Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1912-01-27

y
or your uncle? They would have
recognized the forgery at once. Who
gave it to you?"
"Mahomed himself ~
Damn hint" Ryanne grew strong
under the passing fit of rage. "No,
don't tell me to be silent. don't care
about myself. I'm the kind Of man
who pulls through, generally. But
this takes the spine out Of me. I'm
to blame; ITS all my fault.
"say no more about it." She be.
lieyed him She really hadn't thought
him capable Of such baseness, though
at the time of her abduction she had
been inclined to accuse him. That he
was here, prisoner like herself, was
conclusive evidence, SO far as she was
concerned, of his innocence. But she
knew him to be responsible for the
presence of Jones; knew him TO be
culpable Of treachery of the meanest
order; knew him to be lacking in gem
crosby and magnanimity toward a
man who was practically his bene-
factor What does Mahomed want?"
'sThe bally rug, Fortune. And Jones
here, who had it, says that 1t Is gone"
T, vanished, magic-carpet-wise," sup
plemented George.
and Jones would have given itaup."
"And a thousand like 1t, II We could
have bought you out Of this
Jones and could have managed to
get along" .r'
"We shouldn't have mattered.''
"And would you have returned to
Mr.. Jones his thousand pounds?"
"Yes, and everything else l have"
quite honestly.
"Don't worry any more about the
rug, then. l know where 1t Is.
"You?" cried the two men.
Eyes. stole it. I did so, thinking
to avert this very hour; to save you
from HARM to George, land you from
doing a contemplate thing to Ryan
ne ut Is in my room, done up In the
big steamer-rol]. And now ] am glad
that l stole it, -7aE u.
Ryanne laughed weakly. ,m.
Said George soberly: What con-
temptible thing?" He recollected Ma
homed's words in regard to Ryanne
as the latter lay insensible in the sand.
Ryanne quick to seize the oppor-
tunity Of solving, to his own advan-
tage, the puzzle for George, and at the
same time guiding Fortune away from
a topic, the danger of which she knew
nothing, raised hand. 81 bribed Ma
homed to kidnap you, Jones. Don't
be impatient. You laughed at me when
I laid before you the prospectus Of the
United Romance and Adventure co.
/ wished to prove to you that the
concern existed. And SO here Is your
adventure upon approval. thought,
of course, you still had the rug. Ma
homed was to carry you into the des-
ert for a week and by that time
you would have surrendered the
rug, returned to Cairo, the hero OF
full-fedged adventure. Lord! what
q mess of 1t I've made. forgot, next
to his bally rug, Mahomed loved me"
The hitherto credulous George had
of late begun to look into facts in
steal Of dreams. He did not believe
word of this amazing confession,
despite the additional testimony OF
Fortune. relative to Ryanne's state
ments made to her in the bazaars.
The bitter bitten was Georges
sole comment.
Ryanne breathed easier.
why not tell Mahomed at once,
and have him send courier back for
~ +
"By Jove, that clears up everything.
Well do it Immediately" George felt
better tnan he had at any stage OF the
adventure Here was simple way out
of the difficulty.
Softly said Ryanne. LET us
come down to the lean facts. II that
rug is in your room, Fortune, your
mother has discovered it long before
now. She will turn it over to your
estimable uncle. None of us will ever
see it again, I'm thinking. The major
knows that Jones gave me q thousand
pounds for it." Struck by q sense Of
impending disaster Ryanne began to
tumble in his pockets. Gone! Every
shilling Of it gone! He's got that,
too; Mahomed; the cash you gave me
Jones. Wait moment; don't speak
things are whirling about some. Over
nine hundred pounds; every shilling OF
it. We mustn't let him know that I've
missed it. I've got to play weak in or
der to grow strong but they will
at least start up row as to your
wherea bouts, Fortune"
NO. thoughtfully; mo, do not
think they will A.
The lindercurrent was too deep for
George He couldn't see very clearly
just: then. The United Romance ain
Adventure Co.; was that all? Was
there not something sinister behind
that name, concerning him? He look
ed patiently from the girl to the adj
Ventllcer.
Ryanne stared at the yellow desert
beyond. His brain was clearing rapid
1y under the stimulus Of thought he
himself did not believe that they
would send out search parties either
for him or for Fortune. He could not
fathom what had given Fortune her
belief but he realized that his own
was based upon the recollection of
that savage mood when he had thrown
down the gauntlet. Now they would
accept it, He had run away with For
tune as he had boldly threatened to do.
The mother and her precious brother
would proceed at once to New York
without him. He had made fine
muddle OF 1t all. But for glass of
vine and grain too much of conHd-
ence, he had not been here this day.
Moboy,, od him coIf astfr nv this time