Evening star., 1934-06-27
CHAPTER XXXII,

- more coffee" Larry said
firmly. I'll be doing spe-
/ cialties on the chandelier"
He turned laZily in his
chair, grinning the shameless small
boy grin that usually prefaced some
particularly audacious remark. by
the way" he said innocently, where's
that blond you promised me this
year? The one you saw in the cards
you know, with the gold tooth and the
cough?"
Mr.. Larry!" Lottie rolled shocked,
round blue eyes rigidly to a spot Just
over his head. You know perfectly
we'll l never" She subsided, gig
ling. "Oh, you're Just foolin' again.
Honest. I never know the difference
any more. Miz' Therrold," she amend
ed. turning to Rose. who had come
quietly into the room. Mr. Larry
says he's got to go back TO the Office
again tonight. On Christmas eve, too
i do think that Luke Hewitt is a
ghoul!"
"Lottle! Confne yourself to the
stern dictates of rigorous veracity, -
Larry corrected easily Besides, l said
had to go back later. Not right this
moment, Lottie-but later Didn't you
say you and Mr.. MertZ we're going out
for a while?"
Yes. they are" Rose answered. con-
scious of the flush that stained her
cheek. Larry. she reflected. had every
intention of seeing that they did. And
the sooner she got it over with. the
better. II only he wouldn't want to
explain about that night he had come
to the store.
She had not had a chance for a
word alone with him since. He had
been working out of town for over a
week. Somehow she felt that she
couldn't listen to excuses tonight, or
to apologies or promises for the fu-
ture. She felt vaguely ashamed OF the
unworthiness of her thoughts the mo-
ment they occurred. but somehow she
was so tired. so driven by the clamor
within herself today that everything
else seemed pallid and meaningless by
comparison.
All afternoon. fight as she would,
she had been haunted by the fear that
any moment might bring about the
threat Austin Deering had voiced
She. who had always faced today with
courage borrowed from yesterday
irquiring not into tomorrow. found
herself hourly listening for the door
bell. waiting for some sign that he
had set the machinery in motion.
She had spent night back of the
store in the company of Larry Nor
gan. She had been seen coming home
with her baby in the dawn. Oh,
it was outrageous. fantastic that any
one would doubt her story when she
told them the truth. But who wanted
to believe her? Suppose the Their
rolds did bring some such charge.
They wanted her baby-but don't
think of that! No one could have
Kitten. Larry could teStify-but who
would believe Larry
Tell him about it she couldn't, Rose
told herself hotly, shame flooding her
cheeks at the thought. To put the un-
speakable thought into words was 70
defile something Poor Larry
kind. gentle. weak Larry, who would
have cut of his hand rather than
have her involved in such a mess
through himself. Under that gentle
mild blue gaze slumbered a temper
none too tractable. Rose knew. Tc
tell him of behring's threat. ridiculous
as it might have been, might precipi-
tate something which her silence
could avoid.
lone rubber plant could never make
a home.
Not even when combined with brush
and comb"
Larry was singing in an elaborate fall
setto. which all but sent Lottie into
convulsions. Mr.. Larry. you want
should have one of my spells?"
What's so important that you have
TO 60 back to the Office tonight
Larry?" Rose asked quietly. More
from a desire to distract her own
thoughts than any particular interest
in Luke Hewitt's assignments.
Special assignment from the County
Herald" said Larry with pompous
gravity Wants an article on how a
family Of Is can live on s12 a week
! said. "A family of IS what?'-but he
said. Write it,! So I'm going 10 write
it. And if anybody tries to follow me
out to the letter" he finished, savagely
serious. it'll make a swell job fol
some coroner!'
He was being deliberately flippant
Rose knew always bad sign ir
Larry. Under that false iauntines'
lurked some purpose of his own. levity
being Larry's way of concealing things
that mattered To him most deeply
Even as she laughed at him and al
Lottie's puzzled face. she felt a curious
tingling sense of excitement. What.
ever it was he had to tell her tonight
he was concealing his own inner eX-
element very badly.
Christmas eve. Rose thought. hel
restless eyes going around the little
room. Holly on the supper table to-
night. brought in by Bertha Harris ir
a gust of snowy cold. Four red can
dies, bought in the local and
10 cent store. standing in a row in the
small silver holders that had been Lot.
ties donation to the night.
A doll house with hinged walls anc
an amazing row of impossible toys hac
been Larry's abashedly rendered bur.
den on his arrival just before supper
tonight. The smaller package for her
self. to be opened on the morrow. lay
waiting on the table in the inner
room.
And about noon another package
had come addressed to the child .
quite bulky package with no card ot
any sort to show the donor. A curly
haired pickaninny doll, an Indian doll
with convincing head dress-and an
enormous baby doll of some pliable
rubber material-startlingly like real
baby when she had lifted it from the
box. Holding the amazing toy against
herself with an imposing gesture, the
girl was back again for moment in
the shabby room in Shanghai .
holding again a real baby in her
arms Little Kitten, growing up
so fast. Soon she would have no
baby to hold at all
Again that horrible, enguling fear
engendered by the thought. There
would always be Kitten, she told her.
self fiercely. always-how dared any
one think anything else could be? The
Therrolds weren't like that i. Austin