Adventure, February 1917 — page 155: what you’re looking at

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

Finished | : “Don’t be afraid, young lady. feel lonely, you must tell that maid of yours to sleep in your room. Also, as the night is so hot I shall take my nap on the stoep, there, just opposite your window. No, don’t let us talk any more now. There will be plenty of time for that tomorrow.” She rose, looked at Anscombe, looked at me, looked at her father very pitifully; then with a little exclamation of despair passed into her room by the French window, where presently I heard her call her maid and tell her that she was to sleep with her. Marnham watched her depart. Then he too went with his head bowed and stagger- ing a little in his walk. Next, Anscombe rose and limped off to his room, I following ~ him. “Well, young man,” I said, “you have put us all into the soup now and no mis- take.” “Yes, Allan, Iam afraid I have. But on the whole don’t you think it rather interest- ing soup—so many unexpected ingredients, you see.’ ‘Interesting soup! Unexpected ingre- dients!”’ I repeated after him, adding, ‘““‘Why not call it hell’s broth at once?” Then he became serious, dreadfully serious. “Look here,”’ he said, “I love Heda, and whatever her family history may be I mean to marry her and face the row at home.” “You could scarcely do less in all the circumstances, and as for rows, that young lady would soon fit herself into any place that you can give her. But the question is, how can you marry her?”’ "Oh, something will happen,” he replied optimistically. “You are quite right there, Something will certainly happen, but the point is— what? Something was very near happen- ing when I turned up on that stoep, so near that I think it was lucky for you, or for Miss Heda, or both, that I have learned how to handle a pistol. Now let me see your foot, and don’t speak ‘another word to me about all this business tonight. I’d rather tackle it when I am clear-headed in the morning.”’ Well, I examined his instep and leg very carefully and found that Todd was right. Although it still hurt him to walk, the wound was quite healed and all in- flammation had gone from the limb. Now If you. 153 it was only a question of time for the sinews to right themselves. While I was thus engaged he held forth on the virtues and charms of Heda, I making no comment. “Lie down and get to sleep, if you can,” I said when I had finished. ‘The door is locked and I am going on to the stoep, so you needn’t be afraid of the windows. Goodnight. fa in such a position that by the light of the hanging lamp, which still burned, I could make sure that no one could approach either Heda’s or our own room without my seeing him. For the I WENT out and sat myself down rest, all my life I have been accustomed to — night vigils, and the loaded revolver hung from my wrist by a loop of hide. . Moreover, never had I felt less sleepy. There I sat hour after hour, thinking. The substance of my thoughts does not 3 matter, since the events that followed make them superfluous to the story. I will merely record, therefore, that towards dawn a great horror took hold of me. I did not know of what I was afraid, but I was much afraid of something. Nothing was passing in either Heda’s or. our room, of that I made sure by personal examination. Therefore it would seem that my terrors were unnecessary, and yet they grew and grew. I felt sure that some- thing was happening somewhere, a dread occurrence which it was beyond my power to prevent, though whether it were in this house or at the other end of Africa I didn’t know. ae The mental depression increased and culminated. Then of a sudden it passed completely away, and as I mopped the sweat from off my brow I noticed that the dawn was breaking. It was a tender and beautiful dawn, and in a dim way I took it as a good omen. Of course it was nothing but the daily resurrection of the sun, and yet it brought to me comfort and hope. The night was past with all its fears; the light had come with allits joys. From that moment I was certain that we should triumph over these difficulties and that at the end of them would be peace. So sure was I that I ventured to take a nap, knowing that the slightest move- — . ment or sound would wake me. I suppose T slept until six o’clock, when I was aroused by a footfall. -comicbook coms