VIOLET LISLE; 0R, A PEARL BEYOND PRICE.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VI, Issue 455, 10 April 1912, Page 2

VIOLET LISLE; O R, A PEARL BEYOND PRICE.

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By the Author of "All or Nothing,' • "Two Keys." etc., etc. PART 21. She kissed her and was gone- She. could not trust herself to say more. Three hours later Lady Westall and ;hc were settled in quiet apartments in Nice. In the late afternoon when the ccol breeze was blowing off the Mediterranean, she strolled along the promenade with her ladyship, wondering if Guy would seek her —if he ivould be glad to find her, whom he .vas not expecting to see. " Look out ! look out !" was suddenly shouted, and there came a furious clattering of hoofs. A runaway horse, frantic with fear, was tearing along behind them swaying this way and that, so that it was difficult to know how to avoid tiis course. Both Lady Westall and Violet stood still, trembling with apprehension- " This way," said a calm voice ; and both of them were drawn aside, while a tall figure of a man stood in front of them. It was not a particularly heroic thing that had been done ; but it had been carried out with great calmness, indifference almost, and Lady Westall wes grateful. Violet stood as if turned to stone, though her heart was beating violently. " Thank you, sir," said Lady West-} ill, in French. The gentleman turned and lifted his hat politely. "It was nothing. Violet !" "Guy!" CHAPTER XXVII. MET BY CHANCE. There were not many persons on the promenade at the time, and moreover Guy had drawn the ladies under the. low trees shading the walk, so that they were not conspicuous to the few passengers. He followed them into the shadow of the trees as if mechanically. Lady Westall comprehending the situation in an instant, retired quietly to a bench some distance away, leaving the two who had- been such true lovers to bridge the chasm that others had made between them.

"We can fancy what Violet must have felt at that moment. We know what sweet hopes filled her heart; but Guy ! what were his thoughts, his feelings, at thus suddenly seeing before him the one being to whom his love had been irrevocably given?— the woman whose wondrous beauty of person and purity of soul, as he had believed, b&d won him for her own, and then had cast him aside because he had not wealth enough, and because she could not sell him for a price.

These things he had not believed possible at first ; but proofs had accumulated and come to him during the days of his exile—at least he had thought them proofs—and his heart had been full of bitterness for the woman who had so cruelly deceived him. And now she stood before him more beautiful than even in the days when she had won his love with her innocent, girlish ways. How guileless she had seemed then ! Good Heavens ! how guileless she seemed now as she stood there before him, her melting blue eyes turned up tc his face, full of a wistful love, thai seemed to touch his very soul, il spite of the stern control he held over himself ! Ho drew a long deep breath, and there was a mingling of coldness and agony in his voice as he said, slowly : "At last ! I am glad to hav< ;een you once more." " Oh, Guy !" she whispered, all the exquisite innocence and candour -f her girlhood coming back to her on a wave of love, as she listened nnee more to the voice that had first set the chords of her heart to vibrating. " You have come back tc aie i "

She had not heeded the little chili of apprehension that had swept ovei her at the coldness of his tone ; sh( rceded only the impulse of her heart, which hade Ivor rejoice in the return to her of her lost love. As for him —the sound of her voice had set his Qeart throbbing in his breast, sc that it seemed to choke him. as if il would keep back the cruel words h< had it in his mind to say to her. " Come back to me," he repeated. 3lowly. " Why did you ever let mf go from jou ?" "On, Guy," she pleaded, sweetly Holding out her little hands to him. : ' do not recall that bitter time. It was all a mistake. I did not mear what I said. I did love you then as [ love you now. What can I say tc .indo the words of that drendfu' norning ?"

" Yes, what can you say ?" he re peated, a tinge of scorn curling hi: ips.

" I did it for love of you, Guyfor very love of you. I was sacritic ing myself for you as I believed yoi A'ould have sacrificed yourself foi lie." " Sacrifice," he repcaced, with £ short bitter la""h. " Yes, Guy, _■. orifice," she answer id, letting her hands fall sadly " Have you come to mc in anger ' Dh, Guy, Guy !" and she looked al lim with a pitifui wonder in hei ;yes. "In anger? No," he answered " In scorn, yes. But I was no< seeking you. I came here by chance [ did not know you were here. Bin f am glad to have seen you. T may he some satisfaction to .vou t< know that I shall always love you Di.t while memory lasts I shall de ;pisc you. Yes, aB my life long '

shall have the love for you in my jcart ; for drive it out I cannot. V'icld to it I will not."

