The Washington herald., 1914-03-12
THE HEART
OF THE HILLS

The girl who had come to Pine
Notch on a mission that had cost the
lives Of many men was crouching be-
hind a rock and listening.
As she caught the significance of the
conversation between the two men
whom she had shadowed to the top OF
the wild hill, her pencil began to jab
viciously at the pages of her little
notebook. The mystery of Pine Notch.
the mystery that men had given their
lives to solve. was being unfolded be-
fore her. and If she could escape alive
her task would be accomplished. But
she had never imagined that it would
be like this.
She felt as IL each frantic jab al the
pages of the notebook We're stabhingI
something vital in her. Wally, the
strong. big-hearted mountaineer the sort
of man who wins woman by sheer mas
terry of mind and cave-man strength,
the man-boy who one wild, moonlit
night had blurted out his love for her
in that blunt and impetuous fashion OF
his-Wally was just a common
She groaned at the thought. She
wished she had never accepted the mis-
sion: she felt tempted 10 snatch
shining trinket from the lining or hei
coat and kick il down an abyss.
The two men parted. Wally walked
slowly down the hill. He seemed no
longer the impetuous master, but
Eroken, skulking wretch who feared
the light. She saw Brady watching him
with cunning, shifty eyes. and she de-
:ected a gloating smile on his lips as
he too walked away from the hill top
that contained the solution to the mys-
Iery Of Pine Notch.
She sat there a long time after the men
had departed. her paie and tense child
face. crowned by tumbling rinslets Of
black hair. tilted against her hands. her
heart torn by the age-cld struggle be-
tween love and duty. She must turn
traitor to one or the other-there was no
third alternative. She wished she had
never entered the wild mountain region
in search of evidence against the moon
sinners 1t was 4 mans business. this
prying into illicl. affairs of men. though
the superintendent of the secret service
division had told her she would have a
better chance of success than the men ,
whom he had sent to Pine Notch and
who had never returned.
Her VagabOnd eyes, fiittinC over the
rugged hills. caught a glimpse Of an
Inkcmpt creature of the wilds who was !
watching her craftiy and intcntly. She |
recognized Brady's daughter. and as their |
Giances met and tangled gloating. taunt |
ing smile crcpt into the face Of the child |
Of the hills. and then she ran away in /
the direction OF the village. The girl had |
seen her cavCsdrCppinG. of coursC, and
she would hasten to tell her father. and
there would be trouble-perhaps repeti- !
tion of the tragedy that had overtaken |
the others who had sought to solve the /
mystery of Pine Notch.
Nan Leslie didn't care. The revelation |
that Wally was no longer worthy OF her
love had strangled emotions within her.
She walked hack toward the cabin. wish
ing that il were not necessary for her to |
pass the home of Wally and his crippled |
brother. WalIy was chopping wood in the
ward. working with grim intentness of a
man irving to forget turmcnting thoughts
in his labor. AS Nan passed he dropped |
the axe and ran to greet her. but the girl
avoided him. glimpsing in his face as she
ran from him the hurt look of a wounded
deer.
As she approached her cabin she met
Phil. the cripple. There was an express
sion of patient suffering in his face that
went 10 Mans heart. He looked at her
with the dumb. hopeless and all-sacrific-
ing devotion of a dog. Nan knew he had
worshiped her thus since her arrival in
Pine Notch,s and he had continued TO
worship her, in silence and despair, after
Wally had won her She knew Wally
had given his brother all the love that a
strong. rugged man can give the weaker |
and it was this wonderful affection for
crippled brother that led her to trust,
admire, and finally love Wally. /
How goes ii, PhiI?" she asked.
The cripple leaned on n crutch and
smiled sadly into the girls face
Pretty well Wally reckons he can
get a surgeon to cure NE. You comfort
able over there? Guess you know we'll
do anything"
Thank you. Phil. Quite comfortable"
The knowledge that she must send the
brother of this cripple to the penitentiary
stung her. and she hastened out of the
range of his worshipng eyes.
She felt that furtive eyes of noun
taineers were peering at her as she
stepped into the cabin. Without doubt
Brady's daughter had warned the moon
sinners that the location of their still
had been discovered, and during the
night there would be an attack and she