|
Main
- books.jibble.org
My Books
- IRC Hacks
Misc. Articles
- Meaning of Jibble
- M4 Su Doku
- Computer Scrapbooking
- Setting up Java
- Bootable Java
- Cookies in Java
- Dynamic Graphs
- Social Shakespeare
External Links
- Paul Mutton
- Jibble Photo Gallery
- Jibble Forums
- Google Landmarks
- Jibble Shop
- Free Books
- Intershot Ltd
|
books.jibble.org
Previous Page
| Next Page
Page 63
She demurred at this, but as she could not persist in her first
bold intention of examining the locality of the vision without
admitting its existence, she permitted him to walk with her to the
house, and then at once fled to her own room. Larry and her father
noticed their entrance together and their agitated manner, and were
uneasy. Yet the colonel's paternal pride and Larry's lover's
respect kept the two men from communicating their thoughts to each
other.
"The confounded pup has been tryin' to be familiar, and Polly's set
him down," thought Larry, with glowing satisfaction.
"He's been trying some of his sanctimonious Yankee abolition talk
on Polly, and she shocked him!" thought the colonel exultingly.
But poor Polly had other things to think of in the silence of her
room. Another woman would have unburdened herself to a confidante;
but Polly was too loyal to her father to shatter his beliefs, and
too high-spirited to take another and a lesser person into her
confidence. She was certain that Aunt Chloe would be full of
sympathetic belief and speculations, but she would not trust a
nigger with what she couldn't tell her own father. For Polly
really and truly believed that she had seen a ghost, no doubt the
ghost of the murdered Sobriente, according to Larry's story. WHY
he should appear with only his head above ground puzzled her,
although it suggested the Catholic idea of purgatory, and he was a
Catholic! Perhaps he would have risen entirely but for that stupid
Starbuck's presence; perhaps he had a message for HER alone. The
idea pleased Polly, albeit it was a "fearful joy" and attended with
some cold shivering. Naturally, as a gentleman, he would appear to
HER--the daughter of a gentleman--the successor to his house--
rather than to a Yankee stranger. What was she to do? For once
her calm nerves were strangely thrilled; she could not think of
undressing and going to bed, and two o'clock surprised her, still
meditating, and occasionally peeping from her window upon the
moonlit but vacant garden. If she saw him again, would she dare to
go down alone? Suddenly she started to her feet with a beating
heart! There was the unmistakable sound of a stealthy footstep in
the passage, coming towards her room. Was it he? In spite of her
high resolves she felt that if the door opened she should scream!
She held her breath--the footsteps came nearer--were before her
door--and PASSED!
Then it was that the blood rushed back to her cheek with a flush of
indignation. Her room was at the end of the passage; there was
nothing beyond but a private staircase, long disused, except by
herself, as a short cut through the old patio to the garden. No
one else knew of it, and no one else had the right of access to it!
This insolent human intrusion--as she was satisfied it was now--
overcame her fear, and she glided to the door. Opening it softly,
she could hear the stealthy footsteps descending. She darted back,
threw a shawl over her head and shoulders, and taking the small
Derringer pistol which it had always been part of her ostentatious
independence to place at her bed-head, she as stealthily followed
the intruder. But the footsteps had died away before she reached
the patio, and she saw only the small deserted, grass-grown
courtyard, half hidden in shadows, in whose centre stood the
fateful and long sealed-up well! A shudder came over her at again
being brought into contact with the cause of her frightful vision,
but as her eyes became accustomed to the darkness, she saw
something more real and appalling! The well was no longer sealed!
Fragments of bricks and boards lay around it! One end of a rope,
coiled around it like a huge snake, descended its foul depths; and
as she gazed with staring eyes, the head and shoulders of a man
emerged slowly from it! But it was NOT the ghostly apparition of
last evening, and her terror changed to scorn and indignation as
she recognized the face of Starbuck!
Their eyes met; an oath broke from his lips. He made a movement to
spring from the well, but as the girl started back, the pistol held
in her hand was discharged aimlessly in the air, and the report
echoed throughout the courtyard. With a curse Starbuck drew back,
instantly disappeared in the well, and Polly fell fainting on the
steps. When she came to, her father and Larry were at her side.
They had been alarmed at the report, and had rushed quickly to the
patio, but not in time to prevent the escape of Starbuck and his
accomplice. By the time she had recovered her consciousness, they
had learned the full extent of that extraordinary revelation which
she had so innocently precipitated. Sobriente's well had really
concealed a rich gold ledge,--actually tunneled and galleried by
him secretly in the past,--and its only other outlet was an opening
in the garden hidden by a stone which turned on a swivel. Its
existence had been unknown to Sobriente's successor, but was known
to the Kanaka who had worked with Sobriente, who fled with his
daughter after the murder, but who no doubt was afraid to return
and work the mine. He had imparted the secret to Starbuck, another
half-breed, son of a Yankee missionary and Hawaiian wife, who had
evidently conceived this plan of seeking Buena Vista with an
accomplice, and secretly removing such gold as was still
accessible. The accomplice, afterwards identified by Larry as the
wandering tramp, failed to discover the secret entrance FROM the
garden, and Starbuck was consequently obliged to attempt it from
the hotel--for which purpose he had introduced himself as a
boarder--by opening the disused well secretly at night. These
facts were obtained from papers found in the otherwise valueless
trunks, weighted with stones for ballast, which Starbuck had
brought to the hotel to take away his stolen treasure in, but which
he was obliged to leave in his hurried flight. The attempt would
have doubtless succeeded but for Polly's courageous and timely
interference!
Previous Page
| Next Page
|
|