Show 1 SIH ievins kathleen hg norris 0 KATHLEEN NORIUS MORRIS CHAPTER XI continued 11 mrs oconnor was making entries with a fat soft hand in a big book sheila said she would pay half eA entirely satisfactory to me mrs oconnor told her amiably they want nice quiet looking girls and like you I 1 suppose you a sister or a cousin like to go with you its quite a lark the girls say NO I 1 sheila said and to herself she added when she was in the quiet snowy street again 1 I very likely wont go myself I 1 she went home and found the three dreary rooms of the bronx apartment empty and dark angela had gone away with neely and lizzie the sight of the place reminded sheila of the days desolating adventures of mas unkindness chiess of joes doubts of the me cann family who were so ready to believe that she would run away with their precious son and be married by a justice of the peace joe had an old imitation leather suitcase sheila dragged it out from under the big bed and began to pack it t crying hard as she did so she prayed that they would come in and find her at it they would be a long time persuading her not to gol to be sure she had given mrs oconnor three dollars but then what were three dollars in a crisis like this the thought of the money j reminded sheila of her precious fifty dollars and she took it out of the drawer of the kitchen table to look at it lovingly she put two bills back again crying harder than ever M ma a should have them ma had forty dollars very often in her life less than an hour later turning into to their street and supporting his emotionally exhausted mother with a firm arm joe carscadden said suddenly did you see that girl across the street ma 1 I saw nobody 1 I guess im seeing sheila everywhere joe said it looked like her now I 1 tell you said his mother they have that child all wrong them me mc canns joe all but stopped short in his slow pacing to give his mother an astounded glance but ma you take her part then 1 I blame that I 1 then mrs carscadden said walking on you have to hand it to her for this joe said his having money matter two cents to herl her she want him and that was au all there was to it it well for her it does so said her mother 1 I thought it did theres lew few gearls jump at a lad that has all he has ill tell the world there arel are but not get sheila to in for um just because he was a rich mans son ill swear I 1 felt sorry for herl her joe said suddenly lis as they entered the dark odorous doorway of home she seemed so alone poor kid there in that big room with every one of us riding her they had me so twisted twiste about abou joe mrs carscadden said confidentially denti ally arresting him on the long stairs 1 I know what they were after did they want her to marry um or they 1 I think they thought peter had got her into something and the only decent thing for him to do was stand by her but you dont think so joe his mother asked seriously no he hesitated of course at first I 1 thought she and peter were just stringing us he confessed and then all of a sudden while we were there it came over me that she was telling the truth 1 I hope ashes not mad at us MS mrs carscadden murmured fearfully fearfully at the door never mad he said comfortably ill make her a batch of muffins tor for supper she likes them the woman decided it scalds me that she told me yesterday yest erda joe she added that shed been cookin a pot roast an I 1 never said anny thing to her about it you certainly rode her joe said stooping to grope tor for the door klob in the dark not anny more than the rest ot of you the mother protested uncomfortably fort ably look how lizzie done yes but sheila only minded it from you ma oh joe mrs carscadden said pathetically dont say that dearr de why you know darned well how sheila feels when she thinks youre off her ma its locked ashes not homel home joe said blankly of the door joe she must be home ashes not she lock herself in could she joe asked producing the key from its usual hid ing place on the top of the door jamb oh god forgive us joe where would she bel be maybe she went to margarets Mar grets shed not do that joe she was drippin drop pin with the fatigue that was on her shell be back joe said anxiously his mother made no answer joe heard her whispering prayers as they went into the dark empty rooms together sheila wore an alpaca uniform that had belonged to some girl who had basely deserted the hotel the season before and a white orga or gandie adie apron and butterfly cap she slept in a long loft room above the garage where there were six beds at one end of the room was a washroom with a shower and two tin basins and above the basins was hung a card of printed rules for all the chambermaids and waitresses at the hotel they must wear fresh uniforms daily battle bathe daily wear hair nets and manicure ai at least once daily does docs anyone sheila asked nel ly the girl who had showed her where things were and what she must do nelly merely laughed disagreeably never in the world had there ever been contempt more stinging biting complete than that nelly felt for everything connected with the hotel nellys favorite comment upon Sh eilas innocence and ignorance was a scornful smile and sheila came to the point when she could anticipate the smile