Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-04-26

gun month before that time and At that
point her story ended.
Then you are not married?r Beatrice s
tone expressed an Interrogation. and GER
| tain surprise.
No" said Unorna, Il am not married
And you, If NAY ask
Beatrice started visibly. 1t had not oc-
CURED to her that the question might seem
natural one for Cnorna To ask although
she had said that she was al alone in the
world. Uuorna might have supposed her
10 have lost her husband. But Unorna
could see that II was not surprise alone that
had startled her. The question, as she
knew it must, had reused a deep and pain
ful train of thought.
! No, said Beatrice in an altered voice.
Il am not married. shall never marry"
short silence followed, during which
she turned her face away.
i have panied sou, said Cnorna, with
profound sympathy and regret. Forgive
me. How could be SO tactlesSa''
How could you knowi' Beatrice asked
simply, not attempting TO deny the sug-
| geStion.
But Unorna was suffering, too. She
had allowed herself to imagine that in the
long years which had passed, Beatrice
| might perhaps had forgotten. 1t had
| even crossed her MIND that she might. III
| deed. be married. But in the few words,
| and in the treInor that accompanied them.
| as well as in the increased pallor OF
| Beauices face, she detected love not less
| deep and constant and uniorgotten than the
! Wanderers own.
| Forgive me- Cnorna repeated. Il
might have guessed. have loved. too. "
She knew that here, at least, she could
not feign, and Sue could not control her
| voice, but with supreme judgment OF effect
| she allowed herself TO be carried beyond
al reserve. In the one short sentence her
whole passion expressed itself genuine,
| deep, strong, ruthless. She let the words
| come as they would. and Beatrice was
| startled b. the passionate cry that burst
| from the heart. so wholly unreStrained.
For long time neither spoke again, and
| neither looked az the other. To al appear
| anceS Beatrice was the first 10 regain her
| Self-possesSiOn And then, all al once, the
! words came 10 her lips which could be re-
| strained no longer. For wears she had
kept silence. for there had been no one 10
whom she could speak. For Years she had
sought him, as best she could, as lie had
sought her, fruitlessly and al last hope
!csSly And she had known that her father
was seeking him also, everywhere, that he
might drag her to the ends OF the earth at
the mere suspicion Of the Wanderers pres
ence in the same country. II had amounted
to madness with him OF the kind not sell
dom seen. Beatrice might NARY whom
she pleased, but not the one man she loved.
DaT by day and year by year their two
strong wills had been silently opposed and
neither the one nor the other had ever been
unconscious of the struggle nor had either
yielded hairbreadth. But Beatrice had
been at her fathers mercy. for he could
take her whittier ne would, and III that she
c6uld not resist him. Never in that time
had she lost faith in the devotion of the
man she sought. and al last it was only in
the belief that he was dead that she could
al IF full
find her. Still, she would not change, and
still. through the years sue loved more and
more truly, and passionate2y, and unchang-
ingly.
The feeling that she was in the presence
OF Il passion AK great. as unhappy and rs
mdSterfu! as her own. Embossed her tongue.
Such things happen in this strange world.
Men and women OF deep and strong feel
ings, outwardly cold, reserved. tacituln
and proud. have been known. once in their
lives, TO pour out the secrets of their hearts
TO stranger or mere acquaintance, as
they could never have done TO friend.
Beatrice seemed scarcely conscious of
what she was saying. or OF UnOrna's pres
ence The words, long kept back and
sternly restrained, fell with a strange |
strength from her lips. and there was not
one OF them from first 10 last that did not |
sheathe itself like sharp knife in Cnorna's
heart.
The enormous jealousy of Unorna, which |
had been growing within her beside her |
love during the last month was reaching |
the climax of its overwhelming magnitude. |
She hardly knew when Beatrice ceased |
speaking, for the words were still all ring |
ing in her ears and clashing madly in her |
own breast and prompting her fierce nature |
to do some violent deed. But Beatrice |
looked for no sympathy, and did not see |
Unornas face. She had forgotten Unorna |
herself at last, as she sat staring at the OPP |
poSite wall.
Then she rose quickly, and taking some
thing from the jewel-box, thrust it into
Cnorna's hands.
Il cannot tell why have told you-but l |
have. You shall see him, too. What does
ii matter? We have both loved, we are both
unhappy-we shall never meet again
What is it!'' Unorna tried 10 ask, hold
ing the closed case in her hands. She knew
what was within it well enough, and her
self-command was forsaking her. II was
almost more than she could bear. II was as
though Beatrice We're wreaking vengeance
on her. instead of her destroying her rival
as she meant to do, sooner or later.
Beatrice took the thing from her. opened
it. gaZed at it q moment and put it again
into CnornaS hands. 1T was like him."
she said, watching hercompanion as though
to see what effect The portrait would pro-
duce. Then she shrank back.
Unorna was looking at her. Her face was
1
traordinary contrast in the color of her two
eyes was horribly apparent. The one
seemed TO freeze, the other to be on fire
The strongest and worst passions that can
play upon the human soul We're all ex-
pressed with awful force in the distorted
mask, and not trace of the magnificent
beauty 50 lately there was visible. Beatrice
shrank back in horror.
you know him. she cried, half guess
ing at the truth.
I know hiin-and I love him." said
Unorna, slowly and iercely. her eyes fixed
on her enemy, and gradually leaning to-
ward her, SO as to bring her face nearer
and nearer to Beatrice.
The dark woman tried to rise, and could |
not There was worse than anger, or
hatred, or the intent TO kill, in those
dreadful eyes. There was a fascination
from which no living thing could escape. |
She tried TO scream, to shut out the vision, |
10 raise her hand as 4 screen before it. |
Nearer and nearer it came, until she could
feel the warm breath of it upon her cheek.
Then her brain reeled, her limbs relaxed |
and her head fell back against the wall.
j know him, and love him. We're the |
last words Beatrice heard.
TO BE CONTINUED.