Part 18 (1/2)
”Hadley!” repeated she, in the first moment of surprise.
”Yes; that very loving letter he addressed to you fell into your parent's hands, together with another one from the same writer, directed to himself wherein Hadley asks forgiveness for himself, and especially for you, fair lady, whom he represents to be in deep distress, that love irresistibly draws you to him and away from home.”
”Villain!” e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed Eveline, with flas.h.i.+ng eye.
”Be careful of your words, my dear; you are not now in your father's house, and it may not suit my purpose to allow you the use of such epithets, as applied to myself.”
With this remark, Eveline at once turned to her book and commenced reading again, as much as to say:--”Have the conversation all to yourself, then!”
and the miscreant so understood and interpreted the act, and felt that he was outgeneraled by the superior tactics of his opponent, notwithstanding the immense advantage he was master of in the contest.
”Nay, fair lady,” he said, ”I did not intend to cut you off from the privilege of speech, but only to advise you to be a little careful in the use of terms and epithets.”
”Sir, if after forcing a conversation upon me on your own terms, and at an advantage of your own choosing, you are too cowardly to hear what I please to say, you must talk to yourself. When I speak at all I select my own words. I do not belong to that cla.s.s of contemptible poltroons, who slink behind others to hide themselves and their crimes, basely exposing the innocent to the censures and punishment that should fall upon their own guilty heads. No, sir; woman as I am I would scorn to stoop to such a low depth of infamy to screen myself from any position, even from death itself; and if you, with all this littleness of mind and cringing cowardice of soul, expect to intimidate me by any menaces, all I have to say is, you have 'reckoned without your host.' And permit me to tell you that there are no words in any language half adequate to express my contempt of you as a man, or my abhorrence of your acts as a criminal, of whom, thus far, the gallows has been shamefully cheated.”
This bold speech fairly took the rascal out of himself. He ground his teeth in rage and seemed on the point of committing some desperate deed, but those unquailing and flas.h.i.+ng eyes were fixed upon him with a look that seemed to burn into his innermost soul, and penetrate its dark recesses of guilt. He was again conquered by that look; there was a magnetic power about it he could not withstand; and swallowing his rage as best he could, replied after this manner:
”I perceive you have that implement for which your s.e.x is so distinguished, a ready tongue, and I must confess it points words sharply and drives them home with force, and under some circ.u.mstances I might feel like retaliating; but here, as my guest, I shall not presume to do so; it will accord much better with my wishes to proceed with the matter in hand,--As I was saying, your father fully believes that Hadley has persuaded you to leave home and elope with him, and he is so shocked by your want of filial affection, as to be totally disqualified for acting with his usual energy; beside, he says if you care so little for him as to desert him and the home of your childhood for a horse-thief and a vagabond, he cares not to seek after you, but says you may go.”
At the first, Eveline felt like weeping, and for a moment buried her face in her hands; but then she felt it would not do to give way to feelings of tenderness and sorrow in her present situation, and choking down the great grief that swelled up in her bosom on her father's account, she suddenly a.s.sumed a commanding att.i.tude, and addressed the calculating human fiend as follows:
”Inhuman monster! how long do you expect thus to dare the vengeance of heaven? You have stained your soul with crimes that would darken the pit of night; you have committed robberies, and thefts, and _murder_! Ay, start and turn pale when your crimes stare you in the face, you have done so before, and you will again. You thought there was no eye to witness your plotting deeds, no ear to hear your murderous plans except those of your vile confederates, but you see I am aware of your crimes.”
”Who told you these things?” he demanded, breaking in upon her discourse.
”That is a question I shall not take the trouble to answer; it is enough for you to understand that _I know what you are_, and that long-delayed justice will overtake you, perhaps, sooner than you deem it possible your secret acts can be brought to light; for you seem to have forgotten that there is One, whose eye never slumbers, whose ear is always open to the prayer of the distressed and to the voice of the blood of the innocent, which crieth from the ground as did the blood of Abel.”
”Ah, what a pity it is you are not a parson, or at least a parson's wife!
You really talk like a preacher; but I fear your discourse has produced little more effect upon _your_ auditory than do the polished words of a fas.h.i.+onable divine upon _his_; all very fine, but fancy sketches are not apt to effect as much with sober, common-sense people, as is the truth.”
This was said with something of returning a.s.surance, Duffel having tried to work himself into the belief that all was guess-work on the part of Eveline, so far as her accusations were concerned. She saw this, and in a moment the remembrance of her dream that morning flashed across her mind, and she determined to try the effect a reference to the scenes which pa.s.sed in review before her mental vision would have upon him:
”Sir, your a.s.sumed a.s.surance would soon leave you if you were in a court-room, and the evidence of your guilt, as I have it, detailed by witnesses. When your secret conference with those vile instruments--not yet so vile as yourself--whom it has pleased you to use as tools, were made known before a court and jury, your brazen impudence would depart, and the specter of a gibbet in the distance--and but a short distance, too--would pale your unblus.h.i.+ng cheek and palsy your false tongue, skillful as you may have been in casting blame upon others by deceptive and lying words. When it was proved that _you_ stole my father's horse; that _you_ are responsible for the absence of Mr. Hadley; that _you_ pointed the knife and the pistol at his heart, and then mendaciously represented him as the thief and kidnapper who is found in your own person; then, sir, would you vail your face and go out no more among men, but upon your forehead, as _now_ upon your soul, would be the brand of _thief_, _robber_, _murderer_! Ay, well may you cower! well may the cold sweat force itself out upon your brow! Did it never enter into your debased mind that the villain who is degraded enough to sell himself to crime for a little sordid dust, will, for a larger sum, betray his employer? Do you suppose that when _you_ meditate vengeance upon your tools, they will idly await your pleasure and plans, and lift no hand in their own defense?”
At this point Duffel actually sprang to his feet, the great drops oozing from every pore! How had his secret thoughts become known to her?--thoughts that no mortal ear had ever heard him utter?
”Girl! girl!” he shouted, ”who and what are you? demon, witch or spirit?”
Then he paused a moment, as if to collect himself, and decide upon a course of action. Becoming a little more composed, he continued:
”If you are in league with h.e.l.l, then are we of one family if you have not belied me, and I shall take it upon myself to strengthen the affinity by--”
”Sir!” she said, with a commanding look which awed him into silence, (for his superst.i.tious feelings were already in the ascendant, and he began to _fear_ her) ”I have no connection with the household of his Satanic majesty, _nor do I intend to have_, albeit you have intimated to the contrary.”
”Don't be too sure of that,” he interrupted. ”You must know that when I set my heart upon a measure, I never allow myself to be defeated in its accomplishment; and just now the darling object I have in view is a union with yourself.”
This was _said_ with much of his usual a.s.surance, though the expression of his face gave indications of internal uneasiness, and a trembling of soul, which belied the ostensible bravery put on for the occasion.
”You speak as though there was but one will in the world, of which you were the fortunate possessor; permit me to disabuse your overweening confidence and selfishness on this point. I have no wish to pa.s.s words with such an unmanly representative of mankind as you, sir, but let me a.s.sure you it is my very calm and fixed determination to show you that all your intentions cannot be carried out.”
”We will see, then,” he said, with something of aroused indignation, ”whose will is the stronger, or, rather, who has the advantage in this contest.