The Evil Genius: A Domestic Story — page 166: what you’re looking at

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

THE EVIL GENIUS. 155 He felt for her. In his inmost heart he felt for her. As hedrew nearer he saw tears in her eyes; but they seemed to have risen without her knowledge. Hardly conscious of his presence, she stood before him—lost in thought. He endeavored to rouseher. ‘‘ Did I protect you from insult?” he asked. She said, absently, ‘* Yes!” ‘“ Will you do asI do, dear? Will you try to forget ?” She said, “I am trying ”—still, as it appeared, thinking of something else. $s ce you like to lie down, Sydney, and rest?” ‘* Yes.” She took hisarm. He led her tothe door of herroom, ‘Is there anything else I can do for you?” he asked. ‘* Nothing, thank you.” She closed the door—and abruptly opened it again. ‘‘ One thing more,” she said. ‘‘ Kiss me.” He kissed her tenderly. Returning to the sitting-room, he ,ooked back across the passage. Her door was shut. His head was heavy; his mind felt confused. He threw himself un the sofa—utterly exhausted by the ordeal through which he had passed. In grief,in fear, in pain, the time still comes when Nature claims her rights. The wretched worn-out man fell into a restless sleep. He was awakened by the servant laying the cloth for dinner. ‘‘It’s just ready, sir,” the man announced, ‘shall I knock at the lady’s door?” Herbert got up and went to her room. He entered softly, fearing to disturb her if she, too, had slept. No sign of her was to be seen. She had evidently not rested on her bed. A morsel of paper lay on the smooth coverlet. There was only a line written on it: ‘‘ You may yet be happy—and it may perhaps be my doing.” Gone! CHAPTER XXXVIITI. HEAR THE LAWYER. ‘*MrR. HERBERT LINLEY, I ask permission to reply to your in- quiries in writing, because it is quite likely that some of the opinions you will find here might offend you if I expressed them personally. I can relieve your anxiety on the subject of Miss Sydney Westerfield. But I must be allowed to do so in my own way—without any other restraints than those which I think it becoming to an honorable man to impose on himself. ‘You are quite right in supposing that Miss Westerfield had heard me spoken of at Mount Morven as the agent and legal ad- viser of the lady who was formerly your wife. What purpose led her to apply to me, under these circumstances, you will pres- ently discover. As to the means by which she found her way to my office, I may remind you that any directory would give her the necessary information. ‘‘Miss Westerfield’s object was to tell me, in the first place, that her guilty life with you was atanend. Acting under mo CORMNICLO® S (©) im