| Show ceo DE egli SL aw LE W N V r installment EIGHTEEN SE STORY SO FAR karen waterton believing herself to be the heir to alagoa the island estate ot of her grandfather finds herself no heiress at all when the old gentleman garrett waterson turns up after a long disappearance meantime she and her lawyer have been engaged in a dispute over the rights to the property with the wayne family who have been in possession since the old man left many deais years before richard tonga dick wayne has fallen in love with karen as has also the lawyer john colt karen and dick quarrel and after she leaves ala koa with colt dick overtakes them and forces their boat to return garrett waterson has arrived and Is very in ill karen nurses him back to health but she and dick have never become reconciled since their quarrel one day karens grandfather teus tells dick that karen Is going back to honolulu possibly to marry colt dick asks him what he thinks of I 1 1917 w continue with the story colt just what I 1 would have picked I 1 certainly want to marry him myself said watterson with an effort dick rallied 1 I dont see why not he said 1 I think make a lovely bride 1 I suppose hell do well enough by her waterson said gloomily its his stamp of crocodile that generally gets ahead of course his infernal impudence made me kind of mad but I 1 was kind of tickled at him after I 1 thought it over you have to kind of admire a man with as much brass as that there was a long silence and dick was thinking of a lot of things of which he would not have wished to speak that girl is a wonderful girl waterson said so long as I 1 ever have one dime that will do the work of a nickel that girl is never going to be in want ashes something pretty special dick sweet and gentle and loyal and dick broke it up when do I 1 sail for nuku anuku hiva the matter with tomorrow the Holo kais full of oil I 1 guess tomorrow will be all right CHAPTER XVI with his crew rounded up and fresh water aboard the holokai dick wayne went ashore to phone honolulu by wireless he did not suppose that his brothers would want him to mix in any more than they could help but it seemed only decent to ask what the situation was before he left alagoa on a voyage that would keep him away tor for a matter of weeks james waynes estate embracing all of alagoa was hanging fire and he supposed he owed it to them to tell them where going sat at james waynes old desk up above in the house that garrett waterson himself had built and fiddled with the phone for the better part of half an hour before he got a connection which would do it was charles wong whom he reached at last charles wong it turned out was dithering in a state of mental confusion and disorder 1 I ive been trying to reach you for two days wong chattered 1 I was about to come to alagoa everything ery thing is terribly upset its absolutely necessary that you come here the matter now your brothers are absolutely unable to reconcile themselves to the wi wpc 11 inthey it they cannot reach an agree ita you I 1 am almost ta ia eliat dat they will try to break it you had better come here and talk to them as soon as possible the disturbance is unimaginable but al aboa is going to suffer if what was the matter with the will oh nothing sir nothing but naturally your brothers are very much surprised certainly you must have anticipated that they would 1 I dont even know what was in the will tonga dick told him why why you heard 1 I talked to honolulu since my brothers left here A considerable hesitation decorated with unrecognizable spluttering splutter ing noises represented charles bongs dumbfound ment the will gives you the controlling interest in ala koa wong finally managed to get out who me dick said stupidly yes sir there are certain special provisions that seem intended to give your brothers a practically equal income but you are given a fifty one per cent interest and absolute management of everything im supposed to run the whole cockeyed thing you control it yes sir the cattle production and the plantations and the mills everything there was much more to it and a good deal of it dick was unable to understand from charles bongs disorganized explanations dick supposed that he could not expect to understand der stand james waynes dispensa eions in detail until he had had a thorough consultation with a whole board of attorneys but the main intent was clear james wayne had put tonga dick in control of alagoa but I 1 think your brothers are going to try to break the will charles wong finished they arent going to break anything dick answered no sir my personal belief Is that it really cannot be done after that it was still necessary for tonga dick to explain to charles wong that he be could not come to honolulu yet that he was going to nuku anuku hiva A good deal of expostulation attended that but wong could not persuade tonga dick to change his mind this thing will be in probate a couple of years yet dick concluded two or three weeks going to make any difference after he had hung up the phone he sat for some time with his elbows on james waynes desk it was very difficult tor for him to comprehend the full meaning of what had happened he was convinced that no ability of his own had decided james wayne it must have been simply that no one could have known his brothers well without rec 0 am karen waterson was waiting aboard the holokan when dick finally went aboard zing that they were futile and indecisive men it was strange to think that this desk where james wayne had sat so many years was now his own that he was supposed to sit there and so manage james waynes conceptions ot of alagoa that they should be brought to ultimate fruition plenty of beside john colt would be waiting to swallow alagoa up it if he