Evening star., 1935-09-07
LOVELY LITTLE FOOL
N Story of Mashmgtons Social
By PHYLLIS MOORE
GALLAGHER r

the steering wheel with all her strength,
but Libby's car, rushing black streak
in the night, struck the truck head on.
The car lunged backward with a
crash of shattered glass from the ter
rifle impact, rolled over twice and Ca
reened downward into the carefully
Handicapped terrace flanking the Me-
mortal Bridge.
Betsy lay motionless in the pain
that engulfed her whole body, a pain
that swept up from her heart like a
consuming fire, soaring her breast, her
arms, her head. There was wander
ing away into unconsciousness, far. far
away from where all the stars seemed
to be within grasp of her flngertips
far, far away into a remote con-
fused region that was no part of
earth. And then pain plunging back
through her, bringing with it con-
sciousness Of soft grass under her
head, the ripping murmur of water
nearby, consciousness Of voices
Johns voice-Terry's voice-Jennie'S s
frantic scream-all there. around her,
beating against her oblivion. She
called for John, far beyond any knowl-
edge of it, when hands lifted her from
beneath the mangled wreck.
In one brief horrible convulSion of
consciousness Betsy heard the clarion
shrek of an emergency siren in the
distance, John speaking very close to
her-"Betsy! Betsy! For Gods sake,
Betsy, speak to mel Speak to mel"
And mingling with his words
strange, unfamiliar voice. "the dark
haired girls all right, buddy. She
amt hurt none. I don't think the
little blond's so bad of. neither. Never
can tell about these here accidents.
What do you suppose them two girls
was doing with piStol?"
Betsy lapsed away again, sinking
deep, deep, far from pain, into a dark
void in which voices came and came
again, voices beginning family and
gaining in volume until they seemed
to shatter her ears. And through this
confusion of disjointed words one voice
ness-John's strong, anguished voice
again. Johns voice. But no. no, 1t
couldn't be John. John was with An
gelica in a dim amber-lit room. hold
ing her in his arms. And she. Betsy,
was driving in car with Libby beside
her mad woman! green
eyes blazing at her, mocking, laughing,
piercing through her body as sharp
and fine as saber points.
When the first sunlight lay over
Washington like golden dust, Betsy
felt returning consciousness pressing
upon her, beating in her temples. her
wrists. the deepest recesses of her body,
sweeping her back from the dark
depths of oblivion. She struggled
against 1t for a long while until it
crashed into her head and flung her
body into a rigid wakefulness. Her
dark lashes fiuttered and she opened
her eyes. But the white room was too
bright now with sunshine, and she
closed her eyes quickly and turned
over. hiding her face in the pillow.
And now that she was conscious,
scrambled, troubled thoughts stalked
her mind. She went over in detail
what had happened-Libby. insane
with jealousy, then the truck with only
one faint light swinging from around
the Naval Hospital, the horrible shat
tering impact of steel and glass. At
the memory of the black abyss into
which she had been flung every nerve
in her body screamed in shuddering
protest. She remembered, too. that
John and Terry and Jennie had been