Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1919-04-04

know. ! Will divorce Olive. She is
cold, business-lke and will soon for
bird, you belong to me- Then came
the sound of a struggle. l thought
| detected kisses, and then:
Mr.. Lampheer, you are crazy! You
don't know what you are saying
Why l love Olive-love her, l tell
you, Let me co." 1t was a frenzied
whisper. Let me go before. she
too
why you. sweetness?" 1 senscd
another and further struggle.
Because she would lose her faith
in me and l would rather die than
that should happen. Let me go! |
if you do not
There, now you may go" after
moment.
"How dared you kiss me like that!
How dared you! | never have done
one thing to make you think you
could act so! Never"
You haven't seemed to like to be
with me, to live in my house, to go
back and forth to the office at the
same time [ did, | never heard you
object to any of these things"
"Oh-I never though! L supposed
you were telling the truth when you
said your business needed you earlier
and later. 1 see now it was done to
be with me. Oh, what shall [ do.
II l go away Olive will suspect! y
dry sob like a groan broke from her.
l waited to hear no more, but quietly
opened the door and stepped back
into the outer hall trembling like a
leaf, my house of cards tumbling
about my ears. 1 waited perhaps
three or four minutes, then with a
great deal OF unnecessary fumbling
I let myself in and Immediately call
Anybody home?" I must dissem-
must not even suspect L had heard.
"In here. Olive" it was Franks
voice.
where's Annie?"
"'In her room, 1 guess without
looking up.
Just then Ellen announced dinner.
And thankful for the respite L call
ed: >,
Hurry up, Annie, I am starved.
"TH be ready in a minute her
voice sounded full of tears.
CHAPTER Lv
MADE a pretense of eating and
noticed that Annie did the same.
Frank ate as heartily as usual,
but talked very little. In ct,
it was a quiet. coz strained zeal.
Really, one would think this a
Quaker meeting. Has no one any
thing to talk about?. Annie looked
perfectly miserable. but tried her best
to respond. After dinner she started
back.
Sing for me, Annie. l will lie on
the couch and rest"
Frank moved over to the piano as
usual. 1 saw Annie shrink away as
he approached and in way 1t made
me a little less miserable. The couch
was in shadow and l watched them
without either of them being aware
of it. Annie was i'll at ease, uncom-
Portable. Frank, after bit seemed
to sense that he was making her
nervous and made some laughing re-
mark at which she blushed wildly,
but to which she gave no answer.
After a little she rose and came over
to me, drawing a footstool to the
side of the couch.
Have you had enough, Olive? And
does your head ache?'
YES, to both questions" I closed
my eyes. 1 could not bear to look at
her sweet face. Her eyes were full Of
very like the hurt an ami
NAL shows when suffering.
She reached for my nand and held
it in warm, close clasp.
81 wish L might bear it for you,
Olive" she said, referring to my
headache.
Il would not want you to, Annie;
[ should hate to see you suffer-,
thinking how hard such thing
would be for her, so young and I'M
used to sorrow.
she replied softly, then rose and,
pressing a light kiss on my forehead,
said goodnight. To. my surprise,
Frank made no attempt to detain her
He had picked up a late magazine
and appeared to be engrossed IN 1t.
l lay quietly watching him and
thinking. What should L do? If L was
him. Then came remembrance of her
words, that she would rather die than
have me lose faith in her Surely a
girl would not talk like that if she
had willingly wronged me. Ana
Frank. He was my husband. l
loved him. Perhaps it was just
gust of emotion which would not re-
cur again now that he had been re-
pulsed. Annie was SO sweet, so lovely
to look at that it was hard even for
me to resist her beauty.
Suddenly I realized that [ was
making excuses for them; that did
not wish them to know that l had
heard; that 1 would not let them
know. I must go on as if nothing had
happened Otherwise we could not
keep Annie or-could I live with
Frank if he knew I thought him un-
faithful even III thought? l was
proud. 1t would be hard to dissent
BILE, but better that than to let them
know I realized my husband had
tired of me SO soon. | was scarcely
mere than a bride. 1t was humil-
iating. and yet the heartbreak was
harder to bear than the humiliation.
The two whom L trusted and loved:
1t may seem strange that l could
restrain myself! that 1 did not ac-
.cuse my husband, let him know that
I was aware of his detection. And it
may be that had I been younger |
should have done so. This thought
came to me while I was trying to de-
eide. I had learned to hide my feel