The Washington herald., 1914-05-03

to Israel! he IS not at ms Ofnce today.
And in any case, do not want you to
use your telephone before 5 o'clock"
Il The young woman stood quiet, and
smiling. resolute and confident, with her
revolver between the shaking Spaniard
and the telephone.
:. The clock hand crept on, and by a
movement of her eyebrows rather than
her eyes-which did not leave him-she
indicated that time passed. He hesi-
tated. cried a stream of things under his
breath, stamped, wrung his hands, went
silent and sullen, and walked heavily to
a locked dispatch case upon the table
You are right" smiled the beautiful
terror, watching his every move. Even
those thousands are not worth imperil-
ing the honor of your family and your
position at court y
"FiendI said Predella furiously.
The money was life or death to me
Without it | am lostl l am ruinedp
And he paused a second on this to see
whether feminine pity were aroused,
and was disappointed
He flung at her little bundle of
notes, and they fell on the floor. She
stopped, picked it up like lightning. and
was on guard again. She moved back
ward to the door, uttered her thanks,
still smiling, flashed triumphant eyes AT
him one second, and was gone.
She took a taxicab to the great
money-lender's palace in MAZDA Vale,
with the address of which she had al
ready furnished herself.
Information by the butler that Mr..
Israel was resting after yesterdays ac-
cident and by his doctors orders was to
see no one. Kindly take him this" said
she imperiously
This, was an enigmatic message
upon visiting card. In three minutes
the servant was back, to usher her into
a small room off the hall. and in FIVE
more Mr. Israel, very quiet, very pale,
very alert, had entered, in his dressing
gown worn over a hastily-donned shirt
and trousers
Come, come. what is all this about.
am very sick and not fit to receive
anybody"
| But you thought it advisable to re-
ceive me-"
She looked him up and down, and
it was plain to Mr.. Israel that this i'm
perious person regarded him as dirt be-
meath her feet.
Your extraordinary communication"
the money-lender began again, consid-
ering the card in his hand.
| Il am here" said she with admirable
lbrevity and crispness, TO say that it is
known to myself and to one other that
part of the Spanish state dinne- service
was mortgsged to you by Mr.. Predella,
and placed by you in the safe deposit at
Chancery Lane"
You are telling an extraordinary and
felonious tissue of lies" replied Israel
deliberately.
You see the tine?" she said. "a quar-
ter to six. shall leave this house i'm
mediately on receiving from YOU what I
consider an adequate sum for the GRIM
inal kindness of holding my tongue But
if do not leave it by six o'clock with
what l require that other person of
whom I spoke will proceed to Scot
land Yard"
With a cock-and-bull story" replied
Israel
You know better than any one else
what truth there is in the story" said
she. Il am perfectly content to await
/ your decision The sum l uame is
s2.ooo"
She settled herself in the chair. and
looked comfortable. but her very bright
eyes did not leave Mr.. IsraeFs face. Her
fingers, within the muff, caressed a
friend.
In ten minutes Anna Stuart had left
the Mazda Vale palace, and in her cheek
was the carmine and in her eyes the
stars of triumph.
She drove to her fiat in Emperor's
Gate, led herself in with a latchkcy.
flung her wraps to a maid, and entered
her green sitting-room.
Standing on the hearth was Charles
Captain, the fire of adventure in his
fine-cut face. lights of love and victory
in his eyes
He kissed Annals hand. by her perrnis-
sion. A packing case lay on the floor.
He took a little chiscl from his coat
pocket, pried up one end OF the lid. and
gave her a glance at what lay within,
whereat she clapped her hands.
She threw herself triumphantly upon
the green divan in the center OF the
room and took from the pocket of her
muff two cracking rolls which repre-
sented $1,000, and she entertained Nh
Captain with very lively relation of
her activity.
! The short sequel-somewhat ragged
in finish-to this story is that on the
following morning Israel arrived early
at his office to find Predella awaiting
him with painful story and a feverish
request that the dinner service should
be removed at once from the safe de-
post and delivered to his care so that
he might restore it to the palace. Thus
should any tale reach the ears of the
court, a visible refutation could be
proved by experts.
Z Mr.. Israel went to the safe deposit,
and returned, white and sour, with the
! bitterest experience OF his life to relate
to Predella, who awaited him in the
Office
( Mr.. Predella cried: You sold iti
/ You sold it! If had only known l was
safe in denying its presence in Eng
I land to that damned girl! l need not
have lost G2,oool You had no right to
sell it, under our terms, tell you'll
! tell YOU, must have it backl will have
II back. | am lost am ruinedl Ex-
posure will come! l need not have
given that G2,ooo%
And Israel: Il have been robbed! I
/ did not sell it, l did not sell have
been robbedl But if only had known
last night, / could have blufed EN-;
need not have paid two thousand"