Starr, of the Desert | Page 7

achin'. Ached like
the very devil for a while, but that stuff sure fixed her."
Peter smiled and bowed and went his way hurriedly, his pale lips
working nervously with the excitement that filled him. The mountain of
difficulty was there, implacably blocking the way. But beyond was the
door of opportunity, and the door was ajar. There must, thought Peter,
be some way to pass the mountain and reach the door.
Helen May telephoned that she meant to pick out that gray suit for him
that evening. Since it was Saturday, the stores would be open, and there
was a sale on at Hecheimer's. She had seen some stunning grays in the
window, one-third off. And would he....
Peter's voice was almost irritable when he told her that he had a
business engagement and could not meet her. And he added the
information that he would probably eat down town, as he did not know
how long he would be detained. Helen May was positively forbidden to
do anything at all about the suit until he had a chance to talk with her.
After which unprecedented firmness Peter left the 'phone hurriedly, lest
Helen May should laugh at his authority and lay down a law of her own,
which she was perfectly capable of doing.
At five minutes to six the young man presented himself at the New Era,
and waited for Peter at the soda fountain, with a lemon soda and a
pretty girl to smile at his naïve remarks. Peter's heart had given a jump
and a flutter when the young man walked in, fearing some one else
might snap at the chance to buy a relinquishment of a homestead in
New Mexico. And yet, how did Peter expect to buy anything of the sort?
If Peter knew, he kept the knowledge in the back of his mind, telling
himself that there would be some way out.

He went with the young man, whose name he learned was Johnny
Calvert, and had dinner with him at the cafeteria where they had met at
noon. Johnny talked a great deal, ate a great deal, and unconsciously
convinced Peter that he was an honest young man who was exactly
what he represented himself to be. He had papers which proved his
claim upon three hundred and twenty acres of land in Dona Ana
County, New Mexico. He also had a map upon which the location of
his claim was marked with a pencil. Malpais, he said, was the nearest
railroad point; not much of a point, but you could ride there and back in
a day, if you got up early enough in the morning.
Peter asked about the climate and the altitude. Johnny was a bit hazy
about the latter, but it was close to mountains, he said, and it was as
high as El Paso, anyway, maybe higher. The climate was like all the
rest of the country, coming in streaks of good and bad. Peter, gaining
confidence as Johnny talked, spoke of his daughter and her impending
doom, and Johnny, instantly grasping the situation, waxed eloquent.
Why, that would be just the place, he declared. Dry as a bone, the
weather was most of the year; hot--the lungers liked it hot and dry, he
knew. And when it was cold, it was sure bracing, too. Why, the country
was alive with health-seekers. At that, most of 'em got well--them that
didn't come too late.
That last sentence threw Peter into a panic. What if he dawdled along
and kept Helen May waiting until it was too late? By that time I think
Peter had pretty clearly decided how he was to remove the mountain of
difficulty. He must have, or he would not have had the courage to drive
the bargain to a conclusion in so short a time.
Drive it he did, for at nine o'clock he let himself into the place he called
home and startled Helen May with the announcement that he had
bought her a claim in New Mexico, where she was to live out of doors
like an Indian and get over that cough, and grow strong as any peasant
woman; and where Vic was going to keep out of mischief and learn to
amount to something. He did not say what the effect would be upon
himself; Peter was not accustomed to considering himself except as a
provider of comfort for others.

Helen May did not notice the omission. "Bought a claim?" she repeated
and added grimly: "What with?"
"With two hundred dollars cash," Peter replied, smiling queerly. "It's all
settled, Babe, and the claim is to stand in your name. Everything is
attended to but the legal signatures before a notary. I was glad my
money was in the all-night bank,