The Coolidge examiner., 1936-10-09


shoulders that swung as he moved.
He was speaking to Gary. Mrs.
Larned expects me"
Yes, sir"
Miss Mayne arrived home again
safely?"
Yes, sir"
Bryn stepped in through the mar
row door. He was not yard from
Graham.
How do you do" Bryn said
pleasantly.
Graham whirled. He surveyed
Bryn steadily, with eyes that CLINT
ed in the light. And who are
you?'' he inquired belligerently.
Bryn lifted his eyebrows. Sure
you don't remember me, Graham?"
Graham Strengthened. His hand,
hanging at his side, clenched itself.
80" he said softly. "It's you"
Yes
Il suppose you did the noble res
cuer act and brought Deborah home
again? The poor little country girl
lost in the big city?"
Something like that" Bryn
agreed equally.
And you've been hanging around
here ever since?"
Hanging around ever since"
Bryn repeated quietly. "And, now
that you know all about me, |
should like to discuss with you your
own position here. Unfortunately,
there was no time, after your let
ter arrived, to get an answer to
you; or we might have spared you
the trouble Of this trip"
what do you mean, spared me
the trouble of this trip"
Surely you understand that 1t
was quite useless for you to come
here, Graham. You must know that
you put yourself quite out of the
picture by your actions in San
Francisco"
Graham's voice thickened. That's
your fault"
II don't think so. 1t was fortu-
nate for Deborah that somebody
happened along to help her, but she
would not have married you, Gra-
ham, even if she had to work the
answer out for herself. She was
quite unprepared for the way in
which you greeted her. 1t was en-
tirely your own fault. If you had
taken the trouble to act as a gen
tleman for the short time it was
necessary to spend with her, she
would have married you. She ex-
pected to marry you. was only a
chance passer-by."
rs that so?" Graham said through
clenched teeth. IT'S a damned lie.
What you think you'll get out of it,
l don't know. Who the devil are
you? This is my business"
NO" Bryn said slowly. mot any
longer"
Graham's eyes narrowed. "Why?"
he inquired. "Go on. Try your
story out on me. See how far you
get"
Bryn regarded him. Every we'll"
he said. Then, You came up here
expecting eventually to marry her.
Am 1 right?"
apparently you have already
read my letter"
"Yes. Well, Deborah won't marry
you. That's final"
"Oh," Graham murmured scath-
ingly. $50 that's final, Is it? And
l suppose she's scared to see me
and tell me herself, is she?"
1T isn't necessary for her to see
you," Bryn explained. Her mar
riage with you no longer depends
on her own choice. She can't marry
you. Even in case, like our friend
of the jungle, you had changed your
spots. She can't marry you because
she is already married. To me-"
For half a minute Graham stood
perfectly motionless, staring at him.
Then he moved back a step and
folded his arms. do you expect
me to believe that?"
Il hoped you would"
"Well, l won't. It's a damn lie.
She wouldn't marry you. She
couldn't marry you. l know the
family. l know the circumstances
they're in. I've had plenty of let
ters from the grandmother, and the
girl, too. There isn't a chance in
the world that she'd have married
you"
"Why?"
"You know damn we'll why. In
the first place, she loses her prop
erty. In the second place, the old
woman wouldn't hear of it for a
minute, property or no property.
She'd starve first. I'm the only
man in the world they'd marry the
girl to, and you know it. Oh. / get
the situation. I'm not entirely dumb.
| can see that you're in love with
her, and she's in love with you, but
that doesn't change the situation
any. She isn't married to you. She
wouldn't do it. She hasn't got the
courage. And she wouldn't take a
chance of breaking the old woman's
heart"
"NNhnt 11rnnf will Won tnln2n