should fail and he did not believe that any of them could be expected to do well by ala koa it made him feel undersized and unready but he could not imagine failure not in the long run presently he took up the phone again and began trying to reach various people in honolulu lawyers mostly the holokan was waiting ready to sail but she had to wait most of the day was gone before he had made sure that he really dared take the time to sail to nuku anuku hiva as he had promised garrett waterson to do karen waterson was waltin waiting 9 aboard the holokai holokan when dick finally went aboard his astonishment at finding her there was so complete that at first he did not know what to say to her my grandfather tells me karen said that you are sailing almost any hour now 1 I have to go to nuku anuku hiva for him 1 I know I 1 have learned quite a bit about island affairs while hes been sic sick k be surprised how much I 1 know about how things are done in the south seas he still know why she had come aboard the Hol holokai okal but he want to ask looks like good weather he offered the holokai ought to make good time 1 I hope you have a dandy trip thanks but we rent you intending to touch at honolulu before you sail south he started to tell her that he was not but checked himself why do you ask 1 I was hoping give me a lift my grandfather will get along very nicely now I 1 think of course hed be glad to take me to honolulu on the sarah but he ought not to go to sea for another ten days yet and he simply wont go ashore and I 1 think I 1 would like to get away he knew that one of Ala koas koals little cattle boats could give her passage to honolulu in a day or two but she seem to know this and he decided not to mention it of course ill be glad to take you to honolulu she smiled a little 1 I knew you would in fact I 1 even had my baggage put in the cabin that too somewhat surprised him but he only said well weigh anchor soon 1 I think karen said ill go below and take a nap it if you dont mind there been an awful lot of sleep to be had aboard the sarah when she had gone below and curled up on dicks own bunk tonga dick found that he was bitterly disappointed he had supposed that the trip to honolulu would give him a chance to talk to her again but she might just as well have waited for the cattle boat if she was going to sleep the voyage out by the time they were well out beyond the coral dick was trying to think of a plausible excuse for waking her up he rigged a tray with a fish sandwich a stalk of celery a whisky soda a glass of iced coffee and a cup of tea and carried it back to her bunk karen had bad to smile when he roused her to offer the silly assortment it seemed to him that she looked astonishingly bright and fresh for someone so much in need of sleep 1 I really think want any of this junk he admitted 1 I want to talk to you karen really a very attractive tray karen said 1 I dont see how anyone could resist it I 1 think I 1 would like a dry martini go to thunder said tonga dick listen I 1 want to tell you something well you remember the night when I 1 boarded the seal and made you come back to alagoa Ala koa could I 1 ever forget it you were extremely piratical and unpleasant I 1 could have killed you 1 I know then that you were running off to honolulu to marry john colt but I 1 was afraid you were I 1 really think that it would do your precious grandfather any good to bring you back I 1 was pretty sure he even recognize you and I 1 know its none of my business who you marry but sometimes when people do something in a hurry it turns out to be a mistake interference with other peoples affairs is usually a mistake not what I 1 meant im not sorry I 1 turned the seal As it turned out it actually did pull old garrett waterson through I 1 think for heavens sake sit down said karen you make me nervous swaying around like that dick sat down on the edge of the bunk theres still plenty of time for you to marry john colt you may as well know karen said that im not going to marry john colt but you were going to you yes I 1 was going to I 1 was hurt and alid angry and disgusted with the whole thing I 1 wanted to get away from alagoa and everything about it to marry john seemed a quick and complete escape but im glad now that you turned the seal he studied her carefully to see it if she meant for him to draw encouragement from that but decided that she did not karen seemed immensely detached my grandfather thinks that he sent colt back to honolulu karen went on but he did not iwas the one who sent him back the raid on alagoa is over dick 1 I should imagine dick said ironically that have another chance at it later garrett waterson going to live foi forever ever 11 karen flushed faintly 1 I wish you talk like that when garrett waterson Is dead dick pointed out your case will be as good as ever 1 I be interested karen said 1 I see things differently now when john colt first worked out our plan for claiming alagoa it seemed daring and romantic very adventurous and all that sort of silliness but that was when garrett waterson was just a forgotten name hes real now and I 1 know him and I 1 like him and he is my own grandfather I 1 be able now to try to discredit his name the way you feel now two weeks ago you felt differently and in two weeks more probably feel differently again 1 I thought you might be afraid ol of that karen said but you dont need to be not any more I 1 have a present for you dick she hunted around for her handbag found it and produced a piece of paper this is for you he unfolded the sheet and glanced at it it was closely written in karens own hand at the bottom was the huge scrawling signature of garrett waterson witnessed by St ahlquist and karen waterson herself TO BE CONTINUED nor |
