Part 44 (1/2)

”But at least you will give her my name, and tell her that I have something of urgent importance to communicate to her,” I cried eagerly.

He hesitated. ”If you are, as you allege, an old friend, I will place your card before her,” he said at last, with some hesitation. ”You may leave your address, and if Her Highness consents to receive you I will communicate with you.”

”No,” I answered in desperation; ”I will remain and await her return.”

”That is impossible,” he responded. ”She has many engagements, and certainly cannot receive you to-day.”

I recollected that the letter I had found at Denbury made it plain that we had parted abruptly. If this man gave her my card without any word, it was more than likely that she would refuse to see me.

Therefore I entered into argument with him, but while I was speaking the door opened suddenly, and my love stood before me.

She halted there, elegantly dressed, having just returned from her drive, and for a moment we faced each other speechless.

”Mr Heaton!” she cried, and then, in breathless hurry arising from the sudden and joyful surprise, she rushed forward.

Our hands grasped. For the moment I could utter no word. The secretary, noticing our mutual embarra.s.sment, discreetly withdrew, closing the door after him.

Once again I found myself, after those six lost years, alone with my love.

”At last!” I cried. ”At last I have found you, after all these months!” I was earnestly gazing into her great dark eyes. She had altered but little since that night long ago at The Boltons, when I had discovered the traces of that hideous tragedy.

”And why have you come back to me now?” she inquired in a low, strained voice.

”I have striven long and diligently to find you,” I answered frankly, ”because--because I wished to tell you how I love you--that I have loved you always--from the first moment that we met.”

A grave expression crossed her countenance.

”And yet you forsook me! You calmly broke off the secret engagement that we had mutually made, and left me without a single word. You have married,” she added resentfully, ”therefore it is scarcely fitting that you should come here with a false declaration upon your lips.”

”It is no false declaration, I swear,” I cried. ”As for my wife, I knew her not, and she is now dead.”

”Dead!” she gasped. ”You knew her not! I don't understand.”

”I have loved you always--always, Princess--for I have only ten minutes ago ascertained your true rank--”

”Mabel to you--as always,” she said, softly interrupting me.

”Ah, thank you for those words!” I cried, taking her small gloved hand.

”I have loved you from the first moment that we met at the colonel's, long ago--you remember that night?”

”I shall never forget it,” she faltered in that low tone as of old, which was as sweetest music to my ears.

”And you remember that evening when I dined with you at The Boltons?” I said. ”Incomprehensible though it may seem, I began a new life from that night, and for six whole years have existed in a state of utter unconsciousness of all the past. Will you consider me insane if I tell you that I have no knowledge whatever of meeting you after that night, and only knew of our engagement by discovering this letter among my private papers a couple of months ago?” and I drew her letter from my pocket.

”Your words sound most remarkable,” she said, deeply interested.

”Relate the whole of the facts to me. But first come along to my own sitting-room. We may be interrupted here.”

And she led the way to the end of the corridor, where we entered an elegant little salon, one of the handsome suite of rooms she occupied.

She drew forth a chair for me, and allowing a middle-aged gentlewoman-- her lady-in-waiting, I presume--to take her hat and gloves, we once more found ourselves alone.