The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1921-10-22

be the first to laugh at me: And is it fadr to Cherry even to think that l she wou1d-
 "Oh. but it's true" the honester impulse interrupted, merciIessly. .'It is true. Whether it's right or wrong, or sensible or absurd, they do love them both."
 dred-a thousand-trif1es. that made 1t all htdeously clear. Words, g1ances, moods surbt1er than either, came back to her. Cherry's confusion of late. when the question of her return to Martin was raised, her indifference to her inheritance, her restless talk dur ing one hour of immediate departure, and during the. next of an apparently
 "I am desperately unhappy." 1 Cherry had said. And imm ediately after that, Alix recalled wretchedly, admless talk about Alixs rights. and her eagerness to share them with her sister.
 "Poor Cherry!" the older sister said and pressing both hands over her hot eyes. Poor little old Cherry-lffe hasn't been very kind to herI She and Peter must be so sorry and be so sorry; of all things he wanted most that Cherry should be happy, Perhaps" thought Alix, "he realized that she was that sort of a nature, >she must love and be loved, or she can not live But why did he let her marry Martin, and why wasn't he here to keep me from amrrytng Peter? What mess-mess-mess we've made ~of it a1li".
 As she used the term, she realized that Cherry had used 1t, too, this same evening, and fresh conviction was added to the great weight of con viction in her heart.
 "Oh, Peter-Peter-Pete she moaned. writhing as the cry escaped her. why couldn't 1t have been me. why couldn't you have loved me that way? I know I am not So pretty as Cherry" AliX went on. resuming her restless walk, land I know that those things don't seem to mean as much to me as to most women! But, Peter" she said softly, aloud, mo wife ever loved a man more than I love you, my dear!'' She remembered some of his half-1aughing. half-fretful reproaches. when he had told her that she loved in these respects. she was no more than a healthy child ''I may be a child,' said Alix. feeling that a dry flame was consuming her heart. "but child can love, My dear-my dear
 'I wish I could cry" she said sud- denly, finding herself sitting on a log where low oaks met tho forest and the open meadows. "But now we must race Cn1S In1nS SenS1D1y- w nat is to be done? They must not know that I know, and in some way we must get out of this tangle. Even if Peter were free, Cherry would not be free" she decided, "and so the only thing to do is to help them, un- til 1t dies away"
 No suspicion of the truth stabbed her. although she remembered Mar tin and his strange tale of a messa ge and wondered about 1t a little in her thoughts. To whom had Cherry been And, if to Peter. why had she not simply teIephoned? Because she had known that Peter was not in his of flee, because she had been going to meet him somewhere. But where? We'll. at the boat Martin had heard her tell the boy that he must catch the boat.
 Alix did' not guess the truth. But she guessed enough to make her feel suppose that Cherry and Peter had planned to go away on that boat to- gether, because at most her thoughts would have grasped the idea of one or two days absence only. and they had given her no warning of that. But until this instant the thought of the passionate desire that enveloped them had not reached her; she had imaS- ined Cherrys feeling for Peter to be her own.
 Now she thought of Cherry's beauty. her fragrance and softness, the shine in her blue eyes and the light on her corn-colored hair, and knew that life for them a1l Of late, had been mined with frightfu1 danger.
 (Continued Monday