The Argosy, Vol. 82 No. 2 — page 65: what you’re looking at

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

GETTING AWAY FROM “We may be exaggerating Miss Callum’s trouble?” he asked brightly. “She might be able to go on later in the afternoon, doc- tor?” The doctor stared at him and then at Mary, who screamed weakly. “Yes, sir,” said he. ‘‘You may take her later in the afternoon—if you wish to kill her!” ‘““And he is capable of it!”” Aunt Hettie observed pleasantly. ‘“‘Upon my word, I be- lieve that he is capable of it!”’ She glared at Jane. ‘Take off your things!” The hostess glanced appealingly at Mr. Farnham. ‘Miss Fayre doesn’t want to end the tour,” he said gently. ‘‘That was an unfor- tunate accident, of course, but it will not happen again, and it’s a shame to spoil her trip.” There was no response. Mr. Farnham smiled suddenly at Mrs. Hapworthy. “Why, you'll be the chaperon, of course!” said he. “7?” the lady cried harshly. ‘“I’d no more think of riding another mile in that car than I’d think of drinking acid!” “Vou’re not going to desert us?”’ “T have deserted you!” snapped Mrs. Hapworthy. And just here her husband saw fit to laugh lightly. “Why, I was enjoying it!” he said. “All that jolly old banging around and rippmg through space and all that sort of thing! Seemed exhilarating, you know—shook up the blood a bit. Pity to drop it all just when Farnham’s learning to drive!” “Thank you!” Farnham said, gratefully and desperately. “Then you'll stick to the party at least?” It may have been mere chance, but Mr. Hapworthy’s china-blue eyes rolled momen- tarily in Jane’s direction as he said easily: “T? Oh, rather! I’m game for no end of that sort of thing!” The elderly and bewhiskered doctor paused again in his mixing, for this time his attention had been drawn away from the job by the peculiar rattle in Mrs. Hap- worthy’s throat. To his medical ear it indicated any one of half a dozen acute pathological conditions, but in simple fact it was no more than the sudden collision of eight or ten assorted and violent emotions. With a cold, an almost evil, light in her eye, Mrs. Hapworthy smiled at Mr. Farnham. THOMPSON. 247 “Be ? ‘“T will accompany you,” she said. sure of that!” . Years of conventional living rose within Jane Fayre, bidding her abandon the chase of John Thompson and all else rather than prod farther, and however unwillingly, into Mrs. Hapworthy’s jealous depths. A moment there rose to her lips a frigid and incisive little speech that would end everything on the spot and leave a yawning chasm between herself and Mrs. James Hapworthy forever more; but she caught Farnham’s satisfied eye and his little nod and held her peace. Across the office, the wicked clock ticked on furiously, checking off lost minutes from the narrow strip of time between now and Monday morning. The physician, having raised Mary Callum’s head, was urging his forbidding mixture down her strangling and reluctant throat; and now, with a final gurele, the last of it disappeared and the medical man smiled benevolently. “Twenty minutes or so and she will be asleep,” said he. ‘“‘And she will be quite all right when she wakes?”’ Jane asked eagerly. “Quite, my dear young lady.” “And you will be here, dear aunt,” pur- sued the hostess. “There is nothing more that we can do for poor Mary.” Aunt Hettie gazed wonderingly at her. “You insist on continuing the trip until all hands have been killed outright?” “Not that, but—” “Mind, Jane, I shall disclaim every par- ticle of responsibility,’ said the chaperon. “In just so many words, I forbid you to go on. I shall tell your Uncle Horace that —when it is all over. You, doctor, will be alive at least to bear me witness?” “TJ hope so,” the physician said bewil- deredly. “Why, nothing at all is going to happen to us!” Farnham laughed boisterously, ‘“‘and there’s no real reason for hanging around here and disturbing Miss Callum. Now that we’re quite sure that everything is all right, we’d better get into motion.” Mrs. Hapworthy blanched and shut her teeth. Her husband, who seemed to be en- joying an inning of his own, said cheerily: “Ready whenever you are, old chap. Good-by, dear ladies—awfully sorry it had to happen, but how lucl y it’s no worse!” And he had blazed the path to the outer world again and Mr. Farnham followed after him, with a word of farewell. CORMMICLO® S (C@)