Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1922-12-30

she had been to dinner and the theater with
Krom, declining an invitation to the tleatcr
on Saturday-but SO graciously that Krom
took no hint from it. The next step, he de-
cided, would be an automobile ride Sunday
afternoon and evening; by no means in the
cheap little machine that he'd got Harwood
to buy for trips to Slow River, but in a
tiptop hired car, With u smart chauffeur.
Krom felt himself equal to almost anything
in that line. now, with thirty thousand dollars
cash in heTbuuk. He'd soon find out how he
stood with. her, yet he was awkward and
embarrassed about TIA game he wasn't
uscn co.. - -
The trick would he to- catch her i'll her
cabinet about five o'clock. or Il little later,
just after llarwood had left for tho day.
Then he'd have Il chance to talk T." her alone
about the automobile ride. He felt an odd
embarrassment, like q boy making his first
advances to a girl. But when nc came back
10 the office. two or three minutes before five.
Hess and HARDWOOD, had already left for the
day. $50 he waited for better lVck on Friday
About ten minutes to five on Friday, ilI
that odd embarrassment he went down from
he roof roomrto recohnoiter. He listened /,
montent at the door to Eess' cabinet. but
could catch no sound. Silently he opened
the door. She was not in ting cabinet. The
door to IIarwood's room stood aiar. however,
;tnd he caught a sound In thefc-tle mur.
AsSuk ~ "a N"tSSs NASAtllo Y ne III L
to the crack In the door and pcesed.
Elizabeth and HARDWOOD were standing by
the lawyers desk, close together. Ills arm
was round her waist: her hand was on his
shoulder; she was family smiling into his
face; he was kissing her lips.
Krom drew back, from the crack with n
thrill along his nerves, as thought he had
stepped Oh 4 snake, In a kind OF panic he
gained the stairway groom, noiselessly closing
the door bchind him. Hn capped ut the wall.
He had not once dreamed of anything like
that.
So that was it! That was iii! His wits
were coming back to him In u fiery. rush. SO
she'd just been stringing him along--making
a monkey Of himA She had his lenses! lie
stole upstairs, stafe at hhc floor, sat down.
So that was it! She'd just been making a
monkey of him-getting his lenses.
1t was the most brutal, feeling that had
ever shaken him. He wanted to hurt her
:, to see her shrink ana tremble and turn pale,
: to hear her cry out. He sat thinking about
it for a long WHILE giving himself up to it.
What could he do to her? He meant to
show her-but what could he do?
: In motion pictures, now, q man got Il girl
somewhere alone-and threw a mighty. scare
into her at any rate. That appealed to him;
but motion pictures were not real. He was
perfectly well aware that handling a young
woman motion picture wise in real life would
be difficult, and probably attended by highly
painful consequences. But he wanted to hurt
her. He meant to show her. He sat think
ing about 1t till long after dark.
HARDWOOD ALSO had a problem of some diff.
Guilty to think about. He did not even hint
it to Bess.on Friday but Saturday forenoon
hi. called her into his room ana asked her, III
his pleasantest manner. to close the door us
she came in. He had never looked pleas.
tanter,,aor handsomer, sor given clearer i'm.
preston of that. bright, engaging competence
which she SO much liked. He was smiling as
D he spoke TO herr: 5# - 4s
.Krom's q great rascal, Bessie. I've known
all along that he was grating here and there
on the materials .he-bought, and SO on. Tell.
ing the truth or not just depends on how he
: happens to feel about it. sIThaVen't d doub,
that he's got this big in~ysntion;Iwe've both
sesn the pictures, you know. But ,Krom's
got sort OF q monkey mindful OF tricks
He was explaining 1t 70 her in the most