Then with a hasty kiss she ran down the steps to the car.
Eveley was tired that night. The first lesson in driving, the lazy supper on the beach, and the long ride, left her listless and indolent. So after their merry dinner, and a dance or two around the Victrola, she said she had a headache and wanted to go home.
They drove very slowly along the winding road, and were quietly content. Nolan opened the doors of the garage and Eveley ran the car into place; then, as she was really tired, at the foot of the rustic stairs he said good night, while she crept slowly up the steps.
For the first time, there was no Marie to welcome her. The room, though lighted, looked dreary and forlorn without the pretty adopted girl.
“The little goosie,” said Eveley, with a tender smile. “I suppose she is still dreaming down in that spooky canyon. Maybe she has fallen asleep. I shall have to go after her.”
She took a small flash-light, and hurried down the rustic stairs and the well-known path beyond the rose pergola, where she hoped to find Marie.
But Marie was not there.
Eveley knew every foot of the canyon by heart; she went surely and without hesitation along the twisting, winding, rocky path, half-way down the narrow slope.
“Marie,” she called softly, “Marie.”
But there was no answer.