The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1915-08-30
said. And this time the girl did not

MOiuc, ue sdiu, tdAiu6 ING 6hAs |
hands in his. I want to tell you. dear,
that / love you. / want to ask you
to be my wife. feel that you and
have something inseparable. some
thing that makes our lives one. 1t 10
Evelyn. and yet never cared for Eve
Ign as love YOU.
The girl looked at him, and then. to
Sotheby's amazement, she burst into
passionate weeping.
80 can never marry you, Jack she |
cried: You do not know-Oh. you do |
not know, and l cannot bring myself
to tell YOU
but you love me. Molly?' he cried.
| He took her In his arms. and for An
instant her head lay on his shoulder.
"'Yes. love YOU she said. But
cannot marry you She raised her
mead and looked him frankly In the
eyes. Listen, Jack she said. ! have
loved you since first saw you. and
have never loved anyone else. That
is why l must send you away. 1t 10
because Of Evelyn
He could ind NO answer to make.
He bowed his head and went away.
II was another year before he saw
Mollie again. Then he was at Atlantic
City.
He was seated in secluded corner
by the Boardwalk when he saw Mol.
lie coming toward him. At first he
thought, SO striking was the resem'
blance, that she was Evelyn herself.
Then, as he watched her, he saw Eve
lyn in the flesh, at her side, and, be-
side Evelyn a man.
The trio were advancing toward
him, and Evelyn and the man were
engaged in animated conversation.
Evelyn had grown stouter and hesh-
Ter: she was still the dashing beauty
of old times, but the dashingness could
not carry itself SC well under that ac-
cumulated load of flesh. 1t was over
done, and the woman was obviously
too artificial The hair was toe light,
the eyes too dark. Sotheby stared.
He could not be mistaken. 1t was
Evelyn.
"Sotheby was not superstitious. lie
knew that Evelyn was at Mollie's side,
and he rose and followed them to
their hotel He watched them enter,
: and all that day he waited until he
was rewarded at last by seeing Mollle
= come out alone. She walked, with her
= limping gait, along the Boardwalk un'
til she came to the same place where
Sotheby had sat that morning. There
: she sat down, and there he accosted
her.
The terror in the girls eyes almost
= unnerved him. She glanced at him
fearfully, and saw that he knew all
You have seen her" she cried
with quick intake Of breath.
| "Sotheby nodded. Tell me thu
truth, Mollie,' he said. taking her hant
In his. And he knew then that, al
4 though It was not the same Evelyr
4 whorl he had loved. 1t was just thu
same Mollie who had been 30 deal
i to him, who had always been In hi
thoughts, night and day, since he hal
: learned to love her.
Il "'She Is not dead said Sotheby
q 'But-Mollie, tell me the truth, an
Il trust me-
II Ives, l will tell you the truth, an
swered the girl When you becam
Engaged to Evelyn you looked on
i as a serious matter. But to Evelyl
It was just a joke, q summer fiirts
ton. She gets engaged at least tw
4 or three times every summer. Whe
2l you locked en- 1t as something lastin
Il Evelyn was-well. just plain scared
She liked you well enough to becom
engaged to you, but she never love
you, Jack. Why, Evelyn couldn't Low
81 anybody. The man she Is engaged
now is rich. and she will probabl
marry him; but she never intended
marry you.
"'You frightened her, Jack, and b
cause she really did care for you
,e; a way, she was afraid that she migl
To not be able to help marrying yo
al And you were not rich man, M
rich enough for Evelyn. ! didn't kns
nd what she was going to do, but kne
he that she was planning to do som
ter thing, because she was mad with fe'
fri when you came down to North Gil
me afterwards-she sent me lett
zee while was In the fisherman's hous
by. before you came up to see me. 81
len had upset the boat. knowing that "
,ou would take care OF me, because
my could not SWIM. Wheh the poa' ups
II Evelyn OWED and climbed out al
,as hid behind the rocks She waited the
until The saw that we were safe, al
oss then she ran home and changed
vas dress, packed up and ran away. tn
:. a was % prevent your knowing that s
,av was alive. She wanted you to thi
mi. her dead, so as to escape marryi
,ck you.
an And you knew all that. Molli
Snd mat was why you forbade me
for see YOU
low Yes, cried the girl. And VIII
IAN / was living with my aunt ! col
md see you, because Evelyn had go
IN West. But | dared not let you 10
we'd me.
,ge. But | have always loved you, M
had lie, said Jack. 1 love you now, des
cen "iIe tcok her in his arms and kiss
md, her AID this time they knew Il
eht there was no obstacle to their hap
life, ness.
Jack, dear said Mollie present
was If Evelyn marries that man they v
of go West tc live. You won't want
uty see her again. Can you wait two wee
90 ~