The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1897-07-01
Established 1854.

Still, the desire to do something to allevi-
ATE the mans suffering was uppermost In
her mind.
Is there nothing else that / can do for
| you ?" she asked.
| Nothing, except to hand me that large
palm-leaf fam"
| "Tll sit here and fan you for few min
utes," she said, drawing a chair near She
hoped to hasten his return to q condition
when he would tell her what she was craving
! to hear.
| She famed vigorously, with her eyes fixed
on the carpet, while eager thoughts chased
through her brain. Thus several inmates
| passed, and he did not speak. She look ed
| over her fan at him, and encountered his
| eyes fixed upon her in burning admiration.
! All the stimulation of faintness was gone
| from them.
"You are the most beautiful woman
ever saw" he said in tones from which all
| weakness had departed. He reached out as
if to take her hand.
She instinctively recoiled. You said you
wanted to talk to me of my father. Tell me
at once about him, for / must CO."
"You will not go and leave me here suffer
ing?" he said insinuatingly.
You are rapidly recovering" SIZE an
swered. Besides, your wife Will be here
soon, and she'll take care of you"
My wife," he calculated in a tone of
deep melancholy. MY wife is fiction.
There is no such a woman"
"You said you had a wife,"
81 know / did. / habitualIy speak that
way. like to have people think that am
| married. 1t is better for me in many ways
/ envy those who are married. But have
never before seen the woman wanted to
marry until set eyes on you."
Il don't care to hear such talk-least of
all now," she said impatiently. "This is
neither time nor place for it. Tell me
| about my father. Did you know him?"
| 81 knew your father well. At one time
was associated with him in business, and
l esteemed him highly. He was very good
man."
"The noblest man that ever lived" she
said impulsively. do you know where he
is now"
"Do know where he is now? Not ex-
actly. But 1 propose to help you to hunt
for him. Stay here with me, and we will
work together. You are alone in Chicago,
without friends. Make this your home"
What do you mean ?" she asked, with
flashing eyes.
AhiS 10 hJ OouSc 1Ou Tan SEC tiIdt IL
is a very nice one 1t has everything but q
mistress. Stay here with me and be it's
mistress. Make it the really luxurious home
it should be, for yourself as we'll as me. You
will control it as absolutely as if you were
really my wife,"
She looked at him with gaze so direct as
to make his own shifty eyes avert, and said
slowly and distinctly:
"As near as I can understand your words
they are deadly insult. They are such as
no true woman can listen to. They make
me certain that you really know nothing of
my father, nor want to help me. You are q
base, wicked man. / am going away in
stantly."
"You will find some difficulty in doing
that" he said coolly. "This house is ar
ranged with view of OBTAINING my guests
until l desire to part with them. You'll
find that you cannot open the door,"
She went to the door. It resisted all her
efforts to move the lock. He caught her by
the wrist, and drew her back into the parlor.
Listen" he said, and be reasonable. u
have you here in my power. You cannot
help yourself More than that, l have all
your fathers property at my mercy. can
even turn you and your mother out of your
home at Zambota. You are a girl of sense,
and can at once understand the proofs can
show you of this. / ask very little of you.
/ can give you more and make you happier
than any other man is ever likely to do. All 1
ask of you is to be sweet and reasonable, as
any woman of sense should be. Thousands
of women just as young and handsome as
you are would jump at such a chance. /
would not have to speak twice"
She wrenched herself away from him, and,
snatching up gilt foot-stool, sent it crash
ing through one of the plate-glass windows
~ can go out there" she said, starting to
follow the missile
He leaped forward and caught her as she
took the first step. She gave a piercing
scream, and resisted with all her might. But
his strength was overpowering, and he drag
ged her-stiil sereaming-t0 a windowless
chamber behind the hall, into which he
thrust her, and locked the door upon her.
ITO be cOufin1Ied1