Show blaak ahee S ri 0 19 U BY BEATRICE illustrations by irwin myers copyright by hughes masela co service CHAPTER 11 II continued what I 1 wanted what I 1 was prepared to pull the ship in pieces to gets get was another talk with via ala I 1 knew her mother would nose us ns out before long iong still the dining saloon between meals Is a rood good place tor for quiet on almost any ship and I 1 hoped looped she would be there she was lingering over the last ot of her breakfast alone at her table I 1 ordered breakfast and asked if I 1 might joint her she bowed her head a little coolly and I 1 remembered that one could see passing 11 figures ures on deck from the open scuttles above above us you curse gin slang lf if you were a man like ilka others but if I 1 had been extraordinary enough to dislike jinny I 1 should certainly have cursed her then in that she had shorn away a few of my inestimable moments wasted them for me with the necessity of making explanations I 1 dont know wha what t we talked about at first it was like orchard robbing when you yon run from one tree to another plucking eating cramming hurrying intent on getting as much as you can cali in the few minutes before you yon are found and chased out by the farmer with the cart whip you hardly ha rd know what you have had in the end only that it has been fun by and by all the stewards had breakfast and were gone and somebody was dusting at the far end of the saloon and bells sounded of which we took no note we were too busy orchard robbing I 1 remember about this time that we began to tell each other the story of our lives pla had got to the diamond bracelet and the day she rode for it and won it on randwick bandwick Ran dwick race course and an interesting te incident that had the prince of wales in it when stid suddenly denly she checked herself and said its all such tosh it you live a real life tell we ae some secrets and adventures in new guinea now I 1 dont know or perhaps I 1 ao 0 what had helped tier her to read me as she did but it Is a fact that while she was talking something that was both a secret and an adventure and a bl big one of both kinds had been floating about in my consciousness I 1 had never spoken of it never hinted it to a soul it was my chief and almost only reason for burying myself on the wild west coast as a trader beyond call of civilization and it night be in the end the means of settin setting me tree free to choose between the wild life and the tame to choose indeed between any and all of the goods of this pur world I 1 bad been sitting on the secret with the persistency of a wild fowl on an egg and now in an instant behold it discovered given over to the girl whom I 1 had not yet known forty eight hours 1 there Is an adventure I 1 said glancing about the emptied silent saloon ive never told anyone pla nodded as if to say of course not till I 1 came it was amazing how we talked without words that morning on the sea ive explored a bit I 1 went on not much it takes money but I 1 know something there was an expedition starve starved d out years ago between two unknown rivers and just as it had to turn back they saw something wonderful it was so wonderful that the leader of the expedition just looked at it and came away and never said a word to anyone lils liis mate died on the way back but he be always meant to go back ai soon boon as he could get the money to t fit t out again because he knew there might be a fortune in it it well he never did he died too does every one die dia in pa papua pua cut to pla well it exactly a sanatorium outback but the towns never mind about the towns tell me the secret did your friend w who ho died give it to you no he left it to the woman he had been engaged to only she a she lie died no she was dead when he left it to her and I 1 find out anything about her people and his diary was in my hands so I 1 simply kept it partly because I 1 suppose anyone would believe it but myself and partly because I 1 going to have anyone else trying no he be had no 1 relations either 1 does nobody it if we have we dont tell about lem em either too bad or too good it you understand me well but blit the secret what was it I 1 looked round again before speak tot iaz almost I 1 thought I 1 heard beard the tramp of feet but that was not likely no one came there at that hour of the day I 1 was going on when pla jumped out of her seat as if a bucket of water had been poured over her and wi without phout a word bolted up the wide staircase her flying heels disappeared on decks deck just at the moment when a stately procession through some unknown ships alleyway entered the saloon the captain the purser the doctor the chief steward all in white all sparkling in their several degrees with gold buttons gold stripes gold old epaulettes epaul ettes gold cap bands eleven eleen inspection nothing lessl less I 1 gosh I 1 I 1 murmured collecting myself and standing Dg up the captain paused gave me a kindly nod and asked me if I 1 was none the worse for yesterdays adventure said one or two polite things and passed on they were all gone lc in a minute and I 1 had time to recollect myself and bless the ready ears of pla laurier I 1 did not cot go out on deck I 1 did not want to what I 1 wanted was to be alone and remember every little thins thing she