The Fuel of Life

Summary

Angela De Haven, reeling from the seismic shock of her husband Roger's infidelity, embarks on a meticulously calculated vendetta, her heart hardening into a crucible of retribution against the entire male sex. Roger, utterly bereft and unable to mend the chasm his betrayal created, absconds to the distant South Seas, vanishing amidst the tumultuous waves. In the interim, Angela, now a formidable social architect, cultivates an exclusive New York salon, a glittering web where influential men, like moths to a flame, vie for her captivating, yet ultimately transactional, attention. Among these supplicants is Bragdon Brant, a titan of industry whose dominion over the Bob Cat mine is hobbled by his lack of control over the vital rail link owned by Bob Spalding. Angela, dispatched by Brant to secure this crucial artery, journeys West, where she encounters Bob, a man whose genuine affections begin to thaw her carefully constructed emotional armor. Despite his ardent suit, Angela, ever the strategist, spurns his offer of marriage, instead leveraging her allure to manipulate Bob's partner, Durant, thereby seizing control of the railroad. Her mission accomplished, she retreats to New York, her sights now set on Brant's ruin. Yet, her intricate machinations are abruptly derailed by Bob's unexpected reappearance. His steadfast presence and unyielding love pierce through her cynicism, forcing an agonizing confrontation with the self-destructive trajectory of her life. A profound awakening ensues, leading Angela to relinquish her ill-gotten gains, returning the railroad shares to Bob. Reconciled and reborn, they depart for the boundless horizons of the West, embracing a future forged in genuine connection rather than bitter reprisal.

Synopsis

After discovering her husband Roger has been unfaithful to her, Angela De Haven sets out to make all men pay for his deceit. Roger, despairing of ever winning back his wife, sails for the South Sea islands and is lost during the voyage. Meanwhile, Angela establishes a salon where prominent men vie for her attentions. One of the members of her court, Bragdon Brant, controls the Bob Cat mine, but not the railroad extending to it which is owned by Bob Spalding. Brant sends Angela West to buy the controlling interest in the railroad and she meets Bob, who falls in love with her. Angela refuses to marry him and flees after securing control of the road through Bob's partner, Durant. She returns to New York, intent upon ruining Brant, but is prevented from carrying out her plans when Bob appears and forces her to realize the destructive path that her life has taken. Angela then restores the railroad shares to Bob, and thus reconciled, they travel West to spend the rest of their lives together.