Show SHIFTING HI ING SANDS AN D CHAPTER XI continued 15 dont you t think hinkaty it would be wiser aff tt I 1 1 I took carlof care of it for you bortle Hor tle ng ug she demurely you ar are dreadfully careless only a moment ago you bad to no idea I 1 where the ring was if it Is on my finger khow exactly bully ideal so I 1 shall I 1 now tell me where youre off to you were in it a frightful hurry when you burst through that door 11 so I 1 I 1 was agreed sylvia I 1 and here I 1 am loitering and almost forgetting my errand comet come I 1 we must hurry ive got to togo go to town want to row me me over you tou bet your life I 1 show me the boat leading the way to io the yellow dory she he took her place opposite alm and lie he pushed off s As AB they mat fat facing one another her eyes yes roamed over his brown sult suit his matching tie handkerchief and bocks his immaculate linen his general air of ef careful grooming and she could not but admit he wore his clothes well he was not cot a small town product three years yeara in an eastern preparatory school followed by four years of college life had knocked all that might have been provincial out of horatio junior nevertheless these reflections interesting though they were proved nothing about his knowledge of the water then she suddenly became aware that the boat was being guided by a master hand why bortle fuller ahad I 1 had no idea you could row like this I 1 exclaimed she with admiration horatio deigned no response wherever did you learn to pull such wa an oar varsity crew of course I 1 had forgotten she apologized her eyes following as with each splendid stroke the craft shot forward although the oarsman ignored her approbation he be was not unmindful of it IL where do we land he asked anywhere B he bent forward and with one final magnificent sweep sent the nose of the dory butof out of the channel come on he be called leaping to the beach but but bortle 1 I cant get ashore here ra ill wet my white shoes jump its too far pull the boat higher on the sand not on your life jump dar darling lingl 1 rii ill catch you she stood up in the bow 1 I cant its too far nonsense eusel 1 wheres your sporting spoiling blood dont be afraid im right here suppose you catch met me but I 1 shall he would she was certain of it still she wavered 1 I dont want to jump she pouted have to come on beautiful youre wasting tire time ll 11 1 I think you arp are perfectly horrid she ehe flung out as she sprang forward an instant later she wa was s in his bis arms and tight in a grip she knew herself powerless to loosen let me go bortle 1 let me go I 1 she pleaded 1 I shall sweetheart all in good time before I 1 set you free though we e must settle one trivial point are we engaged or are we not she made no answer it if were not he went on 1 I intend to duck you in the water if we are you shall tell me you love me and go free A swift shy smile illuminated her face 1 11 I aw I 1 dont want to be ducked bortle she ehe murmured raising her arms to his neck you precious thing I 1 you shant be vow now the rest of it say you love me 1 I guess you know that but I 1 wish to hear you say it IL hii 1 I I 1 think I 1 do a halfhearted half hilf hearted statement 1 I 1 1 I ickow I 1 do bortle all ah that Is better and I 1 love you sylvia loving you Is ii an old old story with me a sort of habit I 1 shall never change you are too much a part of me sylvia now pay the boatman and you shall go one Is too cheap two Is miserly the fare Is three I 1 wont take less 11 1 I consider your methods despicable a ble announced the girl when at last be reluctantly put her down on her ber feet you blackmailed me i III i know my sylvia he countered OPer perhaps haps rather I 1 trundled back to new york tomorrow and offered the ring to estelle silly t iwas only tooling fooling slie she protested quickly linking her arm in his this ring would never fit estelle dear dearest est her handi bands are tremendous men dous you ever notice thief them they jari are alm almost as large as a mans I 1 never saw such hands shei an awful nice girl just the sun ame e 1 I dont doubt that come we must quit tooling fooling now and hurry burry or we shall never get home marcia will be f frantic marcia Mar cla my aunt sunt billave I 1 have so much to tell you I 1 hardly know where to begin sighed sylvia do listen carefully for I 1 need y your our advice what whai about A tot lot of things it s N a long story you in marcia barcla has fallen in love with it rubber AL A robber aberl your tour aunt juuli uh stub I 1 know it sounds odd but you yen wm understand it better after basara by sara ware bassett copyright by the penn pub co 4 you have heard the details nodded syllvia Syll vla this man a jewel thief came to our house one day shipwrecked and hurt so wa we took him in we know then of course that he was a thief afterward whence when we did he was sick and we the heart to turn him out in fact we have done it anyway he was too fascinating he was one of the most fascinating men you ever saw he must have been horatio growled oh helas I 1 myself almost lost my heart to him confessed confess bd sylvia sylva earnestly marcia barcla did your aunt yes dont look so BO horrified hor her tie I 1 realize it seems queer unconventional vent ional but understand better when you see marcia she Is no ordinary person 1 I think she was sylvia ignored the comment well anyway the robber hid the loot and of course marcia and I 1 did all we could to protect him then one day the wilton sheriff hoard heard over the radio there had been a jewel robbery on long island and stumbling upon the hidden gems arrested mr heath mr heath the thief horde bortle I 1 the thief I 1 how can you be so stupid 1 I get i you ou now you M admit though this Is some story to u understand 1 I know it sounds confused but in reality it Is perfectly simple if just pay attention well the girl hurried on 1 I cannot stop to explain all the twists and turns but anyway the sheriff brought the burglar to wilton and marcia Is brokenhearted broken hearted 11 brokenhearted broken hearted I 1 I 1 I 1 should think shed be thankful to be rid of him but you keep forgetting ashes in love with him well do you wonder I 1 do what kind of a woman Is your aunt what sort of a gang have you got in