A Comedy of Terrors

XXIV.

A RESCUE.

CARROL had been seized and led away at the beginning of the disturbance consequent upon Mrs. Lovell’s arrest, and had not therefore been an eye-witness of the distressing incidents connected with it. Upon him, the impression that was produced by this event was slightly different from the actual fact. When the soldiers entered, his only idea was that it was Maud, and not Mrs. Lovell, for whom they were come ; and when he was dragged away the same idea was in his mind.

Such an idea was perfectly natural under the circumstances. In the first place, Carrol, as a matter of course, was morally incapable at that time of bringing his mind to bear upon any other thought than that of Maud. In the second place, a large part of their conversation that afternoon had referred to Du Potiron, for Maud had once more to explain the misdirected letters, and she had also much to tell about Du Potiron’s persecution of her in Paris. She herself only knew this from Mrs. Lovell’s narrative, but Carrol’s idea was that she had been personally annoyed by it all along. She had alluded with some uneasiness to Du Potiron’s threats, and they had discussed the possibility of his carrying those threats into execution.

Now, all was lost. Maud was seized. She would be in the power of this vile scoundrel, and no effort of his could possibly save her. This thought created an anguish of soul which could not indeed be greater than that which he had suffered from other causes during the last few weeks, but was certainly quite as great. His guards were too numerous for resistance to be possible. He was dragged along helplessly, almost mad with the emotions that had been wrought within him by this fearful revulsion from the highest bliss to the profoundest misery.

But Carrol, in spite of his highly emotional nature, was essentially a man of action, and wherever there was the faintest hope of doing anything he caught at it. It occurred to him that his only chance of escape now lay in winning over some one of his captors. But how was this to be done ? He could not speak French, and besides there were too many of them ; for even if any one should be willing to help him, he could not do so in the presence of the others. Under these circumstances a thought occurred to Carrol as a last resort, and he at once acted upon it. It was a very natural thought. He could not speak French, but some one of them might possibly speak English. This accomplishment was not uncommon in Paris. Any knowledge of English, however slight, would serve his purposes.

So he asked the soldiers nearest him, one after the other, if they spoke English. They shook their heads with the usual comprend pas. “ Does any one speak English ? ” he said in a voice loud enough to be heard by all. At this one of those in front turned. As he was the only one of all of them that took any notice of this question, it seemed quite evident that he alone understood it.

“ Do you speak English ? ” said Carrol.

’ “ Oui, monsieur. Yes, I spik Inglis.”

Carrol was much encouraged by the face of this man. It was not a hightoned face : it was the face of one who was corruptible, such a face as one often sees among the great population of couriers, cicerones, landlords, waiters, and policemen on the Continent, — the face that is associated with the crafty soul and the itching palm.

“ I will give a thousand francs, anything, if you will help me and the lady to escape.”

The man’s eyes flashed, his countenance lighted up. He hesitated for a moment, and then said in a dry, business-like voice, “ Oui, monsieur.”

“ What does he say ? ” asked one of the men, walking with him.

“O, nothing ; he asked if his lodgings had been searched, and I told him yes. I don’t know, were they searched ? ”

“ I don’t know,” said the other, “but it’s as well to make him think so.”

“ So I supposed,” said the first speaker.

Carrol said no more. This little incident took some of the load of anxiety off his mind. It was a small enough incident in itself, and a rascal like this was but a broken reed ; yet Carrol could not avoid relying upon this rascal’s fortunate rascality, and hoping much from it.

Not long after they reached their destination, which was not far from Mrs. Lovell’s. The vast number of quasi-military men who now filled Paris rendered necessary a large number of depots for their accommodation, and for the reception of arms and stores. It was to one of these places that Carrol was taken. It was a large edifice, with a court-yard which was filled with baggage-wagons. As Carrol was taken up stairs, he noticed that there were few men to be seen, and from appearances he conjectured that the place was used as a storehouse for commissariat purposes. A single light was burning on each of the stairways which he ascended, and the long halls were dark and gloomy. Boxes and bundles of a miscellaneous description lay around, and other collections of the same kind could be seen in some of the rooms whose doors happened to be open. It was evidently not a regular prison, but merely used by his captors for that purpose, to save themselves trouble. This was a discovery which went still further to encourage him, for it led to the hope that he might not be very closely guarded.

In the mean time Mrs. Lovell had also been arrested in the way above described, and had been led away by her captors. Paralyzed by the suddenness of the event, and by the terror that lay before her, she was for some time almost in a state of unconsciousness. The despairing cry of Maud kept ringing in her ears, and added to her own despair. In her agitation she addressed the most frantic words to her captors, — expostulations, prayers, entreaties, — but all this met with no response of any kind. They did not treat her with any incivility; they led her along as considerately as was possible under such circumstances, but no effort was made to console her, or to alleviate her distress. About ten minutes after Carrol had been safely deposited in his allotted prison, Mrs. Lovell was conducted into the same house, and put into another room. Then the lock was turned, and she was left to her own meditations.

