The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1944-01-07
CHAPTER XII


the Insular Police out looking for
Anne Haywood when she was over
at the Escambron dancing with Mig
uel Valera didn't particularly bother
him. It was damned lucky Valera
had run into her. There were too
many stories going around, and
while most of them weren't true,
tropical streets at night were no
place for girls.
He stopped at the bend in the
wall to let a train Of Army trucks
go through the old military road
along the rim of the hill above the
ocean. A woman on the other side
was watching him, and without
warning of any kind made a dash
across between a couple of olive
drab motors. Pete held his breath.
The driver swore, jammed on his
brakes, and went ahead again.
"Senor Wilcoxl"
Pete looked at her in surprise. She
wasn't, as far as he knew, either
y friend or an agent.
"You know Miss Heywood-Amer-
ican girl? Blonde?"
Pete nodded.
The girls eyes darkened. He
couldn't tell whether she was plead
ing or angry or both.
"Take her away" she said pas
sionately. 81 don't know very good
English. She must go back to Amer
lea. Understand"
Pete scratched the back of his
head. "Yeah. I understand all
right. Why?"
The girl dropped her hands in
despair.
IT don't know how to say" she
cried. "She have to go. Will get
hurt"
She broke into torrential flow Of
Spanish. Pete stood listening blank
ly.
''You understand"
All he had got was that Anne was
going around with Miguel Valera,
that it was dangerous, that she was
warning him so he could make her
60 back to America.
She turned and hurried across
the street, and disappeared round
the corner without looking back.
Pete stood watching her.
''That," he said aloud, ''is big
help"
Pete hung up his sun helmet and
went to his desk. There was some
thing about the melodramatic bust
ness of shooting a rival that was
ludicrous, on the whole. Neverthe-
less the girl had been in dead ear
nest. It worried him. At the same
time it put him on a spot. If he
asked for any kind of protection for
her after last night they wouldn't
even wait till he got out to laugh.
And he couldn't very well warn her.
Or could he?
He glanced up as soldier came
cut Of Colonel Fletcher's Office with
q sheaf Of papers. "The Colonel said
you'd check these, SIR"
''Thank you."
He glanced through them. On the
fourth from the top he saw Miguel
Valera's name in the second line of
translation.
Tonight at $40 o'clock was in
2adilla Street. Miguel Valera y Del
gado got out of his car and went
into Avenida Juan de Pinzon and
waited there. do not know why,
but saw an American lady come
in the street alone. Miguel Valera
y Delgado went down the street. /
thought the American lady was lost,
but when I spoke she was afraid
and ran after Miguel Valera y Del
gado and followed him in to the
door Of the stores of the sugar and
coffee agents Albert Benoist. It was
dark and they were there a long
time and came out together. / re-
port this not because have per-
sonal antipathy to Miguel Valera y
Delgado or because ! wish to injure
the good name of the American la
dy, but because j have been in
structed to tell what ! know about
Miguel Valera y Delgado by people
who believe he is of the anti-Ameri-
can party
Pete put the paper down. He
could get sorer at Anne Haywood,
he was thinking, than at anybody
else in the world. At the moment,
however, he wasn't exactly sore. It
was something he couldn't define.
She didn't know what she was let
ting herself in for, Of course. No
body but a Latin, maybe, would so
instantly suspect the worst and say
It, either directly or by implication,
But she was ia a Latin country,
and it was time she was finding Il
out.
The phone rang as he was reach
ing for it. He took up the receiver.