''Dearest Arthur,' said she, the tears still running down her cheeks,
'how fearfully you must have suffered throughout this long interview!'
''Oh! fear not, Adéle, all will yet be well. I will protect you and
avenge your wrongs.'
''Fear not?' said she, 'do you think that I dread death for my own sake?
No, Arthur, death is nothing terrible to me _now_.'
'Then suddenly appearing to become conscious of my presence, they both
seized me by the hands and overwhelmed me with the profusion of their
thanks.
''Any one would have acted precisely as I have, under similar
circumstances. I therefore beg you to spare me from further thanks. But,
my dear sir, do you feel ill? Madame, allow me to support Mr.
Livermore.'
'A sudden change came over his features; a deathlike paleness overspread
his countenance, his eyelids became half-closed, his breathing grew
short, his hands clenched, and a nervous tremor shook his entire frame.
For a few moments I feared he was at the point of death. I promptly
assisted him to his couch.
''Are you surgeon enough to bleed him?' inquired Adéle.
''Yes, I will not hesitate if you desire me to do so.'
'We soon divested Arthur of his coat, stripped his arm, and while I went
in search of an impromptu lancet, Adéle prepared the needful bandages.
''Be quick, I implore you,' said she. 'Once before I saw him as he now
is; there is not a moment to be lost.'
'Need I confess that the entrance of a guardian angel in the shape of a
skillful disciple of Esculapius would have been hailed by me as an
especial joy? However, no such angel came, neither was he within call;
so as the danger struck me as imminent, and his condition appeared
growing every moment more critical, I argued, without bleeding he would
undoubtedly die, whereas by my attempt, however clumsy, he might rally.
I plucked up my courage to the sticking-point, and stuck my patient. I
drew several ounces of blood. My fair assistant displayed the most
undeniable, I can hardly say irreproachable, coolness, for really, to my
fancy, she was a little too much self-possessed. As soon as the bandages
were applied, Arthur's consciousness returned.
''Ah! thanks, thanks,' said he, addressing me in a low, faltering tone.
'The crisis has now passed.'
''Over-excitement, doubtless, produced it?'
''Yes,' said he, 'any excitement is dangerous for one like me. You see
in me a man condemned to death by every member of the faculty that I
have ever consulted. I dare say you mean kindly, and by that look of
incredulity, you would seek to comfort me.'
''Well, doctors are often mistaken,' I said.
''True; but I am convinced their predictions in my case will be
literally fulfilled, for when this terrible disease of the heart once
lays its hold upon a man, it never relaxes its deadly grasp. But,' said
he, raising himself to a sitting posture, 'but I _will_ not die, I
_must_ live. One fixed purpose, one great aim sustains me, and I feel
that till I have accomplished this, the thread of life, frail as I know
it is, strained as I feel it oft to be, still, still I have a firm
presentiment it will hold out.'
''Arthur, dear Arthur!' broke in the voice of Adéle, as she leaned over
his shoulder, 'you know after such a paroxysm, repose is necessary. No
more conversation to-night; strive to calm your nerves, and to enjoy the
tranquil influence of sleep. Do this, I beg, I implore you.'
'With the docility of a petted child he yielded, and reclining his head
upon his pillow, soon sank into a deep sleep. It was now verging upon
three o'clock, and at my solicitation Adéle retired to my apartment,
while I kept watch beside my patient's couch.
'The mysterious individual whose conduct had so puzzled me, and to whom
I had been so strangely introduced, seemed to be a man of about thirty,
decidedly handsome, and of striking mien, of elegant manners, and
evidently accustomed to refined society. His hair, which curled
naturally, was, however, growing thin; a few deep lines were furrowed on
his brow, and the corners of his mouth wore, as it were, unconsciously,
at times, a disdainful air, and as he slept I could trace how the fire
of youthful passion had brought his manhood to premature decay.
'Although the veil of mystery had been rent, my curiosity was only
whetted, by no means gratified. Who could this man be for whose arrival,
according to my hostess' account, he had been waiting with such feverish
impatience? What journey could he have returned from, in such shattered
health; and finally, what was this great purpose, on the successful
issue of which, he seemed to stake his all, on which he declared his
life to hang?
'Again the undefinable spell that seemed to attach to the fascinating
Adéle, filled my mind with reveries of wondrous interest. What was her
part in this drama that was enacting so close beside me? Was she the
victim or the enchantress? During the long vigils of that night, I asked
this question of myself many a time and oft, and yet could arrive at no
solution of my doubts. The soft, regular sound, produced by her
breathing, in the next room, the door of which remained ajar--for she
had thrown herself upon my bed, without removing her apparel--fell upon
my ear, and proved she slept in all the tranquillity of innocence. And
yet the very tranquillity of that sleep almost excited my displeasure;
for it seemed to evince a listless, reckless indifference to danger, a
lack of tender, womanly sympathy for suffering and sickness, that might
indeed arise from a heart untouched by any love, save that of self.