had said done and looked in that amazing two hours it was imps 4 1 1 1 il vay but the secret what was it sible that pla should have fallen in love with me impossible I 1 kept telling myself fiercely A girl like that a girl who had the world at her feet a girl brought up well but it if she were not in love a girl brought up like that what had she been doing flirting outrageously with a man site she know anything about a man of whom her family certainly disapproved it she were not in love with me I 1 was bound to suppose that this sort of thing was her usual habit that she would dodge away from tier her people to carry on below decks with anyone and every one there was no getting away from it if I 1 were not especially favored then lovely face pure eyes never on earth had lied as did the face the eyes of pla pia laurier Laur ler after all after all that plunge yesterday the sharks I 1 did not want xo shake hands with myself over an exploit that was nothing at all cona compared pared to the things one had had to do as a matter of routine day by day during the not yet forgotten great war still I 1 could not deny that it might have looked well to a girl who know anything about battlefields tle fields certainly jinny cr sky and se sea pill pule blu blue with a laugh in the heart of it and a hint of coming dark that shadowed the laugh even as some subconscious thought of time that flies beauty that passes was wont to shadow the sun of jin nys merriment gulls screaming about the mast heads as they scream at break of even who knows why in line fine my last day almost done my aay voyage over all but the night and a useless hour or two of early morning tor for we were not after all to run in a to thursday island a tender was to mai meet the ship and take the passengers off what had I 1 done where was the link that I 1 had sworn should bridge the space between via ilia Laur lers liti and mine somehow before I 1 left the ship the answer was nothing nowhere jinny and her crew had never left me alone from morning until now tile the two other girls had been pressed into service they with jinnys jinnis special posse of youthful admirers and lasts last never least gln gin sling herself had com bained to keep every moment occupied things had eaten minute by minute hour by hour into my precious afternoon until now it was near sunset and the west toward which we were running gateway of the old worlds east was red with the or of the last day pla pia and I 1 mi might lit ever know together there a man on the ship who did not envy me I 1 think tor for jinny made me tier her partner in every game and it if I 1 did not kiss her a dozen times or more behind funnels deck houses inside alleyways and down companions it was not because she did not give me fair chance of doing so I 1 suppose I 1 was freely credited with what I 1 did not take at any rate I 1 caught the st stinging IngIn tall of a joke or two while passing the smoke room windows on one of jinnys jinnis wild ploys she may have been touched also at all events she paused and with a self possession I 1 had not thou thought glit to be in her faced me and asked straight out why dont you like me ur mr MI amory but of course I 1 do I 1 answered her you dont she stated coolly not after saving my life and all liking I 1 said no I 1 dont like you yon if I 1 saw more of you I 1 should love you but liking another thing jinny puzzled this out she was not used to subtleties but she phe could jump to conclusions with fearsome swiftness and she jumped now 1 I know what you mean by love she said and suddenly coarsely she turned and spat into the water do you know she said and she sha turned so that I 1 could see her face the birdlike bird like ilke eyes gold eyes rimmed with dark the desirous beautiful mouth the circling hair ido do you know what the square emerald ring on pla Laur lers hand Is ring I 1 said stupidly most men notice rings scarce at all I 1 remembered seeing jewels on plas tanned brown satin wrist or was it on the fingers with the dainty white V marks marka between where the sun had spared to strike do you know who set that fashion 1 I know it was a fashion I 1 answered still hopelessly at sea it was princess mary when sho she got engaged all the smart girls have wanted square emeralds ever since smoke that she whirled one of her dancer whirls and left me come on girls I 1 heard beard her crying down the deck got get the gramophone going again nother dance drink hearty well soon be dead so little did I 1 understand what she meant that I 1 was conscious at first only of relief she bad let me go I 1 could hunt up pia laurier Laur ler who had not been visible all afternoon pa part rt of my coinage of golden hours was still unspent I 1 must husband it uso usa it wisely pla pia jinny I 1 was hurrying toward the music room an excellent strategic point tor for viewing the main comp companion arilon and the decks when the full meaning of jin nys remarks and of tier her fierce smoke that broke on me princess mary had fancied a square emerald for an engagement ring princess mary alary had made square emerald engagement engage went rings popular with the sot set to which pla laurier belonged pla pia wore a square emerald ring i remembered fatally I 1 remembered now on her third left finger eager TO BE CONTINUED |