The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1940-08-24

Chapter Seven
Julia's Story
CITING on the float Julia pro-
~ ceeded to question me.
"Are you engaged to Adam?"
NO"
"Are you in love with him."
She waited decent interval Of
time, went on evenly.
Were you ever - what's the
euphemism? - disappointed in
love?"
l sat up, looked at her and
laughed again. She watched me
modify, lying there on her back,
long and beautifully built and so
desperately unhappy.
I'm not Just being fresh" she
said.
"You listen awhile" | told her
gently. Il met Adam at Fort Ha-
vens last summer. was engaged
to lieutenant there. When / left
! was no longer engaged. Adam
knew about it and was sorry and
helped me to forget him"
did your love him? The lieu
tenant. !! =:ean?"
Had you known him long?"
"All my life. We grew up to-
gether."
And you're all over it now?"
81 think So"
Her face twisted; she turned on
her side and stared away from
me out across the lake.
That's what 1 wanted %
know" she said at last in an I'M
certain voice. "But | don't think
I'll get over it"
81 thought that too. at first
She was silent for while.
"Its not knowing that hurts,
she said finally in a little. defeat
ed voice. 81 thought he loved me
Il was so sure of it. It never en-
tered my mind that we wouldn't
be married as soon as he gradu-
ated. 1t isn't as if he had just met
her-there she was right in his
own house from the time she was
twelve. They didn't even get
along well as kids"
who is Sandra. anyway? I've
only heard scraps of the story"
She sat up and dangled her
long, straight legs in the lake.
thraShing them violently for a
moment until the water was
white. Then she checked the
small tempest and began to talk
with her usual unsmiling poise.
"Sandra's father and Jeff's IA
Their and my father were class
mates at West Point, and friends
of quite a special sort. JefFs IA
Their was from Memphis. The
Tacks had a beautiful old home
there. and not a dime TO bless
themselves with. The place was
eventually sold, but not before
the three boys had spent an I'M
forgettable fortnight there dur
ing their Furlo. Two years later,
In the chapel at West Point. Dan
married Melissa Tack-Jeffs IA
theirs cousin. She was my mother.
Jeff's mother was her best
friend"
Then you and JEFF are cous-
ins?"
mot exactly. Stepcousins once
removed, or something like that.
It's very slim relationship. Colo
mel Tack and mother had the
same grandfather. but the old
gentleman was married twice and
they had different grandmothers.
/ knew him-the common ances.
tor. He had been a circuit judge
and at some time or other in his
early DAYS he had bought a farm
in the OZarks Everyone said il
was a fool inveStment-nothin
but the rocks and hills, nothing
would grow there But he liked it,
and went there to live when he
retired. jeff and | spent a few
weeks with him when we were
little kidS-it was the year Colo
mel Tack was at Leavenworth at
tending the staff school. We loved
the farm. too. and the old gen.
tleman was very kind to us. JEFF
owns the place now-inherited il
when his father died a few years
ago But why am ] telling you all
this? Where was I2''
Russian Refugee
a BOUT Jeffs mother and your
i mother. But who did Fergu-
son marry?"
mo one for a long time. The
two brides tried their best to cor
raj him for one or another of their
friends, but he wasn't having any.
They think he was in love with
Mrs. Tack. The three men all
chose cavalry and were in the
same regiment for a time. Then
the war came and everything
went haywire. Dad went abroad
with one of the first outfits; while
he was gone was born and my
mother died. guess he tried not
to come back-that's how he got
so many medals and things.
MY mother was an orphan and
Dads people were old. The TackS
took me and kept me until the
war was over. You see, Colonel
Tack never went acrosS-he was
Captain Tack then. Of course,
they were all captains-he was in
one Of the training camps here
at home. But Dad was over there
for the duration. and in Germany
after the arnistice. / wasn't a
baby any longer when he came
home and took me. and the Tacks
had got fond of me. That was
why, later, they took Sandra.
They had JEFF. Of course. but he
was three years older and a boy.
They wanted a daughter"