II H
a .
.iiBiiiiaiiiaiiiBiiiinijiii
River
When the Colorado
Burst Its Banks and
Flooded the Imperial
Valley 9" California
EDNAH AIKEN
(CcrillU ItobW-Mt lllll CumpHj. )
CHAPTER XXVIII.
A DItcovery.
TI10 tntinlor of Mnltlmmtlo shook the
camp xwxt morning. Tlm'pYunilos, In
Ifrllllunt tratiliiKK. rodu tip to Hick
iirtl'H mmnilti. Tho IpihIit, ontorhtK
1lu ollln', mmounivil tlmt Uioy wmi
dm the track of 11 crlmlmil, tho mur
derer of 11 riinih, Muldoimrio, Ho vh
im Intllim iiiiiiu'tl I'Vllpc. Ho ropi'ittwl
tho utory Itlcknrd hml hciml hi-foro.
Would tlio Hi'iior glvo IiIh respected
pinnlHMloii for notice to ho poNtcd
nliout ttio ciiiup? A description of thr
liulliin, 11 reward for Mh rapturo; tlic
favor would tiu Ineatlmnhlo.
Illckurd wiw tho notlct; Inter tlmt
day. It wiim nulled to the Imck plat
form of the. Palmyra. He wiih on Mar
mIiiiII'h trail, IiIh chief having fulled to
keep an npiKilntment with him. They
were to test the gate that afternoon;
Mnnthnll wan returning noon to Tuo
Hon.
Itlcknrd tnrned baek townnl enmp,
d-ep In thought I xo Intent thnt Hharp
cry had lost Ua echo before the Import
came to him. He mopped, hearing run
Ming KtepH behind him. inncH Hardin
Nvas loping tip the bank like a young
leer, with terror In her cyrii.
"Mr. Itlcknrd !" Rlio cried. -Mr.
Jtlekiml I"
She was trembling. Her fright bnd
flushed her; chwk to brow wan glow
ing with Mnrtlod blootl. He nw nn
odd ttanh of Htartllng beauty, tho veil
of tan torn off by her emotion, Tim
wave of hrr terror canght him. Ho
pnt out IiIh hand to Meady her. She
utood recovering herelf, regaining her
vpent breath. Ulcknnl rememhereil
thnt thlH wah the flrxt time he had neen
her Klncc the murder of Mnldonadn,
lnce tho meeting with the Mexican
-woman nt hU tent. "What wiin It
'frightened youT
The Indlnn, tho munlerer. Junt na
they dcucrihc him nn thonc notices. I
must hnvo fallen nsleep. I'd been
rrudlng. I hoard 11 iioIm la the brush
and there wna his face atarlng at mc.'
Her breath was still uaevca. MI
ncreAtned and ran. Silly to feo ao
aenrcd."
He started toward the willow, but
h grabbed his sWve. "Oh. don't."
Who flushed, thinking to meet the aU
tlcul amllo, but his eye vwrw crave,
ftp, too, hnd had his fright They stood
idnrlng at each other. Tm afraid"
shn rompleteil. How he would despise
tier cowardice I Hut she could not let
him know that her fear luid been for
him I
He wns looking nt her. Suppose Any
thing had biipHned to her! He had a
minute of nausea. If that brute bad
hurt her and then he knew how It
was with him I
He looked nt her grnvely. Of enurse.
He had known It n long time. It wiw
true. She was going to belong to him.
If that brulo hnd hart her I
She shrank under his gravity; this
was Komething she did not understand,
They were silent, walking toward the
eiieampnient. Itlcknrd did not enre to
talk. It was not the lime; and he had
been badly shaken. Iiines was treinu
lously conscious of tho palpitating !
leui-e. Sue Muttered toward giddy
speech. Her walk thnt day, Mr. Itlck
nrd I She hail henrd thnt water had
started to How down the old river bed ;
hn had wanted In see It, and there
was no one to go with her. Her sen
I once broke off, The look he had
turned on her was so dominant, sn lou
der. Amused at bur giddiness, and
yet loving her! I.ovlng her! They
were silent again.
"Vou won't go ofl alone, ngnlu." He
Jim) not asked II, at parting. Ills lie
llecllnn demanding It of her, was of
ownership, She did not meet his eyes.
Later, when she wns lying on her
lied, fnce downward, routed, she tried
to nnnlyzu that possessive challenge of
his gnr.e, but It eluded words. She
yummnncd her pride, but the meaning
railed her, sense and mind and soul
of her. It cried to her: "I, Casey
Itlcknrd, whom your brother hntes,
once the lover of Oerty Holmes, I am
the mate for you. And I'm going to
come and take you soma day. Home
day, when I bnve time!"
