The Lynden tribune. [volume] (Lynden, Wash.) 1908-current, 1916-11-02

He laughed again. White face
whittier still against the background of
his sornber vestments. debonair and
drunkenly insecure In the saddle, Gar
| ret Devereau tore out into the main
road and Numbered of into the night.
rs that true?" Steve asked quietly.
She made no move to answer.
as that true?" his low and gentle
voice commanded this time. You still
| mean to-marry-him?
What i have done tonight l can
never hope to explain" she answered.
recovering herself. Il can only hope
that some day | may cease to despise
myself as utterly as you have taught
me. to at this minute. And since you
choose TO regard 1t now as your right
to ask that question I'll answer it for
you. ! mean to marry him. I shall
be proud to be his wife"
The light that streamed over her
shoulder fell full upon his face. She
saw the blood pour up. staining throat
and cheek and brow, and then ebb
away. She gave him time to answer,
but he did not speak. and suddenly she
hhCN WHAT SCCut vi uuOlutI uuy lie
was remembering. Her eyes dropped
to her imprisoned hand.
"You are OBTAINING me-" she said.
He released her Immediately, and yet
she did not move. And while she wait
ed he turned and stopped and turned
to her again. She stood like stone
while he wrapped her fur edged
ali har foe.
tened 1t close beneath her uptilted
chin. He waited. bare of head. in the
hedge gap until she had crossed the
lawn to the house that lay a sprawling
glowworm in the darkness. A tumult
OF voices leaped out to him when he
opened the door-a lifting crash of
syncopated melody. And then II was
quiet again.
After a glimpse Of his chiefs eyes
that night Fat Joe essayed not so much
as one facetious protest against turn.
ing the tagged team homeward with
scarcely any rest at all He remained as
quiet as that too quiet man beside him
He fell to whistling later. and almost
Immediately his thin tenor was rolling
ahead Of them through the black alley
between the pines. to continue in soul
tul reiteration until the construction
camp clearing doomed up ahead. Sud
denly Fat Joe frightened ereins above
the tagged team: then he shot forward
and laid the whip across their tired
tanks as they cleared the breastwork
Of trees.
Steve's head was jerked backward
by the abruptness of their first plunge.
and then he saw what Fat Joe had
seen a second before. High up on the
hillside there was a light glowing from
the windows of the shack which served
the chief engineer of the East Coast JOB
as Office and domicile too. While Fat
Joe laid on the whip q man came hus
Ting past the outf1ung door, sprang to
his feet and. running low to the
ground. disappeared into the blaekness
Of the brush. Joe swung the horses up
Ia q galloping curve and with one cat
like leap, incredibly light for man Of
bis chunky build, was down from the
seat and crashing through the bushes
on the trail of that fugitive whose
noisy flight had already become faint
crackle in the distance.
Flame poured from Fat Joe's revolv-
er. Two whiplike reports shattered the
night quiet before Stephen O'Mara
moved. Then he lifted himself heavily
from the seat. Something nuzzled his
shoulder while he stood listening to the
diminishing tumult of the pursuit. and
even before he turned he knew what
1t was. He paused moment to stroke
the soft nose Of the black horse stand
ing there with reins ATRIAL. 1t was
Ragtime, wet with lather and caked
with dust But even then he was not
prepared for the sight which met him
when he entered the shack. Seconds
must have passed while he stood star
ing from the threshold, for Fat Joe
came putting back from his fruitless
chase in time to see him bend and lift
q black robed, lifelessly limp body
from the floor and stagger with 1t to-
ward bunk. Fat Joe's steady flow OF
profanity. oddly, double vicious In his
thin, complaining voice. was checked
short He, too, stood and stared from
the doorway-stood and lifted his nose
4
and shifted.
Seems to be our night for callers"
he remarked. with bad mildness, land.
say, this ones got peach of load
Then Garry Devereau's head rolled
over, CHASTITY loose and slack, and the
plump one caught sight Of a ragged
cash in the senseless mans temple.
800, that's itY' he droned, and his
complaining voice was deadly again.
$50 that's Ill But he wasn't so far
gone that he couldn't put up tidy lit
tie battle, was he? Funny about that.
too, but l could always do my best lit
tie Jobs Of man handling when ! was
about half ever myself"
His pale eyes swept the floor. He
bounced forward and recovered sheaf
Of blue prints from a corner
'This, take IT. he muttered, was
what they was arguing about when We
busted in. Steve. them's our bridge es-
timates-and there want no copies OF
'em either. 1t wouldn't take Us more'n
two weeks to replace EN- neither-not
more'n two precious, priceless weeks.
! I'm onlv hoDiu' now that when our