White Bluffs spokesman. [volume] (White Bluffs, Wash.) 1907-1938, 1930-07-04
CHAPTER XI-Continued
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ly did her eyes dwell on empty space
that Paul could only look at her and
wait for her to speak.
"a way out" she said, after little,
as though to some one she was seeing
beyond their circle of light. "God
coming to US like this, taking us back
to freedom and-life. And this little
world-ours-gone!"
Paul knew the thing he wanted to
say would come In a moment, the
thing he had made up his mind to say
to her when he came down from the
rocks. 1t was fury of emotion, roll
ing up slowly through his birthright
Of stoicism into storm of speech-a
passion of desire breaking loose, a bit.
terness against life as 1t had been
given him to live, determination to
turn 1t his own way at last.
Before she could move his arms
were about her.
81 have lived hell in this place.
he cried. "Not because | was afraid
to die, but because in dying l knew
would lose you. Only In life can
have you, and want life because Of
that. You say it is God showing us a
way outl 1t is just as true that God
gave you to me here. That world up
there means nothing to me-except
with you in it. 1t, too, has been
hell for me. Now I'm going to make
1t a heaven. l won't let man made
law and convention stand in the way
of what Is right and intended to be.
You are mine, and shall have you
and keep you, one way or the other.
Well face the world together, and tell
1t so-or we'll go out there and never
let It know VIC live. 1t is for you to
say which 1t shall BET"
Steadily her hands had pressed
against him, and with that pressure
came such change In her face that
the fierceness of Paul's arms relaxed,
and, he saw an idol crushed and
brok4q in her eyes. To the level of
that ruin he had sunk his own ideal
of Carla. He let her move away from
him, and stood with grim, set face
before her.
"I'm sorry" he said. II know you
are thinking that l am vile and un-
clean"
mot that" she spoke quickly. II
would rather think am the one who
is unclean."
That was all she said, and he made
no effort to answer her. Words be-
came futile, even impossible, as she
looked at him. What be might have
said, his pleading, the arguments he
had built for himself, and for her,
crumbled under the tragedy which had
come like a sickness into her white,
beautiful face-a tragedy that was
filled with appeal, with pain, and for
a moment or two with an utter lonei-
ness, as If she had lost something
which could never come back to her.
He had seen the same look in her
eyes the night her mother died. Then
1t had filled him with a great pity
Now it's tenderness, its yearning for
a thing gone, shook him to the founda-
ton of his soul. He saw Carla as
he had always known she would be
when it came to her love for man.
Only love that had no scar of ugli.
ness upon it would she take to her
breast and hole there. The memory
Of love, it's burned-out ash, love that
was crippled and blind but clean, she
would cherish with the sacred faith.
fitness of an altar nun. But not such
a love as he had offered her-a theft,
though 1t could be made legal theft,
from another woman. Even AS he felt
this crushing sense of his loss of her.
another emotion, freeing of his
spirit, rejoicing with his grief. en-
tered into him. Carla, as she stood
before him, he could worship through
all eternity. The Carla he had asked
for, yielding to him, would have de-
scended out of heaven to the level of
his own debasement Clearly as she
had seen his passion and felt the
crush of his arms, Carla now saw this
change in him, and slowly, believing
jOyously, a miracle wrought itself in
her face, and all that Paul had seen
broken down built itself up again.
Softness came into her mouth, and
she smiled at him.
"ShalI we go, Paula"
He bowed his head, then picked up
the coat which had been her pillow
anil shook the sand from 1t.
Eyes. The cleft In the rock faces
west, and | think the sun was setting
when | found it. If we can get out
before dark and make racket, some
one may be near enough to hear u.s."
He lighted torch, and they walked
across the sand together. AT the pile
of rocks he took her hand. helping
and guiding her, until they came to
the beginning of the ledge from where
he had looked down on her sleeping
form beside the fire. He told her
about II MS they paused for a mo
ments rest
Carla looked at the fire in the pit of
DOOM below them II was dying out.