Part 9 (1/2)
Then, of a sudden, the second officer of the Halfh, and he took the s, brown one
”Miss Harding,” he said, ”I have led a hard, bitter life I have not always done those things of which I ht be most proud: but there have been tirandson of one of Napoleon's greatest field marshals, and that I bear a nahty nation What you have just said to me recalls these facts , that you will never regret having spoken them,” and to the bottom of his heart the man meant what he said, at the moment; for inherent chivalry is as difficult to suppress or uproot as is inherent viciousness
The girl let her hand rest in his for a moment, and as their eyes met she saw in his a truth and honesty and cleanness which revealed what Therieremanhood to different channels And in that , all unbidden and unforeseen to her mind; a question which caused her to withdraw her hand quickly from his, and which sent a slow cri by, cast a bitter look of hatred upon the two
The fact that he had saved Theriere's life had not increased his love for that gentlee idiocy that had prompted hiht of his h praise for his herois hi out of Theriere, and the subsequent kick which he had planted in the unconscious ed such ed hiirl before whose very eyes he had demonstrated his superiority over Theriere should so look with favor upon the officer
It did not occur to Billy that he would care to have the girl look with favor upon hie; but the fact re desire to cut out Theriere's heart when he saw hi--just why he felt so Billy could not have said The truth of the matter is that Billy was far fro His mind had never been trained to it, as hisBilly reacted , and on this account it was difficult for hireat number of his acts or moods--it is to be doubted, however, that Billy Byrne had ever atteet at the bottom of his soul, if he possessed one
Be that as it may, had Theriere known it he was very near death that moment when a summons from Skipper Simms called him aft and saved his life Then the irl In his heart were rage and hatred, and as the girl turned at the sound of his step behind her she saw the face
CHAPTER VIII THE WRECK OF THE ”HALFMOON”
INSTANTLY Barbara Harding looked into the face of the er Why the uess; but that he did was evidenced by the malevolent expression of his surly countenance For aat her, and then he spoke
”I'rowled, ”an'
I'ht here to tell youse dat you don't wanta try an' put nothin'
over on otta good notion to han' youse wot's comin' to you If it hadn't been fer youse I wouldn't have been here now on dis Gawd-forsaken wreck
Youse is de cause of all de trouble Wot youse ought to get is croaked an' den dere wouldn't be nothin' to bother any of us You an' yer bunch of kale, dey give me a swift pain Fer half a cent I'd soak youse a wallop to de solar plexus dat would put youse to sleep fer de long count, you--you--” but here words failed Billy
To his surprise the girl showed not the slightest indication of fear
Her head was high, and her level gaze never wavered from his own eyes
Presently a sneer of contempt curled her lip
”You coward!” she said quietly ”To insult and threaten a wo but an insufferable bully, and a cowardly er held reat, hulking carcass You are only fit to strike fro, as you did Mr Theriere that other day Do you think I fear a THING such as you--a beast without honor that kicks an unconscious man in the face?
I know that you can kill h to do it because I ah you may kill me, you never can make me show fear for you That is what you wish to do--that is your idea ofas you lived in the guise of man; but I have read you, Mr Byrne, since I have had occasion to notice you, and I kno that you are what is known in the great cities as a mucker The term never meant much to me before, but I see now that it fits your kind perfectly, for in it is all the loathing and conteentleman--must feel for such as you”
As she spoke Billy Byrne's eyes narrowed; but not with the cunning of pre For the first ti of how he appeared in the eyes of another Never had any hu told Billy Byrne thus coolly and succinctly what sort of person he seeer men of his own sta him luridly as such that by the siirl had spoken coolly, and her descriptions had been explicit--backed by illustrations She had given real reasons for her conteible
One who had known Billy would have expected hiirl brutally after her scathing diatribe Billy did nothing of the sort Barbara Harding's words see at her for a e contradictions of Billy Byrne's personality that he could hold his eyes quite steady and level, ly--and in thathappened to Billy Byrne's perceptive faculties It was as though scales which had dimmed his mental vision had partially dropped away, for suddenly he sahat he had not before seen--a very beautiful girl, brave and unflinching before the brutal ht that he still hated her, the realization caainst her--that for the life of hiainst any other woe, Billy did not know, he sirunt he turned his back upon her and walked away
A slight breeze had risen fro and now all hands were busily engaged in coht take advantage of the wind and make the shore that rose abruptly froue away
Before the as completed the wind increased rapidly, so that when the tiny bit of canvas was hoisted into position it bellied bravely, and the Halfotta hty quick run of it,” said Skipper Sio to pieces on the”
”That ill if this wind rises much more,” replied Ward; ”and's far as I can see there ain't nothere than there would be on the side of a house”