The diamond drill., 1920-07-24

real as you, darling Ellen"
The girl met the eager lips that
bent down to her upturned face. "Yes.
yes. dearest" she whispered. "Now
you're your real self-all is realw
The physicians lips were moving In
rapid count OF the bonds. His voice
became audible: seven. eight, nine.
ten-tenl everyone for ten
thousand" His voice doomed joy
ously: zone hundred thousand All
there the full amountl not one lost r.
THANK Heavenw cried the young
man. THAT saves mel All
those months, those dreary swful
months-worry. worry. worry; CROP
Ing, trying to remember. Yet II was
there, the memory, down under.
knew II was there. II was that which
compelled me TO keep trying TO escape
from them-time after time. And
when az last / did. IL led me In that
half-blind daze all the way home-lt
led me 10 the pit"
'The pitT questioned Mrs. Kirk
land.
"In the abandoned brlckyard beyond
City Park. The moment
came 10, and looked around, | rec
ognlzed the place. went straight to
the hole where had hidden the
bonds"
"You hid them out thereY" exclalm-
ed Ellen.
"Yes. All flashed back into my
mind-all about that day when BENIN
brought me down from Pueblo-the
fear that drove me half insane when
he flippantly suggested that we might
get away with the bonds by smashing
and setting fire to the car and pre-.
tending the bonds were burned up in
the wreck"
"He did that2 Charlie did thatT'
cried Amy. But he Is detective y
"Yes, / found that out afterwards
Toodlums. ! suppose he was trying
10 test my integrity. / can't believe
worse Of him. But / was then In a
bad way, and what he suggested com
pletely unbalanced me. ! was certain
he meant TO steal the bonds from me
/ must have been half insane. TIC
save them from him, l rented n safe
deposit box and pretended TO him that
/ had put them In IL; but instead
want out past City Park and wandered
about until | found the hiding place
in the clay pitt
$50 that was t." remarked Amy.
He did not reply. He was engrossed
in gazing into Ellen's tender gray eyes,
The fond parents beamed upon the
blissful couple. Amy sighed and stole
out of the room, unheeded by the
others.
Ellen snuggled closer to her lover
"You fell into the pit" she recalled
the mishap. "Your poor dear head =
"Only little cut" he reassured
her. II wiped the blood OF my face
and hurried home with the bonds to
see Momsey and Amy before rushing
down TO the bank. did not wish "a
see you until l could tell you l had
restored the bonds. There was no one
In the front OF the house; so / went
direct 70 the bathroom. / washed my
head and started In to my room-Who
Is the man visiting heref
"vlsiting here7' repeated Mrs. Kirk
land. "What made you think thati
There has been no man staying here
except yourself, Will"
"No oner he cried. "You say nc
one7 Then I'm not cured lit was an
halluclnation !"
Here, here, keep quiet This won't
do" ordered Doctor Kirkland. "What
was it7 Explain
The young man sought 10 repress his
shuddering "I-when when open
cd the passage door there was a--a
something across at the mlrror-Tt--
it,"
"Pooh!" ridIculcd the physician,
"Your own reflection"
"Then why-why was it's back to
me1o
MS backY quavered Ellen. "oh,
winw
pooh! pooh Nothing to II, my
boy" insisted the physician. Merely
freak OF vision. Think no more
about It. Amy What! Where is
Amy?'
Indeed. where" murmured Mrs.
Kirkland, gazing about the room. She
has gone out Perhaps she
has gone TO call Tillle Would II not
be well TO telephone the good news
that VIII is safe homer
"Yes. yes, 10 be sure-police, bank,
sanitarium-all :" shouted her hus.
band, aud he rushed out to the tele-
phone.
They'll come here, dearest whis-
pered Ellen. "You shall not leave me -
How could II" he rapturously re-
piled.
Mrs. Kirkland sank into a chair TO
dab her fearful eyes and smile upon
the lovers.
CHAPTER XIV.
The Man Nimself.
Pensive and depressed, Amy went
out through the side door and around