The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1910-07-15

at her approach OF tnelr own accord,
and they followed her into the ceme-
terry.
Antoinette glided swiftly on. The
moon went behind cloud, all was
shrouded in dark night; but her fig
ure was still perceptible, darker
shadow in the darkness.
In the Chapelle des Morris two
lamps were burning in red shades
They seemed like living eyes; they
shed a lurid light around them, on
the cleaning altar, on the black vel
vet pail which covered the bier lying
before it, and to that bier Antoinette
went onwards.
Arthur would have interposed. It
seemed to him that it would kill her,
that now he must prevent her go
| Ing on; Tasset put his hand heavily
on his shoulder and almost held him
back.
Antoinette, cold and phantom-like,
was standing over the corpse of her
| father, and the two pale hands which
had been Joined before her, holding
the willow wand, dropped and fell
A strange baff1ed look came over her,
| that yet had none of the reality of
the real Antoinette in its momentary
weakness. Suddenly she stopped.
She drew aside the pail that covered
the dead mans head and breast. Ar
thur bent forward, shudderfhg, to
hold out his arms, lest the daughter
should fall back horror-stricken and
insensible; but he was mistaken.
A sound burst from her lips-an
awful sound-that had a ring of:
eXultation in it, and she seized upon
something that lay on her dead IA
theirs breast. That something gilt
tered and shone in the red altar
lights, and they recognized it stimuli
taneously. 1t was a, diamond. = :.
How it came there they knew not
1t must have dropped from the MUIR,
derer's hand. Chance, or some of
the Divine laws which govern chance:
must have shaken it on to his grave;
clothes. There was no time for con-:
lecture, for at the very touch of 1T:
the strange stiff tension came ba ek
into Antoinette's fingers: they closed.
around the stone. Her eyes looked
once more straight before her, fixed
as in trance, and she turned and
went on hersway.
Arthur had scarcely time to replace
the pail with a reverent hand, she
passed by SO swiftly; and he knew
that she was once more en- rapport
with the man who had done the deed.
They shivered as they came out
again into the wild night. ::
She led the way straight into the
forest again. The trees grew thick
er and closer; the boughs swayed
and seemed to clang harshly over
head. When they reached the path
which led to Won Repos, Antoinette
turned off it to the left, and now
they had left all beaten tracks be-
hind them; but she was never at
loss and never paused, and where she
passed they followed close behind.
There was always space enough to
pass, though the way was tortuous
going from tree to tree. All about
them the underwood was thick and
tangled and must utterly have imped-
ed their progress, but here it was
evident that human foot must have
trod this way before. and human
hand forced a passage wide enough
to pass, but unmarked to a careless
eye.
The trees divided at last, grew few
er and more far between, then swept
back right and left, leaving before
them kind of glade or open space.
1t was all bathed in floods of silver
moonlight, across which the shadows
of the trees lay black and strong like
prison bars.
Antoinette glided swiftly over the
moonlit glade
They, following, were terrified lest
they should lose sight of her as she
the forest.
There were traces here of a small,
beaten, trodden-down path.
Before them rose ruinous-look-
ing building, half cottage, half howell.
The ground round about was >strewed
with the half burnt remains of
charred wood; it was evidently the
deserted abode of charcoal burner.
Antoinette, guided by the same un-
seen power,ewent swiftly in, straight
up to one corner of the hut, and
there stood: motionless. Her pale
hands, holding the wand, fell as they
had done before; she looked round
her once or twice with almost be-
wildered glance, then sank heavily
to the ground in a death-like swoon.
Fortunately, Monsieur Tasset had
box of fuses in his pocket He struck
a light; they discovered some rough
candles in the place, at first the only
sight of human habitation.