The Bottineau pioneer. (Bottineau, N.D.) 1885-1895, 1894-03-17
CHAPTER XII -(Continued.)

DA A1OAN|AN
CHAPTER XII -(Continued.)
ut is upon private business Of mine
and does not concern you.' she SAID
trying to speak lightly.
But Ciccly knew better. Without
wasting more words she seized the pa
per, tore it from Minna's hand and
read the message. 1t was from the
matron Of st. C~hristopher's hospital
and al thus:
"Mr. Duke Bennington has been run
yer and brought here. Desires to
see you"
Il will co." said Cicely quickly.
and so will I. dear"
They were both very quiet. Clcely
gave the order for the brOugham to be
brought round at once.
On learning that Duke was alive and
in no immediate danger, Minna decd
ed not to see him. but to let Cicely go
in by herself; for she guessed that the
husband and wife might wish for some
private conversation concerning the
visit Of Mr.. William Bennington.
Mr.. Duke was too ill for that. Ills
wife was warned before she saw him
that she must say very little, and AVOID
all appearance Of emotion or excite
ment. 1t was with difficulty that she
restrained an outburst of tears as she
bent over his little bed and kissed him.
Then she sat down beside him very
quietly. holding his hand without say
ing anything.
He would not be silent. as she
wished. The sight Of her excited hlm
too much for that.
mo, Cicely. I must talk he SAID
in a weak voice. Il seemed to De n.y.
ing through a sort of dull dream III
YOU came in, but now l am Wlue
awake, and I must talk myself sleepy
again. You think me very stupid TO
get run over like that; but l have been
SO much on the rack lately, ana TINS
afternoon my uncle William turned up
and worried me with questions
Ssh! Yes. l know. But you must
not talk about that. He's been down
to East Hill. and I've e e him, n
it's all right
..You've seer him. cried Duke. try
ing to start up, his face full OF despei
ate anxiety. And did he,' continued
Tire patient in a whisper, after a mo-
ment's pause, worry you with N"es-
about Joe Radstock!
And his expression changed, not 10
one of but of loathing. Clcely
was shocked. ,..
II told him we knew nothing OF MS
after he left us last nlent:
That was right, was it not: IL salu
in a very low voice.
Quite right. OF course. But he
will find out-he is as cunning as a 1oH'
and then-oh, Cicely!"
''Sh!" she said, and she played ten
derby With is fair curls. ever while a
lideous "undercurrcnt of only half-con-
thought told her that this was
the hair Of Il murderer. You u De
quiet. and calm and trustfll of me
for my sake and for the children's.'
II do trust you, oh! l do trust you,
Cicely," he burst out, with more pas
sionate feeling than ever. Since this
mOrning-when you Were so sweet
thought Of nothing but ~you-evcr
since l feel that l worship you, Cicely.
I could go away somewhere with you
only, I could forget everything-every
thing. But 1 can't I can't. I must stay
here to face it all, and God help me! [
have brought shame and WretchedneSS
uIon you, too
LIZ 1dlu LILO aNC upoA ~ hs'A"' >AAS
ing to her fingers, and speaking in short
jerky phrases, the sense of which she
could not always catch.
1T will not be known she whisper
ed. I can prevent it have thought
of a plan"
You! But, Cicely"-
':Hush!'
Was it insanity he saw in her burn
ing eyes ?Duke thought sc for a mo-
ment, and his heart stood still. She
was standing up, her eyes fere staring,
her lips moving.
"Cicely, my darling Cicely," he cried
in q broken whisper.
And he stretched out his arms to her.
She came nearer, and bent owe him
again, still with the same strange eX-
altation of expression.
A nurse was looking in at the door
for the second time, and she looked
gravely from patient to visitor.
With one kiss, which communicated
in its tenderness both comfort and
hope to the sick man, Cicely left the
room.
The drive back was less melancholy
than the journey to the hospital.
Minna was brushing her hair for the
having sat up rather late reading
in her own room, when the soft open
ing of Cicely's door disturbed her. She
listened, and heard by the occasional
creaking of a stair or board that her
sister-in-law went downstairs. That
was all she could discover, as she did
like to play the spy by opening her
own door. She lay awake a long time,
however, in the hope of hearing the
footsteps returning, but finally fell
asleep without having satisfied her
wish. But anxiety having rendered her
sleep unusually light, she was awaken
ed by a very slight noise, that of some
one stumbling on the stairs. Then CT
cely's door opened and shut.
Minna sprang out of bed, struck a
light and looked at her watch. It was
4 o'clock. Cicely had been absent from
her room three hours! What could she
have been doing?
Minna repeated this question to her
self with still more emphasis on the fol-
lowing morning, when Cicely appeared,
white from apparent fatigue and want
OF sleep, and with her right hand bound
up. She had broken her her soap dish
and cut herself, she explained. But
Minna stole into her sister-in-law's bed
rom in the course of the morning, and
found that this was not true. She had
hurt herself on that mysterious noe
turnal expedition evidently; and Minna,
who was getting more and more
alarmed about Cicely, decided that her
ecruples should not prevent her follow
ing the unhappy young wife, if the lat
ter were again to wander about the
house at night.
Minna expected that Algy Hurst
would call that day, having for an ex.
cuse to report the result of his visit ia
Mr.. William Bennington. Bat he did
not come. And it was not until the
last post that night that q letter came