Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1897-03-18
CHAPTER XXI.
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The next morning she sent q note to
Lawrence He was punctual to the hour
mentioned, and was shown at once, evil
IDENTITY by order, into little morning room,
rather away from the other inhabited por-
tons of the house. There Anne came to
him after few moments delay; and he
found himself at last in the position which
he had long coveted, of being able to say
to her exactly what he chose.
He told har the story, from his point of
vI..:r, OF his engagement to Clare. He
sad yielded to Mrs. Seymour's expressed
desire when Glare was Il mere child of
sixteen She was nineteen now and had
been engaged to him three years, certain
W; but she was young enough to forget
him with ease. He did not think she
cared for him any more than he cared for
her. OF course, her mother and family
would be affronted by the slight that he
wished to put upon her: but was he to
ruin his whole life-and Anne's-because
he did not want to affront Mrs. Sey-
mour?
"You forget Glare" said Anne.
eve are older than Glare. We have
less of our lives before us. The ruin of
our hopes is far more serious thing than
the downfall of hers"
81 cannot look upon it from that point
of view," she said, gently.
Then he touched upon the circumstan-
ces under which he had made her ac-
quaintance. He told her how, in giving
his cousins Christian name instead of his
own. he had only meant to elude the Cos
sip about his private affairs which he was
vexed to find had followed him even to the
Mediterranean He had almost forgot
ten that he was known as Damer and not
Denzil Lawrence, he said, until Anne's
own questions; prompted by Mrs Burton,
had tempted him to deceive her. Because
by that time he had fallen in love, des-
perately in love- with Anne Carteret; and
although he had made an attempt to keep
his word to Clare by flying from Alex
andria to Cairo, he could not bear to
sever the tie between them by telling her
once for all that he was engaged to his
cousin. and had no right to win her love.
He had once been near telling her, but had
been interrupted. And then he found, he
said, that Anne was more to him than his
life more than his honor and his plighted
word; and he had come back to her again.
When he left her. at her own request, to
seek out his aunt and cousin at Venice,
he had made up his mind t, tell the real
state of affairs TO Mrs. Seymour, and re-
pudiate his engagement to Glare altogeth
err His missing them at Venice, and their
arrival at Alexandria, with the fortnight's
start which they had of him there while
he was i'll at Venice, had ruined his plans.
''What you meant, them" said Anne,
very gently, ''was to come back to me
and-and-"
"And marry you," he said, gloomily.
"And l wish to heaven had never gone!
1 wish | had married you first"
marry me-" she repeated, with slight
dreamy hesitation, as if she had not heard
the concluding sentences-''marry me,
without saying a word about Glare? Was
it SOP"
Il know l have been wrong, Anne, he
said. "You have good reason to despise
me; but, oh, my darling, my last hope is
in you! For Gods sake, Anne, don't give
me up. Don't leave me to myself. L
think sometimes l shall go out of my
senses if | lose all hope of you. Help me,
Anne! You don't know how l have sHf-
fered. | can bear much for your sake,
but not this-not this!' And then he bent
his head, and kisses and hot tears fell
upon her hands together. When he lifted
his face she saw that the veins upon his
forehead were swollen, his features dis
torted by the violence of his emotion, his
eyes boodshot and dim. eff you ever
loved me. Anne" he pleaded, "do not for
sake me now!'
She uttered faint cry of pain and grief
"My love! my lovev' she said, heaven
only knows how | have loved you!'
How can believe in heaven he muir
INJURED, IF you forsake me, Anne"
The words will haunt Anne Carteret
to her dying day. She wrenched her hands
away from him, and lifted them to her
head with gesture of passionate despair,
then rose impulsively and stood at some
little distance.
Chow can l do anything but leave you?
How can I turn traitor for your 'sake?"
she said. Glare trusts me. Heaven will
help me not to be unfaithful to that
trust.'
''You sacrifice me to Clare?" he ques-
toned, bitterly.
Forgive me. Damer," she said, pitt
fully. Don't leave me in anger. You
will tell me some day that l was right"
He did not seem to see or hear. With
a look of blind rage and pain upon his
face. he turned away from her. In an
other moment the door had closed upon
him, and she was left to wrestle with her
agony alone.