The Washington times., 1922-12-17

r1flce, IL II De demanded, ls nat
ural condition Of comradeship.
But Il would Aot occur to him
until the actu6 instant Of the ex-
igeney, until the very moment Of
the demand.
And that was where he was, In
spirit, poles apart from the cool
Drained adventurer companioning
him.
Hoodless had determined that IL
by any chance Marchurst failed to
come out of their expedition alive,
then he, Noodless, was completely
Indifferent whether he himself
came out alive or not.
For Dick Marchurst represented
his whole future. Even as he
watched the boy, the lips of the
adventurer frightened unconscious
ly as his mind, running over, ex-
amining, weighing, the situation,
produced q parallel.
ut is precisely as II you were
taking into the desert a document
most valuable, desperately valu.
able, provided only that you bring
It out from the desert, out from
the dangers of the desert, again."
said cold, deadly, inaudible voice
in his brain. "This boy almost
certainly represents to you a life
time free from anxieties, from
poverty and its daily indignities.
Ho owes you much-you will see
that he owes you more. He is Of
the type that, properly handled,
will repay freely. When he is
Lord Lissmere he will be able to
express his gratitude in liberal
terms"
Hoodless nodded slightly, his
brows knitted in a little frown as
he thought intensely. ?
"Unless all this had been pre-
ordained--meant-it would be al
most impossible for the most Wild
ly reckless man to land himself in
such a coil of difficulty as Dick
Marchurst has done in the last
week or SO. And he does not sus-
pect it. Already he is quite salts
fled in his own mind that the
death Of that man at Sais's house
was really no more than = deeply
regrettable accident"
The quick, predatory, rapacious
mind of the adventurer ranged
forward-glimpsing the future.
"Give him q year with Sais- .
year Of lotus-esting, Of passion
and play a villa at Cairo, or
Luxor - halcyon days in a Nile
dahabyeeh-little trips and oasis
eampings-and, ct the end, dis
illusion, safety, and q famishing
for colder climes-and less aban-
doned loving
That would be the way Of it,
Marchurst would hunger for the
chill clean waves Of . Northern
sea after the tepid waters Of
Egypt, for the cold kiss Of the
east wind after the hot embrace
Of the sirocco; for green fields
and cool flowers after the dazzling
sands and exotic blooms; and for
purity after passion.
And Hoodless believed Louise
Lammarsh would give. him all
these things. He had seen it in
her eyes ~ she had said good
bye" to Dick.
After . year, more or less, these
two would come together again
Now. at this moment, It had
never entered their minds. Their
mutusl attraction had pleased
hem-but It held out no promise
Of fruftion to more than tranquil
friendship. They had both be-
Meved Charles Lammarsh to be in
Alexandria, from whence he would
return to his wife in . day or 20
IA wife who no longer loved him,
who must long since have learned
what character Of man he was.
"And liam the only person
in the world who knows that
Charles Lammarsh Is dead-and
that Dick Marchurst killed him
for I don't believe. Lammarsh
would have disclosed himself to.
Ssis"--ran the keen, cruel, in
cisive thoughts Of Hoodless, COM
rade to Marchurst. "And some
day--not 10 far away, II my judg-
ment Of people ID not worthless
that might be very valuable knowl-
edge" G