Show I 1 R U 8 L E a by H III CS LU I 1 if L I 1 A 1 C ben ames william CHAPTER XI 23 mrs sentry went to see her hus band on the morning after the jury s verdict was returned phil drove her to the prison but she would not let him come in not this time phil I 1 she said and she was smiling something in her eyes which he had never seen there before not this time she repeated this is for arthur and me A reunion phil and she got out of the car and walked almost proudly toward the forbidding door and phil watched her wondering at the change in her in these recent days she seemed increasingly frail but also she seemed somehow younger and there was a quality in her counte nance he found it hard to name a sort of translucent clarity as though all confusion was gone out of her and her heart was quite serene when she came out not long aft er she wore radiance she got in beside phil and she leaned sudden ly and kissed him and said you look as he did when we were young phil he set the car in motion how is he hea he asked I 1 left him fine he nodded did you make any about the appeal or any thing or about buying out mr lor an aaa she even laughed a little she said heavens not no we just talked about each other and after a mo ment she told him phil every thing he said about what happened that night was true I 1 believe him he assented but of course what we believe doesn doean t help much it helps me much she con fessel it helps me so long as I 1 know I 1 can manage not to mind so much what others believe what ever happens they came home thus and went up to see barbara and barbara watched her mother and seemed in some way to be better suddenly and the days went on it was mr sentry himself who presently assumed the decisive voice in the matter of buying the business from mr loran phil philand and his mother were still uncertain what to do about this when mr hare came to the house a few days after the trial ended to say that mr sen try had sent for him had discussed the question I 1 told him mr loran s tion he explained he feels that the valuation alua tion set up by mr loran is too low and so he believes it is better to buy than to sell mrs sentry said what about payment I 1 should not care to buy on anything but a cash basis hare assured her that can be managed I 1 went over it with mr sentry and later with his brokers hi his s investments are in good shape 6 I 1 prefer not to see mr loran myself mrs sentry remarked it would be painful to him and to me of course hare agreed but I 1 can handle the whole transaction under proper powers she asked after a moment has mr sentry talked with mr falkman about the appeal no falkman is to see him to morrow morning I 1 mr falkman was here yester day she explained to discuss it with me to explain some of the things and she said I 1 did not always understand him the cal points I 1 told him we wished to take every proper measure but I 1 warned him tha we did not want any tricks evasions miserable meaningless delays she asked suddenly what do you think dean hare hesitated well its it s ble he might get a new trial do you feel that mr sentry had a fair trials trial the lawyer hesitated I 1 rn not experienced in criminal cases he said evasively mrs sentry nodded I 1 see you think he did phil urged but mr hare an other ury jury might believe father might believe it was an accident then he was as silenced for the post man had just rung and nellie came in with letters for mrs sentry she glanced at the topmost ohi ohl she whispered it s from mary maryl and instantly her eyes were fountains dean hare rose quickly to depart phil went with him to the door and he asked the older man what do you think about an appeal sir hon estly hare said after a moment well phil there s always a chance falk ran is clever but I 1 doubt if a new trial would help unless some new evidence turns up A tion by the governor that s a more hopeful possibility later on and he departed and phil went back to his mother and mary s let ter since marys mary s marriage to jimmy endle they had had news of her only indirectly through mrs harry murr who knew everything and through that encounter with mrs doran loran endle s sister phil was bit ter toward mary but mrs sentry would hear no word of criticism you austn t blame her phil she insisted when a ship is wrecked people have to snatch at anything 1 I now he came back into the living room to find his mother sitting with streaming eyes the letter in her nerveless hands she extended it to him and he read it in slow rising rage dear mother and the rest ot of yo i well I 1 ve been following the fortunes of the grand old family name in the home papers stout fellows all ot of you to st at ck with the sinking ship but even a rat knows enough to leave on such oc cassons I 1 in the rail rati sorry but there it is I 1 ive ve got a sinking ship on my own bands hands but I 1 there here will be plenty ot of sal vage after we left home we honey mooned as far as new york and by that time beng be ng mutually bored were ready for company picked up halt half a 8 dozen oh ob uch congenial shirts spir ts and a hundred cases of atto d tto tried jamaica he read these lines two or three times and some faint understand ing came to him he said half re tenting you want to keep if it yes going to write to her I 1 just a line she said just three or four words that s all she wants all I 1 can give he left her with the letter in her hands smoothing it across her knees stroking it almost caressing ly As he passed through the hall he heard her deep inhalation as though it were hard to fill her ach ing empty lungs mary was gone he thought lost to them and barbara she no longer showed a temperature every night and morning yet except when dan was with her she seemed weak and weaker as though her life were draining slowly away phil went up to her now he found her lying relaxed flat on her back her legs straight her hands at her sides and near her head the clock ticked ticked the room was very still and phil looked at her and thought she was asleep and then she spoke as she some times did in her sleep in almost natural tones bhe murmured bite off my tongue phil remembering doctor main ton s instructions asked softly why barb he came near her sat close beside her I 1 won t tell she murmured I 1 won t tell I 1 bite off my tongue I 1 you don t have to tell anything barb dear she said in a dull fashion I 1 don t want to go to sleep I 1 dream