The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1915-07-10


Now 1 can see why you have taken
up this fight against me. You-you
know she was innocent" he said in
low, unsteady voice.
And why I have hated you, ale?
But what you do not understand is
how 1 could have brought myself to
the point of loving you"
Loving met Good heaven, woman,
what do you"
Loving you in spite of myself" she
cried, beating upon the table with her
hands. Il have tried to convince my
self that it was not 1 but the spirit Of
Matilde that had come to lodge in my
treacherous body. / hated you for
myself and I loved you for Matilde-
She loved you to the end. She never
hated you. That was it. The pure,
deathless love of Matilde was constant
ly fighting against the hatred 1 bore
for you. 1 believe as firmly as l be-
Heve that l am alive that she has been
near me all the time, battling against
my insane desir> for vengeance. You
have only to recall to yourself the mo-
ments when you were so wildly re-
minded of Matilde Valeska. At those
times I am sure that something of Ma
tide was in me. l was not myself. You
have looked into my eyes a thousand
times with a question in your own.
Your soul was striving to reach the
soul of Matilde. All, all these months
have known that you loved Matilde-
not me. You loved the Matilde that
was in me. You"
"I have thought of her-always of
her-when you were in my arms"
81 know how well you loved her."
she declared slowly. 81 know that you
went to her tomb long after her death
was revealed to you. know that years
| ago you made an effort to find Fever
ELI. You found his grave, too, and you
could not ask him, man to man, if you
had wronged her. But in spite of all
that you brought up her boy to be sac
rificed as
'I-I-good God, am I to believe
you? If he should be my son!" he
cried, starting up, cold with dread.
HE is your son. He could be no
other mans son. 1 have her dying
word for it. She declared it in the
presence of her God. Wait! Where
are you going?"
81 am going down to himi"
mot yet, James. I have still more
to say to you-more to confess. Here!
Take this package of letters. Read
them as you sit beside his bed-not
his deathbed, for 1 shall restore him
| to health, never fear. If he were to
die, should curse myself to the end
| of time, for I and I alone would have
| been the cause. Here are her letters
and the one FeYerelli wrote to her.
| This is her deathbed letter to you. And
this is a letter to her son and yours I!
You may some day read it to him. And
here-this is document requiring me
to share my fortune with her son. II
| is a pledge that l took before my IA
Their died a few years ago. If the boy
ever appeared, he was to have his
mothers share of the estate-and it is
not an inconsiderable amount, James
He is Independent of you. He need
ask nothing Of you. I was taking him
home to his own"
She shrank slightly as he stood over
her. There was more of wonder and
pity in his face than condemnation
She looked for the anger she had ex
pected to arouse in him, and was
dumfounded to see that it was not re
vealed in his steady, appraising eyes.
your plan deserved better fats
than this Therese. 1t was prodigious
IL can almost pity you"
"Have-have you no pain-no regre
no grief?" she cried weakly.
| h.
with difficulty Yes, know all thes,
| and more" He picked up the pack
age of letters and glanced at the sub
scription on the outer envelope. Sud
denly he raised them to his lips and
with his eyes closed, kissed the words
that were written there. Her heat
: dropped, and a sob came into he
; throat. She did not look up until b,
began speaking to her again, quietly
| even patiently. But why should you
even in your longing for revenge
should you have planned to humiIiat
| and degrade him even more than
could have done? Was it Just to you
sisters son that you should blight hi
I life, that you should turn him into
skulking, sneaking betrayer? VIVA
would you have gained in the end? Hi
loathing, his scorn-my God, Therese
did you not think of all this?"
81 have told you that 1 thought Q
everything. 1 was mistaken. I did no
stop to think that would be takin
him away from happiness in the shap
of love that he might bear for someon
!. else. I did not know that there was
I | Lydia Desmond. When 1 came to know
my heart ~aftened and my purpose los
most of its force. He would have bee
! safe with me, but would he have bee
9 happy? 1 could not give him the kin
4 of love that Lydia promised. I coul
I only be his mothers sister to him II
was not in love with me. He has a
{ ways loved Lydia. l fascinated him
0 just as I fascinated you. He would NJ
T have gone away with me. even ate
o you had told him that he was not you
J. son. He would not do that to yol
K James, In spite OF the blow you struc
~.N~4~O~-~~O-0--~-~~.o-~-~
1 have a whole house to himself