Gloomy and despairing indeed were those meditations. The room was perfectly dark, and she had not the remotest idea where she was. At first, the horror of her situation overwhelmed her, and she stood motionless, her heart beating wildly, and her brain filled with a thousand ideas of terror.

But at length other and better thoughts came ; for, after all, she had a buoyant nature and a sanguine disposition, and now, in spite of the terrors of her position, these began slowly to assert themselves. First, she thought of Maud, and it was with a feeling of immense relief that she thought of her sister’s not being arrested. Then her thoughts reverted to Mr. Grimes,

The moment that the stalwart figure of Mr. Grimes stood revealed to her mind’s eye, that very moment a thousand hopeful considerations, a thousand encouraging ideas presented themselves. It was the time for Mr. Grimes to come. He would not be late. He must, she thought, even by this time have arrived. He would come there, he would see Maud, and would learn all that had happened. A smile of trust and hopefulness crossed her face as she thought of the eager and energetic way in which Grimes would fly to her rescue. First of all, he would convey Maud to a place of safety, where she would be altogether out of the reach of Du Potiron. Then he would institute a search after her. He would fly to her relief. He would come, and without delay. It surely would not be difficult for him to learn where she had been taken. He would not leave her here to suffer in imprisonment and in anguish. He would surely come,—yes, even this night, and soon, before many hours, — yes, at any moment. At length, confident and expectant, she felt about the room in the dark till she found a chair, and, drawing this close to the door, she sat there, and watched, and listened, and waited for the appearance of Mr. Grimes.

Meanwhile Carrol had been securely deposited in his room, and had striven with the difficulties of his situation as he best could. There was, of course, only one ray of hope left, and that ray beamed from the rather villanous-looking eye of the man that was able to “spik Inglis.” It was, naturally enough, rather a feeble ray ; but feeble as it was, it served to throw a little light into the gloom of Carrol’s prospects, and all his thoughts and hopes centred upon the possible appearance of this man. That appearance ought to take place on this night if it was going to occur at all ; and so while Mrs. Lovell sat waiting for Mr. Grimes, Carrol was waiting with far less confidence, but with equal impatience, for his deliverer.

The thoughts of expectation were mingled with others. His mind constantly reverted to Maud. Where was she now, he thought. Perhaps she is in this very building, confined in a room like this, in the dark, full of despair. O, what bliss it would be if I could but appear to her at such a time as this, and save her from such a fate ! This thought was so sweet, that he could scarce lose sight of it. To him it seemed inexpressibly pleasant. To save Maud now would be something that might atone for the anguish that she had endured on his account. What a glorious recompense ! How the darkness of that old memory would be swallowed up in the sunlight of this new joy ! So he sat there, and he brooded over this thought, and he longed with longing inexpressible that he might be able to do all this for Maud.

And Mrs. Lovell sat, and she listened, and she waited for Grimes full of trust.

And the hours slowly passed, the hours of night.

Midnight came.

The peal of bells from the tower of a neighboring church announced this fact to both of the watchers. Mrs. Lovell gave a sigh of distress. Carrol gave a half-groan.

But scarce had the last stroke died away on the still night air, when Carrol’s acute senses, which had been sharpened to an intense degree by his long watch, became aware of a soft shuffling sound along the hall outside.

He listened, breathless !

The sounds approached his room. They were low, shuffling, and regular.

They were footsteps.

As Carrol ascertained this fact, his heart stopped beating, and in the intensity of his anxiety he seemed turned to stone.

The footsteps drew nearer.

Then they reached the door.

Then there was a pause for a time, after which a key was noiselessly inserted, the bolt was drawn back, the door opened, and a voice said in a whisper, “ Are you wake ? ”

“ Yes,” said Carrol in a low voice, scarce able to speak in the intensity of his excitement.

“ S-s-s-s-st ! ” said the other in a low voice.

He now came softly in and shut the door behind him, turning the key again.

“ I can safe you,” said he in a whisper.

“The lady—” said Carrol in the same tone.

“ She is here.”

“ In this house ? ” asked Carrol, as his heart gave a fierce throb of joy.

“ Yes.”

“ She must be saved too.”

“ Yes, we sall safe her too,” said the man.

“ When ? when ? ” asked Carrol, whose impatience was now intolerable.

“Now, — toute suite,” said the other.

“ Make haste, then ; don’t keep me waiting any longer,” said Carrol feverishly, in a scarce articulate whisper.

“ Wait,” said the man. “ How mooch you gif me for dis ? ”

“Anything ; anything, if you only save me — ”

“ But how mooch ? ”

“ Anything,” said Carrol hurriedly. “ A thousand francs.”

“You make him a tousand dollar,” said the Frenchman.

“ I will, I swear I will. Come.”

“ Mais, wait. How I know dat you sall gif it ? ”

“ I’m rich. I’ve got plenty.”

“ When you gif him ? ”

“ O, as soon as I can get it! Tomorrow. Come, make haste.”

