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34 chapters
WORKS BY Anna Katharine Green
WORKS BY Anna Katharine Green
The Leavenworth Case. A Strange Disappearance. The Sword of Damocles. Hand and Ring. The Mill Mystery. Behind Closed Doors. Cynthia Wakeham's Money. Marked "Personal." Miss Hurd: An Enigma. Dr. Izard. That Affair Next Door. Lost Man's Lane. Agatha Webb. One of My Sons. The Old Stone House. 7 to 12 and X. Y. Z. The Doctor, His Wife, and the Clock. The Defence of the Bride, and Other Poems. Risifi's Daughter. A Drama. The House of the Whispering Pines. G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS New York & London
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BOOK I. A VILLAGE MYSTERY. I. A WOMAN'S FACE.
BOOK I. A VILLAGE MYSTERY. I. A WOMAN'S FACE.
It was verging towards seven o'clock. The train had just left Marston station, and two young men stood on the platform surveying with very different eyes the stretch of country landscape lying before them. Frank Etheridge wore an eager aspect, the aspect of the bright, hopeful, energetic lawyer which he was, and his quick searching gaze flashed rapidly from point to point as if in one of the scattered homes within his view he sought an answer to some problem at present agitating his mind. He was
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II A LAWYER'S ADVENTURE.
II A LAWYER'S ADVENTURE.
Supper that night did not bring to these two friends all the enjoyment which they had evidently anticipated. In the first place it was continually interrupted by greetings to the young physician whose unexpected return to his native town had awakened in all classes a decided enthusiasm. Then Frank was moody, he who was usually gaiety itself. He wanted to talk about the beautiful and unfortunate Miss Cavanagh, and Edgar did not, and this created embarrassment between them, an embarrassment all th
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III. CONTINUATION OF A LAWYER'S ADVENTURE.
III. CONTINUATION OF A LAWYER'S ADVENTURE.
" The two witnesses had scarcely entered the room before the dying woman stretched out her hand again for the pen. As I handed it to her and placed the document before her on my portfolio, I asked: "'Do you declare this paper to be your last will and testament and do you request these persons to witness it?' "She bowed a quick acquiescence, and put the pen at the place I pointed out to her. "'Shall I support your hand?' I pursued, fearful she would not have the strength to complete the task. "Bu
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IV. FLINT AND STEEL.
IV. FLINT AND STEEL.
" Greatly startled, I drew back from the bed which but a moment before had been the scene of such mingled emotions. "'All is over here,' said I, and turned to follow the man whom with her latest breath she had bidden me to stop from leaving the house. "As I could not take the lamp and leave my companions in darkness, I stepped out into a dark hall; but before I had taken a half dozen steps I heard a cautious foot descending the back stairs, and realizing that it would be both foolish and unsafe
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V. DIFFICULTIES.
V. DIFFICULTIES.
" During the short walk that ensued we talked much of the dead widow and her sinister brother. "'They belong to an old family,' observed Miss Thompson, 'and I have heard my mother tell how she has danced in their house at many a ball in the olden times. But ever since my day the place has borne evidences of decay, though it is only in the last five years it has looked as if it would fall to pieces. Which of them do you think was the real miser, he or she? Neither of them have had anything to do
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VI. YOUNG MEN'S FANCIES.
VI. YOUNG MEN'S FANCIES.
The next morning at about nine o'clock Frank burst impetuously into Edgar's presence. They had not met for a good-night the evening before and they had taken breakfast separately. "Edgar, what is this I hear about Hermione Cavanagh? Is it true she lives alone in that house with her sister, and that they neither of them ever go out, not even for a half-hour's stroll in the streets?" Edgar, flushed at the other's excitement, turned and busied himself a moment with his books and papers before reply
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VII. THE WAY OPENS.
VII. THE WAY OPENS.
Frank succeeded in having Mr. Dickey appointed as Custodian of the property, then he went back to Marston. "Good-evening, Doctor; what a nest of roses you have here for a bachelor," was his jovial cry, as he entered the quaint little house, in which Sellick had now established himself. "I declare, when you told me I should always find a room here, I did not realize what a temptation you were offering me. And in sight——" He paused, changing color as he drew back from the window to which he had st
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VIII. A SEARCH AND ITS RESULTS.
