Argosy All-Story Weekly, June 27, 1925 — page 111: what you’re looking at

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

THROW UP YOUR HANDS. settled. She’s to be Mrs. Julius Yost. And any of you who touch that girl will have to answer to me.” Margery dropped the receiver with a groan. She knelt again beside the red- haired bandit and took his head tenderly in her arms, cradling it to her breast. “Qh, my dear, my dear!’’ she crooned, and the rain pelted in her curly dark hair and on her shoulders. “ Larry—darling,”’ she said dully, “ they wouldn’t dare say such things if you were only—here. They know you’d defend me with the last breath in your dear body. He’s coming up here to get me, Larry. He’s coming up here to take me away from you—you, the only man I have ever loved or could love. Larry!” she cried. “ You’re not dead! Oh, you can’t be dead!”’ Gently she lowered his head and covered him with a poncho. Then panic seized her. Julius Yost was coming up here. She must conceal herself somewhere, somehow! But as far as she could see in all directions, there was no hiding place. Behind her the canon loomed, misted with rain, its sheer walls defying ascent. And in the other direction lay the unbroken plain—and Yumpa. All about her were rocks, large and small, but they afforded only tempo- rary concealment. Her roving eyes encountered the glisten- ing, round, black side of the water tower. The thought of taking her life had never before occurred to her. Now it pre- sented itself as the only logical solution to the myriad problems confronting her. Yes, death was preferable to Julius Yost. She would, she decided, climb the nar- row steel ladder rivetted to the side of the great tank, and dive in. Then the decision would no longer be hers. She would, per- haps, swim about until exhausted, or, if she preferred, she would inhale long drafts of the icy water and put an end promptly to it all. Dimly, vaguely, she remembered having tead somewhere that death by drowning was swift and not at all dreadful. With lungs full of water, the heart action simply Stopped, and she would float off into a dreamy blackness into which a divine light would presently fall and somewhere down 907 the road of eternity she would again clasp hands with her dead lover. The rungs of the steel ladder were wet and cold and slippery. She clutched at them with a fierce energy, mounting slowly, falteringly. The rain sluiced past her and upon her in chilling gusts. She sneezed. She was taking cold. Then she smiled bit- terly. What difference did it make? Tak- ing cold when her darling was growing cold! Ah, life had been short. The years since childhood passed in a fleet procession. She had never been happy, genuinely happy, until she came West and freedom and ro- mance and high adventure were offered to her by a clear-eyed, bronzed-skinned youth who laughed at danger. Yes, it had been worth while. They had had their little mo- ment. Happiness had shone upon them With the tenderness of moonlight. A little sob caught at her throat. But if they could only have gone on to the pots of gold at the rainbow’s end! How she had been dreaming of the little white farm- house, “overlooking nineteen ranges of mountains,” as he had once described it! How happy they would have been there! Oh, how happy! Working out their des- tinies. Realizing the hopes and the dreams of those hardy pioneers. His children -&. her knees! A sob racked her; hot tears blurred her vision. Below her all was swimming gray- ness, while above— Only a dozen more rungs to the top! And then—oblivion! Unseen by her misted eyes, the stricken bandit pushed the poncho away from his face with a feeble effort of one arm. He gazed vaguely about him. He could not move his head, but his dazed eyes made out a pale spot that seemed to be clinging to the top of the water tower. As his vision cleared, he identified it. A sob floated down to him on the rain-soaked wind. And~suddenly Red Wilpin’s brain cap- tured the truth. Believing him to be dead, Margery was climbing the water tower to commit suicide! He tried to move, but could not. He tried to call, but only a hoarse gasping came from his constricted throat. She reached the top. He saw her clasp her hands above her head for the dive fate GOMIGDOOo C SS Co