Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1907-02-16

wait until she wakes What joyful
awaking 1t will be-" And she sat
down again. She wiped away the
tears. bur her eyes We're still shining
Godfrey gaZed ut her with face full
OF emotion.
NOW, Miss Croydon" he began.
you've told me that my theory's cor
rect, but there are three or four points
| should like you to help me clear up.
if you will"
Il shall be glad TO if | can" she
answered. and smiled 1T him. her eyes
Drumming again. you've lifted such Il
load from me. Mr.. Godfrey. that I'll
do almost anything 10 show my graft
tude"
Why. looking at her, did his face
change-Soften, harden Why did his
hands tremble SO? 1t was over in an
instant; yet | had caught glimpse of
his secret. l understood.
1t was nothing" lie said. Il was
glad To do it, | was deeply pleased
when that message came this morn
ing"
You've been kinder to me than | de
served" she said; and ! more than half
agreed with her. How, with his eyes
before her. could she fail 10 under
! stand: Perhaps she did understand. |
WAS never sure.
In the first place. then, Miss Croy
| dom he went on, in a different tone,
how did your father succeed IN get
| ting your sister away from Tremaine?"
They had gone to Paris" she an
Swered, and in two or three days
Edith had awakened from her dream.
! She saw something in the man which
| terrified her. and she wrote 4 pitiful
| letter to father. who went over 10
| Paris at once and finally succeeded in
| buying the man off. Father paid him
| $4,000 francs. | believe. Perhaps il was
| the fact that he knew he was not really
| Edith'S husband. that he himself had
! committed 4 crime. which made him
| take ii. He agreed TO leave the cOun-
! try. and in tie following December he
! wrote father that he was about to sail
! for Martinique in IL ship called the
! Centaur. He said he intended 10 buy
/ plantation at Martinique and make
|
! that the Centaur had been lost. with all
on board. After eight years it seemed
certain. that he was dead, and Edith
felt free to marry again
WAS Mr.. Delroy informed of this
/ early iudiScretion:
"Certaiuly and fCrgave il, as any
good man would"
Pardon me for asking the question.
Miss Croydon; but il was necessary
When was il you first learned that Ire
| maine was still alive
lone night nearly two months ago
| Edith brought his letter to me- She
| was wild. distracted. ready TO kill her
| self-that is what | have feared every
day since. She loves Mr. Delroy. Mr..
Godfrey. and vet she believed herself
the wife of another man. He demand
ed that she meet him in that apartment
house. | knew she could not bear such
Il meeting. and yet he must be seen.
l offered to go i'll. her stead. l had
some wild idea Of appealing to his
better nature, of persuading him
She stopped, Silenced by her own
emotion.
That. of course. would not have
altered the fact that your sister was
his Wife observed Godfrey.
NO. That WAS the terrible part of il;
nothing could alter that. There must,
of course, be Il separation. but we
thought We would solve that problem
after we had settled the other. So l
went He opened the door for me.
l had never seen him. and | confess
his appearance and manner were not
ut all what | expected. He did not
look in the least like Il scoundrel. or
did he act like one. He listened to me
with attention and seeming respect
He even appeared moved. Oh, | know
now what a hypOcrite he was. / know
that he was laughing at me: that he was
planning something deeper. more vii
famous. l had brought Sl.20O with
NEAL that We could gather together
at that moment-and | pressed ii upon
him, urging him to take it and 20 away
and we would send him more. He pre-
tended 10 refuse the money. TO protest
that that was not in the least what he
wanted. but | compelled him to take
it. And just as | WAS hoping that
had prevailed with him the door OF
the bedroom opened and horrible
drunken man staggered out.
We'll. Vie he cried. so this is tn
gal. is it: She's a likely piece.
wouldn't give her up. Vic, no, not fer
ten thousand
go back to bed. you drunken
bruter cried Tremaine, and took hin
roughly by the arm.
But the other shook him off.
Don't lay your hands on me. Vic!
he cried. Don't dare lay your hand:
on me-
Il saw very devil spring into Ire
names face. He looked About him FOL