The state herald., 1916-11-17

woman h ali thess leagues. An there
any French q my sex at rset u
Louisr
"No."
"Nor q 81 Isnaes. Psrs AIlouss
assures me- I shall have no nval
then in all tAis wilderness: yos &ink
me harmless, monsisurf Look at me,
and sayw
II do mot need to look; you VIII
have your game. have NO doubt, a.
though the Anal result may not prove
what you DESIRE"
You fear the endr'
ut may BE- 70; you play with Ore,
and although I know little of women,
yet I have felt the wild passions Of
men In lands where there 10 NO ~
straint Of law. The wilderness secs
many tragedies-nerce, bitter, revenge
ful deeds-and tbs best you use care.
"ris my belief this Francois Cassion
might prove devil. once his heart
was tricked. Have you thought Of
this7"
had thought Of IT. but with no
mercy in my heart, yet as D'Artigny
spoke I felt the ugllness Of my threat
more acutely, and, for an instant,
stood before him white-lipped and
ashamed. Then before me arose Cas-
sion's face. sarcastic. supercilious,
hateful, and laughed In scorn Of the
warning.
Thought Of itr' I exclaimed. "yes,
but for that care nothing. Why
should I, monsieurf Has the man
shown mercy to me, that should feel
regret because he suffersf As to his
revenge. death 10 not more to be
dreaded than Z lifetime passed in his
presence. But why DO you make plea
on his behalf-ths man is surely NO
friend Of yoursr'
II make no plea for him." he an
swered, strangely sober, "and claim
no friendship. Any enemy to La saile
Il an enemy to Rene d'Artigny; but
I would front him a. q man should.
1t il not ny nature to do deed Of
treachery."
"You hold this. treachery7"
"What slsef You propose Turing
him to love you. that you may gain
confession from his lips. To attain
this end you barter your honesty, your
womanhood; you take advantage Of
your beauty to enslavs him; you count
rs ally the loneliness Of the wilderness;
ay! and, II understand Alright, you
hope through me to awaken the mans
Jealousy. Is this not true?'
drew quick breath. my eyes star
ing into his face. and my limbs trem-
bling. His words cut me like a knife,
yet 1 would not yield. would not even
acknowledge their truth.
you are unjust, unfair" I burst
forth impetuously. you will see but
the one side-that Of the man. can
not fight this battle with my hands,
nor will submit to such wrong with
out struggle. He has never thought to
spare me. and there IL no reason why
I should show him mercy. I wish
your good will, monsieur. your respect,
but I cannot hold this plan which I
propose as evil. Do your
He hesitatsd, looking at me with
such psrplexity In his eyes a. to
prove his doubt.
Il cannot judge you," he admitted
at last, "only that II not the way in
which I have been trained. Neither
win stand between you and your
revenge nor have part in 1t. am
your friend-now. always. In every
honorable way will serve you and
your cause. II Cassion dares violence
or insult he must reckon with me.
though l faced his whole company.
pledge you this. but will not play q
part or act a lie even at your re-
quest"
"You mean you will not pretend to
care for me-" asked. my heart
leaden at his words.
''There would be no pretense," he
answered frankly. II do care for you.
but I will not dlshonor my thought Of
you by thus deliberately scheming to
outwit your husband. I am q man Of
the woods. the wilderness; not since
was Q boy have dweit In civiliza ton,
but In all that time have been COM
panion Of men to whom honor was
everything. have been comrade with
Sieur Dc Ia Sale. with Henri de Tonty.
and cannot be guilty Of an act Of
treachery, even for your sake. Per
chance my code II not the same a. the
perfumed gallants' Of Quebec-yet II 10
mine. and learned in hard school,"
He went on quietly. There are two
things ! cannot ignore-one In, that
am an employee Of this Francois
Cassion. pledged to his service By my
own free will; the other il, that you
arc his wife, Joined to him by Holy
church. and although you may have
assumed those vows under coercion.
your promise II binding. I can but
choose my path Of duty and abide
therein"
His words hurt, angered me; I
lacked power Of expression, ability to
grasp his full meaning and purpose.
"You-you desert me theni You
vou lava ma IN thla fate ~