| Show the lucky L laurences lawrences Lawren ces by KATHLEEN NORRIS by kathleen Kt hlen norris service SYNOPSIS the luck that had bi rought brought the boston ton Law laurences lawrences ces to california at the be stoning of the gold cold rush has hai deserted the th present generation from a acre ranch their holdings have shrunk to a small firm farm and the old family home in Clippe reville the death of their father forced the three eldest children to work no 0 o that sam and little arlel ariel might continue their education phil now twenty five live had gone into the th iron works gall to the public library and edith to the book department of Clipper avilles largest store seventeen year old arlel ariel Is becoming a problem and phil Is in fascinated by lint terrible uly lily cass whose husband lias bas deserted her bar young van hlson scion melon of a wealthy family returns from yale tale and gall his has visions th through rough marriage with him of the turning of the lawrence luck dick phils best friend has the run of f the house arigi ariel Is sneaking out of f the house at night tor for loy joy rides phil suggests to the girls consternation that they invite llly lily cass casa to the hot 1111 roes goes with van tor for a weekend week end with wilt the chappa his uncle and aunt CHAPTER IV continued 8 artel ariel after some if eions regarding the day dalp plans penns had said aid suddenly did you notice what happened to the challenge last night no gall gal had said with fill a piTr led expectant glance dance 1 I got rid of it 1 arid had in a conspirators tone got rid of it 1 what for IT because ec ause ariel hall had with a cautious glance about fur possible eavesdroppers because it taid said that mr and mrs arthur chipp had gone down to their los gatos gates place on tuesday and were opening it for or the summer oh gat gall had stammered with a suddenly deepening color and a sickly laugh oh her voice had dropped flatly she the mentor the guide the example of this little sister lind had stood shamed and detected trying to find amusing what was a most painful and humiliating moment 1 I dont blame you I 1 arlel ariel had said A quick protective instinct to add ue lie to lie had shaken gall but she was too unused to falsehood she had bad stood silent client presently saying in a troubled voice 1 I was sorry to to have to do that but it it as it phil were my father he has no right and edith has no right neither of them she had bad recommenced with a little difficulty neither of them understands how much how awfully one wants to go places do things phil who runs around with lily arlel ariel had bad helped her scorn fully and the younger sister had given her a sudden passionate kiss 1 I love you gall I 1 arlel ariel had bad said quickly but this rare demonstration from cool little artel ariel had brought no responsive spon sive happiness to galls heart to baie bae artel ariel protecting her abetting her in deceit in dealing with what was not open and fair had given her a wretched sensation that the solid ground was falling failing beneath her feet even the scornful reference to philip had alarmed her after all phil was the bead of the family phil was sacred there was no law nor order anywhere if phil was to be scorned 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 driving along the country roads that were smothered in spring beauty galls calls spirits rose nothing could prevent her from having a weekend week end in a los gatos country house now on sunday evening she would join the family at the dinner table on monday morning she would be back at work and everything would return to normal but she would have this wonderful memory as so eo much pure gain she was always in a gale of high spirits when she was with van anyway it was impossible to be otherwise he was the gayest of the gay she questioned him as they drove along who else will be on this house party van on this souse party van responded cheerfully will be first mine host and his buxom wife dame martha they will draw the ale heap oaken logs logo in the great fireplaces s oh for heavens sake you idiot idiol ills his shout of joyous laughter no therell be the chipps he began again seriously and three or four good auction players they have to have those play all this evening all tomorrow morning all tomorrow night and all day sunday in between games eat drink and ask it if anyone wants to swim badly enough to take the bother of undressing then therell be lucia ashes a cute kid ashes eighteen she goes to vassar next fall miss mary berls niece rif ecer yep then theres mary spence ches from boston visiting lucia ashes a keen been girl too and jim speedwell and fred freds a polo man but he broke his arm so hes resting and bill billings and maybe his bis sister and the duchess lenore ignore chipps sirs mrs phipps she was lenore murchison hlson ashes your halt half sister yep stepsister step sister my mother married her dad when she was about oh well shies a year younger than I 1 km am but bishes lived mostly with her grandmother ashes getting a divorce I 1 they drove through los gatos sleepy leepy in late afternoon sun son and ringed with wooded bills and turned south west on the boulevard that led to the ocean twenty six miles away the car mounted slopes rolled smoothly under mighty oaks left the paved pared highway for a comfortable dirt rond road few houses were visible now but the gates bore names el nido hill ways jackson farm road hidden paradise road the gate into which van at last turned the car was marked far clente there were nere fruit trees here scattered in among the natural forest trees there was a tennis court dappled with shade and light bud and draped in a rose vine heavy with golden bloom flower scents were everywhere ery where beauty was everywhere under a loaded rose vine on one of the porches four persons were playing bridge gall as she and van approached pro ached recognized one of these as her hostess mrs chipp chapp looked up at them sharply and without changing her position concentrated her cards in tier her left hand and stretched a hand toward van oh hello dear I 1 how ayou do MISS lawrence she said in a quick aside van vall all swimming and theres nobody here to excuse me just one second allyer she interrupted herself speaking to one of the players van she went on im not sure where the duchess has put miss miss lawrence but you take her up to the girls cottage and just let h her er park herself somewhere until th the duchess explains will you do that like ike a darling resolutely gall would not let tier lier self feel that it was rude that it left anything unsaid undone ill be all right I 1 she said with a smile and a nod walking off with van mrs chipp made no answer van led the way to one of the cabins a brown enchanting place with geraniums and lobella lobelia in the window r ax ill be all right she said with a smile and a nod boxes and a wide open door into a central sitting room take any of these rooms gosh all full of suitcases suitcase sl 1 van said peering in at doorways nere here heres one this must be you make yourself comfortable are you going to swim 1 I think not not well maybe I 1 will I 1 she decided against the swimming and walked out to meet