THE ESCAPE OF AMOS ROYSON.
When Amos Royson's senses returned to him he was standing in the middle
of a room in the county jail. The whirl in his head, wherein had mingled
the faces of men, trees, buildings and patches of sky illumined with
flashes of intensest light and vocal with a multitude of cries--these,
the rush of thoughts and the pressure upon his arteries, had ceased. He
looked about him in wonder. Was it all a dream? From the rear of the
building, where in their cage the negro prisoners were confined came a
mighty chorus, "Swing low, sweet chariot," making more intense the
silence of his own room. That was not of a dream, nor were the bare
walls, nor the barred windows. His hands nervously clutching his lapels
touched something cold and wet. He lifted them to the light; they were
bloody! He made no outcry when he saw this, but stood a long minute
gazing upon them, his face wearing in that half shadow a confession of
guilt. And in that minute all the facts of the day stood forth, clear
cut and distinct, and his situation unfolded itself. He was a murderer,
a perjurer and a conspirator. Not a human being in all that city would
dare to call him friend.
The life of this man had been secretly bad; he had deluded himself with
maxims and rules of gentility. He was, in fact, no worse at that moment
in jail than he had been at heart for years. But now he had been
suddenly exposed; the causes he had set in motion had produced a natural
but unexpected climax, and it is a fact that in all the world there was
no man more surprised to find that Amos Royson was a villain than Royson
himself. He was stunned at first; then came rage; a blind, increasing
rebellion of spirit unused to defeat. He threw himself against the facts
that hemmed him in as a wild animal against its cage, but he could not
shake them. They were still facts. He was doomed by them. Then a tide of
grief overwhelmed him; his heart opened back into childhood; he plunged
face down upon his bed; silent, oblivious to time, and to the jailer's
offer of food returning no reply. Despair had received him! A weapon at
hand then would have ended the career of Amos Royson.
Time passed. No human being from the outer world called upon him.
Counsel came at last, in answer to his request, and a line of defense
had been agreed upon. Temporary insanity would be set up in the murder
case, but even if this were successful, trials for perjury and
conspiracy must follow. The chances were against his acquittal in any,
and the most hopeful view he could take was imprisonment for life.
For life! How often, as solicitor, he had heard the sentence descend
upon the poor wretches he prosecuted. And not one was as guilty as he.
This was the deliberate verdict of the fairest judge known to man--the
convicting instincts of the soul that tries its baser self.
At the hands of the jailer Royson received the best possible treatment.
He was given the commodious front room and allowed every reasonable
freedom. This officer was the sheriff's deputy, and both offices were
political plums. The prisoner had largely shaped local politics and had
procured for him the the sheriff's bondsmen. Officeholders are not
ungrateful--when the office is elective.
The front room meant much to a prisoner; it gave him glimpses into the
free, busy world outside, with its seemingly happy men and women, with
its voices of school children and musical cries of street vendors.
This spot, the window of his room, became Royson's life. He stood there
hour after hour, only withdrawing in shame when he saw a familiar face
upon the street. And standing there one afternoon, just before dark, he
beheld Annie's little vehicle stop in front of the jail. She descended,
and as she came doubtfully forward she caught sight of his face. She was
dressed in deep black and wore a heavy crepe veil. There was a few
minutes' delay, then the room door opened and Annie was coming slowly
toward him, her veil thrown back, her face pale and her hand doubtfully
extended. He looked upon her coldly without changing his position.
"Are you satisfied?" he said, at length, when she stood silent before
him.
Whatever had been the emotion of the woman, it, too, passed with the
sound of his sentence.
"I would not quarrel with you, Amos, and I might do so if I answered
that question as it deserves. I have but a few minutes to stop here and
will not waste them upon the past. The question is now as to the future.
Have you any plan?"
"None," he replied, with a sneer. "I am beyond plans. Life is not worth
living if I were out, and the game is now not worth the candle." The
woman stood silent.
"What are your chances for acquittal?" she asked, after a long silence.
"Acquittal! Absolutely none! Life itself may by a hard struggle be
saved. After that, it is the asylum or the mines."
"And then?"
"And then? Well, then I shall again ask my loving cousin to bring me a
powder. I will remind her once more that no Royson ever wore chains or a
halter, however much they may have deserved them. And for the sake of
her children she will consent." She walked to the corridor door and
listened and then came back to him. He smiled and stretched out his
hand.
"Amos," she whispered, hurriedly; "God forgive me, but I have brought
it. I am going to New York to-morrow, and the chance may not come again.