Oh, yea, she was angry with bin;
the had aowo pride. "Why didn't he
tell me thrnV ahe cried In a warn? tu
mult to her pillow. "Ker 1 would nave
given him his asawer. 11 hid tine,
ample time, to t r II hlw that It was
not trne." For aha wasted a different
wort of lover, not a second-hand dis
card; but one who belonged all to her
uelf ; one who wonld woo, not take her
with thnt strnnge uure look of his,
"Vou'll ho waiting when I come." Ah,
she would not, Indeed I Shu would
show him I
And then she lay quite sllll with her
hnnd over her henrt. Sho would hu
-waiting when he ennm for her! Ho
cause, though Ufn hnd brought thorn
muddled things, yet she knew. Shu
would lie waiting for hlinl
llefore he had left tier, Itlcknrd hml
tollnw cil 11 MWlfl Impulse. Those bronze
latitpH averted still? Wiih she roniotn
boring Inst night? No mistake like
that should rest between them. Ho
must set tlmt straight. That much ho
allowed himself. Until his wort; wiih
done. Hut she knew slut had neon
how It was wllh I1I111 1
"1 wonder If you would help me,
MIsh HiirdlnT Would you do some
thing for that poor mixed wommtV
1 wanted to ask Mrs. Hardin, but for
some reason I've got into her blnel
books. Just the little kindness one
woman can give another. A man tltiits
It dllllcult. And these Mexican wom
en don't understand 11 man's friend'
.H.'lp."
Her eyes met his siiunrely, IHh 'trttt
tall.ltik hiiiIIo had puio. He wns mak
ing n demand if her to believe Hlni.
h's request IiIh defense. The glances,
of el'ow eyes and gray, met wit li a
shock, uud the world was changed for
both. Life, villi Ms many glnd vnlee-i,
was cnlllitg to sensei. uud spirit, tho
girl's still rebellious, the innns sure.
Itlcknrd put out his iiaiid. "(lood
night I" To both, It carried tho sound
of "I love youl" She put her hand lu
his, then tore her lingers away, lurl
oiih wltl them for clinging. Where
was her pride? When hu hud time!
She tied Into her tent.
Neither of them had seen Oerty
Hardin watching them from her tent
door.
CHAPTER XXIX.
A Qllmpie of Freedom.
The siding was deserted. Tho Pal
myra had run out to Tuseon. Miirshall
had gone without apprehension. They
did not expect now to nnvo setbacks,
to have to extend the tluio set for tho
ultlmnte diversion. Tho dnyH were
flowing like oil. The encninpuienl was
tilling tip with visitors, newspaper men
who mine to report tho spcctnculur
niptnre of the river.
Hlcl.-nrd's day bndly begun, (died up
wltti vrxnthiitM. Hy sundown, he win
wet to the skin, nud mud as a nick Art
xoun rnl.
In this Jntindlced Juncture, Mne
I.enn, Jr., brought down his dispatches
to the river. He read of the burning
of a tralnload uf railroad ties. Ulcknnl
awore.
"Anything else plcnsnnt?"
"A letter from the governor from
dad." MneiLonu rend thnt his father
begged a email favor of Itlcknrd.
"Ondfrey, tho celebrated Kngllsh
tenor, Is on my bunds. His doctors
hnvo been ndvlslug outdoor occupa
tion. ! am sending him to you, nuk
ing ymi to give hlni .miy Job yon may
have. Ho Is witling to do anything.
Tut him ut something to kuep hliu oc
cupied." Maclenn snw Ttlckard's fnco turn
red. HnrferJng cntal A worn-out
opera singer I Wbat sort of nn operu
doea he think we're giving down hero?
Why doesn't he send me 11 1 ur cout. or
a. pair of girl twlnaf Olve tho teaor
n role I Aay thing 4i? J'.llo It all
on."
"Oh, ami r from Godfrey himself.
He's In ls Angeles. He says he'll be
here tomorrow." He Aid sot wait for
his rhlefa rrply.
At tho mipper tnbU Jtlckurd, dry
nnd In restored humor, nllnded to tho
Invuslon of high note. "I'ity the parts
nre nil iisslgn-d! The only irncuncy
In In the kitchen. I wonder how ho
would like to be understudy to I.lngl"
Tho next dny when the Incident hud
been forgotten, uud while Itlrkard was
up at the (.'rowing on the oucrct
gate, Oodfrcy htww into cuuip. Ho
Godfrey Blew Into Camp.
was like a boy out on a Inrk, His
brown eye were dancing over tho ad
venture. He explored the cutup and
came hack bubbling,
"It's the biggest I ever aaw. Rat aay,
Junior, that'a what they call yon,
Isn't it? I'm the only Idle man here.
Wr yea give aie something to do?
