The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 381: what you’re looking at

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

LL — eS THE MYSTERIES OF THE COURT. “Ah! Gertrude,” exclaimed the Earl of Curzon, who at any other time would have been worked up to a frenzy of desire by the contact of those volup- tuous charms and by the provocative looks of the young girl who seemed ready to abandon her virgin innocence to his embrace: but other and fiercer fires were now consuming him—and the temptations of the siren wanton were ineffectual upon a heart scorching with the hell of its unappeasable jealousies. “Ah! Gertrude,” he exclaimed, extri- cating himself from the half-embrace in which she had enfolded him,—* you are in league with your mistress—too much so, I fear, to enable you to devote yourself to me!” * Oh! my lord,” she exclaimed, as the tears of mingled vexation and wounded pride rolled down her cheeks, “I thought that you did care for mea little; but now I perceive that you only sought to trifle with me——’ “Ah! I am afraid that ’tis I who have been trifled with,” exclaimed the Earl bitterly: and at the same time he began dragging forth the con- tents of Editha’s writing-desk. Gertrude saw that farther remonstrance and ‘artifice were unavailing; and smarting under a deep sense of humiliation at the rejection of the overtures which she had so pointediy made, she stood by in sullen silence. Not only was she vexed at the failure of her artifice; but her natural woman’s-pride was hurt and wounded. “Here!” suddenly exclaimed the Earl, after turning over a number of letters of no particular consequence, but at length lighting upon that very self-same one which had aroused his suspicions on the furmer occasion: “here!” he cried, tossing it to Gertrude—* take and read this, and then per- sist in telling me, if you dare, that you are not in the confidence of your mistress.” The girl took the note which was thus angrily and contemptuously flung at her, and read its con- tents as follow :— “‘T have received your hasty note, my dear Editha, and send you areply by Gertrude. Yes—I will be at home all the evening, and will adopt the usual precautions. You have nothing to fear on that account. The servant shall receive orcers to admit no one but the Countess oy Curzon. But are you certain that you can trust the girl? ‘Your affectionate friend, “KATHERINE LECHMERE,” Eagerly and intently did the Earl of Curzon watch the countenance of Gertrude as she perused that billet; and the girl felt the tell-tale blush Stealing over her countenance—a blush which, were it to seal her doom, she had not the power to restrain. Besides, she was hurt at the moment at the doubt implied in the note relative to her own trust-worthiness: but a second thought showed ner that the Countess was not blameable for what &ady Lechmere wrote. “Now, young woman, will you confess?” said the Earl, as he took back the note from her hand: “or will you dare my vengeance by your obstinacy ?” *{ know nothing about it, my lord—I know nothing about it! You may kill me,” she added, with hysterical vehemence; “but I shall confess nothing, because there is nothing to confess.” ‘We shall see,” muttered the Darl, with con- centrated passion; and he continued his exami- nation of the contents of the writing-desk, 367 One after another he glanced at the papers and tossed them aside; but presently he drew forth an envelope addressed to the Countess in a bold mer- cantile hand and with the word “ Private” in the corner. Hastily opening this packet, the Earl discovered that it contained several bills of exchange, the ac- ceptances of which at first struck him to be his own: but perceiving that they were drawn by Percy Mal- pas, he instantaneously knew that he had never put his name to such securities at all in favour of the Colonel. A closer examination showed him that the acceptance, written in his own name, was a forgery; and on looking at the back he perceived the endorsement of Emmerson. Ten thousand demons now appeared to be tearing at the Earl’s heart, while vulture-talons were fastening upon his brain, as some portion of the truth became re- vealed to his comprehension. For he saw—he understood—he comprehended but too well that it was his wife who had forged his name to those bills, and the forgery had been perpetrated in favour of Colonel Malpas: then what else could he surmise but that the Colonel had been Editha’s paramour? Poor Gertrude now indeed felt more than eves convinced that her beloved mistress was lost with- out redemption. She knew of those bills—knew that Emmerson had sent them back—recollected that the packet had been delivered one day to the Countess when seated in the boudoir with two or three lady-friends—and remembered also that Editha had hurriedly consigned that packet to her desk at the moment, with the intention of destroy- ing its contents when alone. But the oversight on Editha’s part in neglecting to do so, now threat- ened to prove fatal indeed; and the poor girl, as all these thoughts swept through her brain, trem- bled to the deepest confines of her whole being. The Earl of Curzon had become ghastly pale,— so that his naturally handsome countenance was now almost hideous to gaze upon, while the sinister light that shone in his eyes bespoke terrible plans of vengeance already revolving in his mind, Flinging a fearfully sardonic look upon Gertrude, but without breathing a word, he secured Lady Lechmere’s note and the packet of forged bills about his per- son; and finding no other document of any conse- quence in the writing-desk, he tossed back the various letters and papers which he had disturbed, but without giving himself the trouble to re-lock the desk. There was now no necessity to attempt any concealment as to the search which he had instituted ! But he did not immediately leave the room: he appeared to hesitate what course to pursue, He looked at Gertrude—not with the gaze of desire —no heart had he at this moment for tender thoughts or sensual pursuits : his outraged honour and his wife’s crimes were the all-engrossing sub- ject of his thoughts—the all-powerful influence that enchained his heart’s keenestemotions! But he fixed:his eyes upon Gertrude for a few mo- ments, to ascertain whether there were any signs of contrition about her—whether, in a word, there was any chance of her turning against her mistress. But though her countenance was also pale as his own, it nevertheless expressed naught save a moody sullenness, mingled with an expression of hatred,—as if on the one hand she knew the case ——-. CORNICLOO (Cc S (©)