The Daily Monitor

SERIAL STORY
KINGS ROW
by Henry Bellamann
MIXED EMOTIONS
CHAPTER XIV
Dr. Tower smiled again.
"What are your plans for later
Parris? After Vienna?"
"I want to be a doctor out at
the asylum."
"Here--in Kings Row?"
"Yes, sir."
"What put that idea in your
head?"
"Tom Carr."
"Who is he?"
"A man who works on our
place."
"Indeed. You seem to have a
umber of influences."
Parris flushed again. He felt
his cheeks grow hotter as Dr.
Tower's sarcastic tone took full
effect. He spoke up with an al-
most defiant loyalty, "Tom Carr
is a very unusual man."
"I have no doubt. Suppose you
tell me about him."
Parris related the story of
Lucy Carr and her death, and
explained the way he had felt,
in the outset of his ac-
quaintance with her, that there
would be some way to seize her
wild mind and hold it still.
Dr. Tower listened without a
word of comment.
And there's another thing.
somebody else."
Parris told Dr. Tower of Ben-
Senser and of old Tom Carr's
stories about curing him, or at
least helping him. He finished, a
little disconcerted, by Dr. Tow-
er pushed
kind of an
all
to that
(mt0moe
HAm
octor
little dubious about."
Parris waited.
"It's your idea of coming back
here to King's Row."
"Well. Tom Carr was the first
one to suggest it, and then I kind
of mentioned it to my grand-
mother. and she spoke right
away to Colonel Skeffington,
and he spoke to Dr. Nolan out
at the asylum."
Dr. Tower laughed once more
"I dare say. I dare say. Well, you
seem to have friends paving the
way for you. It's just-"
"Just what, sir?"
'Young eagles should nest
far from home'. Ever hear that?"
"No, sir."
"It's a good saying. There's a
curious rivalry between the old
and the young. It's everywhere,
but it's keener. and it's more
ruthless and more cruel in the
home nest, so to speak."
"I--I guess I don't understand
that very well."
He had seen Cassandra several
times this year--"whenever she
could slip away," as she said.
He had never felt any unease of
conscience about it. Those meet-
ings with Cassandra were in a
world apart. Once Dr. Tower had
used the phrase, "We live in
multiple worlds many of which
are solitary and strange to all
others," and he had found him-
self making immediate applica-
tion of the figure to himself and
Cassandra. As Drake would have
said, and did, in fact, say several
times, it was their own business.
Just now he was less certain
about that.
Cassandra! He could not pre-
cisely say to himself how he felt
about her. He had always been
quite clear about his feelings for
other people. His likes and dis-
likes, his attractions and gravita-
tions, fell into easily recogniz-
able categories. He knew exactly
how he felt about Renee--still.
He knew how he felt about
Drake, and almost anyone
he
knew well. But, Cassie. That
was a different relationship. She
made him uncomfortable some-
times, and sometimes she almost
terrified him. She was so wild.
so violent, so-so furious. He
understood now what she had
said that first night in this very
study. She had been right. He
was not in love with her--not
exactly. He didn't know what to
call it. It was a fascination of
some kind that came back again
and again with unflagging force.
Just now he was once more
aware of the disastrous conse-
quences that might follow if Dr.
Tower so much as suspected any-
thing. There was a quality of
threat about the man that was
not comfortable to contemplate.
Parris hurried toward home.
He was nearly at the end of
Federal street when Drake over-
took him. Drake had gotten rid
of old Molly, and the new chest-
nut horse was smart-looking and
high-spirited.
"Hop in. I'll drive you home.
I got something for you."
"Oh."
Parris'
exclamation
was dull and disinterested.
"Is that the way you receive a
note from your sweetheart?"
"Let's see the note."
Drake gave it to him. "In my
box this morning."
Parris read the few lines hur-
riedly. "Oh, gee!" He sounded
dismayed.
"What's the matter?"
"She wants to see me at your
house tonight."
"Don't you want to?"
"I just can't see her tonight."
"What's the matter with that
gal. anyhow?"
"She's just- well,
strange,
Drake. Cassie--gee, I feel ter-
rrible talking about her like this.
You know I wouldn't to anybody
else. But she frightens me, some-
times, She's so intense."
"She's pretty swell, Drake."
"Maybe a little crazy. Like
her old man. Else why would he
try to keep her locked up at
home like he does?"
Parris thinned his lips. "He's
not crazy, Drake. He's more in-
telligent than all of Aberdeen
College put together."
