Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-06-27
CHAPTER XIX.

For time after Mallory had left him
O'Brien consumed himself with pa
| tience.' but the minutes. that seemed To
| have heightened into thousand seconds
each. accumulated until his absence.
which was to have lasted half an hour,
just the time to bring Mrs Brien back.
had extended considerably over an hour.
The old man could contain himself no
| longer and started after Mallory and his
wife.
Meanwhile Crawford had been review
| ing the exciting events that had sue
ceeded each other so quickly that night
and almost had eliminated in q disgrace
| full fight. First there was Nora. with her
role of innocence so cleverly played. who
| had been getting money and presents out
Of him and fooling him. He was entirely
cured of any iRfatuation he had felt for
her. Then there was Patsy. who for the
| second time had dressed him down. sat
upon him and rubbed II I'm by putting him
through the disagreeable process OF being
| shown up to himself. Finally there was
| the low stableman with whom he had as
| ISOLATED. who had bullied him and
| threatened him with personal violence
With Mallory at least he would get even.
and at once. by immediate dissolution Of
partnership and pressure for settlement
| of affairs. This, he knew. would put NAL
| lory to sore straits. owing to his lack or
| ready money and the onerous conditions
| of their contract. Mallory, in fact. would
/ be placed in such a position that he would
not be able to carry on the stable Prac-
tically it would mean ruin for him and.
| therefore, for the whole o Brien family.
From this prospect Crawford derived
some consolation for his wounded feel
| ings and ruff1ed temper.
"Ill teach the whole dirty crowd that
| they bucked up against the wrong man."
he muttered. I'll have those girls fired
| from the Long Acre not later than to-
morrow. and 1t won't be my fault If they
succeed in getting, or at least in keeping.
another engagement in little old New
York"
| He was pacing up and down, savoring
| in advance the fruit of revenge. when
Rogers announced that O'Brien wished to
see him.
Tell O'Brien to go to hades and throw
| him down the elevator shaft If he gives
| you any back talk" he ordered.
Very good. sir" said the valet:
mo. let him come in called Craw-
ford. suddenly changing his mind.
O'Brien, hat in hand, was uShered in.
Crawford received him defiantly.
What do you want?' he demanded,
shortly.
'Oi came after me wolfe. who came
to fetch Nora" replied the old man, his
blue eyes fixing him fearlessly.
Your wife went away from here with
Mallory some time ago." said Crawford
here one after the other
"God knows OF doan't want to trouble
We amy, an OF didn't come here to pay
no social CALL retorted the old man,
but Olive a roight to fetch me own
wolfe. an a roight to know If it's true
that Nora comes here"
ASK your wife. ask Mallory. I've told
them all I intend to say. I'm tired of
answering to one set of fools a pack of
lies told by other fools. and I'm through
with the whole gang. All l get for TAX
ing an interest in your precious girls and
being kind to them is tngrattude and
abuse. Here's a note for $500 1 lent
them to get them out of hole. It's
signed with your name. as you can see.
Here. take it and give it to them as a
souvenir If they or you haven't the de-
cency to make good
He handed the note to the old man,
who gazed alternately at him and the
paper. too bewildered to comprehend it
for moment
Dye mean to say me girls borrowed
$500 av We in my name?' he asked.
That's what they did," affirmed Craw-
ford. And it's up to you to pay"
"Oi can't pay." said the old man.
aghast. 'Oi haven't got $500 in the
world. leave alone in me pocketbook.
Crawford shrugged his shoulders and.
refusing the paper O'Brien held out to
him. turned on his heels
We'll being swindled out Of $500 more
or less won't ruin me-" he said. Il sup
pose it was only what 1 ought to have
expected seeing the class OF people /
have been fool enough to deal with
The old man put his hand on the fell
lows shoulder and swung him around.
See here. Mr.. Crawford" he said.
calmly with hard glitter in his
eyes. Dim no swindler an no fool.
but an honest man. Old have We onder-
stand. Oh can hold up me head before
me Maker an say that no one in the
world or out of it liver lost a penny owed
by me or suffered amy wrong done by
me. OF doan't know phwat this means.
OF doan't know yit the meanin' av amy
thing Oi.ve heered this night But Oh
will know. an that moighty soon. an
those that disarve it will git all that's
comm to them. whoever they may be, We
can bank on that"
castically. There's $500 coming to me-
The old man went out without saying
good night and started downtown. grimly
determined to get at the bottom of this
mater of the note. of the disappearance
of his daughters and of all that he had
heard. In presence of Crawford. TO
whom he had gone with the idea of find
ing out what there was TO the stories
that linked Nora s name with his and of
''Skinning him alive as he had mentally
expressed it. If he found even the re-
hottest justification for the suspicion that
Crawford had been trying to lead her
astray. he had stood COMPOUNDED by the
evidence of the debt contracted. For
what possible purpose could the girls
have needed $500? For furnishing their
fiat? No; this. they had told him. had
been done on the installment plan. and
every; hing had been paid up Then for
what? And how had they dared to sign
his name TO this promise of payment?
In his bewlderment he did not take
notice of where he going and. get
ting on the wrong side of the street,
boarded an uptown car. He did not dis
cover his error until the came to
stop at the extremity of the line. BY the
time he reached the hotel where Mallory
had instructed him to wait it was nearly
o'clock in the morning. There Mallory
had left word for him to join them at the
home of the girls.
CHAPTER Xxx.
Z Rnn hnf Cii1.l -ln lrsnn