Show R I 1 A L T OR Y a S n n awe 0 in WN r E vil v ft n G did by marie van vorst author of annanda Ar nanda of the mill ion afisa e tc etc son a a copyright 1905 by U api beott Com panyA 11 SYNOPSIS basil tempest worlds greatest poet ind and novelist ic refusing further to be lionized shuts himself up in craven his country home iome his gloomy meditations are broken by the admission of an american lucy carew who has come to england to get a study of the author but more especially a synopsis of his new suite of poems tempest angry at bein being disturbed declares lie he will write no more and rudely aska hor ber to go repenting of his rudeness lie he apologizes and offers to dictate to lucy who sits spellbound as aa she writes tempest induces lucy to romain remain and arnd her manuscript to him their interest in one oho another grows i tem epst burns th tim photographs and I 1 letters e aters oft od lady ormond with whom his name has been associated lie ho takes great pleasure in lucys bucys presence as their work woric progresses gr esses CHAPTER VS VI continued continue d I 1 s oh sir she palliated pallia ted I thought 8 7 T for heror yoa f f do well well he waived waive a aid said aia maniac significantly antly for me theres no iio good tn in the world 9 the old womans comans hands were ceased over her knitting work her rang une fine and yellow on her aln finger he had seen the ring grow thin with tk the years his eyes were on it I 1 but there are good things sir she whispered softly a wife cafe and I 1 children he laughed not pleasantly you must renounce your fairy tales the only ones that ar eleft are gruesome tales with which to frighten children s he frowned and covered his face with his hand a fine hand strong and slender nothing effeminate about it albeit with the oval nails and psychic fingertips finger tips of the poet he recovered himself to r return to what I 1 came to say miss carew must leave craven yes mr tempest 1 I shall never send her I 1 s shall hall never show her let her dream dreama I 1 wish it because his eyes flashed at ahe old anxious face ts 1 I wish nothing less nothing less leas in the world do you hear yes mr air basil she must not come tomorrow to morrow nor again As he threw back his head the shadows on ills his face aOp appeared eared to creep from froin ills his melancholy eyes and anda brood over all ills his features the spirits of the night and darkness had banded together to cast their baleful wings over him she must not come again no mr basil 1 I cannot bear it she understood hi and sat silent her tenderness and pity fixed on his bowed brooding figure As her eyes met his he again covered his over with his too frequent gesture ture and exclaimed vire fire coals of live flames clanies heated red hot and on each lid what is this cursed malady that is destroying me god to be blind blind with the love of beauty so knit in me that it is one with my life to give up tip all the r images of the world the forms of life the colors that plant the aspect of the universe to go into this self this dark gloomy prison of myself with memories none too glad or brave or good be sure eure to live with ith the ghouls of the mind the angels of light all banished never to write again never to create because my selfish misery is too great because I 1 am sapped by revolt and not to be reconciled why tonight to night I 1 cabi can scarcely see you and there have been days when I 1 would have torn my eyes open to see her more plainly to potter around the eath earth I 1 have been so vain as to think I 1 trod well to fumble for a chair to fall instead of walking to feel my way who have broken it through you have watched tho the malady come to me henly as you watched led it come to my father you have understood you have seen we me suffer and I 1 knew you wondered at my control when within I 1 have shrieked with agony he paused then said significantly but there is oblivion in his anguish his eyes showed blood bloodied blo odred d as if horribly suffused with drops of a supreme gethsemane the old womans comans face was sublime in teno tenderness erness her tears were flowing freely and I 1 have dared for a moment to think of happiness he breathed 1 I have dreamed of a love strong enough to go with me into that deadly darkness the inferno but its madness madness I 1 have proved it it does I 1 not exist and god knows I 1 will protect myself from suffering buffering any more deeply than now I 1 do but as I 1 said there is oblivion look here tempest unfastened his cuff and rolled up hi his s sleeves to his inner ar arm in i the old housekeeper gave a cry the tears froze on her lids she sprang ca her feet and put her hand on his bis shoulder uh ah no she cried in a q stifled voice 10 no lo no mr basil I 1 hush alush he commanded her sternly and she knew him top we well ll 11 to burst fprd into ther ieler gr brieler henrt xi contained Tk tempest in his his tone alone had become the master who although he had given his confidence admitted no famil familiarity larity howe however ve dear the housekeeper trembled as she stood and tempest was the controlled one pres find some means to see miss carew and to tell her whatever you like you will prevent her coming As for me ine he shrugged 1 I am incapable of any further strength in the matter I 1 be expected to turn voluntarily from heaven to hades he smiled his peculiarly sweet gentle smile and rose to go mrs henly followed him to the door when he had left her she fell upon her knees by the little chair he had used to sit in as a child and wept for h him I 1 im and prayed for him and determined that if there were hope on the earth to rescue him he should be rescued it did not call ball for an astute character reader to remark the change chanad to in mrs Rams dills guest the fine coun try air of shire had failed to freshen or keep the original roses in her cheeks her walks to and from the castle did not stimulate her appetite she was extremely altered and the little woman tempted her with the best of her homely kitchen fare in vain polly welcomed the unusual visit of mr tempests housekeeper with great deference and relief and a burning curiosity to speak of the guest mrs henly in rigid black