if I 1 sleep I 1 m not asleep not asleep no they can t make me tell of course not barb she whispered eyes tight closed but I 1 saw him saw him that night down there mr flood knows I 1 know and he U 11 try to make me tell it s all right barb I 1 can t tell it if I 1 can talk can 19 she smiled in a sly secret fashion fashio n asleep barb he was leaning near close beside her close above her close protecting her it s all right barb no she said no I 1 in think ing what are you thinking 7 op if 1 I can t talk they can t make me can they because if I 1 did it 0 1 1 at as she murmured bite off my tongue 11 havana bermuda and other places too numerous to ment on finally drifted back here to get rid ot of our sea legs and pink elephants and red wh te and blue mice since then I 1 ve had some trouble find ing places to lay my head my own bed be ng so often occue ed but florida has decided to go after the divorce e trade in a big way so I 1 won t even ha have ve to go to reno its it s hot here already but I 1 can stand it till my sentence is served the lawyers say ill I 1 U get about a thousand dollars a month and found and I 1 ve got another place in sight fine old cas family from rio the boys boy s only twenty four with no mother to guide him and he can t resist my rapidly ma turing charms he counts his beet beef crit I 1 am told in terms of light years we shall shell probably live on the riviera give my dearest love th father its it s through him I 1 have met so many charm ing people your mary phil read and his face was like ice he crumpled the stiff note paper in his hand and strode toward the fireplace without looking at his mother without speaking but she said quickly no phil you didn dian t read the last page phil looked at her then saw again her ler tears but he saw too that they were not tears of anger nor even of hopeless lo grief and he smoothed out the wrinkled paper and read on he the other side like a belated post script mother when I 1 was I 1 atle and terribly hurt I 1 d run to you crying and kick your shins awfully and then feel better remember you never seemed to mind seemed to understand would kill him and he didn dian t do it phil phill phil touched her brow to see whether she was feverish her head was cool yet at his touch she moved convulsively like one awakening her eyes opened and she saw him lum and she said quickly I 1 wasn gasn t talk mg ing I 1 wasn gasn t talking I 1 can t talk you re talking now barb you re all right oh ohl she whispered was I 1 yes he assured her you were talking as well a as s anyone I 1 I 1 heard myself she admitted and she said phil I 1 m better I 1 I 1 m better phill you re fine he told her his own heart was pounding he was yas glad for the drawn shades the shad aws in the room so that she could not see his excitement you can talk barb you can talk now yes she said wonderingly I 1 can talk why I 1 am talking phil I 1 heard myself talking in my sleep I 1 you re not asleep now you re talking now his pulse raced with the thought she is better better I 1 can talk to mother she cried phil I 1 can talk to mother yes to anyone to linda yes of course to dan yes to dan he saw color suffuse her white cheek to dan she whispered to dan to dan murmuring her eyes drooping dan dan and quietly she was as asleep leep phil saw her breathing ease to regular and even beat when he could leave without awakening her he went in haste to tell his mother and to telephone jubilantly to doctor mainton the doctor was delighted fine V he cried she may sleep twelve hours twenty four but she U 11 wake as good as new he was almost right barbara slept till noon next day and when she woke she spoke easily and naturally on the second day she was able to sit up on the third to get out of bed but before that another thing had hap happened p ened to bring them something like peace mr falkman saw his client mr sentry directed him not to appeal after it had been determined to buy out mr loran phil accepted the decision almost gratefully the dissolution of the partnership was arrange arranged d to take place as of april 1 during the interval before that date phil went daily to the of fice mr loran as he had ex pecked received him with restraint phil saw that loran too had suf from the ordeal they had all endured and when their first talk of business matters was done the boy said apologetically mr loran I 1 want to tell you mother and I 1 didn dian t know what was going to happen at the trial I 1 mean about mentioning you I 1 forget it mr loran told him damned lawyer s trick that s all to throw mud at random and try to make it stick falkman knew that just dragging a dead herring across the trail and he said I 1 m going out of town tomorrow be back april 1 to clean up the whole thing here you can be learning the ropes and of course miss randall has been here nearly twenty years she could run the business alone if you let her you U 11 get along phil had his misgivings but when after the first of april he took full charge matters went to his own surprise very well on routine mat miss randall could advise him and the momentum of the business would carry it for a while there were resignations but none that were sufficiently important to cripple the organization and those major decisions in which a mistake in judgment might have proved cos costly aly did not crowd upon him but despite this his world was sud suddenly denly awry from the day the papers had been signed he saw ht tie tle of linda she sometimes came to the house and he had glimpses of her but she never stayed long and phil missed her and one evening told her so I 1 don t blame you of course he said reluctantly after all you ve given us a lot of time been wonderfully generous I 1 can understand that you have other things she smiled secretly I 1 m very busy just now phil she admitted he had during april other con cerns three times he saw his fa ther going to the state prison with mr hare it was necessary for phil to acquaint himself with every de tail of the family affairs in lieu of a will mr sentry made deeds of gift and arrangements were concerted to meet gift or inheritance taxes without a sacrifice of assets also he set up a trust for mr wines the father of the dead girl so that the old man s remaining years of life might be secure at the end of the third occasion all was done and then under the guard guards s eye phil and his father bade each other good by TO BE CONTINUED |