A HEART'S TRIUMPH.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 9145, 22 July 1908, Page 2

A HEART'S TRIUMPH.

Lovo Story," etc

CHAPTER XXL—Continued. His face was transformed at this moment. He was no longer the smil • ing, wonderfully handsome man who had seemed to Cecil's innocent eyes, a short while before, the highest ideal of what a man could be; he was scarcely human in his uncontrolled passion. Instinctively, the two women crept nearer together. What he said was hardly comprehensible to them; to both the same tanyfying thought came that he was no longer responsible for either word or action —that reason had fled from his brain. His. anger was directed toward (Dora; it was on her he directed the force of his abuse. The most cruel words rang out against her; he was indiscriminate in his accusation.

Cecil's arm stole gradually round Dora's half-fainting form. Gradually she interposed herself between tho infuriated man and his weak victim. Though she trembled at the knowledge of his huge physical strength, Cecil did not let her fear conquer her. She looked in his eyes with her own beautiful orbs full of courage, of unspeakable contempt. What she would have said, have done, Cecil could never afterward tell; but the drama shifted from her shoulders at this instant, for, as she drew back and back, feeling Dora's weight grow heavier on her arm, the door opened, and Paul Darnley entered the room, followed by another tall, stalwart form, at sight of whom Cecil's heart leaped and thrilled, with a pleasure that was wholly new and wholly inde> scribable. In an instant Felix paused; the flood of frenzied words died on his lips. He turned round and faced the newcomers with bravado; but his great, strong frame trembled; the reaction of his passion came upon him. He brushed his hair back from his brow with a hand that was weak and cold; he was defeated, and he knaw it, but at this moment he was too acutely conscious of his heart's wild beat, of his physical exhaustion, to grasp the meaning of his defeat in all its fulness. He was still conscious, however, of his enmity against Dora, to try to do her injury, and, feeble as his lips were, he was able to laugh a sneering laugh—a poor faint imitation of his usual one -rand to begin a sentence pregnant with attack against the woman who lay now unconscious in her husband's arms. > Cecil's intuition saw his malice; she stood between him and Paul, the expression of whose face was indescribable, whose amazement at the sight of Cecil under hid roof, mingled with his sudden fear as he sprang forward to catch his wife's sinking figure to his heart, seemed to bewilder him.

"Take her away, Paul," Cecil said hurriedly; '"she is ill. We—we have been frightened. No, no—l am not afraid to stay; Mr Everest is here.^' She moved away from her position at the fireplace, and stood beside Michael, whoss face, though it took a deep flush at her words, was as full of amazement, of uneasiness, as Paul's. He scarcely knew which sensation was stronger. There was silence in the room for a few moments after Paul had carried his wife from it. . . Felix recovered himself entirely in this pause. His exhaustion passed; his face smoothed itself out into dts usual smiling beauty. He stcod with his arms folded across his breast, and looked at Cecil, who, in her turn, was now attacked by weakness, and who had "sunk into a chair, and was sitting with head bowed on her breast, like one who had faced a storm and hai bean overcome by it. Michael stood and let his eyes wander froty the bent head of the beautiful creature, who was so dear to him —and whom he had pictured standing in his mother's cozy sitting-ro3m, with hand outstretched to welcome him at the end of his'long journey—to the splendid looking man standirg with his back to the fire, and a horrible rush of doubting divad over-

whelmed him. Knowing not'iing, as yet, of what had occurred, Michael, nevertheless, was only too convinced that he was in the presence of some disaster—some event which boded no good to Cecil. Such a thought had been bom in his heart when he had met Paul Darnley barely an hour before, Michael had alighted from the Continental train at a city station, and had driven homeward by way of Paul's office. Pie felt impelled to let Darnley hear from his lips the news of Cecil's presence in his mother's house. He dicl not hesitata in this, even though he knew, through his mother's letter, that the girl was so eager to keep her whereabouts secret from her old friend. "It is right Paul Darnley should know. He will respect her every wish., but he must know where she is and what is happening to her. She will forctivc me for acting against her will," he said to himself; and the wisdom of his forethought wss abundantly proved when, bung admitted to Paul's office, he found Cecil's friend busy getting through his worK, in order to rush down to Minchester without delay. Before Michael could tell any of his story, Paul had given him a telegram to read.

"This is treachery, Mr Darnley-—at least, I fear it is!" the young man had said, in a low voice, an he read (he fraudulent message from Doctor Thorold, bidding Darnley to go to M n heater at once, as Cecil was with him And then Michael very briefly gave his information. "Of course, something may have occurred to send Miss Lacklyne from my mother's house to Dontor Thorold's care, but I doubt it. _ Will you come borne with me first? We shall

By Effle Adelaide Rowlands, Author of "Hugh Gretton's Secret," "A Splendid Heart,'' -'.Brave Birbrr.i," "Tho Temptation of Mary Barr," '"ftelina's

get at the truth that way immediately, and there will be ample lime for you to go on to Minchester afterward." Paul hesitated; then ho jigreed. "But I should like to go to my house first, Everest," he said. "I want to ascertain when this telegram arrived; you see, it was sent on from my home to the office. You may be right about some treachery, and, in the face of your mother's letter, I confess I don't know what to say. But who could have played such a rascally trick, and why should it be played at all?" , To this Michael had been unable to give any answer; oqly he clung to that strange, feel ing that some inimical outside influence was at work; and now, as he stood in Dora Darnley's dainty drawin<?-room,and looked on the bowed head and stricken attitude of the girl so dear to him, he knew only too well how right he had been to doubt and to suspect. Felix was revealed now as an enemy. Just as his father had worked trouble and sorrow in Cornelia Everest's life, so the son now had worked some terrible trouble in his life, for harm to Cecil struck at Michael's heart. The knowledge of a wrong done to Cecil made him wince as with pain; it was as though some cold, iron band had gripped his heart and checked its action.

He stood there, pale as death, but | absolutely silent. There was much — I everything—to be explained, to account for the girl's moat unlookedfor presence in Darniey's house, but Michael did not open his lips. His was not the voice to question, nor the hand to protect. Although he had travelled many long miles to come and serve her, he must stand on one side at such a time as this. The quick return of Darnley was an acute reiief to him. Paul went straight to the girl sitting in the chair. "Cecil, child, what does this all mean?" he asked, in sharp, agitated tones. "What has happened? Why have you kept yourself hidden from me all this time? Why have you come to me now in this strange way? Can you speak? You are in trouble; fcurely you will trust me, dear? We have been friends a long, long while. You will turn to me—you will trust me?" Cecil lifted her head and looked upward at him with.eyes so sorrow stricken, so full of misery, they brought a rush of tears to Paul's eyes. "Oh! if I had only known the difference between the true and the false, you would not see me as I am now!" She drew her hands away from his, and covered her face with them. "It—it may be too late to help me now," she faltered; and she shuddered as shci spoke. Paul Darnley bent over for an instant, then he turned to Felix. "Doctor Bingham, will you explain this situation, if you please? 1 do not hesitate to lock to you for such an explanation, for your presence here alone warrants me to do so. What harm have you done this child, and why are you connected with her life in any way?" Felix looked at the two men before him. He smiled insolently. * "If to make a woman one's wife is to harm that woman, then I plead guilty to having harmed Cecil, , he answered quite calmly. Paul Darnley uttered a sharp exclamation. (To be Continusd).