Part 23 (1/2)
I shall be waiting there, I promise you, and we shall drink soive a little to the shades, or at any rate, Brutus shall steal some And then perhaps you shall tell me what happened after that I shall look forward--I shall hope, even, that it may be pleasant Good-bye,Surely it one, like the shades of which he had spoken, and Madele of the broken door I drew a deep breath and looked about h a spell were broken, as though the curtain had lowered on some final act in the theatre Slowly my mind see ical paths Brutus went to the arms rack in the corner, and selected a rusted cutlass from the small arrinned For ain the fireplace hissed drowsily, and I could hear the vines tapping gently on the s Then I heard a pistol shot, followed by a hoarse cry
Mademoiselle started to her feet, and then sank back in her chair again, and fro I could see that her face hite and her hands were treainst the back of a chair Why should I have hoped she did not?
”God!” she gasped ”I have killed him!”
”You?” I cried, but she did not answer
”Huh!” said Brutus, and his grin grew broader ”Monsieur's pistol He kill him”
”Indeed,” I said, for the sense of unreality was still strong upon me
”And whom did he kill, Brutus?”
Brutus cocked his head to one side, and listened So of horses' hoofs
”He kill Mr Jason Hill,” said Brutus
”Are you sure?” Mademoiselle demanded sharply
Brutus nodded, and the dull, fixed look went out of her eyes, and slowly a touch of color returned to her cheeks
And then there was a clamor of voices and a tramp of feet and a crash on the door outside
Brutus looked about him in wild indecision
”We have callers,” I observed, doing my best to keep my voice calotteninto the hall At almost the same instant, someone must have discovered that the door was unlocked, for a sudden draught eddied through the passage Then there was a confused babel of voices, to which I did not listen I was busy swinging up the sash of the nearest
”Quickly, Mademoiselle!” I whispered
”damn it!” someone shouted from the hall ”There's another of 'em!” And there cae
”It is ti,” I said ”Out of the , Mademoiselle!”
In my haste I al towards her
”Madeht to the left Can you saddle a horse?”
She nodded