Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1899-03-08
CHAPTER xxxIv.

UNDER A CRIMSON SKY.
At o'clock the diggers began to go
home. Nothing had been found, and the
excitement of search which had animat-
ed them early in the day had given
place to a dull resentment mainly d.
rected toward the Knollys, if one could
judge of these mems feelings by the
heavy scowls and significant gestures
with which they passed its broken
down gateway.
By 6 the last man had filed by, leav-
ing Mr.. Gryce free for the work which
lay before him.
had retired long before this to my
room, where Iawaited the hour set by
Lucetta with q feverish impatience
quite new to me. AS none of us could
eat, the supper table had not been laid,
and though had no means of knowing
what was in store for us the somber ST.
lence and oppression under which the
whole house lay seemed portent that
was by no means encouraging.
Suddenly heard knock at my door.
Rising hastily, I opened it. Loreen
stood before me, with parted lips and
terror in all her looks.
"Come!' she cried. "Come and see
what I have found in Lucetta's room"
AS she was already half way down
the hall hastened to follow her, and in
a few moments found myself on the
threshold of the room knew to be Luz
cetta's.
"She made me promise" cried Lo-
reen, hating to look back at me, THAT
would let her go alone and that I
would not enter the highway till an
hour after she had left. But after this
how can we stay in this house?" And
dragging me to table, she showed me
lying on its top folded paper and two
letters. The folded paper was Lucetta's
will and the letters were directed sever
ally to Loreen and to myself with the
injunction on them that they were not
to be read till she had been gone six
hours.
"Seriousl" murmured. "But Mr..
Gryce is with her.
''No one is with her. Mr.. Gryce may
be near, but she has undertaken her
task alone. Miss Butterworth, have
never broken q promise before in all my
life, but I am going to break this.
Come, let us fly to her. She has her
lovers memory, but have nothing in
all the world but her."
Immediately turned, and we hasten
ed down the stairs, but at the foot Lo-
reen gave me look and said:
| "My promise was not to enter the
highway. Would you be afraid to fol-
low me by another road-secret road
all overgrown with thistles and black
! berry bushes which have not been trim
med up for years?"
thought of my thin shoes, my neat
silk dress, but only to forget them the
next moment.
IT will go anywhere saidI. "But
where, where has Lucetta gone? Is it
to Deacon Spears? If SOL
But Loreen was already too far in ad-
vance of me to answer. She was young,
she was 1.-the and was down as far as
the kitchen before had passed the
flower parlor. But when we had sped
clear of the house found that my prog.
ress babe fair to be as rapid as hers,
| for her agitation was a hindrance to her,
while excitement always brings out my
| powers and heightens both my wits and
my Judgment.
Our way lay past the stables, from
which I expected every minute to see
two or three dogs jump. But William,
who had been discreetly sent out of the
way early in the afternoon by the two
sisters, had taken Saracen with him,
and possibly the rest, SO our passing by
disturbed nothing, not even ourselves.
The next moment we were in field Of
prickers, through which we both strug-
gled till we came into sort of swamp.
This was bad going, but we floundered
through it, edging continually as ]
could not but see toward distant fence
beyond which rose the symmetrical
lines of an orchard.
"Loreen," I cried, "Loreen, those
are Mr.. Trohm's groundsl Must we pass
| etirss0sa .:.c:..
TO BE CONTINUED.