Page:Arthur Stringer--The House of Intrigue.djvu/64

54 was pretty anxious to be alone. But they had him with the goods on. The best he could do was to save me out of the ruins. He lied like a trooper, through three hours of third-degreeing, just to save my scalp. At the very first move he'd thrown me the high-sign not to recognize him, not to know him, not to be interested in him, I caught the cue, and stuck to it. And to Shy Sadie's mortification, I made good on it. But it hurt, even to have to play out that part of giving my old running-mate the cold shoulder.

It hurt me a lot more, though, not being able to get near the man who needed me more than ever before. But Bud commanded me to stand clear. He said It was the only way. He seemed to know what was coming. And it came sooner than I imagined. It was a railroad case, a through trip and no stops. They gave him Jackson for ten years.

He sent me word, later on, that he wanted to see me. He explained that the case against him was closed and that there'd be no risk in the visit.

So I went up to Jackson by the interurban. It was my first glimpse of a state penitentiary. I'd never even glimpsed the inside of a county jail. I'd never dreamed what it was that had been standing, all the while, just one turn of the road ahead of me.