The Moon out of Reach

sharply at Nan

ady? Your taxi's

dickens, too!" returned Nan, emergin

an had accepted an engagement to play at a big charity concert in Exeter. Lady Chatterton, the organiser of the concert, had

own your baggage," pursued Penelope. "You'll have to

ombe Station and it would be simply ghastly if they sent all that way to meet me-and

ut of order-preceded by the driver grumblingly carrying Nan's suit-case and hat-box. A minute or two later the taxi emitted a

it rather close, but now, glancing down at her wrist-watch, she realised th

ontre-temps occurred. The taxi jibbed and came abruptly

er?" she asked w

y from his seat, regarded her w

oin' to find out," he r

ank back into her seat with a murmur of relief as he at last climbed

wed by another lengthy examination of the engine's internals. Engine tro

d. She looked down anxio

s my train a

taken advantage of a long-suffering public during the war-time scarcity of taxi-cabs and he h

miss it!" d

re taxi cawn

eally can't get he

?"-aggressively. "That's just

n of dismay and renewed his

straightening himself

w'ere else for th

born unconcern that

nother taxi-qu

uously. "There ain't n

rk

me with luggage and some without, went speeding

rately to her driver-

u can hail one for me.

ok his

't my job," he remarked negli

hailed the next taxicab that passed her carrying luggage. The occupant, a woman, her attention attra

ance going to Paddingt

own and I'm afraid

r sympathy. She had

I'm not going anywhere

n't

ast, and no one in the world looked in the least as if they were going to Paddington. The driver, superbly unconcerned,

d waved so frantically that the driver slowed up, although with obvious reluctance. Someone looked out of the window, and with a vague, troubled surprise

Paddington?" she a

had a slight, well-bred drawl in it, reminiscent

l," she replied, with the bluntness

ith pl

getic appreciation of the idea; in fact, he seemed inclined to dispute it, and, at the end of her patience, Nan herself made a grab at her hat-box with the intention

ase across and loo

ite of himself, and he proceeded to obey the order with celerity. A minute later the transferenc

f a driver!" was her firs

beside h

ular 'down-with-everyt

finitely dark brows and lashes contrasted oddly with his English-fair hair and blue-grey

said Nan, after her quick scrutiny. "It was so fri

s i

nation, although it held no suggestion of cur

engagement to-morrow, a

ke my connection at Ex

stern li

reach your destination in time for the concert even had the worst occurred to-day. You

ehearsal for ten o'clo

pose, in any case, you'd rather not have to play i

manded Nan. "It's just conce

kle showed behi

play several times during the war-at concerts where special seats were allotted to the wo

n the war?" she

a little. "I was perfectly s

xplained, an asset to the country, not to be risked like hands made of commoner clay. This holding back on his part had been the thing that had tortured Nan more than anything else during

brawn as cannon-fodder," he used to say. "I'm

isloyal to her faith in him. But, glancing now at the clever, clean-cut face of the man beside her, with its whimsical, sensitiv

e sound in wind and lim

've only got a game leg as my souvenir

kind," said Nan quickly, with the spont

an. "There's no reason why you should burden

ranger," replied Nan serenely.

as Peter Mallory," he

. I think that consti

u," he sa

laug

on my side," she ans

tirely due to you that

led up and s

said Nan, when he

egation flashed across Mallory's

e is two s

l obligation to a stranger. He accepted the money quite simply, and turning away to speak to a porter, he tuc

ho exhibited a zealous disposition to regard the arrivals as

by Nan, enlight

r. You wan

d and tipped

dy a comfortable corner sea

ed back

seat. I think you ought to be all right

t her hand

"And, once more, tha

osed firmly

only too glad to hav

Nan could see the slight limp of whic

train, she gave instructions that her lunch should be served to her in her own compartment. This done, she settled down to the quiet monotony of the journey, ate her lunch in due course, and finally drowsed over a magazine until she woke with a start to find the train at a standstill. Thinking she had arrived at St. David's Station, where she

" she asked. "Have we

above him, he softened visibly. Beauty may be only skin deep, but

oss the line. Luckily the driver saw it and just pulled

lated Nan. "Who d'you

t. We've got more of them in E

l soon get th

ok his head d

the job did it thoroughly, and even when we get cl

connection at Exeter-o

-West

id you wi

face

two, or your life, maybe," observe

ed and t

tter," s

he other end of the train, administering philosophi

truction on the line was removed and th

a desultory fashion how long she would have to wait at St. David's before the next train ran to Abbencombe. It was impossible now for her to catch the one she had

a cautious pace and f

an jumped out and made

icions were true. Ther

ombe t

d at the placidly good-natured porter: "But there must be! There must be another train!" Ins

he asked, catching

to another question,

by this train, th

velled smok

I converted my innocent compar

ction, nor the fact that he had rendered her a service, had tempted him into

missed your connec

Abbencombe has gone, and my friends' c

ered a

hauffeur will still be at the Station. The side-line train is a very slow one and stops at every little wayside place on the way. To make su

p of the situation. Before she had time to make an

but when he finally reappeared, his face w

the chauffeur told to wait there. I've got hold of another one here for our

and detached, half-cynical outlook on life, his beautiful ideals and-Nan's inner self flinched from the acknowledgment-his frequent fallings-short of them. Unwillingly she had to confess to the fact that Maryon was something both of poseur and actor, with an ineradicable streak of cynicism in his composition added

he latter fact when he joined he

e had a long drive of twenty-five miles all by my

he car slid away into the winter dusk of the afternoon. "A

his face alter suddenly. The lines on either side the sensitive mouth seem

hey?" he answered, with an attempt at lightness.

e or in

aware, and she regretted them the moment they were spoken. S

cards," he r

voice that appealed to Na

tremulously. "Perhaps, some day, th

of the quest

nds'?" she asked. "I set it to music one da

f the sudden tensity which had crept into t

God on His gr

from the He

the hands th

lous Star

en looking she would have seen Peter Mallory's hand clench itself as though to crush down some sudden

nd your hands would be 'outstretched in

ed Nan. "Try to belie

tered a sh

case for 'believin

efforts at consolation were utterly trivial and futile to meet whatever tragedy lay behind the man's curt s

id. And Nan knew that in some ind

commonplace topics, by mutual consent avoiding any by-way that might lead them back to individual mat

attertons' limousine, sent to meet Nan, still waited for her. The transit from one car to th

you, little pal. I hope you'll n

n the grey dusk she felt

" he said