Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1893-12-17

and before l had found q SCAT l heard his
foot grating on the steps outside.
It was a Westminster car-not, as 1
had hoped, one that would take me to
| Lambeth. To avoid the terrible stretch
of deserted street l went on as lar as
! Hercules buildings. That gave me a
little start, for until he saw me get out
my pursuer could not tell which turning
l should take. CHANGING up, l saw
Drigo's hideous face peering over the
railing to discover who was aliRhting,
and the moment he recognized me he
began 10 scuttle down the steps.
1 ran without stopping till l reached
the tavern at the Lambeth road end OF
the buildings, thinking in my weakness
that l would seek protection II be was
on my heels rather than venture alone
on that last strip Of deserted road l
had made up my mind now that the
enemy Of Taras had resolved to put me
out of the way as a preliminary to this
william. But he was still al some dis
lance Just near enough TO keep NE In
sight, no more. 1t would be absurd to
ask for protection from a man so far of,
l said to myself, and ashamed OF my
c%owardice l again took TO my heels.
| He might have overtaken me in a few
minutes, and there was no n to pre-
vent MIN strangling me in the open
road had he chosen, but he came no
nearer. Whether / ran or whether l
walked, whenever / turned, he seemed
/ to be precisely at the same distance
from me-just near enough to keep In
sight-no nearer, and as | stood pant
ing at the door waiting for Mere Lucas
to let me 10 1 perceived him standing
%motionless by the lamppost at the cor
ner Of Lambeth palace.
Concealing my trepidation from Mere
| Lucas as we'll as / could, l hurried up
to my room and there tried to find an
! explanation Of this strange pursuit. As
l grew calmer and my thoughts more
collected one fact became more n
more evident. DrigO would not have
| suffered me to escape ln this way had
| his designs oeen directed against me.
His spirit of revenge would not have
rested content with giving me a scare.
And as he had not taken advantage OF
this opportunity to injure me 1t was
scarcely credible that he would make
any further attempt In that direction.
probably" said, going to the win
dow to reassure myself, seeing that
1 have come in and am not likely to go
out again tonight, he has gone away"
But looking out under the window
blind | discovered him standing on the
embankment over against the bridge
nearly opposite the house. What did
that mean? A solution OF the mystery
began TO dawn upon me as soon as L
perceived that the man had been posted
here to watch my movements and
quickly took the definite form Of con-
v~lction. An attack was TO be made,
no on me, as l had foolishly imagined
in my fright, but upon Taras. He was
TO be waylaid on his return by the
gang, who had detached Drigo TO pre-
vent me communicating any suspicion
OF their design to him. But a week be-
fore I had watched outside Grandiron
chambers and followed TaraS home.
That fact might very well be known to
the secret enemy, who seemed to be
acquainted with every movement OF
Taras and clearly explained the object
in setting an outpost TO watch me. AS
l recalled this incident the figure OF the
man who drove Kavanagh's brougham
came before my mind, ana l saw again
the furtive glance Of suspicion with
which he regarded me. Might he not
be a spy obtaining information by some
means from Kavanagh?
Mere Lucas came to the door and babe
me good night. When she was gone, |
went to the window and peered again
behind the blind. DrigO had not stir
red from his place al the foot OF the
| bridge. His presence served to confirm
my suspicious, and saw that Taras, to
be saved, must be warned of the dan
ger. But how was | TO reach himP l
| saw clearly enough that it would not do
TO expose myself to a personal encoun-
ter with Drigo. That would not save
Taras. Yet how could l get to Taras
without that risk?
Ia seeking an answer to this question
it presently occurred to me that work.
men had been doing something to the
wall which separated the yard from
Gordon's pottery, and l recollected
hearing that an opening was to be
made TO facilitate the transport OF the
group to the kiln, where it was TO be
burned. If l could get into the pottery,
l might find an exit in the street at the
back, and so get away unseen and I'M
suspected by Drigo.
Leaving the light burning in my
room, l ran down to the kitchen, pro-
vided myself with a candle and silently
went out into the yard. A heap Of
bricks and rubbish showed where the
men had beer working, and on lighting
the candle l found to my inexpressible
iov that a break had been made In the
wall and roughly closed for the night
with a couple of boards. l pushed n
aside and found that / could easily get
into the cellar beyond, where | saw the
square blocks of clay piled up from
floor to ceiling.
With some little difficulty l made my
way through the cellar into the ware
house and thence through an Office into
the shop, and here I thought | had
nothing to do but unbolt the door and
walk out. But when ] came to examine
the fastening l discovered q fact which
1 might have foreseen, knowing that no
one lDudOlteu sue pObtSil bH0 NOOi was
locked on the outside. My heart fell,
and 1 stood looking at the solid lock
stupidity for some moments, quite over
come by the hopelessness OF my posi-
tion, In the silence that followed my
ear caught the sound Of a distant foot
step and then the heavy scrape OF a
nailed boot on a ladder and the rustic Of
straw on the the warehouse floor. With
unreasoning terror / figured Drlgo pur-
suing me hither, and my heart stood
still with the consciousness that | was
utterly at his mercy.
A glimmer Of light appeared. 1t
grew stronger, and then a part OF rough
corduroys appeared at the head OF the
steps with a lantern on one side and a