“ O, oui ; plenty time. Mais, how I know I sail get him ? Can you gif him dis night ? ”

“ To-night ; no, I must get it from my banker.”

“ Mais, eet ees too long to wait”

Carrol ground his teeth in rage and impatience.

“ Here,” he said, snatching his purse from his pocket, and thrusting it into the man’s hand, “ there are about a thousand francs in this. I swear to you, by all that’s holy, I ’ll give you the rest the first thing to-morrow. You may stay with me till then, if you 're afraid.”

The man took it, then he went to a corner of the room and knelt down. Then he drew a match, and, holding this in one hand, he looked over the contents of the purse by the light of the match, with a quick and practised glance. A few moments were enough. He extinguished the match and came back to Carrol.

“ Dees sall do for de present,” he said. “ And now we sall go. But you mus take off your boots.”

Carrol tore off his boots as quickly as he could.

“ Gif me your hand,” said the Frenchman. “ I sall lead you to the lady, and den we sall all go together.”

Carrol grasped the outstretched hand of the other, and in this way they left the room.

Mrs. Lovell listened and waited.

The midnight hour had tolled.

Time still went on.

At last she heard sounds outside, — shuffling sounds.

They approached her door !

“ At last ! O, at last ! ” she murmered. “ O, how faithful ! I knew he’d come ! ”

The key was inserted, the door gently opened. Mrs. Lovell rose to her feet, and, trembling in every limb, she tottered forward, scarce able to stand, and utterly unable to speak, holding out her cold and tremulous hands eagerly and longingly.

Carrol’s heart throbbed with wild and furious agitation. As the door opened he rushed forward. One step inside, and he encountered Mrs. Lovell.

He flung his arms around her in a fervid embrace. He pressed her again and again to his throbbing heart. For a few moments he was utterly unable to articulate one single sound. At last, as he held her once more to his heart, he murmured, “O my darling ! O my darling ! ”

“ I knew — you’d come,” sighed Mrs. Lovell in a scarce audible whisper.

“ O my own dar — ”

“ S-s-s-s-st ! ” said the Frenchman in a low voice. “ Make haste. We mus haste. Der is no time. Come, take my hand again, and I sall lead de way.”

Carrol grasped Mrs. Lovell’s hand and seized the Frenchman’s. They went along the hall and down a flight of steps and into a long hall which went to the other end of the court-yard. Here they descended and reached a gate. But Mrs. Lovell was weak, and though she clung to Carrol she could not walk well. The intense excitement of that night had unnerved her.

Carrol murmured in her ear words of love and encouragement, and then raised her in his arms. She was a little woman, and not so heavy but that Carrol was able to carry her. But his own natural strength was increased by his enthusiasm and joy; and Mrs. Lovell, utterly overcome by contending emotions, twined her arms about his neck, while her head sank upon his shoulder.

XXV.

AN OVERWHELMING DISCOVERY.

THE Frenchman now opened a door at the back of the house, and Carrol passed out into a street.

It was quite dark. The moon, which had been shining bright in the early part of the night, had gone down, and the sky was overcast. There were no lights burning in the street, nor were any visible in any of the houses. The siege had extinguished the one, and the lateness of the hour had extinguished the other.

Into this dark street Carrol passed, bearing his burden. Mrs. Lovell clung to him as though she were afraid that something might still occur to separate them ; while Carrol, in his rapturous joy, forgot all danger, and had it not been for his sober, practical, and matterof-fact guide, would have wandered at random, carrying his burden anywhere as long as he could move. But his sober, matter-of-fact guide had made other preparations so as to complete their escape, and thereby make his own reward the more sure.

“ I haf a cab,” said he. “ Eet ees not far. You carre de lady some time yet, but not mooch. All araight. De next cornaire.”

By this Carrol understood that his guide had given to his own performance a completeness that made it positively artistic. This allusion to a cab at once aroused him to the dangers around him and the excellence of the cab as a means of escape from it.

At the next corner they found a cab standing. The guide went forward and spoke mysteriously to the cabman. Then, as Carrol came up, he asked him where he wanted to go. Carrol hesitated for a moment. He thought of Mrs. Lovell’s lodgings ; but being still possessed with the idea that danger might be lurking there, and anxious above all to secure the safety of his dear companion, he mentioned the Hotel du Louvre. His idea was to drive there first, and on the following day to send word to Mrs. Lovell about the safety of Maud.

Giving this brief direction, he put down his precious burden, and tenderly lifted her into the cab. Then he followed himself. The door was shut. The guide took his seat beside the driver, and the cab drove off.

Carrol was now once more alone with his dear care. Her silence and her weakness excited his tenderest pity, while the rapturous thought that he had achieved her deliverance filled his whole soul. He flung his arms around her, and drew her close to him and held her there. Mrs. Lovell made no resistance. It was her deliverer who was thus lavishing his tenderness upon her. Her heart was filled with a sense of his devotion to her; and he had a way of appropriating her which she was unable and unwilling to resist.

