ied, and Eugene heard her.
He was strengthened into acquiescence by the tone of her voice. Surely
she was a wonderful girl--a master of men and women in her way.

"Very well, if you think it's all right," said Eugene; "but I'll be very
lonely. I've been so already. I shall be more so, Flower Face, unless I
see you soon. Oh, if the time were only up!"

"It will be, Eugene," she replied, "in a very few days now. I'll be back
Thursday, and then you can come down and see me."

"Thursday afternoon?"

"Yes. We're to be back Thursday morning."

She finally hung up the receiver and they entered the automobile and an
hour later the train.

CHAPTER XVII

It was a Montreal, Ottawa and Quebec express, and it ran without
stopping to Albany. By the time it was nearing the latter place Suzanne
was going to bed--and because it was a private car--Mrs. Dale explained
that the president of the road had lent it to her--no announcement of
its arrival, which would have aroused Suzanne, was made by the porter.
When it stopped there shortly after ten o'clock it was the last car at
the south end of the train, and you could hear voices calling, but just
what it was was not possible to say. Suzanne, who had already gone to
bed, fancied it might be Poughkeepsie or some wayside station. Her
mother's statement was that since they arrived so late, the car would be
switched to a siding, and they would stay aboard until morning.
Nevertheless, she and Kinroy were alert to prevent any untoward
demonstration or decision on Suzanne's part, and so, as the train went
on, she slept soundly until Burlington in the far northern part of
Vermont was reached the next morning. When she awoke and saw that the
train was still speeding on, she wondered vaguely but not clearly what
it could mean. There were mountains about, or rather tall, pine-covered
hills, mountain streams were passed on high trestles and sections of
burned woodlands were passed where forest fires had left lonely, sad
charred stretches of tree trunks towering high in the air. Suddenly it
occurred to Suzanne that this was peculiar, and she came out of the bath
to ask why.

"Where are we, mama?" she asked. Mrs. Dale was leaning back in a
comfortable willow chair reading, or pretending to read a book. Kinroy
was out on the observation platform for a moment. He came back though
shortly, for he was nervous as to what Suzanne would do when she
discovered her whereabouts. A hamper of food