Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1923-08-10
THE OWL TAXI
By Herbert Footner
Copyright

Copyright by George Il. Doran Company

to see you unharmed l burn TO hear
all that has happened. Trust me, ! VIII
find way AMY"
A great. glad reaction took place in
Greg's breast. The pale December sun
suddenly shone with the warmth of
June. and the dingy, muddy yard
seemed TRANSPORTED. AS for Hickey. he
him! called him friend; gave him her
own name. Amy, how sweet and how
| absolutely fitting. Nothing foreign about
Amy,
But lover is never satisfied for long
Hard upon his first warmth little chill
struck through his breast. Friendship
was all very well in its way, but he
wanted more than that. He thought OF
the supercilious Castilian and writhed.
Did he get more? He was aware of the
! fact that a girl feeling herself safely
| anchored to one man becomes free OF
her. Friendship" to others. If she ever
! intended To give more perhaps she
| would not so readily have given 50
much.
| He was recalled to himself by the
sight of Hickey's SLY grin. Evidently he
was giving everything away in his face
Frowning portentously he asked very
ofhand what had happened.
Nothing" said Hickey. II done just
what you said. The three ladies come
out or the apartment house together. |
carried EN- from one store to another
shopping. ! caught the little girl look
| ing at me funny-like once or twice but
! never let anything on. When | took
! EN- back home I knocked off 90 per cent
as you said. and the old lady fell for it
IKE baby. She engaged me To call for
EN- again at $50 to take them to a con-
cert at Harmony Hall"
GOOD, said Greg. I'm write an an
( sWer to this while you're eating. Get Il
good dinner. Hickey.
. Hickey Grinned slyly ana gave the
windshield wipe. As Greg walked away
he murmured {" himself: "Cupid's mes
Senger, that's me-
Greg sat at his table biting his pen.
! 1t was not that he had nothing to say,
| pui TOO much. His heart was charged
WIN enough matter to ill Il Uuire-hut
thtr" was that damned CaStiliaut He
dared not let himself go until the other
was explained. He make a mighty effort
/ |" lie merely friendly as she had been
warmer feelings only hrok.. through
once or twice. as Will be seen.
"Certainly we must meet II is too
dangerous I" commit things To- paper
| But know so little of the circumstances
| surrounding YOU that | must leave the
| arrangements to you. All can say Is.
rely on me absOlutelN-for ANYTHING
How weak that sounds. Please, don't
thank me. What | have done j. moth
ing. Il was just AN adventure. shall
not be satisfied until You make some
real demands on me. am making
depend on the driver. WHY do Won stay
wher" YOU are if You are surrounded bv
enemies. have read YOUR letter a
dozen times already. trying to guess
What is hidden between the lines. Not
| what Ia like TO find there I'm afraid
Please don't insist so hard on my being
Your friend. 1t makes me savage Find
some way to let me see YOU This rIn-
! certainty is horrible. | can do nothing
but walk the streets. I will SCI, that a
Wrote 10 me during lunch time but
! doh suppose YOU did. | will look while
The concert is going OF. GREG
II must not be supposed that this
was arrived At in single draft. Greg
/ was sun writing when Hickey called
up 10 MIN that il was time to start
Whereupon he finished in a hurry and
carried II down to its hiding place
To Hickey he said:
suppose they'll want YOU to carry
them home from the concert. While
II S going on YOU can hang around and
PICK up any business that offers. Rut.
nrst OF all, after you have dropped
them at the hall. meet me at the cor
ner1of 9Th and AID. so that l can see
II she left anything for me on the
way down"
Hickey drove out of the yard with
the sly grin that provoked Greg. or
half provoked him. for at the same
tune he was well assured that he was
j faithfully served in Hickey
Greg looked around the taxi ward
Three OF the cabs were in, the owners
presumably sleeping inside. Greg
peeped through the windows. consider
ing which one would best suit his
purpose-the moroSe Blossom honest
thick witted Bull Tandy. or old Pa
Simmons. He decided on the latter.
Pa Simmons, red and white as a snow
apple, was so individually the cab
man, no one would ever suspect him
of acting in another capacity. Pa
Simmons was never seen without his
cabman's overcoat: he seemed afro
phied from the waist down. and one
guessed that he had not walked more
than "a hundred yards at a time in
thirty years. In ina Cination he sim
dwclt fondly on the days when he had