The Topeka state journal., 1911-08-30
The EVENING STORY
Going Tp.
(By Izola Forester. }

est right to wayIay me like this
Il did not waylay you,' interrupted
Morely hotly Il met you a minute
ago by pure accident; fate, whatever
you want to call it. I'm blessing it
how
You knew that would positively
come out of that entrance at noon
sharp; that would go to lunch at
the Pinnacle
Morley grinned at the slip.
Il knew nothing of the kind. I
never expected to see you again, ex-
cept at the altar"
Morley Chambers."
''As Haddons wife. What did you
think I meant? Kitty, if you would
ever stop leaping at conclusions
please"
Il won't Kit, look at me. You're
afraid"
She kept her face turned resoIutely
to meet his eyes.
AT the entrance to the towering
| office building she stopped. The sun
light falling down the long narrow
canyon of Nassau street made golden
hill of notes. Crowds pushed past
the two. swinging in and out of the
whirling doors. A flower vender
held out bunch of goldenrod to the
girl and she looked at it wistfully.
Nassau street and the masses slipped
out of mind and left only the beauty
of hills and meadows and rocky
brook beds where they had trouted
together only last month. 1t seemed
years ago.
You cannot come up here with
me- she said finally. Il won't have
it. 1t isn't fair of you to compel me
to listen to yOu.''
1T isn't fair of you to compel me
to lose the girl 1 love without q word
of protest Morley answered grimly
taking her by the arm. II will go to
lunch with you and will talk to you
and do my level best to clear up this
whole idiotic misunderstanding"
II refuse to talk with you at ALL"
she replied. of course I cannot keep
you out of a public restaurant
mo, thank heaven" murmured
Morley, and he followed her to the
elevators.
Express to restaurant. twenty-sev-
enth floor called the starter. and
they stepped into the car. Her face
was bit white, but very determined.
Morley was silent. Hat off. he
stood behind her, looking down at
her adorable head with its wealth of
fair, curling hair. She was wearing
some sort of a hat with an audacious
tilt to the front, Napoleon style, and
he had a full view of her side face.
Dearly would he have loved to stoop
then and there to kiss it. The temp
tation had almost seized him when
suddenly the car sprang back at the
ninth floor. and the lever refused to
work. There was one horrible, sick
ening moment as they fell few feet
before the safety brakes worked, but
in that instant he had caught her in
his arms and held he'd close to him.
And she did not struggle.
We're here for keeps one of the
men said. 81 know the game. It
means hours until they take the top
Of the car off, and you do a sort of
ladder marathon up to the next floor.
We're in luck it's no worse
a
low them now. On each side a car
halted. Orders were being given, and
plenty OF encouragement was shouted
to the imprisoned ones.
Morley's arm was still around the
girls waist, but she moved away
from it.
Are we really here for hours ?" she
asked the operator.
4" 'Fraid so. lady. No danger. The |
brakes will hold all right. Better sit
down on the floor of the car and take |
it easy. The worst thing will be miss /
ing your lunch
She did not take the advice. but |
leaned back in the corner. There |
were five other passengers besides |
themselves, all men. They turned |
their backs and clung to the grill
work of the cage, watching the relief !
work and talking to people on the J
next floor.
We'll" she said, finally, why
don't you talk? I can't help myself
'what would you have done if we
had been dashed down this shaft to
death just now?"
''Why, nothing. There wasn't
There was time for me to take
you in my arms. Kit" He was
speaking so low she could hardly
catch his words. Kit, my last con-
scious act would have been kiss,
do you hear me"
Il don't doubt it at all. You are
capable of turning even death to your
own uses"
He laughed. And while the work
of rescue went on about them, hung
there in midair. with only the brakes
to hold them. Morley took his one
chance and fought against the odds
that fate had laid against him. They
had spent the summer at the same
resort, had fallen in love almost at
first sight. And the very day after
the engagement she has sent back
his ring with cool little note that
she did not care for second hand
goods.
why. Kit great scott: it couldn't
have been more crushing If had
been a widower with ten children"
Morley said now. What did you
mean? What had done2"
You had been engaged before,
she said at last. when they had been
in the car for nearly two hours and
she was tired out. There. Now you
know why I sent it back" II
Il never was engaged to any other
girl in my life"
Viola Kingslake saw the ring on
my hand the next morning and told
me she remem bered it the previous
summer No one could mistake the ,
setting. 1t was so odd. and the gold
was so pale and delicate"
"She saw It the previous summer?
Morley Where did she see
it, Kft2''