Connecticut western news. [volume] (Salisbury, Litchfield Co., Conn.) 1871-1970, 1919-09-11
ABOVE the wounu.

raised her In my arms and was stag
gering across the cave toward the tun-
mel which led to the rocking stone.
And then, just as / approached the
barricade of earth-filled bags Leroux
and the man Raoul emerged from the
tunnels mouth and ran toward me.
I stopped behind the barricade.
Presently l saw something white
f1uttering from the tunnel. 1t was
white handkerchief upon q stick Of
wood.
Then Leroux's voice hailed me from
the tunnel.
Hewlett I" he called and there was
no trace of mockery in his tones now,
"will you come out and talk with me?
Will you meet me in the open, If you
prefer?"
fired one shot in futile rage. 1t
struck the cliff and sent stone flying
into the stream.
Then silence followed. And took
Jacqueline and carried her back into
the little hollow space. 1 put my hand
upon her breast.
It stirred She breathed family.
though she showed nc sign of con-
sciousness.
Heaven knows what was in my
mind. l stood beneath that awful cat
aract firing at the blind rock, and now
I was back behind the earth-bags
shooting into the tunnel.
So the afternoon wore away. The
sun had sunk behind the cliffs. l had
fired away all but six of my cartridges.
Then the memory of my similar act Of
folly before came home to me. / grew
more calm.
I felt my way around the cave with
the faint hope that there might be
some other egress there.
There was none. but / made out q
recess which l had not perceived,
about one-half as large as the cave
| itself, and opening into it by a small
passage just large enough to give adj
mittance to single person. Here
should have only one front to defend.
SO | carried Jacqueline inside and
| began laboriously to drag the bags Of
earth into this last refuge. Before 1t
had grown quite dark l had barricaded
Jacqueline and myself within a place
the size of hall bedroom inclosed
upon three sides with rock.
And there I waited for the end.
sat beside Jacqueline, holding her
hand with one of mine, and my re-
volver In the other. There was faint
hutter at her wrist. / fancied that it
had grown stronger during the past
half hour.
But l was unprepared to hear her
whisper to me, and when she spoke
was alert in a moment.
paul !" she said family.
"Jacqueline"
paul! Bend down. want to
speak to you. Do you know | have
been conscious for a long time. my
dear? / have been thinking. Are you
distressed because of me?"
my dear!' said; and that was all
that could say l clasped her cold
little hand tightly in mine.
"You must leave me. Paul, because
because of what is between us. You
must go to Leroux and tell him so.
You love me. Paul?"
She put her arms about my neck.
ST love you, Paul." she said. "It
seems so easy to say it In the dark.
and it used to be so hard. Do you
know what l admired and loved you
for, even when you thought my mind
unstable and empty? How true you
were! 1t was that, dear. 1t was your
honor, Paul.
'"That was why, when l remembered
everything that dreadful night in the
snow. the revulsion was so terrible.
ran away in horror. could not believe
that 1t was true-and yet ! knew 1t
was true.
And Leroux was waiting there\and
found me. l did not want to leave
you, but he told me there was Pere
Antoine's cabin close by, and that you
would come to no harm. And he made
me believe-you had stolen my money
as well. But never believed that,
and only tainted you with it to drive
you away for your own sake"
She drew me weakly toward her and
went on:
"Now that we are to part forever,
and perhaps I am to die, can speak
to you from my heart and tell you,
dear. Kiss meas though l were your
wife, Paul.
80 you will go to Leroux." she
added presently.
SIS that your will, Jacqueline"
"Yes, DEAR" she said. Because we
have fought, and now we are beaten,
Paul."
bowed my head. / knew that she
spoke the truth. knew at last that
was vanquished. For, now that
Jacqueline lay there so weak, so help
less, and thinking all our past was
but dream, there was nothing but to
yield. l could not fight any more.
So I left her and climbed cross the
| bags and went down toward the