Stuart succeeded in securing from Colonel Sumner a leave of absenceof two weeks to visit Fort Riley. The Colonel suspected the truth andteased the gallant youngster until he confessed.
He handed Stuart the order with a hearty laugh.
"It\'s all right, my boy. I\'ve been young myself. Good luck."Stuart\'s laughter rang clear and hearty.
"Thank you, Colonel. You had me scared."He had just turned to leave the room when a messenger handed Sumner atelegram.
Stuart paused to hear the message.
"Bad news, Lieutenant.""What, sir?""An attack has been made on the Southern settlement on thePottawattomie.""A drunken fight--""No. Wilkinson, the member of the Legislature from Miami County, wastaken from his house in the night and murdered.""The story\'s a fake," Stuart ventured.
"The man who sent this message doesn\'t make such mistakes."He paused and studied the telegram.
"No. This means the beginning of a blood feud. The time\'s ripe for it.""We\'ll have better news to-morrow," Stuart hoped.
"We\'ll have worse. I\'ve been looking for something like this since theday I heard old Brown harangue a mob at Lawrence."He stopped short.
"You\'ll have to give me back that order, my boy."Stuart\'s face fell.
"Colonel, I\'ve just got to see that girl, if it\'s only for a day--"He slowly handed the order back to the Commandant. Sumner watched thered blood mount to Stuart\'s face with a look of sympathy.
"Is it as bad as that, boy?""It couldn\'t be worse, sir," Stuart admitted in low tones. "I\'m agoner.""All right. You\'ve no time to lose, I\'ll give you three days--""Thank you!""This regiment will be on the march before a week has passed or I missmy guess.""I\'ll be here, sir!" was the quick response.
Stuart grasped the leave of absence and hurried out before anothermessenger could arrive.
He reached Fort Riley the following day and had but twenty-four hours inwhich to crowd the most important event of his life.
He paced the floor in Colonel Cooke\'s reception room awaiting Flora\'sappearance with eager impatience. What on earth could be keeping her? Heasked himself the question fifty times and looked at his watch a dozentimes before he heard the rustle of organdy on the stairs.
A vision of radiant youth! She had taken time to make her beauty stillmore radiant with the daintiest touches to her blonde hair.
The simple dress she wore was a poem. The young cavalier was stunnedanew. There was no doubt about the welcome in her smile and voice. Itthrilled him to his fingertips. He held her hand until she drew it awaywith a little self-conscious laugh that was confusing to Stuart\'s planof direct action.
There was a touch of the Southern girl\'s conscious poise and coquetry inthe laugh. There was something aloof in it that meant trouble. He feltit with positive terror. He didn\'t have time to fence for position. Hewas in no mood for a flirtation. He had come to speak the deep things.
She led him to a seat with an air of dignity and reserve that alarmedhim still more. He had taken too much for granted perhaps. There mightbe another man. Conceited fool! He hadn\'t thought it possible. Hermanner had been so frank, so utterly sincere.
She sat by his side smiling at him in the bewitching way so many prettygirls had done before, when they merely wished to play with love.
He spoke in commonplaces and studied her with increasing panic. Hertactics baffled him. Until at last he believed he had solved the riddle!
She had suddenly waked to the fact, as he had, that she had met herfate. She was drawing back for a moment in fright at the seriousness ofsurrender.
"Yes, that\'s it!" he murmured half aloud.
"What did yo............