Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1919-03-05

her in the darkness and then, unable
to control my desire for certainty l
mashed my llttle pocket light on her
for an instant. -
DON'T" she whispered, putting her
hands up before her. face.
But I had seen. 1t was really Vicky
Van, her smooth black hair Topped
over her ears, her scarlet mouth, and
soft pink cheeks. flushed with excite
ment of the moment, and her long
dark lashes, which suddenly. fell be-
meath the binding flare of the light,
all were those of the runaway girl.
Don't talk" she said, hastily, "let
me do the talking. I want you to help
me. will you?"t
of law and justice fed before the
wave Of pity and s%olicitude.
Her voice was indistinct and a little
hoarse, as II she was laboring under
great mental and nerve strain. and
she was so alone, so unprotected. that
I couldn'tS help promising n assist
ance in my power.
vase" I said, in a low voice, as she
seemed to hesitate about going on
with her explanation.
mo, here it is" and she handed
me a little box. "Just put it away
safely for the present. And now. this
is what I want to ask OF you. Don't
let them engage that Mr.. Stone, to
hunt me down, will you?"
why, how a I help it?"
ooh, can't you?" and she sounded
so disappointed; II hoped you could
persuade Mrs, Schuyler not to have
him."
But Mrs. Schuyler doesn't want
him, either." I exclaimed. cts those
two sisters who insist on getting him.
-A r A-- AA~Sn wy}IIc
try as I might"
"why doesn't Mrs. Schuyler want
him ?"
"Oh. I'm not sure that she really
objects to the plan, but I mean she
didn't seem as anxious as the other
two. You see, little girl; the widow of
Randolph Schuyler isn't so bitter
against you as the w sisters are"
voice rna Was S Wieefu o. 1 But S sna Know u'oNy I /
must remain in hiding"
IT thought you were going to leave
New York;"
II am. And at once. But if that
Mr.. Stone gets on my trail, he'll find
me, sur as fate. And so I risked
this interview to try to persuade you
ing"
And I'll do that" I returned,
tell you that I doubt my power to
dissuade the Schuyler sisters from
their determination. And. too, how
did you know they thought Of get
ting him?"
"oh, 1 see all the papers, you
gave a personal interview with the
Schuyler people, and they limited at
getting that man."
Vicky sighed YEARLY, as if her last
hope was gone. I was full of questions
1 wanted to ask her, but it seemed in
trusive and unkind to quiz her. And
yet, one thing I felt I must say. I
must ask her what she knew of the
actual crime.
Tell me-" I blurted out, "who did
kill Randolph Schuyler?"
Again I felt her tremble. and her
voice quivered as h whispered back,
1T must have been some enemy Of
his. who got in at the window, or
something like that"
My heart fell. This was the sort Of
thing she would say if she were her.
a more sincere even. if despairing.
answer
But I must send you away" she
breathed in my ear. We were stand
ing just inside the room, and Vicky
held her hand on a chair-back for
support. There was the faintest light
from the street, enough for us to dis
tinguish one another's form, but no
more. Vicky wore a street gown of
some sort, n a long cloak. On her
head was a small hat. and a black
net veil This was tied so tightly that
it interfered a little with her speech,
I thought. though when I had looked
at her face by my f1ash-light, the
veil had not been of sufficient thick
ness to conceal her features at all.
I've often wondered why women wear
those uncomfortable things. She kept
pulling it away from her lips as she
talked.
II want my address book" she
went on, hurriedly. 1--WE looked all