Mrs. E. Burke Collins

“ Rosamond Arleigh frowned.
“I have been ill, that is all,” she returned, coldly; “only a little touch of the old heart trouble. You have called here to-night, Gilbert Warrington, to—It is the old business, I suppose.”
“You are right; it is the old affair, that little slip of yours which is fated to follow you through life like a dark shadow, fated to dog your footsteps to the very grave. ‘The sins of the parents’—you know the rest of it, my dear Rosamond. So your sin will fall, in all its black horror and shame and disgrace, upon your child!” ”

“ She knew that there was no hope of escape for her. All alone with him in the forest at that hour, how could she hope to get away from him? A little bird caught in a wire trap might just as reasonably expect to get free from its prison as this poor child, caught in the snare of the relentless villain before her, bent upon carrying out his own wicked designs.
All this flashed through Violet’s brain as she stood there pale and trembling, facing Gilbert Warrington, her girlish heart quailing from the thought of what might be before her. ”

“ Violet Arleigh, there is a dark cloud resting over your life, a cloud which will never disappear, a stain that can not be wiped out—the stain of black disgrace. When the time comes for the truth to be known, how many of your present dear friends, think you, will remain true? How many will rally around you and stand by you through everything? My word for it, you will not find one. When the truth comes out, who will care for you and seek you for a wife? Not your handsome lover, Leonard Yorke ”

“ Violet, if you will marry me at once, I will swear to leave you and never come near you again. I want the Arleigh fortune, and if you will secure it to me by marriage, I will never trouble you more. You shall be as free as the bird of the air. What do you say, Violet?”
“I say that you are a villain, Gilbert Warrington, and that I would sooner die than become your wife.” ”

“ Violet went straight up to Mrs. Yorke’s companion and laid her hand upon the white sleeve of Miss Glyndon’s dress.
“Jessie, let me take that up to Mrs. Yorke,” she said in a pleading tone; “and you—you go out into the grounds for a little while. It will do you good to get the fresh air. You are looking very pale.”
Jessie Glyndon’s large gray eyes met the earnest gaze of Violet’s with a swift, half-startled expression in their depths.
“I—looking pale? Why, you must be mistaken, Miss Arleigh. I was never better nor stronger in my life.” ”

“ Violet made no reply; she stood like one stunned, as gradually the truth, the bitter truth, crept into her heart. She was in the power of this villain. How, in Heaven’s name, could she escape? There must be some way of escape, some road out of the dilemma, but she knew not which way to turn. Gilbert Warrington seemed to read her very thoughts.
“Every man has his price, I have been told,” he observed, sententiously. “I have mine. Are you willing to pay a price for keeping your unpleasant secret, Miss Arleigh? Tell me, are you?”
She caught her breath with a suppressed cry. ”

“ A smile stole over Gilbert Warrington’s thin lips.
“Do not imagine for one moment that I care for you,” he said, harshly. “I have never loved any woman in all my life save your mother, and she scorned me. Listen, Violet, while I tell you my story in as few words as possible. Years ago, when I first met your mother, she and Harold Arleigh were living as happily as ideal lovers, just for all the world like romances one reads in old books. It was not the fashion then to debate the question, ‘Is marriage a failure?’ and Harold and Rosamond never once thought of such a thing. ”

“ On, like a wild creature—for she is afraid of the night and the lonely darkness—Rosamond Arleigh flies; the man who is in pursuit of her keeps close in her wake—on, on!
Half hidden by a clump of great live-oaks, Doctor Danton’s carriage stands patiently waiting, its driver, Tom, a faithful negro, nodding upon the box.
All at once Tom became conscious of a slight, dark-robed figure, and a woman’s voice broke the silence, calling swiftly, softly:
“Drive me to Yorke Towers at once. Quick, quick! Lose no time!” ”

“ On, on, she went, like a mad creature, down the long walk which led to the entrance to The Oaks. A turn to the right, and there, at the foot of a huge magnolia-tree, she saw Leonard Yorke. He arose from his seat upon a rustic bench, and, pale and agitated, came to meet her.
“Violet! Good heavens! what is the matter?” he cried. “Oh, my darling, you are ill and in trouble! What has hurt you? Tell me all, Violet, for I would lay down my life for you!” ”

“ It might be amusement for him, but for her it would be death—worse than death; for Jessie Glyndon was the sort of woman who could not endure the burden of life if once deprived of love. She was all alone in the world, and accustomed to her cold, [Pg 164] loveless existence; but once let the sun of affection arise upon her life, its setting would mean her utter ruin and destruction. Better to grope on in the darkness in her lonely way than to reach out and gather the proffered flower of love, only to see it wither in her grasp. ”

