Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-06-15
CHAPTER XIII.
The End of a Sleigh Ride.

1t pleased Mrs. Craighill to breakfast in
her sitting room the following morning.
Wayne. finding himself deserted, drank
his coffee alone in the dining room. with
the newspapers for company. His fathers
chauffeur sent word to the house that
Joe was sick and Wayne ordered a doctor
summoned before going to his Office.
Mrs. Craighil had spent a bad night
and no very pleasant thoughts had Wis
tied her pillow. The preceding day had
been the most disagreeable of her life.
She felt herself shut in and trammeied in
a thousand ways. The snowy vesture Of
the urban landscape disclosed by her win
doWs. the renewed and purified world that
lay bright in the full glare of the winner
sun. awoke no response in her heart. IN
her prettiest OF morning gowns she
seemed to Jean Morley the loveliest and
most fortunate of beings; but to her the
girl was only reminder of yesterday
untoward events. jeans steady. grave
eyes, tranquil from restful slumber. and
her freshness-the glow of her skin from
the bath, her appearance of zest for the
new days business-only irritated Mrs.
Craighill as they sat at the tiny table
that had been improvised before the sit
| ting room fire.
| One thing must be done and done quick
ly-Mrs. Blair must be advised of her
presence in town. She must plead illness
as her excuse for not having gone to
Boston. Before the breakfast was finish
ed she went to the extension telephone in
| her bedroom and called the Blair house.
Mrs. Blair is not at home. She went
south last night with Mr.. Blair His
mother is i'll in Georgia and they left in a
hurry. They didn't know when they'd
be back
This information. conveyed by Mrs.
Blair's maid. was only half relief. Here
was still Jean Morley to reckon with. and
1t flashed upon her at once that the girl
was now essential to her. She returned
to the sitting room and concluded her
| breakfast. Her manner was decidedly
more friendly When Jean rose to go she
protested cordially.
'oh. you have been very good to me!
tell you, Mrs. Craighill. And l am sorry
to put you to SO much trouble. l was
very silly yesterday and made lot Of
fuss that wasn't at all necessary. l usu-
ally do better than that. 1 hope you
won't think the worse of me for what
happened.'
cried Mrs. Craighill, Selling her hands.
Her spirits lifted as she saw that Jean
was intent on her own plight: that prob
ably she had been thinking wholly OF the
| strange figure she had made in her flight
to the clubhouse. and that the fact Of
there being anything unusual In the pres
ence there of another woman and man
| had not occurred to her.
''Such a thing is likely to happen to
any of u.s." declared Mrs Craighill. laugh
| ing. And there we were-Mr. Craighill
and lust as lost and forlorn as you
were. 1t was SO silly of us all to get lost
| in the storm that l think we'd better not
| tell any one about it-don't you?"
| You may be sure I'm not proud Of my
part in it," declared Jean; but l must
send back the housekeeper's shoes and
get my own
"Oh, don't think of it, exclaimed Mrs.
craighill to whom. in the new confidence
established between them. mere item OF
shoes seemed the most negligible thing In
1.-THE world. I'm going to get you to &C.