Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1899-09-28
CHAPTER XVII.

her hand and the light fell on her face;
it was marble white, with livid fire in
the dark eyes. This was the cup Of her
vengeance, and she was drinking it.
''Shall you commence your search for
the brown pocketbook now?" she said to
Lady Vernon, and the answer was yves. !"
II think you are right let me see the
letter again, Lenore-a brown pocket
book with silver clasp-and that holds
the secret; it is worth looking for. Where
do you propose to look?''
L think Sir Cyril generally keeps his
papers all in the library" Lenore an
swered "shall we go there?
They went; the library was all in dark
ness, and Glade lighted the lamp.
''Now," she said, 1--WE have light, we
shall see. Let us begin with the escri-
toire and go on through the drawers"
One by one patiently they opened each
drawer; they searched each little pigeon
hole; they opened desks, receptacles of
all kinds, but there was no sight of any
brown pocketbook.
Miss Beaton was surprised to see Lady
Vernon look up to her with the brightest
smile she had seen on her face for many
days.
'Gladie,'' she cried, do you think Cy-
ril was testing? There is no pocketbook
here, and it looks to me as though, In
deed, he were testing with me-"
''Look through the drawers on the tot
let table, she said sLenore, gentlemen
have a knack of filing them with odds
and ends"
Patiently enough Lady Vernon went
through them with the same result.
''There is no such thing in the room,
Gladie," she cried at last; and again
CLEAN of hope came to the aching heart,
when Miss Beaton took the bunch Of
keys from her hands.
.sAre these Sir Cyril's keys?" she ask
ed.
Eyes, all Of them"
Miss Beaton held up a little key made
of brass, with some small pieces Of oak
inlaid.
''This is pretty key" she said. What
does it unlock?"
81 do not know" replied Lady Vernon.
She thought for a few minutes, then She
perfectly This is the key Of a very pref
ty little cabinet, made of oak and inlaid
with brass.
'.Whose was it?' asked Miss Beaton.
She spoke with assumed calm, but there
was a curious whiteness about her lips
a curious twitching over her face, that
showed all too clearly how entirely as
sumed was that forced calm.
''It was my husband Sir CyriPs.
When we were first married it used to
stand in my room, then he took it to the
library, and now
She looked round the room, but there
was no sign of a pretty oaken cabinet.
Now it seems to have disappeared al
together" said Miss Beaton. What did
your husband keep in it?''
Papers, and little things Of no value
replied Lady Vernon.
II should try to find it, said Miss
Beaton; st is just possible that the
pocketbook may be in it."
Lady Vernon turned away to obey, and
then 1t was easy to see the signs of great
emotion in Miss Beaton; her heart beat,
her lips seemed to grow hot and stiff-it
was as though her whole soul were in her
eyes.
Suddenly Lady Vernon cried:
Il have found i'll have found it, Gla-
diel See, it is in the wardrobe. / will
bring it to the table, and we shall see
what is in it,
And with those words she placed the
little oaken cabinet on the table.
TT feels very heavy said Lady Yer
non, yet it is not very large; see, lift
it myself easily, but it is heavy, Glade.
I will put it on the table here, and then
I can open it readily"
Where did you find it?' asked the
strange voice, quite unlike Gladie's, so
hoarse and so studied where was it ~
Down in the wardrobe, hidden by half
a hundred things" replied Lady Vernon,
brightly; in some strange way, now that
She held the oaken cabinet in her hands,
the fear OF it had died away.
She put the key in the lock and raised
the lid: there was death-like silence in
the room; outside the wind was whisper
ing and the leaves rustied, here all was
silent rs in the city OF the dead. 1t
seemed to Miss Beaton that she could