Part 26 (2/2)

”Every way, I mean,” she added with a little blush.

”I know I drink more than I ought,” he supplied in accents of regret.

”Don't you suppose you could do without?” she begged very gently.

”Will you help me?” He turned on her quickly; then, his delicate instincts perceiving a faint, instinctive recoil at his advance, he added: ”Just let me come here occasionally, into this quiet atmosphere, when it gets too hard and I can see no light; just to get your help, the strength I shall need to tide me over.”

He looked very handsome and romantic and young. He was apparently very, deeply in earnest. Nan experienced a rash of pity, of protective maternal emotion.

”Yes, do come,” she a.s.sented softly.

XXIV

All this time Keith was busy every minute of the day. The water-lot matter was absorbing all his attention. Through skilful and secret agents Neil had acquired a great deal of scrip issued by the city for various public works and services which the holders had not yet exchanged for the new bonds. These he turned over to Keith. Very quietly, by prearrangement, the latter sued and obtained judgments.

When all this had been fully accomplished--and not before then--the veil of secrecy was rent. Rowlee's paper advertised a forthcoming sale of water lots to satisfy the judgments.

Then followed, for Keith, an anxious period of three days. But at the end of that time the commissioners issued a signed warning that the t.i.tles conveyed by this sale would not be considered legal. On seeing this, Keith at once rushed around to Neil's office.

”Here it is,” he announced jubilantly. ”They held off so long that I began to be afraid they did not intend to play our game for us. But it's all right.”

The matter was widely discussed; but next morning placards, bearing the text of the commissioners' warning, were posted on every blank wall in town and distributed as dodgers. These were attributed by the public to zeal on the part of those officials; but the commissioners knew nothing about it.

”Some anonymous friend of the city must have done it,” Hooper told his friends, and added, ”We are delighted!”

The unknown friend was Malcolm Neil himself.

This warning had its effect. As Keith had predicted, n.o.body cared to put good money into what was officially and authoritatively announced as a bad t.i.tle. At the sheriff's sale there were no bona fide bidders except the secret agents of Malcolm Neil. The sheriff's t.i.tles--such as they were--went for a song. Immediately the ostensible purchasers were personally warned by the commission; but they seemed satisfied.

So matters rested until, a little later, the commissioners inserted in all the papers the customary legal advertis.e.m.e.nts setting forth a sale by them, under the State law, of these same water lots to satisfy the interest and fill the sinking fund for the bonds. The next morning appeared a statement signed by all the ostensible purchasers under the sheriff's sale. This stated dearly and succinctly the intention to contest any t.i.tles given by the commissioners, even to the highest courts. This was marked _advt_, to indicate the newspaper's neutrality in the matter. Rowlee commented on the situation editorially, He took the righteous and indignant att.i.tude, expressing extreme journalistic horror that such a hold-up should be possible in a modern, civilized community, hurling editorial contempt on the dastardly robbers who were thus intending to shake down the innocent purchasers, etc. In fact, he laid it on thick, But he managed to insinuate a doubt. Between the lines the least astute reader could read Rowlee's belief that perhaps these first purchasers might have a case, iniquitous but legal. He hammered away at this for a week. By the end of that time he had, by the most effective, indirect methods--purporting all the time to be attacking the signers of the warning--succeeded in instilling into the public mind a substantial distrust of the stability of the t.i.tles to be conveyed at the commissioners' sale. Malcolm Neil complimented him highly at their final and secret interview.

Again Keith's predictions were fulfilled to the letter. n.o.body wanted to buy a lawsuit. There were a few bidders, it is true, but they were faint hearted. Another set of Malcolm's secret agents bid all the lots in at a nominal figure. That very afternoon they all met in Neil's stuffy little back office. Keith had the deeds prepared. All that was necessary was to affix the signatures. The purchasers under both sales conveyed their rights to Neil and Keith. The latter now possessed uncontested and incontestable t.i.tle.

XXV

Having personally delivered the deeds to the recorder's office, Keith went home. In the relief from pressure, the triumph, and the exaltation, his instinct carried him to the actual background of his life--his genuine but preoccupied affection for Nan. The constraint, that had been so real to her, had never been anything but nebulous to him.

He burst into the house, capered around the room boyishly, seized her, and waltzed her gayly about. Quite taken by surprise, Nan's first thought was that he had been drinking too much; so naturally she failed to rise instantly to the occasion.

”Stop it, Milton!” she cried. ”What has got into you! You're tearing me to ribbons!”

He laughed heartily.

”You must think I'm crazy,” he acknowledged. ”Sit down here, and learn what a great man your husband is.” He poured out the story of the transaction, omitting no details of the clever schemes by which it had been worked. He was, above all, proud of his legal address and ac.u.men--there was something in Eastern training, after all; this lay right under their noses, but none of them saw it until he came along and picked it up. ”And there are some pretty smart men out here, too, let me tell you that,” he added. ”They're from all parts of the world, and they've had a hard practical education, their eye teeth are cut!”

His egotism over being keener than the acknowledged big men was very fresh and charming. The money gained he mentioned as an afterthought, only when the other aspect of the situation had been exhausted. ”The cold hard dollars are pretty welcome just now,” he told her. ”There's about a quarter million in those lots--and we can realize on all or part of them at any time. All came out of here!” He tapped his forehead, and paused in his rapid pacing to and fro to look down at her In the easy chair, ”We are well off now. We needn't scrimp and save”--it did not for the moment occur to him that they had not been doing so--”I'm going to get you eight new gowns, and twelve new hats, and a bushel of diamonds----”

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