Show v a an ar n r sea J s A Julia McFarlane l whose husband Richard Richard Rich Rich- p tt ard disappeared In World War I leaving leav leave ing her to raise two children Ric and Jill Is startled when 25 years cars later during the second war he returns and tells her he Is using the name of Captain Mackey l Ric marries Sandra Calvert a divorcee whom Richard knew to be of I bad reputation She arrives at the farm to live five and recognizes a picture of Richard Rich fAY ard as that of Mackey She and Jill quarrel and she demands That t night Captain Mackey arrives telling I f J I Jill who docs does not know who he Is that he Is taking Sandra to Ric He lie I tells tens Jill JIU about the daughter dau he lost and she tells him about her father ed Sandra refuses to leave with him ink CHAPTER All AIl right she snapped harshly the payoff There is one to z here I j suppose You didn't come Q a out of the goodness of your heart Rod Mackey and and- He looked at Jill and smiled one- one nl ur She doesn't trust me he Hof drawled She thinks theres there's a aI I 1 catch in it Maybe she has had som disillusioning disillusioning experiences Jill saga It Ity It Ity I y Falb could be that she hasn't always known the right sort of people l itt fad Never mind the kind of people t o l Ive I've known Sandra cried hoarse hoarse- tad ly At least no tricky heel has ever fooled me yet Just tell me methe drik the gag that's all I hate blunders blundering blunder blunder- s Z ing lag into things I suppose the Gestapo es- es BOO tapo has been abroad and right now is the dramatic moment to produce produce produce pro pro- duce the fatal papers If you'd only given me one more day Rod Mackey I lOne One more day and a very elaborate military reputation might have gone crashing down g in some very dirty ruins But you knew I wouldn't have had time to prove anything didn't you You worked fast What on earth is she talking about Jill demanded of the captain caples captain cap cap- tain her eyes bewildered les uShe's displeased with me Jill he be said blandly I happen to know a few facts about a divorce our Sandra once got in a little smelly town called Piedras Negras in Mexico Back in 1927 I think wasn't it Sandra Or was it 29 i She bought the divorce cheap the way you buy things in Mexico l cheap stuff you wouldn't look at in inthis inthis this country and she didn't look too carefully at the divorce And of course after she married Lieutenant Colonel Calvert and then collected Utah Ufa considerable alimony from him and now that she's married into the Mc- Mc L 1 Farlane anane family shed a a nice to 10 o forget the divorce and never hear anything about it ag again ln I You mean the mean the divorce wasn't ess any good Jill asked But if it I wasn't wasn't- l. l He doesn't know a thing about lit fit it snapped Sandra Hes bluff bluff- ing Trying to force me to do what he wants me to do Unfortunately for you jOU my dear girl Im I'm not bluffing I have to quote you the fatal papers Now if you dont don't mind Id I'd like to get start start- ed Im I'm still in the army Im I'm still under command And its it's getting late C All right Ill I'll go she said but buto o 0 not with you You can ta take e me as ase asfar e far as a bus station Well Vell you can relax now Jill Im I'm taking my obnoxious ob oh- 1 noxious person out of your house l. l You wont won't be degraded any more You You You-you you poor blind little fool r She whirled away and went pounding up the stairs Jill sat down abruptly She was feeling I weak and queer as though she had hai ha i just watched something die wish I you'd stay until Mother gets here she said faintly Shell SheIl be disappointed at not seeing you And And is is it true about Sandras Sandra's divorce divorce divorce di- di vorce That it wasn't legal or org gj g I j something i 4 Her name happens not to be bc Sandra the Captain said Her name was Hattie when she was married to a boy named Bordine Bordine Bort Bor- Bor j t dine in Kearney Nebraska Then she tired of him and got into burlesque burlesque burlesque bur bur- lesque and after that into vaudeville vaudeville vaude vaude- ville and a few years ago she Ml fr showed up in San Antonio and attracted attracted attracted at- at a young Major Calvert who wanted to marry her So she got this quick divorce in Mexico and didn't bother to discover that the thela la official who signed it hadn't taken his oath of office yet or remember that shed she'd been married as Hattie s and divorced as Sandra Laverne mere Laverne-mere mere legal details but quite important I Im glad Jill said Its ts t's anasty a anasty anasty nasty thing to say but Im I'm glad Will you give your mother a message