The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1901-08-08

J to the bed I think we should have
/ killed him, know that we should have
4 tried. All the blood in me had gone to
my head, and 1 saw him through a
i haze-larger than life. The exact spot
! near the buckle of his cloak where I
/ would strike him. downwards and up
| wards an inch above the collar bone
/ this only / saw clearly. 1 could not
have missed 1t. But he turned away,
/ his face darkening, and went back to
the group near the door, and never
I knew the risk he had run.
CHAPTER VI.
MADAME'S FRIGHT.
| And we breathed again. The agony
of suspense, which Beers pause had
created, passed away. But the night
already seemed to us week of nights.
| An age of experience, an aeon Of adj
ventures cut us off-as we lay shak-
ing behind the curtain-from Caylus
and it's life. Paris had proved itself
| more treacherous than we had ever ex-
pected to find it. Everything and every
! one shifted, and wore one face one min
| ute and one another. We had come to
save Pavannes' life at the risk of our
own; we found him to be villain!
Here was Mirepoix owning himself a
! treacherous wretch, a conspirator
! against woman we sympathized
with him. The priest had come upon
a work of charity and rescue; We
| loathed the sound of his voice, and
shranlS from him, we knew not why,
| seeming only to read a dark secret, a
| gloomy threat. in each doubtful word
be uttered. He was the strangest enig-
| ma of all. Why did we fear him? Why
! did Nine. de PavanneS, who apparent
ly had known him before, shudder at
| the touch of his hand? Why did his
shadow come even between her and her
sister, and estrange them, so that from
| the moment PavanneS' wife saw him
standing by DANES side, she forgot
that the latter had come to save, and
looked on her in doubt and sorrow, al
1 most with repugnance.
We left the Vidame going back to the
fireplace. He stopped to set down the
| candle by the hearth. "'They are not
here" he said, as he Strengthened him
self again, and looked curiously at his
companions. He had apparently been
too much taken up with the pursuit to
notice them before. THAT is certain,
so have the less time to lose,' he con-
tinued. but I would-yes, my dear
coadjutor, L certainly would like to
know before I go what you are doing
here. Mirepoix-MirepoiX is an honest
man. | did not expect to find you in
his house. And two ladies7 Two! File,
coadjutor. Ha, Nine dO, is 1t? My
dear lady" ne continued, addressing
her in whispered tone, do not start
at the sound of your own name! 1t
would take a hundred hoods to hide
your eyes or bleach your lips to the
common color; l should have known
you at once, had looked at you. And
your companion? Pheugh!"
He broke off, whistling softly. 1t
was clear that he recognized Nine. de
Pavannes, and recognized her with as
constituent. The bed creaked as
craned my neck to see what would fol-
low. Even the priest seemed to think
that some explanation was necessary,
for he did not wait to be questioned.
Mime. de Pavannes," he said, in a
dry, husky voice, and without looking
up, was spirited hither yesterday and
detained against her will by this good
man, who will have to answer for it.
Nine. dO discovered her whereabouts,
and asked me to escort her here with
out loss of time to enforce her sisters
release"
And her restoration to her distract
ed husband?"
"Just So" the priest assented, ac-
curing confidence, 1 thought.
ana IndQd1IG desires TO go.
Surely! Why not?"
WELL" the vidame drawled, his
manner such as to bring the blood to
Nine. de Pavannes' cheek, lit depends
on the person Who-to use your phrase,
M. lie Coadjuteur-spirited her hither."
And that" madame herself retort-
ed, raising her head, While her voice
quivered with indignation and anger
was the abbess of the Ursulines. Your
suspicious are base, worthy of you and
unworthy Of me, NJ. lie Vidame!
Diane! she continued, sharply, talk
Ing her sisters arm, and casting dis
dainful glance at Beers, 'let us go.
want to be with my husband. l am
stif1ed in this room.'
we are going, little one" Diane
murmured reassuringly. But l noticed
that the speakers animation, which
had been as a soul to her beauty when
she entered the room, was gone. A
strange stillness-was it fear Of the
vidame?-had taken it's place.
The abbess of the Ursulines? ?" Be-
zers continued, thoughtfully. "she
brought you here, did she?" There
was surprise, genuine surprise, in his
voice. "A good soul, and, l think I
have heard, friend OF yours. Umph!"
"A very dear friend" madame an
swered stif1iy Now Diane!
A dear friend! And she spirited
you hither yesterday" commented
the vidame, with the air of one solving
an anagram. And Mirepoix detained
you; respectable Mirepoix, who is said
to have a well-fllled stocking under his
pallet, and stands we'll with the bour-
geoisie. He is in the plot Then at
very late hour, your affectionate sis
ter, and my good friend the coadiutor.
enter~to save you. From what?"
CONTINUED Next Week.)
MONEY LOST IN sTHEEr CARS.