DUSKIN (18 page)

Bill looked at her as if he had just noticed her.

“Oh, you here yet?” he asked. “Wal, I dunno about the boss. He’s pretty busy. Naw, he ain’t forgot. He don’t never seem to forget. But I guess he ain’t had time yet. No, he don’t go out for lunch regular. He only eats when it’s handy. Never saw anyone like him. Reckon he thought you had got tired and quit, however.”

“I said I would wait, and I intend to keep my word,” said Carol with dignity. She was tired and hot and discouraged, and she couldn’t see her way out of this turmoil into which she had been sent.

Perhaps the thorny Bill saw the droop of her tired young lips and had compassion, for as he turned away he said, “Wal, ef I see him when I’m called up again I’ll try an’ remember an’ mention it to him that I see ye.” Then Bill ambled away.

When the noon hour came, the great building grew appallingly silent as saw and hammer and the various other instruments of labor were laid aside and the men sat down to lunches or trooped off to restaurants.

Duskin, hard at work in the upper regions, paused, took out the note from his pocket, and read it again thoughtfully. Then he put it in his pocket and smiled to himself.

Charlie watched him furtively. They were alone in the room just now.

“‘Smatter, Dusky? Got ye walkin’ papers again?”

Duskin grinned appreciatively.

“Why, no, Charlie, I’m hired again! What do you think of that!”

“Hired again? By the lady boss? Now ain’t she tricky? Whaddaya know about that, Dusky? She’s learnin’ her onions, ain’t she? What ya going to do about it, Dusky? Accept?”

“Accept, Charlie, how can I? Why I never accepted the firing, so I couldn’t be hired over again, you know.”

“Right you are, Dusky. But what’s going to happen next?”

“Why, you’re going down to lunch, Charlie, and bring me up a doughnut, but on your way just cast an eye into the office and see how it goes with the lady. She’s probably gotten tired and gone home.”

Charlie took off his work overalls, put on his coat, and disappeared downstairs. Half an hour later he was back. Bill was still enjoying his noonday meal reeking with bacon and onions that he cooked in the back of the furnace on a little gas hot plate, and he had not been called upstairs with the lift since his interview with the lady. Besides, he figured that the boss did not want ladies around, and the longer she had to wait this time the less likely she was to return another day. So he cooked his leisurely lunch and enjoyed it on an old cot behind the furnace.

“Well,” said Charlie, arriving at the top where the boss still worked tirelessly screwing on little outlet plates, “Rosebud’s still there!”

“What?” said Duskin a little sharply, eyeing Charlie with a frown.

“I mean the lady is waiting patiently, and the whole place looks like a garden since she’s come. She’s dressed like a bonny flower, Dusky, and no mistake. It’s a pity for her to have to waste that outfit on the empty office. But I think you’ve overcalculated, Dusky! I think she’ll be there waitin’ when you go down tomorrow morning. Do you want an extra custard pie for her, Dusky, tonight when I go out to eat?”

“Well, you’re all right, Charlie, but you must remember she is our boss. She was sent here for that purpose.”

“Oh is she, Dusky? I didn’t realize that. Then you’re
our
boss and she’s the
lady
boss. I’ll try to remember that. Well, she ain’t dressed fer the part, that’s all I’ve got to say. But I think she means to stick it out if it’s all next week.”

“All right, Charlie, I’m going down now. I thought she’d get tired of waiting—and you know I haven’t any time to waste—but she really ought to have some lunch, so I’ll go down and see if I can make her go and get it.”

“Good idea, Dusky, but while you’re gone, take a bite yourself. You may not be hungry but you look it!”

Duskin laughingly laid down his screwdriver and went downstairs. He walked and did not call Bill from his dinner. He could smell the onions and he knew what Bill was doing. So Bill missed a chance to deliver his message, which was a great deprivation to Bill.

Duskin came into the office so quietly that Carol did not see him until he stood before her. He noticed with compunction that she looked tired, and that there were tiny circles under her eyes as though she had not slept well.

“I am truly sorry,” he said humbly. “I thought I made it plain that it was impossible for me to come down this morning. I was doing most important work, and I felt it was better to get it done than to waste precious time in getting our relative status in the matter settled satisfactorily. But I did not mean to be rude.”

