Olive Higgins Prouty

“ She might have lost control of herself long before she reached the state-road, but for the steadying effect of the second automobile that passed her. There was plenty of time to conceal herself this time, and she was well hidden behind a screen of grapevines as it overtook her. When she comprehended the reason of the car's low speed, her teeth stopped chattering instantly, as if she had been plunged into icy water, or in some equally effective manner shocked out of her gathering hysteria. It was Chadwick Booth's car! He was hunting for her, slowly searching the road on either side! ”

“ Reba was not afraid to walk the dark country roads about Ridgefield on moonless nights, and she told herself there was nothing to be afraid of here. And she wasn't afraid at first. It was when the lights of an approaching automobile appeared around an abrupt curve, that her heart suddenly jerked. She stepped back quickly out of sight behind some bushes, but after the automobile had passed, her heart was pounding hard. This wasn't a road where women were often found walking alone, she imagined. ”

“ She hurried fast after that, almost running, falling down once or twice as her foot caught in a root, or on the edge of a protruding stone, all the while biting her under-lip hard to keep her teeth from chattering. ”