The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1925-12-11

spter did not appear yesterday,
is. yesterdays installment. To-
3 story page as usual.
the situation is that you are going to
marry me, nevertheless, because
gu will have to-"
She swayed. Her slender white
land went to her throat again. She
Knew he was not talking idly. She
had gone through one sort Of battle
with Kenilworth, now, she sensed,
she was at the beginning Of another,
and, in some unsupported way, a
more desperate. one. She waited for
him to go on.
He threw the cigaret into the fire.
place and faced her across the table.
De pieased to understand the i'm
port of what am about to say"
he breathed. You have wondered
where your money came from: you
have wondered why it was given
you. / am about to solve for you, at
least a portion Of your mysteries.
II control the source of your
money. I guard it's secret and its
reason and its purpose. ! am the
one to whom you have made your
accounting, the accounting you
haven't known you were making in
every whin, in every spendthrift
mood, in every choice of the paths
you have elected to follow!
"Your accounting has been fully
made. 1t is totalled up by me. l
give you now, the results. demand
that you marry me.
II do not say that love you, for
do not.
II do not say, even that I respect
you, for I despise you, as you have
professed to despise me. shudder
before all that you stand for: the
abortive pretenses of you, the sham
of you, the deceit and cheapness of
you!
"Yet I am saying to you that 1
want you to be my wife,"
T1 GAMMA hac stood as if trans
fixed. Her eyes widened. The
0 brown deepened to black. The
scarlet Of her lips became ashen.
Her hands were hot with the scald-
ing riot of her blood. Through her
brain rang the one phrase: II am
the one." And in its wake all those
other sentences, sharp and bitter,
that emerged from his lips like the
80 hnffIQf1al6
pierced her with the precision OF
deadly fusillade. She collapsed into
chair and threw her hands before
her eyes as If to shut out vision.
But Brandon, moving over to her,
went on cruelty, relentlessly:
"Of your enormous gift of money
you have made a farce. You have
used it to enhance-not the world.
not society, but the lure, the sense
appeal, the woman of you. You have
created nothing with your gift, but
love; the kind of love that thrills
but is nothing of nobility. You have
shown what the kind of girl you rep
resent shall surely become if given
rein.
"But the farce is over, as said
downstairs. The mystery OF your
money is dispelled-or you may
count it as being dispelled. The
other mystery, which must exist for
a little WHILE. is that despite the
frailty Of you, want you to marry
me.
"And If you do not, there will be
no more money. All that you have
will be taken from you-even to-
night! Whatever Is yours now
gained by fraud must be surren-
dered. You will be-Miss Twenty
Seven of the silks again, if your old
Job is still open to you!
"Are you, by any chance, still OF
the mind not to be my wife,"
The crumpled figure in the chair
straightened little. 1t tried to rise
but sarlk down again. It's hands
fiutteretl bit. The girl looked up,
at last.
But I couldn't marry you! 1t
could never be. I don't love you, /
said. You wouldn't want me--with-
out! You are playing with me-"
''Not playing; very earnest. and
final, and definite" he assured her.
"As T said, that is the new mystery
for you to be baffled by. AS my
wife you shall keep your money;
more money will be given you per-
haps, and you shall, Of course, share
mine"
Now she gathered strength to
stand. She made a little move as if
to go up to him, but faltered. Her
lips moved as il she were praying
for words-words that would save
her money, save her dreams. save
beauty and luxury and pearls and
diamonds and priceless furs-save~
them and, at the same time, save
herself. But whatever her prayers,
she heard no echoes of an answer.
She turned to go out the door. Bran
don, the torturing smile playing,
now, about his lips, watched her
silently, coolly, unmoved.
At the door she hesitated, stood for
a minute leaning against the case
ment looking down into the ribald
scene on the dance floor that blurred
into a whirling black pool with
monsters swimming on the surface.
UDDENLY the little body stiff
~ fened, a bit Of the brown
IL came back into the eyes.
Something of the scarlet returned to
the quivering lips. She swung
around slowly and walked firmly
back into the room until she stood
to close to Brandon that her body
was almost against his.
II want to keep my money,
Francis" she said, her voice quaver-
ing, but soft and ineffably pleading:
II couldn't do without 1t now. But
I am very much in love with some