The Detroit times., 1913-09-26

III your neart 10 forgive me, please
do SO. dear Mademoiselle. That
should have made trouble for one as
dear to the Chevalier as you are IL q
deep grief to me. He has talked to
me OF you. With a very earnest pray
or again for your forgiveness am.
Mademoiselle. yours faithfully and
sincerely-Lucy Hampton Hampton
Pietro looked bewildered. What
10 II about?" he asked.
Il wonder" and Alike laughed and
frowned at the paper In her hand. 1t
seems Francois wrote me letter and
left II with little Mistress Hampton
to be sent in case of q certain event
What event? What strange thing
for Francois to do! And then he came
to us here and said nothing Of mys-
terfods letters left cooking In Vir-
ginia. ! can not make It out, Pietro
can your"
mot l." said Pietro.
THE letter OF Francois has not
come; that IL certain; wonder II
the Negro Sambo lost It."
Probably" Pietr0 said. 1T should
have come before this one, other
WISE"
1T 10 a riddle" Alike decided. "and
I never guess them" Then. dropping
into q seat on the wide window-sill.
"Pietro-you are letting yourself be
depressed"
The gray eyes met hers with some
thing that seemed q wall Of reserve
In their steady glance. II think pos
sibly ! miss having no exercise" he
said. II will feel more natural when
can get about"
Alike looked at him. you are eat
Ing your heart out to be with Fran
co.'s" she said, and laid her hand on
his.
Pietro started ~ II the light touch
had shaken him; then slowly his large
fingers twisted lightly around the
small ones, and he turned his face
again, holding her hand so. to the
window and the view of the valley
and the river and the village A mo-
ment they sat 80, the girls hand
loose In the hollow of the mans; q
slow red crept into Alixe's face; there
was confusion in her brain. She had
laid her hand on that OF her brother;
her brother had taken 1t In his-and
behold, by q witchcraft II was all
changed. This delicate big grasp that
held her was not brotherly: through
all her veins suddenly she knew that;
the nush shot up to her eyes, to her
forehead, and she tried, with an at
tempt 1T an every day manner. to
draw her hand away. But Pietro, his
set pale face toward the window, his
eyes gazing out, held her hand. With
that the world had reeled and was
whirling past her. Pietro had caught
both her hands In tight grip and had
drawn them against him, was holding
them there. was looking at her with
face which not even she, this time,
might mistake.
Alike" he said, II know you don't
care for me. I know you love Fran
co.'s. l did not mean ever to speak.
but when you put your hand on
mine"
He held her palms together and
parted the palms and kissed the nm
ger-tips, nrst Of one and then Of the
other, 40 II he kissed something holy
II shall never speak again. but this
once will. always loved you-one
must. knew always that q slow 81
lent person like me would have no
chance against fellow like Francois.
SO have kept still, and 1t was hard.
II won't be so hard now that you
know. Are you angry. Alixef"
Alike. with her head bent 30 that
Pietro did not see her face, with her
head bending lower-lower, suddenly
was on her knees by the chair and her
face was on Pietro's arm.
Alike" he whispered, what is it
what have done?"
But the brown waves of hair with
the blue ribbon tied around them lay
motionless on his arm. And suddenly
thought shook him.
1T can not bel" he gasped.
And Alike lifted her face, and the
exaggerated black lashes lifted, and
the blue glance lifted and rested on
Pietro's black hair bent down where
the light shone on the silver lines
through It. Up flashed her hand i'm
pulsively, gently--as Alike did things,
and touched the thick lock with an
Infinitely delicate taress. your hair
lis all turning gray" she whisper
ed in two quick breaths, and at that.
In some occult fashion Pietro knew.
wood the match II made (which set
uT0 10 tHS ulu0s IL m0A0b lItlo uIA-
ference what words are spoken when
that tale IL telling. Anything says 1t.
At q certain moment q man might
remark that grass was green, and
woman might answer that II appeared
pink to her-and II would be love-
making. The voice and the look and
the very atmosphere about would do
the work; words are q detail. So
does the soul out-ny its slow vehicle
of speech when the rushing mighty
wind of such feeling lifts and speeds
II. Pietro knew for all his self-dis-
trust he drew her into his arms and
held her without one shadow of doubt
that she loved him and belonged to
him.
For moments they had no need OF
that makeshift, language; the great
house was very quiet, and one heard
the horses stamping In the paved
courtyard and the grooms singing,
and yet one did not hear II. Distant
sounds came from the village. but
one only knew that long after, In re-
membering that morning. All they
knew was that the ghost Of q life
long affection of brother and sister
stood before them. changed BY mir
acie TO q shining angel into whose
Saca fop theaa Arat momanta fhav