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Show now, and you might as well begin one tune as another. Do you think 1 wilt let you shtm me as you would a Biiake when you are my own?" -Mo, no, but spate me now. I have consented to give myself to voir tonight. to-night. From thenceforward " I am yours, hut to-day let me be free. It. is uot much I ask, and you vvill surelv grant so small a request." "Ah, yes, I suppose so," lVar&on replied re-plied with a coarse laugh. '-He your own mistress to-dHy, for after thts'you aro mine. Be ready at eight to-night, and meet me at the fence below the stable yard." "Very well." Louisu said this so calmly and so freely that Pearson was constrained to gaze at her in wonder, aud as he watched her quiet, immovable countenance he beg-an to doubt her intentions. "Look here, Louise." he said, '-'I want you to bear-in mind that I am in earnest, earn-est, and that I will brook no foolishness. You fail me to-night in one particular and your father will pay for it." "I shall not fail you," Louise replied, in the same calm tone and manner. "I have decided to follow your wishes, and 1 shall uot turn back. Have no fears of me." "Very well, then. Tie ready for my coming at eight to-night, and then for the far west and a happy life happy at least for me," he added, under his breath. "Good-by for a few hours." The sun was not high as Pearson galloped gal-loped back toward Magic City, but hung suspended in the distant western sky but a little way above the edge of the earth. 'There : is no time to kx-.p," he mused, as he rode swiftly on, "and I must more rapidly to make, con neetions all around. 1 have my arrangements ar-rangements well fixed, thank goodness, so there need be no dolay. I've got old "THERE A NO TIME TO LOSE." BkiU-h ford's money all safe here in my pocket, and onr tickets for the train are there, too. The carriage is arranged for. and I have a driver who knows what is erpeeted of him and w ho can be depended on, so there will be no trouble on that score. Then the man who is to officiate as a clergy-ruan clergy-ruan and go through the part of marrying us is ail right and can be depended on for promptness. I've got everything" in ship-shape and will come out successfully, notwithstanding" the delay caused by old ISaseom's want of sense. Bah! the idea of a man practicing" prac-ticing" medicine whan ha hasn't sense enough to know whether or not a limb is broken. By George, if I was in a position to do so, I would sue the old fool for malpractice, hut I can't bother about that now. Louise and forty thou- Hr Father's Victim fCONIlNUED F1.0M PAGH 3 After considering the matter for tew roimites tiiey decided to incitiire at the Ptnbles, and from the first one they visited they ieat-nrtnstToarion had got a horse aud rode out in iK country. He's gone to Gieeti'a;'' said .Seraggs. "I'd bet a sheepskin on that." 'lcs, lie's gone to .Green's." replied the doelor, despairingly. '-He's got the best of us after ail." . -OTaybe he has,1' said Sjeraggs, ''but we'll see.' - - - CHAPTER XXV. SOME COUNTER 1'l.iimSO. Pearsoa .had indeed gone to Green's. Sever 101-a .moment .during all tliose uays. thai Di-. Uaseom kept him in bed had thoughts of Louise escaped him. Besides, lie was haunted with a terrible fear, it,- bad the uneasiness natural to a guilty conscience, and every hour !v vrn in dread lest Ins purpose and actions k-ak uitt and become public-. "ot only was he in fear of losing Lpuuve. but a greater .fajamity overhung- .him. lie bad discounted to an ta.V.eru speculator all of the farm rs-.Ttgugoc held by the Jluekeve Loan aad.'Lrui t'Ctmpany, and had the proceeds pro-ceeds then in Mr, pocket. Iu going ;:way with Louise be had arranged to take thousands of dollars of lilatch-Kird's lilatch-Kird's money. During bis confinement he was v-cighed down with the fear that this embei.lein-.-nt should be discovered and bimself apprchendr-d. Ever? day this fear r;r.-.-.. stronger upon him. until at last he. ic!t certain that the secret must eo;ae cut. and he resolved to lie still no longer. '. "-o sending his attendant away he arose from his bed and was surprised to iind bin limb intact. With a curse on the doctor whom he pnt down as an ignoramus, he hurried from the room and was soon cn his -way to John Green's house. "Thank my stars,", he muttered, S3 he cantered across the prairie, "I am not too late yet. I have only to give Louise notice to be ready, and to-night drive out for her, and inside of six hours we shall be rolling to the westward west-ward as fast as steam can take us." Louise had, of course, been informed of Pearson's misfortune. Pearson, through his friend Mills, had taken pains to keep her informed on his condition, con-dition, ' and