Show bayl storm M CLY country y polly by grace M miller afler 4 white copyright by little brown co 1 MARCUS MACKENZIE MACKENZI 9 SYNOPSIS occupying a dilapidated shack in the silent city a squatter settlement near ithaca now new york polly hopkins Horik lna lives with hor her father small jerry anil and an old woman granny hope on an adjacent farm oscar dennett prosperous tanner farmer is 19 a neighbor lie he la Is seer secretly e aly married to evelyn roberton supposedly wealthy girl 0 of f their neighborhood roily polly alone e knows their secret oscar la is a thorough thoroughgoing going vil villain loLin he Is tired of his wife and has his eye on the pretty squatter gill with her radiant eyes and her tumbling curls and of course polly would fight like a wildcat it if oscar so much as laid lian hanla Is on her CHAPTER I 1 continued 2 one lay clay polly had found her bielz in bed and as she had la 10 vie fie forlorn billy goat home so did she bring granny hope never realizing that in the tottering old figure she was entertaining fin an fingel angel unawares all she fhe kaw was that grannys grandys Gr annys toothless St her cheerful words of love and kindliness made the sun shine brighter and the meager food more filling during the NN winter Inter sirs mrs hope had encouraged the girl to read at first that had been difficult for the shanty contained nothing but the lie tattered bible the old woman had brought with her over and over polly had read the he miseries of joh job the patient the iong ong lamentations of jeremiah who alwais put her in mind of daddy alop ans and she also knew by heart tile the aary of the crucifixion of jesus who so the bible said was the best man that had ever walked tile the globe so had those winter days of close comp companionship anion ship with aith tile the woman who had lived long rind and suffered much and who now was mai elmost ready to on to larger experiences brought out in polly II greater capacity for loving the squatters batters called her Poll yop the lovelass love iove lass and sometimes pally of the sun granny hope explained this by saying they all love you poll an its out of your wn own heart they get the feelen of joy when they see ye from behind the wood box near where the goat stood Poll yop took up on in ax as tenderly she bent and placed a kiss upon the goats horny head then she touched granny hope the woman lifted tier her lids and smiled at it the girl tile the matter lovelass love lass she murmured im goin out granny replied polly it if daddy comes tell kiln ill be back in a while Nl ille into tle rain she went her bare feet carrying her swiftly over the ragged rocks her curls gathered under her chin like a warm glistening hood when later she appeared in front of the shanty her ging gingham liam skirt was filled with rusty pans lians and old pieces of tin she I placed them on the doorstop doorstep and looking I 1 it at the willow tree mew arti into the houle houe from a peg pe poli i louk a pair of her fathers trousers and clambered in into 0 them tucking her skirts out of sight and rolling up lip the trouser logs legs for daddy hopkins was ians much gatier than his daughter into one of the big poc pockets lets polly thrust a handful of nails it was a grotesque looking girl who a few minutes later inter was flattening out the paris pans and the old bits of tin upon the alie stone wien that was nas finished slie she gathered them up tip oil and ax in hand climbed into the willow tree and onto the roof duddy daddy hopkins would be glad when he crime houie and found tile the shick shack dry and warm marm then she be began an ber task of hammering the pieces of tin lin over the holes through which the water mater dripped once in a while she stopped sto piped in working all and flat on tier her stomach sought fer smaller cracks just as site she had mended un the last bole sho she heard the sound of horses hoofs and mens anens alcos with the lie fear of the persecuted aci scented slie she crouched close to the roof and ami uke ilke sonic some frIght frightened euLd an animal crawled to the edge of it squatters did not speak like that neither old did they ride horseback there e in the lane two mag ent animals eie two men uny ne she recognized instantly polly lind had every reason to know the tall man mail whose dark handsome tuce face had cast deep sha shadows dokAs over the silent city marcus tIac Kenzie ind been for 3 anra en rs the Ne nemesis feineis ineIs atiat hung over the cayuga inke hike squatters even during ills his absence on war work nork abroad ills long hns arm had often ten clied back to the alie silent city to pick auy some husband and close the prison gates behind hini him had a passionate nate desire to throw tile the ax st 91 him slie she knew there MIS us not a licata in all the silent city that lid did not beat with dread at the vera mention of ills his name ahen she caught a glimpse of tile the tf ok ber liler mans mails face and forgot her corror of marcus mackenzie in ithaca wid about it she had seen many sold lars but never anyone like lie ile was dressed in an of leers and as his horr vai V ito into better bette via vt this th frown fromn faded from Poll brow as slie she gazed wonderingly upon hini him she maikel his flashing glances that swept the silent city she