The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1942-02-20

81 always heard" Tonga Dick
said, ''that Garrett Waterson was a
great old boy-quite character"
Character be damned" Willard
TUNED. ''He had no character at
all. He was an outrageous old brawl-
er, always at the center Of every
disturbance Of any kind. He was
always doing Incredible, outlandish
things"
"And he sold Alakoa for fifteen
thousand dollars" Tonga Dick COM
mented. Whats it worth today?
Three million?"
Ridiculous" Ernest snapped.
''The assets, as we carry them on
the book"
Maybe" Dick said, latter all,
Garrett Waterson was little fuzzy
at the edges, when he did that!"
Fright there" Willard said mo-
rosely, sis the whole point. If they
can show that Garrett Waterson was
incompetent, it follows that his
granddaughter was left destitute by
this single incompetent act"
Tonga Dick considered; and pres
emily allowed himself slow grin.
"You know, it's just possible that
the girl really has you'll"
Ernest fiared up. "You have just
as much interest in Alakoa as we
have-or ought to have!"
II guess" Dick said speculative
ly, "I'd better have a talk with this
Waterson girl"
Ridiculous"
'tCan't see how it can hurt any
thing"
''She won't talk to you," Willard
said shortly. "She won't do any
thing at all without consulting John
Colt
"Oh, yes, she will. Tomorrow,
Tn going to take her on cruise
up the coast-sight-seeing, you
know"
''She won't even see you," Willard
said again.
"She already has. I talked with
her nearly an hour tonight"
'You what?"
st said, I've been talking to her
all night. Can't you understand
plain"
''Did she know who you were?"
NATURALLY. Do you think she's a
dummy"
His two brothers stared at him for
a little while in inarticulate outrage.
81 absolutely forbid this sailing
trip" Willard got out at last.
''And so do l." Ernest echoed.
"Any parley that is made with that
adventures will be in full consulta-
ton with us and our attorneys. I
absolutely forbid you to see this girl
again without the full concordance
Of"
$50 ahead and forbid" Tonga
Dick encouraged him. "After all
there isn't thing in the world you
can do"
John Colt came to take breakfast
with Karen Waterson next morning.
Their brightly silvered breakfast
table overlooked the beach, where
the warm sea was breaking in en-
erald combers shot through with the
early sun. Looking out at the lazy
sea, Karen Waterson knew that she
was afraid.
The exultant assurance of victory
which she had felt the night before
was gone, suddenly unable to live in
all this sunlight.
She could hardly remember what
had persuaded her to make an in
cognito date to sail with the one man
who had most reason to be her enc
my. In spite of the evening, Tonga
Dick remained shadowy and nays-
FERROUS figure - an unaccountable
stranger whose very name was out
landish according to any standards
she knew.
In this mood she found it pleasant
to sit across a breakfast table from
John Colt. It did not happen very
often, and was the more helpful be-
cause it did not.
Some day, she knew, John Colt
would make love to her; whether
they won or lost, that time would
come as inevitably as the falling of
Hawaiian rain. Often she speculated
curiously as to whether this would
happen before or after their fight
with the Waynes was closed, and
amused herself by imagining what
she would do about it when it came.
81 am very much at a loss to
imagine" he said now, ''why you
have committed yourself to this pc
culiar arrangement"
On an impulse Karen said, ''TI
tell you why I have to go. / have
to 60 because I'm afraid of those
Waynes."
They're people," Karen said,
ssfrom whom we are about to take
everything they have"
''What you're taking IL yours"
John Colt said.
Sometimes ! wonder Il II really
""