Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-01-02
aHenr1ette, Henriette; are you asleep11

Every sound ceased Everything seemed to sleep. Only quarter of an hour ago these two had been on the balcony, happy and inn patient to see Roger. And now three lives werc wrecked in that short space.
 Midnight sounded, and at last o'clock Henriette did not try even to sleep. She sat silent and overcome in the chair beside the Suzanne slept, she turned her gaze toward her, and seeing the eyes closed thought that the poor little thing had forgot her fear and horror, at least for time.
 "Oh, my GodI" whispered she, 1have pity upon that poor innocent one"
 She then rose softly and crept to the door and opened it slightly and listened. There was no sound. She crept like O shadow into the parlor and took Q few steps forward, but suddenly stopped behind the piano, as she saw that Rogers door was wide open, and by the light of a lamp she could see him seated, pale and distressed, with his head leaning upon his hands. His face was convulsed, his eyes fixed and his hair and beard in wild disorder. Roger was 30 years old; at this instant he looked 50. On the bureau, within reach of his hand, lay small revolver, the revolver which had triumphed over the last agony of M. Larouette. And the lamp burned on with its steady flame, giving this spectacle to the watching wife
 Henriette looked, absorbing every detail of this final picture, when suddenly she felt be- tween her locked fingers cold little hand, and turning found that Suzanne had arisen from her bed and that she, too, was watching. Hidden thus behind the piano they did not lose sight of Laroque an instant.
 All at once, as if his thoughts were too dreadful to bear, he rose and began pacing his room with uncertain, staggering steps. Often, even, he took hold of something to keep himself from falling. At last he stopped before tho bureau, and hid his face in his hands. One would have thought that he wept. Was it remorse?
 Then he let his hands fall and reached and took the revolver, cooked it and held it ready in his left hand, while with the other he un buttoned his redinAote, threw aside the cape, opened his vestrnents, leaving bare his breast. Then, without a tremor, he placed the muzzle of the pistol to his heart and with his finger on the trigger stood an instant, but he dared not complete his impious act, and he threw tho pistol back on the bureau.
 And then Roger threw himself into chair and continued his train of thought, while Henriette caught Suzanne ns she tainted and carried her Lack into her room, and he heard nothing. The night passed thus. Henriette did not go to bed. Suzanne lay in her cot, but without sleeping, for her eyes remained wide open until morning, keeping always their expression of horror.
 About 8 o'clock Henriette dressed herself, and afterward disordered her bed, the pillows and all, to not awaken Victoria's suspicious, and to cause her to believe that she had slept She must dissemble. She could not do otherwise. She would be obliged to leave her room and meet her husband, speak to him, smile even, that he might not suspect that she had witnessed his crime. And even while dressing Suzanne, she felt @ force un- known, superhuman, which obliged her to go out on that fatal balcony, and look towards that little house with green blinds. The win- dows were still open; there lay the rigid corpse of Laronette beside the secretary. which had all the drawers open.
 She heard Roger come out of his room, traverse the parlor and knock at her door. It was ended; she must meet him. One last kiss she gave to Suzanne and then opened the door to her husband, who entered smiling. He was not dressed as he had been the day before, but in black.
 Roger Laroque was tall, wore all his beard, which was jet black, and his face was expres- sive and sympathetic, though it indicated more man of action than dreamer. This morning his face was ashy pale, his eyes sunken and his forehead wrinkled, and he showed traces of an anxiety which he tried in vain to hide, and though he smiled on his wife that smile was forced. He took her hand and bent to kiss her, saying in luis tender and sweet voice:
 "How uneasy you must have felt last night, my dear, but could not help it. I had very important business, which 50 occupied me that had no time to telegraph. Butt
 And here he stopped, surprised He had bent to kiss her forehead and Henriette had shrunl back with an instinctive movement of horr1r g11r. .,a ..,,, ., :, :, ,o , =. by her coldness. - And then for the first he noticed her ex- treme pallor, her troubled mien. To receive caress from that man, after what she had | seen! It was more than she could bear. Yet she must feign. "Nothing," said she; moth l ing. Why should there be anythinga" And l with her whole soul in revolt she received his caress, which treasured him, and he said, gayly:. l your door, but you were asleep. Only few | years ago you would have waited later than that. Who knows if anybody loves me nowT' | And there was that man talking of lovel 1 And she would always be obliged to listen, to answerl From what a height had she falle, and how completely the fall had shattered her heart, her life!
 aWell," said he again, "what is ita Are you illa I see you are pale and weary. Why don't you look at mel Have distressed you without knowing it? Are you vexed with
 me for having caused your anxiety last
 nights Tell me, at least"
 She must speak. One moment she gathered
 her forces to tell him all, to accuse him, to
 banish him forever from her presence But
 she could not, she dared not. It was better I that he never know that he had had his wifs
 and child for witnesses to his terrible crime
 Better never let him know, and thus she would
 not become his accomplice Her little girl
 stood by. She had told tbat child that, il
 ever justice should accuse him, s'you hava
 seen nothing, heard nothing" She must
 now show that child how one must feign
 how lie. And so, half fainting with thu
 horror of it, she murmured:
 "What have you done that I should love you no longer? I love you. What have
 done that you doubt it?'
 TO BE CONTINUED.
 Wheeler & Wilson Mfg. Co.,.