Argosy All-Story Weekly — page 133: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

LIBERATION. a tiny pinpoint of fire rise In an arc and fall into the dew-laden grass as he flung his cigarette away. The next instant his low voice reached her. “Mary, I had to come! [I couldn’t en- dure it to go back to town and leave matters as they were between us. You asked me to do something this afternoon, and I wanted you to know that I will.” “You mean that you will find Richard Hill?” She had not offered her hand, and his fell to his side as she passed him and seated herself on the bench. “Ves. There isn’t going to be any more pretense between us, and I’m bound in all fairness to tell you again that I don’t be- lieve Dick had anything to do with that forgery, nor even has a suspicion. After you left me I went to the inn at Scarbor- ough, and before I dined I telephoned his wife, under that wretched pseudonym, of course—I had no choice. I assured her he hadn’t come to me, and she seems pretty hopeless, poor woman. Seems to think he’s gone for good.” “And you still think that doesn’t look like guilty knowledge?” There was a touch of half incredulous scorn in Mary’s question, but King replied emphatically: “JT still think it looks as though he were afraid of being dragged into a mess, for her sake. Even though he did me that favor of which I told you, I’ve got to admit that he hasn’t much nerve. A good fellow enough, but a mighty weak, poor-spirited specimen in a showdown. We'll find him, though, and if he should suspect anything we'll get it out of him.” ‘How do you propose to do it, Wes- ley?” she queried pointedly. ‘‘ There are always private detectives—”’ ‘“And the authorities,’ he interrupted her. “I advised his wife to report him without delay to the Bureau of Missing Persons. I can’t appear in the matter as his friend, of course, because of that wretched name, but I can get private detectives on the job right away and have them mail their reports to you, if you don’t trust me to handle it. I wish you could, Mary—lI wish you could forget that false- 767 hood of mine about seeing old J. W. If you knew how I cared for you, how I longed for our happiness together—”’ “Don’t, please!”” She held up her hand protestingly. ‘‘ If you are sincere at last, if you really mean to help me, to prove yourself in my eyes, don’t speak of the fu- ture again until we’ve accomplished what we set out to do. Mr. Lorrin has changed all at once; he wants the investigation dropped.” “He wants—what?” King cried. “Hush, Wesley; we must be careful,” she warned. ‘“ He wants to go away and take his ultimate chances of escape with- out having the guilty person brought to justice.” ‘* Well, look here, Mary!” King burst out excitedly but in a more guarded tone. ‘““ Doesn’t that look as if, after all, he com- mitted that forgery?” ““ Never!” she exclaimed. ‘“‘ He wants to protect the person who did, for some reason of his own.” There was a pause while King nervously took out his cigarette case and then replaced it in his pocket. After a time he said in a changed tone: “ That’s pretty white of him, if it’s true; but I cannot imagine his motive. Anyway, we've got to respect it, of course—it’s his own affair, and we have no right to inter- fere further. Ill help him to get out of the country, as I offered before, and that will be the end of it.” “Tt will be only the beginning,” Mary announced firmly. “I'll never rest till I have proved his innocence even in spite of himself. Your principles seem to have changed, Wesley. What about the cause of common justice now?” “ But, my dear girl, the man has a right to choose for himself!’ King expostulated. ‘If he wants the case dropped we mustn’t take it upon ourselves to drag it into the limelight.” “TI shall leave that to his mother; but I mean to know the truth for myself.” There was a note of finality in her tones that King recognized, and he veered suddenly. ‘“There’s no harm in that,” he conceded. ‘* You’ve taken an interest in him from the beginning, and we'll find Hill, anyway, and oO GOmMmiGwooksaco