she was aware that ha would eome again soon to claim her answer an-swer to his question. So she waited day after day with calm resignation for the time to eome for the completion of her misery and shame. sand dollars of Elatchlord's money safelj- in'my possession is pay enough for all Ute inconvenience I have suffered. suf-fered. By Jove: though, I did get terribly terri-bly worked up yesterday over this affair. af-fair. I was afraid old Beragirs would get wind of matters and telegraph to Biatchford and get bim out here, and I luu Li i.c aid it .. ouid De all tiaj vuii me. But that fear's past now, and I ve got clear sailing." Thus, confident of the final and complete com-plete success of his plans, Pearson continued con-tinued his way in high spirits, congratulating congrat-ulating himself on the clever manner in which he had worked his schemes, and felicitating himself on the bright prospects the future opened up before him. Louise, in the meantime, set about the preparations it was necessary she should make for going away. There was not much to do aside from writing a letter to her parents, which was to be sent back to them on the morrow from Magic City. But writing this letter required re-quired a long time, since it was bard to word it so as to make the shock as light as possible to those loved ones she was leaving. She washed to make her conduct appear to them in the most favorable light, yet she could not inform in-form them that, she had taken the step to save her father from state prison. Site realized that the knowledge of her sacrifice being made for his sake would be a bitterer source of regret to her father fa-ther than a term in prison. For near two hours she wrote and rewrote re-wrote letters, and at last for want of more time signed and sealed the last one produced. It was far from satisfactory, satis-factory, but she gave up all hope of making mak-ing her conduct appear excusable to her parents without explaining the cause of it, and resolved not to do that. "It is better," she said with a sipSi, as she placed the letter away, "that I bear the blame. If poor papa knew how I was driven to this action he would never fortrivc himself, and would die of a broken heart; but as it is t'.tey will pity me and mourn for me, and perhaps think much worse of me than I deserve, but they will live over it." Having completed all iter arrangements, arrange-ments, Louise went in and under a pretense of performing some service for her mother, found an opportunity to kiss both her parents, and then, feeling feel-ing that she was going to break down, hurried from the room, never, as she supposed, to enter it again. iShe seated herself by the little window, and gazing gaz-ing out into the gathering evening shadows waited for the coming of Pearson. When Scraggs and Dr. Baseomleft the livery stable, whither they went to inquire after Pearson, they bent their steps toward Seraggs' office, where they decided to go to consult cn the affair and try to devise some means of bedding bedd-ing Pearson in chock. When they arrived ar-rived at theoffiee they found Paul Mark-ham Mark-ham there awaiting Seraggs' return. Paul was quite well acquainted with both Scraggs and the doctor, and he knew what their Sentiments were toward to-ward Pearson, so he had no hesitancy I in speaking out in the presence of both j men, though he had corne to see Scraggs alone. ' t . "Mr. Seraggs," Paul began, "I am acquainted ac-quainted with your actions relative to Louise Green and that scoundrel Pcar-I Pcar-I To be continued in our nest. I When Pearson reached Green'3, Louise "received him quietly, and whatever her feelings were she had mastered them so well that she betrayed no emotion, either of sorrow or pleasure. "Louise, I have at last eome to learn your decision," Pearson said, when they were alone. "I have given you more time than I promised, and I suppose you have your answer ready." "I have," she replied, quietly. , "And it is" "As you wish." "Then to-night be ready for goin? away. I shall come at a couple oi hours after dark with a closed carriage, and by moving'promptly and losing no time we can catch the night train west , and before our escapade becomes knoivi. we will be far from here. You under- stand that there must be no delay0" "Yes." .. . " J-' "And you will see that there is none?" " es." C"Then I suppose that is ail," and as Pearson spoke he arose as if to go, but sr.a.lc-niy stoppiurrCame 0Ter to tllc ;ry s s.de and said: '".ioce you are so soon to be mine, , Lotme, you cannot object to me kissing kiss-ing you. Here, just once before I go." Xo, no, no," she cried as she drew herseif backfromhim. "Spare me that, please do." I "Humph," Pearson muttered, "you'll tevS H-g. sd..tohatprttx.9 |