Thus the cab drove on, and the two sat there, quite silent, each lost in the thoughts that were most natural to eacli mind. It was a moment of infinite tenderness, of mutual self-devotion, of soft and tranquil thoughts of bliss ; in short, a supreme moment that only comes but once in a whole life.

“ This is bliss unspeakable,” thought Carrol. “ What a wonderful life I have had all crowded into a few weeks ! The most unutterable misery, and the most exalted happiness ; the alternations of utter despair and seraphic joy. Now the darkness is lost in light, and Maud will lose the recollection of the grief that I have caused her in the remembrance of the joy that I have given her.”

These were the thoughts that he had as he held her to his heart.

“ How faithful and how true he is ! ” thought Mrs. Lovell ; and what a heart must I have had to have played so recklessly with such a Glorious Being ! I knew he would come. I sat there, and waited, and I knew it. And he came. But how it was that he could have ever managed to come, is something that I never shall understand. And there never was such another man in all the world. O, he is such an utter — ” A sigh ended the unspoken sentence.

It was Carrol who first broke the silence.

He thought that his direction to go to the Hotel du Louvre ought to be announced to his companion. He had not thought of it since he gave it. He now thought that she ought to know, so as to have some idea of where she was. He also began now to remember the existence of Mrs. Lovell, and the idea occurred to him that some measures ought to be taken as soon as possible to effect a communication with her, so as to let her know the joyful event that had occurred.

This communication was destined to be effected much more quickly than he had supposed to be possible. With the motive that had just been explained, Carrol gave a long sigh, that was elicited simply and solely by utter happiness, and then for the first time began to speak aloud and in his ordinary voice.

“ You know, darling,” said he, “ I ordered the driver to take us to the Hotel du Louvre, but I 've just thought that you might feel anxious about your sister, and would like to go to her first to let her know about your safety. Do you feel inclined to do so, or are you afraid ? ”

At the first sound of his voice thus audibly expressed, in his natural tones, Mrs. Lovell gave a little start, and then listened with a confused expression. The voice did not seem altogether familiar ; she felt puzzled. The thing alarmed her ; she did not say one word for some few moments. But as the voice ceased, her fears died out. She began to think that her brain must be affected. These wild suspicions seemed like delirium or madness. But the arms of her preserver were around her, and thus reassured her.

“ O dear,” she sighed, “ I really think that I must be almost insane ! I’m not quite myself yet, I suppose. O yes, do let us first go and see Maudie ! O, I want to see poor, poor Maudie ! I know that Maudie will be frightened almost to death ! Poor, poor Maudie. O yes, let us drive as fast as possible to Maudie ! ”

This time it was Carrol’s turn. He it was who gave the start. The sensation was his. That voice ! It was not the voice of Maud. Who was this that spoke of “ Maudie ” ? What did it mean ?

Carrol’s blood turned cold within his veins, a shudder passed through him, his heart stopped beating, his nerves tingled, his tongue cleaved to the roof of his mouth, and finally all the hairs of his head simultaneously and quite spontaneously rose up and stood on end.

His arms relaxed. He made an effort to withdraw them, and would have done so had he not been almost paralyzed by this new sensation.

What did it mean ? Who could it be ? Was there a mistake, or was he mad ? Had the Frenchman taken him to the wrong woman ? What a frightful and abhorrent and abominable idea ! And where was Maud ? And who in Heaven’s name was this woman who talked about “ Maudie ” ? A mistake ? How could there be a mistake ? He would not, could not believe it. But there must be a mistake. Could such things be ?

Mrs. Lovell noticed the shudder that passed through her companion, and felt his arms relax, and observed his astonishing silence. She wondered at first, and then grew alarmed, thinking that the excitement of the search, for her, and the long anxiety, and the final rescue had at last overcome him.

“ O,” she cried in intense anxiety, “what’s the matter? You seem ill? Are you not well ? O, why are you so silent ? Why do you tremble so ? Why do you shudder ? O, you are ill ? O heavens ! you have done so much for me that you are sinking under it. And O, how unhappy I am ! And O, what can I do ? ”

The sound of this voice was enough for Carrol. There could no longer be any possibility of doubt. His worst suspicions were confirmed. The terrible fact appeared, full and undeniable.

It was not Maud !

This confirmation of his worst fears broke the spell that had fallen upon him. He tore himself a way. He started back, and in a wild voice that was almost a yell shouted out, “ What’s all this ? Who are you ? What do you want ? ”

This act, and the sound of his voice, a second time sent a cold thrill of horror through Mrs. Lovell. She recoiled with a repugnance and an abhorrence as strong as that which animated Carrol, while a terror more dire and more dark took possession of her soul, quite overwhelming her.

“ Who are you ? ” she said in a low moan, and with a wail of anguish, — the utter anguish of intensest fear.

“ O great Heaven ! ” cried Carrol with an anguish as deep as hers.

