The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1888-02-02

| me I'll, ne utU Saiu, slTlhluS dt once
| for the root of the matter.
The fearful glance she flashed upon
him, the burst of laughter with which
| she forced back the tears, chilled him.
Tell you, dear? II have nothing
to tell" she had said. and breaking
away from his OBTAINING arm she had
seated herself at the piano and dashed
| off brilliant waltz. But she was no
| adept in deception. and the flimsy dis
I guise only revealed her unhappiness
so much the more.
The case assumed alarming propor-
tions to him as he paced the library
until long after midnight. Guiltp No.
1t was impossible for him to entertain
that idea; but might not there be
alarming complications, some COM
! promising situation, which would in
| clude him of necessityp
He constructed dozen possible sit
| uations from the materials at his COM
| mand, and fitted them to himself.
| How should he act if this or that
| should be the solution of the mystery?
| Yet over and above all this sensi-
tive dread of possible scandal he felt a
strong sympathy which longed to lift
this burden from her life, or at least
to share it. She seemed to be reced-
ing-gliding away from him. Was he
to lose herP
lively. Be brought her before him as
she had appeared in the evening in
| her dress of dark garnet and black
| lace, that harmonised so well with ner
| dark, flushed, brilliant face. He felt
| a new realisation of her beauty. He
started to 90 to her. He would plead,
urge, insist upon her confidence. But
pride put in its plea. 1t was for her
to come to him.
His mind wandered back over the
| past year regretfully.
''It was flawless," he whispered.
''It was too perfect to last. My turn
has come to suffer-"
1t was two o'clock when he went to
their chamber. The gas burned low.
Evelyn was sleeping. There were
traces of tears, and something so pit
| eous in the unconscious face, that he
| was constrained to kiss her lips. She
stirred and murmured Warren" in
| her dreams.
The next morning he told her he
should be detained late that evening,
and kissed her good-by with outward
cheerfulness but a heavy heart.
All through the day some prescience
kept urging him to cancel the i'm
| portant engagement of the evening
and return home early. The impress
sion was so singular that be was con-
strained to obey it.
| There seemed to be some reason for
it when nearing home he saw man
lowering under the front parlor win
| dows. He turned into a narrow pass
age between two dwellings, nearly
opposite and waited.
In a few moments he heard low
| peculiar whistle that seemed to be a
signal. His heart beat faster than
usual when he saw the front-door
opened by Evelyn herself. the man
walk up the steps, enter and close the
| door after him, and saw, also, that it
was the same indifferently-dresse
dark-faced, uspicious-looking indivi-
dual with whom he had known her
to be in secret communication.
He waited a short time, then crossed
the street and let himself into the hall
with his latch-key. The gas was
burning brightly. He opened the
There was no sound below stairs. The
servants had gone out
He walked upstairs with firm step.
There was no anger, no desperation
in his thought, only concentrated
energy of purpose. The elements of
the disturbance were beneath his roof.
He would deal with them summarily.
His clear professional instinct was at
once active and under control.
He looked into their private sitting
room; that. too, was empty. He en-
tered their chamber. 1t was in dark
ness, but beyond the heavy plush
drapery that separated it from Evelyn s
little dressing-room he saw CLEAN
of light and heard voices. His wife
had received this man in q private
room where only a few intimate lady
friends were admitted. twas rather
peculiar situation for husband to
contemplate, but he was equal to it.
81 tell you, Evelyn" the man was
saying Familiarity, you'll have to do
better than this. You must shell out
two hundred pounds now, within q
few days, if you want to live in peace.
No need for me to tell you what Seth
Arnold is. You see what he says in
his letter. God help you if you let
him come over here. Pm sorry enough
he wasn't popped off in that railroad
accident. 1t seemed as if the devil
helped his own. The officers were
after him for that forgery, and would
have had him within a few hours
| = hn1 1,,'f .&o., 1,1
killed. He's been skulking around
two years eluding the law. You
might have knocked me down with a
feather when he made himself known
to me in London that night and asked
about you. It's too bad; but if your
husband is as generous as you say,
surely you can wheedle him out of a
good round sum without his feeling
the wiser where it goes"
Warren Hamilton heard every word
distinctly.
"Wheedle him out of it." Evelyn re-
peated. "Ask him to pay this price
for his peace! 1t is wretched mat
ter to patch up-to compromise! What
ought to do? That is the question.
How can | meet my husband with this
lie in my heart, when he is so noble
and gel erous, and trusts ne so COM
pletely9 Husband!" she repeated.
Have | husband?"
"There, Eve, don't GO into heroics,
said the other impatiently. ''It isn't
your fault that you are in this posi-
ton. Make the best of it now. It's
worth while making some sacrifice to
keep your husband in the dark. What
he don't know he can't be sorry for"
Il shall have to tell him soon," she
returned. 81 know / cannot live this
double life with him much longer"
Your husband is not so young as
he was once" pursued the other. SIT
would not pc safe to tell him. The
shock miget kill him. You ought to
be glad that your black sheep of a
brother is standing in the gap, instead
of Seth making himself known round
here, and kicking up devil of a