The herald., 1922-04-20

silence, brought her eyes to his face.
She felt suddenly sick.
Roy, you're not still serious about
Nina"
II have never been anything else,"
he said, delicately.
"But-but why?" Harriet asked.
81 like the girl" he reminded her
pleasantly. Il hope she is not entire
ly Indifferent TO me-"
indifferent! She's at the age that
marries anybody" Harriet said, indig-
nantly.
you give me hope" Royal said with
a bow.
Her father very violently opposes
It," Harriet said, after a troubled
silence.
Il am well aware of that, my dear.
Her father forbade me the house last
December. l submitted; the girl sub
mitted. But we made our plans. /
fancy we will not have any difficulty
now"
You mean that you are engagedT'
"An understanding. We have CORE
sponded, seen each other now and. then
through Ida Tabor. It's" he smiled,
dreamily, extremely romantic, Of
course" he said.
Harriet felt she could have killed
him.
you understand that she won't
have one penny, Roy. i know her IA
thsr. He won't yield. He'll forbid 1t {;
he'll not hesitate. If she does 1t
against his will, she will have to wait
three years for her money. Three
years! Roy, she wouldn't be happy
about it the only time we've spoken of
you. He said that he was glad the
affair had ended naturally; that you
were not the man to make Nina happy,
and that he would rather have her suf-
fer anything, and find out her mistake
at once, than have her heart broken,
and her money wasted, through sew,
eral wretched yearsI"
Blondin had listened to this quietly
his eyes moving from her lips to her
own earnest eyes, and wandering over
her animated face.
81 count on you to be my advocate
my dear Harriet" he said, after a mo.
| ment's silence. Orchard Carter be-
lieves in you; he has great faith In
your judgment. If you represent to
him that you believe this to be wise
step all round, We shall have nc
| further trouble"
81 can't honestly tell him so, Roy /!
the girl interrupted.
Cant your" Blondin said. He
looked across the open hallway to
Nina, descending in fresh ruffles ant
ribbons, and raised his voice. Here
she is-looking like the very rose OF
girls! Come on now, Nina, you aren't
going to belong to anybody else but
me for a while!" he said. But as hi
turned to leave Harriet, he added
again: Cant you? Think it over"
|
The girl thought 1t over with mad
dening and feverish persistence tina
presently caused her sensation o
actual sickness. Vague speculation
churped and seethed in the wear!
brain that could find no beginning ant
no end to them. To have made ,
clean breast of the whole matte
months ago would have meant a de
licious sense of freedom from re
sponsibility now, but then under thos
circumstances would she, Harriet
have been here now? Certainly, evel
In the present purely technical sense
she would not have been the secOn,
Mrs. Richard Carter, nor would sh
have held her present position of trus
and responsibility.
While Nina and her lover murmure
on the terrace Harriet broOded o.
these things, and after dinner tina
evening she gave Richard so sharp
warning that he sent at once for Nina
and with a clouded brow and angr
eyes briefly requested Harriet to b
present while he spoke to her.
Nina came at once, with an inn6
cent expression on her rather heav