| Show S H A m I 1 BY U S E R V I 1 C E CHAPTER LX IX when they were finally ap ro aching the city and the thear advertisements and the multi lying ing appart ment houses iem that their long trip was al lost os over sheila was conscious sudden lassitude a at seemed to have as much 0 3 with the soul as the body wonderful ond erful as it would be to orne mie to ma and angela and id d have the first thrilling con ersa tion with them she at it was over she dreaded the plantations pla nations it seemed odd to see the night bustling as usual down un r the train curb carts surround i by shoppers children racing id d screaming in the dirty snow 1 I get out at one hundred and wenty fifth peter he roused himself from a sort dream at the window nix he protested weve got go home first weve got to rn n in a report at the police stain 1 I dont she said im going raight home to my mother ill get out with you its just near for me but weve got to to a station right off the bat what for to catch them the police ont want to lose a minute you dont think for one min mine you can catch them 1 I know darned well we can ten eh them we know where they arted ed from dont we we can nd d em right to that fake studio here ere we ve found em cant we 11 only take a minute and then 1 run you home in a taxi per argued in n the end she actually did find elf in the monday evening liet et of a police station answer i g the questions of a kindly freant bant with only another old aicer for audience except for a pathetic young man who ob arved ed excitedly that he would it it was ollas gang and who in a son 01 tinseled globe id d aloft took a snapshot snap shot of the test est victims of a gang mystery and then the familiar streets re rushing by Sh eilas taxi and r heart was thumping harder id faster and ma and home id d safety were coming nearer ery ry second tie e beloved old dirty doorway h i children straggling about it the dark the welcoming rush thick air from the house air air cited anted with cooking and living the ominous note of carbolic her like familiar voices shei yas was up the four flights like a ng ing swallow she flung open kitchen door and her cry of a im back rang through the ice e tien en everything took on the ling ing and appearance of a night re e fer er mother was sitting at the hen chen table with angela at one e of her joes oes dead sheila thought aher her heart failed her well ell you came back mrs scadden presently observed observed vea of the most terrible silence J t in all the days of Sh eilas life ever existed between herself 1 i her mother heila stood still gro growing wing pale swallowed with a dry throat what the matter S she isper espered sp ered ed neither mother nor sister spoke they regarded her steadily sorrowful quiet eyes sheila after another stammered question which was choked with sobs sat down at the table and burst into wild crying her hands over her face oh I 1 dont sis angela now said whimpering but but the in matter ater sheila demanded again looking up through tear soaked eyelashes happened wheres your husband mrs carscadden demanded steadily where wheres my what wheres mr mccann sheila angela asked weeping peter the the fellow you ran away with sheila angela began to hiccup but anger dried dr i i ed Sh eilas tears and made aher her voice hard I 1 you dont think I 1 ran away with peter mccann we had your wire sheila angela angel said mamma you dont think I 1 ran off with peter mccann I 1 I 1 an his mother as heairt broke a as s me mrs carscadden observed irrelevantly im no more married to him listen to me mother I 1 say im no more married to him than you are A light suddenly narrowed the mothers eyes andade In dade ill grant you that she said bitterly andade youre not married to him you an your district attorney or justice of the pace 0 or whatever wha an let but peter mccann put his head in in i my door an ill dist hrict attorney him taking a fine gearl that never done a mane thing in her life although she might scald the heairt out of me wit her nonsense ma dont talk like well like an idiot I 1 tell you that peter mccann and I 1 were kidnapped by bootleggers and taken way up into the country you send the til igram I 1 suppose certainly I 1 sent you a telegram I 1 want you to die of fright did I 1 and he the man he sint his folks one too peter well of course he did saturday night after we got caught in the library that is they sent them for us the bootleggers sit sint thim for ye was that it well they did mother we you cud dent no maam because sheila hesitated we were being she explained 1 I see said her mother and this morning they drove us to some place called capitol junction and we came down on the train 1 I see sec there was a silence sheila did not move she sat sat looking at her mother and sister fixedly the red deepening in her cheeks her lip bitten sheila such lovely people the mccanns angela burst out mrs mccann came to see ma on saturday and she was so sweet and she said such lovely things 0 you and she told us all about her wards gertrude getting married to peter they were so happy about it they were going to have a nuptial mass and everything well what of it sheila challenged her defiantly oh well sheila how can they now why cant they you know full well said her mother well I 1 must say I 1 think this is wonderful sheila said desperately 1 I never heard of 0 anything like iti it I wish now that I 1 come home I 1 wait to get here 1 I thought be so worried I 1 even want to stop at the police station at the police station all w we e needed mrs Carse carscadden adden exclaimed her eyes raised for heavens sake sheila what did you go to the police station for ao 10 to report the bootleggers of course what business was that of yours mrs carscadden demanded unsympathetically do much better to kape out of police stations as things are well if I 1 dont think im in in a bad dream said sheila the mccanns reported it to the police her sister said the mccanns did yes they were so worried about peter he had half a dozen appointments for saturday and he keep one of them and there was a big party saturday night 1 I know the cahiles Ca hills well wherever it was and when he get home to td dress for that they all got perfectly crazy and they telephoned around everywhere and at about ten mr frank mccann came out here frank mccann did yes because it seems that peter had told his mother and gertrude that he had known you up at tillers beach last summer and he had even talked to them about you after lie he got home hoine and we know anything ny thing of course except that you we home ma take her clothes off that night did you ma 1 I did not said ma mrs mccann talked to ma saturday afternoon about our maybe living over in astoria or somewhere where ma could have vegetables and everything angela lamented and now now never want to see us again she seemed so different yesterday so sad ad and quiet and shed been cry ing and he looked as if he had been too and everything was terrible joe got so mad and he stood up for