"All the same, there's some-
thing pretty funny about that
house. And old Cass--you just
now said yourself. . ."
"All right, all right. But I
can't see her tonight. And I
haven't got any way to let her
know."
"I'll just tell her you couldn't
come."
"It's my
grandmother I'm
worried about. Drake."
"Well, you're not her doctor--
not yet. Better come on back
with me."
Parris thought about it. He
wanted to go back.
"I tell you, Drake. I'll have
supper at home. I got to talk
to Anna about my grandmother
Then if I feel better, I'll come
on later."
"And if you don't?"
"I'll telephone you."
Anna listened carefully
to
Parris. She controlled her face
and answered him calmly, re-
membering Madame's warning
"To tell you the truth, Parris,
Madame did see Dr. It da."
"Consultation?"
"Yes. Dr. Gordon thought she
ought. too There's no use deny-
ing she ain't been so well, but
she's better. Don't you think she
looks better?"
"No."
"Madame's not so young, Par-
ris. and little things get wrong
with you when you get older.
But you shouldn't worry now.
You work hard and don't worry.
I look after her the best I can.
"Where is Grand'mere now?"
"She's lying down, She said she
wanted to nap. I guess you better
not wake her up.
He felt mightily relieved. "All
right. I guess I just got a little
worried when Dr. Tower said he
thought she didn't look so well."
"She's had a little cold, you
know. That pulls a body down,
too. Look, Parris. The cookies
are done."
Parris grinned. "And a glass
of milk!"
"Good. I get it right away."
"I've got to telephone, too. I'll
be right back."
Parris was invaded by
the
strangest discomfort
he
had
ever known. He was unable to
analyze it. but he knew it was
more acute and rose from deep-
er sources than the normal un-
rest of spring. He roamed the
place from end to end. As soon
as he sat down to work he
thought of some corner of the
field, some stretch of windy
slope, some tree, even that he
felt he must see at once.
Madame von Eln observed his
restlessness. so did Anna.
"Anna. what is the matter
with Parris? He seems unlike
himself these days.
"Yes, Madame,
I have been
watching
him.
He no sooner
comes in
than
he goes out
again."
"Where is he now?"
"Up there at the beginning of
the orchard. He's standing there
looking at a tree."
"A tree? Looking at a tree,
did you say?"
"Yes, Madame."
"Anna,
are
you
suggesting
that my grandson is maybe a
little peculiar in the head?"
Anna laughed, "No, Madame.
no, no. But he looks at stones,
too."
Madame resumed
her
seat,
and Anna spread the brilliant
peacock afghan over her feet.
Madame put on her thick-lensed
glasses and looked at Anna with
lively amusement.
"Anna, I understand you less
and less each minute. of course
he looks at things. How could he
avoid looking at things? Come
now, what
are you
talking
about?"
Anna took a deep breath and
wrapped her hands stubbornly
in her checked gingham apron,
"It is just as I say, Madame.
All the time he goes out. He
comes in, then he goes out. Then
he looks at things.
Madame began to laugh. Her
thin shoulders shook. "Anna.
you are a true Alsatian. Tell me
in your own way Go on."
"It is peculiar. He walks all
over the place; he looks at the
sky and at the ground and at the
trees. He picks up a stone and
stares at it as if it were strange.
then drops it and picks up an-
other. He feels of twigs and fin-
gers the evergreens, and-and--
looks at things."
"Heaven help us, maybe he's
turning poet."
"No, Madame."
"Anna, maybe there is a girl!"
"I don't think so."
"What is the matter with this
young gentleman, then?"
"I think he is in love--"
"But you said-"
"Oh. not with a girl, Madame,
but here--with this place."
"I have no idea what you are
talking about."
"It is this. I think Parris feels
something. I think he does not
know what it is. I think he feels
change. I think he is afraid
something is to happen and he
does not understand. Oh, Mad-
me. you know I have watched
him grow every day of his life.
I feel. in here, sometimes just
what he feels. think he cannot
help but see that you are not
well-
Madame was silent for several
minutes. Anna kept her hands
tightly twisted in her apron.
. "You were saying, Anna, that
he is in love with this place.
"Yes, of course. It is home.
Madame, I remember it well,
when I knew I was to leave my
home forever, I could not see it
enough. I looked at every bush,
every little leaf. It is like that.
Madame. with Parris."
"Perhaps you are right, Anna.
suppose there is nothing we
can do."
(To Be Continued)