VIII. A SEARCH AND ITS RESULTS.
Hermione Cavanagh , without the scar, would have been one of the handsomest of women. She was of the grand type, with height and a nobility of presence to which the extreme loveliness of her perfect features lent a harmonizing grace. Of a dazzling complexion, the hair which lay above her straight fine brows shone ebon-like in its lustre, while her eyes, strangely and softly blue, filled the gazer at first with surprise and then with delight as the varying emotions of her quick mind deepened them
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IX. THE TWO SISTERS.
IX. THE TWO SISTERS.
When Frank returned again to Marston he did not hesitate to tell Edgar that "he had business relations with Miss Cavanagh." This astonished the doctor, who was of a more conservative nature, but he did not mingle his astonishment with any appearance of chagrin, so Frank took heart, and began to dream that he had been mistaken in the tokens which Miss Cavanagh had given of being moved by the news of Dr. Sellick's return. He went to see her as soon as he had supped with his friend, and this time h
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X. DORIS.
X. DORIS.
Frank Etheridge walked musingly towards town. When half-way there he heard his name pronounced behind him in tremulous accents, and turning, saw hastening in his wake the woman who had brought him the message which first took him to Miss Cavanagh's house. She was panting with the haste she had made, and evidently wished to speak to him. He of course stopped, being only too anxious to know what the good woman had to say. She flushed as she came near to him. "Oh, sir," she cried with an odd mixtur
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XI. LOVE.
XI. LOVE.
Frank's next business was to read the packet of letters which had been found in old Mrs. Wakeham's bed. The box abstracted by Huckins had been examined during his absence and found to contain securities, which, together with the ready money and papers taken from the clock, amounted to so many thousands that it had become quite a serious matter to find the heir. Huckins still clung to the house, but he gave no trouble. He was satisfied, he said, to abide by the second will, being convinced that i
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XII. HOW MUCH DID IT MEAN?
XII. HOW MUCH DID IT MEAN?
Frank Etheridge left the presence of Hermione Cavanagh, carrying with him an indelible impression of her slender, white-robed figure and pallid, passion-drawn face. There was such tragedy in the latter, that he shuddered at its memory, and stopped before he reached the gate to ask himself if the feeling she displayed was for him or another. If for another, then was that other Dr. Sellick, and as the name formed itself in his thoughts, he felt the dark cloud of jealousy creep over his mind, obscu
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XIII. FRESH DOUBTS.
XIII. FRESH DOUBTS.
Frank was recalled to business the next day by the following letter from Flatbush: Dear Mr. Etheridge : It has been discovered this afternoon that Mr. Huckins has left town. When he went or where he has gone, no one seems to know. Indeed, it was supposed that he was still in the house, where he has been hiding ever since the investigations were over, but a neighbor, having occasion to go in there to-day, found the building empty, and all of Mr. Huckins' belongings missing. I thought you would li
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XIV. IN THE NIGHT WATCHES.
XIV. IN THE NIGHT WATCHES.
Meantime in the old house Hermione sat watching Emma as she combed out her long hair before the tiny mirror in their bedroom. Her face, relieved now from all effort at self-control, betrayed a deep discouragement, which deepened its tragic lines and seemed to fill the room with gloom. Yet she said nothing till Emma had finished her task and looked around, then she exclaimed: "Another curse has fallen upon us; we might have been rich, but must remain poor. Do you think we can bear many more disap
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BOOK II. THE SECRET OF THE LABORATORY. XV. THE BEGINNING OF CHANGES.
BOOK II. THE SECRET OF THE LABORATORY. XV. THE BEGINNING OF CHANGES.
As Frank went by the house early the next morning on his way to the train, he paused and glanced at one of the upper windows, where he had once before seen Hermione's face looking out. The blinds were closed, but the slats were slightly turned, and through them he thought, but he could not be quite sure, he caught the glimpse of a pair of flashing eyes. In the hope that this was so, he laid his hand upon the gate and then glanced up again, as if asking permission to open it. The blinds moved and
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XVI. A STRANGE VISITOR.
XVI. A STRANGE VISITOR.
Frank's visit and interview with Hermione had this advantage for the latter, that it took away some of the embarrassment which her first meeting with Emma, after the revelations of the night before, had necessarily occasioned. She had breakfasted in her own room, feeling that it would be impossible for her to meet her sister's eye, but having been led into giving such proof of her preference for Mr. Etheridge, and the extent of his influence over her, there could of course be no further question
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XVII. TWO CONVERSATIONS.