'I was just rolling up another cigarette, when, as the day dawned, Adéle
entered. She was lovely, and radiant with smiles. The closest and most
sagacious observer would have failed to discern the slightest trace of
the excitement through which she had passed but a few short hours
before. She thanked me for my kind assistance, with a bewitching grace,
almost girlish in its simplicity, and begged me to retire, and take the
rest she felt assured I must need. Before so doing, however, it was
agreed that the door leading to my room should in future remain
unfastened, in case of a recurrence of the danger that had menaced her
the previous night.
'Feeling no drowsiness, but rather a desire for fresh air, I mounted to
the cupola that adorned the roof of our house, and for a couple of
hours I sat there, enjoying the delicious breeze and the picturesque
panorama that lay beneath my feet, and the motley groups that swarmed to
early prayers up the Cathedral steps.
'At last, I felt like strengthening the inner man, and determined to
step down as far as Véroley's, the fashionable café of the city, and
there to take a right good breakfast. I returned to my room to replenish
my purse, and to take my dagger and revolver. I found the purse and
revolver on the shelf where I had left them, untouched, but my search
for the dagger proved fruitless. Yet with it I had wrenched out the
staples that fastened the door, and to my knowledge no one had had
access to my room since that time, save Adéle.
'After taking my breakfast, and calling for my letters, I paid one or
two visits, and ere I returned home, it was well nigh three in the
afternoon.
'I had not been seated long, ere Mr. Livermore entered. He appeared to
have completely recovered from his attack.
''Of two evils, the adage advises us to choose the lesser. I would,
therefore, prefer to appear intrusive rather than ungrateful; so excuse
me if I trespass on your time or your patience. After the generous
devotion you displayed last night, and after what Adéle moreover has
told me, I feel I am bound to inform you whom you have thus befriended;
for, as you have already learned, Albert Pride is not my real name.'
'I hastened to offer to my neighbor the seat of honor, my magnificent
rocking-chair, not only as a mark of politeness, but thinking that as he
was about to tell me something, if he were only comfortably ensconced,
very interesting, he might find himself so much at his ease that he
would make a much cleaner breast of it.
'My little surmise proved correct; he accepted my proffered civility,
and proceeded to give me a long and very interesting account of his
parentage and youth. Suffice it to say, that he was a native of
Tennessee, and being left an orphan at an early age, had, like thousands
of others, passed through a brief career of folly and extravagance. He
had become acquainted with Adéle and her family some two years
previously, and had been married to her about four months, under the
impression, as he had told her husband on the previous night, that a
divorce had been obtained.
'What most excited my surprise, in his recital, was, that while Percival
had accused her of having deserted him because she deemed him ruined,
Arthur told me that she married him, knowing him to be almost penniless.
But I will give you his own words:
''I explained to her my desperate position, when she replied: 'It
matters not; in return for the fortune you have squandered, I will give
you that which shall produce an income far beyond your boyish dreams.'
''A horrible suspicion flashed across my mind; I feared her reason was
impaired.
'''Adéle,' I exclaimed, 'in mercy, jest not; but explain yourself.'
'''I will, Arthur; but first of all, I must exact from you the most
solemn vow, that under no circumstances will you divulge to mortal man
or woman, the secret I am about to confide to you.''
'At this point, Mr. Livermore checked himself suddenly, as if he had
said too much, and then added:
''I regret, my dear sir, that I can merely add, that I gave Adéle the
solemn pledge she required, and that my presence here, in the city of
Mexico, to-day, is merely the result of the secret then intrusted to
me.'
'I was still under the impression that this narrative had produced, when
Adéle softly entered the apartment.
''Arthur,' said she, in a low whisper, 'there is some one knocking at
the door of the ante-chamber.'
''Remain here,' said he, rising from his seat, 'I will go and open it.'
''Do not let him go alone, I beg of you,' said Adéle. 'Who knows of
what service your presence may be to-day, or of what value your
testimony may be hereafter? Possibly, it may save money, if not life;
but why go without your hat and gloves?' she added, as I was leaving the
room bare-headed, 'you must pass for a visitor, not for a
fellow-lodger.'
'Lost in admiration of her ready tact and coolness, I reached Arthur
Livermore's sitting-room, just as he opened the door.
''Pepito,' exclaimed he.
''Ay, Caballero, Pepito himself, in perfect health, and ever your most
devoted servant.''
[TO BE CONCLUDED.]
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