A change had come over Violet as ;he listened. He bad misjudged her. :Ic rejected her overtures for a renewal of the past. She had humble.i lert'clf to him in vain. He was un\l>lc to comprehend the greatness- oi :cr love. To her an explanation seemed no simple a thing—not knowng the falsehoods that had been told rim—and he had refused to listen to icr. He spoke of his love as if it .vere a boon that he was withholding from her.

" Lord Darlington," she said, proudly, "I have permitted myself o take an attitude with you which I icw deeply regret. You need be un!cr no pain to keep so close a guard o T . cr your heart should we ever meet ;;:;? in. I shall never make another s:a.;lt upon it." She was surprised tt her own bitterness ; but the sting of his expressed contempt made her rcc' less. " I had something to say n explanation of what occurred between us that morning when we partd, and I will still say it ; but now i sny it in justice to myself, not in t ):ty for you. I told you then that [ would not marry you because you were not rich enough. That was a lie you hear me?— a lie ! The first lie I ever told in my life, and the only one—and that I told for your sake."

He lifted his head as if to beseech her silence ; but, with a half sob, she went on more vehemently :

" You shall hear me, Lord Darlington, and during those struggles with your heart, of which you speak so feelingly as a certain part of your future, I hope you will recall my words. I was only a child, and 3 had given my whole heart and being into your keeping—not for my own selfish happiness but thinking always to strive for yours. The time came when it seemed to me that our happiness would he best served l.y separation from me. Now, think of this wh»sn you recall how you in your superiority rejected my love just now I knew I could not turn you from your design of marrying me by appealing to your selfish interest —you see how great my faith in you ther was —so I .made myself the sacrifice and said that which I hoped would turn you from me. I said it was your money and not you I wished. And you—you believed me ; believed me when you might have known that by rejecting the marriage with yau ] was actually consigning myself tc unmerited, but none the less certair infamy. Where was I, a homeless, penniless girl to go ? I went to m 5 father, and he turned me from his door, as I could only expect him tc do. So there I was alone, friendless homeless, because I had tried to dc my duty as my love made me see it And you—you reject my love now. Well, I take it hack as you have resigned it." Never in her life before had the gentle girl spoken with so much heat and bitterness ; but, in truth, she hardly knew what she was saying. It was as if someone else was saying H for her, and she stood for a moment aghast at herself after she had spoken. Not that she repented of havinf told Guy the truth, or making hiir feel that he had wronged her. Oh no ; but she could not recognise herself in the angry, bitter spirit thai had spoken. But had she made Guy feel that he had wronged her ? For a moment : yes. She had spoken with such ar accent of truth that he was easilj led to believe that she spoke onlj facts. But at the very moment that he was stepping forward, in full conviction of her faith and deep love, there came into his mind the remembrance of the receipt he had seen, and with an angry revulsion of score at what he believed her hypocrisy he tossed his head and exclaimed. " If I had not the evidence of my own senses —my own eyes and ears— I would believe you now. How can you be so false, Violet ? I loved you and loved you as truly as, alas ! 1 love you now ; and you threw me a side —sold me for a few thousand pounds. It is not only that you told me so with your own lips ; it is nol that alone ; I did not believe yor. when I had had time to recover froir the shock, and I searched for you: would have kept you in spite ol yourself if I had found you then. Bui there was your own name, in youi own handwriting to the receipt foi the price paid to you for me. Yor. cannot deny that ; though I did at the time and even after seeing it 1 sought for you. After that—but pshaw ! I cannot speak of it. Dc you think, too, I do not know whal your life has been since ? What has it been? Oh, Violet, Violet!" For a moment Violet stood silent pantingly trying to collect herself tc speak. Then, pressing her hand tc her heaving bosom, she said, in i low tone, accenting each word witt a deep-drawn breath : " I do not understand a word yoi have spoken. I must believe thai you have descended to calumny and falsehood. I hope I shall never see you again." She turned and left him, and if he had had eyes to see, he would have noted that she tottered as she walked from him ; but he was too intent on her words and on the feeling roused within him at the thought o losing sight of her again. " One word, Violet," lie cried. She stopped and naif turned. " No," she said, quite calmly, but with an ashen face, " not anothei word. Lord Darlington, you havi vilified me. you have insulted me. you have put me to shame, and never again will I willingly listen to sound from your lips. You may belicvr all you have charged me with. h so, shame upon your manhood that would permit you to do so. And i! ever the. time shall come when, yo: become aware of the wrong you h-ivc done me, remember this —never cor.:. to me to say so. The admission o

