed she ought to go away and rd because she has money linda finished as frankly as he leave these two alone they would come to togeal etl er as naturally as two birds alone in the sky pretty aren I 1 they said simon fentress at her ear he was watching brian and daisy with a rather sar donic smile that he afterward turned upon linda youth Is always charming she said how those beady black eyes looked into her now ow you are young too only a couple of years older than daisy and yet iou are not youthful you ve been taught things my gir will never know because sl st e has money linda fill dished as frankly as be he not entirely it isn t in the child to know she likes muslin frocks his ills eyes traveled over her long grace ful fill fig figure ure how shortsighted nature Is I 1 if sou had been born my dau daugh h ter his kindling face bold with the light of adventure said what a splenda d life tl ey would have had hadi I 1 what worlds would have been con you think I 1 hate muslin gowns downsi said linda with her tier faint smile unless they hey are made in paris you think I 1 could not endure pov erty she persisted he ile looked at I 1 er a lon long time it would be a great waste my y dear he said gently as if he was sorry tor for her senator converse it d d not remain in ignorance of all tl is he ile fell at first into tie tl e natural error of imagining that thit I 1 in in was wis attracted by the of the I 1 entress millions but this im 1 pres slon did not survive watching her dance mith brian anstey ansley one night TO BE CONTINUED |