The Red Cloud chief., 1912-12-12

habit Of putting the dots, not over tho
fs. but above the letters that follow.
This. no doubt. escaped you. There
remains only the serious question of
what led her to this"
Armand was in deep thought.
What will you do with herr" he at
last said.
you have my word she shall not
be touched. But have q duty to Der.
form, and will perform It. by to.mor.
row night We shall be In possession of
all the facts. and thfs ugly nightmare
Will have come to an end. Please re-
turn Mt once to Chinon, and walt till
you hear from me-" ,
| MY friends villa in Vile d'Avray
stood within its own grounds behind a
cluster of trees that hid It from view. Az
Madame P had written to her hus.
band that she was suffering from in.
fiuenza, I went to the tobacconist's at
the corner. and. having purchased a
few cigars, inquired after Monsieur
P. He. was told. was in Paris:
but madame had not gone with him.
Had she been Ill? No, madame had
been driving her ponies every day. He
had Just seen her enter the gates.
went straight to the house. and, q
few minutes later. Madame P
came to me in the library.
"You here. M. Goron? ?" she exclaim.
ed. 1T Is six months since we saw
you. You are neglecting your friends"
She was still the same thin, old.
maidishlooking little woman, with
pale cheeks. pale hair, pale hands,
and curiously big voice. not In keep.
ing with her small stature.
"Have you seen Armand?" she
asked.
"Yes. I knew he was better, and I
came here hoping to find him."
mo, he is still away. I could not
60 to him because I have only Just
recovered from an attack Of influenza.
Can I do anything for you?"
Yes. you can render me a small
service. l want to send letter to
some one. but not in my own writing.
l want to sign It only. Will you al.
low me to dictate it to your"
Certainly"
She sat at her husbands desk.
dipped her pen in the ink, and waited.
"The woman you love-" l began. 'is
attempting"
Madame looked up. her lips parted,
her whole face turned an ashy gray.
lis attempting your life. Be
warned"
could go no further.
With fear expressed in every line
OF her face. she rushed at me. seized
both my arms In convulsive grasp,
and. throwing herself on the sofa,
her face buried in the cushions. broke
into peals OF uncomfortable laughter.
It was fearful.
After a while she grew calmer.
Madame" I said. "yill you"
At the sound OF my voice she
jumped up and stood in front of me.
'No!" she screamed in a paroxysm
Of excitement, don't speak, don't ut
ter a word. Only listen. Yes, you
know wrote that letter. You guessed
the whole truth. I can read It in
your face. You have come to avenge
Armand. But you shall listen to me.
You shall know what I suffered, and
why / became murderess. M. Goron,
have you ever heard Of a woman kill
ing man because she loved him?
Don't look at me surprised. I am not
mad. I am quite sane. Had been
bereft of reason I should have suffer.
ed less.
II love Armand as no woman ever
before loved q man. He is kind, gen.
erous. and I would give my life for
him any hour Of the day. loved him
from the moment first saw him. and.
when We married. wanted him to
know all he was to me. But curse
seemed to rest on me. My stony
features and my harsh voice repelled
him; and when I tried to tell him how
I worshipped him. and that was pin
ing for his affection, my tongue
seemed paralyzed. Finally I gave up.
And then I knew he was lost to me;
and had to see him spend half his
days in the company Of that highty
doll. his cousin. resolved to kill
myself. but I knew that he would
marry that woman: and I swore that
sooner than that he should die!"
I longed to have this painful inter.
view over. and said:
Madame. have not come to ar.
rest you. because Armand made me
promise that. II the crime should be
brought home to you. you should not
be harmed. so far as the law 10 con.
cerned. In order to save my friends
life am making the sacrifice of my
duty; but must insist on your obey
ing my injunctions."
She bowed her head. and It was de.
cided that before the end Of the week
she should leave France. She at once
proposed to 60 to the cholera stricken
district in Tonquin, where she could
be useful, and promised to see her