Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-01-28

cry. however. only appeared to In
! crease his thirst. He opened the hall
| door. prepared to descend into the
| depths of the house and raid side
| board. and as he thrust his heavy head
out into the lighted corridor his eyes
| fell upon two figures standing at the
| open door of bedroom. One was 81
ward: that was plain Who was the
| girl he had kissed? One Of the maids?
| Somebody's wife? Who?
| Every dull pulse began to hammer
he stepped halfway into the corridor.
then skipped nimbly back, closing his
| door without a sound.
Sylvia Lands. by all that's holy"
! he breathed to himself and sat down
rather suddenly on the edge Of the bed.
| After awhile he rose and crept to
the door, opened it. glued his eyes to
the crack in time to catch n glimpse
| of Siward entering his own corridor
| alone.
| And that night Mortimer. lying
awake in bed busy with schemes. be-
came conscious Of Il definite idea. 1t
took shape and matured so suddenly
that 1t actually shocked his moral
sense. Then it scared him.
"But-but that is blackmail" he
whispered aloud. "A man can't do that
| sort Of thing. What the devil ever
men ! know-wonen, too-scoundrelly
| blackguards. who'd use that informa-
ton somehow and make 1t pay too
| The scoundrels.'
| He squirmed down among the bed
clothes with q sudden shiver but the
night had turned warm.
"Scoundrels" he said. with milder
emphasis "Blackmailers! Contempt
BILE pups!'
He fell asleep an hour later, mutter-
ing something incoherent about scoun-
drels and blackmail.
| And meanwhile in the darkened
house from all round came the noise
| Of knocking on doors. sounds of people
stirring, a low voice here and there,
lights breaking out from transoms, the
thud Of rubber shod heels, the rattle
Of cartridges from the echoing gun
room For the guests at Shotover were
awaking lest the wet sky, whitening
behind the east, ring with the whim-
pering wedges Of wild fowl rushing
seward over empty blinds.
The unusual stiffness Of the house In
the late morning sunshine was pleas
ant to Miss Lands. She had risen
very late, unconscious of the stir and
i movement before dawn, and 1t was
only when maid told her as she
came from her bath that she remem-
bered the projected point shooting and
concluded with an odd, happy sense of
relief that she was almost alone in
the house.
A little later, glanclng from her bed
room window for fuldllment of the
promise of che sun which glimpse
of blue sky heralded, she saw Leila
Mortimer settling herself in the for
ward seat of motor car and Beverly
Plank climbing in beside her, and she
| watched Plank steer the big machine
across the wet lawn while the machin'
list swung himself into the tonncau,
| and away they rolled, faster, faster,
rushing out into the misty hinterland
where the long streak of distant forest
already began TO brighten, edged with
the first rays Of watery sunshine.
SO she had the big house to herself,
! every bit Of it, and with it freedom
from obligation. from comment, from
demand or exaction freedom from re-
straint; liberty to roam about, to read.
to dream, to idle. to remember. All,
| that was what she needed-a quiet in
terval in this hurrying youth of hers
| to catch her breath once more and
stand still aud look back day or two
| and remember
So to breakfast all alone was de
licious; to stroll unhurried to the side
board and leisurely choose among the
fresh cool fruits: to loiter ove- cream
Jug and cereal; to saunter out into the
| freshness of the world and breathe II
and feel the sun warming cheek and
throat and tha little breezes from n
| sunlit sea stirring the bright strands
of her hair.
Out,over the rain wet odorous grass
she picked her way, skirts swung high
above the delicate contour Of ankle
and limb, following little descending
path she knew full of rocky angles
swept by pendant sprays of black
| berry, and then down under the jut-
ting rock, south through thickets Of
wild cherry along the crags, until be-
fore her the way opened downward
again where tiny crescent beach
| glimmered white hot in the sun.
From his bedroom window Mortimer
peeped forth, following her progress
with a leer.
AS she descended, noticing the riffs
Of bronzing seaweed piled along the
tide mark, her foot dislodged tiny
triangle of rock, which rolled clatter-
ing and ringing below, and as she
sprang lightly to the sand man, ~
ing full length and motionless as the
heaped seaweed. raised himself on one
arm, turning his sun dazzled eyes on
her
The dull shock Of surprise halted her
as Siward rose to his feet, still dazed,
the sand running from his brown
shooting clothes over his tightly strap
ped puttees.
Have you the faintest idea that
supposed you were here?' she asked
briefly Then. frank in her disap-