{"product_id":"2940013740273","title":"Keeper of the Keys","description":"The train had left Sacramento some distance behind, and was now bravely\u003cbr\u003ebeginning the long climb that led to the high Sierras and the town of\u003cbr\u003eTruckee. Little patches of snow sparkled in the late afternoon sun along\u003cbr\u003ethe way, and far ahead snow-capped peaks suddenly stood out against the\u003cbr\u003epale sky of a reluctant spring.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTwo conductors, traveling together as though for safety, came down the\u003cbr\u003eaisle and paused at section seven. \"Tickets on at Sacramento,\" demanded\u003cbr\u003ethe leader. The occupant of the section, a pretty blonde girl who seemed\u003cbr\u003eno more than twenty, handed him the small green slips. He glanced at\u003cbr\u003ethem, then passed one to his companion. \"Seat in Seven,\" he said loudly.\u003cbr\u003e\"Reno.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Reno,\" echoed the Pullman conductor, in an even louder tone.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThey passed on, leaving the blonde girl staring about the car with an air\u003cbr\u003ethat was a mixture of timidity and defiance. This was the first time,\u003cbr\u003esince she had left home the day before, that she had been so openly\u003cbr\u003etagged with the name of her destination. All up and down the car, strange\u003cbr\u003efaces turned and looked at her with casual curiosity. Some smiled\u003cbr\u003eknowingly; others were merely cold and aloof. The general public in one\u003cbr\u003eof its ruder moments.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOne passenger only showed no interest. Across the aisle, in section\u003cbr\u003eeight, the girl noted the broad shoulders and back of a man in a dark\u003cbr\u003esuit. He was sitting close to the window, staring out, and even from this\u003cbr\u003erear view it was apparent that he was deeply engrossed with his own\u003cbr\u003eaffairs. The young woman who was bound for Reno felt somehow rather\u003cbr\u003egrateful toward him.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePresently he turned, and the girl understood, for she saw that he was a\u003cbr\u003eChinese. A race that minds its own business. An admirable race. This\u003cbr\u003emember of it was plump and middle-aged. His little black eyes were\u003cbr\u003eshining as from some inner excitement; his lips were parted in a smile\u003cbr\u003ethat seemed to indicate a sudden immense delight. Without so much as a\u003cbr\u003eglance toward number seven, he rose and walked rapidly down the car.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eArrived on the front platform of the Pullman, he stood for a moment\u003cbr\u003edeeply inhaling the chilly air. Then again, as though irresistibly, he\u003cbr\u003ewas drawn to the window. The train was climbing more slowly now; the\u003cbr\u003elandscape, wherever he looked, was white. Presently he was conscious of\u003cbr\u003esome one standing behind him, and turned. The train maid, a Chinese girl\u003cbr\u003eof whose guarded glances he had been conscious at intervals all\u003cbr\u003eafternoon, was gazing solemnly up at him.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"How do you do,\" the man remarked, \"and thank you so much. You have\u003cbr\u003earrived at most opportune moment. The need to speak words assails me with\u003cbr\u003eunbearable force. I must release flood of enthusiasm or burst. For at\u003cbr\u003ethis moment I am seeing snow for the first time.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Oh--I am so glad!\" answered the girl. It was an odd reply, but the plump\u003cbr\u003eChinese was evidently too excited to notice that.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"You see, it is this way,\" he continued eagerly. \"All my life I can\u003cbr\u003eremember only nodding palm trees, the trade winds of the tropics, surf\u003cbr\u003etumbling on coral beach--\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Honolulu,\" suggested the girl.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHe paused, and stared at her. \"Perhaps you have seen Hawaii too?\" he\u003cbr\u003einquired.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eShe shook her head. \"No. Me--I am born in San Francisco. But I read\u003cbr\u003eadvertisements in magazines--and besides--\"","brand":"WDS Publishing","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47070258364656,"sku":"2940013740273","price":2.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940013740273_p0.jpg?v=1763589605","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940013740273","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}