Argosy All-Story Weekly — "Sea Marauders" — page 126: what you’re looking at

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

of conducting a telephone conversation, if you can contain yourself. Can you?” ““T—why, yes, of course, colonel; only—”’ “ Then do it and shut up!” snapped the head of the house, and turned the pages. He had it now. In another minute he’d be talking to Anne. Mr. Melton gritted his teeth hard. It might be alll right, of course; at least Anne knew the facts now. Why, it would be all right, of course, for Anne was bright as any dollar. He had been pretty well staggered, there for a-minute. But it was all right now. Really, all he had to do " was speed back to Gwen’s wire and— “They don’t answer,” said the col- onel, and hung up! * But—but—” “ Small office, Vane,” the gentleman remarked. “Not many people em- ployed., Melton may have given them the day off. More likely they knew he wouldn’t be back and took it them- selves.” : “But. you’ll—ah—try to get them again, pretty soon?” Richard asked, be- cause he knew, if the colonel did not, that Anne had just stepped out for a minute, somewhere or other. “No!” said Bragg, with as much finality as Richard had ever heard put into one syllable. ‘‘ No kind of a trick to play on the man, anyway. Ho— hum! Damn that burglar!’ He tilted back and closed his tired eyes, and Richard watched him sor- rowfully. He had erred again, of course; even that time he had not done the right thing. Why, if he had waited just another ten minutes before making that heroic dash to the telephone and putting into execution his bizarre and_ brilliant scheme of calling on Bill; he would have had a whole week, perhaps, in which to work out his puzzles! And this he had not done and—oh, well, perhaps it didn’t matter so much, except, to be sure, that now he was * Pe ge ee Es ea . —s 7 a — ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. risking absolutely everything, to no good purpose. : But—here! If the colonel felt that way about the interview, it would be a mere favor to have Bill ring up again and say that he’d broken a leg! Life pulsed through Mr. Melton once more and he started for the door with: “You don’t need me for anything else, colonel ?” “What?” Brage mumbled, blinked at him. ‘ Yes, wait a minute, Vane. You're so infernally anxious to do some telephoning; call up the Com- bined Products office for me,” “ What for?” Richard asked sharply. “What for? Because I want you to talk to them, of course! Get Mr. Seymour—John Seymour. Ask for extension two-four.”’ “ And—and then?” “And then tell him that I want him up here for luncheon to-day, at one o'clock, without fail!’ barked the as- tonishing colonel, and it was well in- deed that he had closed his eyes again and could not see Mr. Melton’s face. “L-luncheon?” Richard choked. “T said luncheon. Tell him to drop anything he may have on hand and come, Vane. Tell him that I want him here when Melton’s here; they’ve been over all this ground together. Tell him to be here! That’s why I’m hav- ng you phone—so that he can’t beg O +9 and “Oh, my Lord!” just passed Rich- ard’s lips. This time the colonel’s eyes opéned. They fastened hard on young Mr. Mel- ton; and while there was anger in them there was also something as nearly like fright as one might have expected to find in just that pair of eyes. “What are you shaking for?” he snarled. “ What’s happened to you this time?” “* [—er—shaking—nothing! Noth- ing has!’ Richard said brightly. “ I'll —ah — telephone — telephone, of course.” * Oh, no, you'll not!” the colonel iy, bal at “ 7 comicbooks-com — a 7 ein . = mcg, len a ee Pe £ * Ny hn ae a ee A Ps ah wien ale! gd?