Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1917-03-06
CHAPTER XIII.
A Miracle ovordono.


A Miracle ovsrdons.
HELENA sat in the Patriarch's
room; her piquant little face
was pursed up into scowl so
daintily grim AZ to be almost
0licrous. The Patriarch, In his arm
4 chair, had been scrawling words upon
the slate all evening-and she had been
wiping them OF! He scrawled another
now and, mechanically, without look.
Ing at it, by way Of answer she pressed
his arm to appease him.
She had been restless all day and
she was restless now. What had IN.
duced her to treat Madison the way
she had the night before? PiQue,
probably. No; It wasn't pique. It was
just getting back At him-and he de-
served it He hadn't seemed to mind
It much, though; he had only laughed
and teased her about It that morning
when he had Joined tho Patriarch and
herself In their walk along the beach.
"Geer said Helena to herself. IF
don't break loose and kick over the
traces for Q minute or two III be claw
ing the bars Of q dippy asylum before
I'm through-and Just listen to the
sweet; girlish language I'm using. I'd
like TO bite somethingp'
She turned impulsively to tho door,
stepped out into the hall and called the
Flopper from his room.
"Flopper, you 60 In there and stay
with the Patriarch for awhile" she Or
dered CURLY. I'm going down on the
beach to yell"
"Yellr' repeated tho F1opper, blink
ing heipiess!y.
I'm going outside to yell-yell. You
know what yell means. don't you"
she snapped.
"Swipe mer observed tho, Hopper,
gazing at her anxiously. "Skirts Is al
de same-youse never know wot dey'n
do next. Wot you wanter yell fer2"
you mind your own business and do
as you're told" said Helena tartly.
go in there and stay with the Patri-
Arch"
"sure" The Flopper was grinning q
little now. "Sure ting, but youse
needn't get q yer ear about it Cheer
up: mabbe de Doc'n be out tonight, an,
II he don't hear youse yellin' himself.
will tell him youse are out on de
beach t'rowin' fit2'
mo-" Helena answered sharply; tell
him nothing-Pm out" Then, quite AZ
quickly, changing her mind, Yes. tell
him I'm down there-or come and get
mo yourself and she walked abruptly
into her own room.
slsNow, wot do youse tink Of dat?" In.
-quired the Hopper Of the universe. He
blinked at fhe door she had closed In
his face. "Say," he asserted with sub
lime Inconsistency, III Mamie Rodgers
was like all de rest Of dem I'd t'rOw
up me dukes before de gong rung."
The Flopper went into the Patriarch's
..oom and took the chair beside the
ether that Helena had vacated "Swipe
me, II l wouldn'tw he added fervently
by way Of confirmation.
Helena, in her own room, opened one
Of, her trunks, lifted out the tray,
worked down somewhat impatiently
through several layers Of yellow, pa
per covered literature that would have
made the classics on the Patriarch's
bookshelves shrivel up in righteous
horror and finally produced daintily
jeweled little cigarette case and match
box. She showed the tray back, slam
med the cover Of the trunk down,
snatched up wrap, flung 1t over her
head and shoulders and left tho cot
tage.
Sine ran down to tbs beach at top
speed, 40 II she couldn't get there fast
enough.
"And now I'm Just going to yell and
90 crazy as much as ever I nke!' pant
ed Helena otto rollers.
Instead she sat down with her back
to rock and opened her cigarette
case. She took out cigarette, extract
ed q match from tho box, lighted it
and flung both cigarette and match
from her
II don't want to be crazy. don't
know what want" said Helena petu-
lantly. her chin went into her hands.
and she stared wide eyed at the break
ing surf. II wonder what It all
meansT' she murmured with q mirth-
less little laugh.
oh, tho game was all right, but some
how she wasn't happy. not nearly 20
happy as she had been In New York,
even in lean periods when she and the
Doc had been pressed for funds. But,
anyway. then they had been together
and fought and laughed and loved and
1uarreled through hush times and bad.
Maybe that was I'll The Doc! OF
course she loved him. She had loved
him ever since she had known him.
There was no secret about that. She
loved him 6ercely. passionately. more
than she loved anything else in the
world, with oil the love she was capa.
BILE gilmore than he loved her. He
seemed to accept her too often so
casually, 80 indinerently. so much as
matter Of course. He was SO conn.
IDENTIFY and complacently sure of her
and she was not at all sure of him.
She was only sure that he was quite
right in being sure. She couldn't help
loving him II she tried
She had hardly seen anything Of him
vince that night in the Roost before he
had left for Medley. and he hadn't
yeemed to care much whether she did
" not. That talk about playing the
game and taking no chances was all
bosh. There had been plenty Of
shances where It wouldn't have hurt
The game any. Perhaps the little jolt
yhe had given him last night, turning
q M. a. g.ye~ : MT would xrakA hin, nm n