Page:Flaming Youth black on red.pdf/57

 FLAMING

YOUTH

53

“Was Fred feeling it, too?” “Tf he was, he had a grip on himself all right. He’s a lot squarer man than people give him credit for, Dee.” “Lucky for you he is.” “Oh, I don’t know.

What’s the difference!’ retorted

Connie perversely. “I guess those sort of things happen a lot more often than any of us know about.” “What sort of things?” interpolated a voice new to the parley. The two sisters whirled about. Just outside the door stood Patricia in her tousled nightgown, hot-eyed with curiosity. ‘What sort of things?” she repeated. “How long have you been there?” demanded Mary Delia. “Long enough to hear a lot,” answered the unperturbed Patricia. ‘Since before you asked Con did anything happen, and she said first she didn’t know and afterward that it didn’t. What did you mean? What didn’t happen?” With a sudden pounce the lithe Dee was upon her and held her, half-choked against the wall. “If you breathe a word of this, Scrubs, I'll half kill you.” “T.eh—heh-heh—me alone!”? whimpered Pat. “I’m not | going to tell anybody.” “See that you don’t, then.”

“You told on me about Warren Graves.” “That was different.” “How, different?”

‘You’re only a child. You’ve no business playing silly tricks like that.” “Wasn't it a silly trick of Con to——” “Go back to bed,” ordered Dee with a powerful shake which seemed to the unfortunate victim to loosen her eyes in their sockets.