“ My dear Miss Arleigh, you must know that I hold in my possession a secret—a family secret of the Arleighs—which, if it were made public, would ruin you forever in the eyes of society and the world in general. Once known by the world of society, and it will blight and destroy your happiness; it will make you a very outcast, a pariah among men. Leonard Yorke will turn coldly from you, and his love will die.”
“If his love is worth no more than that,” intervened [Pg 101] Violet, hotly, “it will be better for it to die. But I thought you said that he loved Hilda?”
Gilbert Warrington bit his lip. ”

“ Violet shook her head. A slow horror stole over her heart as she remembered her promise to obey this villain implicitly in whatever he might bid her to do in regard to her future. This promise was binding; to a girl like Violet Arleigh it seemed impossible to break a solemn obligation. But she trembled with terror, and her heart was sore afraid.
“Go to your own room, Violet,” continued the physician, after a pause. “Dunbar and I will attend to the rest. You must try and sleep, too. Remember, my dear, that your mother is not dead, and all that human power can do shall be done for her. ”

“ But in reality this is what he was saying to her:
“So, Miss Violet, you think that there is hope for me? I have loved her so long; it is no flirtation this time. Sweet Jessie Glyndon is the only woman I have ever loved well enough to wish to make my wife.”
And Violet’s sympathetic tone responds:
“I think she likes you, Will. Shall I tell you why? Because, although she laughs at you when you attempt to enact the lover, just let any one venture a slighting remark concerning you, and she will fly into a passion and defend you with all her might. ”

“ With an inarticulate cry Violet fell back. Warrington put his arms about her and drew her to his breast.
“I have come to you here in this ghostly room,” he said, in a low, impressive voice. “I have been waiting and watching for this hour to come; and now that it is here, Violet Arleigh, you shall go with me this very night!”
Violet drew back and faced the villain before her with pale face and kindling eyes. Well, at least this was something tangible to combat. Better to face a real danger than to fear some dreadful visitant from another world. ”

“ He laughed a hard, sneering laugh.
“Heaven will not help you,” he cried; “there is no help for you. Back, Rosamond Arleigh!” for she had sprung lightly forward, as though to leap from the carriage. “Back, I say, or I will have your life!”
With a swift movement he pushed her back into the vehicle, closed its door, and sprung upon the box. A moment later they were flying onward through the dusky shadows—the dark hour which comes just before day. It was a dark hour to poor Rosamond Arleigh. ”

“ The carriage did not halt; its speed was unchecked. Once more she called loudly in accents of terror, a strange horror beginning to tug at her heart-strings.
“Driver! Stop! Stop a moment!”
There was danger that the sound of her voice in its wild appeal might reach the ears of a chance passer, although at this hour, in this lonely country place, there was little danger. But still she might contrive to make herself heard by somebody. The very thought drove the life-blood from about Gilbert Warrington’s craven heart.
In a pretty clump of woodland he halted the carriage. ”

“ The day passed, and Violet kept her own room. Leonard [Pg 48] did not return that night, and no intelligence came from Yorke Towers.
Night came down calm and still, and when everybody had retired to their own rooms, Violet Arleigh stole from her chamber and went softly down-stairs to the drawing-room, where her mother lay sleeping the long, last sleep—never to open her eyes again upon the scenes of this world; never to speak a loving word to her child; to lie in the cold, dark grave alone with the worm and corruption. Violet’s heart bled at the thought. ”

“ How did she know? She would not be the first woman who had been deceived by a man, and misled by specious pleading to her own unhappiness. She was not the first, and she would not be the last.
And Will Venners was so much sought after and admired, and so welcome in society, while she—what was she but a poor girl, a hired companion, paid the same as Betty Harwood, or any other hireling at Yorke Towers?
Jessie Glyndon was proud—very proud; and she felt a horrible fear that Will Venners was merely trifling with her, just for idle pastime. ”

“ When at last Leonard lifted his head, arousing himself with an effort from the heart-broken reverie into which he had fallen, he found himself in a lonely and secluded spot on the edge of a dreary swamp; and there at his very feet, lying upon the ground, was the body of a man.
With a suppressed cry, Leonard leaped from his horse and made his way hastily to the side of the prostrate man. Something familiar in his aspect struck to the young man’s heart, and with a feeling of horror stealing over him, he lifted the man’s head upon his knee and gazed into the death-like face. ”

“ Down in the cold, dark grave, hidden away forever from mortal eyes, the poor wretch will not be more utterly lost to the world and its joys and sorrows.
Langley’s no longer exists. It was a blot upon the fair name of the old Crescent City, and has been removed forever from existence; but Violet, in her innocent ignorance, had never heard of such a place at all. ”