silk with a fetching little close bonnet whose purple strings were tied under her chin had chosen to draw a veil down over her countenance whose natural serenity was much disturbed the veil was mottled a little for even on the way from craven she had cried through it the young ladys hin bin just hin bin from walkin polly dusted a spotless chair and stood alongside of it hopefully not venturing to suggest that mrs henly linger but longing for it ashes never still in I 1 do think she walks her flesh off her and her colors as casvell aaS well vell you think she Is poorly polly well im m if coughed mrs ramsdell I 1 theres some its as never does well out of their natural hair if it were a stubble id say it were wl wi thorin therin if it were a child id say it were miss carew would see mrs henly who went I 1 up a at t once to the room in the eaves the american was before the bit of mirror that reflected sky and meadow and her own changed face like the lady of she had seen strange things pass in the little glass she stood with her hat in her hand for she had just dome come in her hair unconfined seen for the first by mrs airs henly wakened her admiration what lovely hair miss and such a lot of it polly was right the strangers color was gone tired as she had been the day of her arrival at craven she had bad looked the picture of vigorous health youre not looking as well as when you came to england miss miss carew was well it seemed perfectly phe she thanked mrs henly but its no wonder youre beelin the long close whitin T daresay mrs henly paused surprised to find that for the first she thought of the girl she was young and vigorous but what health and vitality what strength of body and mind and what divine patience were needed for the task mrs henly purposed for the slender creature but she did not think twice of it love that was all the strength needed if she had it if not all ah her poor blighted boy she felt instinctive ease with miss carew in whose presence she had found herself only a few times before the nature of the stranger although an ail unknown quantity was sympathetic the old lady sat down beside miss carew on the little bed she lifted her mottled veil and revealed her dis j face and tear reddened eyes I 1 she put out her hands before her in dif an old fashioned gesture of despair j gave a choked sob and murmured whilst her eyes streamed over I 1 oh miss what a terribly cruel I 1 world it is indeed what a hodd cruel world As this to them both was far too i if there was only some heart that could care car for or him enough some hand that could guide him broad and humanitarian a cause for such sudden personal grief she added sobbing mr tempest mr basil Is very III indeed miss bliss carels color grew still whiter and it was a second before she echoed what has happened to mr tempest oh nothing sudden mrs henly got the better of her tears nothing sudden no more than yesterday or that you would see but hes ill III miss and my heart Is broken for him miss bliss carew said 1 I have seen that he is nervous and excited but thought it was a relief to him to work I 1 have been wrong perhaps 11 oh no indeed hurried the other far from it you havo been a bless ing to him a good dear bles blessing sine 1 her way oi of putting it was sweet and in ti kc form soothed the heartache mi carew was beginning intensely to mrs BITS henly was looking at ai her in a sort of appeal and continued incoherently tile the day I 1 let you in miss I 1 see now that I 1 took it on myself so BO ton ta say I 1 shant forget how you stood there wet and cold like a child lostin a stori you was so eager too and your eyes was gobright so bright and you yom says so determinedly 11 1 I must see mr tempest do you remember how she had ever been that enterprising ter practical bold invader miss bliss carew was so far from being able to recall that the story did not sound to hor her like her own and I 1 had just left him a halt bal hour before shut up in that drear some room with his books which he be read or ills his papers which he swore lie he would never touch again why miss you made me think somehow that night as you came te im of the stories I 1 used to ta tell him when he was a boy tho the fairy tales talea and an you gave me the feeling of hordness hodd ness as if you just dropped in with the rain and was some kind of a bewitchment her mingled figures were rot and the listener did not smile as she thought with a thrill of what tempest had himself said and I 1 determined to send you to him miss I 1 said harm him it cant and anything is better than ahan la see him so so while you were thank in me for being so kind to you miss I 1 was th chinkin inkin only of him im what I 1 shall always be doing to the last lucy carew could not question hershe felt no wish to do so she hadl a dread of what message the woman had come coine to bring she was speeding towards some point and the girl sat patiently before the ei emotion notion and f the love that struggled in the wrinkled old face but as again mrs henrys aphea appealing lingle eyes met hers she murmured do you regret it mrs henly letting mo me in regret it my dear exclaimed the other ali ah I 1 dont know if its for always I 1 am heart glad if its ita to ta make him grieve ara ar suffer more I 1 shall never na never v er forgive myself tt it there was only some heart that could care for him enough some hand ho would love that could guide him but to see him she wrung her hands and heard miss carew shy say in a vole voice that sounded hard because of atje aba speakers control dont mrs henly tell ma anymore please I 1 would rather not nos t hear the old woman ceased wiped ha nee eyes and sighed does mr air tempest know you canse cam s to me mr henly oh dear he bade me come he bade you come yes miss to do what to tell me what 1 I cant ever tell you miss miss carew had taken her campan companions ions Vs hands hand s h her er breast heaved with surprise and a sort of terror you must tell me mr tempest sent you to me for what but you forbade me to speak all maa carew of his illness yes but what does doea he wish me to do seeking to evade disloyalty and anao nevertheless to accomplish her do d sired end mrs henly repeated TO BE CONTINUED |