they should go for a drive. Jennie put
on her hat, and together they departed. As a matter of fact, they went
to an apartment which he had hired for the storage of her clothes.
When she returned at eight in the evening the family considered it
nothing amiss.

CHAPTER XXV

A month later Jennie was able to announce that Lester intended to
marry her. His visits had of course paved the way for this, and it
seemed natural enough. Only Gerhardt seemed a little doubtful. He did
not know just how this might be. Perhaps it was all right. Lester
seemed a fine enough man in all conscience, and really, after Brander,
why not? If a United States Senator could fall in love with Jennie,
why not a business man? There was just one thing--the child. "Has
she told him about Vesta?" he asked his wife.

"No," said Mrs. Gerhardt, "not yet."

"Not yet, not yet. Always something underhanded. Do you think he
wants her if he knows? That's what comes of such conduct in the first
place. Now she has to slip around like a thief. The child cannot even
have an honest name."

Gerhardt went back to his newspaper reading and brooding. His life
seemed a complete failure to him and he was only waiting to get well
enough to hunt up another job as watchman. He wanted to get out of
this mess of deception and dishonesty.

A week or two later Jennie confided to her mother that Lester had
written her to join him in Chicago. He was not feeling well, and could
not come to Cleveland. The two women explained to Gerhardt that Jennie
was going away to be married to Mr. Kane. Gerhardt flared up at this,
and his suspicions were again aroused. But he could do nothing but
grumble over the situation; it would lead to no good end, of that he
was sure.

When the day came for Jennie's departure she had to go without
saying farewell to her father. He was out looking for work until late
in the afternoon, and before he had returned she had been obliged to
leave for the station. "I will write a note to him when I get there,"
she said. She kissed her baby over and over. "Lester will take a
better house for us soon," she went on hopefully. "He wants us to
move." The night train bore her to Chicago; the old life had ended and
the new one had begun.

The curious fact should be recorded here that, although Lester's
generosity had relieved the stress upon the family finances, the
children and Gerhardt were actually none the wiser. It was easy for
Mrs. Gerhardt to de