no noted ted with a strange little thrill the beauty of the features the full kindly mouth and the si tanned skin narcus marcus mackenzie MacKen was speaking rapidly and though roily polly could not hoar hear what lie he said she knew he be was tal talking king of the squatters then words that made her tingle with joy came distinctly to her ears but you cant turn a lot of folks out of their homes marc rang forth a jeep deep rich voice olce where under the li would they go if you did bifid anywhere they d n please snarled mackenzie contemptuously if they bere vi ere all dead be better off and ithaca too ton pollys hollys hand tightened on the ax at handle andle li to let it fly straight into the face of the haughty would have been satisfaction indeed I 1 have you tried to buy them out asked the other no and I 1 dont intend to was the sharp retort go because ill make them go all ive been too busy for the last two years to make much of a dent among them but now im home for good I 1 mean to clear them oft off an outward gesture of the officers hand told polly lie he wasi was not in sympathy with threat you cant judge of tile the situation cob bob marcus larcus went ment on because youve been gone one for years evelyn can tell you what they are though the speaker wheeled his horse and ported ills his riding whip straight at the hopkins shanty and pollys hollys curly head drew quickly back one of the worst of them lives there she heard plainly nes lies sort of a mayor of the settlement jeremiah hopkins and such a tribe as that hut but holds cant be found OUT any 1 1 I 1 A it was a grotesque looking girl who a few minutes later was flattening out the pans and the old bits of tin upon the stone where abere else in III this county A worthless tangle tring l haired girl and a boy half in the grave grae find and I 1 heard only this morning harboring a hag by the name of hope they live like pigs too the poor things much of a chance to live otherwise have they marc the question n evidently r required e no fin answer awer well what do you think of that he went on then he read nou aloud if your heart Is loving and kind come right in if it aint scoot coot off why beautiful the marm vi arm velvety brown the rich mans threats had made a hard glare was as bro ill ought light back to pollys hollys eyes by these words cords she Slie could have hugged the speaker Us ns hard as she sometimes lid did daddy hopkins sneered MacK onzle perfect rot your aunt was saying this morning that the iloni hopkins I 1 I 1 is g girl ir I 1 Is as odd as she Is filthy tile the very idea of having a thing like that hung 1112 up polly saw the younger man reach out rind and touch the speaker with mith a gloved cigrid love rubbish wherever you vou find rid it old chap he exclaimed it gives even een a squi shack a glimpse of fleaven li you ought to help those these people mare marc give che them a chance make S something alet of them and they wont bother you burning tears filled pollys hollys eves to hoar hear him speak in III sympathy with her Isher nien friends toil touched lied tier her deeply deehl and lie had spoken of love in tile same sallie wa granny hope did too lisul never imagined olt old mares marcs kind ver thought of the meek the lowly t nd id iq I q hungry FBI far above the world ill up in the beyond the clouds cloud here the blue was right along alongside ld tt crucified savior bolly hopkins wl this new friend of the silena city her fier thoughts were interrupted inte vudred by span kloy akino pigs bob I 1 tell sou he ae repeated roughly and what A hat I 1 brought you down here today for polly lost the rest of his sentence back flu and id yet farther back she slipped over the roof she had nener neer heard beard anything so dreadful as this in fact she had bad always quite liked pigs but she had never thought of compa comparing r ing the shanty or granny hope and daddy hopkins to a barnyard and its mccu pants slie she heard the men ride away tin and once more she sat up by balsin raising tier her body a little she could see them walking their horses along the road that led its crooked way through the settlement tl ement erit mackenziee Macken straight thickset thick set figure made her shudder but the slim silla boyish one beside him bro brought light a queer little thrill to her heart hes a beautiful angel himself she murmured and taking up the ax as she slipped donn doann the tice and dropped to the wet ground granny hope straightened up as polly entered the kitchen swiftly the girl crawled out of her fathers trousers and tossed back her curls the matter pretty brat queried the woman drowsily 1 I got to find daddy replied r polly iby her voice shaking old marcs fares back an hes after us squatters aum a filin um an granny she paused her face softened and she smiled yep honey prompted mrs nope hope old marc had a beautiful angel with ith him went on the girl an he likes us squatters aqua squa aters ile he stood right up to that rotten mackenzue Mac Kenzle I 1 heard him I 1 did she crossed to the old womans comans side loves able to tend send a angel slap bang down to this 01 old d earth to help us huh buh granny hope yep sure sure honey girl murmured granny and once more her head bobbed forN forward lard and sh she slept polly hopkins crept out of the hut hue and