The Washington times., 1938-04-01

meath the beaded shade and the
But no. Rays fat cheeks were
red, not cool and white like china
His weak mouth was red, too. =.
And moist.
March 81, that was today. The
day she'd taken things into her
own hands. From today on she
would live; be somebody. Life
would be different with Frank.
From today.
But today was gone. Gone, be-
cause the alarm clock pointed to
half past midnight. This was to-
morrow, and tomorrow was an
other day. Tomorrow belonged to
Frank. And to her. Together
Frank would come to her, as
soon as he heard the sad news.
She would pretend, even to Frank,
that she was a tragic, bereaved
little wife. Unprepared for the
shock of having her husband, her
poor jolly Ray, brought home from
vic 1IISIlU l111O-NCcSOs
NO MORE JOKES
She shuddered again. Ray dead
:. The fat, soft face still. No
more stupid, pitiful jokes. The
damp lips would fall apart, the
way they did when he slept. His
light-laShed eyes would only half
close. AS though they would spy
upon her, even in death. But
no..
Ray never spied on her. Ray
thought she was wonderful be-
cause she laughed at his buffoon-
cry. Ray was fool.
And fools deserved to die.
Wasn't survival of the fittest an
axiom as old as the world?
She smiled, thinking Of Frank.
Her eyes softened and she laughed
into a mirror. Married to Frank,
the four unhappy years with Ray
would be forgotten.
At o'clock she was still wait
ing. The room was cold. And still.
AS still as the shabby house, where
all the tenants went to bed by 10
O'Clock. Content such people .
Like Ray. Satisfied with whatever
life threw to them.
The woman jumped. She must
have fallen asleep. Her small cry
ratified in the chilled, silent room.
She stared at the china figure
squatting beneath the lamp. Was
she still dreaming? Or was the
little fat image grinning more
broadly? Had she talked in her
sleep?
GETS JITTERS
OF course not, her brain said.
But the beating of her heart
outstripped her brain. Fear caught
and held her. She knew she was
Sh1vering, that she was sweating
but her hand would not reach for
her handkerchief. She could see
1t, on the floor, close to her foot
-. But it might as well have been
IN the smart shop from which
Frank had bought it. She tried to
think of Frank; of the day he had
brought the handkerchiefs to her
But the image Of Frank was gone.
I've had bad dream" she said
aloud. That's all. Frank will
The sentence did not finish. It
would not make sense. The
woman found herself saying, 20
God, what have I done? What
have done?"
She knew what she had done.
And she kept her burning eyes
from the squatty china lamp, be.
cause the little grinning man
knew, too.
She looked at the alarm clock.
Five.thirty. Ray would be home
at six
Her heart stopped hammering.
No. Ray would have been home
at 6. Ray would not come home
at all now.
She knew with scientific accur-
GcyI how long Ray would live
after his early morning snack at
the factory. Had she not studied,
for months, the effects Of various
poisonous mushrooms? Had she
not Travelled 20 miles to secure
from a certain anonymous source
the Destroying Angels which-as
q special treat-She had broiled
for Rays nightly sandwiches?
NONE WOULD KNOW
At any moment now there
would come frantic knock at
her door. But it would not be
Rays knocking. And the shocked,
dulleyed messengers would never
know, no one would ever know,
that Rays wife had been expect.
ing them. Because Rays wife had
an alibi ready.
The grocery store at the corner.