d there
should be no second will. In any case, Carnac had enough to live on
through his mother. Also, he had capacity to support himself. There
was a touch of ruthlessness in Tarboe. No one would ever guess what the
second will contained--no one. The bank would have a letter saying where
the will was to be found, but if it was not there!

He would ask Junia to be his wife now, while she was so friendly. Her
eyes were shining, her face was alive with feeling, and he was aware
that the best chances of his life had come to win her. If she was not
now in the hands of Carnac, his chances were good. Yet there was the
tale of the secret marriage--the letter he saw Carnac receive in John
Grier's office! The words of the ancient Greek came to him as he looked
at her: "He who will not strike when the hour comes shall wither like a
flower, and his end be that of the chaff of the field."

His face flushed with feeling, his eyes grew bright with longing, his
tongue was loosed to the enterprise. "Do you dream, and remember your
dreams?" he asked with a thrill in his voice. "Do you?"

"I don't dream often, but I sometimes remember my dreams."

"I dream much, and one dream I have constantly."

"What is it?" she asked with anticipation.

"It is the capture of a wild bird in a garden--in a cultivated garden
where there are no nests, no coverts for the secret invaders. I dream
that I pursue the bird from flower-bed to flower-bed, from bush to bush,
along paths and the green-covered walls; and I am not alone in my chase,
for there are others pursuing. It is a bitter struggle to win the wild
thing. And why? Because there is pursuing one of the pursuers another
bird of red plumage. Do you understand?"

He paused, and saw her face was full of colour and her eyes had a glow.
Every nerve in her was pulsing hard.

"Tell me," she said presently, "whom do you mean by the bird of red
plumage? Is it a mere figure of speech? Or has it a real meaning?"

"It has a real meaning."

He rose to his feet, bent over her and spoke hotly. "Junia, the end of
my waiting has come. I want you as I never wanted anything in my life. I
must know the truth. I love you, Junia. I have loved you from the first
moment I saw you, and nothing is worth while with you not in it. Let us
work together. It is a big, big game I'm playing."

"Yes, it's a big game you're playing," she said with emotion. "It is
a big, big game, and, all things considered, you should win