THE LADY IN BLACK.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXX, Issue 8442, 15 May 1907, Page 2

THE LADY IN BLACK.

CHAPTER XII.-Continued. Tho look of confidence and pleasure which irradiated the widow's face ftlljfl iV.a'jiii with despair. ,Shu swod .still at tho window, but she no loitger.uaw anything; she was blimbd by her tears. bha hardly h'iMnl tiki Aji.iv of the drawing-room, open, or, if she heard, she did not notice it. lihe did not turn her head . when the door closed. A hard voice, close to diyly: "Are you the your.g laoy whom 1 met hero before—who refused to take the warning I gave?" Mabin turned, and, d. s ling away tho tears from her blinded eyes, recognized in the erect figure, standing beside her, Mrs Dale's former nusterious visitor. "I—l beg your pardon," said Ma-j bin hastily; "I— 1 did not see you com 3 in. You want to see Mrs Dale? I will go and tell her." "You naeel not take that trouble," replied the majestic lady, in the same hard tones as before. "She expects ma. She sent for me by telegraph yesterday." Then, following the glancj Mabin threw across the lawn, sh/J>skocl quickly, and in a harsher tone than ever: ''Who is the young man with her?" "Mr Bennington, tho vicar's son," answered Mabin, in a low voice. "And what is ho doing here?" "He's a friend of Mrs Dale's, and a friend of mine, too," added the girl, with the generous wish to sa/o her friend from the anger she saw in the elder woman's eyes. "1 am engaged to him." "Engaged to him! Engaged to marry him!" repeated the other sharply. "And you trust him with that woman!" Mabin's loyalty was fired by the tone. "Yej. She is my friend," said she proudly. Tha older lady uttered a short, hard sound, which j*he meant for a derisive laugh. "Well, you are an independent yotuif peivion, upon whom warnings are tin-own away. However, it may bj of p!U3sinj.r .interest for you to know that tho lady you call your frienl—-~" Mabin put her hands to her ears, instinctively guessing that she was to hear some horrible thing. Li tho darkness of tho room the face above her seemed to be distorted with the passion of a fiend, as, in a voice so pi-jrcluK (hat the girl heard it disti.ici lv, in apito of hersvlt', she went on: "that the lady you call jjyour friend has ruined tho life of a man who loved her." Mabin caught her breath, thinking of the white face of Mr Banks, Still the hard voice went inexorably on: "Furthermore, she murdered her own husband!" Mabin uttered a shriek as her hands fell down from her ears. CHAPTER XIII. MRS DALE'S VERSION OF THE . STORY. The terrible words rang in Mabin's ears as she remained staring at tho hard, vindictive face of the woman, hardly yet realizing all that the accusation meant. Mri Dale had murdered her own husband! Surely, surely it was not true. She might be vain, frivolous, a coquette; but a murderess! The 1 girl instinctively shook her head. ' The gaunt visitor, with an acid and unpleasant smile, sat down on one of the fragile4ooking chairs, | with mother-of pearl inlaid orna- ' mentation, which dated the furnishing of the room. "I—l can't believe it. No, I won't believe it!" whispered Mabin hoarsely. "There is no necessity for your doing so." retorted the other, with indifference. "As it is a very un- " pleasant thing to believe, indeed, I think you are wise to discredit it. And since she has alienated all her old friends, it is fortunate that she can manage to'find now ones." As the lady spoke, Mabin felt the horror she had experienced melt gradually into pity for the poor little lady whom this hard woman had in her power. And with compassion fame resistance. "Why shouldn't she have friends?" she hotly asked. "Mrs Dale is not a hypocrite. She is deeply sorry for what wrong she has done; she never denies that she has done something which has spoiled her life. And I like her better for being able to be happy in spite of it sometimes, than if she pretended she could neter smile again." v "Well, of course, for such a trifle as the murder of her husband, you could not expect a woman of her light temperament to trouble herself very long!" said the visitor, with grim irony. "I don't mean that. I know how much she suffers. But look how young she is. How could you expect that she could never be happy for a single moment any more? Doesn't God forgive us our sins, when we truly repent? And isn't it by His laws that we sometimes survive, or temporarily forget,even the keei - est sorrow?" "You are a very powerful advocate, lam f ure! Perhaps-, if you hfcd had a son whose life had been ruined by this woman's conduct, you would be less enthusiastic." These words startled Mabin, and made her look at the harsh visitor in njnew light. And she saw, or fancied shejsaw, in the handsome but stein features of the old lady, a trace bt tho worn face of her father's tenantShe came a step closer, with ha* eyes intently fixed on tho lady's countenance. , 4 ■ | "Are you," she asfc'ed in a whisper, "a relation of Mr Banks?" Tho visitor satrted, and seemed in- „ tensely astonished, even alarmed, by

