The Washington times., 1931-06-11
CHAPTER 36

feet, there was only a deathly
kind Of fatigue Of her spirit.
hard to endure, but far from
being the active torment against
which she had been steeling
herself.
Ramon, going over into the
fold of Mrs. Mursllap, sug-
gested the wattled and ugly
thought to her of a bright
bird of flight being folded into.
along with little insects Of
prey, the webbed wings Of a
bat, and fast becoming part
and color of that horrible
under-arm debris.
There were folds of old flesh
down the face of Mrs. Bursilap
that must be down her body
too, and pleats of loose skin
along her upper arms, and a
cave of shadow on either side
of her lean old nose that made
her bat-like. And as if to bear
out the unconscious couSinship,
she wore gray mostly, fine chif-
fons that floated and formed a
web between her body and
arms.
Ramon folded into that, was
something to shudder over,
rather than to shed the salt
tears one locked in the keg OF
ones heart. She had shud-
dered her share, hurt pride,
shocked vanity, loneliness, and
a modicum of grief for a fan
tasy that had perished, going
down before horror of Ramon
and horror of self.
Out of Darkness
It was as if suddenly she had
walked out of some foul lethal
garden into gray but open day.
Rarick was in the day, precisely
as if she had been off in some
long, embroidered faint, from
which she had just emerged to
find him precisely where she
had left him.
A little grayer, a little graver'
without eagerneSS, certainly
without gayety and consistently,
as ever, remote from her. And
vet so substantially there; for
which, and without shame,
she showed her gratefulneSs.
She woke him up one night.
as she thought, out of a sound
sleep, when her growing panic
of the operation was heavy
upon her.
"Rarick," she said, softly,
filled, there in the dead hours
of the night, with a lonely fear
that if she did not speak she
would cry out.
He stirred lightly as he lay
motionless In his insomnia, not
quite sure that she had spoken.
"Rarick, could you wake up
for a moment?"
Eyes. What is it, Jenny"
"I am all right. I want to
talk, though"
She thought, a little bitterly,
that she need not trouble to re-
assure him, who had no anxiety
for her.
He was relieved that it had
come. He had been lying there.
pitying her in her sleep. A
week had passed; and since she
had not spoken, he had re-
solved to see Noon again the
following day. But now it had
come
"I've been meaning to tell
you something of a nuisance,
Rarick. You never asked about
what they found at the hos
pital-so there seemed no
hurry"
4 Nothing Serious
'T knew if there had been
anything serious /"
There isn't. But I'm in for
an operation"
He tried to lift his words
carefully into the casual.
THAT is exactly what it is"
cit is wise to operate, then,
and clear up the difficulty once
and for ALL"
She could not help but reach
lightly at the surge Of relief
out her hand and touch his
that flowed over her at his
calm, inferential way of regard
ing her recovery.
''I think so, too, RarlcK.
1--WE had better have it over
at once, then, Jenny"
We! Nothing he could have
said would so have snatched
away her terrifying sense OF
aloneness. She found herself
wanting to reach out and touch
his hand lightly again, and re
Trained.
ANY time you say. Rarick."
Suppose you let me take the
matter in hand. I will arrange
with Noon"
eyes, Rarick." She felt SC
small, lying there beside him, SC
in need, so oppressed by sud
den awareness of how solitary
to be born-how solitary to diel
"I guess I'm a little fright
ened, Rarick. There is some
thing about the knife-like cut
ting the rope to a mooreo
boat"
This time his hand felt fol
hers.
The very texture of her flesh
it occurred to her, scorchingly
had been softened, since last he
had touched it, by a lovers