Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1906-01-22
CHAPTER XVI

the hands Of his friends. Brewster's
lease covered three months, at a fabu.
Ions rate per month. With Joe Brap- |
don installed as manager in chief, his
establishment was transferred bodily |
from New York, and the rooms were |
soon as comfortable as their grandeur |
would permit. Brewster was not al
lowed to take advantage of his horses
and the new automobile which preced-
ed him from New York, but to his
guests they offered unlimited opportu-
mites.
Z Hopper Harrison had remained in the
north to renew arrangements for the
now hated ball and to look after the
advance details of the yacht cruise.
DIR. IotlesS and his sister, with Sub
wav Smith and the Grays, made I'D
Brewster's party. Lotless dampened
Monty's spirits by relentlessly putting
him on rigid diet, with most discourage
ing restrictions upon his conduct. The
period of convalescence was to be an
exceedingly trying one for the invalid.
At first he was kept indoors, and the
cards, but Monty considered bridge
the pons asinorum and preferred to
play piquet with Peggy. 1t was one
of these games that the girl interrupt
ed with a question that had troubled
her for many days. Monty" she said,
and she found it much more difficult
than when she had rehearsed the scene
~, I'll g Icr.
a rumor that Miss Drew and her moth
err have taken rooms at the hotel.
Wouldn't it be pleasanter to have them
here?'
! A heavy gloom settled upon Brew
/ ster's face, and the girls heart dropped
/ like lead. She had puzzled over the
+ estrangement and wondered if by any
! effort Of her own things could be set
right At times she had had flashing
I hopes that it did not mean as much to
Monty as she had thought, but down
: underneath, the fear that he was I'M
happy seemed the only certain thing
in life. She felt that she must make
sure. And together with the very hui
man desire to know the worst was the
puritanical impulse to bring it about.
you forget that this is the last place
they would care to invade" And in
Brewster's face Peggy seemed to read
that for her martyrdom was the only
wear. Bravely she put it on.
Monty, forget nothing that 1 real
ly know But this is a case in which
you are quite wrong. Where is your
I, fayIUh
q losing fight before, and you can't do
! it now. You have lost your nerve,
! Monty. Don't you see that this is the
time for an aggressive campaign"
Somehow she was not saying things at
! all as she had planned to say them,
and his gloom weighed heavily upon
her you don't mind, do you, Monty"
she added more softly, this sort of
thing from me? I know l ought not to
interfere. but I'VE known you so long,
and hate to see things twisted by a
very little mistake"
But Monty did mind enormously. He
had no desire to talk about the thing
anyway, and Peggy's anxiety to marry
him off seemed a bit unnecessary. Man
ifestiy her own interest in him was OF
the coolest. From out of the gloom he
looked at her somewhat sullenly. Fo
the moment she was thinking only O
his pain. and her face said nothing.
: PEGGY" he exclaimed finally, re
: senting the necessity of answering her
you don't.in the least know what yo1
e are talking about. 1t is not fit Of an
/ k-ger on Barbara Drew's part. 1t is sc
4 srious conviction"
: e "A .eonvictiolf which can be changed,
the girl broke in.
u ''NOt at all" Brewster took it III
'She has no faith in me- She think
B. I'm an ass"
: Perhaps she's right" she exclaimed
u a little hot. Perhaps you have neve
- discovered that girls say many thing
10 to hide their emotions. Perhaps 20
don't realize what feverish, exclamatC
ry, foolish things girls are. They don
know how to be honest with the me
u; they love, and they wouldn't if the
!, did. You are little short of an lido
Monty Brewster, if you believed IL
:. things she said rather than the thing
a' she looked
-, And Peggy, fiery and determined an
- .defantly unhappy, threw down ht
~ cards and escaped 50 that she migl
iN not prove herself fearfully feminin
:. She left Brewster still heavily enve
~ oped in melancholy. but. she left hi
puzzled. He began to wonder if Ba
"a bara Drew did have something in Il
back of her mind. Then he found b
-, thoughts wandering off toward Pegs
Ia "a and her defiance. He had only twi,
before seen her in that mood and ]
liked it He remembered how she hs
~ lost her temper once when she was e
- teen and hated girl he admired. Su
% denly he. laughed aloud at the thong
-. of the fierce little picture she had mad
Ne and the gloom which had been so sc
ulously cultivated was dissipated in
Sc moment. The laugh surprised the m;
who brought in some letters. One