The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1915-09-25
Her Husbands
Widow

Oswald though she was jealous Of
trying to make her see how little that
lady had really meant to him. Poor
Oswald of whom she had never been
jealous. and of whom she had no lon.
ger the right to be jealous! How odd
it seemed-he could marry that wom-
an with the glittering eyes without
30 much as asking her. Leslie's leave.
Thinking to relieve her pangs, he
had planted the sting much deeper.
Mrs. Melas has just come" he wrote.
she has promptly annexed Steele, to
the annoyance Of Cousin Ralph, who
has designs on the lady's money.
don't mind laying heavy odds On
Steele. / don't fancy the sprightly
widow will combine with my worthy
Hnsman to defraud Jimmy of his linn.
tied expectations in that quarter
Leslie crushed the letter In her
hand. Well. Victor should not marry
Jenny Melas. She laughed bitterly.
Herein lay the true explanation of his
anxiety that she should not proclaim
their marriage. He wanted to marry
another woman.
She Wonders How
She Can Stop Il.
Yet how was she to prevent It? BY
the course she had marked out for
herself-by returning to her lawful
husband, by throwing herself at the
feet of man who did not want her.
There was no one in the wide world
she could take counsel with. Her Sc
cret concerned too many others to be
confided to a stranger, however trust
wnrthv mr. iyNr IN
whose mistaken idea Of the law the
mischief was largely due, had married
long since and settled in America. So
far as Leslie knew she was the one
person who could identify her as the
wife of Victor Steele.
At all events she must come to a de-
cision soon. Oswald was not a man
to be trifled with. He could not long
be put off with vague excuses and
evasions. With a spasm of bitterness
she had realized from his last letter
that he cared for her more than she
had dreamed.
Two kilograms were handed her as
she entered the hotel She opened
them with wildly beating heart, sure
that one of them announced Oswald's
coming. The first was handed In at
Paris and read: -
w. s. has deceived more than one
woman
She re-read the mysterious message.
completely mystified and alarmed. 1t
was unsigned. Somebody, then, sus-
pected her interest in Victor, or
thought 1t necessary to put her on her
guard. She tore open the other brown
envelope, hoping that it might explain
the first. This was handed in at Char.
ing Cross. 1t ran: In case of difficult
ty advise v. S., 200 Jermyn street.
London"
I'm case of difficulty advise v. S."
repeated Leslie. She blanched, and for
a moment feared she was going to
faint. She compared the two tele-
grams. Both portended danger, but
from what source she could not divine.
Evidently Victor knew that she was
in want of friend.
He might have heard rumors. Had
anything leaked out, and If 50, through
whom? She ran over In her mind all
those people who might be supposed
to know of their marriage. Rose OAR
ley she had already ruled out of court.
Remained only the sergeants whom
Victor had brought to visit her on that
fateful day Could one of them have
turned up unexpectedly? But surely
Victor had assured her that one was
dead and the other in Canada?
The telegram was handed in at Par
is A moments reflection determined
her that it could proceed only from
Mrs. Melas or from Oswald.
But Jenny Melas. Leslie knit her
brows. Could those bright, glittering
eyes have pierced her Utmost thought
and guessed her secret? If so, the
woman might well wish to poison her
mind against Victor Steele. Yet she