| Show CARIBBEAN nIB BEAN E conspiracy BRENDA CONRAD c THE STOUT STORY SO rant FAR anne ann heywood Iley wood eau daughter ot of a w wealthy athy slew new turk newspaper r 11 publisher ubI Iber goes eo to puerto nico a new on Zap aji assignment merit oe or r at atheni heri paper also on the island ar are pete wll cox a rb reporter orter on her fathers fabb ra paper now a kufs army intelligence e u meer va valera lera a puerto rican klc educated in the U united at t ed 1 states ates who Is s a secret V US S a t richard taussig an engineer whose identity as ai a german agent li Is laspee suspected d but not yet proved and russell porter a young american engineer and ids bis wife sue when mr taus tans dg learns that anne ann suspects him he ar ages goges ng es help of 0 anle diego die go bongaro Gon garo to dispose 0 ox her they are re driving to the valera plantation CHAPTER xin jl I 1 they turned into a long shady lane p I 1 f mango trees tree running drunning to the mill lards ards and got out of the car except for graciela Gra clela who stayed where she was with a light shrug of distaste or the dirt and heat and dust they crossed the uttered littered yard into the rundown run down wooden building it was long and narrow with a high pitched root roof the deafening roar 0 ot I 1 machinery made it immoss impossible ble tor for anne to bear what they were saying to her she followed the foreman and diego bongaro ac across ro the sticky dirty floor to the middle ot of the room under the great vats built almost to the rooftree mr taussig came behind them bongaro took her arm he pointed to the steep narrow steps leading up to Ecat walk at the top of the progressive succession of refining units anne looked up at it dizzily do you mean we we have to go up there she shouted trying to make him hear bear her above the din and roar of crushing wheels and rollers he nodded the dark flower opened inside her a gain again it was like the dream 1 I cant go she thought desperately pera tely 1 I cant she turned to look at mr taussig he was smiling at her he knew she was afraid she could see it in the cold blue eyes unsmiling through the concentric circles of his L hick ick lenses she started toward the stairs pete could not have said he smelled ii a rat when all he be cu could uld smell was wal pe the pleasant odor of fresh bread across the inner court from the army bakery under the generals office it was a combination of a lot ot of things too intangible to put his finger on then hed thought the heck with it gone back to his work he got i up went to the water cooler and bame came back again half a dozen times unable to settle down to anything he got up again got the file on miguel valera and the file mondiego on diego bongaro and went through them both he took the brooklyn saloon letter out of his desk and ale ead ad it I 1 for the fiftieth time you let somebody like that man over ove r there come down here and show him the works he remembered anne saying layng if she could say that after her pointed question about taussig ae the day she came came it must mean shevya she was ii on to something if she was andjus was right taussig probably probable knew it finally it was top too much he re reached ached for the phonia phone i get me senor alvaro oV valera ovaleta alera he said he hesitated hesitate dand and added or senor miguel valera valai if his asther father there he waited impatiently im sorry captain wilcox the operator said at last boi both don alvaro and senor maguel valera have gone to ponce for the day senor diego bongaro has taken some americans out to the plantation he has just elt eft i pete put the phone down it was all perfectly open and above board on the face of it ita S only gly one thing bothered him it was cockeyed too but it stuck in his mind why miguel taken her out to the central himself he got up abruptly and went into colonel fletchers fletcherr Flet chers office he looked at his speedometer now four kilometers and hed be there he any clearer idea now what was comi compelling elling him to risk his car and his bis neck to get out there than he be had before he be started all he knew was that some sixth sense he bad that had seldom let him down as wi reporter reported was in operation again lund ayad that get out there he must he groaned suddenly A small engine whistled and steamed across the road I 1 in front of him behind it jangling and clinking clanking came a long train of cars loaded with cane he jammed on the brike brake and came to a stop top the train came to a stop too heaven Heave only knew how long it would stand there before it moved a foot or two and stopped again while they unloaded up ahead what was time in an industry that still used oxen he lethis let his brake out and backed into the path at the edge of the road got out and hurried along the side ide of the e track ack it was the shortest st way to ge we mill anyway if the train crew thought he be was crazy it uld probably merely confirm an 10 baba e they already had about north merican American mainlander mainlanders he quickened his pace he could see a shiny black limousine inthe in the a girl sitting in 1 it her head bent forward a little it anne the golden thing that passed tor for a head ocher on her never drooped forward forwald that way it was the girl been beebi at tag th dock with don alvaro the sound of the machinery inside inide s the mill drowned out the noise of 0 the jolting cane cars pete noticed that the pleasant overtone ot of molasses a little distance from the tha mill was not so pleasant close to it he passed the crane lifting bundles of cane into the hopper two peons geons standing there taking a sample stalk from each car ticketing it to be tested tor for sugar content glanced at him c curiously and went on with their work pete rah inside the shed was hot and dirty and full of violent unseen motion and deafening noise men tending the grinding machines turned their heads to look at him looked silently at each other and went back to their work he went on faster across the cement floor toward the center of the long building anne was nowhere in sight A man was coming in from the laboratory with a test tube of dark liquid in his hand he glanced around at pete startled at se seeing eing a uniformed army officer on the floor and waited with a questioning worried expression on his face pete stopped senor diego gon garo y los americanos donde hg he demanded for a moment the man looked blank then his face broke into a smile he nodded looked up and raised his free hand up there he said in english pete looked