Show X L sf ass alfe GIRL in I 1 la the MIRROR B Nixa bLoth jordan wa le 1 berdica CHAPTER VIII continued 11 jepson moved ponderously away to do so while rodney opening his big box in the hall drew out the poin dettla and chrysanthemums and proceeded to arrange them in a gorgeous armful bangs had bad unexpected taste in color and arrangement as Ep eksteins steins stage directors had discovered in tile the past laurie watched him with polite interest making a picture of yourself arent you he be asked into the sickroom sick room with your little hands full of flowers but even as he scoffed he was unwrapping his own flowers bangs was right the act of handing banding a pasteboard box to a sick friend lacked esthetic value jepson returned with a cordial message mrs airs ordway would be charmed to see bee both young men but she received only one visitor at a time would mr bangs come up now and perhaps mr devon would drop in again during the afternoon or evening rodney hodney grasped his floral offerings and mounted thi the stairs two steps at a time he was excited and his big brown eyes showed it it was most awfully good of mrs ordway to let him come up in this informal way standing by the chaise longue where the she lay ho he told her so BO his auburn head shining among the flowers he carried like a particularly large chrysanthemum then selecting some empty vases he be sat down on oh the noor floor beside her and began to arrange his flowers while she watched him at first with surprise then with growing admiration rodney had no social airs and graces no parlor tricks it if he had been formally sitting on a chair holding his hat he would have been a telf self conscious and unhappy young man As it was with hands and eyes busy and wholly at his ease he be talked lis his exuberant best how about lauries La urles romance louise asked at once bangs told her about the vision in the mirror As he did so luncheon was served and he be was casually invited to share it susanne moving shuttle like between the table in the sickroom sick room and the dumb waiter in the upper hall presently confided to a young footman a surprising piece of news which he in turn confided to the incredulous jepson young mr bangs who was lunching with mrs airs ordway must be as amusing as young mr devon himself lie ile had actually made the mistress laugh both times he came she was laughing now as susanne had not heard her laugh tor for weeks to be sure this was one of her good days but it easy to amuse mrs ordway at any time jepson summed up the situation in an oracular utterance blenny one a friend of mr devons his hall right 11 when rodney was leaving jepsonn Jep sons mistress expressed the same thought to her gueft guat in a different way come often she said you have given me a new interest I 1 dont think you can quite realize what that means to me when sonya arrived at five that afternoon slie she found jepson still exuding reassurance with two doctors within call a nurse in the house and mr denon den and miss Orle Orl eneff to telephone to at a moments notice nothing much could appen 11 so reasoned jepson lie ile beamed approvingly on sonya informed her that mr devon was in the sickroom sick room now and waved her through the hall with an effect of benediction she found lawle laurie lust just leaving and ana they had a moments chat on tile the upper landing mrs lire ordway he told her was rather restless tills this afternoon but she seemed better than she tied had been yesterday however he be like her looks at all and he fancied the nurse was wan disturbed sup pose sonya sounded louise about cabling for warren surely warren would want to know laurie thought for the moment lauries laurales La urles striking good looks were slightly dimmed lie he was hollow eyed almost heegard he haggard igard things were coning coming just a bit too fast tor for him the habit of carrying the burden of others had bad been taken on too suddenly under the strain of it his untrained mental muscles ached it was the irony of fate that sonya looking at him with the clear brown browa eyes that were so much softer than bangs and so BO much less beautiful than erian doris should misinterpret his appearance his emotion and his reaction from the high spirits of the morning ile he was again going the pace she decided and mingled with her pity for him rose the scorn of a wong soul that was the absolute master aster of the body in which it dwelt his newly aroused perception car isome gome hint of this scorn to the boy covered though it was wa by the tha friendliness of manner the knowledge added to his wretchedness he had a childish desire to explain erp lalu but he conquered it and hurried away some day it if not now sonya bonya would understand what he himself did not understand was the long ion stride he had bad taken in the moment when he felt and resented her unspoken criticism heretofore his attitude had been ono one of expressed and sincere indifference to tile opinions others held of him lie he wanted them to like