His free hand went out to meet hers. She forgot MacQueen and all the sorrow he had brought her. Her eyes were dewy with love and his answered eagerly. She knew now that she would love Jack Flatray for better or worse until death should part them. But she knew, too, that the shadow of MacQueen, her husband by law, was between them.
Together they walked back from the depot. In the shadow of the vines on her father’s porch they stopped. Jack caught her hands in his and looked down into her tired, haggard face all lit with love. Tears were in the eyes of both.
“You’re entitled to the truth, Jack,” she told him. “I love you. I think I always have. And I know I always shall. But I’m another man’s wife. It will have to be good-bye between us, Jack,” she told him wistfully.
He took her in his arms and kissed her. “You’re my sweetheart. I’ll not give you up. Don’t think it.”
He spoke with such strength, such assurance, that she knew he would not yield without a struggle.
“I’ll never be anything to him—never. But he stands between us. Don’t you see he does?”
“No. Your marriage to him is empty words. We’ll have it annulled. It will not stand in any court. I’ve won you and I’m going to keep you. There’s no two ways about that.”
She broke down and began to sob quietly in a heartbroken fashion, while he tried to comfort her. It was not so easy as he thought. So long as MacQueen lived Flatray would walk in danger if she did as he wanted her to do.
Neither of them knew that Bucky O’Connor’s bullet had already annulled the marriage, that happiness was already on the wing to them.
This hour was to be for their grief, the next for their joy.
The End
* * *
NOVELS OF FRONTIER LIFE BY
WILLIAM MACLEOD RAINE
May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset & Dunlap’s list.
MAVERICKS
A tale of the western frontier, where the “rustler” abounds. One of the sweetest love stories ever told.
A TEXAS RANGER
How a member of the border police saved the life of an innocent man, followed a fugitive to Wyoming, and then passed through deadly peril to ultimate happiness.
WYOMING
In this vivid story the author brings out the turbid life of the frontier with all its engaging dash and vigor.
RIDGWAY OF MONTANA
The scene is laid in the mining centers of Montana, where politics and mining industries are the religion of the country.
BUCKY O’CONNOR
Every chapter teems with wholesome, stirring adventures, replete with the dashing spirit of the border.
CROOKED TRAILS AND STRAIGHT
A story of Arizona; of swift-riding men and daring outlaws; of a bitter feud between cattlemen and sheep-herders.
BRAND BLOTTERS
A story of the turbid life of the frontier with a charming love interest running through its pages.
STEVE YEAGER
A story brimful of excitement, with enough gun-play and adventure to suit anyone.
A DAUGHTER OF THE DONS
A Western story of romance and adventure, comprising a vivacious and stirring tale.
THE HIGHGRADER
A breezy, pleasant and amusing love story of Western mining life.
THE PIRATE OF PANAMA
A tale of old-time pirates and of modern love, hate and adventure.
THE YUKON TRAIL
A crisply entertaining love story in the land where might makes right.
THE VISION SPLENDID
In which two cousins are contestants for the same prizes: political honors and the hand of a girl.
THE SHERIFF’S SON
The hero finally conquers both himself and his enemies and wins the love of a wonderful girl.
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
* * *
JAMES OLIVER CURWOOD’S
STORIES OF ADVENTURE
May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset & Dunlap’s list.
THE RIVER’S END
A story of the Royal Mounted Police.
THE GOLDEN SNARE
Thrilling adventures in the Far Northland.
NOMADS OF THE NORTH
The story of a bear-cub and a dog.
KAZAN
The tale of a “quarter-strain wolf and three-quarters husky” torn between the call of the human and his wild mate.
BAREE, SON OF KAZAN
The story of the son of the blind Grey Wolf and the gallant part he played in the lives of a man and a woman.
THE COURAGE OF CAPTAIN PLUM
The story of the King of Beaver Island, a Mormon colony, and his battle with Captain Plum.
THE DANGER TRAIL
A tale of love, Indian vengeance, and a mystery of the North.
THE HUNTED WOMAN
A tale of a great fight in the “valley of gold” for a woman.
THE FLOWER OF THE NORTH
The story of Fort o’ God, where the wild flavor of the wilderness is blended with the courtly atmosphere of France.
THE GRIZZLY KING
The story of Thor, the big grizzly.
ISOBEL
A love story of the Far North.
THE WOLF HUNTERS
A thrilling tale of adventure in the Canadian wilderness.
THE GOLD HUNTERS
The story of adventure in the Hudson Bay wilds.
THE COURAGE OF MARGE O’DOONE
Filled with exciting incidents in the land of strong men and women.
BACK TO GOD’S COUNTRY
A thrilling story of the Far North. The great Photoplay was made from this book.
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
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Brand Blotters Page 24
