| Show we have all a eliat at by hertbert qui ck airiel elena eiena Stepano off mae mac Mali malion lotion copyright by the dobbs 15 ferrill co service CHAPTER XIII 22 when influence failed mrs krossin krassin ruse next nem coining her usual self sel presiding with no edonna tion as to her recent absence over the russian breakfast ol 01 0 coffee and bread and butter which fis as yet in the kras sin eln household did not luk lik tile lie airl multiplicity of tasty ta tv appet rs dis tributes trl tri buted about the table slit shi now DOW felt a lofty sense ot of victory in that lint her prayers her schemes her vigils and her labors had bad provided for ilya a bilm and already tier her eyes were slim shut as to thi the price which slip she felt had been that was something which must he buried in oblivion among those darker things which slip accepted fis as a pan of the life of every family and aind eiery person there was th necessity city for the mental denial thai ilia had eer or would ever happen th tant it ung as all she knew of anil of 0 her appearance when slip lini had returned she would not allow hp herf rf to recognize the propriety of feeling sorry she looked over the silver anil and crystal service still preter preserved ved to them with her old interest and directed the movements of tile the servants with her u usual ual calm authority go god was in his heaven all was well with the world lya ilya was safe musts tod lad not expected to see her mother bother at break breakfast fait nod find paused ahn she saw her as if to return to her room so averse was as she to her society but an impulse impelled her to enter and take her usual sent seat which she did with a cool nod to tier mother instead of the usual kiss on the cheek she would show that slie could still innocently tool look anyone in the face the she thought she did not suspect that her mother knew of her movements last evening find and she was incapable of realizing the thoughts in mrs kra sins mind in any case since she could not conceive that her mother emild could believe what was in the older womans comans mind sirs mrs krassin was talkative in the manner of one who keeps up a rapid conversation to gloss over some unpleasant occurrence in comparison with her recent grief and gloom she was in good spirits she looked tier her pleasant est hut but alusha noticed how white her hair was becoming the subjects upon which theor could converse were curiously limited ausla did not speak unless speech were trin operatively ively called for and tile the lead in fell to her mother rod and sirs mrs krassin could not speak of ilya since that approached a matter upon which she an and ausla could not with propriety engage in conversation now how queer she Is thought mia she had at times limps felt a 9 strong dla dis like and almost an enmity toward tier her mother but this ihla was vow the most disrespectful ful expression which she had ever pe permitted bitted to enter her thou thoughts lits concerning her for musia Nl uia too was a creatura crea turi of 0 the conventions of her circle put cut efi enough ough she gave to her mother very little attention or tb thought ought her mind kept recurring to loras whom every moment she told herself site she desired of all persons most to forget forgetting seemed simple at first if it were not for ilya it was like tearing from a hook honk a page filled lulled with low disgusting dishonorable things lings ti but her mind kept returning to mutters connected with loris with which ilyas deliverance had nothing to to do in spite of tier her mothers constant stream of talk she heard oer and over every word be had bad said to tier her saw every gerture gerti ire felt every tom touch h and the blood rushed to her cheeks mrs krossin krassin who was man watching her every change chilli of expression saw the blush and looked away slie she did not know that the cause of of lie he blush was muelas inward embarrassment by the fact that even in the cumilla tion to which slip had been subjected she found a cerl certain ilin pleasure she liked to remember tile pressure of loris arm ann about tier her waist the vibrant tones of his voice as he pleaded for her love tile the touch much of bh lips to hers the fact that ihal lie lind find mai tier her the little princess klin borovs kayo coine came in bubbling oer with news before late break fal t was over and husla not caring to in listen to 10 her elcus excused ed herself sad and went out of hie file room my illy dear cousin the hie princess princes ex ei claimed as soon as Mii hii haid gone the liine finally gone tie be yond their lefoll een limit I 1 not nm sure this will bring then them to the end of their rope rolie what Is the new trouble asked mrs krassan politely 1 I 1 thought they had committed emry inin 1 I till tile atrocity long ago Is there n anything lis thing dew hewl well suld tile lie princess 1 I could not of course mention ment liin this before ausla but in the pro province ince of they have proclaimed the tion of women 1 what can you mean I 1 ejaculated mrs krassin my dear half whispered the little cousin with a glance at tile the door 1 I toll tell it before ausla hut but in that province they have done what I 1 have wild said proclaimed the HIP tion of women any woman in ID tile the street or r anywhere else to w whom 0 a bolshevik takes taken a fancy he may t take ke it makes no difference whether she IB married or not he may take her and of course there Is no such thing as marriage it dreadful 1 I think it Is a canard sold said mrs krassin N no not nol persisted the princ princess esq contending for tile the truth of this rumor which was so go widely circulated not only over but all over the world tills this decree Is actually in effect in Sa mrs krassin did not wish to beneve believe it slie she was in the mental position I 1 of one who con valuable abc tit holdings ings in mines lands machinery or otter ot er things precious when the news of possible Is brul limited teI aarond tile the princess could not understand dersi der stand ond why tier her cousin had suddenly become incredulous as to any rumor attributing new enormities to the bol slie viki anil and tactfully changed the subject and let me ask ak about poor ilya hya said slie she have you received any news since I 1 last saw not for two days replied mrs krassin hut but I 1 hope he will soon be out of prison on tit now happy you make me exclaimed the princess 1 I have my reasons continued mrs krassin cryptically for expecting his early release now that the krassin house was so far as possible itself again after the days of mrs Kros sins seclusion her friends were coming and going at all times of the day the little princess stayed a long ions time discue discussing sing with visitors the fate of lya ilya which was the great question in all winds minds and was now more interesting than ever musts passed most of her time in her own room to her ilyas fate had passed beyond control it was in loris hands but what about herself she had fully decided that it ft was not po possible sIble for her to continue living with her mother it if things were only as they used to be she said to herself she would without a word to her mother go to some friend or relative in moscow or petrograd Petro grad for refuse refuge but as things were now such a journey was to her mind out of the question what could she do she wished she were a man how freely would she venture her life for her country and the old order of things which seemed the only safe and proper thing for her country she would fight the and she resolved in her mind the irony of fate which offered her no refuge save with that strange handsome extraordinary tra rind and she always added repulsive enemy of tier her class loras the commissar maisla knew little of what transpired from froin day to day tn in her mothers reception room there was a change in the atmosphere in kazan one morning a change felt by the ragged wolfs sleeping in the parks a change chance which brought more jewels to the auction for exchange for clothing and fuel the golden leaves were gone from tile the trees now and a north wind prophesied of winter with plague and typhus there was a new atmosphere too in mrs Kros sins reception room no an oralu ominous ous change felt by every one but the hostess herself slie rhe was calm and more cheerful than she had been since ilyas imprisonment when colonel Bri boyarsky came in she greeted erected him cordially hut but did not as had been her custom ask him for news of ilya though ile he had been her chief intelligence officer in the past now site she led in the making of fore casts and they were all optimistic she repeated repealed to the colonel what she had only a day or so before told her cousin the princess that she had find every reason for believing that lya ilya by reason of influence exerted in his favor in quarters which aich she could not disclose would very soon he liberated it was wag only a matter of a very brief time she felt fell sure it might be today even TO BE CONTINUED to |