him but he care abang a hang whether or not they approved of him now suddenly he wanted respect as well as her III liking ing the discovery added to his mental confusion if sonya when she entered the sickroom was shocked by the change in the appearance of her new friend she showed no sign of it sitting bitting down beside the chaise longue she entered briskly upon a description of the recent experiences of Sal samuel quel when she left the hospital the house surgeon was obediently endeavoring to look down the throat of hullen R J and every nurse on samuels floor was sc uttering in and out of his room nevertheless the infant though graciously accepting these attentions had demanded and received personal assurance that the particular game of the morning was not to be repeated there was an unpleasant element in that game which grownups grown ups might not notice but which he samuel had caught on to louise laughed and expressed a hope that samuel would now be able to breathe without disturbing his neighbors sonya came to the real purpose of her visit he and his mother are going back to devon house saturday she said but ive got to stay in new york for a few months on account of my literary galumph ings I 1 wondered it if you it if it would be convenient for you to put me up I 1 hate hotels and louise lay silent for a moment then she reached out and took hand yes tes you unskillful prevaricator she said bald you may come and see BOO me through sonya bonya held the hand tightly in her own theres one thing more she went on hesitatingly laurie baurle and mr bangs and I 1 wondered if perhaps you feel more comfortable if mr warren came home you know he himself would want to louise closed her eyes yes she said bob would want to it if he knew she was silent tor for so BO long that sonya began to think she was not to have the answer to her question perhaps mrs airs ordway was leaving the decision to her but to leave to others decisions that concerned herself was not louise Ord ways habit instead she was fighting a battle in which the lifelong devotion of a supremely self centered nature was struggling with a newborn unselfishness though newborn new born it was strong as the invalids next words showed if I 1 were calling him back from anything but his honeymoon she said bald at last id do it but hes utterly happy ills letters show that in every line I 1 want him to stay so as long as he be can I 1 want his honeymoon to be b drawn out and perfect her naner manner n aner changed 1 07 have an idea that perhaps after all ml ill be here when ha he gets back she added more lightly lira has haa its interests but it if I 1 happen not to ha be here tell him why I 1 cable 1 I will tell him sonya promised neither of them referred to the subject again CHAPTER IX an invitation that evening laurie baurle walked across the square to doris studio with a decision in his stride which definitely expressed his mental attitude ile he had come come to the conclusion that something must be done what this something would be was still hazy in his mind but the first step at least seemed clear doris must move he was so convinced of the urgency of this sapo that he brought up the subject almost before the greetings of guest and hostess were over tossing his hat and coat on a convenient chair he stood facing doris hb hL hands in his pockets his black eyes somber bomber weve got to get out of tills this you know lie he abruptly announced her eyes which had brightened at his entrance grew grel as somber as hla his own without replying she turned walked across the room to tile the window and stood looking down into the street Is he there she asked at last and without moving her head shawl shaw great scott no nol 1 at leant I 1 see him I 1 suppose he takes afew a few hours off now and then during the twenty four he oh ob yes he comes and goes sometimes secretly sometimes openly I 1 did not see him at all today until late I 1 JA k if I 1 moved how long do you think it would take taka him to find me me this afternoon then he took up his post across the street just opposite tills this window and stood there for almost an hour laurie ground his teeth what does he expect to gain by that performance several things I 1 suppose for one he wants to get on my nerves and he does she added somberly and still without turning laurie made a vague tour around the room and brought up by her side you tou know lie he confessed 1 I han ha ent really taken tills this thing in yet even now tills this minute it seem possible to me that shaw could do you any real harm she nodded 1 I know why should it even to me it Is like a nightmare and I 1 keep hoping to wake up there are hours even days when I 1 convince myself that it real she elie stopped it must be very hard for any one else to understand she ended when he did not speak nevertheless admitted laurie 1 I cant forget it it I 1 cant think of anything else she took this an aa ft abe had d taken hta his first remark it going to be very hard tor for yom iwas I 1 was wrong to