with anyhow hush you talk like thail that sylvia declared this affair Is too serious marcia and the abe she and mr heath love one another it Is terrible because you see he be has a wife 1 I should call that a stroke of providence myself horatio I 1 think you are being very nasty you are joking about something that is no joking matter 1 I beg your pardon dear I 1 really yoking joking dont be angry but let me go bortle let me gol this yarn Is unbelievable preposterous exploited the man taking her hei hand and gently caressing it well when mr heath went away from the homestead he left behind him a hundred dollars in payment for what marcia barcla had bad done for him it almost killed her she she thought she ought to have had more you mean A 4 hundred dollars Is quite a sum in these days she would better have grabbed it tight and been thankful my respect for this bandit chap Is I 1 should call him an honest gentleman it Is 13 useless to talk with you horatio I 1 can see that sylvia said stiffening A delicate affair like this Is evidently beyond your comprehension you cannot seem to understand it IL all you do Is to make light of every word I 1 say im not making light on the contrary I 1 guess I 1 am taking the situation tar far more seriously than you are 1 I dont like the moral tone of this place at all it looks to me as if you bad got into most undesirable surroundings roun dings the sooner you are married to me young woman and out of here the better As for this remarkable aunt of yours stop horatio Horat iol stop right where you are bridled sylvia one more word against marcia and back home you go so I 1 fast you wont be able to see for dust rm im in earnest so watch your step the woman has bewitched you frowned horatio she has she bewitches everybody shell bewitch you not on your eifel wait and see mr heath will bewitch you too the the r T yen yea the burglar bandit thief whatever you choose to call him admit it when you meet him we are going there now to to call to return the check I 1 just told you about youre the stupidest man I 1 was ever engaged to horatio why cant you listen 1 I am listening with all my ears then the trouble Is with your imagination agi nation sylvia said in her hofues loftiest loft iest tone they walked on in silence until presently the girl stopped before the gate of a small weather beaten cottage well here we are at elyshas Ells has hals she remarked turning in at the gate he got to do with illk it A mercy lercy chortle wear me to ashren a shred ellsha Is the sheriff im going to coax him to let us see the prisoner you dont mean the chap Is jailed here beret I 1 my 1 1 he be clapped his hand over his mouth why any red blood ed d man could knock the whole house flat to the ground with a single blow of his fist ill bet I 1 could there any other place to put him well if he stays incarcerated in a detention pen like this hes a noble minded convict all I 1 have to say they walked up the narrow clamshell path bordered by iris and thrifty perennials As they did so the sound of a radio drifted through the open window sylvia peeped in HI belsha asha too intent on the music to hear her step was sitting before the loud sp eaLer eaher smoking ive come to see mr air heath she shouted above the walls of a crooning orchestra 1 I aint sure as id aughter oughter let you see b him t 11 hesitated ellsha 1 I ill li im take ake the responsibility wal debbe on second thoughts thought twill do no harm he drawled iles round on the back porch id come with you I 1 waltin tor for the news flashes I 1 all right I 1 can find him say who you got with you caled the sheriff over his shoulder iles hes nobody just my fiance your what the man I 1 am going to marry you dont tell me I 1 so youre gettin marr married led are you good lookin feller 1 I 1 heard at the post office you had some chap in the otsa but to let him see mr heath I 1 dunno as atwould be just where I 1 go horatio goes sylvia retorted ellsha weakened wal in that case he began she waited to hear no more come on bortle she called leaving ellsha absorbed in a saxophone solo the two rounded the corner of the cottage and found themselves in the presence of stanley heath CHAPTER XII Syl sylvia vial 1 he cried springing up and advancing toward her with outstretched hand sylvia I 1 what a brick you are to cornel comel angry as she was when face to face with him she could not resist the contagion of his bis smile im glad to see you so well she said this Is mr horatio fuller of alton city horatio looked reath heath up and down and then stepped forward and gripped his hand with unmistakable cordiality mighty glad to know you sir 11 wa was his greeting you seem to have got yourself into a jam am it if there Is 18 anything I 1 can do any way I 1 can be of service 1 horatio you forget we are not here ere to make a social call interrupted sylvia who had by this timp regained her routed chilliness and indignation dig nation on the contrary mr heath we have come on a very painful errand we are returning this check to you she extended it toward him gingerly holding its corner in the oe tips of her fingers as it it were too foul a thing to touch it was outrageous of you insulting to leave a thing of this sort for barcla to attempt to pay in casti kindness such as hers im sorry heath stammered sorry I 1 you have been very sorry or you would have sensed such an act would hurt her terribly horatio fuller fumbled nervously with his tie you deserve swept on young sylvia with rising spirit to be thrashed thrash pd bortle and I 1 both think so dont we bortle Hor tle horatio junior turned crimson oh I 1 say sylvia go casyl he protested dont drug drag me into this I 1 dont know one darn thing about it suppose icse ajust 11 just step inside and listen to the news flashes while you and mr he heath ath transact your business it will be less awkward all round if you want me y you ou can speak 11 nodding courteously in heaths deaths direction horatio junior disappeared your mr fuller Is a man of nice feeling stanley heath declared ired look ing after him 1 I congratulate you jou thank you everything Is settled then she nodded 1 I hope you will be very happy 11 she did not reply at once when she did awas it was to say pay with n new and appealing TO ITO RE BE whelm |