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The Romance of a Business Girl.

'OUR SERIAL.)

BY F, L. DACRE Author of "A Fleet of D reair ?, ' "Silar Bennington* Money," "The Shado wof Shame," "A Phantom of the Past," H Ad in Bondage etc.

Jib got up

J (».i-!APTK.II XII. (Continued.) Hern her thoughts entered another chiiJi'i"'. f>hf wouldn't, »oe Jim again until .-Suiiiiuy, and on Monday they were g«.ing to choose their furniture. It- wi.'.iH bo u big undertaking—twenev ;-o.■.'!?;-i. In tile meantime tho furniture oc->pk> hud sent an expert to plan, th* furnishing of all these rooms. ThoT !::<•:. ..!>*> undertaken the decorations', hj th it everything should blendharrnonioissly. How good Jim was —how clover, and withal how simple. If what his father had said about children being like their parents was right, Jim might chaffg<P«vto-*- • -grumpy, -tonguo-Aish-At ; least, Mr Carling should some daydo hev itt'stice. . '.' ... ...'.. She paused in the wortof unpacka Qu&li of .defiance in her great eyes, and, looked herself oyer in the mirror. "They-had : to ; eonfeW.th'at v T «" good-looking," she muvmured, in a tone of satisfaction, "and I will never be a dowdy to please anybody." And in the self-same hour that Serena was indulging in this rambling thought, Jim rung up her uncle on the telephone. The response wag prompt. "Hello, Girling! Is my niece home, too?" "Yes; wo parted at Eustori a couple of hours since." "Let her know that I intend paying her a call on Monday or Tuesday. Of course, I will write as well, and T want you to see to it that'she doesn't give me the slip.' ' "Then make it Tuesday, •;>» we are I going to tiie furniture people on Monday—a full day of it. I've bought a small estate in Surrey—settled the business last week. Oh. yes. T quite I appreciate your letter, but T have no voice in the matter. Serena shall do ' cxictly a,s she pleases. I will tell her J that you are coming to Duhvich on Tuesday, in the afternoon. All right. GoodJby." He hung up the receiver and yawned. There were several letters to write, but he didn't feel like letter j writing. He had been overdoing it a i bit that week, and was brain-fagged j and weary. A clerk entered his office with a card. The gentleman was wait- ] ing—he had called several times before. It was Captain Mayhew's card, and ho w,is pacing about the waiting room. Jim's face reddened slowly—a dusky fiortof flush, and his eyes were contracted. . , "Send the gentleman in." he briefly said. His voice was-strained.""'" '"'"■' '■ "Mayhew strode-.into the •officer with•' an easy, buoyant step, a cheerful ring in his salutition. Jim pretended to be writing. His heart felt too big for his body. "Hard at it, Carling What a demon you are for work." "Yes." '■ '.■.' .Mayhew took a seat, "and with a formal "May I?" lighted a cigar. He puffed in silence for a minute of two, then a shade of impatience canio over his face. "Are you too occupied to speak to a man?" he "I'll come in again. Wlien?" "We may as well have it out now," Jim replied. He swung round and faced Mayhew. There was no look of welcome in his eyes, and he ignored the .hand that was thrust forward. Mayhew dropped it hastily—angrily. What a boor Carling could.bet "I don*t know what to make of you, CJM-lihg,r-'but- you can go to the deuce for all that-J care. Kindly answ&'otte, question or, you can send an acknow.ledgemeutbyvmaiJ, check?'-'"" ; "It is in my pocket book. Thin is painful to me, May-how. and I wonder you don't keep away, for mero decency's sake.' ' "Good Lord! What's tho matter with the felow? Have you gone nutty? Decency's sake!" His blue eyes glinted like steel. "Do you mean to insinuate that my check is no good? Why. haven't you deposited it with your bankers? Must I prove to you that I've got fifteen thousand pounds to my credit at Ooutts'?" "It isn't the check. If you haven't seen Lady Laura yet, you had better make your explanation to her." With an oath, Mayhew turned to the door, then looked back. "Perhaps yon know thai my cousin lias been at Brighton for the past few days, and perhaps you don't. Anyway I'm going after her by the first train, and at a later d-ite shall demand aa apology from you for this insulting behaviour." His face went pale, his lips twitched, and his head throbbed a-s though it had received a heary Mow.

j "I am very sorry, Mayhew, and if J wo have misjudged you, I shan't know how to forgive myself." "We?' Of whom are you speaking? Misjudged me? Why the devil can't yon be candid? How can I defend myself when I haven't tho faintest idei. of what I am charged with. I have been unkind to my wife; I have-been j a gambler; but, God helping me. I don't think I have been guilty of dishonor." They looked mto each other's eyes, [ and Jim stepped forward impulsively. "Will you t-iko my hand now, Mayhew? I know that we are wrong." "No. keep your paw to yourself until I know what sort-'of a sweep I am supposed t<> be. We —-wol Who, the devil are 'we?' " :,; ■*■ "Lady Laura and I. -VYou can't blame me for siding with a woman JShut the door. Mayhew, and turn the key in the-kick. That's all we needn't "shout"at one another. 'The truth is, Lady Laura lost a thousand pounds worth of jewelllery, that night we went to the theater " Ho broke off deterred by the growing horror in the eyes of his companion. "And you believed that I took it — that I wa-s a dirty sneak thief?" he hoarsely whispered. ;,, He dropped back into his seat, and huddled himself together. "Well, you've got it," Jim said. "That's just what we did think. Lady Laura reasoned it out pretty conclusively, and I was lx>und to follow her lead. It was the key that did it—the litchkey to the front door. She says that there are only two in existence—she has one, and you had the other. Yours was found in the lock." 'Mayhew's face was hidden in his hands. He was silent. ] "You. must make allowances for i Lady Lmira's state of mind. And to j induce this I am going to break a confidence. That vampire husband of hers in still living, and draining her. She has had to sell of lot of her property, and I've bought The Pines. Ninety per cent of the purchase money has gone into the maw of the mortgagee." When Miyhew uncovered his face lie seemed, to have aged years. He got up from his chair, and reached to the table for his gloves with trembling hands. "This is a big shock to me, Carling,' and I can't find it in my heart to make excuses for my cousin. She has known me since she was a tiny girl; I've borrowed her money. Thank the Lord. lean repay every penny," but J" look at her, or speak to her again until sko begs my pardon. With you It is different, because we . have really known each other for five minutes, and I began by taking your money." a rest," growled Jim. "And you'll reconsider your attitude toward Lady Laura. The next thing is to try and trace the stuff. Your key must have been stolon." "It was," Mayhew quietly answered. "I missed it from my desk, and was under the impresssion that I had mislaid it. Somebody entered my fl.it. nn<} took away a few other things." j (To be Continued.)

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/WAG19121107.2.3

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 10713, 7 November 1912, Page 2

Word count
Tapeke kupu
1,270

The Romance of a Business Girl. Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 10713, 7 November 1912, Page 2

The Romance of a Business Girl. Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 10713, 7 November 1912, Page 2

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