She looked up with a start as he spoke, and when she lifted her eyes he saw that they looked almost sad as if she were discouraged.

“It is quite all right,” she said quietly, with none of the arrogance of the day before. “I rather expected to have to wait—some time!”

“You are a pretty good sport!” he said, looking down at her with genuine admiration and something in his tone that seemed to hand back her self-respect.

A hint of a smile of acknowledgment hovered on her lips.

“Thank you,” she said gravely, “but let us not waste time in compliments. I won’t keep you any longer than is necessary, but I must know a little more about things than I do, and I must have some plan of action. Can you spare five minutes?”

He looked at her gravely.

“It would take more than five minutes to put you in possession of much knowledge or help you lay out a plan of action,” he said gently. “I am sorry, but I ought not to spend a minute more than I can help away from upstairs. You want a few general statements to give to Mr. Fawcett, I presume. If I send you a few lines by this evening indicating what has been finished and what is still ahead of us with the time it will probably take, will that be sufficient? It is late and you really ought to have some lunch, you know. I wish I might have the pleasure of taking you out, but I simply can’t.”

“I’m afraid that wouldn’t do, Mr. Duskin,” said Carol earnestly. “There are a lot of things I must tell you and talk over. Aren’t you going to eat any lunch yourself? Don’t bother about me. I often go without. Couldn’t I sit with you while you eat, even if it is only a few minutes?”

“I’m afraid not, Miss Berkley. I can’t spare time to go uptown and there are nothing but hot dog places down this way.”

“I’ve eaten hot dogs,” said Carol, smiling bravely. “Come on. I’m sorry to force myself upon you in your lunch hour but there seems to be no other way.”

“Well, you
are
a good sport!” he reiterated, a new admiration in his eyes. “All right, wait just a minute till I get these togs off!”

He picked up his coat and walked away to a room at the back of the hall, and she could not help noticing how the grace of the gentleman was as apparent in overalls as in evening clothes.

He was back in a minute looking quite dressed up in a very seedy, dark blue serge of a cheap variety.

“I’m hardly fit to go out with you,” he said with an apologetic glance down at himself and a look of deference toward her pretty dress and hat.

“Don’t worry about me,” she said rising. “I haven’t anything but fancy rigs along with me, or I wouldn’t come down here looking like this. My trunk was packed to go on a vacation at a summer hotel when I was sidetracked here, and I hadn’t time enough even to snatch a couple of old dresses and bring them along. I must send back for something if I have to stay long.”

“Please don’t!” he said quickly, “unless perhaps these things will get spoiled. It’s a great refreshment to see something pretty and bright.”

She flashed a look of surprise at him, but almost immediately they turned into the hot dog shop and he said no more until they were seated and had given their order for hotcakes and sausages, the only viands the place afforded.

“Now,” Duskin said, glancing at his watch, “what do you want of me? I can give you fifteen minutes, but no more.”

Carol was ready for him. She had thought it all out during her long wait.

“I want three things,” she said, resting her chin on her hand and her elbow on the dirty counter and talking eagerly. “First, I want someone knowledgeable to take me from the top to the basement of the building and show me everything. It must be someone who knows and can answer
all
my questions and tell me things that I don’t know enough to ask. I would like that to be done this afternoon if possible. It is a part of my job that I was sent here to do, and I must inform myself about every detail.”

He bowed gravely.

“I had better do that myself,” he said after an instant’s thought. “No one else knows everything about it. How would this evening do? You can’t be going around among all those men. Some of them are a pretty tough bunch. My evening guys are all right, but I can’t answer for some of the others.”

Carol flushed as she remembered some things she had heard his evening guys say, but she did not flinch.

“I have to work among men all the time at home,” she said. “You have to forget such things when you are in business. But the evening will do, if that will suit you better. I did promise to go to dinner with some people, but I can call that off.”

“On no account,” said Duskin quickly. “Suppose we say five o’clock? Will that be too late for you?”

“No, that is all right, but I’m not so keen about the dinner. The people are strangers to me, an old schoolmate of Mrs. Fawcett’s. I think she is just trying to be kind to me.”