sped away along the shore toward bad mans ravine CHAPTER II 11 about the time polly hopkins II began to repair the shack roof evelyn robertson came into the room where her ber mother sat reading the girl was dressed to go out and nas mas drawing a pair of gloves over her ringed fingers where are you going eve inquired the lady it seems to roe me that youre running out altogether too much theres your piano 1 you practiced in months now dont blame me eve if when marcus asks you to play you fall flat A dull red ran into the girls cheeks but she made no do reply as she smoothed the wrinkles from her gloves the good lord know continued tb the e mother irritably that ive kept at you enough now marc and robert are home how are you going to entertain them men aien demand so much the experiences of the past two years had taught evelyn that lesson it had been demand demand and more demandil demanding iq eer since ou in girlish impulse she had secretly married oscar bernett berglet t arid and you heard what marcus said last night about the silent city folks went on mrs robertson what you want of that hopkins II girl birj I 1 dont understand der stand 21 marcus larcus says her father I 1 Is s the most dangerous man among the lot of them and the girl herself Is queer oh dont talk about the squatters all the time cried leelyn 1 I late hate the very sound of the word mord polly II any anyway nay now marcus larcus Is home darling the mother interrupted eagerly it has always been my hope that you and marc would grow to care for each other lie he is so rich and so handsome now he A groan almost leapt from evelyns lips what a fool she had been I 1 here she was married to a man she loathed a man she was anas ashamed kofl of the that another man rich good looking and in every way desirable had turned his serious eyes upon tier her almost made her ber blurt out the whole story to her mother but having kept silent so lom ion she dared not speak now all through the right she had tossed and turned hunting some way to get oscar bennett out of her life without marcus knowing anything about it she dared not go to oscar himself polly hopkins II was the only hope she had all bunnett cared tor for was money helas he was as tired of tier her as she was of him perhaps lie ile would go away quietly and set her free it if she gaye gave him money enough would her mother give it to her mother do you honestly honest Jy want rue me to marry mure marc she asked trembling blinK mrs robertson caught at the hand 1 I do I 1 do indred indeed dirling darling she answered sNi ered and hell ask soil QU too im sure perhaps Perli ups not today or tomorrow for lies just renewing his acquaint nil with will you by the way he looked lo 10 ansi ight eight I 1 4 could tell lie he was consid riby it 11 0 1 A handkerchief dropped from eve lyns fingers it up and idis ed if rising I 1 lead ead ra 11 me to tad gum ottone of mur money ry him I 1 will I 1 1 her 11 voice vole all i her ook young face fa a ud ind haggard ile j never neve seen t her he cr dai state ve sit d down olm a commanded nil in tt vant t X IF 41 that ati YOU money f or I 1 you S latt upon up ive 0 o ref refuel used YOU yov on so more secrets secret or facts myat 6 i X OW tell the me th girl fl buried 1 I her f dropped ace 14 b S she for time in ab same attitude a studied 11 er I 1 girl eibi lifted herself ea silently er cany 11 t etall I 11 sa and I 1 i pose 10 kinds of dort you base I 1 need to g te ants it oil afrait me theres esno no irs afsa and I 1 if m give tie the to wiped her ale y SIO flY I I lip YOU must ertson said 1 I a cold ins e like that it air bi from me its time e yo well we fj I 1 t tr om 4 suppose i hanel its iii it 10 ate you goiri goins to that s the quest question lov it was eident to that the situation was M I 1 with in a twin kli hid had changed froni from i M girl to an 11 1 afra aann aggressive dessive IT to bully her any a t waste of effort 10 heavens n SIT she tn pretty how to aim do I 1 B imagine chy you shot shi it Ides nt make mud much aay ay there are more an one why you cant get gt it what ale aie they theatt lips Ps the first is rehi reh tartly 1 I dont like be this highhanded high handed ma mann laughter daughter she paused and lay I 1 breath if that were TO C row and rage i r wanted I 1 li mother lother and daught r at one another each cacti ev evelyn el a did dl make any mrs bobs ob before the ste steely thi I 1 tie 03 es but the main reain on 1 I got it IL I 1 house nor nor evelyn sprang to her hi fronted her mother drain into cruel alce mere ere gripped spas YO you lie le she he burst 4 always lied to rie ne about alwi 1 A bitter smile drew 1 ners of the older aomia knew how true the 1 I soca aa well this im telling g you the iii not only do not own chils tl Z then who does docs own ow ed the girl your cousin robel t the quick response and a all the money ve tie hs per perhaps haps you wont t tr thin out of me I 1 balm mother cried tie the 1 I told you ETC ere 1 I 1 know the truth I 1 SIM sir linued youre youle asked it Is when Il bober mother died I 1 came here I 1 ot of him I 1 iriti had not billi nothing now YOU lb wert T and ive always kept t you JIl when lell rober kobert bert t arranged that thail if le he e il I 1 should hae tte the hailie ho money to keep vs R S evelyns eyes eves |