and J avoid it sheila only asked questions the first day after that she was too tired to be interested in anything her feet burned her ankles ached and she told nelly that her spine was like a rope with red hot knots in it CHAPTER XII days merged themselves into nights and nights into days sheila was not conscious of af their beginnings or endings these were lost in a haze of exhausted sleep the dining room opened at seven and on alternate days she was supposed to be downstairs filling salt cellars cutting butter squares stacking plates folding napkins an hour earlier than that on alternate days she could sleep until almost seven she set tables reset tables brushed crumbs filled glasses she went out with penciled orders filled rm 0 0 0 Z I 1 I 1 does anyone sheila asked nelly trays staggered in with loaded platters staggered out with trays of empty soup plates the guests at the were paying for everything ery thing anyway they wanted everything ery thing sheila learned not to overlook anything there was a disagreeable pimply young man of nineteen in in the pantry who checked the trays and made all the trouble he could about doubled orders ile he had authority tho rity and anyone who wanted to work in the dining room had to tear it up and go out and get their entire order written ov over rl he said scornfully to sheila on the first terrible day 1 I only have to add the two extras ras to it sheila said They came in in late and the mother said have what the rest have tear it up and go out cind and get the entire order over said mr benny unruffled ive got their order at AL I 1 have to do is add two more to it mr benny tore up the order himself and smiled at sheila now you go back and get the whole order he said and next time dont lose your head about iti it 1 I lose my head the two boys came in late be about enough said mr benny lighting a cigarette and glancing up over the match at sheila 1 I tell you to go get the order again and not to lose your head about it the dining room hours were presumably from seven to ten from twelve thirty to two and from six to nine this was the official statement but in fact they were from almost any early hour until after ten at night at half past six in the morning at six even fishermen were rattling the dining i room doors and nurses with fret ful and wakeful babies were clam oring for admittance and at half past nine at night tremendously good natured and apologetic persons were arriving for dinner this was all very well for miss watts the gracious and capable a and nd spectacled head waitress who got the big tips but it told heavily on sheila and the other girls they had to take on extra tables to hunt about for tablecloths and napkins not originally provided to apologize for food that had been used up and to make additional trips for substitutes they worked in an enormous pantry served from the kitchen below by dumb waiters the order slips with mr bennys bennas 0 K on them went down on the empty elevators each tray had a slip on it when it came up sometimes when a big party required more than one tray a bus boy was summoned to assist but the girls were not allowed to ask for help mr benny decided that and it if he did not like a girl he would smile a teasing s smile m ile and observe that she could make two trips of it just as well the girls except perhaps for the favorite of the moment detested him when they were especially tired or nervous he could make things hard for them and they wasted needed energy in despising him they ran to and fro breathlessly their collars wilted their little butterfly aprons wilted the girls themselves wilted sheila never had had much color but she developed a pallor that was new her film of copper hair stuck to her wet forehead her clothes adhered to her soaked body she flung aside crumpled tablecloths and napkins piled dirty plates checked penciled orders feverishly she talked so little and worked so hard that miss watts the head waitress soon singled her out for special impositions mary theres a party just down from new york im sorry have to start the order anyway I 1 took it at twenty two minutes of ten kindja nelly might say pityingly sheila would eye the slip four mock turtle three supreme of grapefruit seven oyster cock cocktail tau four bouillon two ardam cream of lettuce when nelly in the beginning had told her that in the quiet hours say between eleven and twelve each jn morning orning and three and five each afternoon she would be free to come up to the dormitory loft and lie down sheila had secretly laughed lie down with atlantic cites winter boardwalk and the glorious ocean at her very door not shel but by the third day she had discovered that these intervals of rest were all too short she was not rested by an hour or two flat and exhausted on her back she could not even begin resting in so short a time she ached all over her nerves throbbed and quivered her head was dizzy with confused thoughts her breath was short and her mouth dry its a great life she said to nelly its a great life it if you have an infected corn let me tell you nelly said sometimes I 1 wonder why I 1 ever left home my mother run a boardinghouse boarding house lots of the railroad fellers come over for meals but my stepfather done it reely he