draw you into it I 1 am realizing that more and wore more every you help yourself he cheerfully reminded her now that I 1 am in lt it as ag ive warned you before I 1 intend to run things it seems to me that the obvious course for you la Is to move after youre safely hidden somewhere I 1 think I 1 can teach herbort herbert ransome shaw q lesson that wont react on you she shook her heal head if I 1 moved how long do you think it would take him to find me mer weeks perhaps months again she shook her head 1 I moved here a few days ago he appeared exactly forty eight hours later it if I 1 moved front here it would only mean going through the game of haro hare and hounds bounds again but he began she interrupted him ive reached the point where I 1 cant endure that any more for the first time hervoich her ber voice broke cant you im abino what that sort of thing would be to getup in the morning and wonder if this Is the day ill see him under my window to go to bed at night and ask myself if he la lurking in the shadows below or across the street or perhaps outside my very door to know that sooner or later he will be there that his coming Is as inevitable as death itself she broke off 1 I sometimes think id rather see a boa constrictor crawling into my room than see shaw down on the sidewalk she ended and yet I 1 know you can understand this theres a queer kind of relief in the knowledge that at lao ia and finally he has got me she whirled to face laurie and threw out her hands there was nothing theatrical in the gesture merely an effort of entire finality we have come to the end of things she finished since you would not have them end my way they must end his way whatever happens I 1 shall not run and hide any more for a moment silence hung like a substance between them then the visitor re resolutely s shook oft off the effect of her words 1 I promise you I 1 will get to the bottom of this he be quealy told her in the meantime will you 7 to forget it for a little while you know you said you could do that occasionally sio nally he was clearing the table as he spoke now he proceeded to unpack a basket he had sent over an hour before by griggs and which he observed had not been opened dropping back into her big chair she watched him with an odd look if he had seen this look it would have sorely puzzled him for it held not only interest but an element of apprehension even of fear in the past two days she said after nn an interval you have sent me five anve baskets of food tour four baskets of fruit six boxes bosses of candy and three boxes of flowers what do you suppose becomes of them all 1 I know what becomes of the flowers eri ile he cast an appreciative glance around the transformed room arid and I 1 hope he mildly added that you eat the food slie she broke into her adre rare laugh soft deep throated and contagious under it his spirits rose dizzyingly you are feeding halt the people in this building she said not to mention sam and his home circle sam has absorbed roast chicken cold partridge quail and sweetbreads sweet breads till he Is getting critical ile he asked me this morning it if I 1 like ham and eggs for a change I 1 laurie felt slightly aggrieved do you mean to say that youre not eating any of the stuff yourself he demanded oil I 1 ent eat three meals a da day Y but I 1 dont keep boarders you know so I 1 give the rest to sam to distribute ile he feeds several dozen ari art students I 1 infer and staggers home every night under tile the burden of left there wont be anything left this night now was wag helping to set the little table laurie looked at her with shining eyes one of her r rapid a pid changes of mood had tal taken te n place and she was entering into the spirit of the impromptu supper as ai cheerfully as it if it were a new game and she a child she lind had become a wholly different personality from the tragic eyed girl who less than ten minutes ago had somberly announced that she was making her last stand in life again as often before laurie felt ov overwhelmed e rw helmed by the rush of conflicting emotions she aroused shall we have this big bowl of roses in the center or the four little bowls at the corners she asked absorbedly edly As she spoke scolie she studied the flowers with her head on one side bide for the moment it was clear the question she had asked was the most vital I 1 in n the world the little ones decided the guest the big one might shut off some of you from my devouring eyes ile he was waa mixing ingredients in a deth as he spoke a and nd he wore the trying air of smug complacency that invariably accompanies that simple process no he objected as she tried to help him 1 I 1 will do the brainwork brain work your part la Is to be feminine and rush briskly back and forth offering me things I 1 dont want and at th the last moment lie he added gloomily yec may tell me that there a lemon lemo in the place ile he looked about alti the hopelessness of a great artist tao rao ing the failure of his chef 1 I forgot the lemons TO UM BB |