Evening star., 1907-10-29
CHAPTER XLVII.
The Passing of the Vengeance.

The Passing of the Vengeance.
1t was well into the following afternoon
when the trained nurse came quietly
down the stairs and announced to Lord
Ravenspur that her task was finished.
Silva had died in his sleep. The troubled
spirit was at rest, the tardy confession
had been made, and Lord Ravenspur had
no longer any occasion to fear the ven
geance that had followed him so long.
There would have to be an inquest, of
course-as there was. But there was
nothing much here to arouse public curl
osity. A servant at the house on the
common had been severely mauled by
savage dog prowling about, and he had
succumbed to the shock. The newspapers
had few paragraphs, but in a day or
two the incident was forgotten, nor was
there any occasion to worry the owner
of the house. seeing that the place had
been taken by Silva in the proper name
Of his mistress. The servants had seen
nothing either so that scandal was en-
tirely checked. 1t would, perhaps, be
difficult matter later on to explain the un-
expected reappearance Of Vera s mother,
but it seemed to Ravenspur that he could
see a way to solve that problem. And
a a'ter the lapse of eighteen years nobody
would identify the Countess FlaVio with
the Italian scandal that had been SEN
sation in Europe back in the eighties.
Ravenspur and the countess were good
enough friends now, and Mrs Delahay
was beginning to recover her health and
strength again. Already the FitzjOhn
Square murder had ceased to occupy pub
lie attention now that the tragedy had
been solved. and there was no chance OF
the culprit being brought before an earth
ly tribunal AS to Cooney, he got off
quite as lightly as he deserved. And
there are always new sensations to fol
low the old.
Il think. on the whole. you had better
remain here for the present Raven pur
suggested. You have the house on your
hands for two months. and. really. it is
very pleasant place. Everybody is out OF
town for the present, and very few Of
my friends will be back in London again
before the autumn This will give us time
to invent some plausible story to account
for your reappearance. | don't like that
kind o. thing as rule but 1t Is quite eS-
sential in this case
What are you going to DO yourSel1!
the countess asked.
Il am going to have a couple of quiet
months on the continent. AS you can
imagine, my nerves are considerably
shaken, and / am not so young as | used
to be. ! shall miss Vera. of course, but
I think it is far better for her to stay
here with you, 50 that you can get to
know one another properly. But has il
ever occurred to you, countess, that be-
fore long Vera will have another and a
closer guardian than either of our two
selves?"
Il suppose that is inevitable" the
countess said as she looked thOughtfully
across the flower beds. Still, the fault is
my own. I deliberately wasted eighteen
years and it is hardly to be expected that
| Vera-but don't let us anticipate"
II am afraid the mischief is done"
| Ravenspur smiled. From a remark that
! Vera let slip the other night, | learnt a
great deal that has been going on in her
| mind. Goodness knows how she got the
| IMPRESSION but she honestly believed that
| | was something more than her guardian.
| and that between you and mySelf-but l
mustn't pain you by being more definite.
! ANYWAY I now know why Vera appeared
! TO be so unhappy and miserable few
weeks ago and why she conceived the
| idea of leaving my house, and going out
| into the world to get her own living. TO
! make matters quite plain, she and my
! nephew have fallen in love with one an
! other, and she thought that I should op-
pose the match. AS a matter of fact
| did. But not for the reasons that Vera
| supposed. What | was afraid OF was that
| the vengeance intended for me might
| have been transferred to Walter had he
married Vera then. OF course. matters
| are on a totally different footing now
! and nobody is more delighted than my
self. Walter Is fine fellow. lie Nill be
rich some of these days. He will sue
ceed to the title at my death. If 1 were
you. countess, | would not interfere Will
| that arrangement"
Il am a raid it would be too late in any
| case" the countess said, sadly. Il have
no right to say word. And. from what
l have seen of your nephew. | should say
that he will make a good husband for any
girl Still. it is rather a disappointment
to find that l have been supplanted il
| this way, though | am bound to admit
that the fault is entirely my own.
Ravenspur was quite content to leave Il
discreetly at that, and all the more SO be