Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-06-29
Chapter VII
INTERFERENCE

II
dictagraph in Garrick's room.
In the silence, broken now and
then by some am ateur, he had plen-
ty Of time to think of Ruth. In
spite of himself his suspicious car
ried him on to the Parr robbery, now
known to have included the taking
of valuble jewels as we'll as the
| looting Of the Parr cellar Of some of
it's choicest vintages. His thoughts
ran beyond that, to the radio dance
and \the suspicious signaling from
the tower of the Gerard house.
Who was the ringleader Of this
miserable affair? He thought of
Brock, Of Georges-and Of Jack Cur
tbs. He gritted his teeth. He hated
the very name of the debonair ad-
venturer.
Dick started f. ON his reverie.
The dictagrph was working!
Through the high resistance head
pieces he heard voices, almost as if
from one Of the old monographs.
He strained his ears to recognize
the voices. 1t was Vira speaking.
To Ruth?
well, here we are again. For a
second last night thought we were
never going to get to the old Inner
Circle again. You're some driver,
Anybody else at the wheel and
well, dead girls tell no tales!'
AS Dicks keen ears focused at
tention he could recognize Ruth's
laugh.
"Vira, that sounds good-because
1 know you mean it. After what we
went through last night we're pals
forever. I feel a little shaky yet.
I think I'll lie down TO- while on
| this chaise Tongue. Some more Of
your massaging would do my poor
| back a lot Of good. If you ever go
brols and have to open a beauty
shop or something, count on me as
your best patron
There was silence for a few min
utes. Then Ruth spoke again. IT
| wonder when Jack is coming. He's
becoming such a rushing lover,
| felt had to do something to rise
| to the same standard of energy he
shows. These boys aren't going to
| get ahead of little Ruth"
Vira chuckles. "WelI, it wouldn't
take much to get ahead of Glenn
these day He looks worried-and
| lIldt IIldheS me worried. have you
noticed it, RUTH"
mot through your eyes Of love,
| DEAR" kidded Ruth.
| Dick, at the other end, had been a
| lit worried about the ethics of what
Garrick's detective proclivities had
got him into. He told himself that
he would stop If it were not for
| what Guy would say. If he had
L StnnnoH I, irrI~
| admitted that he was just like the
other millions in similar circum.
stances who would have liked an
| earful on the other fellow.
The fact was that Dick was almost
beside himself with jealousy as she
heard Ruth discussing Jack. The
only consolation to which he could
treat himself was the nonehalant
and rather fippant way she spoke
Of him. He wondered. Did he
| imagine that, because he wished it?
Then he heard another voice over
the wireless. He recognized it as
Brooks voice and Brock did not
seem in the best Of tempers with
the girls.
"You oughtn't to butt in and try
to stop anything. Ruth-not when it
has gone as far as that thing did last
night. You'll get somebody caught
one of these days and"
There was a thinly yelled threat
in the gruff breaking off of Brock
remark.
"Just because it was the PARIS
some friends Of"
II know" interrupted Ruth. "But
when you picked us up after the
smash-up and took us to Vira's why
did you leave the bulky stuff at her
house? Suppose SINE one comes in
there-and finds it. A pretty little
front-page scandalp'
Ruth had been characteristic.
Without entering a defense she had
shifted the subject until the other
man was on the defensive.
Don't worry. No one will find
anything. Jack will take care of
| that"
Vira made a little suppressed ex-
clmation. II can imagine my Ma
ter if 1 was caught in a bootlegging
clean out! That'd be the last straw
one the dromedary. She'd be looking
for some new sheik for me in the
shape Of a grand old octogenarian
husband. I was straight on the road
to perdition when I went into pic
lures. I shock the folks a dozen
times a day., But a rum-running
scandal! Co. get thee to a nunnery,
Virap'
Speaking of mothers :" Ruth
paused, nothing flippant in word or
| tone.
| Dick at the other end was aghast.
1t was all surprising news. this clue
to where Ruth had been the night
before. Also, it was some mitigated
relief. She had got back to town
shaken up by the accident and had
gone with Vira to Vira's empty town
house. More than that, there was
something he did not get; but some
how her smash-up had been con-
cerned with trying to Illustrate some
thing, not perpetrate it.
Il won't go back here tonight.
Vira," she said at length. I'm 60
| ing to stay at the Usonia. A nice
little lecture is coming to me for be-
ing out two nights and smashing
my car. Think of it-her getting
out there and getting it towed in
herself-to the same garage we tele-
phoned to for a wrecking car-only
first! That's some of Garrick's work,
III bet . Well no rum
running arrest yet e. 1t might
dampen the ardor of someone I
know whose ardor I do not want
dampened . . Brock, you said this
would be lark. It's a lark, all
right. We wake up the larks!"
"Ruthie, old sore-bones, how do
you feel? heard you talking about
a lark. You look as if you had been
on one that took nose dive
If there is any lark, let me in on it,
1t was Rae who was at least one
Of the new arrivals.
Lark This from Ruth, con-
temptuously. Eyes. One thing leads
to another, all right. First we start
this place. Then we get in over our
heads. Then we begin getting our
own stuff to save money. Then we