“ Who are you ? ” wailed Mrs. Lovell again, in the last extremity of her terror, — “ who are you ? O, who are you ? What do you want ? O, what do you want ? ”

These wails of anguish showed plainly to Carrol that this woman, whoever she was, had not intended to deceive him, but had been herself deceived. Strangely enough, he had not yet thought of the truth; for so entirely had the idea taken possession of his mind that it was Maud who had been arrested, and that Mrs. Lovell was safe from all danger, that he did not think of her. As to who it was he was not able to give a thought, so confused, so bewildered, and so overwhelmed was he. That poor brain of his had been sorely tried for many eventful weeks, and could not now be expected to be equal to the sudden demand that was made upon its overtasked energies.

He had but one thought, that of knowing the truth at once. On this he acted instantaneously.

He stopped the cab.

He tore open the door.

He jumped out.

He told Mrs. Lovell to get out.

She got out.

The Frenchman also got down from the box, animated by the one idea that had now become his ruling motive,— the idea of securing his pay.

It was dark. There were no lights in the streets or in the houses. Carrol and Mrs. Lovell remained undistinguishable to one another, though each stared hard at the other. Carrol now seemed to Mrs. Lovell to be not quite so tall as Grimes, but Carrol himself could make nothing out of Mrs. Lovell’s appearance.

“Who are you?” asked Carrol, at length, in an excited voice. “ This is all a terrible mistake.”

At this question Mrs. Lovell was on the point of mentioning her name ; but a sudden recollection of the events of her escape, the mutual endearments, and all that sort of thing, effectually deterred her.

“I — I — you — I — ” she stammered, “that is, O dear! I thought you were somebody else. I thought you were Mr. — Mr. — Air. Grimes.”

“ Mr. Grimes ! ”

At the mention of that name a flood of light poured into Carrol’s soul. In a moment he understood it all. This lady was Mrs. Lovell. He saw the whole truth. Mrs. Lovell had been arrested also. He had stumbled upon her, and she had mistaken him for Mr. Grimes. About the naturalness of such a mistake he did not stop to think, for his thoughts were turned to his own affairs. If this was Mrs. Lovell, where was Maud ? She was still in prison ! In his wild excitement he took no further notice of Mrs. Lovell, but turned furiously upon his benefactor, the Frenchman.

“ This is the wrong lady,”said he, and his words remained fixed in Mrs. Lovell’s memory afterwards ; “ where is the other one ? ”

“ De oder one ? ”

“ Yes, the other lady.”

“ De oder lady ? Dere is no oder lady.”

“ There were two ladies arrested : I want the other. You must take me back, and rescue her, or I swear I won’t pay you anything more. I swear I ’ll give myself up again and inform about you.”

“ Mon Dieu ! ” cried the other, “ I say dere is no oder. Dere vas only one lady took. Dis is de one. De oder lady faint. She stay in de house. No one touch her. You go to de house, and ask. She dere now, eef she haf not ron away.”

“ What is this ?” cried Mrs. Lovell, who at last begun herself to understand the state of the case. “ You are Mr. Carrol, are you not ? ”

She spoke rather coldly.

“ I am,” said Carrol stiffly.

Mrs. Lovell turned to the Frenchman.

“ The other lady was not arrested, I think you said ? ”

“ No, madame. I vas back to de house, she vas faint.”

“ Fainted ? Poor darling Maudie ! ” cried Mrs. Lovell, who now became absorbed in that which had been so long the chief feeling of her heart, — her love for her sister, — “ poor darling Maudie ! O Mr. Carrol ! ” she continued, “ we must go there at once ; she may be there now alone, and in despair. O, come ! I must go there at once.”

She told the driver her address, and hurried back into the cab.

Mrs. Lovell’s belief in the Frenchman’s information changed the current of Carrol’s thoughts. He now saw that Maud had not been arrested, and that Mrs. Lovell was the one. He saw that the only course left was to hasten without delay to the lodgings ; and accordingly, after one or two more questions of the Frenchman, he reiterated Mrs. Lovell’s directions and got back into the cab also.

The door was once more closed, and again the cab drove off.

The very same people now occupied the interior of the cab who had occupied it a short time before, but between their former relations and their present ones there was an infinite difference. In that short time a revelation had taken place which had completely revolutionized their mutual attitudes and turned their thoughts into a totally different channel. They sat now as far as possible away from one another. They felt an unspeakable mutual repugnance and repulsion, and by the intensity of their longing after the absent they measured their abhorrence of the present. Not a word was spoken. It was a situation in which words were a mockery.

Of the two, Mrs. Lovell’s case was perhaps the worst. The thoughts of Carrol had reference to one alone, but her thoughts vibrated between two different beings, the one Mr. Grimes, the other Maud. About each she felt an equal anxiety. What had become of Mr. Grimes ? How did it happen that this man Carrol, — a man for whom she never had felt any particular respect, a man whose influence over Maud only excited her wonder, — how did it happen that a man like this should surpass the glorious Grimes in daring and in devotion ? How did it happen that he should have penetrated to her dungeon, while glorious Grimes had stood aloof ? It was a thing which she found inexplicable, and the more she thought of it the more unable she felt to account for it.

