The Clio messenger., 1920-08-19

have a good old-time talk while 1 do
my hair"
He stared at her Speechless. She
had on kimOno OF SOFT pink silk en-
broidered with gold flowers. In one
hand she held silver-backed hair
brush.
where are your manDers?" she re-
proved. and she went to set two chairs
before the full-length mirror on the
wall opposite the bathroom passage.
Come. l don't want TO have to shout
to you over there. Sit down and be-
have"
He started to obey and blushed as
his stockinged feet appeared from un-
der the edge of his robe. But she had
perched on one of the chairs and was
studying herself in the mirror.
He seated himself in the chair close
beside her. She handed him the hair
brush and put up both hands to her
head. The loose sleeves of her kimo-
no slipped down, barring her dimpled
white arms. He stared, fascinated, at
them and at her shapely fingers, which
were nimbly drawing the pins from
her hair. Soon the thick coils began
TO sag.
She shook her head. All the glossy
brown locks came tumbling down
about her slender shoulders. She
turned sideways, with her back TO
him, and, clasping the hairpins in her
lap, sat waiting. He gazed in won.
dering admiration at the wealth of rip
ping hair and the shapely little head
from which ii flowed down.
"Why don't you begin?" she impa-
tiently demanded. You'll never fin
ish unless you start"
"Start?"
brushing, stupidr
"You-do you mean you wish me to
to brush your hair?'
"Oh, no; I'm merely sitting here for
you to look at" she bantered. Don't
be q goose"
She caught the brush from him and
made half dozen vigorous strokes,
each time running her free hand under
the brown maze. He took the brush
from her backward-stretched hand,
and asked In q deep low tone: "Am
l to hold 1t that way with my handT
How else can you do it right?" she
replied.
He cautiously took q full stroke
from her forehead back across her
dainty head and down the ripping
mass Of hair. His smile was now that
of man completely lost in blissful In
toxication.
That's better,' she said; "only still
harder. Don't be afraid. I'm not
paper doll-There. that's the way.
Now can settle down and talk. First
of all, I'm going to tell you the bad
news and get through with It,"
"Yes?" he asked, inhaling the deli
cious fragrance of her hair.
you're not listening, and it's very
important. 1t has made me dreadfully
cross at Charlie"
He stiffened at the name, instantly
attentive. "That fellow? What abou,
him? Has he-Y
"Yes. But that's not the trouble
the bank has been making a fuss.
1t can wait. The horrid thing Is tnat
about those bonds you lost. They
claim that you have a lot Of money in
Chicago bank"
Yes. What of itr
"That proves what l told Charlie.
OF course you don't realize-you can't
realize"
"Realize whatT" he asked, pausing
in the midst of long brush stroke.
"Why, about the bonds"
"You mean the bonds lost by your
brother"
"Charie knows some one who has
found odt all about them. 1t must
have been a detective. He found the
key of the safe deposit vault in your
pocket"
an my pocket"
"Charlie said the man said the key
was found in your pocket, and-Oh, l
forgot He said 1t was all secret yet
But of course you're my brother, and
you ought to know, and you won't tell
will your"
"Why should I? Please go on. !
fail to understand about the key. But
how about It? If 1t was a detective
that found the key, he must have dis
covered where 1t belonged and found
the missing bonds"