took their respective places; and like a
live thing, beaten and cowed, the big car drew up at the very edge of the
grove, left the yellow road-ribbon, rustled a moment amid the
half-parched grass and halted in the shadow blot of a big water
maple--thirty miles almost to a rod from the city limits they had left.

A moment the two humans in the seat remained in their places, breathing
hard. Deliberately, almost methodically, Roberts wiped the sweat from his
face.

"Thirty-two minutes, the clock says," he commented. "We dawdled though at
first. At the finish--" He looked at the indicator peculiarly. "I'd
really like to have known, for sure."

The girl stood up. She trembled a little.

"Would you really? Perhaps--"

"You looked, Elice? I fancied you shut your eyes."

"I did--only for a second. It read seventy-two."

Roberts turned a switch and the last faint purr ceased.

"I imagined, almost, you'd be afraid," he said evenly.

"I was--horribly," simply.

"You were; and still--I won't do it again, Elice."

Without a word the girl stepped to the ground. In equal silence the man
followed. Taking off the long khaki coat he spread it on the ground amid
the shadow and indicated his handiwork with a nod. For a half-minute
perhaps he himself remained standing, however, his great shoulders
squared, his big fingers twitching unconsciously. Recollecting, he
dropped on the grass beside her.

"Pardon me, Elice," he apologized bluntly, "for frightening you." He
smiled, the infrequent, tolerant, self-analytic smile. "I somehow
couldn't help doing what I did. I knew it would break out sometime soon.
I couldn't help it."

For a moment the girl inspected him, her head, just lifted, resting on
her locked arms, her eyelids half closed.

"You knew--what? Something's happened I know; something unusual, very. I
never saw you before as you are to-day. I'd almost say you had nerves. Do
you care to tell me?"

Roberts was still smiling.

"Do you care to have me tell you?" he countered.

"Yes, if you wish."

"If I wish--if I wish--you told me that once before, you recall."

"Yes."

"And I proceeded to frighten you--horribly. You said so."

"Yes," again.

"Does that mean you wish to be frightened again? Do you enjoy it?"

"Enjoy it? I don't know. I'm curious to listen, if you care to tell me."

Roberts had stretched himself luxuriously on the cool sod. He looked up
steadily, through the tangled leaves, at the dotted blue