In the midst of her anxieties she could not help feeling the bitterest mortification about the events of her escape. First of all, she detested this Carrol, nor could the thought that he had saved her disarm that resentment. Secondly, she felt a resentment against Grimes for the deep disappointment which he had caused her, and for the horrible mortification to which his delinquency had exposed her. The only thing which at this moment saved poor Grimes from sinking forever into the unfathomable depths of contempt in her estimation was the idea that he also might have fallen a victim to the vengeance of Du Potiron.

Carrol drew himself back as far as possible into one corner of the cab, shrinking from even the slightest contact with his companion, and Mrs. Lovell did the same with an aversion which was, if possible, more intense and persistent. And yet these two but a short time before had been clinging to one another with feelings of illimitable tenderness !

The cab drove on as it had driven before, and at length reached its destination. Carrol flung open the door and sprang out. A gentlemanly instinct came to him in the midst of his excitement, and he turned after two or three steps, with the intention of assisting Mrs. Lovell out. The magnanimous thought occurred to him that, in spite of all her faults and offences, she was, after all, Maud’s sister. But Mrs. Lovell took no notice of him. To her Carrol was now a detestable being, — detestable, and that utterly. She quitted the cab unassisted, and hurried toward the house. Carrol hurried there also.

The aspect of the house struck them as being strange and drear and suspicious. What was stranger and more suspicious was the fact that the door was wide open. Mrs. Lovell entered first. The concierge was gone. The way was clear. It was dark inside, but Mrs. Lovell knew the way well enough to go in in the dark. Carrol followed her, guided by the sound of her footsteps, and keeping as close to her as possible.

On reaching the door of her apartments, Mrs. Lovell found it wide open. All was still ; she faltered for a moment upon the threshold, as a terrible apprehension came to her mind ; then overcoming this, she entered.

She said not a word, but walked on. The door leading into the room beyond was also wide open. It was the ordinary sitting-room, and beyond this was the bedroom. Mrs. Lovell walked on with a quaking heart till she reached the bedroom door. Then she stopped, quite overcome. Then she called, “ Maudie ! ”

No answer !

“ Maudie ! " she cried again ; “are you here ? ”

There was no answer.

Mrs. Lovell could endure her suspense no longer, she entered the room, and passed her hand over the bed. No one was there. Then she lighted a lamp. The room was empty. Then taking the lamp in her hand, she came back with white face and staring eyes to the outer apartment, where Carrol had been waiting in a state of inexpressible anxiety.

“ Where is Maud ? ” he asked.

“ She is not here,” said Mrs. Lovell, in a low and tremulous voice ; “ and I — I am — awfully afraid.”

“ Let us search the house,” said Carrol in a hoarse voice ; “ she maybe somewhere about”

With these words he took the lamp from Mrs. Lovell, and the two walked away, searching for Maud. To their consternation they found all the rooms open. Not a soul was to be seen anywhere. No servants were to be found. All bad gone. Madame Guimarin had gone ; and as for Maud, there was not the slightest sign of her.

XXVI.

ANXIOUS INQUIRIES.

THE discovery that the house was absolutely deserted, and left thus with all the doors open and no occupants, filled both Mrs. Lovell and Carrol with equal terror. They went all through the house as though they still conceived it possible that Maud might lie concealed in some remote apartment. Faint indeed was their hope as they thus pursued their examination, but still such an examination was not so bad as utter and open despair ; and so they continued it, even after all hope of finding her here had left them. During this search there was not the slightest thoughts of their own safety in the mind of either of them. So engrossed were they in their anxiety about Maud, that the idea of personal security was utterly forgotten, and they kept up their business of exploring the house just as though neither of them had ever been arrested.

But Mrs. Lovell, while she thought about Maud, had thoughts also of a similar nature about Grimes. With her fresh remembrance of Du Potiron’s threats, and also of Du Potiron’s sufferings, she could not help wondering whether he had not fallen a victim to that vengeance. Against him Du Potiron had a double cause of anger ; for in the first place he was connected with her, and in the second place he had done an unpardonable wrong in the personal assault that he had made. All these thoughts came to her as she searched wearily, fearfully, and hopelessly about the house ; till at length their weight oppressed her. She could not endure them The hopeless search grew irksome, and finally she sat down in the hall, and gave herself up to the despairing thoughts that now took complete possession of her. As for Carrol, his state of mind was very similar. The resentment which he had felt against Mrs. Lovell for being the innocent cause of his disappointment had died away, and the one feeling left in his mind was that of inexpressible anxiety about Maud. In this feeling the two found a common bond of union and a common ground of sympathy, so that they were once more drawn together, in spite of the mutual aversion which recent events had created.

