Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1917-09-20


Abbey and Charlie Benton, Of each and
every individual whose life touched
more or less directly upon her own.
She came down to breakfast calmly
enough
She told herself that In first seeking
the line OF least resistance she had
manifested weakness, that since her
present problem was indirectly the out
growth Of that original weakness she
would be weak no more. SO she tried
to meet her husband as II nothing had
happened. in which she succeeded out.
wardly very we'll indeed, since Fyfe
himself chose to ignore any change In
their mutual attitude.
She hustled herself about the house
that forenoon, seeking deliberately a
multitude of little tasks to occupy her
hands and her mind.
But when lunch was over she was at
the end of her resources. Jack Junior
settled in his crib for nap. Fyfe went
away to that area back OF the camp
where arose the crash Of falling trees
and the labored putting OF donkey en-
gincs. She could hear faint and far
Tie voices Of the falling gangs that
cried -ber-r-r-r."
She longed for some secluded place
to sit and think or try to stop thinking.
And without fully realizing the direc-
ton she took she walked down past
the camp, crossed the skid road, step.
ping lightly over main line and haul
back at the donkey engineers warning
and went along the lake shore.
A path wound through the belt Of
brush and hardwood that fringed the
lake. Not until she had followed this
up on the neck Of little promontOry
south of the bay did she remember
with n shock that she was approaching
the place where Monohan had begged
her to meet him. She looked ut her
watch. Two-thirty. She sought the
shore line for sight Of boat, wonder
ing II he would come in spite of her
refusal. But to her great relief she
saw no sign of him. Probably he had
thought better Of it, had seen now as
she had seen then that no good and an
earnest chance of evil might come of
such a clandestlne meeting had taken
her stand as final.
She was glad, because she did not
want to 60 back to the house. She did
not want to make the effort Of wander
ing away in the other direction to find
! that restful peace of woods and water
She moved up little on the point until
she found messy boulder and sat
down on that, resting her chin in her
palms, looking out over the placid sur
face Of the lake with somber eyes.
And so Monohan surprised her. The
knoll lay thick carpeted with moss. He
was within a few steps OF her when a
twig cracking underfoot appraised her
Of some ones approach. She rose, with
an impulse to fly, to escape meeting
she had not desired. And as she rose
the breath stopped in her throat.
Twenty feet behind Monohan came
Jack Fyfe with his hunters stride,
soundlessly over the moss, a rife drOop-
ing In the crook OF his arm. A sun
beam striking obliquely between two
frs showed her his face plainly, the
faint curl Of his upper lip.
Something in her look arrested Mon.
ohan. He glanced around, twisted
about, froze IN his tracks his back to
her Fyfe came up, OF the three he
was the coolest, the most vigorously
self possessed. He glanced from Mono.
han to his wife, back to Monohan.
After that his blue eyes never left the
other mans face.
'"What did I say to you yesterdayT'
Fyfe opened his mouth at last. But
then might have known was wasting
my breath on your!
"Well," Monohan retOrted insolently,
what are YOU going to do about III
This isn't the stone age"
Fyfe laughed unpleasanty.
Lucky for you. You'd have been
eliminated long ago" he said mo,
It takes the present age TO produce
such rotten specimens as you."
A deep flush rose IN Monohans
cheeks. RE took step toward 'Fyfe
bis hands cllnchcd.
"You wouldn't say that II you weren''