Part 67 (1/2)
M herself upon hith and ht to shake himself free of that desperate clutch
”Therese!” he cried ”Are you mad? Will you destroy me and yourself?
This creature has the safe-conducts that ”
Froround Aline, a breathless, horror-stricken spectator of that scene, spoke sharply, her quickout the line of checkmate
”Burn the safe-conducts, Andre-Louis Burn them at once--in the candles there”
But Andre-Louis had taken advantage of that moment of M de La Tour d'Azyr's impotence to draw a pistol in his turn ”I think it will be better to burn his brains instead,” he said ”Stand away fro that iastel rose to her feet to cover the Marquis with her body But she still clung to his arth that continued to prevent hi to use the pistol
”Andre! For God's sake, Andre!” she panted hoarsely over her shoulder
”Stand away, ain, more sternly, ”and let thisall our lives, and his own has been forfeit these years Stand away!” He sprang forith intent now to fire at his enemy over her shoulder, and Aline moved too late to hinder hiard of face, on the verge al at last an effective, a terrible barrier between the hatred of thosethe other's life
”He is your father, Andre! Gervais, he is your son--our son! The letter there on the table O round, and crouched there sobbing at the feet of M de La Tour d'Azyr
CHAPTER XV SAFE-CONDUCT
Across the body of that convulsively sobbing woman, the mother of one and the mistress of the other, the eyes of those mortal enemies met, invested with a startled, appalled interest that admitted of no words
Beyond the table, as if turned to stone by this cul horror of revelation, stood Aline
M de La Tour d'Azyr was the first to stir Into his bewildered astel had said of a letter that was on the table He caastel no longer feared the sequel, and so she let hio He walked unsteadily past this new-found son of his, and took up the sheet that lay beside the candlebranch A longhim Aline's eyes were all on Andre-Louis, full of wonder and co down, in stupefied fascination, at his mother
M de La Tour d'Azyr read the letter slowly through Then very quietly he replaced it His next concern, being the product of an artificial age sternly schooled in the suppression of emotion, was to coastel's side and stooped to raise her
”Therese,” he said
Obeying, by instinct, the implied command, she made an effort to rise and to control herself in her turn The Marquis half conducted, half carried her to the armchair by the table
Andre-Louis looked on Still numbed and bewildered, he made no atte over Mastel As in a drea have you known this, Therese?”
”I I have always known it always I confided him to Kercadiou I saw him once as a child Oh, but what of that?”
”Why was I never told? Why did you deceive me? Why did you tell me that this child had died a few days after birth? Why, Therese? Why?”
”I was afraid I I thought it better so--that nobody, nobody, not even you, should know And nobody has known save Quintin until last night, when to induce him to come here and save me he was forced to tell him”