lis n ;he c :■-!'::. si( >:> of il . Ta'" ■' way with ymi the >■ r 'had he. life of one who hived you far beter than her own happiness." She turned again and walbed slowly rom him until she was near Lady .'estall, when she swayed from side o side, and must have fallen had not dint watchful friend ran forward and aught her. "What is it, my darling?" she s"ed. "Nothing — everything ! Take me avay from here. Oh, why did I ever ! ve to see this day ?" " He is following you," said Lady Vestall, in dismay at the turn afairs had taken. " I will not have him speak to ne," cried Violet, half frantically. ' You must not let him. Stop him! Ito, go !" and she pushed Lady Westill from her. Without knowing what had occurred hady Westall was sure that Violet led been ill-used in some way and :he went to meet Guy as he hurried .owards Violet. " I must ask you to come no fur;her," she said to bjim. " But I must speak with her," he said. " Only a word." "Not a word, my lord. You mow better than I how you have vronged her, and you will do yourself no good by forcing yourself od ler now. She will not speak to you. Tan you not see she is weak and ill? See ! she sits there on the bench ainost unconscious now. No, you hill not go to her "; and Lady iVestall as he endeavoured to pass er, drew herself up angrily, and arrcd his way with her outstretched hand, so that he could not pass without doing her some slight violence. He conquered his excitement at the sight of hers and drew back a pace. "Pardon me," he said, "you are hei 'riend ?" " I am," answered Lady Westall, dicrtly ; though, in truth, her symathics were affected by the evident '.is're:s cf the young nobleman. " Then gain for me just a word with her. If I have wronged her i 1 :as been unwittingly. I said what [ believed to he the truth. But now, :s she hes gone from me, a horrible fear comes over me that I have done her an injustice. Madam, I love her. If all that has been told mo is true, I still love her. Beg of her to grant tne a word, I beseech you;!" " I will speak to her," said Lady Westall ; and she returned to where Violet had sunk upon the bench apparently heedless of all that was going on around her, but, in fact, keenly alive to everything. "He begs for one word, Mabel," said Lady Westall to her.

" No," answered Violet ; then, quickly, " Yes, let him come here, and please come with him." Lady Westall. was a friend who did not stop to ask questions at the wrong time. She let her hand rest caressingly on Violet's shoulder foi a moment, and returned to where Guy stood waiting—to where he stood wondering to find himself s sudden suppliant, instead of an ac cuser.

" Come," said Lady Westall, and he followed her in silence.

When tbey were close to Violet she looked up but did not rise. He essayed to speak, but she interrupted him.

" Stop, Lord Darlington !" she said ; and Lady Westall wondered at the coldness of the melodious voice. " I permitted you to come to me, not to hear you speak, not to hear excuse, if you were disposed to offer any, certainly not to listen to the insults you put upon mc a few moments ago, but only that you might hear the last word I have to say tc you. You have misjudged, misunderstood, insulted me. I do not care what your provocation might have been ; no apology, no explanation, can alter the fact, and it shuts the door of oblivion on all the past. Come, Lady Westall !" and with a gesture of haughty pride she rose and moved away leaving him speechless and hopeless.

"My darling," whispered Lady Westall, greatly distressed, " are you wise ? are you just ? He loves you and—you love him." " Don't ! don't speak to me," sobbed Violet. "He does not love inc. If he did I could forgive him. anything. If he had loved me would he have said what he did ? Could he have said it ? Let us get away from Nice as soon as we can. Do this for me, and I will do your bidding in the future as I have in the past. You have been so good to me." Before nightfall, to the astonishment and dismay of Felicie, who could not comprehend the meaning ol such sudden departures, they were on their way to thfe Swiss Alps. (To be continued.)