"Whash ze
harm--zash all--I'll take care you all right--Ol' man never know." And
again he clutched her arm.
This was too much, and giving the drunken wretch a push, which sent
him tumbling into the gutter, where cursing fiercely he struggled to
regain his feet, the frightened girl, without pausing to see his
condition, or listening to his calls and threats, fled down the street.
When her companion had at last managed to stagger to the sidewalk and
could look around by clinging to the fence, she was out of sight. He
called two or three times, and then swearing vilely, started in pursuit,
reeling from side to side. The frightened girl ran on and on, paying
no heed to her course, as she turned corner after corner her only
thought being to escape from her drunken and enraged companion.
Meanwhile, Dick Falkner was making his way home after a delightful
evening at the parsonage, where he had talked with Cameron on the
veranda until a late hour. As he was walking leisurely along through
the quiet streets, past the dark houses, enjoying the coolness of the
evening and thinking of the things that he and Cameron had been
discussing, his ear caught a strange sound, that seemed to come from
within a half finished house on North Catalpa Street, near the railroad.
He paused a moment and listened. Surely he was not mistaken. There it
was again. The sound of someone sobbing. Stepping closer and peering
into the shadow, he saw a figure crouching behind a pile of lumber.
Pages:
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172