Part 28 (2/2)

Their chauffeur was standing beside the car as they emerged from the hotel and started to cross the sidewalk; the porter, following, set their luggage on the curbstone; and at the same instant a young and pretty woman stepped lightly between Rue and Brandes.

”Good evening, Eddie,” she said, and struck him a staggering blow in the face with her white-gloved hand.

Brandes lost his balance, stumbled sideways, recovered himself, turned swiftly and encountered the full, protruding black eyes of Maxy Venem staring close and menacingly into his.

From Brandes' cut lip blood was running down over his chin and collar; his face remained absolutely expressionless. The next moment his eyes s.h.i.+fted, met Ruhannah's stupefied gaze.

”Go into the hotel,” he said calmly. ”Quick----”

”Stay where you are!” interrupted Maxy Venem, and caught the speechless and bewildered girl by the elbow.

Like lightning Brandes' hand flew to his hip pocket, and at the same instant his own chauffeur seized both his heavy, short arms and held them rigid, pinned behind his back.

”Frisk him!” he panted; Venem nimbly relieved him of the dull black weapon.

”Can the fake gun-play, Eddie,” he said, coolly shoving aside the porter who attempted to interfere. ”You're double-crossed. We got the goods on you; come on; who's the girl?”

The woman who had struck Brandes now came up again beside Venem. She was young, very pretty, but deathly white except for the patches of cosmetic on either cheek. She pointed at Brandes. There was blood on her soiled and split glove:

”You dirty dog!” she said unsteadily. ”You'll marry this girl before I've divorced you, will you? And you think you are going to get away with it! You dog! You dirty dog!”

The porter attempted to interfere again, but Venem shoved him out of the way. Brandes, still silently struggling to free his imprisoned arms, ceased twisting suddenly and swung his heavy head toward Venem.

His hat had fallen off; his face, deeply flushed with exertion, was smeared with blood and sweat.

”What's the idea, you fool!” he said in a low voice. ”I'm not married to her.”

But Ruhannah heard him say it.

”You claim that you haven't married this girl?” demanded Venem loudly, motioning toward Rue, who stood swaying, half dead, held fast by the gathering crowd which pushed around them from every side.

”Did you marry her or did you fake it?” repeated Venem in a louder voice. ”It's jail one way; maybe both!”

”He married her in Gayfield at eleven this morning!” said the chauffeur. ”Parson Smawley turned the trick.”

Brandes' narrow eyes glittered; he struggled for a moment, gave it up, shot a deadly glance at Maxy Venem, at his wife, at the increasing throng crowding closely about him. Then his infuriated eyes met Rue's, and the expression of her face apparently crazed him.

Frantic, he hurled himself backward, jerking one arm free, tripped, fell heavily with the chauffeur on top, twisting, panting, struggling convulsively, while all around him surged the excited crowd, shouting, pressing closer, trampling one another in eagerness to see.

Rue, almost swooning with fear, was pushed, jostled, flung aside.

Stumbling over her own suitcase, she fell to her knees, rose, and, scarce conscious of what she was about, caught up her suitcase and reeled away into the light-shot darkness.

She had no idea of what she was doing or where she was going; the terror of the scene still remained luridly before her eyes; the shouting of the crowd was in her ears; an indescribable fear of Brandes filled her--a growing horror of this man who had denied that he had married her. And the instinct of a frightened and bewildered child drove her into blind flight, anywhere to escape this hideous, incomprehensible scene behind her.

Hurrying on, alternately confused and dazzled in the patches of darkness and flaring light, clutched at and followed by a terrible fear, she found herself halted on the curbstone of an avenue through which lighted tramcars were pa.s.sing. A man spoke to her, came closer; and she turned desperately and hurried across a street where other people were crossing.

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