" He laid a hand upon Benito's shoulder
and there came a twinkle to his eyes. "Our young friend here had an
inspiration--better than a hundred muskets. He sent Ed Baker out to
charm them with his tongue."
CHAPTER XXXIII
THE RECKONING
It was June on the rancho Windham. Roses and honeysuckle climbed the
pillars and lattices of the patio; lupin and golden poppies dotted the
hillsides. Cloud-plumes waved across the faultless azure of a California
summer sky and distant to the north and east, a million spangled flecks
of sunlight danced upon the bay.
David Broderick sat on a rustic bench, his eyes on Alice Windham. He
thought, with a vague stirring of unrecognized emotion that she seemed
the spirit of womanhood in the body of a fay.
"A flower for your thoughts," she paraphrased and tossed him a rose.
Instinctively he pressed it to his lips. He saw her color rise and
turned away. For a moment neither spoke.
"My thoughts," he said at length, "have been of evil men and trickery
and ambition. I realize that, always, when I come here--when I see you,
Alice Windham. For a little time I am uplifted. Then I go back to my
devious toiling in the dark."
A shadow crossed her eyes, but a smile quickly chased it away.
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