Remember, it is at your request." She was fumbling nervously at the
bosom of her dress. "The morphine I could not get without attracting
attention, but the chloroform I had. I give it to you for use only when
life--" He had taken the bottle and was quietly looking upon the white
liquid.
"I thank you, cousin," he said, quietly, with a ghastly little laugh. "I
have no doubt but that I can be spared from the family gatherings and
that in days to come perhaps some one will occasionally say 'poor Amos,'
when my fate is recalled. Thanks, a thousand thanks! Strange, but the
thought of death actually gives me new life." He looked upon her
critically a moment and then a new smile dawned upon his face.
"Ah," he said, "your note about Morgan; it will be unfortunate if that
ever comes to light. You were not smart, Annie. You could have bought
that with this bottle." She flushed in turn and bit her lip. The old
Annie was still dominant.
"It would have been better since Mr. Morgan is to be my brother-in-law.
Still if there is no love between us it will not matter greatly. Mary
seems to be willing to furnish all the affection he will need."
"Where is he?" he asked, hoarsely, not attempting to disguise his
suffering. She was now relentless.
"Oh, at Ilexhurst, I suppose. The general is to care for the old German
until the household is arranged again and everything made ready for the
bride."
"Is the marriage certain?"
She smiled cheerfully. "Oh, yes. It is to take place soon, and then they
are going to Europe for a year." And then as, white with rage, he
steadied himself against the window, she said: "Mary insisted upon
writing a line to you; there it is. If you can get any comfort from it,
you are welcome."
He took the note and thrust it in his pocket, never removing his eyes
from her face. A ray had fallen into the blackness of his despair. It
grew and brightened until it lighted his soul with a splendor that shone
from his eyes and trembled upon every lineament of his face. Not a word
had indicated its presence. It was the silent expression of a hope and a
desperate resolve. The woman saw it and drew back in alarm. A suspicion
that he was really insane came upon her mind, and she was alone,
helpless and shut in with a maniac. A wild desire to scream and flee
overwhelmed her; she turned toward the door and in a minute would have
been gone.
But the man had read her correctly. He seized her, clapped his hand over
her mouth, lifted her as he would a child and thrust her backward on the
bed. Before she could tear the grip from her mouth, he had drawn the
cork with his teeth and drenched the pillow-case with chloroform. There
was one faint cry as he moved his hand, but the next instant the drug
was in her nostrils and lungs. She struggled frantically, then faintly,
and then lay powerless at the mercy of the man bending over her.
Hardly more than two minutes had passed, but in that time Amos Royson
was transformed. He had a chance for life and that makes men of cowards.
He stripped away the outer garments of the woman and arrayed himself in
them, adding the bonnet and heavy veil, and then turned to go. He was
cool now and careful. He went to the bed and drew the cover over the
prostrate form. He had occupied the same place in the same attitude for
hours. The jailer would come, offer supper from the door and go away. He
would, if he got out, have the whole night for flight. And he would need
it. The morn might bring no waking to the silent form. The thought
chilled his blood, but it also added speed to his movements. He drew off
the pillow-case, rolled it into a ball and dropped it out of the window.
He had seen the woman approach with veil down and handkerchief to her
face. It was his cue. He bent his head, pressed his handkerchief to his
eyes beneath the veil and went below. The jailer let the bent,
sob-shaken figure in and then out of the office. The higher class seldom
came there. He stood bareheaded until the visitor climbed into the
vehicle and drove away.
It was with the greatest difficulty only that Royson restrained himself
and suffered the little mare to keep a moderate pace. Fifteen minutes
ago a hopeless prisoner, and now free! Life is full of surprises. But
where? Positively the situation had shaped itself so rapidly he had not
the slightest plan in mind. He was free and hurrying into the country
without a hat and dressed in a woman's garb!
The twilight had deepened into gloom. How long would it be before
pursuit began? And should he keep on the disguise? He slipped out of it
to be ready for rapid flight, and then upon a second thought put it on
again. He might be met and recognized. His whole manner had undergone a
change; he was now nervous and excited, and the horse unconsciously
urged along, was running at full speed. A half-hour at that rate would
bear him to The Hall. Cursing his imprudence, he checked the animal and
drove on more moderately and finally stopped. He could not think
intelligently. Should he go on to The Hall and throw himself upon the
mercy of his connections? They would be bound to save him. Mary! Ah,
Mary! And then the note thrust itself in mind. With feverish haste he
searched for and drew it out. He tore off the envelope and helped by a
flickering match he read:
"You must have suffered before you could have sinned so, and I
am sorry for you. Believe me, however others may judge you,
there is no resentment but only forgiveness for you in the
heart of
"Mary."
