The Washington weekly post., 1900-01-02
RED ROSES:
Il MISTER T.
Il MYSTERY
BY L. T. MEADE

In more than that" she replied. very
softly.
Vow. Josephine. what do you mean?''
what / say. Patricia" :" Then she
looked me full in the face. Have you
slept well since you came hereT' she
asked.
Admirably" / replied. 81 have been
s.fed with the unpacking. and have slept
IKE u top. And you, dear your nights
nave been good. have they not?'
FaiTly good, she answered but am
very much interested. / cannot say any
more at present. Don't question me,
Pat"
Pat was her name for me when she
wanted TO subdue me altogether. rushed
away brought In a cup Of strong beef
tea, and made her drink it.
declare" ] said, you must have
heard some OF the neighbors' mutterings.
Ihe house Is not haunted, there is moth
ing whatever the matter with IT, and
mean to cover the dinner table with red
roses tonight"
SO ] did, and Josephine was Just her old
self, very sweet AMI gentle, and not at all
depressed. and / rejOiced more than ever
at our bargain and at the lovely home we
had secured for ourselves.
The next day / made arrangements with
a DOatmdn 10 take US out every evening
on the water. ana josephine enjoyed her
lie more than ever. and more and more
people came TO call or US. and we settled
down quite snugly in the beautiful little
place, and / forgot the warning that the
ladies had given Tcc. and the mysterious
way they had talked about the red roses.
Summer passed away and winter came
The roses had all ceased 10 flower In
stead Of flowers. hoW ever, they had put
on scarlet berries ana sun they made a
show Of color In the garden. ! used to
take great punches of berries now to dec
crate the table with, nd friends came to
stay with US, very glad OF the change ana
Of the mild air Of the South of England
l never felt so well in my life. but there
was something about my sister which did
not quite please ne il was not that she
complained, not in the very least, bat she
did not look well, her face got thinner
and thinner. and her eyes larger and larg-
er, and she walked more feebiy, and sat
oftener and ofteHer by the window which
looked into the garden without speaking
Does this place agree with you, Jo-
sephine?' 1 said on certain November
morning.
"oh, yes, dear she replied. why do
you ask?'
Only you don't look we'll"
Il am never strong, you know, Patricia.
am as Well here as anywhere"
Would you like TO go away for a
changer Perhaps three OF four weeks
inland would DO you good?" / querled.
Il am quite WELL" she replied. II would
not leave for anything"
And are you still interested?" | said
bent forward as / spoke and took one Of
her hands. She was only twenty-four
years Of age, and I was only twenty-five
We were young still, with all our youth
in US. and in all the world | loved JO-
sephine best. L hal never had any lover
no love affair had in any way crossed my
path, and l did not think l wanted one
Ny sister was al sufficient TO me, and
now as l looked at her pale, pale face and
noted her hand. which was thinner than il
ought to be, 1 asked her again almost
passionately,
Are you still iaterested?"
Every much so; immensely" she an
swered
And do you still have bad nights?'
| mot bad nights but ! don't sleep; at
| least / sleep very little" she answered.
| | looked out Of the window The sky
| was leaden and the sea was no longer
! blue; IL WAS gray and angry with white
/ horses, many of them riding on its sur
face. The pleasure boats had been all put
away for the season, and the inhabitants
of Alverstoke had settled down TO their
| v inter avocations
After all, il is a dull little place"
said, When the sun leaves the water
Gsld the blue leaves the sky. and the roses
cease 10 bloom, il is not worth buryIng
| ones self here. Shall We go to Italy ?
Shall We spend the winter abroad? I
want you TO get away from that which
interests you, and which you won't talk
abOutr' l said 10 my sister.
'Oh, it is all right" she replied. "I
| wouldn't leave for the world. / am in
! teEseiy interested"
That night the wind rose and rose. It
roared in the chimney pots and through
the long passages and cried 10 US as If u
| had voice, and ] thought began to IN
derstand quite an ordinary and rational
reason why the people who came to the
tall. thin house did not care TO stay there
very long. II was only a summer resi-
deneei il was not fit for the gales and
storms of winter.
/ went 10 my WINDOW and looked ont
Josephine slept on the drawing-room floor
She had the best bedroom in the house
II went as a matter of course that she
should have this, for she had always been
so frail and delicate Ny bedroom was
on the top floor. IL had a dressing-roonn
opening into il; there was no other en-
trance 10 the dressing but through
my bedroom. When / entered the room
al night / as a rule locked the outer door
| Josephine used 10 lock her door. too. II
was a habit, perhaps not very safe one
which We had accustomed ourselves 10
We only kept one servant, a very good
one, and she slept in a room In a little
| wing off the main part of the house Thus
Josephine had the drawing-room floor tc
herself, and l had the upper floor TO my.
| self
Ii had turned cold, too. that night. very
cold, and Josephine asked for a fire in
| her room. She never cared that / shoulC
| come into her room. 1 mean since Wt
I moved into the house with the red roses
When ! went 60 my room the wind
had slightly abated, the fire was laid IN
the crate / felt for the first time since
| entered this house queer, numb, mys-
terious sensation stealing over me. did
not like IL, ] said TO myself. MY nerves
are giving way, the house, of course. is
an right, but il is the look on Josephine