Show mom m C ta Y WAT E R by ayana ANNA mcclure copyright by W 0 chapman anty gmo CHAPTER VII continued 20 hand in hand they went back to the academy and the depression that nearly always settled upon waltons Wil tons spirit when ho he entered the building pressed down like a black cloud but a cloud whose heart was fire they went into the great hall and berenice paused beneath tier her fathers painting heres ray my real guard guardian ihn go and get gordon haskell I 1 will tell him here but winton did not have to go far haskell was coming up the steps from the basement his unusually sleek hair mussed and tumbled his eyes quite bloodshot ile he stared steadily at ills his teacher of psychology so this Is the way you abuse my confidence making love to your pupil a girl not yet twenty I 1 1 I nm am twenty eight wilton said 11 much inch A nearer miss Brace bridges age than you are A welt of red showed in haskells face as if wilton had actually struck him with willi a whip oh you scoundrel lie he muttered scoundrel haskell you forget yourself fl what is wrong in love that Is open and honest since you are I 1 miss Brace bridges guard guardian lant I 1 nm am telling you that we intend to be married some day with your consent or of course if we can get it without it if we cant defiance open defiance I 1 I 1 will pay you your quarters salary and you can go I 1 never come back I 1 if you attempt to write to miss bracebridge or to see tier her ill take legal steps to prevent you all gordon fl haskell askell you are wicked wicked white face a and nd blazing eyes transformed her for the moment into an accusing angel if you think ill give up wilton payne for a thousand guardians you do not know me youve only known this man for a 11 few weeks no matter now you are not to turn him out of this place ile he is a gentleman a scholar a man of honor ile he pleaded with me to tell you at once and came to do it and this Is your greeting 11 you need not go until monday haskell muttered but then you must 1 I certainly shall go and I 1 warn you I 1 shall also continue to see miss bracebridge I 1 an am not penniless belore before I 1 engaged to teach here a death in ral my family put me in possession of elou enough il at least to keep me from depending wholly on my profession t haskell changed countenance oh well its not my intention to turn you oft off without a quarters payment s1 1 sa I shall certainly take it il I 1 could force you to keep me here as well but I 1 shant haskell shrugged his shoulders and walked away berenice stole to paynes side wilton we must get his consent id go anywhere with you share any poverty well wait for each other where will you go ill ask jerry to take me in and those of my pupils who want to finish this quarter with me can with no more obligation to me than they had before 1 I am afraid lie he will make it very hard bard tor for you 4 im glad I 1 had nothing in my hand 1 believe beleve I 1 would have used it on him I 1 ican can quite understand now why your brothers and sisters did not dot like him 11 kiss me quite openly under my fathers picture I 1 know hes bes blessing us they kissed the great house bouse was shrouded in silence wilton thought w what hat a bless blessing ln it if the footsteps of haskell and balder would die out from these walls forever and tile the place be restored to a lost innocence and peace chos that playing the old plano piano berenice asked 41 1 I dont hear bear anything listen alsten ile he did hear then the far olt off melody of a chopin prelude maybe its janet I 1 think she pla plays Ys it oil oh my dear what shall I 1 do in this great place without you ill it stay near by I 1 can work and study and plan for the future life Is all ours nc he told janet and arthur that evening the two were to in dismay let us all leave arthur exclaimed lots lets clear out and leave the brute and take berenice with us what good w would that do arthur janet remonstrated it won would id only make lake matters worse orsel I 1 no I 1 think we must stay and help her in ID another way 11 youre right janet wilton said 1 I want to get to the root of the trouble here and maybe I 1 can get to the root much quicker from the outside arthur looked earnestly at him never have a finer held field for psychological research what do you think haskells game Is ne wants money im suro sure but I 1 think hes fond of her too ile he puzzles her but she has never been actively antagonistic to him as were the four other children you generally love what you protect and is as her guardian I 1 suppose ills his affection and his sense of power increased together on sunday he called at jerry moores and was able to make satisfactory arrangements with him wilton was to hae a large bedroom opening out of the kitchen and provided with a desk and a stove it will be good