Rose Mortimer; Or, The Ballet-Girl's Revenge — page 26: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

20 ROSE MORTIMER ; OR, SSS» »ii;°>_ = ee <<! ‘*T told you to drive me to—’’ “‘ Before she could complete her sentence he had sprung into the cab, and firmly placed his hand over her mouth to stifle her cries. She cabman descended from his box, and the other man with strong arm bore the unfortunate girl from the vehicle. The door of a house close by was open, and ere Rose could utter a word she was carried into a dark passage, and the door closed upon her. As it was slammed with an ominous sound the poor girl’s heart sank within her. Again was she the victim of some base plot! The hand was still pressed tightly over her mouth as she was dragged, rather than led, along the passage. A sudden push forced her to enter a room opening from the dark passage, which was illuminated by a single ray of light. The hand was removed from her mouth, and she stumbled forward into the darkness. As she did so the door behind her was shut, and she heard the key turned in the lock. The sound sent a cold thrill of horror through her frame. She was a prisoner! Whose work was it? Had she again fallen a victim to the count’s evil passions ? What fate had she to expect ? It was so pitchy dark she could see nothing of the 100m in which she was imprisoned. She did not even know whether she was alone or not. For some moments she feared to move, but after a short time she stepped timorously forward. Frightened and despairing, dreading the worst, she called aloud for help, but the echo of her own voice was the sole response to her appeals. Her suppliant voice resounded through the house, but reached no pitying ear. Tired out at last, she threw herself upon the floor, and sobbed as if her poor little heart would break. What could she do? She was quite powerless, her cries were unheeded, her strength was exhausted, and she was in the power of some unprincipled ruthan, who had, without doubt, taken every precaution to render her escape an im- possibility. How could she, a poor weak girl, hope to struggle against her adversaries ? The escape she had had the previous night was little short of miraculous. Fortune would not again favour her as it had done before. It would have moved a hard heart to see the poor suffering one prone upon the ground, her graceful form shaken by the sobs which could not be sup- pressed, as the knowledge of what might be her fate almost drove her distracted. It seemed to her that she had been confined for hours in the dark room, when a faint light shone through the cracks of the door, and the sound of whispering struck upon her ears. Instinctively she rose and gathered the cloak closer about her. With compressed lips and fixed determination, she waited the entrance of those she heard without. Her heart beat so that she could scarcely breathe, and her eyes were fixed despairingly upon the door. Her bosom heaved convulsively, for she knew the time had come. The key was turned in the lock. There was another pause, and a short whispered conference, during which she remained perfectly quiet, breathless with expectation and fear, longing, yet dreading to see the form of her abductor. She half expected that the cold sneering face of Count Lerno would meet her gaze, She shuddered at the idea of the diabolical expres- sion of triumph which would light up his handsome features on seeing her once again in his power. She could think of no one but the count who would have carried her forcibly away. It surely must be his face she thought which would meet ler eyes when the door was opéned. But she was wrong. Slowly the door opened, admitting a stream of light which quite dazzled Rose, who had been so long in the black darkness, and gave admission to a man. Was it the count? A moment’s glance was sufficient to show her the fears she had entertained of that mysterious man were for the present groundless ; at the same time the light revealed to her the fact that the room was well, even handsomely, furnished, He who now entered the apartment in- which she had been. kept a prisoner was a younger man, and his face was unadorned by a moustache. Another glance showed her that he was no other than the man who had sat by the cabman’s side, and who had forcibly carried her into the house. Behind him, bearing a candle, came a woman of singularly repulsive appearance. It was not so much her ugliness as a remarkably sinister expression which made her face disagreeable to look upon. Still the sight of one of her own sex filled poor Rose with delight. Hove revived in her bosom, and rushing past the man, she threw herself at the feet of his companion, aud raised her hands in an attitude of supplication. ‘Have pity on me!”’ she cried, ‘‘ have pity on me and help-me !” CHAPTER VIII. EDGAR DEVILLE—THE MYSTERIES OF THE LONELY HOUSE—THE TEMPTATION—THE WARNING— THE DISCOVERY—THE PUNISHMENT OF CU- RIOSITY. Among all those with whom Count Lerno was acquainted there was hardly one who knew more of him than that he was rich, handsome, and liberal. He never courted intimacy with any of his asso- ciates. He would converse with them upon ordinary topics, but any questions respecting himself, his birth, his parentage, or the source of his income inyariably remained unanswered ; nay, more, the questioner received some severe rebuke which had the effect of restraining him from again uttering his queries. It was in his chambers in Piccadilly that the count was in the habit ofentertaining his friends, and not at the lonely house at Fulham to which Rose had been taken by him on the night of her first appearance at the theatre. is Respecting that establishment he was ever silent. Until he made the acquaintance of young Edgar Deville he had never asked one of his male friends to that lonely house, but, for reasons satisfactory to him- self, he pressed that young fellow, who was little more than a youth, but who was blessed with a profusion of wealth, and a wonderful capacity for enjoying it, to accompany him to that residence and pass a few days with him. How their days and evenings were spent in that lonely house it is better not to inquire. Every luxury, every dissipation, every enjoyment which the human mind could conceive and money purchase was to be had there. Vicious pleasures and hideous orgies helped to pass GOMmicdoo