Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1906-06-14

|0HOROUGHLY mystified by the
action Of the driver aud at
length terrified by the pace that
~ carried them careening along
the narrow road, Beverly cried out to
him, her voice shrill with alarm. Aunt
Fanny was crOuching on the floor of
the coach between the seats. grooming
and praying.
stop. Where are you going" cried
Beverly. putting her head recklessly
through the window. II the man heard
her he gave no evidence OF the fact
His face was set forward, and he Wa
guiding the horses with a firm. III
guivering hand. The coach rattle
and bounded along the dangerous WI
hewn in the side of the mountain. :
misstep or false turn might easily
start the clumsy vehicle rolling down
the deClivity on the right. The convict
was taking desperate chances and,
with cool, calculating brain, prepared
to leap to the ground in case Of acct
dent and save himself, without n
thought for the victims inside
stop. Turn around she cried in n
frenzy. 1--WE shall be killed. Are you
crazy
Ry this time they had struck a de-
scent in the road and We're rushing
along at breakneck speed into Cypress
i've shadows that bore tho first i'm.
prints Of night. Realizing at last that
her cries We're falling upon purposely
deaf ears. Beverly Calhoun sank back
into the seat, weak and terror stricken.
1t was plain to her that the horses were
not running away, for the man had
been flashing them furiously. There
was but one conclusio he was dclib
erately taking her farther into the
mountain Businesses. his purpose
known only to himself. A hundred ter
rors presented themselves 10 her as
she lay huddled against the side OF the
coach, her eyes closed tightly, her ten
der body tossed furously about with
the sway of the vehicle. There was the
fundamental fear that she would bt
dashed TO death down the side of the
mountain, but apart from this bel
quick brain was evolving all sorts Of
possible endings-none short Of abso
lutte disaster.
Even as she prayed that something
might intervene TO check the mad rusl
and to deliver her from the horrors o.
the moment the rauc0us voice Of tn,
driver was heard calling to his horses
and the pace became slower The aw
full rocking and the iolting grew les
severe, the clatter resolved itself into ,
broken rumble, and then the coacI
stopped with a mighty lurch
Dragging herself from the corner
poor Beverly Calhoun, no longer a dis
dainful heroine, gazcd ptcouSy on
into the shadows, expecting the nun
dorous blade of the driver to meet he
as she did So Pauloff had swung frol
the box of the coach and was peerin
first into the woodland below and the
upon the rocks to the left. lie wore h
expression of man trapped and secI
ing means OF escape. Suddenly he dar
ed behind the coach almost brushin
against Beverly's hat as he passed tt
window. She opened her lips to ca
him, but even as she did so he toe
to his heels and raced back over II
road they had travelled so precpitousl
Overcome by surprise and disma
she only could watch the flight in :
lence, Less than a hundred feet fro
where the coach was standing he turl
ed to the right and was lost among II
rocks Ahead, four horses. covere
with sweat, were painting and heav.r
as If in great distress after their ma
run, Aunt Fanny was still moanir
and praying by turns In the bottom
the carriage. Darkness was sett.!r