As Mrs. Lovell thus sank despairingly into her seat, Carrol stood in equal despair by her side, and for a long time not a word was spoken by either of them. Of the two Carrol was the first to rouse himself.

“ Well,” said he, “ it seems to me that there is no need for us to remain here any longer. I think that we had better do something. Will you allow me to take you to the Hotel du Louvre, while I contiuue the search elsewhere ? ”

“Elsewhere?” said Mrs. Lovell. “ What do you mean ? Where will you look ? Have you any idea of any place where information can be gained ? ”

“Well, I don’t know,” said Carrol. “ I 've been thinking it over, and it seems to me that I ought to be making a general search, though I confess I hardly know where. My idea just now is to take you back to the Hotel du Louvre, and then start off and try and find something, — whatever I could,— and I would let you know the result in the morning.”

“It is of course, very natural,” said Mrs. Lovell, calmly, “ that you should wish to get rid of me, but I assure you that you shall do nothing of the kind : for, in the first place, I mean to continue the search ; in the second place, I shall keep this cab in my employ ; and, in the third place, I shall insist on your accompanying me. For we have the same object in view, and so it seems to me that we had better pursue it together. You can be of service to me, and therefore I ask you to go with me. If you refuse, I shall have to go alone. But knowing what I do of your relations to poor dear Maudie, I do not anticipate a refusal.”

Upon this Carrol assured her that his only thought had been for her comfort, and that, if she felt inclined to continue the search for Maud, he would of course go with her.

“ Very well,” said Mrs. Lovell, “ and now I will tell you what I have been thinking of since I came to this house. It is — a — Mr. Grimes. You see he was to come here to meet us, to make our departure together. Now, you know, when the soldiers came, they came to arrest me. M. Du Potiron threatened that and that only ; so they came and took me. They took you also, and I think the reason of that was that you were mistaken for Mr. Grimes, who had, no doubt, been denounced along with me. I can account for your arrest in no other way.

“Well, you know, poor dear Maudie was not arrested ; for this man, M. Du Potiron, you know, threatened to have me arrested, and to take poor dear Maudie himself. He may have been waiting outside for my arrest, and have taken away poor dear Maudie at once. Or he may have delayed ; and this gives me the only hope I have. It is this. You see, Mr. Grimes was to have come here for us ; well, you know, we were arrested. Well, it was about the right time for Mr. Grimes to come ; and if poor dear Maudie was not taken away, Mr. Grimes must have found her and learned from her what happened, and then taken her away. So the only way to find Maudie is to search after Mr. Grimes.”

“Well,” said Carrol, “there seems to be something in what you say. As to Grimes, I don’t know exactly where to look for him, for he left our lodgings this morning for good, and he does n’t seem to me the kind of man who would go quietly back there to sleep when he knew his friends were in danger.”

“No,” said Mrs. Lovell, in a decided voice, “ he certainly cannot be sleeping. He is awake somewhere and trying to help — to help — us.”

“ Yes,” said Carrol, “ that’s a fact; and so it seems useless to hunt him up at our lodgings. The question then remains, where can we find him, or where can we find out about him.”

Mrs. Lovell sat thinking now for some time. At last she spoke again. “ Did Mr. Grimes say anything to you about what he intended to do to-day ? ”

“Well, yes, in a general way. He said positively that he was not coming back. He paid his bill and made some arrangements about his luggage, which was to be kept at the house till he should come for it at some future time, or send for it. Some of his valuables I know he had taken away the day before and left with M. Nadar, to be deposited by him in the balloon — ”

“ M. Nadar ? ” .

“Yes. M. Nadar was to put this in the balloon in which Mr. Grimes was to go. It was something which was very light, yet very important to Mr. Grimes.”

At this a strange thought occurred to Mrs. Lovell, a strange and to her at that moment a very affecting thought, opening up to her mind once more a fresh insight into the devotion of Grimes, and disarming to a great extent the hostile suspicions that had begun to come to her.

“What is that?” she asked somewhat anxiously; “something did you say that Mr. Grimes had intended to take with him in the balloon, — something did you say that was very light, and yet very important ? ”

“ Yes,” said Carrol, who knew perfectly well what this was of which he spoke, yet did not like to mention either the thing itself or his knowledge of it to Mrs. Lovell. “ Yes, something of importance to him, you know, that he wished to take with him, you know, but which was not of sufficient weight, you know, to make any difference in a balloon, you know.”

“ O yes,” said Mrs. Lovell, in an absent way.

“ Well,” said Carrol, “ as I was saying, he had taken this away the day before to M. Nadar, leaving directions that this should be placed in his balloon,”

“In his balloon?” repeated Mrs. Lovell, absently, but with some emotion.

“ Yes,” said Carrol, “ that is, you know, in the balloon that he intended to travel by, you know.”

“ O yes,” said Mrs. Lovell.

“Well,” said Carrol, “and so, you know, he left this morning with the intention of seeing that the balloons were made ready. You see he had not sufficient confidence in M. Nadar, and therefore wanted to be on the spot himself.”