van ten minutes later looking her prettiest in a white frock white shoes a white hat the boy lingering in the garden path waiting for her was win trim in a black bathing suit with a towel across his shoulders boys and girls as wet and sleek as seals Is were sprawled in the late sunshine on the grassy ramp beside the pool they were drinking a vale pale yellow drink from tall ice filled glasses a cocktail shaker stood on tle tile grass gall found herself the only person who was not drinking la in the group the cire circumstances um stances seemed to alienate her from froin them she listened smiled made herself appear at ease as a low toned conversation that had evidently been interrupted was begun again among the girls the men merely rolled in the sun yawned dawned and exchanged monosyllables you did not quit thail say listen gall heard beard over and over again the girls lucia mary and lenore murmured interestedly oil oh come on said the duchess suddenly when there had been a good deal of this well never get dress dressed edt I 1 immediately they were all running down the path to the cabin gall with them the only one who took any notice of her was the boston girl named mary spence mary spoke now and then kindly to gall as they all began a hurry flurry of dressing for dinner they left their bedroom doors open and ran back and forth lightly clad or not clad at all lenore and lucia shed abed their bathing suits on the strip of lawn outside the cabin and slipped into thin cotton almonas kl monas brief and almost transparent to wander about brushing their hair rubbing themselves with towels and gathering garments and cosmetics gall call who was not going to change sat eat on the upper porch step a few feet above the path and stared at the beauty and luxury of far niente as it lay on the slope below her and pretended to be satisfied and absorbed in what she saw she knew now that all the vague shy fears she had felt in anticipating this visit were going to be more than justified she knew that mrs mra chipp was wa not going to be nice to her that the girls were entirely la in different to her and that she h should not dot havi have come her clothes were not right her training was not right her background was wan not tight right she simply did not belong here add they were all more or less conscious of it this nice mary spence herself a stranger in the group was being cordial merely on general principles caples it was nothing to tier her that these californians had social distinctions between themselves they were all the same to mary spence 1 I shall have to work I 1 gall told herself grimly she must work talking smiling keeping herself occupied for all this endless evening and all tomorrow and most of sunday it bounded like an eternity suddenly she noted two of her companions in the cottage lucia and lenore walking with two boys named bill and jl jim down the path to the house they must have left flie file cottage by the back door which faced toward the mens cabin perhaps th the boys bad called them that left only mary in the house and it if site she also slipped away gall would have to go down to dinner at some spot unknown all alone ner her heart began to beat hard in fa nervous arvous anticipation presently a middle aged woman came up the path toward her and with a not onam lable halt half smile for gall stood still a few feet away calling maryl gall reco recognized nihed her as one of the card players yes mrs hillings Billing sl 1 mary called putting potting her head bead out of the porch door 1 mary you know what I 1 asked you to do the woman said oh besl mary answered WI will 1 I you do it now dear oh yes Instant instantly lyl I 1 said mary running out of the cabin she and mrs billings conferring went rapidly down the path together gall swallowed once with a dry throat then she got up tip and began to saunter slowly after them she encountered the boy named fred hunter in the path and fell upon him with all the boldness of desperation she laughed with him narrowed her blue eyes in their thick black lashes at him and when he be said somewhat nervously that he had been going up to the cabin to wake van whose aunt felt sure he be had fallen asleep gall said gaily that she would go too they awakened the drowsy surprised van and they all laughed together and gall still holding firmly to the now manageable fred waited for van on the porch of the mens cabin she walked down to the house bouse between the two of them disposing of vans good natured attempts to shake young youn mr hunter by a determined it if light hold upon the batters lat arm at dinner which began immediately she was between the two young men so far so good but it was work it was bitter hard endless work all struggle no lion alon anywhere she was conscious of carrying a heavy handicap the girls were all against her they ignored lier her they looked bored when she spoke they deliberately carried the conversation into channels where she must be III at ease and unfamiliar gall fought on her cheeks blazed her blue eyes shone she lost all consciousness ness of van as the man for whom she was beginning to care of the beauty of the place and the summer night of the novelty of dining here with these fashionable folks it was waa all a blur through which she was determined ter mined to hold her own despite them all when lenore at the end of the long ions meal during which they had all eaten drunk and smoked too much sale said provocatively to van something about needing him to conspire with her upon something that would surprise the others gall countered by saying that she and mr hunter wanted to get up a charade what they call it now Is it one of the boys said and gall call joined in the loud laughter the infatuated hunter was by this time incapable of 0 rny raly emotion even surprise and he and catl went down to a marble bench on the lawn where she held him as long as she could listening to his fatuous vague words and laughing and keeping in him laughing as it if it were the gra greatest test tun fun in the world later she annexed bill billings and fell into a deep toned conference witti with him about airmen and air records pretending to be so absorbed in the conversation that when van came to get her to dance she had bad to call a few last words over her shoulder to bill they were dancing on a sort of 0 platform with vines trailed up over its latticed top the moon shone down between the leaves the radio droned dronek and choked and droned dronek again gall danced well and loved dancing and was happy tor for a few minutes suddenly they were all disputing as to whether they should play bridge or go down to Mocker sons Mocker sona sons was a roadhouse over on the Half halfmoon bay road sixty miles away come on lets go dance at mock dersons erson sl 1 maybe the pl acell be raided 1 11 I am the captain of my fate fare folks I 1 am the master of my van observed rising with a wine glass in his hands in the fell clutch of circumstances cum stances what ayou thinus I 1 do dol ayou think I 1 wince or cry aloud T I 1 dont ile he was hauled down well do we go to Mocker sons T listen lets not and say we did 1 well ill tell you a story 1 f jim speedwell sold unexpectedly ile he told it TO BE CONTINUED |
