The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1908-07-10

world nad come over CflsSy,gS Out no
was sanguine that In the end all
would be well.
Norman listlessly went on with his
work; he could not AK his attention.
however, on it, and after q while de-
sisted from trying. What was he to
do? How was this mystery to be
solved? he kept on asking himself.
At length he resolved to write to
Christabel to say that he would never
give her up, and to ask If there was
no way in which he could help her to
bear the trouble, whatever it was
Cannot we fight it together-always
together?" were the words with which
he finished his letter.
Christabels own reflections as she
drove off from Norman to Hans
Square were dark and sombre. In the
bitterness Of her spirit she doubted
for moment If she were acting WISE
ly and rightly-doubted if her duty
were as clear as she had thought. Did
she not owe a duty to Norman, too?
Was the sacrifice of their love really
demanded of her? But when she
thought of the weakness she had dis
played when with him in the park
she had not meant to confess to him
that she loved him-she said that IL
they were engaged she would never
have the strength to keep the secrets
of the Sistersons from him, and she
crushed back her feelings, telling her.
self that she had acted wisely and
rightly, though the cost was terrible.
When she alighted at 36 Hans
Square she did not observe another
hanson some little distance behind
her-she was like those who "saw
and saw motor she might have
seen that it stopped when her han
som stopped. The man who got out
Of it was middle-aged person of no
particular noticeableness, dressed like
a respectable clerk, and he had come
on the previous day as secretary to
Maxwell Sisterson, but in reality was
a spy from private detective agency
who had been told off to shadow
Christabel. 1t was now close upon
noon, and knowing that her duty be-
gan at midday he watched her go into
the house, got himself into another |
cab and drove to the city to report to
Maxwell what he had seen.
In the evening Mary Sisterson was
too ill to appear at dinner, and Chris
label had her meal sent in to Sir
Johns room. The "delusion" recur-
red about the usual time of its appear
ance, but Sir John no longer spoke
with the firmness and clearness he
had formerly shown, for he was fail
ing more rapidly as the end approach
ed. At 10 o'clock DR.. Flint came in
with request from Maxwell that she
should see him in the library. She
was for declining to go, but on second
thoughts complied.
Maxwell was as cool as ever as he
invited her to take a seat. His spy
had told him of the meeting of the
lovers, and their parting had appear
ed to be cold and unloverlike. OF
course he had been thinking over mat
tiers, and was ready for any fresh de-
ve!opment
81 asked you to be good enough to
see me-" he said, in that slow voice
of his which Christabel had begun to
hate, Ito tell you that had been
considering what you said the other
day about making restitution to the
Forbes"
He paused and looked at her intent.
ly; he thought how pretty she was,
and how becoming was her nurses
dress. She had flushed slightly as
she had come into the room, and so
long as the color was in her cheeks
he could not see that she bore the
marks of what she had gone through
that day.
eyes," she said, as he stopped.
"The idea of restitution, nurse,
does not commend itself to me very
much" he went on TRANQUILITY, as if he
were discussing the most ordinary
piece of business, "and it must be I'M
derstood that l do not admit any
necessity or rightfulness in the mat
ter. And it is difficult to say how res
titution is to be measured in this case,
always supposing restitution be made.
Do you follow me?"
NO"
Ito Be continued.)