The Elk Mountain pilot., 1924-06-05

eS's~oio hiSht at Striker 8. Sne leaned
forward and held out her hand to him.
AS he took it he looked up into her
dusky face and caught his breath.
Good heavens! She was actually
smiling! Smiling when he was going
away perhaps never to return alive!
She did not speak. 1t was Rachel
Carter who said, quietly:
THANK you for coming over, Ken
meth. We would not have allowed you
to go, however, without saying good
by and wishing you well on this haz-
ardous undertaking. May God protect
you and all the brave men who go
with you"
He had not released Viola's hand.
Suddenly her grip frightened; her other
hand was raised quickly to her face,
and he was dumfounded to see that
she was dabbing at her eyes with her
handkerchief. His heart swelled. She
had been smiling bravely all the while
her eyes were filled with tears. And
now he knew why she was silent. He
lifted her hand to his lips.
II want you to know, Viola dear,
before 1 go away" he said huskily,
that can and will give you back the
name Gwynne, and with my name 1
give more love than ever any man had
for woman before in all this world. 1
lay my heart at your feet. 1t is yours
whether you choose to pick it up or
not"
She slowly withdrew her hand.
Neither Of them heard the long, deep
sigh in the darkness beside them.
II don't know what to say to you,
Kenny" she murmured. almost in
audlbly.
There is nothing for you to say,
Viola, unless you love me. am sorry
If have distressed you. only wanted
you to know before go away that
love you"
IL am glad you love me, Kenny.
1t makes me very happy. But 1t is all
SO strange, SO unreal. I can't seem to
convince myself that 1t is right for
you to love me or for me to love you.
Some day, perhaps, it will all
straighten itself out in my mind and
then 1 will know whether it is love
the kind of love you want-or just n
dear. sweet affection that l feel for
you"
81 understand" he said gravely. ut
is too soon for you to know. A broth
er turned into lover, as if by magic,
and you are bewildered. 1 can only
pray that the time will come when
your heart tells you that you love me
as want you to, and as love you"
They spoke thus freely before the
girls mother, for those were the days
when a mans counting was not done
surreptitiously. 1t is doubtful how
ever, il they remembered her pres
ence.
"There have been times" she be-
gan, a trace of eagerness in her voice,
when something seemed to tell me
that-that 1 ought to keep away from
you. 1 used to have the queerest SEN
sations running all over" She did
not complete the sentence; instead, as
If In a sudden panic over the nearness
of unmaidenly revelations, she some
what breathlessly began all over
again: 81 guess it must have been a
"a warning, or something"
"They say there is such a thing as
magnetic current between human
beings" he said. at was that, Viola.
You felt my love laying hold upon you,
touching you, caressing you"
"The other night, when you held
me so close to you, II couldn't think
of you as my brother"
Out of the darkness spoke Rachel
Carter.
"You love each other" she said.
There is no use trying to explain or
account for your feelings. The day
you came here, Kenneth Gwynne, 1
saw the handwriting on the wall.
knew that this would happen. 1t was
as certain as the rising of the sun. 1t
would have been as useless for me to
attempt to stop the rising sun as to
try to keep you two from falling in
love with each other. 1t was so writ
ten long ago."
But, mother, / am not sure-how
can you say that / am in love with
him when 1 don't know 1t myself?"
cried Viola.
When you came, Kenneth, / knew
tllHt Wy uayb WcEC humUcicu, WCut
on the older woman, leaning forward
in her chair. "The truth would have
to come out. A force could not stand
up against had entered the field. For
want of a better word we will call it
Fate. 1t is useless to fight Fate. If 1
had never told you two the truth
about yourselves, you would have
found n out ANYWAY Y0u would have
found 1t out in the touch Of your
hands, in the leap Of the blood, in the
strange, mysterious desire of the flesh
over which the soul has no control.
You began loving him, Viola-without
knowing it-that night at Phineas
Strikers. You"
How can you say such a thing,
mother?" cried Viola hotly. II was In
love with Barry Lapelle at that"