Rose Mortimer; Or, The Ballet-Girl's Revenge — page 60: what you’re looking at

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

54 ROSE MORTIMER 5 OR, “Yes, yes. Make haste with all this tomfoolery,” he said, impatiently. ‘¢Then come,”’ They went out together, the fair wife and her beau- tiful rival. Clara went first, holding the alabaster lamp on high. Madge followed, her wicked glowing eyes never for a moment losing sicht of their leader. On, on they went, through the silent gloomy house, passing down passages, through suites of rooms, down staircases, till they reached the large marble- floored hall. A ray of early morning light was creeping through a chink in the closed shutter. Madge observed it and quickened her steps. ‘‘ Lose no time,’’? she said, in authoritative voice. ‘‘ Where are they ?”’ Clara turned. “There is no hurry,” she replied, calmly. Then, with a certain deadly look in her blue eyes, she said— ‘* Must you have them ?”’ Madge only answered with a stamp of her tiny foot. ‘‘Your harm be on your own head,’? muttered Clara. And, with that deadly look still in her eyes, she held up her lamp and glanced round the hall. “‘This way.” She walked to a spot above which was hung a full- length oil painting. Reaching her hand to the edge of the frame, she leant heavily against it. Immediately the picture began slowly to ascend, and a large square opening appeared in its place. Without a word Clara entered this, followed by her companion, and led the way along a narrow passage to a flight of stone steps. ‘* Are you still determined ?” she said, as, descend- ing the steps, they reached a platform, balustraded from what appeared by the feeble light of the lamp to be a deep abyss. The beautiful rival looked around her, slightly dis- mayed. But there was something so mocking in Clara’s cold smile that she tossed her head and said, daunt- lessly— ‘*T follow.” Clara turned immediately, and, holding up the light, sought earefully along the brick wall against which the platform was built. To any other eye that wall was a black mass of rough brick, one part exactly like another, but Clara’s practised hand touched without hesitation a certain Spot. Then, almost before she could draw her breath, the whole of that apparently solid brickwork descended. They now found themselves opposite a large ir on- plated door. Again Clara’s magic finger went to its light work of pressing, and the heavy door turned on its hinges. Then there was disclosed a flight of steps, which seemed to descend into the very bowels of the earth. ** Come,’”’ said Clara, sternly. ‘‘ The diamonds are at hand—close at hand.” Down, down they went. Down, down till the darkness seemed to close in on them heavily. Till the damp oir seemed to smell of death and the grave. Till the silence was appalling. ‘“‘ There,” Clara exclaimed, with a faint smile, as they found themselves before an iron door. ‘‘ The people to whom this house once belonged knew how to secure their valuables. Did they not?” 1 Madge shivered slightly. ‘The jewels,’’ she exclaimed sharply. Clara took a small key from a velvet ribbon hanging round her neck, and put it in the lock. The iron door rolled slowly on its hinges, disclosing a square vault, built of strong brick, and impervious to either damp or light. Two small iron chests stood at the end of the vault. ‘‘ There are the jewels,’’ she said; pointing to one of the chests. ‘‘ Take them.’’ Madge clutched hold of her dress. ‘Come in with me. I will not hurt you.” Clara entered calmly, and stood by while the other opened the chest, and the light at the same momeut gleaming into it, disclosed a circlet of magnificent diamonds. With an exclamation of admiring delight the Beau- tiful Fiend turned with wild impetuosity towards the jewels. : Utterly absorbed by her greediness to snatch at the wealth she had so long coveted, she forgot her distrust of her companion. She started forward, almost burying herself in the glittering gems, Suddenly, though, she raised herself, with a sharp wild cry. A cry that rang through the silent vault, and woke the echoes of the subterranean passages with its shrill dreadful fear. She tried to turn from the iron box. é But her two round snowy arms were strained down from within, caught firmly by a concealed spring. It was an ingenious trap to catch thieves, well known on the continent. Shriek after shriek. Surely those agonised crys will reach more pitying ears than those of the white-faced woman who stands beside her, looking on at her agony ave a cold tri- umphant smile. ‘For Heaven's sake,’ she shridketl ae nave mercy on me!” Clara laughed. ‘Have mercy, have mercy! Keep your jewels, keep your husband, only release me !’’ ‘J will,’ Clara answered sternly. ‘‘I will grant you the mercy you would have given me. You know what that was.”’ She took up the lamp and turned away. The wretched woman uttered another wild scream. She endeavoured to wrench her strained limbs from that iron grasp. ‘“ You will not leave me here? I shall die! I shall starve! Fiend, devil that you are, do not leave me to die by inches, buried allve. Oh! Pierre, Pierre !” But those shrieks and cries echoed only under tlie deep earth. No human ear but the frozen one of Clara heard them. She was judge and avenger. ‘* Listen,’”’ she said, flashing the lamp on her victim’s agonised face. ‘‘ Your doom is fixed. There is n0 merey for you on earth.” The woman ‘moaned. ‘* You pray to one whom ycur conduct las turned into a torturing demon. Your hour has arrived. You have earned my hate, and I will be avenged.” Then stooping, and picking up the diamond circlet at the wretched woman’s feet, she flung it scornfully round her beautiful head. Snatching the glittering jewels from tlie chest, she threw them on her-bare shoulders. ‘‘ When he comes to find you,” she whispered in her victim’s ear, “‘ he will find you a glittering corpse, a gorgeous spectre !” In vain the lost wretch strained those white arms. “Oml'Chbookseeom