| Show 1 H aifer G 0 1 by RUPERT HUGHES 6 0 RUPERT HUGHES SERVICE SYNOPSIS on board the nord express with ostend as s its ills immediate destination dr david jebb Is 13 bound for or america accompanying him Is five year old cynthia thatcher his temporary ward on the train they meet ble BIC bill gaines former classmate and fraternity brother of davids he tells gaines of his mission and of his one unconquerable vice an overwhelming desire tor for liquor jebb feels the urge coming to him again a and n d wants to safeguard the child w whose ho e father Is dead and whose mother 1 waits I ts for for her in america CHAPTER I 1 continued 3 upon the leaden silence came the fluty ripple of a childish voice hello 1 Is and an exquisite face peering through a cascade of curls was thrust into the fog of smoke bunkie dave are you dere jebb leaped to his feet and caught the child to him in alarm how did you get here sweetheart 1 I just come long de hall bunkie dave she calls me bunkie dave I 1 he explained its shorter than mr jebb cynthia this is an old friend of your junkie daves miss cynthia thatcher may I 1 present to you mr william gaines theres a good deal of him but its all wool and a yard wide and it washes said gaines he knew better than to patronize the young he said without condescension but with perfect gravity as he put out his hand im delighted to meet you miss thatcher wont you come and sit on my lap she looked at him in dismay his fair round capon lined was like a globe she murmured im lighted to meet you gainte but you got no lap to thet on then she took command if you move ober aber I 1 like to loo look k out de vinda by all means miss thatcher and gaines hunched his bulk side aside far enough for the little queen to establish herself at the pane what did your bunkie dave say your name was my name Th ashel gaines threw up his hands in horror Th inthy suitcase the child shrieked with joy at the big mans stupidity she corrected him as if he were an overgrown infant Th inthy Th ashel was the name and no other a beautiful name to said gaines meekly the fullest name for the fullest girl I 1 ever saw she threw a look of confused vanity at jebb then flattened her tiny snub of a nose against the pane most unbecomingly and watched the quickening sights as the train rattled into a village behind her back the men fell to talking about her cynthia thatchers That cherl a great name for a child said gaines of shell be an old woman before she learns to pronounce it but jebb was gazing at her very solemnly poor little tike her history begins 9 ins with a rush ashes only five and she has already crossed the ocean bidden her mother a long goodby good by lost her father forever been left alone among strangers in in a land whose language she understand and now she is sent back across the ocean in charge of a a man like me weve become great chums already she likes me and I 1 I 1 love her ive never had a child of my own billy I 1 never expect t to 0 have but ive helped dozens of children i into I 1 nto the world and ive had hundreds of them brought to me maimed and twisted and defective and wounded and sick been afraid of me and ive had to hurt them and sometimes I 1 help them at all and ive had to see them slip away from me like little drowning frightened things this is the first child billy ever put in my keeping that was sound i and well and beautiful and not meant for my horrible knives 1 I was so happy to have her I 1 scorned the idea of a nurse of course my training has taught me more about children than all the nurses on earth and we set out like two children on a junket I 1 was her bunkie dave and she was my little cynthy and then that sot lurched into me damn himl him nol no poor dog perhaps hes like me a decent fellow nine tenths of the time and heartbroken with an affliction he any more help than a dwarf can help his size or a rattlesnake his poison but hes finished me its a tough world billy the only decent thing fate has done for me is to show me you he reached out and their hands met in no secret clutch but in the firm frank grip of the universal brotherhood it was some time becore their clasp relaxed meanwhile miss thatcher was trying to drown the racket of the wheels under a song which she shouted into the pane with all the power of her lungs 1 I had a ackel ponee po nee hith name wath dapple dappie gway I 1 len tim to a ladee la dee to wide a mile away she dipped him she lathed bathed him she dhove him broo the mire I 1 would not lend my pony now wow faw aw dat la deeth hiah hi ah ahl at about the twentieth repetition of the little epic the pony stuck fast in the mire for the train joggled up to a short stop outside the window was a small station some trifling accident or a train dispatchers signal had caused the delay the crew did not descend or open the doors the guards had no explanations to vouchsafe though timepieces time pieces were whipped out of pockets in all the compartments and passengers were worrying lest the halt compromise their chances of making the boat to america jebb was most nervous of all he raised the window and poked his head out there was no one to question he went into the corridor to ask the guards his only answer was a blunt weiss lichts accompanied by a convincing look of stupidity jebb went back to his seat and played a devils tattoo on the leather 1 I hope to the lord nothing happens to hold us here long billy he wailed almost childishly ill not feel easy till im safe on shipboard jebb threw his victim an ugly look of course ive got you now but I 1 want to be on board ill take the ships doctor into my confidence and have him lock me up somewhere his all too experienced excitement was interrupted by the frenzy of the little girl she had discovered that the station had a refreshment room and the refreshment room had a window where fruits and candies were appealingly displayed oh see de aw agnies awn nies jes she cried Th inthy wants agnies bunkie must go get agnies for poor ickle Th inthy jebb answered bunkie dave wa would uld love to sweetheart but the train might start the argument carried little weight in the presence of the oranges bunkie Nun kie run facht buy quick come back wont let naughty old train go but jebb shook his head and repeated his reasons the child grew frantic jebb was dismal 1 I know just how you feel honey said jebb but im afraid to risk it gaines whose heart was as soft and big as his bulk smote his fat knees with his fat hands and rose ill get you the oranges miss aashel jebb checked him uneasily nonsense billy she need them she to have them she nonsense yourself I 1 cant see a lady perish like miss tantalus with oranges just out of her reach but the train may start ill bet my hat well be here tor for a