San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1892-05-16

shadow. Come here, Tom. He ma
be looking"
"Why, Kate, who can see us here:
The door is shut"
"Oh-why was not the door bolted?'
ut was. | can't conceive how you
opened it."
"Oh, the villainl how | hate himi"
"Kate, | love you, and whoever you
hate must have to do with me-"
"You can do nothing-no n can do
anything-unless you'll help me to kill
himr'
Whom? Do you mean Slurk? Tell
me THAR
"Yes!" she answered, with a shiver,
not looking me in the face, but with her
hands clasped tight between her knees.
ii do mean-him!"'
Nov tell me all that he has done,
dear" said | quietly. II must know
everything. and then | promise you that
you shall be freed from him"
; He is my masterl' she said in a
frightened whisper. "He has been so
ever so long! He makes me do what he
wills; he sent me here tonight. He
shames me and destroys me-he loves to
do it! He makes me sleep and then
cannot help myself. | wake and find it
done, and he has no mercy"
why does he do this?"
1T was when | was only a little girl
that he first got that power over me. He
knew my father was rich and he wanted
me to be promised to him for his-you
know what, Tom. Then my father put
me in the convent, and | staid there
eve years, till we thought he had lost
the power, or was dead, perhaps. But
he found me in America and made me
come back, and now it's worse than
ever"
"Why doesn't our father have him
arrested and imprisoned? 1t a be
DONE"
'Oh, my poor father! He cannot.
Tom; do not ask me THAR
81 must ask it, Kate. Remember, |
love you! Why is itY'
"My father is afraid of him too" she
said, chatting one hand with the other
with a piteous expression of pain. IF
he did anything against him he would
be ruined. My father cannot help me,
Tom"
But | do not understand. What has
your father done that he should be afraid
of such a scoundrel as SlurkY" | demand
ed sternly.
She hesitated long before answering,
movingh her hands and head restlessly and
fetching many troubled signs. At last
she laid her hand shrinkingly on mine.
and | grasped it firmly.
Il will tell you, Tom" she said in a
faltering voice; ''but you know | would
tell no one in the world but you. My
dear papa did not do wrong himself, but
there were people connected with him
who did, and made the blame seem to be
his. And there were some papers of my
papa's which-which-oh"-
Yes, yes, ! understand, darling: and
Slurk stole the papers,"
"Yes-that is-no: it was worse than
that, for he didn't know where the pa
pers' were kept-no one knew that but
l. Tom, he made me sleep, and in my
sleep he made me go to the place
where they were and take them out and
give them to him. He made me rob my
own father-put my own dear papa in
his hateful power. | would rather have
died! And papa forgave me-think of
THAR . a
"Then Slurk has the papers in his pos
session, and he uses them for blackmail?
But have you never thought of trying
tot sounds badly, but it would be per-
fectly %justifiable to steal them back
AGAIN."
81 can do nothing. He can make me
helpless bya look. and he always carries
them with him. But, Tom, if it could
be done without being found out | would
tell papa to kill him. But | cannot let
my dear papa be hanged for that wretch
and you see we have no evidence:
Good God! What "A fearful thing it
isl | muttered. What help, what con-
ISOLATION could | offer? A refined and SEN
sitive girl under the mesmeric control of
a ruffian; her father subject to his ex-
tortions and insults, and the only escape
a worse misery even than this-Kate to
yield herself to him in marriage! Faugh!
the thought sickened me, but it enraged
me too! Kate was right-death, sudden
and merciless, was the proper measure
to be melted ont to Slurk. If he had APP
peared at that moment | believe | would
have shot him unh~esitatingly and re-
joiced in the deed. Murder would be q
righteous work when wrought on such a.
he, and if the murder were brought home
to me, could | suffer in a better cause?
Kate had risen slowly from her chair
and was now fronting me, scanning my
face and bearing with curious eagerness.