Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1925-12-15
The Challenge.

settled snugly beside him in the sin
Rle seat, glided silently from the
streets OF Monte Carlo into the
shrub,lined avenue that narrowed
gradually until it became barely more
than a path sloping sharply toward
the summit of the hill. Ahead of
them Brandon. muff1ed in tweeds
covered by q black domino. sat be-
side an evil, heavy owled None
car than Kenilworth's. The purple
mist. hued vaguely now that the
twilight had gone, blotted out the
lights of town and villa which. on
moonlight nights makes this road up
La Turbie one of the beautiful drives
Of Europe.
One who climbs the hill tonight.
Master, must have a steady nerve
and a purpose" said the Monegasque
who guided the car in which Brandon
rode.
IF the purpose is worthy of the
nerve. the effort is worth while.
Brandon returned. zone mans OBJ
iecct is a woman, another's may be
gold. I imagine your nerve would
not fail you in either case.
When Antoine had made turn
with sureneSs and 81 knowledge or
the bank which stamped him as IA
miliar with the road he followed, he
observed:
There are few women in Your
world, Master. for whom I'd take
myself or my men into danger. Your
women are playthings. That's why
We don't let ours initiate them"
The lamps of Kenilworth's roadster
suddenly revealed another car pick
ing its way slowly just ahead. AL
most at the same moment disc or
pale yellow light shone through the
mist. to be Immediately wiped away
by the gray mass of cloud-like atmos-
phere.
What was that?' Joanna asked.
The lighthouse at La Turbie vii
laEe," he replied Queer necessity,
isn't it, \ lighthouse to warn traV-
elers on a mountain road
While the dim radiance cast its
sickly illumination over them kenil-
worth examined the girl who sat so
close beside him. He saw that her
white throat. on which a single great
red ruby hung, was Glistening in the
dampness against the contrast of her
hair and the black of the gown she
had chosen to wear. She had thrown
back her head. Her wrap, of some
plain clinging stuff, softened at the
collar with A ripple of chinchilla, lay
open. Wentworth felt for the bank
with his front wheels and brought the
roadster to a stop. He reached over
and gently drew the wrap together,
bundling its collar close about the
girls neck.
It's treacherous atmosphere. he
sdmonished her. "One can never fore
tell it's next days consequences"
consequences are uncertain things
to make into a prophecy, aren't they?"
she asked. He studied her moment,
peering at her through the fog. He
saw the vague shadows lurking in her
eyes, shadows that came and then
evaporated as if they were fugitives
of the mist that had reached haven
of brown depths.
Are you wondering he asked,
what Is to be the outcome of--well.
Of your invitation to a battle be-
tween us tonight? If you are, it is
useless. There will be one thing or
another: joyful, glorious, restful, beau
tiful; or. so far as 1 am concerned,
empty and, in that event meaningless
to you"
She was silent, motionless, for a
time. Then: How are we going about
II, Roddy? You are to tell me that
YOU love me, want me, and recite all
those rituals of alteration for which
YOU are distinguished. That much Of
course. I am to measure you and
measure myself. That will be the
obvious program. But there must be
some new note. What shall it be-"
He guided the car back into the
road. satisfied that the bigger car that
had been ahead of them would have
gone a safe distance beyond. You
are. in yourself, the one overwhelm-
ing new note" he declared then. You
and the whim Of you to throw your
colors at my feet and challenge me to
fasten them to my shield--if l can.
I've never experienced that before,
from a woman. They've done it, of
course, but they thought they were
furtive about it,
II don't believe in being furtive,''
she returned. ct used to be the
fashion, and the custom, I know. But
what's the use? Any woman always
knows what another woman thinks.
And every man knows what his
brother wants. They pretty well know
what they think about each other
every woman and every man. So
much has gone wrong in the world,
it seems to me, because people have
always tried to make a mystery and
a game out of the plain and common
place. It's more fun to be honest. If
4 girl builds q wall around herself
she always leaves an opening that she
can peek through. That's the breach
through which a man may conquer
her, if she's weak So why have the
wall? I think it's better to stand out
in the open-better for the girl, l
mean. She can see what's coming at
her, then. and be ready for it
so you have decided to put your
arms down and tell me l may have
whatever I can win? Just why, if
Its not asking an advantage, have you
chosen me?"
AS was her way. at times. she con-
sidered this quietly. He waited. APP
parently intent upon keeping his car
safely away from the ledge at the
outer side of the road. At last she
answered him:
ITS because you're straight. Roddy.
Straight, according to your standards.
You've never fooled me, nor concealed
YOUR desire of me since that night at
Yvonne's. back in New York, when I
asked you to wipe Johns accusing
kiss from my lips with "a warmer one
from yours. l knew enough then,
thanks to what I'd learned of men, to
realize by the feel of your arms that
YOU would be determined to hang me
Up, If YOU could. with your other
trophies-aS YOU would any woman
who'd make herself interesting to you.
And you've never tried to deceive me.
You've even amused me. tremendous
ly. Now I'm wondering if. after all.
I haven't been deceiving myself
She paused, but kenilworth did not
speak He thought she would go on,
a nd presently she did.
John has done a big thing When
his opportunity came to him he went
UP, up like we are going now, through
the mist, straight toward the end of
a. beautiful rainbow. He tells me I've
been just a fizzle-and I suppose he's
rigfat. His pride and his triumph
doesn't At in with his loving me be.
cause, he says, I've wasted my time
Gliding the clouds with tinsel BETTY