Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-11-22
CHAPTER XIII
Watchful Waiting

~ URING her few moments conversation
] with Claudia Julie had decided not to
- go out that evening. Claudias at
titude was mysterious, her sudden return
from the house party was also strange Then
there was the business of the latch key.
Julie knew that Matthew had taken Claudia's
key away from her, but, of course it was
an easy matter to have another made.
From the extension wire in her sitting
room Julie telephoned the Marriotts, and
then with her door ajar that she could
hear Claudia the minute she came out of
her own room, Julie sat down to wait.
She had no idea why she was waiting, nor
what she expected Claudia to do. But some
strange Intuition warned her that Claudia
was in trouble, that she needed help. There
/ had been something strange and furtive
about the girl that night, and somehow Julie
was afraid for her
AS matter of fact, while Julie waited
Claudia was in her room hastily re-
packing larger bag. She had come to the
end of her resistance she had fought against
Harris Fiske until it was no longer possible
to fight and tonight she had decided to go
away with him.
When she had accepted the Rivingtons'
invitation to spend the weekend with them
she had had no idea that Fiske would be-
! there. She had not seen him since that day
she had left his apartment and during all
THAT time she had tried to come to a de-
cision.
At first she had not thought that there
would be decision. The fact that he was
married seemed definite barrier between
them, barrier that ended everything, but
that had been only at first.
/ Afterward Claudia had remembered his ar
guments. Seen in the light of her love for
him they did not seem wrong, she did not
feel shocked by them she had at first.
Somehow there something heroic In
going away with the man one loved. Plenty
of girls did it. Novels were full of such
Left fbo
stories every day, and hadn't she herself al
ways despised conventions?
At the Rivingtons she had met Harris
face to face, and she had fanced that he
looked thinner. Then when at their first
opportunity to be alone he had seized her
in his arms. she had chung to him. His.
whispered, Sweetheart, have you missed
me?" had reduced her to quivering response
She loved him, she loved him! And in the
light of that did anything else matter?
Would she allow her prudishness to separate
them, when if she said the word they might
go away together? 80,
They had made hurried plans. He had
not wanted her to return home, but she had
insisted. There things she needed and
there plenty of time for them to make
the $3.50 train into town. Against his bet
ter Judgment Harris had yielded. Somehow
he felt that if he once let her go She might
change her mind, but he felt that he could
not be too insistent with her just at this
time.
And now Claudia was getting ready to go
away. Having made up her mind, she no
longer hesitated, but although she was
hardly aware of it, she was trying desper-
Rtely not to think. Somewhere in her brain
there fingered the memory Of that strange,
fevulsion she had once experienced toward
Harris Fiske. She wanted him, and yet she
had never been quite able to rid herself OF
that strange feeling of being charmed
against her will. She must not think about
it, she must not allow anything to swerye
her from her determination She had suf-
fered too much during the last few days
not to know what she wanted, and she had
rome to the conclusion that she wanted
Harris Fiske more than anything in the
world. Having come to that conclusions she
had decided to go away with him. That
was all there was to it,
Continued Tuesday. Renew your SUBJ