you well sheila said with irony you all had a swell time you think it was so funny sheila carscadden angela reproached her with spirit if you could have seen the crying and goings on if you could have known how we all felt ma was up all night and joe kept coming in in and out it was something awful and then yesterday ma that was only yesterday then yesterday judge and mrs mccann came 11 well sheila said with a hard little laugh it seems that you let yourself get by bootleggers these days gertrude keane has been terribly sick angela went on in the accusing tender tone she had used all through the conversation ashes simply prostrated her brother joe came quietly in in she was in his arms crying and laughing joe joe youre not against me are you they said you stood to me joe you dont think im bad you believe me dont houi you I 1 he looked worried and serious pushed the silky fringe of hair from her forehead keeping a brotherly arm about her but not smiling not kissing her of course ill stand to you dear but my god what youve put us through sheila he sat down and she dragged a chair near his still clinging to his hand frank mccann and I 1 gave the marriage to the papers this noon ma he said sighing it seemed the best way even judge mccann ad advised it though it broke his heart Dist hrict attorney and all the mother demanded fearfully everything it was a justice of the peace ma what marriage sheila exclaimed very white yours dear it was the only way but joe joe were not married not by the church no but you will be we arent married at all joe we never were married lave to stop the papers listen joe we were by bootleggers do you see and they took us up to connecticut or somewhere we dont know where wait a minute joe said impressed in spite of himself by her desperate earnestness begin at the beginning sheila where did you and peter mccann meet on saturday sheila gulped at a law library on broadway joe and you go there for well wd we wanted to see each other joe you see that blue purse and I 1 lost it ma but my moneys here safe I 1 left i it t home well and then joe when I 1 went to the mccanns to give back the money I 1 got myself u up p like a beggar remember so feel sorry for me see well it seems that this gertrude keane whose purse it was is a ward of the mccanns her father and mother died when she was little and she grew up with the mccanns and peter mccann was right there and I 1 seen him since tillers beach because he had lost my address but I 1 know that 3 STORY slow up sheila you and he liked each other at the beach beacha just that one day and then we danced that night and then the next time you meet him its four days b bore fore his marriage to another girl you see joe but you were still in love with him well I 1 sort of liked him sapi SI pila suddenly took a fim fi m r tn t n I 1 but I 1 hate him now she said girled three days aether yeve ried him her mother muttered in an undertone fin fine boins do ins wait a minute ma so you and peter said meet she swallowed nodded watching h her brothers face anxiously with drenched eyes then fighting i back the tears she told them of her incredible adventure presently joe interrupted sheila listen I 1 want to believe you and I 1 want to get this straight but it sounds awfully fishy why should those men want to drag you and peter mccann along with them why they let you go home well they were trying to hide so some lethig joe they were afraid they were trying to hide some choing th go gb on what happened then then we went bumping up and up and up into the most desolate old house you ever saw and I 1 was so tired I 1 lay down and went to sleep with all my clothes on and the next day yesterday there we were with three terrible looking men only they turned out to be not so fierce and then this first man came up and I 1 guess lie he told them everything was all right because anyway we started down in the same truck only first I 1 cooked dinner for them ma I 1 cooked a pot roast only I 1 had to thicken it with flour because there any cornstarch so then they brought us to this place called capitol junction but when were you in boston sheila in boston we in doston boston where your telegram came from why it have been joe we gave him our names on saturday at the studio and he said hed send telegrams right away he thought peter and I 1 were married or were to be anyway but listen sheila lets get this straight were you married here in new york married joe youre crazy I 1 dont know which we never were married we hate each other we never tho right of getting married 1 I guess you and I 1 dont understand each other joe said slowly after a long pause 1 I guess were sort of in the dark who sent that he took a much folded limp oblong of yellow paper from his pocket opened it passed it to sheila she flattened it read it and looked at him then she read it again this time including a blance at the date line boston march 15 1213 A M 11 the desage was brief peter mccann and I 1 married by justice of the peace this eve rung g it said very happy letter soon it was signed sheila I 1 for a long time sheila sat staring at them all in silence the color drained from her face Is that what he sent she whispered at last I 1 that came sunday morning joe answered watching her well of course its a lie joe she said simply we never were in boston we never were nvere married you can go to the library and see the marks on the roof where we jumped out I 1 suppose probably still there in the snow and you can see the studio Pc Pe tell you the same and you can find capitol junction on the map you OU all believed the worst of me sheila answered getting angry you all thought id run off and got married by a justice of the peace all of you angela and ma and even joe all right she stammered trembling and getting to her feet all right I 1 will run away never he hear ir of me again I 1 wont have hav e the police chasing me up and printing stories that I 1 eloped with another girls fellow youve ruined me between you never see me again sheila for heavens sake joe protested be your age getting a telegram like that what els else e could ma think ma was aust as bad as the rest of you sheila sobbed wildly dont touch me joe dont hold me I 1 tell you im going away and im never coming back never oh ob blessed saint joseph save us angela prayed frantically no heavenly intervention ap j feared likely but there was an interruption nevertheless frank mccann mccan n quietly opened the hall door and slipped into the kitchen he was confronted by sheila pale faced with blazing eyes she had thrown off her brothers detaining hand her fingers had been on the knob when frank turned it hello hello peters older brother said in his pleasant voice as he took in the scene going on here going on sheila answered hotly with a heaving chest is that my mother and my in y brother and sister dont believe me and ive had about enough of being treated like a thief and a liar and a streetwalker street walker and I 1 dont know what else besides to be continued |