up annes slim white figure was outlined above the immense oozing tanks fifty feet above I 1 I 1 pt she was clinging to the hand rall him it looked a hundred just then and the walk she was on the breadth of a tightrope A single iron hand rail was all that protected her from the long drop to the cement floor on his side and god only knew what on the other diego bongaro was in front of her mr richard taussig a yard behind her she was clinging to the hand rail leaning forward a little looking down into some roaring grinding hell bell on the other side mr taussig glanced behind him along the catwalk and moved a little closer to her there was something in his dual movement that split into petes fetes consciousness like an electric shock he made a leap forward the stairway was steep as a ladder and sticky with the silt and syrup flung up from the vats and he cleared it taster faster than he had ever done anything in his life then he could feel the narrow iron walk vibrate under his feet mr taussig turned sh sharply amply something happened to his face ace for a second there was something unspeakably terrible in it it was gone instantly the white smiling mask that took its place was inscrutably enigmatic he stepped back a little littie an anne ne turned she was staring down into the grinders watching the cane come com e up and go 90 down caught between the great rollers there was a look on her face that Pete hannever had never seen there before and that he have known it if he known every mood and movement of it far better tn than he knew his own she was scared petrified with tear fear her hand clinging to the guard rail was white the knuckles small shiny beads of ivory pete wilcox wriggled past mr taussig on the two foot walk and gripped her arria arm lie he felt her body give and sway a little and saw her eyes close you poor little devil he thought with a sharp acrid tightening at the back of his tongue diego bongaro Gon garo absorbed in something the foreman was trying to I 1 shout at him turned around he gagean gave an abrupt start stall hope you dont mind if I 1 come along pete shouted diego bongaro shouted back there was something more than delight in his bis face pete saw him take out his handkerchief and mop the perspiration oft 08 his bis face the expression of relief on it was unmistakable 1 I im m glad youve come he shouted anne got into petes car and sat perfectly still her eyes closed for a moment before she reached down dow and shook the dust out of first one shoe and then the other they had bad walked down from the mill yard leaving the others back there talking to the foreman you mean you told them a story about having to get me back right away to see the general she asked when pete got in beside her it was all I 1 could think of lust just offhand off hand I 1 thought some explanation was needed for leaving this down here on the wrong side of the tracks and barging in and dragging you os off I 1 dont think it was convincing frankly he was thinking of the single glance that passed between taussig and diego bongaro as they dame came out of the refinery and he was still trying to fit the whole thing together it make sense actually it possibly be what hed thought as he dashed up those steps he looked at anne sitting in a little littie heap beside him she was absolutely all in she took off her hat and tried tiled to smile 1 I dont know why I 1 was so seared scared she said apologetically 1 I suppose it was the roar and the heat and be being in 9 up so high on that catwalk not being a cat myself she took a deep breath and got her lipstick out of her bag 1 I really dont know what id have done if you come I 1 think id have fallen I 1 kept knowing wang I 1 was wa going to it was horrible really pete reached d down own and squeezed her hand tightly for a moment not saying anything in fact pete I 1 dont know what id ever do without you anyway 1 she said she smiled wanly every time I 1 get myself in a mess her voice trailed off why dont you marry me annie he said when she go 0 on 1 1 or have I 1 said that too ma many n y times time just tor for a bodyguard rd id live out in the dog house and you could just send fend me a bone once in a while anne shook her head 1 I cant pete I 1 dont know why exactly sometimes I 1 wish I 1 could but oh ob I 1 dont know the matter with me im such a me mess s s when im with you I 1 dont want to be with anybody else when im in a jam its always you 11 she stopped again why dont you tell me all about it I 1 old girl up he wanted to ask her about taussig but not just then we were good friends before I 1 tell fell in love with you he went on id like to stay that way why dont you just get it all off your c chest best Is it valera you know id rather rathe be perfectly honest about it even if it hurts a little hes not in love with me if what you mean anne said slowly he glanced at her sideways she apparently believed it 1 I dont know what happened to me its just so different maybe it annie pete said 1 I dont mean that or maybe I 1 do and dont know it anyway ill get over it I 1 guess when I 1 get back home let me know wont you just so you dont do anything crazy like marrying the guy all im really afraid atrall of why 11 the old ego in the first place he grinned sardonically it work in the second why not he slowed flowed down and looked at her no stuff anne ho he said you marry 1 I think I 1 would if he asked me which he and likely ly to I 1 dont see why not 1 I do pete said curtly A hell bell ot of a lot of reasons why not it works all right the other wa way 7 around the gals get a break when n they get an american husband but not vice versa the whole setup is different their customs 1 I know anne said calmly language customs tradition tastes ive heard that before from both miguel and his father and I 1 think its a lot ot of rot personally then youre stupider than you look beautiful pete said 1 I suppose youre going to tell me love conquers all next youve been to too many movies sweetie well maybe it does maybe youre just too cynical and sophisticated stop being a starry eyed tool fool pete said shortly 1 I know love conquers a hell bell ot a lot or be out of this car with your neck wrung im serious about this anne youre not going to ruin your whole life just because youve got an overdose ot of sympathetic glamour ive told you the point has never come up angel anne retorted warmly miguel even r remotely e suggested that the ideas ever occurred to him but it if were having shall we say an academic discussion I 1 dont see eee why it i work out very well TO BB CONTINUED |