I'll do anything, I'd like the boat to
find me busy when he cornea la;"
Mac l.eatn aaftened the offer. Perhaps
until Mr, Godfrey learned tho ropea ho
could be of general use. They were
whort-hauricd tho prevent moment
there waa another hesitation In tho
kitchen I Ling, the Chinese cook, wns
orerurowded so many vlaltors
' "Orent," crowed (Jodfrey, slapping
1 him 011 the thoulder. "I don't want to
feel In tho wny, I want to earn my
hoard. Lead mo to tho cook!"
That oycnlpg, tho dinner waa helped
on lis way by tlio"hes pnld singer "of
Knglnnd. In nil apron, lio;i'owed of
Ling, he was "having Mm tlmiMir IiIh
life." Ling, protending In scold, had
been won Immediately. !llckird, hear
ing of III" Jolly advent, forgot IiIh Me
ntion, and Immediately nn IiIh return
made Iiih way to the mosqult Inclosuro
to greet tho friend of Ucorgo Mac
Lean. ,
' After dinner, MacLean carried oh
his prlro to the Deltii, where (lodfrey
earned IiIh welcome. Oerty Hnrdlh for
got to llli'l with the engineers; sho
tnul discovered a new Hensallon. The
.oiideriul voice twisted nor heart
Mt'lngs; It told her that the henrt that
iiiih truly loved nuvcr forgets, and sho
j knew thnt she could never have reall"
I loved, yet, heeause the you'tn In Iter
, voIiih was whispering to nor that iiho
eouiti sun rorgoi. tioiiuoy saw a mo
bile plaintive face turned up to the
gibbous moon; he nvepl it with thrllln
Mid Hushes, She was a wonderful au
dience; she was nln bis oreheMrn, the
woman with the tiltilnHvo eyes. Ho
li'i'M'M on nor expiessioiiH an though
sho were a mil p.
Liner, no was nresen'od to Ar.
llaidlll. Hie mid tilin Hint tho camp
would no inm.'cr lie dull; (leit she nail
tea every aliei uo:p Ir n. r i n.iiiinii.
She oeiivlot.'d nllii archly 01 Mrltlsli
hood. "She knew ho niiisl have ids
tea 1"
"Vou American women ale the won
ders ot tho world! Nothing dun :h you.
In the doNort, nnd you g'te iiuornoou
teas. I'll ,10 there every day'
Ho gave her open Mlmlrallon s rhe
looked jiiitng and wlstlill In Her sort
(lowing mulls, the moonlight helping
her. She fell Into ti delicious llitiry of
nerves and ei itemout. L.iier, she
wandered with him from 11 rude gaping
world Into a heaven of silvered docks
uud gloaming waters, lie told tier ot
blmsitf, ff his loneliness; his music
Had jlmppcd him to self.plty.
Oerty llardln heard her bars drop
behind I" r. She snatched her llr.it
glimpse n( freedom,
CHAPTER XXX.
The Dragon dcores.
The Ti i'iiyrn was once again on ll '
siding. Marshall was at the front
ngaln; I lng made another ot his
swift dnf'ii's from Tucson. This time
he expel led olllclnlly to close the gate.
Claudia utiM with hllit. She never left
tho rar, unless It were to stop out to
the platform to see what alio could
from there of the river work.
llardln nud Itlcknrd hud boon devot
ing nnxlous weeks. A heavy rainfall
uud cloudburst lu tho mountains of
northern Arlinn bad swollen the feed
ers of the (Jlla river which roared
down to the Colorado above Vuinit.
The eroding streams carried moun
tains In solution which settled ngnlust
the gate, a scour starting above, nud
below It Itellef hnd to lie given on
the Jump. A spur track wan rushed
across the by-puss nbovo the gale, as
the closing of the Ill-fated gate with
tho flANhlHiarda was no longer possible.
A rock-fill wns tho only menna. of
closure. In tho dlstnnt qunrrlrs men
were digging out rock to fill tho cull
from the river,
Marshnll rutno down to see tho com
pleted spur, llefore he reached tho
Intake, the first rock train hnd moved
onto the spur trnck. The trestle had
settled, the train hud been thrown
from the rall.t nivt wrecked,
Mnrshntl came In from the damnged
trestle, bringing hickanl uud Crot tiers.
Mrs. Marshall hnd Invited Innes llar
dln to dine wllh them. Innes fell to
flushing, nud chilling, ns a llthc-mtis-clcd
figure caiao directly to her. Ills
eyes where was tho iook sho hail
feared, of possessive tendernesH? Tho
qulxr.lcal, gleam was gone, On guard t
A solemn huslnos, loving, when you
know tlmt It mentis life! On guard,
though, to her I Sho pulled her tin- 1
gem from his strong lingering clasp, i
uud Joined Mrs Murshall.
Itlcknrd bnd his soldier look 011. She
was watching him covertly iim he :
tallied with his host nud Crolhcrs, nn 1
(hough she were not there; as though .
iKimelhliig were not waiting for him to
claim. How could he be talking, oh-1
llvloiis of evervthlni- else In the world !
except the rlver7 Wiih that loving?
