The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1938-04-15

celia recoil even though she
saw hatred and fear and belief
that he had tried to kill Tommy
burning in her eyes :. Gloria was
finding it difficult to believe Hans
Won Dreyfuss was a murderer,
/ CHAPTER XIII
\ Christmas wasn't the gay, happy
time Gloria had planned at all
Though Tommy was better,
though he stood fifty-fifty
chance to make the grade, he was
still dangerously i'll with the
threat of pneumonia hanging over
him.
Mrs. Lee was gravely worried,
Marcella was confined to her bed
from shock and Isabel was making
things generally unpleasant with
her visits and her inSessant tele-
phone calls. why on earth did
Tommy have to come back and
walk on that Lake Road" she
stormed at them.
why did he have to bring all
this publicity down on our heads.
II I see the name of Tommy Lee,
pugilistic brother of Mrs. Rodney
Caliman, in the papers once more
I'll go mad! My brother, a COM
mon prizefighter! And a story
like this breaking just before a
worlds championship fight.
making headlines everywhere . .
OF all the rotten luck!"
She wasn't thinking of Tommy
nor Tommy's suffering -. or that
Tommy was clinging to that frail
precipice that divides life from
death. She was thinking what
Tommy's tragic accident had done
to her, Isabel Callman.
RODNEY PERSISTS
Glorida had her party for the
neighborhood children on Christ
mas Eve. And Peter, miracul-
ously, had no calls and spent the
whole evening engineering games,
pinning the tail on the donkey
and diShing out ice cream when
things became too confused for
Kate and Gloria in the kitchen.
But under this surface of gay
ETY., both Gloria and Peter were
tense. Every time the telephone
rang -. and it did often in DR..
Kent's office =. Gloria went to
answer it, her heart suspended in
her throat. If Tommy had taken
a turn for the worse. For the
most part, however, they were
only patients asking questions
about juniors sore throat and
papa'S rheumatism and mama's
bad dreams.
But once it was Rodney Call
man and Gloria stood there with
the telephone trembling in her
hands. Look here, Gloria" he
said, evenly, II know you need me
at a time like this. There must
be something I can do"
There isn't, Rodney" she
assured him in small frozen
voice.
He said: GLORIA, how much
longer are you going to hold out?
It's driving me crazy, thinking
of you not being able to see
you. Something has got to be
done about us. We love each
other, Gloria"
Why" she demanded, her voice
going to pieces on a soft, choked
note, "must you persist in making
everything so much more difficult
than it really is?"
Then you think that living
with a man you don't love a
man who's in love with another
woman isn't difficult"
/ Back in the noisy, crowded
room Gloria told Peter that Rod
ney had called. She said: He
wanted to do something for
Tommy"
THAT was decent of him." Peter
replied. But he thought, looking
at Gloria, his eyes little bleak:
Don't let that call mean any
thing to you, Gloria. Don't hurt
me, darling. Don't ever let me
down."
IMPATIENT PATIENT
BY February Tommy was up in
a Wheelchair. He was a little
cross as men convalescents are
likely to be and completely
impatient. He told Gloria: What
the devil are they keeping me
here for? I've got to get up
and do something or I'll go
mad just sitting here think
ing thinking thinking"
Gloria took his hand and held
it firmly. 1T won't be much
longer, Tommy. You'll be we'll
before long. And what do you
plan to do then, dear? Go back
into the fight game?"
Tommy's mouth twisted in a
grim smile. LAS if I could. The
first time a guy made a pass at
me I'd fall into a thousand pieces.
Oh, we'll, I'm glad I cleaned up
while I could.
II was in it for the dough, any
way. And I'm virtually rich now
that is, if you don't compare
it with the Callman or Drake for
tunes" He laughed shortly. Un-
pleasantly. Maybe I'll go over
and hire myself to the Chinese.
Maybe I'll join up with Franco.
What difference does it make
what I do noW?"
That night after Gloria came
back from the hospital she sat
gravely on the side of the high