Meade County news., 1917-06-14
(OOpyrlght 1918, The BObSs- Merrill Company
CHAPTER VI-continued.

car stopped in front of her house,
Rose acted on this request-told about
her life before and since her marriage
to Rodney, about her friends, her
amusements-anything that came into
her mind. But she fingered before
getting out of the car, to say:
81 hope haven't forgotten single
word of your preaching. You said
80 many things want to think about"
"Don't trouble your soul with that,
child" said the actress. "All the
sermon you need can be boiled down
into a sentence, and until you have
found 1t out yourself, you won't be-
lieve It,"
"Try me-" said Rose.
"Then attend. How shall / say it?
Nothing worth having comes as a gift,
nor even can be bought-cheap.
Everything of value in your life will
cost you dear, and sometime or other
you'll have to pay the price of it."
1t was. with a very thoughtful, per-
picked face that Rose watched the car
drive away and then walked slowly
into the house-the ideal house-and
allowed herself to be relieved Of her
wraps by the perfect maid.
There was still an hour before she
need begin dressing for the Randolph
dinner; when Rodney came home this
vague, scary, nightmarish sort Of feel
tng which for no reasonable reason
seemed to be clutching at her, would
be forgotten. She wished he would
come-hoped he wouldn't be late, and
finally sat down before the telephone
with a half-formed idea Of calling him
up.
Just as she laid her hand upon the
receiver, the telephone bell rang. It
was Rodney calling her.
"Oh, that you, Rose?" he said. II
sha'n't be out till late tonight. I've
got to work"
"But Roddy, dearest" she protested,
"'you have to come home. You've got
the Randolphs' dinner"
"OhW he said. II forgot all about
1T. But it doesn't make bit of differ
ence, anyway. wouldn't leave the
office before I have finished this job
for anybody short of the Angel Ga
briel"
"But"-it was absurd that her eyes
should be filling up and her throat
getting lumpy over thing like this
''But what shall I do? Shall tell
Eleanor we can't come, or shall offer
to come without your"
II don't carel Do whichever you
like. I've got enough to think about
without deciding that. Now do hang
Np and run along"
"But Rodney, what's happened? Has
something gone wrong?"
Heavens, no" he said. "What is
there to go wrong2 I've got big
day in court tomorrow and I've struck
a snag, and I've got to wriggle out of
it somehow, before I quit. It's moth
ing for you to worry about. Go to
your dinner and have good time.
Good-by." The click in the receiver
told her he had hung up.
The difficulty about the Randolphs
was managed easily enough. Eleanor
was perfectly gracious about it and
insisted that Rose should come by her.
self.
She was completely dressed a good
three-quarters Of an hour before it
was time to start, and If she drove
straight downtown she would have a
ten-minute visit with Rodney and still
not be late for the dinner.
She found a single elevator in COM
mission in the great, gloomy rotunda
of the Office building, and the watch
man who ran her up made terrible
noise shutting the gate after he had
let her out on the fifteenth floor. The
dim marble corridor echoed her foot
falls Oninously, and when she reached
the door of his outer office and tried
1t, she found it locked. The next door
down the corridor was the one that led
directly into his private office, and here
the light shone through the ground
glass.
She stole up to 1t as softly as she
could, tried 1t and found 1t locked
too, so she knocked. Through the
open transom above 1t, she heard him
softly swear in a heartfelt sort of way,
and heard his chair thrust back. The
next moment he opened the door with
a jerk.
His glare Of annoyance changed to
oeWilderment at the sight Of her. and
ne said: 'Rosel Has anything
happened2 What's the matter?" And,
catching her by the arm, he led her
into the Office. "Here, sit down and
get your breath and tell me about it!
She smiled and took his face in both
her hands. 'But it's the other way."
she said. "There's nothing the matter
with me. came down, you Door old
boy, to see what was the matter with
you"
He frowned and took her hands
away and stepped back out of her
reach. Had 1t not been for the sheer |
incredibility Of 1t, she'd have thought