The Son Of Monte Cristo Part 93 (1/2)

Jane in danger and he lying there idle! No, no, that could not be! He rose froot out of the house Where was he going? He knew not He endeavored to collect his thoughts, and suddenly a name stood out clear in his brain

Monte-Cristo, yes it was to the hotel of Monte-Cristo that he o

There, at all events, he should find Fanfar, and together they would look for Jane At first Sanselradually firmer Just as he reached the Hotel de Monte-Cristo, he saw the carriage drive out of the court-yard

A strange phenoan to run after the carriage--he felt no th was concentrated in his superhuman effort And this man who just now could not hold himself erect, ran on swiftly without hesitation With his eyes on the carriage laly Sos And Sansele stop at last, and he heard violent blows upon a door And then he entered as well as the others, and appeared on the scene just as Benedetto leaped from the

Sanselony his broken, bleeding heart loosed its grasp upon his secret, for he cried out:

”Jane! hter!”

Fanfar instantly understood the truth and laid his hand coently

But Sanselme shook off the hand, and before any one knehat he :

”Benedetto! You shall not escape!”

And he, too, leaped into the water Benedetto was scarce a minute in advance

Benedetto had ress froreat was his fear

Fear? Yes For the first time in his life he had made an attack on Monte-Cristo, and in spite of his audacity, knew perfectly well that the mere presence of the Count would cause him to tremble with fear He did not wish to die, and therefore fled by the first path that presented itself And after all, to swi and a good swireat that at first he was alht of cliht be watching and he ht fall into their hands; while on the other bank the forest of Neuilly offered hie He therefore swa, but he and Sanselme had knoorse and heavier sea when they escaped froe, the persistency hich this name returned to him At this same moment he heard a dull noise behind him as if some one leaped into the water Could it be that one of his ene little progress and that his strength was going He allowed himself to float for a few minutes, and in the silence felt convinced that so him But what nonsense it was in such darkness to make such an attempt Benedetto now allowed hi the river obliquely, and ed to make no noise whatever as he swam And yet as he listened he heard the same sound behind him at about the same distance And now Benedetto beheld the shore In a few round he could look out for himself He sneered to himself

What nonsense all this talk was of punished to escape so far! Finally he stood on the shore He heard a cry from the water He understood it It cah to see that his prey had escaped hiht of Benedetto, and had felt sure of catching him; but he had been struck on the shoulder by a piece of floating wood

The pain was excessive, and he lost his power of swi In this moment Benedetto escaped him He could dimly see his form on the shore, and then the man's shadoas lost in the shadow of the woods Sanselo unpunished

Up to this moth, but now this strength was gone He could do noSuddenly he felt so the water like a drowning dog It was a rope A schooner had been wrecked here and a rope was hanging froy of despair, and by it raised himself on board the schooner and fell on the deck utterly exhausted, morally and physically

Suddenly he uttered a wild cry He had been looking intently at the spot where he had seen Benedetto disappear He saw the ain, but it was not alone With it was so white, that looked like a spectre And the spectre was gliding over the ground in the direction of the wreck on which Sansel

What was it? One forthe riverside? Not so--it was a phantom; the terrible resurrection of the Past

Benedetto had run toward the wood, believing that there he would be safe Suddenly his heart stood still, for before hi-sheet This man was a coward at heart, and had been all his life afraid of ghosts But he encouraged hi that it was mist fro all his courage, he stopped and went toward this strange forht looked unnatural as it stood leaning against a tree Why did not Benedetto turn aside, either to the right or the left? He could not; soer than his will drew hi Finally Benedetto laid his hand on the shoulder of the Thing It turned and lifted its head

Then an appalling shriek, which was like nothing human, came from Benedetto's lips This spectre was that of his mother, whom he had stabbed in the breast at Beausset soat hiray tresses floated in the wind

Benedetto did not seek to understand He believed that the dead had risen from the tomb She looked at him for a full minute Then she said:

”Co, skeleton-like hand was laid on the parricide's wrist with such an icy pressure that Benedetto felt as if a steel ring were being riveted on his arm

”Coain, will you?”

She drew hie himself; he obeyed the summons as if it were frolars, the poor, insane creature--had escaped from Fanfar's house by the door which Sanselely, lavished on him tender words, which in the ear of the dastard were like curses Thus they reached the shore, and it was not until Benedetto saw the Seine onceHe shook off the hand on his wrist and began to run He saw the wreck a foot or two fro little idea of the danger that awaited him there The mad woman followed him and tried to put her arain, Benedetto!”