“ Violet, do you like Will Venners?”
Violet’s face flushed beneath Leonard’s strange searching gaze. She had just recollected the poem which Will had intrusted to her, and which she had failed to deliver. It was the memory of her own delinquency which made her look confused; but how was Leonard to know that?
“Like him?” she repeated; “why, of course I do. Everybody does, I think. He is so gentle and kind and thoughtful for everybody, and he is so handsome and talented, and——”
“There, that is enough!” interposed Leonard, bitterly. ”

“ Violet lifted the doctor’s hand to her lips.
“God bless you, Doctor Danton!” she said, softly; “you are a true friend. How can I be helpless and alone with two such friends as you and Mr. Dunbar?”
“And Leonard Yorke!” interposed the doctor, shyly.
Violet’s sweet face flushed.
“Leonard is very jealous and unreasonable at times,” she said; “but one can not turn from a person because of his faults. We all have our faults, and I do love him, Doctor Danton, I do, indeed!” ”

“ Gilbert Warrington bowed, and there was a mocking devil in his crafty eyes as he responded:
“My dear Miss Arleigh, I am really very sorry that I cannot comply with your request. I do not like to refuse a lady anything, and especially a fair lady like yourself”—with another mocking bow—“but truly, circumstances over which I have no control, etc., etc., preclude the possibility of complying with your demand. In short, my dear Violet, not to put too fine a point on the argument, I will not let you go free until you and I are husband and wife!” ”

“ And as Violet turned to leave the spot, her light footsteps unheard upon the soft grass, she caught the sound of a name which Miss Glyndon breathed forth in a tone of heart-break and despair. That name was “Will!”
Violet felt a swift sensation of surprise. Why, who would ever have thought that Jessie Glyndon cared enough for Will Venners to cry about him? So thought Violet to herself. Yet, after all, it might not be Will [Pg 137] Venners, for there are hundreds of other Wills in the world. ”

“ Violet thought involuntarily of the dead man, the poor sinner who had met his awful fate, the lingering, dreadful death from slow starvation, within this dreary room, and for just a moment she half believed that the little heap of feathery gray ashes lying before her at her very feet were the ashes of the dead—all that remained of that which had been Wayne Arleigh, her ancestor. ”

“ He guided his boat dexterously around the side of the small raft, but not in time to avert the threatened calamity, for with a mad rush the logs dashed onward, striking poor Rosamond full in the head with a blow which might have felled an ox. Without a cry or a moan, she sunk swiftly out of sight, and all was still.
The negro, trembling like a leaf, had witnessed the catastrophe, just a moment too late. He fastened his boat to the raft and sprung into the water.
“I isn’t gwine ter sit here and see no woman drowned,” he muttered as he dived beneath the surface. ”

“ Violet’s face wore a look of determination that was really unique, and her dark eyes gleamed with delight as she led her captive swiftly down the broad walk in the direction of the magnolia-tree and the dark figure, in its well-fitting suit of brown serge, seated upon the rustic bench.
Jessie drew back with a startled exclamation as the moonlight glinted across his face.
“There is some one there, Miss Arleigh,” she whispered. “See! it is a man.” ”

“ If there was a man in the world whom Leonard Yorke detested, it was Will Venners—handsome, dashing Will Venners—an outrageous flirt, and a general favorite with the ladies. And Leonard did not dream that the tale was only a fabrication of Hilda to arouse his jealousy, with a secret hope that, in his pride and pique, he would turn to her. And so he did. Where is the man who would not have done so? She was very beautiful and fascinating, and—Violet had gone to walk in the moonlight with Venners. ”

“ Let any woman, no matter how strong her nerves, open her eyes and realize that the world believes her dead, that she is robed for the grave, and over in a corner of the room her coffin stands waiting to receive her body, and my word for it, she would be guilty of quite as insane conduct as that of which Rosamond Arleigh is guilty now. ”

“ Who has not imagined similar improbabilities when gazing upon the corpse of a loved one? The closed eyes seem striving to open, the chest appears to rise and fall; even one may fancy that the breath flutters feebly from between the parted lips. But what Violet Arleigh saw as she knelt at the side of the couch was this: A shiver seemed to run over the still, rigid form, and one hand, lying upon the breast, moved slightly. With a stifled cry, the girl started to her feet, and rushing to the door of the room where the physician sat, threw it open. ”

“ Violet felt the blood run cold in her veins. She stood quite still, her eyes riveted upon the old woman’s movements.
Betty drew a small vial from her pocket, and removing the cork, dropped a portion of its contents into a wine-glass; then she returned the cork to the vial and slipped it back into her pocket, after which she stooped over the invalid, with pale face and stern, compressed lips.
“Here,” she said in a trembling tone; “here is your sleeping-potion, ma’am. You will soon sleep well!” ”