was ten years older than mamma and what he put over on her you believe he knew I 1 was onto him much of the talk sheila heard nowadays was coarse but most of the girls were good girls once she heard her own name four of the six girls in the rather small room were lying on their beds one win winter ter afternoon when one of them said suddenly that carscadden girl we were talking about is supposed to be staying with friends they were married all right the me mc canns have scads of money and they hushed the whole thing up sheila lay perfectly still her very heart stopped but when a girl idly spoke again it was on a different topic she had left a note for her mother on that dreadful last afternoon of packing and tears and flight dear ma I 1 am safe and well I 1 will be good sheila she had written and every few days since she had seized some opportunity to send further reassurance once she had gone into philadelphia for an hour or two and mailed a postcard post card picture of a church from there on this she had written 1 I am praying for you pray for sheila almost every night she cried herself to sleep longing for her mother but no matter how hard the work in the dining room was and no matter how lonely and homesick her free hours she would not give in the loneliness of life sheila had never known it never suspected it before how lonely they were these irish born and russian born girls who ho were herded like sheep in the top rooms of great hotels these maids and nurse girls and chauffeurs and valets who stayed at the hotel they gave their lives to others for sixty and seventy and eighty dollars a month all very well to argue they have a day a week they what girl could be satisfied at eighteen or twenty two or thirty with a part of one day each ach villes 1 l at which to live her own life LS less than one seventh of her lifo life he hen for she had to serve breakfasts breakfast 0 on n her day out and she mast be back in her cell of a room by midnight sheila grew older her manner grew more sedate her forehead had a new gravity her eyes were wiser physically there was a change too she was thinner the contours of her face were chiseled to finer lines she had been ten days on the job when one morning in the very heat ot of the between lunch and breakfast flurry frank me cann found her at the moment mr benny was making himself particularly disagreeable to an unfortunately argumentative menta tive girl named mabel and sheila listening to mabels feeble self defense in an agony of sympathy was inwardly saying to mabel oh shut up youre just giving hi him chance after chance shut up you poor fool hes just leading you on when mrs kearney who was assistant manager suddenly appeared on the scene this caused a lull for mrs kearney silk clad eye glassed authoritative was a power at the which girl is mary moore mary theres a gentleman wants to see you mrs kearney said she sensed mutiny going on here she asked sharply it was so delightful to see mr benny cringe becoming instantly conciliatory to mabel so gratifying to hear mabels demure answer that sheila quite forgot to worry about any significance her own message might have unsuspectingly once she heard beard her own name she followed mrs kearney to one of the little consultation rooms near the main office one of the guests of the place had asked her that morning if she had ever posed for trade photographs and had suggested that she let him have her photographed working a vacuum cleaner and if sheila had thought of anything at all except t mabels triumph and mr bennys bennas discomfiture she would have found some such explanation of the summons but it was frank me alc cann who was waiting for her instantly she was frightened of what she did not know she tried to back out of the door listen its all right nobody knows but mel me frank said sit down nothings going to happen to you honestly I 1 promise you I 1 wont give you awall away howd you find me sheila whispered sitting down 1 I never lost you there was a fellow named buckley waiting for me in the hall that day frank explained pla ined with a touch of his characteristic te complacence 1 I had him follow you hes done that sort of thing before hes a plainclothes plain clothes man as a matter of fact he saw you go into the agency on lem lexington i ng but after that I 1 went home 1 I know you did but an hour later your brother telephoned they locate you that was she frank was silent he half smiled at her never a dull moment where you are he observed dryly you see you run away at aall 1 I wish people would leave me alone sheila said simply so youre a waitress eh some job she said with a smile and shrug Is it hard oh helal there was a silence that woman oconnor in the agency ag ency did she tell on me she had to ma know she knows I 1 know I 1 told her that night you were 0 K Is she all right sheila asked it began as a basua casual I 1 question but suddenly her lips trembled she was crying ashes fine he stopped studied h her er for or a minute she misses you to this sheila could make no answer how long you going to keep this up 1 I dont know well weve had a great time since you left frank told her theres been a reporter on the front step about half the time my aly mother dare answer he be telephone TO BE CONTINUED |