Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1911-01-26
CHAPTER XIV.
The Other Woman.

ne Other woman.
The world is the book of women
Rosseau.
i needed not to be advised that pres
emily there would be a meeting of
some of the leading men of the Hud-
son Bay Company at the little gray
stone, dormer-windowed building on
Notre Dame street For myself, It
was out of the question to gain admit
lance.
In those days all Montreal was iron
shattered after nightfall, resembling
a series of jails; and tonight it
seemed doubly screened and guarded.
None the less, late in the evening, /
allowed seeming accident to lead me
In certain direction. Passing as Oft
en- as l might up and down Notre
Dame street without attracting at
tention, | saw more than one figure
In the semi-darkness enter the low
chateau door. Occasionally a tiny
CLEAN showed at the edge of a shut
ter or at the top of some little win
dow not full screened. AS to what
went on within could only guess.
/ passed the chateau, up and down,
at different times from nine o'clock
until midnight. The streets of Mon
treal at that time made brave pre-
tense of lighting by virtue of the new
gas works; at certain intervals flick
ering and wholly incompetent lights
served to make the gloom more Wis
ible. None the less, as | passed for
the last time, plainly saw a shaft of
light fall upon the half darkness from
little side door. There emerged
upon the street the figure of woman
I do not know what led me to cast
second glance, for certainly my bust
ness was not with ladies', any more
than l would have supposed ladies
had business there; but. victim of
some impulse of curiosity, walked
step or two in the same direction as
that taken by the cloaked figure.
Careless as | endeavored to make
my movements, the yelled lady seemed
to take suspicion or fright. She quick
ened her steps. Accident favored me.
Even as she fed, she caught her skirt
on some object which lay hidden in
the shadows and fell almost at full
length. This / conceived to be oppor-
tunity warranting my approach.
raised my hat and assured her that
her fight was needless.
She made no direct reply to me, but
as she rose gave utterance to an ex-
preston of annoyance. Mon Dieu!"
/ heard her say.
l stood for a moment trying to re-
call where / had heard this same
voice! She turned her face In such
a way that the light illuminated 1t.
Then indeed surprise smote me.
Madam Baroness" said laughing,
at is wholly impossible for you to be
here. yet you are here! Never again
will say there is no such thing as
chance, no such thing as fate, no such
thing as a miracle!"
She looked at me one brief mo-
ment: then her courage returned.
"Ah, then. my idiot" she said,
since 1t is to be our fortune always
to meet of dark nights and in impos-
sible ways. give me your arm"
laughed. "We may as we'll make
treaty. If you run again, shall only
follow you"
Then / am again your prisoner?"
Madam, l again am yours!"
AT least. you improved" said she.
Then come"
shall / not call a caleche? THE
night is dark"
mo, MOI" hurriedly.
We began a midnight course that
took US quite across the old French
quarter of Montreal. At last she
turned into small, dark street of
modest one-story residences. iron-shut-
tered. dark and cheerless. Here she
paused in front of narrow iron gate.
Madam" said, you represent to
me one of the problems of my life
Why does your taste run to such quar-.
ters as these? This might be that
same back street in Washington"
She chuckled to herself, at length
laughed aloud. But wait! II you
entered my abode once" she said.
why not again? Come"
Her hand was at the heavy knocker
as she spoke In moment the door
slowly opened. Just as 1t had done
that night before In Washington. My
companion passed before me swiftly.
As she entered | saw standing at the
l2en.ng the same brown and wrtnkled