XVII. TWO CONVERSATIONS.
That afternoon, as Emma was sitting in her own room, she was startled by the unexpected presence of Hermione. As they were not in the habit of intruding upon each other above stairs, Emma rose in some surprise. But Hermione motioning her back into her chair, fell at her feet in sudden abandon, and, laying her head in her sister's lay, gave way to one deep sob. Emma, too much astonished to move at this unexpected humiliation of one who had never before bent her imperious head in that household, l
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XVIII. SUSPENSE.
XVIII. SUSPENSE.
The letter which Frank sent to Edgar described his encounter with Huckins, and expressed a wish that the Doctor would employ some proper person to watch his movements and see that he did not make himself disagreeable to the Misses Cavanagh, whom he had evidently set himself to annoy. What, then, was Etheridge's surprise to receive on the following day a reply from his friend, to the effect that Mr. Huckins had not only called upon the young ladies mentioned by him, but had made himself very much
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XIX. A DISCOVERY.
XIX. A DISCOVERY.
Frank Etheridge waited a long time that night for the promised communication. Darkness came, but no letter; eight o'clock struck, and still there was no sign of the dilatory Doris. Naturally impatient, he soon found this lengthy waiting intolerable. Edgar was busy in his office, or he would have talked to him. The evening paper which he had brought from New York had been read long ago, and as for his cigar, it lacked flavor and all power to soothe him. In his exasperation he went to the book-she
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XX. THE DEVIL'S CAULDRON.
XX. THE DEVIL'S CAULDRON.
Frank , being left alone, sat down with the letter Doris had given him. These are the words he read: " Dear Mr. Etheridge : "I must ask you to walk by my house as early as nine o'clock to-morrow morning. If, having read this letter, you still feel ready to meet fate at my side, you will enter and tell me so. But if the horror that has rested upon my life falls with this reading upon yours, then pass by on the other side, and I will understand your verdict and accept it. "It was at a very early a
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XXI. IN THE LABORATORY.
XXI. IN THE LABORATORY.
" But Emma, with a careful remembrance of what was due to my better nature, stopped to pick up the letter I had left lying under a stone, and joining me, placed it in my hand, by which it was soon crumpled up, torn, and scattered to the wind. As the last bits blew by us, we both sighed and the next minute walked rapidly towards home. "You will say that all this was experience enough for one day, but fate sometimes crowds us with emotions and eventful moments. As we entered the house, I saw aunti
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XXII. STEEL MEETS STEEL.
XXII. STEEL MEETS STEEL.
Up to this point Frank had read with an absorption which precluded the receiving of all outward impressions. But the secret reached, he drew a long breath and became suddenly conscious of a lugubrious sound breaking in upon the silence with a gloomy iteration which was anything but cheering. The fog-horn was blowing out on Dog Island. "I could have done without that accompaniment," thought he, glancing at the sheets still before him. "It gives me a sense of doom." But the fog was thick on the co
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XXIII. A GROWING HORROR.
XXIII. A GROWING HORROR.
" There are some men who fill you from the beginning with a feeling of revulsion. Such a one was Antony Harding. When he came into the parlor where I sat, I felt it difficult to advance and greet him with the necessary formalities, so forcibly did I shrink from his glance, his smile, his bow of easy assurance. Not that he was ugly of feature, or possessed of any very distinguishing marks in face or form to render him personally repulsive. He was what some might have called good-looking, and many
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XXIV. FATHER AND CHILD.
XXIV. FATHER AND CHILD.
" The night which followed this day was a sleepless one for me. Yet how I dreaded the morning! How I shrank from the first sight of my father's face! Had Auntie Lovell been with us I should have prevailed upon her to have gone to him and tried to smooth the way to some sort of reconciliation between us, but she was in Chicago, and I was not yet upon such terms with Emma that I could bear to make of her a go-between. I preferred to meet him without apology, and by dutifulness in all other respect
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XXV. EDGAR AND FRANK.
XXV. EDGAR AND FRANK.
Frank , who had been reading these words as if swept along by a torrent, started to his feet with a hoarse cry, as he reached this point. He could not believe his eyes, he could not believe his understanding. He shrank from the paper that contained the deadly revelation, as though a snake had suddenly uncoiled itself from amid the sheets. With hair slowly rising on his forehead, he stared and stared, hoping wildly, hoping against hope, to see other words start from the sheet, and blot out of exi
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BOOK III. UNCLE AND NIECE. XXVI. THE WHITE POWDER.
