Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-11-21
CHAPTER VIII.
The Two Wives.

| Sadie sent Don away thus abruptly be-
cause she wished to think out an idea
which had suddenly occurred to her on
hearing the all-but-incredibIe news that
Bert Hunter, the camp sponge" as Don
had called him. had become Lord Broad
stone, a peer Of the realm. Was 1t pos
sible that Fate could have juggled the
! cards so wildly?
| If il were true. she was a peerless, and
her boy the future Lord Broadstone! Lit
tie wonder that she needed time to col
! lect her thoughts. 1t was fact which
staggered her widest imaginings.
| She must make sure at once. Of course.
and must do so without arousing attcn-
| ton TO herself. She would appear SUI
| premely ridiculous IL she went talking
about the thing TO any one. even to her
friend. Lady Preston, and then found IL
was all mistake.
She rang and told the waiter to hrrS
her a Debrett. and as she took 1t from
him asked If there were any books which
gave portraits OF the peers.
He told her he knew OF no such BOOK.
but that when any Of them did anything.
a portrait was often published in the
fashion papers.
She took the cue Immediately. She
read the details of the BroadStone family.
Inc age lUf pISStHl pttI dSlt'h WIN
| that Of her husband: and with this par
tiaI confirmation she drove TO the Office
of a fashion paper and searched the
| files until she came to report of the
wedding of Lord Broadstone and Eva \
single glance at the portrait sufficed.
1t was the camp sponge surely
| enough.
She purchased copy of the issue con-
tanning the portraits and drove straight
home with them, not looking at them
4 ba r, hut holding the
in tightly clasped hands. as she began to
realize all the news really meant TO her.
Her child was frs, in her thoughts.
.Sonnie'' would be a peer of the realm;
and all her maternal instincts were f1ut-
tered at the thought. Little "sonnie,"
Lord Broadstone.
But that feeling did not last. AS soon
as she had unfolded the paper in the
privacy of her own rooms and sat staring
at Broadstone's likeness her resentment
and wrath aWoke again. He was Sonnies
father, but he had tried to be her muir
derer. The sight of his face fncensed
her She had seen 1t last with the light
of murder in the bleared eyes; and the
contrast between the cunning. drunken
villainy of the memory picture and the
we'll groomed, dandifed, sleek respecta-
bility of the photograph moved her to
transport of fury.
Eva's likeness produced different feel
ngs Curiosity and sense Of contempt
was first; then gradually anger. Curlos-
ity as to what sort of woman she was:
contempt stirred by the fact that she had
been induced to marry such a man as
Broadstone for mere motives Of rank and
position; and anger because she was the
interloper who stood in her rfghtful place
10 Dust her son. She found herself look
ing at the sweet lovable face for signs
of the hard heaitedness which had Tilted
Don Stuart and of the ambition which
had urged her to sell herself for a title.
Sadie was too full of her own wrongs
not to be bitter against Eva, and she let
her anger have full sway for the time.
She would go down at once to Broad
stone and unmask them both. She would
have no mercy. She had suffered terrible
injuries The two were both equally
guilty: the man had sought to murder
her and set another in her place, when
that place was one of honor and repute:
and the woman had bought that place
with her gold She would drag them
both down into the dust.
ITO be~contnued tomorrow