week this is just the sort of place where a train always stays a long while anyway its just a few steps he had squeezed through the door and was brushing both sides of the corridor before jebb could restrain him the car was but gaines knew how to manipulate the door from within the anxious jebb saw him appear on the platform outside glance forward and aft and satisfy himself of the trains intention to remain then he skipped as the fat skip to the refreshment counter the woman in charge was out of sight she was not easily summoned she did not understand gaines german ile ha picked out three oranges and brandished brandishes bran dished them with one hand while the other plunged into his pocket he had no small money he found a bill the woman went tor for the change her motives for leisureliness might be suspected gaines suspected them he kept calling her and dancing impatiently eying the engine always he did not notice that a guard passing through the train and finding the vestibule door open growled and slammed it from within suddenly the train started gaines gaidies left the change to the woman dashed to the door found it closed without handle or foothold like a melon on a stream his disgusted face was swept past the window and past the staring horrified face of jebb jebb thrust his head out and watched the smooth long side of the train glide with increasing speed past the bewildered gaines who searched and clutched in vain and was left staring the costly golden apples dropping from his hands and bouncing uselessly about the platform CHAPTER 11 II in the hurrying crisis of his affairs the loss of his protector stampeded jebbs usual self control his sorrow for gaines mishap was nothing to his sorrow for himself and the child he dashed into the corridor shouting to the guard to signal the train to stop the guard was slow to be found and slower to understand and once understanding was aghast at the lese majeste of stopping one of the kaisers keisers Kai sers trains simply to pick up a passenger besides had not the passenger all the by the government ordained rules disobeyed and from the ironroad iron road wagon without permission descended jebb would have stopped the train himself at whatever risk of fine and imprisonment but there was no bell rope to pull and he had failed to note the device installed his wrath and his anxiety and the necessity of putting them into german choked him he was frantic with fear not for himself bim self but for the child whose destinies were once more entirely in his untrustworthy hands cynthia had come out into the corridor and was staring at him in such bewilderment that she forgot to bemoan her oranges jebbs face was pitiful he was in the ultra lonely and fearsome plight of one who cannot trust his own soul As he stood alternate alternately 13 r wringing his hands and pleading with the woodenheaded wooden headed guard the train leaping forward toward full headway to make up the lost time took a sharp curve at high speed and lurched round it hurtling the child violently along the corridor jebb put out one arm to catch her he put his other hand against the nearest support to steady himself just as the whipcord snap of the cars sent a heavy door sliding shut its whole impact fell on jebbs thi thina ab nb he managed to pull the door back enough to release his hand he was used to the sight of other peoples wounds but the vision of his own lacerated lacerates lacer ateo flesh and the peculiarly exquisite anguish 0 of a mashed thumb sent a queasy thrill to his stomach his knees turned to sand he fainted and went toppling and bumping to the floor where the careening train rolled him like a loose barrel cynthia screamed passengers appeared at all the doors and jammed the corridor A teoman woman wrapped her arms about the distracted child who was sobbing bunkie davies dead bunkie davies dead A man knelt and raised his head I 1 iles hes fainted all has anybody got any brandy As cynthia was withdrawn from the scene a frenchman produced a flask je nal nai pas de brandee monsieur mais voice du cognac meme chose monsees mon seer said the american as he pried jebbs set teeth apart and poured a liberal potion into his clenched throat A shiver quaked through jebbs whole length he strangled gulped opened his eyes looked about feebly tre rea ater you smashed your thumb old boy and keeled over monsees here had some brandy handy and I 1 forced it on you no no gasped jebb helplessly not brandy Is yes and good too by the sniff of it you look a little green old man have some more no III cried jebb as he pushed it away you better said the yankee holding holdina ka it under his nostrils yes said jebb with a deep breath he seized the flask greedily and took a generous draught he offered it back but as the frenchman put out his hand jebb reconsidered and set the bottle to his lips a again gain en pervez said the frenchman ironi ironically lly jebb took him literally and helped himself liberally you must have a copper lined throat said the yankee to swig it straight jebb gave a further demonstration of his prowess he sat up on the floor of the car and winking conceitedly at his fellow country man drank his good health when the flask was again in his hands the frenchman turned it upside down with a rueful countenance only a drop or two leaked from it with angry irony he said wen jen mercie re huh said jebb the yankee interpreted with a laugh as he got jebb to his feet monse monsees Mon seer er says he hes Is much obliged for the flask jebb threw his victim an ugly look drove his fist deep into his pocket and with a sneer offered a handful of money to the frenchman 6 1 I pay for what I 1 drink hoai much the gaul understood without translation he struck jebbs hand aside and the money jingled on the floor jebb was for trouncing him then and there but the yankee restrained him pacified him and guided him along the corridor to his own compartment jebb swayed a good deal but it may have been the train he dropped into his seat dazed but it may have been the dizziness of his suffering ering the yankee brought to him the scared little girl and the coin which he had gathered up in the corridor with the instinct that leads people to pick up other peoples runaway hats for them jebb thanked him for the little girl but waved the money away magnificently a little silver to me he said a trifle thickly the american laughed and laying the money on the seat vanished to his own compartment with complete disregard of all his jebb wrapped his stenli zed handkerchief about his bleeding thumb it was shrieking and throbbing but an unleashed demon within him was shrieking and throbbing too he was sick sick too grievously tormented to bind his own wound properly TO BE CONTINUED |