BOOK III. UNCLE AND NIECE. XXVI. THE WHITE POWDER.
It was nine o'clock in the morning, and Hermione stood in the laboratory window overlooking the street. Pale from loss of sleep and exhausted with the fever of anxiety which had consumed her ever since she had despatched her letter to Mr. Etheridge, she looked little able to cope with any disappointment which might be in store for her. But as she leaned there watching for Frank, it was evident from her whole bearing that she was moved by a fearful hope rather than by an overmastering dread; perh
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XXVII. THE HAND OF HUCKINS.
XXVII. THE HAND OF HUCKINS.
Frank exhausted his courage in passing Hermione's door. When he heard the cry she gave, he stopped for a moment, then rushed hastily on, not knowing whither, and not caring, so long as he never saw the street or the house or the poplars again. He intended, as much as he intended anything, to take the train for New York, but when he came sufficiently to himself to think of the hour, he found that he was in a wood quite remote from the station, and that both the morning and noon trains had long si
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XXVIII. IN EXTREMITY.
XXVIII. IN EXTREMITY.
Frank and Edgar were equally pale as they reached the Cavanagh house. No time had been lost on the way, and yet the moments had been long enough for them both to be the prey of the wildest conjectures. The messenger who had brought the startling news of Hermione's illness knew nothing concerning the matter beyond the fact that Doris, their servant, had called to him, as he was passing their house, to run for Dr. Sellick, as Miss Hermione was dying. They were therefore entirely in the dark as to
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XXIX. IN THE POPLAR WALK.
XXIX. IN THE POPLAR WALK.
Two days had passed. Hermione was sitting in the cheerful sitting-room with the choicest of flowers about her and the breeze from the open window fluttering gayly in her locks. She was weak yet, but there was promise of life in her slowly brightening eye, and from the language of the smile which now and then disturbed the lines of her proud lips, there was hope of happiness in the heart which but two short days before had turned from life in despair. Yet it was not a perfect hope, or the smiles
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XXX. THE FINAL TERROR.
XXX. THE FINAL TERROR.
A week went by and Frank returned to Marston full of hope and definite intention. He had notified the Surrogate of the discovery of the real heirs to the Wakeham estate, and he had engaged workmen to put in order the old house in Flatbush against the arrival of the youthful claimants. All that there now remained to do was to induce the young ladies to leave the accursed walls within which they had so long immured themselves. Edgar was awaiting him at the station, and together they walked up the
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XXXI. AN EVENTFUL QUARTER OF AN HOUR.
XXXI. AN EVENTFUL QUARTER OF AN HOUR.
When Edgar closed the front door of the Cavanagh mansion behind himself and Emma, the noise he made was slight, and yet it was heard by ears that were listening for it in the remote recesses of the kitchen. "The gentlemen are gone," decided Doris, without any hesitation. "They could not move Miss Hermione from her resolves, and I did not think they could. Nothing can move her but fire, and fire there shall be, and that to-night." Stealing towards the front of the house, she listened. All was qui
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XXXII. THE SPECTRE OF THE LABORATORY.
XXXII. THE SPECTRE OF THE LABORATORY.
Had Hermione been allowed time to think, she might have drawn back from such a sudden marriage. But Frank, who recognized this possibility, urged her with gentle speed down the street, and never ceased his persuasions till they stood at the minister's door. Mrs. Lothrop, who had a heart for romance, opened it, and seeing the blushing face and somewhat dishevelled appearance of Hermione, she cast one comprehending look at Frank, and drew them in joyfully. "You are to be married, are you not?" she
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Works by Anna Katharine Green
Works by Anna Katharine Green
"She has worked up a cause célèbre with a fertility of device and ingenuity of treatment hardly second to Wilkie Collins or Edgar Allan Poe."— Christian Union . BEHIND CLOSED DOORS. 16 o , cloth $1 00 ".. She has never succeeded better in baffling the reader."— Boston Christian Register . THE SWORD OF DAMOCLES. A Story of New York Life. 16 o , cloth $1 00 "'The Sword of Damocles' is a book of great power, which far surpasses either of its predecessors from her pen, and places her high among Amer
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