Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1880-01-22
an Original Story.
Written for the Yorkville Enquirer.
THE THREAD OF FATE.
BY VICTOR VERNON.
CHAPTER vi.

TO: the revelation which Charity had prom
ised him to make. By ten o'clock, Mrs
Thorndale and Jennie were in bed and few
minutes later he found himself closeted with
the sewing woman, in her own apartment
which was so far removed from all the Other
sleeping.rooms as to preclude the possibility
of their conversation being overheard by any
member of the household, who might chance
to be awake.
"Sit down." said Charity, drawing forward
a chair, as hard and uncompromising. looking
as herself. Edward. as he mechanically obey
ed her, felt as though he we're about to 60
through some terrible ordeal And, indeed,
his companion, with her forbidding counte-
nance, and steely eyes glittering with sort
of subdued yet malignant triumph in their
glance, as if she exulted at the thought of the
pain she was about to inAict upon him, look.
ednot unlike some agent of the lnquisition
ready to gloat over the suferings of the poor
wretch within her grasp.
There was short silence; then Edward
exclaimed impatiently, "Well!"
"Well." said Charity coolly. "You've
come, I suppose, pepared to hear some ac-
count of your mother-her that your friend,
Mrs. Thorndale, has been so careful never to
speak to you about"
"Gc on" said her listener.
"Do you want me to tell you eperythingF F
pursued Charity. "You won't shrink from
learning the truth, nor blame me for telling
it to you?"
II shall not blame you; l want you to tell
meall that you know"
"Good. Then remember, if you hear what
you don't like, it's your own fault, and I'm
no way responsible for the consequences. The
only thing is, fear I may get into trouble
with Mrs. Thorndale-she may likely turn
me away for meddling with other peoples af-
fairs, and then what will do?" ..-.ss
She need not know that you told me. l
shall not get you into trouble"
do you promise me that?"
ayes, promise. For Heavens sake, put
an end to this mystery and suspense" ex-
claimed Edward. "You make me feel as
though some dreadful secret, some story of
blood or crime, were about to be revealed to
me- .....
There's no story Of bloodshed, Master
Edward. As to crime, peoples idea on that
point may differ. Well, tc come to the point;
your mother, Helen Dudley, was the daugh-
ter of your grandfather, who used to own
this farm; and if things had gone as they
should, you'd be master here now. But Hell
en-, unluckily. made false step; and this
vas how it came about. You see she was an
only child, and very much petted; her moth
er was dead, and her father, your grandfath-
er Dudley. that was, didn't cross her in any.
thing. He worshipped the very ground she
trod upon. So, naturally, she thought she
ought always to have her way in everything.
Farmer Thorndale and his wife lived then at
the next place, that Bradford owns now. You
know the old tumble down house, and the
field with the broken fence?'
"Of course know; 60 on" '.-
"Well, of course it looked very different
then. Your uncle kept it in pretty good re-
pair, though be wasn't rich like your grand.
father"
.My uncle!'
eyes, farmer Thorndale was your uncle,
or your grand uncle, rather, by marriage;
Mrs Thorndale being your mothers own
aunt"
II don't understand" said poor Edward,
confusedly. II never heard of all this reIa-
tionship before"
"Of course not" said Charity, with sar-
donic smile. "Your friends had good rea-
sons for not letting you know, as III show you
presently. I'm going on now to tell you
about your mother. She was reckoned to
be very handsome; good deal handsomer
than Jennie is now ; in fact different style
altogether. She had plenty of beaux when
she was only fourteen or fifteen years old and
dare say they turned her head. She was
always being invited to pic-nics, and May par
ties, and quilting-parties, and 80 forth and
she'd dress up as gay as you please, and go off
with a lot of girls and young men as gay as
herself, often with no grown up person to su
perintend them, which was certainly not very
wise in your good aunt-Mrs. Thorndale, 1
mean-considering she had the control of
Helen, in great degree, and shouldn't have
let her run herself in danger in that way.
ut happened, by and-by, that there came
along young spark by the pame of Eus-
tace-Hal Eustace, he was called. What he
first came to these parts for, can't tell you,
because don't know but I reckon he was
just travelling around for his amusement.
Anyhow, he seemed to have plenty of leisure,
and plenty Of money to amuse himself with.
Your mother met him, at some frolic or an
other, and the first thing was he fell in love
with her, or pretended to, and she was over
pleased at his attentions, and took them all in
earnest, though / believe now he had no Sc
rious thoughts about her at ALL
"Well, her father and the Thorndales got
wind of the affair; and your grandfather
made some inquiries about the young man,
and not being satisfied with what he could
find out about him-which was not much
he forbade Helen having any more to say to
him. But she, having always had her own
way in other things, naturally expected to do
the same in this. So as she and Eustace were
forbidden to have intercourse with one an
other, and were afraid to meet openly, they
began to have secret meetings in the woods
and elsewhere. Isuppose opposition strength
ened Helen's fancy for her lover, and he, no
doubt, was pushed to 60 to greater lengths by
his desire to spite the old man. So between
them they arranged an elopement,. and would
have been off together, if the scheme hadn't
been discovered in time by some one who had
watched and overheard them privately, and
told Mr.. Dudley all about it. He was dread
fully cut up, of course, and reproached Helen
for her disobedient behavior Eustace went
of, nobody knew where, and she promised
better behavior in the future, and as her ia
ther easily forgave her, things went on
smoothly again for while. Helen seemed
pretty much the same as before, but could
see she was not satisfied, and many time l
used to think some harm would come of it
yet: Some weeks passed-and then, all of a