to have ye jerry commented he turned you out for courtin court ln eh well I 1 think berenice done right to take ye it if you ask me wilton did ask ash him many things ills his parting from berenice had been ardent sorrowful defeated and determined 1 slie she had promised him that with sirs mrs denver or janet tor for a companion pan ion she would make her usual visits to jerry wilton consoled himself by talking of her with the old farmer whose admiration of berenice was as great as his own he spoke one night of the christmas tree jerry took out his pipe and stared at him that aint around yet not now hes burned it balder always did act queer about that tree ue he lied to you when he said he saw it floated down ne ile brought it down himself on old white stars back white was a arau drau draught ht horse they used to have after the funeral mrs bracebridge sent jerry up to fetch down the tent and other things I 1 the tree had an american flag on to it so balder I 1 was helpin him lie he says ill take down the hull business want the stand debbe why for lie he burn it I 1 dont know but balders a half witted loon anyway you take him wilton thought the description accurate apart from his separation from berenice lie he rather relished relis lied his change of surroundings the stark simplicities of life were always congenial to him and the plain old farmhouse the silence of the great hills the bri bright procession of the winter days it was an open and friendly winter till all combined to content him arthur he saw almost every day berenice every week at least when janet could n not 0 t come with tier her mrs denver did the little housekeeper was no more reassured than she had been on the day of her arrival the pupils were falling off she said the story of waltons Wil tons dismissal had gottl gotten n about and he had ma many n y sympathizers when the last pupil goes im go ing she announced one day 1 I shall be the last pupil berenice said watt wait tor for me mrs den ver they left the housekeeper and jerri talking on the subject of fruit preserve ing 1119 and went out into the cold for their own conference more important to them than the plans of the olyra plans why did you say eay you would be the last pupil dear wilton asked her because I 1 know that many of them are not coming back after the christmas holidays there are rumors about abou t since sally Wel fords story of seeing my brothers and sisters bisters rumors that harm might come to people in the academy now that foolish no I 1 dont think it Is 1 I mean actual physical harm not queer feelings and fear 1 I was always afraid of it its like ii a hidden ferment that may break out some day in a catastrophe has your guardian mentioned me in any way yes he says you will have to leave the neighborhood after christmas 1 by whose authority dear why not move as far as On teaga mrs denver could go down with me there on shopping trips and we could meet ill not leave you berenice ill not leave loftland Lost land he answered stubbornly but he has threatened to stop my coming to jerrys ile he keeps the front gates locked now and the way around by the lake Is farther then we must write when we cant meet he looks over the malubag every day how about our own post one of natures providing heres a box ready he pointed to a squirrel hole in an old oak near by we can leave notes there and if you cant get this far arthur will bring them himself I 1 knowl know I 1 wilton well do my guardian has such an uncertain temper one never knows what the next mood will be 1 I hope arthur and janet tread lightly in that debatable ground they do indeed janet and I 1 are continually to together gether we watch the shadows as if they were alive we sit by the fire and wonder when the wind will die mother martha never leaves the top of the house now but I 1 have to watch her for she creeps up and down the corridor once I 1 heard her call out im coming althea im coming my lamb keep close to janet 1 I have to sit with my guardian sometimes he seems so unhappy 1 I found him one day with his head burled in his hands and when I 1 asked him it if he were in pain he answered quite savagely til ill make a bonfire of the whole place some day its been a torment and an agony ey ever er since I 1 set foot in it ive been bound to the wheel of your family the whole ho horrible r tragedy descended on me I 1 told him 1 I would release him from his guardianship at once if he wished ed then ilen he accused me of being in league with you against him you two are sp spying Y ln on me I 1 never wanted to bring these teachers here but you forced my hand as usual 1 I saw there was no use wilton I 1 left him to ills his dark fancies H he e ever even take any classes now says the sooner the whole farce Is done the better I 1 dread Christ christmas masl TO BE CONTINUED |