Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1929-08-22

Chicago Tribune Synclcatel
YOU recognize him, too?"
"No-her."
"Ah! Who is she? She seems al
most a lady. Is she a crook?"
"A crook! Hang it all. Drostan. ha
police work turned your brain? That
Lois Norbert"
Are you joking. Farrant-Mathia
Norbert's daughter? Norbert the mil
lionaire's d~aughter?"
"Of course. But where's the jokl
in Lois Norbert talking to o friend il
the street?"
mo joke. maybe, unless It's a grin
me-. Is that a mere casual encounte'
do you think?"
Vincent Farrant studied the couple
standing at a nearby orner They
made a delightful pair-the man per-
fectly turned out, handsome and o.
marked charm. the girl delicious, pill
ant, eager, her face a glowing peta
of loneliness, Farrant Sighed-whai
would he not have given to have Lois
Norbert look at him as she looked al
the handsome strangerl-and said, INC
she's in love with him."
Sort of love-" the heavy face of the
lAA01lAf1 ndo ~ Las 4 6ANil
carried off her feet for the moment
With his looks and his tricks her sort
Of girl, the sort that thinks no evil,
hasn't a chance
His tricks" FarrantS fine mouth be-
came hard. "Who is hep
He is Walter Preach. alias Rob
Browning, alias Evan Walsh. one OF
the sleekest and w~ickedest rogues on
record"
"A criminal and a friend of the Nor
bertS-are you sure?"
absolutely l want to pull him in
myself for a few jobs, but he's darn
clever in covering himself
But a man of that stamp couldn't
possibly become intimate with q girl
like Lois Norbert
Its his line" growled Drostan. HE
moves in the best circles. He has
charm. breeding and apparently the
best credentials. He's as slick as oil
and as polished as you see, while his
way with women amounts to a black
genius-until they've served his end"
And them" Farrant's tone was
grim.
Then he reverts to the brute. Since
she is Matthias Norbert's daughter
Preach is up to some big villany, that's
certain. Why don't you tell her?"
Tell her? l don't know her-only
by sight"
GO to her father, then" Drostan's
panic. Don't be scared, my friend
your reputation isn't confined to Asia
you know"
"O-dry up, Drostan," said Farranl
and got very red. He heartily wished
his reputation had been confined tc
Asia. The press had been making ar
awful fuss about him and a journey
he had made through a district thick
with hostile Chinese, and people spoke
of the cool daring and resource he haC
shown when all he had done was te
carry out a soldiers job in a soldierly
way.
Il can't do it, anyhow" he went on
II happen to know old Norbert's abroad
He's been away for months and doesn't
return for a couple of days yet"
Again Drostan's eyes twinkled at his
friends intimate knowledge of Lois
Norbert's affairs.
Make it the hour of his return
then" he said smiling.
But I've already told you I'r1 of
to Belgrade tonight" cried Farant
You'll have to see to it, Drostan-
must if he is the cur you say he is"
He is" said the detectived, gravely
Hes after old Norbert's cash and its
u job to stop that sort of thing. II
put the Yard on him when I get back
from Southampton tomorrow.
Though Vincent Farrant thought
much about Lois Norbert on his jour
ney from Harwich and through Hol-
land to Cologne, he did not bother
about the threat to her. Drostan would
squash that. AT Cologne, however, he
thought Of nothing but the threat
thought of it with emphatic horror.
For Lois Norbert was on the Cologne
platform-Lois and the Crook, Walter
Preach. The pair were together ano
alone. Farrant could scarcely believe
his eyes. He had opened the window
OF his compartment to look at the
immense, thronged station, and saw
the way, snarling at a porter who car
ried two heavy su~itcases.
Then, even as Farrant stared
amazed, Preach let himself go again
and the girls left hand went up in
instructive protest-and a plain gold
band cleaned or it! With a positive
shock Of nausea Farrant understood
They were married! They were a
honeymoon couple! They were elop-
ing!
Tt was horrible, but he could not
doubt it. He was sure Lois had not
been married yesterday. His heart
had made him look at her left hand
as Drostan called his attention to
them. There had not been a ring on
it then, not even an engagement ring.
He checked as he saw a flaw in
that. 1t had been after three O'Clock
when he saw them yesterday, too late
for a marriage that day and, since
they were here. in. Cologne, no later
had it, they could not have been mar
ried this morning. Had they been
secretly married some time?
Almost at once that fear was put
at rest. AS they entered a compart-