Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-05-03
AND HERE 1T CONTINUES
The Broken Bicycle

stared in blank bewilderment as she
came briskly on, wheeling her bicycle
before her. He did not show himself, but
stood watching from his place of CON
cealment, and she passed on quickly, so
that in a moment or two a turn in the
path hid her from him. He gave little
start then and rubbed his eyes as though
he had seen a vision and was not sure
that it was real, and at once hurried
after her.
Soon he caught sight of her again.
She did not look round and so she was
not aware of his proximity. and as the
ground was more open here and the
path straight. he was able to keep her
in sight without pressing too close upon
her, till presently she stopped. mounted
her bicycle, and rode on. He had not
anticipated this maneuver and stood
still, not quite sure what to do. Before
he had decided she was some distance
away and had disappeared amidst the
trees.
Evidently her destination was the
house, and Keith hurried on after her.
It was very quiet here under the trees,
and the darkness was gathering fast,
but there was still suff ffient light for
him to see her plainly, riding on ahead
at a good pace, though sometimes she
would be hidden by turn of the path
or intervening trees. and then almost
at once come into view again.
Very quiet and peaceful was it in
the wood. amidst the trees and the fast
falling shades of night. Keith heard
nothing, saw nothing he was aware of
no foreboding Of evil, but he found him
self all at once running his fastest so
that she on her bicycle should not get
too far ahead of him and have too long
to wait when she arrived at the house
and found it locked up and empty.
He could not see her now, for the
turnings of the path and the thicker
growth of the trees hid her from him
as he ran. The silence all around
seemed to increase; the stiffness grew
ominous as though to witness some
catastrophe: all nature held breath and
was still. The shadows heightened and
lay more thickly; it was as though there
were something that they wished to
hide.
He ran faster and faster; he had the
impression that the utmost haste was
necessary that unless he sped more
quickly yet an awful thing might hap
pen in this, silent wood. beneath these
overhanging trees. amidst these dark
and quiet places where the night was
rising in great spreading pools Of dark
ness and stiffness. On he few, and he
knew, though he knew not why, that
a great cry trembled on his lips, a
cry of panic and of horror. He turned
a corner of the path, and there beneath
a great, far spreading oak lay broken
bicycle: but of the G'rl who had ridden
It no sign or trace was visible, neither
TO the right nor to the left, neither
in front or behind.
He stood still. and before him lay
the broken bicycle. and all around was
heavy gloom and great silence through
which there reached him 10 faintest
sound to tell him what had happened or
what her fate had been.
For moment sheer panic over
whelmed him, so that he could have
screamed aloud like frightened child
and set off running and never stopped
4 till he fell exhausted. But by an effort
he controlled himself, clenching his fists
and holding his breath and shutting his
eyes and then opening them. again, and
I at his feet still lay the broken bicycle.
Il He asked himself duly what could
have happened? What had broken the
machine, and why was it lying there.
and what had become of its rider? And
he remembered with sudden. extraordi
nary clearness, with the very tone and
accent with which they had been spoken,
the words of Mr.. Morgan, to the eff
feet that in this place there had been
many mysterious disappearances.
It seemed to him that this was not
the least mysterious among them all,
and when he looked about him it seemed
to him also that this wood was an evil
place and the home of some very dark
and evil mystery.
He could not have been far away
when it happened-whatever had hap
pened. Yet he had heard not a sound,
not one sound to break the utter ST.
lance of the softly coming night, not
crv of any sort, no echo of any struggle.
Vet she had vanished all in an in
slant spatched away as it were into
middle air, and her bicycle lay broken
at his feet.
Al that moment he would not have
been surprised had the trees parted and
shawn some awful and unimaginable
annarition and the lost girl in its
power.
All at once he found himself run
r;ny between the trees, this way aud
thnt auartering the ground like an
.s,er hound searching for scent, Back
,vsrd and forward, to and fro,
ryouching low, sending swift searching
-lsnces ON every side, he went, and
Srce he found upon the thorns of a
h,,sk a niece Of torn ribbon and once a
l,ttJe further on, toward denser
growth of trees and mass OF tangled
a,raerxrowth, be came upon little
h.rdkerchief, edged with dainty lace,
wing in the middle of small puddle
where a fallen branch rctted.
These at least were signs, and he
ran on lightly and very swiftly, his
ou,ck eyes everywhere at once, every
faculty that he possessed strung to the
aIxhect pitch and all concentrated on
the oue task Of discovering some sign
~ the Lost girl. and suddenly beneath
Tan beech tree be saw scinething
~blfe3nnd hudd:ed lying cp the ground.
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