The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1917-09-13
CHAPTER XII.

ary's grave."r
CHAPTER XII.
It was only an hour or so before
dawn when Huff got to the hall. There
were no trains between midnight and
morning. And Talbot's car, which he
might have used, had been long de-
layed by his burst tire. He took a
suburban trolley line for perhaps half
the distance and walked the rest.
At four o'clock in the morning he
pressed the arbor button, and old Hen
r1ette, grumbling at this second dis
turbance Of her rest, reused Elinor
again.
Time was precious. Huff, having
rung the announcing bell, made his
way up through the dew to the house.
And so 1t was that Elinor, opening the
house door, met him face to face. As
she recoiled from him, he closed the
door.
II have brought you a message from
Boroday," he said swiftly. "I've been
a fool and scoundrel and-it's about
all up"
Elinor hardly realized what he was
saying. The light Of horror had hardly
died out of her eyes. To her, Walter,
once her lover, now typiied all of suf-
fering and nearness to death that lay
In old Hilary's room upstairs.
"The first train leaves the city at
six o'clock" he said, trying to keep his
voice steady. 1T is hardly likely they
will be out SO soon, but under some
pretext o. other they will search the
house this morning.,
"How can I leave the house now?
Upstairs in fathers room" .
II know" he put in hastily. II know
all about it. Elinor, I am sorry, 1 am
wildly sorry. It's no excuse to say I
was crazy, but I was"
IF I 60 away" Elinor said, with
white lips, chow will they manage
about him? The nurse needs so many
things, and IL see that she has them"
A flame leaped into the boys eyes.
IF you care for him like that
what are you going to do about it?
Even If he cares for you, you cannot
marry him. If he ever found out about
you
HE viii never marry me- And-Ae
does know"
The fact that Ward knew the truth
about Elinor and the band brought
back to him their common peril. He
thrust aside, for the time at least, his
passion and his despair; and calmly
directed his energies toward preparing
the house for the inevitable search.
So systematic had old Hilary been
that there were few papers to destroy.
Such Of the ledgers as were incriminat-
ing he burned in the furnace. Elinor's
box of jewels he carried upstairs and
placed on the library table. Such set
tings as had remained from the coun-
try club raid, after the gems had been
taken out, he melted together in old
Hilary's crucible and placed the gold
and platinum nugget in Elinor's box.
He had set the safe to a simple COM
bination and closed it. Except for it's
size, and for the protective wiring
buried in it's walls, it might have been
q family safe, built by a W and
elderly gentleman living in the coun-
try to hold his silver spoons.
It "a too late by that time to bury
the box as Boroday had suggested.
Huff did the next best thing. He
buried it carefully in Elinor's garden,
under a clump of crimson phlox.
Elinor worked hurriedly, but with
hopeless eyes. Her preparations con-
sisted in little more than putting on
| the clothing In which she meant to
travel. In this new life on which she
was entering she wanted little to re-
mind her of the old. A letter to Hen
riette contained enough money to pay
of the servants and the household &C.
counts. In another envelope she fold
ed the deed to the house and a note
conveying it to Henriette.
"You can sell it." she wrote. "Good-
by, dear Henriette. / shall for
| get you, and If ever it is possible, be
sure I shall see you again."
The time came, just before dawn,
when she and Walter stood again face
to face in the library.
HUFF was going at once. It was not
Boroday's plan that any Of them
should further incriminate Elinor by
accompanying her to the train. At a
sound Of steps on the stairs, Huff
started.
"The nurse going down, probably for
Ice" she explained.
HE is getting better, isn't he"
eyes, but he still suffers at times"
When the steps had died away, Eli
o slowly drew of her engagement
ring, and held it out to him across the
table. Although he was watching her,
he made no move to take it, and she
laid 1t down between them on the
table.
II don't think we need talk about 1t,
Walter" she said simply. "There, Is
nothing to say, is there?"
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