By FLORENCE WARDEN. Author of "An Infmnowt Frond," %i A Terrible Family," "For Love of Jack," "The House on the 9f.f4r.sh,'' etc., etc.

this question. She made no answer for a few moments, which she passed in deep thought;. Then, raising her head, and looking straight into the girl's eyes, .she calmly asked: "And who is Mr-Hanks?" "One of Uu: old friends of Mrs Dale, who cares for her as much aa any new one!" replied Mabin promptly The visitor fro v.'net.. "I didn't want :n epigram. I wanted to know who this Mr Banks is, and whore you had mot him," she said tartly. Mabin seeing what a -strong impression her rash words had made, wished she had not uttered them. While she was still wondering how she should get out of her difficulty with as little harm as possible to Mrs Dale, a sharply uttered question made her start. "Has he-has this Mr Banks met M-M--Mrs Dale?" She stammered over the lady's name just as Mr Banks himself had done. "No," answered Mabin promptly. ! At this answer, the old lady suddenly breaking down in the intensity of her relief, fell back in her chair and gasped out: "Thank Heaven !"j i' Mabin's thoughts moved quickly. Stirred by the excitement of this interview, she tried to iind a way of serving Mrs Dale; and it occurred to hW if this 'fierce old lady could meet Mr Banks, he would perhaps be able to tone clown her ferocity. After a Bhort pause, she asked: "Would you like to see him?" "What? Is he here? Yo.i told me " Tho old lady was now so much excited and alarmed that she could scarcely gasp out the words. "He is staving not far from here," replied Mabin cautiously. The visitor got up. , "No, Ido not wish to see him. I wish to see no one but Mrs Dale. 1 cannot understand why she keeps me waiting like this. I have come all the way from Yorkshire to oblige her, at great inconvenience to myself." Mabin could not understand it either, knowing, as she did, that Mrs Dale had expected her visitor. In the present state of affairs every unlooked-for occurrence assumed a portentous aspect, so that she felt rather alarmed. "I will go and tell her you are here," she saicl. She was glad to be out of the presence of this te r.ble woman. \And as she ran out into the garden and then dropped into «i sedate walk as she passed the drawing-room window., her heart went out to the old lady' victim mora than it did to that of the young one. Under the lime-trees, where she had last seen Mrs Dale. 3he met Rudolph alone. She greeted him with a white face, and without a smile. "Where is she—Mrs Dale?" she asked at once. RudolpH, flushing a little at her manner, answered giaveiy: "She was sent for to see someone, and went indoors. But then she fainted, and they took her into the dining-room." "Thaitkyou. I must go to her." ■ Rudolph ran after her as she returned to the house. "What has happened? You have learned something, found out something. What, is it?" Mabin turned, and he saw that the tears were springing to'her eyes. , "I have—-oh, I have!" she whispered hoarsely. "But don' 1- ask me now. I can't tell you now. I must go to her." He did nQt detain her, and she ran into the, house, and softly opened the door of the dining-room. Mrs Dale was lying on the hard horsehair sofa, with her eyes closed. Two of, the servants weru present, with fansand smelling-salts, and the usual remedies for a fainting-fit. As usual in the case of a household where there is a skeleton in the cupboard, the servants took sides, and each of the opposing parties was represented on this occasion. For while the housemaid, Annie, Was her mistress' sworn champion, the parlormaid, who also waited on Mrs Da.e was suspected to oe in the pay of the enemy, the old lady now in the draw-ing-room. As Mabin entered, Mrs Dale opened her eyes and sat up. "I must go, I must go!" she exclaimed in a weak and husky voice, as if hardly yet mistress of herself. "Yes, you shall go, in one minute," said Mabin. And springing forward with ready s kindness and affection in her face, she signed to the servants to leave them together. "Let me do your hair for you; I can , do it, I know I can," she went on gently, touching the beautiful, fair hair which had become loose and disordered, and looking with tender compassion into the blue eyes, which seemed to have lost their brilliancy, their bright colour. (To be continued.)