The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1934-08-24


that he had never once dreamed he
would not see his mother again.
Marsha had signed 1t Love, Marsha
Powers"
What an odd thing, a mind when
shocked. 1t went on as it pleased;
turning abruptly from one thought
to another that seemed unrelated.
1t had not-his failing to see his
mother again-seemed possible. She
had so looked forward to his CON-
ing, Marsha had written, because
the doctor had felt she would live
months, and probably beyond the
stretch OF that specified year.
And he would never see her again:
his mother: a curious, fiat fact it
was, that numbed him. He had been
whistling as Vicente came in, and
thinking Of Marsha. And then vi
cente had come in to say something
In his low-class Spanish of kilograms
and Bob's heart had dropped. And
only after real effort could he open
the wire.
absurd to feel So" he had rea-
soned at that moment. But it had
not been absurd to feel SO" Love,
Marsha Powers :. she was, what
ever else she was not. kind. She had
been wonderful all through. and
square -. writing him of having
had to speak with Godfrey and OF
how she regretted it and that it
would not happen again. The most
doubling soul would have believed
her; that line and her promise.
THEN came a dull, long interval
= in which he did the usual things
that one does living. He ate; he re.
sponded to the sympathy of his crew.
They were very kind, he reminded
himself constantly. in order that he
might remember to tell them so and
to thank them everything was
so remote!
He slept a little that first night.
to waken without remembering and
to remember slowly; and that was
pretty bad.
Then the next day they all saw
him off from the nearest village and
on train that. the month before,
had been held up by bandits who
had a regard that was not too deep
for human life.
Hard gripping hands and the
gang saying kind things about work.
Ing under him. People generally
were pretty kind, he realized, and
that 1t did not now matter, and that
nothing could.
After he crossed the border, his
mind began to stretch and to grope
toward the normal where the strick-
en- suffer most acutely. He stared
tragically from car windows, there.
at some oaks and tangle of UNDER
growth.
He would lose Marsha too, he
realized. And not that he would hold
her. or any woman. against her will.
He was. he reasoned on, glad she
was to find everything he had
missed.
But would she, or could she, find
anything with Tarleton? But he
would not let himself think OF that,
he decided. Even well balanced, it
did strange things to him: that won
der. with the thought of her loving
Tarleton. Loving Tarleton, perhaps,
as he, Bob. had early dreamed that
she some day might come to love
him.
How would she greet him? Tie
heard First call for Dinner; he
must eat. wanting to or not: but
he'd wait a time). Would she leave
the house Immediately or was he to
suffer once more that combination
OF misery and happiness which,
since that day, had risen from the
knowledge that she was close, but
beyond the reach of his arms, no
matter how close.
Would she sleep in the next room,
as she had? Or go forward to the Law.
ender or the blue-guest room?
He hoped she would stay. It
seemed to him that that would
rather finish the affair for his
mother. II she stayed no one could
say. 'It was only week after the
funeral that she went off; left him!"
And so she would drag the little Vic
torian lady into the mess.
He realized as he neared New
York. that he was afraid of the
house, and all that its changed
aspect would force upon him. He
was so certain that it would be diff
ferent that he was surprised by the
presence of small fir trees, which
had graced the brown stone steps
for as many winters as he could re-
member.
He fumbled a bit with his keys
and before he could find the right
one the door was opened by Barthol.
omew, who, as his eyes brimmed,
offered a choked greeting. Then Bob,
raising his eyes, saw Marsha hurry
ing down the stair and toward him.
(cotyisAt. 1884. BY X. RG0ilaad-TsgloyI
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