Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-03-01
on talking to Ross, little defiantly, he

on talking to Ross, little defiantly, he
thought.
Kodi, the Thayers' Jap, was moving
around with cocktails and rather mar
velous canapeS; Martha, with an eye on
Ross and Rita Gould, deliberately with
drawn from the general group, was lead
ing the talk. She chose to make Peter
It's object, and, though he hated that,
as rule, he didn't now.
What are you going to do next?"
she said. i've looked you up since last
night, of course. I'd no idea you were
so important"
I'm not" he said distinctly amused.
81 had the luck to strike a good lead,
I always get laugh out of the people
who call me an inventor. haven't that
sort of bean. Next? I don't know. I'll
go in for some sort of research after a
while, suppose. But it's rather good
fun to loaf. I didn't even take a week
| end of the last six months spent out
West"
Try and find out what he's going to
do" said Bronson. 1.-THE old mans
half the tool steel people in the East
Ell, wagner" He turned to the others.
Il ask you! Here's man who can name
his own price for fiddling about with
new steel tempering processes and he
| tells every one to go to the devil so DO
litely that they don't even get sore at
himl"
You keep on doing just that little
thing, Pete" said Tack Thayer. II tell
you what-when you get ready to I'M
load the next bag of tricks let me know
and Wen get up syndicate and freeze
the soulless corporations out. How
about ito"
"Whatll you put In, darling?" said
Martha. She was smiling, but her
voice wasn't; you know the distinction?
I suppose you could get some Of your
creditors to back you, though-they'd
be willing to take almost any sort of
chance to help you to make enough
money to pay theml"
Tack turned to look at her, his eyes
hostile and sullen all at once, and,
though he'd shaken his head the last
time Kodi had offered him cocktail,
he reached for one now, from the tray
the Jap had put down.
81 can get all the money want when
have to-" he said. you ought to
know that"
It was trivial, of course, but for Peter
it was disturbing; it was another sign
of the smoldering hostility between
those two. The night before Tacks
condition nau explained everything, To-
night 1t was different, and, somehow,
worse. No one else seemed to notice;
Peter shot a quick look at Ross, but he
was, seemingly. completely absorbed in
Rita Gould and what she had to say.
He was glad to hear the bell ring;
gladden. still, a moment later, to see
Betty Rogers coming in, cheerfully
apologize for being late.
sol" Betty said to Peter. "Last
night I had to tell you who Martha
was-and tonight Didn't tell you
to stop looking at her? Didn't /?
Ware wire. PeterI You have to know
this country"
Dinner, then-and as good dinner
Peter thought, as he'd ever eaten. He
had Betty on one side, Rita, who con-
tinued to ignore him, on the other:
/ Jimmy Bronson was on RitaS other
hand. Ross was beside Martha; Peter
saw, and hated himself for noticing it.
that they had good deal to say to one
another under the cover of the general
talk. He saw something else, too; the
way Tack watched Ross, and the con-
temptuous dislike in Tack's eyes.
He was, in spite of himself, becoming
interested in this situation in precisely
the fashion that his sister would have
been interested; that, as he could guess
Betty, and probably. Marian Bronson
as well, were interested In 1t. He found