from me Jill Of course But they should be here any minute A soldiers soldier's time is not his own you know J. But you can tell your 0 mother not to worry about Rich Rich- rJ ard I think hell he'll come through this P business all right I think he has hasgood hasgood good stuff in him in fact Im I'm sure of it Hes He's his mothers mother's son An Old Beau Beall 1 Came to Call Ill l ll tell her But what what shaIl shall I Itell Itell Itell tell Mother about you He smiled slowly and that same look of far places s of things long remembered remembered re re- s o of f bewildered loss came td again into his s eyes He reached for Jill's hand and held it Just tell her that an old beau i came to call he said striving for lightness One of her dangling adorers she adorers she used to collect them the way a honeysuckle gathers bees J Just st remember that Jill if she gets tough on you You tell her that one of her last lovers came came- in fact I believe I was the last Before my father of course Ill I'll tell teU her Captain Mackey Ill I'll tell her that her last lover came to call And I do thank you for concerning yourself with our family problems I know that my mother would like to thank you too Just give me a kind thought now and then will you Jill Ill I'll need it where Im I'm going He heard Sandras Sandra's feet on the stairs and bent down quickly a and d kissed Jill on the cheek for my own daughter daugh daugh- ter he said huskily Jill stretched herself quickly on tiptoe and drew his head down and kissed him on the mouth And that she whispered is for m my mr r father Good-by Good Captain Mackey Sandra Sandra me dragging her bag down In looking king small and somehow Ii It I I And that that she she wl whispered is is for my father frightened She said Well Vell goodby goodby goodby good- good by Jill I suppose this makes you very happy indeed No Jill shook her head No It It makes me a little sick Sandra if you want the truth I dont don't like you very much but I hate having it end this way Good Goodluck Goodluck Goodluck luck anyway And good-by good again Captain Mackey I may write to you soon soon soon-I I may have something to tell you Sandra said grimly Captain Mackey picked up her bag and took her arm brusquely and hurried her out At the door he lie turned and looked back at Jill a along along along long look Then he flicked a little salute the same gesture that Spang made made and and went out Jill sat limp and shaken when the car had roared off down the drive She wondered what would happen to Sandra now But women like Sandra always got along They knew their way about She stopped bothering about Sandra then for Daves Dave's car had turned in at the gate and she heard voices voices two two mens men's voices voices voices-it it couldn't be beShe beShe beShe be- be She flew to the door and across the porch They were getting out of the car an and Dave grinned at her herand herand herand and said Heres a dirty looking tramp we found downtown Jill He was asking the police how to get out outto outto outto to Buzzards Buzzard's Hill so we just brought him along Ever seen him before Reunion TU With Spang Gordon Jill gave a choking little cry and flung herself at ut the thc tall figure in the thc greasy flying jacket Spang I He caught her and held her tight He kissed her gravely on the mouth Pure dumb luck he said Just a routine flight flight my my navigator tor had to get some more hours in inthe inthe inthe the air and right over ovet this town the doggone oil line busted Glad to see me Jill Oh Spang I She shivered hap hap- You did come back How about turning the man loose so he can wash his face Dave teased Youve got grease on your chin and your nose too Jill I know Spang must be tired and hungry Julia said Ill see sec what can be found in to the kitchen Get some clean towels Jill Jill led Spang upstairs to the bathroom Sorry Im I'm such a mess he said pulling off the oil soaked flight jacket but I worked an hour on that line before I gave up and decided decided decided de de- de- de we had to wire for some spare parts parts lucky lucky they had that little landing field out there wasn't it Awfully lucky you didn't have some spare parts along too wasn't it Spang Or you'd have had to fix whatever it was and go on Be noon tomorrow or maybe lat lat- lat lat- er cr before we wc can finish repairs Depends De De- Depends on how fast they get the stuff to us So I divided the gang up I as watches for the plane and the I Irest rest of us struck out for town and just dust as I was asking that sleepy cop down there there- thereon on the main corner where a place called Buzzards Buzzard's Hill was there were your mother and Mr Patterson