The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1918-01-03
CHAPTER xvIIi-continued.

10
'There is not much to tell" he went
en, almost jauntily. ~ saw exactly
how things were going before we left
the boat. I knew Hollis reputation
ashore, and determined to warn you Of
his purpose, but had no opportunity.
Besides, felt you had so poor an opln-
Ion of me that probably you would not
listen"
"You were greatly mistaken, Mr.. Nc
Cann," she said pleasantly. II would
have gladly received your advice. You
were my fathers friend"
could read the mans surprise In
his face. The graciousness Of her
words was a shock, yet his egotism
made him instantly her victim.
"You mean you trusted me? That
you would have listenedT
'Most assuredly. How could you
think otherwlse7 knew you were not
yourself in the boat, and the treat
ment to which you were subjected was
brutal. I owed my life TO you equally
with Captain Hollis, and am very
grateful. have never forgotten that
you have been a guest In our home,
a business associate Of my fathers.
Why should / not have confidence In
you?"
I looked at her in amazement, but
her eyes never met mine. What did
this mean7 Was the girl acting partf
Was she endeavoring to deceive him,
or was she speaking now In deadly ear
nest? Nothing In her manner, or in
the tone Of her voice, gave me clue.
his face pictured his delight, his con-
viction of her sincerity. 1t was almost
too good to be true, yet his was not n
mature to doubt his own attractiveness.
T-I-you surprise me-" he stam-
mered, absolutely forgetting my pres
ence. I'll assure you was actuated
by the highest motives In all my ef-
forts. My-my duty was to you, and
your father"
He turned and faced me, the bully
In him surging to the surface.
~ will converse with Miss CARING
ton alone"
To resist would have been utter fool
ishness. ! could see the CLEAN Of the
gun In his hand, and realized that
he only required an excuse to use 1t.
More, there was nothing in the expires.
sion of the girls face to inspire me to
resistance. She did not even glance
toward me, or exhibit the slightest in.
terest.
With hands clenched in impotent
rage, not even venturing a reply,
stepped backward. AS ! crossed the
threshold McCann closed the door, and
heard the key turn In the lock
Trembling still with anger, and dazet
by the strange action Of the girl,
sank back upon the stool, realizing my
utter helplessness. All she had don't
and said appeared so natural 1t nevel
really occurred to me once that she
might be acting part, seeking In thi.
way to gain McCann's confidence, ir
order to win from him the information
We required. 1t was only as sat ther,
In silence, brooding over every detail
that this possible conception began t.
slowly dawn upon my mind. That sh'
could trust the man IN any way wa
practically impossible, for he had re
vealed to her his true character in 81
many ways the memory could not b.
blotted out.
AS the full knowledge Of this trutl
grew apparent, ! was able to view al
that had occurred later in differen
light. She had simply accepted he
one chance; had grasped with womanl,
intuition the single weapon left a
her command. Girl as she was Il
years, her experience In the world ha
been that of a woman, and she instino
lively realized her power-the powe
of wealth, Of beauty, and Of youth.
had been beautifully done, SO deftl
accomplished as to deceive even me
Ayel aid the method had succeede
with McCann. / recalled the expires
sion of surprise, of qualification, O
awakened pride on the mans face. ID
had no power Of resistance left; b
was already putty in her hands.
True, but would he remain so? Th
game she played was dangerous one
II she ventured too far she would dis
cover the brute lurking in him still
And he had the power, the physics
power, to wreak vengeance once h
suspicioned deceit. And there was n
one to help her II she made a singl
false step-absolutely no one; she wa
q lamb among wolves. Those fellow
would never release me again, not fo
q moment. / would be compelled
take observations, to calculate pos
tion, to trace our sailing course on th
chart, but not for an instant would
be left again unguarded, either @
deck or In the cabin. McCann woul
see to that.
The afternoon passed, dragging i
weary hours, Nothing happened to r
lieve the monotony and dread of sol
tude. No one approached the door I
the stateroom, not even to offer n
food, and my ears were able to di