Officer 666 Part 12

"Really!" she said with a little start of surprise.

"Oh, yes," ran on the glib Barnes, "they are lifelong chums--love each other like brothers; one of those Castor and Pollox affairs, you know--only more so. Never have any secrets from each other and all that sort of thing."

Helen dropped back into her chair and her brow wrinkled with perplexity.

"That's curious," she said. "I don't think Travers ever spoke to me about that kind of a friend."

The idea was just burgeoning in her mind to ask for the friend's name when Barnes hastened on:

"Well, now that is singular. Are you sure that"--

The sudden brisk return of Travers Gladwin saved Barnes from an immediate excruciating tax upon his ingenuity.

"I'm awfully sorry," said Gladwin, going to Helen and shaking his head regretfully, "but I couldn't find him."

"Oh, dear! That's very provoking!" cried Helen. "He didn't say he was going out, did he?"

"No; I could have sworn he was here a few minutes ago," spoke up Barnes, turning his head away for fear his smile would suddenly get out of control.

"Well, is his man here?" demanded the girl.

"Why, he let you in," blurted Gladwin.

"I don't mean the j.a.panese."

"You mean the butler, perhaps," Gladwin corrected.

"Yes," Helen answered mechanically.

Travers Gladwin felt it was time for Barnes to take a hand again, as his mental airs.h.i.+p was bucking badly in the invisible air currents.

"Is Gladwin's butler here?" he inquired sharply, frowning at Barnes.

"No," said Barnes promptly.

"I am sorry, but he is not here," Gladwin communicated to Helen.

"Well, where is he?" cried the exasperated Helen.

"Where is he?" Gladwin asked Barnes.

Whitney Barnes went down for the count of one but bobbed up serenely.

"Where is he?" he said with a nonchalant gesture. "Oh, he's giving a lecture on butling."

The bewildered Miss Burton did not catch the text of this explanation.

In her increasing agitation she wrung her hands in her m.u.f.f and almost sobbed:

"I'm sure I don't know what to do. I simply must get word to him somehow. It's awfully important."

Whitney Barnes saw the trembling lip and the dampening eye and strove to avert a catastrophe that would probably double the difficulty of probing into the mystery. Turning to Gladwin, but half directing his remarks to Helen, he said:

"I've just been telling the ladies that you and Travers are bosom pals."

Travers Gladwin flashed one look of amazement and then caught on.

"Oh, yes," he cried, "we are very close to each other--I couldn't begin to tell you how close."

"And I have also hinted," pursued Barnes, "that you never have any secrets from each other, and that I felt sure that you knew all about--all about--a--a er--to-night."

"Oh, of course," a.s.sented Gladwin, beginning to warm up to his part and feel the rich thrill of the mystery involved. "Yes, yes--of course--he's told me all about to-night."

"Has he?" gasped Helen, looking into the young man's brown eyes for confirmation, feeling that she liked the eyes, but uncertain that she read the confirmation.

"Yes, everything," lied Gladwin, now glowing with enthusiasm.

All this while the shy and silent Sadie had remained demurely in her chair looking from one to the other and vainly endeavoring to catch the drift of the conversation.

Sadie was too dainty a little soul to be possessed of real reasoning faculties. The one thought that had been uppermost in her mind all day was that Helen was taking a desperate step, probably embarking upon some terrible tragedy. She had hungered for an opportunity to compare notes with some st.u.r.dier will than her own and the instant she heard Travers Gladwin admit that he "knew all about to-night" she rose from her chair and asked, breathlessly, turning up her big, appealing eyes to Travers Gladwin:

"Then won't you--oh, please, won't you--tell her what you think of it?"

There was something so nave and innocent in Sadie's att.i.tude and expression that Whitney Barnes was charmed. It also tickled his soul to see how thoroughly his friend was stumped. So to add to Travers's confusion he chimed in:

"Oh, yes, go on and tell her what you think of it."

"I'd rather not," said Gladwin ponderously, trying to escape from the appealing eyes.

"But really you ought to, old chap," reproved Barnes. "It's your duty to."

"Oh, yes, please do!" implored Sadie.

The victim was caught three ways. Both young ladies regarded him earnestly and with looks that hung upon his words, while Barnes stood to one side with a solemn long face, elbow in one hand and chin gripped tightly in the other, manifestly for the moment withdrawn from rescue duty. There was nothing for the badgered young man to do but mentally roll up his sleeves and plunge in.

"Well, then," with exaggerated sobriety, "if you must know--I think--that is, when I was thinking of it--or I mean, what I had thought of it, when I was thinking of it--turning it over in my mind, you know--why, it didn't seem to me--I am afraid"--turning squarely on Helen--"what I am going to say will offend you."

"On the contrary," cried Helen, flus.h.i.+ng to her tiny pink ears, "if you are Travers's best friend, I should like to know just what you think of it."

"Well, then," said Travers Gladwin desperately, "if you must know the truth, I don't like it."

"There!" breathed Sadie, overjoyed, and dropped back in her chair.

But Helen Burton was far from pleased.

"You don't like what?" she demanded.

"Why--this thing to-night," he groped.

"You wouldn't say that if you knew Mr. Hogg," the indignant girl flung out.