Could she think of nnythlug else when
lie wiih In the sumo room wllh her?
He tvnH u soldier of the modern army.
It came to her, a sort of tender divi
nation, (hut he would not divide his
thoughts, even with her, with love, un
til his buttle wns won. Well, couldn't
she understand thnt? What her neon
satloti against Oerty? Sex honor
keep off the track! Wnsu't that her
own notion? Oughtn't she to he proud
of hint?
Sho had brought n nest of waspish
thoughts tumbling about her ears.
Oerty! Ho hnd loved Oerty. Ho
couldn't love her, if his thoughts had
ever lingered, with thnt same nerlniiH
ly solemn look 6n tho fnlso little face
of her sister-in-law.
After dinner they were standing la
the ahade of lint I'almyra, It waa a
aoft atlll afternoon. The fierceness of
(be savage desert had melted to her
daya of lure. Beyond, 'the turbid wa
ter of the Colorado bore a amlllng air
fare. There waa nothing to hint of
treachery.
It waa a adnata of pleaaaat la eat
tade, matched frnat the turmoil. Kick
ard had auccutnbH to tho softneaa of
tho day and his wood. He waa enjoy
Ing tho thought of Innea' nearness,
though aha kept her faoo turned from
him. He knew hy tho persistence of
thnso averted eyes that she was m
acutely conscious of his presence us he
wns, restfully, of hers. Deliberately,
ho was prolonging the Instant.
A stir on tho river hnd caught the
nlert eye of Tod Marshall. He swore
n airing of picturesque Mnrshalllnn
jaH ,1.l.'V:krl! W JlWUed toward
th" hyping, Tim ptnclil iilnrn imTi
inulilUlly li'ioUed. Majestically ll 0
gate i'omo uud went out, MoiiiIih ol
uot'l; Huctit away I Tho gttto drifted
a hundred feet or more, Sntno unseen
nhsl ruction cailghl It there, to nloclc
at the liilmru ol' man.
InncH, aghast, turned toward Hick
ard. UN lacq wan expressionless.
There was 11 liabel of excited volenti
behind them, Kodefeldt, MacLean,
Tony, C'rother.i, HiitigH, nil lallilng nl
nice. Her eyes demanded something
of Itlcknrd. A llerco resentment rose
against IiIh calmness. "II n, knew it,"
she rebelled. "IIc'h been expect lug
thin to happen. It's no tragedy to
hlni!" Thorn wan n stab iih of physi
cal pain; hIio wiih visualizing tho blow
to Tom.
Sho henrd MiirshiiU'H voice, speak
ing to Itlcknrd. "Well, you're ready
for this." Sho did not hear the an
swer, for nlroaily Itlcknrd wiih heading
Ftlckard WnaHeudlna tor the By-Paw.
for the by-pnss. Mnrshntl nnd tho
young engineers followed him.
To Innes that wreck down yonder
was worse than failure; ll was ruin.
It Involved Tom's life. It wns his life.
This would be the final crushing or his
superb courage her thoughts released
from their paralysis were whipped by
sudden fear. She must llud hltn, bo
with him. The next Instant she wan
speeding toward thu encampment.
Kslrndu met Iter on the run.
Had Oerty heard? The pity thnt
rhe must know! She would not be ten
der to Tom; her pride would lie
wounded. Sho must nsk her to be ten
der, generous. Her footsteps slack
ened ns she came In sight of tho tents.
She henrd voices In the rotunda, n
mini's cU'Hr mites mingling with Oer
ty 's childish treble. "Oodfreyr Her
mind Jumped to other tete-a-tete. Of
course I 80 that waa what waa going
on. And alio not aeelngl If not one
man, then another I Horrid little clnn
destine affairs 1
The meeting wan nwkwnrd. Rpeud
ily Innes got rid of the news. Mrs.
Hnrdln shrugged. "I believe I'll go
nut." Plaintively, she made the an
nouncement, na though it went Just
evolved. "Now, tho camp will he hor
rid. Kvcryhody will be cross nnd
everybody will bo working."
Ah sho left the tent beyond, Innea
could hear tho vlbrnut voice of Oml
frey pentiudlng Mrs. Hnrdln to stny
there 11 few weeks longer. She could
Jiear hint y, 'Tule will delay the turn-
4TI
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' Ing in toe ilver al UiiMiioHtliut 11 fw
weekH. illckurd told mo ho 11 wcok ago.
And think what it would bo hero with
out yodi"
"They were nil expecting It I" roniHt
ed InnoH Hardin. Him turned back to
ward tho river. Hint must find Tom.
(To bo contlntind aoxt week.J
Htntosnion differ. At tho banquet
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