Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1908-09-04
>SOphy & Krayonia
oooooooeoao by ooooooooooo
ANTHONY HOPE
Author Of The Prisoner Of Zenda~
ooooooooooooooooooooo
s Copyright. 1905 anthony Hope Hawkins i
thing In home and the same blood
Copyright, lsos. Anthony Hope HawIkinl

thing In home and the same blood. j
suppose"
Dunstanbury thought that there was
certainly something in having two Eng
| lishmen about. Instead of kravonians
only, but such blunt sentiment might
not be acceptable. He pressed her
hands as he released them.
! Il rejoice in the chance that brings
US here. You can have every confidence
In Basil. He's first rate man. But
tell me about yourself. We have time
| now, haven't WEI"
Really. suppose we have! Mon
seigneur has been put to sleep. but l
couldn't sleep. Come. We'll go up on
the wall"
They mounted on to the city wall Just
by the gate and leaned against the
moldering parapets. Below lay Lake
Talti in the moonlight. and beyond it
the masses Of the mountains. Yet while
Sophy talked Dunstanbury's eyes sell
dom left her face-nay, once or twice
he caught himself not listening. but
only looking, tracing how she had
grown from Sophy Crouch In her soul.
lery to this. He had never forgotten
the strange girl. Once or twice he and
Basil had talked OF her He had re.
sented Lady Meg's brusque and un-
tremendous dismissal of her protege.
In his memory. half overgrown, had
lain the mark on Sophy's cheek. Now
here she was. in KrR yonia, OF all places
Baroness Dobrava. ofsall people! And
what else. who knew? The train Of
events which had brought this about
was strange. yet his greater wonder
was for the woman herself.
And here we are" she ended. with
a woful smile. III monseigneur lives
think we shall win. For the moment
we can do no more than hold Volseni.
think we can do that But presently,
when he's better and can lead us, we
shall attack. Down in Slavna they
won't like being ruled by the countess
and Stenovics as much as they expect.
Little by little we shall grow stronger"
Her voice rose little. "At last mon.
seigneur will sit firm on his throne, /"
she said. "1'hen we'll see what we can
do for Krayonia. It's fine country
i and rich. Lord Dunstanbury, and out
side Slavna the people are good ma
terial. We shall be able to make 1t
very different II monseigneur lives"
"And If not?" he asked in q low
| voice.
What is 1t to me except for mon
seigneur? II he dies Her hands
thrown wide In gesture Of despair
ended her sentence.
II she lived and worked for Krayonia
1t was for monseigneur's sake. With
Ss HHt nhiWa s YKh ea NO Y Re- ste has2
no pains to conceal 1t from Dunstan-
bury. The next moment she turned to
him. with smile "You think talk
strangely. saying. Wen do this and
THAR Yes, you must. and it's sudden
~ become strange to me to say ito
say it to you. because you've brought
back the old things to my mind. and all
this is so out of keeping with the old
things-with Sophy Crouch and Julia
Robins and Morpingham! But until
you came 1t didn't seem strange. Ev'
erything that has happened since
came to this country seemed to leap w
to ito bring 1t about naturally and ir
resistibly. forgot till just now how
funny it must sound to you-and how
how bad. suppose. Well. you mus
accustom yourself to Kravonia. lt'i
not Essex. you know"
'If the king tyesY he asked.
Il II shall be with monseigneur II ht
lives" she answered.
, Yes, it was strange. Yet already
even now-when he had known he
!. again for half an hour. had seen he
j and talked to her-gradually and In
sidiously 1t began to seem less strange
: less fantastic. more natural. Dunstan
bury had to give himself menta
} shake to get back to Essex and to Sc
!, ply Crouch. Volseni set old and gra
amid the hills, the king whose breat
. struggled with his blood for life. tn
beautiful woman who would be wit
r the king If and SO long as he lived
3 these were the present realities he ga,
3 in vivid immediate vision. They mad
( deed dim-they kept all their distinct
: ness of outline in memory-but in thel
turn fantastic and In no relation to tn
+ actual. Was that the air Of Kravoni
I working on him or was 1t woman
!. voice. the pallid pride Of woman
t face?
q "In Slavna they call me witch" 81
t said. .'and tell terrible tales about tn
|: little mark-my red star-but here
r yolseni they like meyes, and ! ca
# win over Slavna, too. II Il get the o.
8 3pertunity. No. shan't be weakness
to monseigneur II he lives"
d you'll be-
"His wife?" she interrupted. Eyes
It She smiled again-nay. almost laughe
l. s'That seems worst OF all-worse tha
anything else7''
Dunstanbury allowed himself to smi
too. well, yes. of course that's true
he said. "Out Of Kravonia anyho,
What's true in KTayonia ! really dor
I know yet"
\ 81 suppose It's true in Krayonia, to
= but what ! tell you is monseigneul
4 will about me-"
N He looked hard at her. 'You To-
y him 2? he asked.
'As my life and more" said sopl
simply.
Z At last Dunstanbury ceased to lo'
at her. He laid his elbows on the bs
Elements and stood there. his ey
roaming over the lake In the valley
"a the mountaina beyond SODhy left