Polk County observer. (Monmouth, Polk County, Or.) 1888-1927, 1907-04-09

u
accusations. false though t!ry were, u
hoped to terrori@e her intD Submission
. He longed to possess this 1.-the. beauti
ful creature from over the sea. In al
his life he had not hangerel for any
thing as he now crGved Beverly Cal
houn. He saw that his position in tn
army was rendered insecure by tn
events of the last day. A bold, vicious
stroke was his only means for securing
the prize he longed for more than h'
longed for honor ana fame.
Restless and enraged. consumed by
jealousy and fear. he hung about tht
castle grounds long after he had drawn
the diabolical charges He knew thai
Baldos was inside the castle, favored
while he, a noble Of the realm. was rele
gated to ignOminy and the promise OF
degradation. Encamped outside the
city walls the army lay without a
leader Each hour saw the numbers
augmented by the arrival of reserves
from the districts of the principality.
His place was out there with the staff,
yet he could not drag himself away
from the charmed circle In which his
prey was sleeping. MorOse and grim
he anxiously paced to and fro In an
obscure corner of the grounds.
"What keeps the scoundrel?" he said
to himself angrily.
Presently a villalnous looking man,
dressed in the uniform Of the guards,
stealthily approached. 81 missed him,
general but / will get him the next
time" growled the man.
Curse you for fOolw hissed Mar
lanx through his teeth. AS another
hlreling came up. what have you got
to sayT
The man reported that Baldos had
been seen on the balcony alone. evil
IDENTIFY on watch.
Marlanx ground his teeth and his
blood stOrmed his reason. "The job
must be done tonight. You have your
instructions Capture him if possible;
but, If necessary, kill him. You know
your fate if you fail" Marlanx actual
ly grinned at the thought Of the punish
ment he would mete out to them.
"Now be OFF,
Rashly he made his way to the castle
front. A bright moon cast its mellow
glow over the mass Of stone outlined
against the western sky. For an hour
he glowered In the shade of the trees,
giving but slight heed to the guards
who passed from time to time. His
eyes never left the enchanted balcony.
At last he saw the man. Baldos
came from the door at the end of the
balcony, paced the full length in the
moonlight, paused for a moment near
Beverly CalhOun's window and then
disappeared through the same door
that had afforded him egress.
Inside the dark castle the clock at
the end Of the hall melOdiOusly doomed
the hour of 2. Dead quiet followed
the soft echoes of the gong. A tall
figure stealthily opened the door to
Yetlve's chapel and stepped inside.
There was streak of moonlight
through the clear window at the far
end Of the room. BaldOs, his heart
beating rapidly, stood still for a mo-
ment, awaiting the next move in the
game. The ghostlike figure Of wom-
an suddenly stood before him in the
path of the mOonbeam. a hooded fig
ure In dark robes. He started as If
confronted by the supernatural.
Come" came in an agltated whis-
per, and he stepped to the side of the
phantom. She turned, and the moon
light fell upon the face of Beverly Cal
houn. Don't speak. Follow me as
quickly as you can"
He grasped her arm, bringing her to
a standstill.
II have changed my mind" he whis-
pered In her ear do you think will
run away and leave you to shoulder
the blame for all this? On the balcony
near your window an hour ago u
ut doesn't make any difference" she
argued. You have to go. l want you
to go. If you knew just how feel to-
ward you you would go without a
murmur."
You mean that you hate me-" he
groaned.
81 wouldn't be so unkind as to say
that" she fiuttered II don't know
who you are. Come, we can't delay
minute. / have a key to the gate at
the other end of the passage, and ]
know where the secret panel is locat-
ed. Hush! 1t doesn't matter where ]
got the key. See! See how easy it is|
He felt her tense little fingers in the
darkness searching for his. Their hands
were icy cold when the clasp came. To
gether they stood in niche of the wall
near the chancel rail- 1t was dark. and
a cold draft OF air blew aercSs their
faces. He could not see, but there waR
proof enough that she had opened the
secret panel in the wall and that the
damp. chill air came from the under
ground passage which led to a point
outside the city walls.
"You go first" she whispered nerv-
Ously. 'T'm afraid There is a lantern
on the steps, and have some matches.
Wen light 1t as soon as Oh. what
was thatY'
Don't be frightened" he said. II
think it was a rat"
Good graeiOusr' she gasped. 81
wouldn't go in there for the world"
"Do you mean to say that you intend
ID to do sO?' he asked eagerly.
Certainly. Some one has to return
the key TO the outer gate. Oh. sup
pose I'll have to go in. YOu'n keep
hem OF, won't your p!aintively. He
was smiling In the darkness. thinking
what dear, whimsical thing she was.
with my life" he said softly.
They're ten times worse than llOns,"