The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1916-12-08


lines in all the papers about you every
day. Gloria Stafford Involved in FIRE.
neau Mystery; Secret Engagement of
Heiress Just Discovered Gloria Stat
ford Claims She Saw Freneau Muir
dered; The Beautiful Daughter of
Pierpont Stafford"
She groaned "Oh DON'T father; I
can't bear it."
But Stafford continued inexorably /:
"YOu could never leave the house nor
enter it without a dozen cameras be-
ing focused on you. The police would
swarm the house, demand all your PIT
vate correspondence with Freneau. II
you refused them anything they would
use force and I should be powerless to
help you. And what the police get the
reporters get. Do you want your love
and your sorrow given over to the Cos
sips? Now do you see why we cannot
set the machine in motion? have only
one desire, to protect your reputation.
If you want to protect Freneau's, you
will keep silence. Promise"
Gloria was convinced, ut least for
the moment. She nodded her head In
obedience, kissed her fathers cheek.
patted him absent-mindedly, and left
him. But once alone again she burned
| with resentment at the plan to shield
| the murderer of her lover. She re-
spected her fathers dread Of publicity
| and she shared his hatred Of publicity,
but she would not rellnquish her de-
mand for justice. She realized, how
ever, that she would have no help now
in her hunt for the murderer. But
this only strengthened her determine
ton. Alone she would unravel the Sc
cret knot and bring the guilty to pun
ishment.
Meanwhile Lois, in her own passion
ate way, was suffering also, but her
suffering was tinged with a certain
amount Of horrible satisfaction. Death,
instead of Gloria, had taken Freneau
from her. Gloria could not claim one
smallest part Of him from her now. He
had never cared one atom for Gloria;
he had told her so. 1t was for financial
reasons alone that he had intended to
marry Gloria, but she could not buy
him now. Freneau had been struck
down In his youth and strength by
some fiend, but he was hers, hers in
death as he had been in life. Neither
Gloria nor her own husband, David,
could ever take him from her now.
Lois went to her dressing table, took
from a locked drawer her open bag,
and drew from it the silver-framed
photograph of Freneau that she had
stolen from Gloria. Staring at 1t long
ingly, she kissed it, then, pausing with
anxious jealousy, lifted 1t from its
frame and read the inscription on the
back:
"To Gloria, my only love, with all
my heart. Dick"
Lois recoiled from the words as II
they struck her in the face. Then, turn
ing the photograph toward her again,
she gazed at it searchingly. Suddenly
she smote it with her clenched fist and
threw it from her. But at once, with
swift revulsion of feeling, she knelt
and clasped it to her bosom again,
bursting into dry sobs and misery.
She was interrupted by knock at
the door and the warning voice of her
maid: "NIiss Stafford is calling, mad
am"
Lois was startled. She rose and
slipped the photograph between two
volumes in book rack on table and
called to her maid: "Show Miss Stat
ford up here"
Rushing to her dressing table, she |
hastily ran a powder puff over her
face and brushed back her hair.
When she turned it was to confront |
Gloria clad in heavy mourning. For a
moment the sight of the Grape stung |
Lois to jealous frenzy; next she deter |
mined to make some excuse to wear |
black herself. She felt that she had |
a better right to mourning than Gloria |
had.
Advancing, she kissed Gloria's cool
cheek, mumbling: GLOW are you, dear? |
Do you think you ought to be out on
such cold day?"
'Oh, yes" answered Gloria listlessly.
81 thought drive would do me good.
1 just dropped In on you for mo- /
ment."
Putting up her furs, Gloria wan
dered airllessly about the room, then
sank into a chair by the table. The
women eyed each other with con-
Jtraint. Neither wished to speak first
of Freneau Gloria noted the haggard
mien of Lois with wonderment. Cast
ing about for something to say, she
fumbled with the books on the rack.
The picture of Freneau fell out.
The blood pounded in Gloria's heart
and spread a quick flush over her face
as she picked it up. She turned it over
and read the inscription. She asked
"How did this come
here?"
Lois, controlling herself with diff
Guilty, tried to speak.
"Was it you, then, who stole it from
my roOm?' Gloria hurled the question
with set lips and glittering eyes.
With a desperate inspiration Lois
explained. "Yes, l stole it. / was go
ing to surprise you with it. And then
he died."
Gloria was touched and believed as