Then the tumult within him died away. No man can say what that little
note did for Amos Royson that night. He would go to her, to this
generous girl, and ask her aid. But Annie! What if that forced sleep
should deepen into death! Who could extricate her? How would Mary
arrange that? She would get Morgan. He could not refuse her anything. He
could not falter when the family name and family honor were at stake. He
could not let his wife--his wife! A cry burst from the lips of the
desperate man. His wife! Yes, he would go to him, but not for help. Amos
Royson might die or escape--but the triumph of this man should be
short-lived.
The mare began running again; he drew rein with a violence that brought
the animal's front feet high in air and almost threw her to the ground.
A new idea had been born; he almost shouted over it. He tore off the
woman's garb, dropped it in the buggy, sprang out and let the animal go.
In an instant the vehicle was out of sight in the dark woods, and Royson
was running the other way. For the idea born in his mind was this:
"Of all the places in the world for me the safest is Ilexhurst--if--" He
pressed his hand to his breast. The bottle was still safe! And Annie!
The horse returning would lead to her release.
Amos Royson had a general knowledge of the situation at Ilexhurst. At 12
o'clock he entered through the glass-room and made his way to the body
of the house. He was familiar with the lower floor. The upper he could
guess at. He must first find the occupied room, and so, taking off his
shoes, he noiselessly ascended the stairway. He passed first into the
boy's room and tried the door to that known as the mother's, but it was
locked. He listened there long and intently, but heard no sound except
the thumping of his own heart. Then he crossed the hall and there, upon
a bed in the front room, dimly visible in the starlight, was the man he
sought.
The discovery of his victim, helpless and completely within his power,
marked a crisis in the mental progress of Royson. He broke down and
trembled violently, not from conscience, but from a realization of the
fact that his escape was now an accomplished fact. This man before him
disposed of, Ilexhurst was his for an indefinite length of time. Here he
could rest and prepare for a distant flight. No one, probably, would
come, but should anyone come, why, the house was unoccupied. The mood
passed; he went back to the hall, drew out his handkerchief and
saturated it with liquid from the bottle in his pocket. A distant
tapping alarmed him, and he drew deeper into the shadow. Some one seemed
knocking at a rear door. Or was it a rat with a nut in the wall? All old
houses have them. No; it was the tapping of a friendly tree upon the
weather boards, or a ventilator in the garret. So he reasoned. There
came a strange sensation upon his brain, a sweet, sickening taste in his
mouth and dizziness. He cast the cloth far away and rushed to the stair,
his heart beating violently. He had almost chloroformed himself while
listening to his coward fears.
* * * * *
The dizziness passed away, but left him unnerved. He dared not walk now.
He crawled to the cloth and thence into the room. Near the bed he lifted
his head a little and saw the white face of the sleeper turned to him.
He raised the cloth and held it ready; there would be a struggle, and it
would be desperate. Would he fail? Was he not already weakened? He let
it fall gently in front of the sleeper's face, and then inch by inch
pushed it nearer. Over his own senses he felt the languor stealing; how
was it with the other? The long regular inspirations ceased, the man
slept profoundly and noiselessly--the first stage of unconsciousness.
The man on the floor crawled to the window and laid his pale cheek upon
the sill.
How long Royson knelt he never knew. He stood up at last with throbbing
temples, but steadier. He went up to the sleeper and shook him--gently
at first, then violently. The drug had done its work.
Then came the search for more matches and then light. And there upon the
side table, leaning against the wall, was the picture that Gerald had
drawn; the face of Mary, severe and noble, the fine eyes gazing straight
into his.
He had not thought out his plans. It is true that the house was his for
days, if he wished it, but how about the figure upon the bed? Could he
occupy that building with such a tenant? It seemed to him the sleeper
moved. Quickly wetting the handkerchief again he laid it upon the cold
lips, with a towel over it to lessen evaporation. And as he turned, the
eyes of the picture followed him. He must have money to assist his
escape; the sleeper's clothing was there. He lifted the garments. An
irresistible power drew his attention to the little table, and there,
still fixed upon him, were the calm, proud eyes of the girl. Angrily he
cast aside the clothing. The eyes still held him in their power, and now
they were scornful. They seemed to measure and weigh him: Amos Royson,
murderer, perjurer, conspirator--thief! The words were spoken somewhere;
they became vocal in that still room. Terrified, he looked to the man
upon the bed and there he saw the eyes, half-open, fixed upon him and
the towel moving above the contemptuous lips. With one bound he passed
from the room, down the steps, toward the door. Anywhere to be out of
that room, that house!