Pagina 365 di 439

She had--oh, she was quite sure of this--no longer any interest

in Fraser except the impersonal desire to save his life. Having

thought it all over, she was convinced that her friends had

nothing to fear from him as a spy. That was what he had tried to

tell her when she would not listen.

Deep in her heart she knew why she had not listened. It had to do

with that picture of a pretty girl smiling up happily into his

eyes--a thing she had not forgotten for one waking moment since.

Like a knife the certainty had stabbed her heart that they were

lovers. Her experience had been limited. Kodaks had not yet

reached Lost Valley as common possessions. In the mountains no

girl had her photograph taken beside a man unless they had a

special interest in each other. And the manner of these two had

implied the possession of a secret not known to the world.