pulling out of a parking parking parking park park- ing spot and the cop took me over overto overto overto to the car Talk about my lucky star Here I am And we have twelve hours anyway any way Jill said happily Come Com Comedown Comedown down when youre you're ready Spang Mothers Mother's getting something for you to eat They sat around the kitchen ta table table table ta- ta ble while Spang devoured scrambled scrambled scrambled scram scram- bled eggs and warmed-over warmed biscuit If the CO could see me now he said hed swear I smashed that oil line on purpose Hed He'd give me a along along along long lecture and remind me of those fellows on the other side who bring the big babies in on two engines and andone andone andone one of those on fire and all that stuff You didn't have the English Channel under you Dave said Oh Id I'd put up the routine ment I was trying to save an expensive expensive expensive ex ex- ex- ex pensive plane and an expensively trained crew for the air corps They concede that youre you're right usually but they have to get you on the defensive defensive defensive de de- de- de first just to see if youve you've got the spirit to defend your decisions decisions decisions deci deci- probably Is there one more drop of coffee in that pot Mrs McFarlane McFarlane Mc- Mc Farlane Ill squeeze the handle hard Julia smiled at him Then she looked unhappily at Jill Were frightfully rude she said Jill we should have asked Sandra to come down Sandra Spang repeated sharp sharp- ly Sandra Calvert She's here She was married to Richard Julia said She came today or I Iguess Iguess Iguess guess its it's yesterday now Ric was shipped off somewhere and he sent her home to us Spang was looking at Jill with a troubled face but Jill had jump jumped d dup up and sto stood d frozen with tion Dooley I she cried I was so excited over seeing Spang that I forgot to tell you youl Sandras Sandra's gone Gone Julia repeated Jill you weren't you weren't-you you didn't didn't- It didn't-It I uI didn't do anything Jill insist insist- ed She got rather nasty after you left and we e exchanged ged a few Jew acm acid remarKS out CUt nothing was se se- se- se rious Then suddenly this officer came for her He is a captain at Ridley Field Dooley and it seems he knew Sandra in Hawaii and other places I met him when I went down there He said he used to to know you Dooley His name was Captain Roger Mackey l Julia gripped the edge of the ta ta- ta ble She would not let her legs crumple under her she would not let herself cry out Spang said Old Cyanide So he came here did he You know now him do you Dave asked moving around the table to draw the younger eyes away from Julia while she got hold of herself Yes sir he was a personnel officer officer officer of of- at the field Not very popular with the men when I was there He said at first he was going to take Sandra to Ric Jill explained and then when she refused to go he sprang some Mexican divorce shed she'd had on her her it it seems seams seems Ric was washer washer washer her third husband Dooley Dooley and and this Captain Mackey said he was quite sure the Mexican divorce wasn't legal and that she wasn't married to Ric at all She was pretty badly badly badly bad bad- ly frightened I could see She tried to keep Captain Mackey quiet with some vague threats or other but he made her go Im I'm so sorry you weren't here Dooley He said he was an old beau of yours She said anxiously Arent you pleased Dooley I thought you'd be relieved to find she wasn't here any more Yes Im I'm pleased she said faintly but Im I'm sorry Sandra went away when I was not here at least to say good good by Odd that Mackey concerned himself ab about ut Ric Spang said May be of course that he was somehow involved with the Calvert woman Dooley Receives v vA v vA A Message e 1 Oh no Jill protested quickly He isn't that sort of person Spang Not that sort at all aU And Sandra hated him She told me so She didn't really want to go with him I got the feeling that she was somehow somehow somehow some some- how scared I think he knew more about her than he told me He Hc left lefta a message for you Dooley He Hc said to tell you you that Um you were weren't t to worry worry about Ric that Ric was going to tobe tobe tobe be all right He talked about his daughter that he hc lost and I told him about my father and ana then he said saidI I was to tell you that your last lover came Dooley He said he was quite sure he was the last- last before my father of course Dooley Dooley Dooley Doo Doo- ley you look funny Dont Don't you feel well Too many things have happened to Dooley all at once Dave said patting her shoulder TO BE CONTINUED |