“I am glad you have friends here; it will not be so lonely for you. Don’t give up your engagement. We can manage it, although you have outlined a pretty large proposition and we’ll need some time. You couldn’t wait till tomorrow afternoon, could you? Tomorrow is Saturday, and the men knock off at twelve, all but my guys who are with me day and night whenever I choose to work. I shan’t be quite so rushed then either. We are trying to get ready for the painters who are promised Monday morning, and I think we’ll be all in good shape by tomorrow morning. I always try to get a free mind for Sunday so I can rest up a bit.”

She looked up at him thoughtfully.

“Yes, I think tomorrow afternoon will be very good. I will telegraph Mr. Fawcett that he shall have full details after tomorrow. I think that will satisfy him. I had a telegram from him and from the doctor last night both asking me to keep the wires busy.”

“I see,” he said understandingly. “I’ll help you all I can in that respect. I’m afraid I’ve been rather remiss in the way of details, especially lately.”

“You certainly have,” she smiled.

“Well, what next?” he asked, looking at his watch and glancing uneasily toward the flapjacks that were being baked for them on the griddle in the window.

“Next,” she said laughing, “I want a report every night of how much has been accomplished during the day. I’m afraid that may annoy you, but it can be very brief, just a thread to hang my report on. Mr. Fawcett was most insistent on that point in his final directions to me.”

“You shall have it,” said Duskin seriously. “I may have to use doughnut bags for stationery, but you shall have it. Third?”

Carol laughed.

“Third, I want you to assign me something to do. I’m here to work, and I want to know where to begin so that I may be efficient and not mess things.”

“Work?” said Duskin, puzzled. “Work? You? Why I thought you were my boss!”

Carol flushed embarrassedly.

“Oh, please,” she said. “I’m afraid I’ve been quite disagreeable about things, but I’m not wanting to be. I only
represent
your boss, you know. I’m here to work, to do anything that can further the finishing of this building on time.”

“Well, that’s very good of you,” he began. “But I don’t quite see what you could do. You’re neither a carpenter, a plumber, an electrician, a stone mason, or a plasterer—”

“No,” laughed Carol, “although I think I could help out with any one of them in an emergency if someone showed me how. I’m ready to fill in anywhere. But in the meantime, I
am
a stenographer and secretary, and I can attack that mess on your desk in the office and get some of those letters off your conscience. I should think that might help a little.”

“It would,” said Duskin fervently. “It certainly would. Would you be willing to do that for me? I’m not keen on letter writing, not with all this other stuff on my hands. People are so blamed insistent that they shall know everything when I’ve got all I can do to do the thing without telling them about it. Also, people don’t keep their promises. They don’t send things when they say they will, and they hold me up at every turn. Why I have to waste at least two hours of every day bawling out people over the telephone.”

“I was figuring to take that off your hands, too,” smiled Carol. “They say I’m quite effective in that line at home.”

“Good!” said Duskin smiling. “I see day dawning!” He looked at his watch again and took his last hotcake.

“Can’t I do your ordering, too” she asked in a businesslike tone.

“I’m afraid not,” he said doubtfully. “That would entail your being there on the job at all hours, and it’s no fit place for a woman.”

“I expect to be there at all hours,” said Carol quietly. “It’s what I came for, and if it isn’t a fit place I’ll make it so; don’t worry about me. Just send down your orders and I’ll attend to them. That’s been my business for quite a while, you know.”

“But—” said Duskin.

“If you please, no buts. You said I represent your boss and this is what he wants me to do.”

“Very well, I submit,” said Duskin. “And now I want to ask one thing of you?”

“Surely,” said Carol brightly. “I will if I can.”

“You
must
!” said Duskin. “It’s important. You must be
very careful
about it. When I get time I’ll explain more fully, but in the meantime I want to ask you to have as little to do with Schlessinger or any of his friends as possible. Don’t put yourself in a position where you will be under obligation to them, and don’t trust yourself alone
anywhere
with them. I may seem foolish, but I have my reasons. And if I were you I would be careful how I made friends. I’m glad you have some acquaintances here for that reason. You said you knew them well? These people you’re going to dinner with tonight?”