Tommy X

　　"Tommy X.," ran the brief announcement, "most urgent, Marble Arch8."He had five minutes to get there but it seemed like five hours.
　　He was held up at almost every crossing and though he might haveused his authority to obtain right of way, it was a step which hiscurious sense of honesty prevented him taking. He leapt out ofthe cab before it stopped, thrust the fare into the driver's handsand looked round for the girl. He saw her at last and walkedquickly towards her. As he approached her, she turned about andwith an almost imperceptible beckoning gesture walked away. Hefollowed her along the Bayswater Road and gradually drew level.
　　"I am afraid I have been watched," she said in a low voice. "Willyou call a cab?"He hailed a passing taxi, helped her in and gave at random thefirst place that suggested itself to him, which was Finsbury Park.
　　"I am very worried," she said, "and I don't know anybody who canhelp me except you.""Is it money?" he asked.
　　"Money," she said scornfully, "of course it isn't money. I wantto show you a letter," she said after a while.
　　She took it from her bag and gave it to him and he struck a matchand read it with difficulty.
　　It was written in a studiously uneducated hand.
　　"Dear Miss,"I know who you are. You are wanted by the police but I will notgive you away. Dear Miss. I am very hard up and 20 pounds willbe very useful to me and I shall not trouble you again. DearMiss. Put the money on the window sill of your room. I know yousleep on the ground floor and I will come in and take it. And ifnot - well, I don't want to make any trouble.
　　"Yours truly,"A FRIEND.""When did you get this?" he asked.
　　"This morning," she replied. "I sent the Agony to the paper bytelegram, I knew you would come.""Oh, you did, did you?" he said.
　　Her assurance was very pleasing to him. The faith that her wordsimplied gave him an odd little feeling of comfort and happiness.
　　"I can easily get you out of this," he added; "give me youraddress and when the gentleman comes - ""That is impossible," she replied hurriedly. "Please don't thinkI'm ungrateful, and don't think I'm being silly - you do think I'mbeing silly, don't you!""I have never harboured such an unworthy thought," he saidvirtuously.
　　"Yes, you have," she persisted, "but really I can't tell you whereI am living. I have a very special reason for not doing so. It'snot myself that I'm thinking about, but there's a life involved."This was a somewhat dramatic statement to make and she felt shehad gone too far.
　　"Perhaps I don't mean that," she said, "but there is some one Icare for - " she dropped her voice.
　　"Oh," said T. X. blankly.
　　He came down from his rosy heights into the shadow and darkness ofa sunless valley.
　　"Some one you care for," he repeated after a while.
　　"Yes."There was another long silence, then,"Oh, indeed," said T. X.
　　Again the unbroken interval of quiet and after a while she said ina low voice, "Not that way.""Not what way!" asked T. X. huskily, his spirits doing a littlemountaineering.
　　"The way you mean," she said.