“And so you think he went there ? ” said Mrs. Lovell, with some anxiety.

“ I have no doubt about it,” said Carrol. “ I know he went there, and I know too that he must have spent the whole day there ; for you see, he felt that the whole responsibility of this balloon voyage rested upon him, and so, you see, he was, very naturally, quite anxious that everything should be safe, that is, as safe as possible.”

“Yes,” said Mrs. Lovell, “ that is what he must have done.”

“ Yes,” chimed in Carrol, “ he must have been at M. Nadar’s all the day, and has probably come here in the evening.”

“ And in that case,” said Mrs. Lovell, “ he must have found Maudie. So you see, it only proves what I said, that Mr. Grimes is the one whom we must first find. It seems to me that the best thing we can do is to drive to M. Nadar’s and make inquiries.”

“ Yes,” said Carrol, “ but I suppose we may as well drive to my lodgings first, for it is just possible that he may be there.”

To this Mrs. Lovell assented, and the two were soon seated in the cab again. On reaching his lodgings Carrol waked the conceirge with some difficulty, and learned that Grimes had not been there at all ; so that now it only remained to drive to M. Nadar’s.

On reaching M. Nadar’s, they found all dark and still, and only obtained admission with extreme trouble. M. Nadar appeared after some delay, and Carrol made known his business as briefly as possible.

M. Nadar’s information was full, complete, and final.

First. Monsieur Grimes had not been there at all that day.

Secondly. He had prepared the balloons according to promise, depositing M. Grimes’s little package in his balloon, with other necessaries, and had the balloons ready in the Place St. Pierre at the appointed time.

Thirdly. After a long delay M. Grimes at length reached the place with a lady who had fainted. M. Grimes was very anxious to resuscitate her before starting, and to wait for his friends.

Fourthly. At length a cab appeared, which they supposed to be M. Grimes’s friends. M. Nadar told him the lady would recover in the upper air, and asked him if he was ready. On receiving a reply in the affirmative, M. Nadar had cast off the lines.

Fifthly. But the cab did not contain the friends of M. Grimes ; and M. Nadar, after waiting for them a long time, had packed up his balloon and returned.

M. Nadar’s visitors made suitable acknowledgments for this information, and returned to the cab and drove back to the Hotel du Louvre.

This information had been a crushing blow to both. Mrs. Lovell was speechless with indignation. It was bad enough that she should have suffered the humiliation of this disappointment, that her trust had been mocked and her holiest and tenderest feelings outraged. Bad enough this was ; but to find that this had been done with such abominable accompaniments, and that Grimes, while vowing endless devotion to her, had coolly, calmly, and quietly taken some other woman with him and fled with her, — this was, indeed, an intolerable insult and wrong.

Who was this fainting lady about whom he had been so anxious, the one for whom he had given up good faith and truth and honor and all that is most esteemed by high-minded men ? Who was she and what motive could Grimes have possibly had in devoting himself to herself, if another held so much power over him ? To think of Grimes as a gay Lothario was absurd, yet from any other point of view his conduct was most inexplicable.

While Mrs. Lovell thus suffered the pangs of wrath and jealousy, Carrol was more than ever disturbed about Maud. Her disappearance was a terrible blow. He did not know where to search for her, or what to do. At length his thoughts reverted to one fact in the narrative of M. Nadar, and that was the mention of the lady who had fainted. Grimes had taken a lady in this state into the balloon, and Carrol now recollected what the guide had said of Maud. She too had fainted. Could the fainting lady of Grimes be Maud ? The more he thought of it the more probable it seemed. He mentioned his suspicions to Mrs. Lovell.

But Mrs. Lovell scouted the idea.

“Maudie ! Impossible ! What would Mr. Grimes want of Maudie ? and in a fainting fit too ! The idea is absurd. Why, Mr. Grimes would wait till Maudie recovered, so as to find out what had happened. No,” concluded Mrs. Lovell, bitterly, “it was some strange lady.”

“ But Grimes did n’t know any ladies in Paris at all, except you and — and Miss Heathcote.”

Mrs. Lovell shook her head obstinately, but said nothing.

At length the cab stopped, and Carrol once more questioned the guide about what he had seen in the house after the arrest.

The guide’s story was the same as before, without any alteration.

To Carrol there now seemed no doubt about it. Grimes must have gone to the house and found Maud there. He must have taken her, not only away from the house, but into the balloon. Into the balloon ! and if so, where were they now ? Into what peril had he borne her in his wild flight. What did he mean ? It seemed a thing so terrible, so hazardous, so frantic, and so unintelligible, that Carrol was bewildered.

He dismissed the cabman and took Mrs. Lovell to the hotel. But for neither of them was there any sleep. Mrs. Lovell in her drear solitude wailed for her lost sister, and thought with speechless indignation of the baseness of the man in whom she had trusted. He had deceived her, he had broken his faith and stained his honor. He now deserved only her limitless contempt.

James DeMille.