Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1912-07-12
The Gates of Silence
By Meta Smmins, Aath0y of Hashed Il"


pain started out upon his brow His
child What future lay before it? a food
Of other thoughts so black and terrible
that he hardly formulated them even to
himself swept over him With a bitter
CRY he rushed from the room
a Physical Fear.
outside the door, however, he paused
To reach the place where his wife was
he must pass the room where the thing
that had once been a man lay. Actual
physical fear laid it's cold hand on him.
With an effort like that of a child com
PEELED to pass through an empty room
he made q dash for the stairs and reached
him wife 8 apartment
The sitting room door stood aiar, the
bed room door was locked He knocked
loudly upon IT.
There was an instant's hesitation, the
faintest whisper Of voices, and It was
opened to him by the housekeeper, her
face wet with tears
II don't think YOU should come in. sir,
she said Mrs harrington is not well
Darlington looked at her with wild eyes
Was she in the plot TO hoodwink him too2
~ can not help that" he said. roughly.
The woman fell back little, cowed by
his manner, for in spite Of his popularity
in his household Anthony harrington was
man who was feared by his servants
THE doctor said my lady was not TO be
excited" she continued. with certain
doggedness.
Am likely 10 excite Mrs harrington? %
Anthony demanded, angrily GO down
stairs; wish to speak privately to your
mistress"
The woman went with some unwilling
ness, and harrington entered the bedroom
and locked the door He said nothing,
but stood there with his back against
the door which he had locked. and looked
across the room at the woman who, at
the first sound of his voice. had sprung
up from the couch where she had flung
herself one look at her husbands face
told her that the end had come that the
blow had fallen at last as she had always
known II must, and with the knowledge
all the nervous trembling. the agonizing
suspense and tension. relaxed She faced
him like a woman OF stone, she would
not fight deny, or lie; She placed herself
in the hands of Fate and waited
FACE TO FACE
Stil Darlington did not speak. but
looked at her grimly The feeling crept
In upon her that her very life depended
on her returning that look
What have you to say for yourself7"
he asked at last. "Why should not kin
you as you stand there-send you to loln
your oVer7"
His voice broke the spell which bound
her
Tony, what do you mean? Don't stand
staring at me with those hard eyes. or l
shall go mad Am l so little TO YOU that
you should condemn me. unheard?"
You have been so much to me in the
past" he cried that It is only the
thought of my son that keeps me power
less he rs my SON
Tony Edith harrington made few
unsteady steps toward him. then fell
back, queled by the contempt, the ha
tired, in his face For one supreme in
slant physical fear dominated her men
tai anguish and she dreaded that she
was alone with mailman. Then she
told herself that on her calmness de
pended her safety, and forced herself to
look at him steadfastly you have no
right TO ask me such a question, she
said with quiet dignity
mo right?' The man laughed. such
hideous travesty Of mirth that It chilled
her blood.
"Oh, deserve all the blame and scorn
YOU can cast upon me" she cried for |
have heen A coward. but not a bad wom
am. Tony not in intention faithful to
YOU and loving ah heaven knows how
loving
Bad he calculated. with sheer
What do Won call a woman who per
lures herself az the altar whose every
down sitting and uprising for wears was
lie"
TONY at any rate. whatever has hap
peued, YOU can not forget that ! am your
wife you can not repudiate me For 1T
tie Phils sake
II am not SO sure Of that" Darlington
said not so sure first that you are my
wife Who were You what We're YOU
when YOU married me-"
He looked az her keenly, more natural
ly, as II seemed. and with a little cry
Edith stretched out her hands to him
"l believed that was a widow when
7 married YOU, she said
"A widow Again he laughed. harsh
~ and unmusically. and there was such
brutal meaning in the repeated words
hat Edith, meeting his eyes felt hot
shame tingle swiftly from head to foot
Yes Edmond Levasseur widow "
Her utterance of the name Of the dead
fuel to the fire Of her husbands anger
She did not know that In It harrington
imagined he found a confirmation of all
his doubt OF her Edmond's Levasseur!
mat was what he said 10 himself. with
bitterness II this story she was telling
were true this story that she poured out
with quick flood OF mpa ssioned words
finding In her anguish and her fear an
unexpected eloquence- she must have
known the falseless Of this assumed
name, have known the real Identity of tn =
man who called himself by It. as he
knew II
Continued Tomorrow.