Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1916-07-27

| rom MS SET out he F1>ugnt 1t down.
He hurried on with his story. He told
Of the coming of Alan and of the reye-
latiOn he had brought And then in
| chOked voice and only because he had
set himself to tell the whole truth he
| pictured the food, the death of True
Blue, and the Overwhelming by the
waters before bis very eyes of Mar
| garita and the Man. Then he arose
and with hands braced on the table
leaned towards Alix. Il have told you
this so that perhaps you may Under
stand what | am going to tell you now.
If the food had not cOme-if Margarita
and the Man had lived-I would not
have come back"
AK sat very still and studied
Gerry's face. He had finished the task
| he had set himself to do and he was
suddenly very tired. His eyes dropped
as though from their own weight and
then he raised them again to her in
scrutable face.
'Well?" he asked after a long pause.
"Well?" replied Alix.
Gerry's stalwart figure dropped. ''It
Is quite just" he said, after all that
that you should not want me. / have
spent the last weeks making myself
ready for that. You waited for me;
didn't wait for you. If you do not
want me, I will go away"
AliX rose slowly to her feet. She
looked very slim and tall in her cling
ing gown. To Gerry she looked very
cold. Before you CO." she said,
there is just one thing. l wish you
would kiss me-once."
Gerry's body Strengthened and stiff
fened. He stared at her grave face
with wondering eyes. Then he felt
strange tingling ripple through his
blood and before he knew what he did
he had swept her from her feet,
crushed her to him, brushed the crown
of hair back from her brow and kissed
her eyes, her mouth, her throat. He
was rough with her. He was bruising
her body, her lips, but Alix chung to
him and laughed. Then suddenly all
her slim body relaxed and slipped
through his arms to a little white heap
on the floor. She began to Sob Gerry
stopped down, picked her up tenderly
and laid her on the great leathern
couch. He knelt beside her. On one
arm he pillowed her head, with the
other hand he sought hers. please,
Alix," he begged, please don't cry"
I'm not crying" sobbed Alix, I'm
laughing"
Gerry smiled and waited Soon Alix
became quiet. Her eyes closed. She
drew a long, quivering breath and
then she opened her eyes again and
her lips broke into the old dear smile,
the smile Of an opening flower. 81 am
tired-tired,' she said, "but I believe
I'm almost hungrier than I am tired"
''I'm glad you said it first" replied
Gerry, giving serious thought to the
fact that he was faint with hunger
himself. Ever since some funny
Johnny wrote, Feed the BRUTE we
stomachs It's four o'clock. Hours
after lunch time"
Really" said Alix, nesting down
closer to his arm and letting her smil-
ing eyes wander over him. How well
this suit fits you. There's something
about it It isn't, is it?"
Gerry nodded. "Same old suit. By
the way, when came in John said you
told him to telephone to the club and
say you wished to see me. What made
you think I would go to the club 1rst?"
Alix looked puzzled. II didn't. I
didn't tell John to telephone" She
paused, still puzzling, then her face
cleared. "Why-poor old John-hes
getting very old, you know, Gerry.
That was three years ago l told him to
telephone-the day you never came
back. It must have been the suit. He
saw you standing there in the same
suit and three years became as one
day to the old fellow"
Gerry sighed. "Alix, do you want
those three years to become as q day
to us?"
Alix shook her head slowly from
side to side. "No, dear, don't They
have given me-given us both-far
more than they took away" She put
her bare arms around his neck, drew
him down and kissed him. "You do
not know yet all that they have given
you. You think you have come back
and found me, frittering butterfly in
a great empty house. But you've found
only my abandoned cocoon. I'm not
here at ALL I've packed myself into
the dearest little bundle of pink fat,
yellow curls and chubby legs, and left
the bundle on Red HILL"
Gerry nodded but he was grave and
silent. Not In day nor a month could
he altogether forget the Man.
Q.l;f!1l]ClA
~ -oNSv-ST1