Beautiful Rienzi; or, The Secret Vendetta — page 49: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

42 BEAUTIFUL RIENZI lady, as I flung her white opera-cloak round her pearly shoulders. «1? oh, anything! The saints defend me from attract- ing anybody’s attention. I shall get behind my harp when my time comes to sing alone.” ‘“Come, Lillia,” said my sister, entering at that moment, ‘it is time you were going down to your cavalier.” ‘“Dressed so soon! Oh, and what a magnificent creature you are, Isolina! Look, Miss Iva—are you not proud of ‘The Beautiful Rienzi?’ ” I turned and looked at my dear sister; and I protest that such loveliness struck through my heart with a keen, yet foreboding fondness. I could not but feel convinced that Cecil Beaumont would never return to his homage—to the pretty fiancee while such a star blazed before him. Perhaps Lillia was thinking the same; a shadow crossed her soft brows, and tears stole into her eyes. «< No wonder everybody goes crazy about you!” she sighed. «<7 declare, it must be rather a serious matter to have such attractions! Just think of the hearts you'll be forced to break, before you are gray-haired!” : A look of utter misery settled upon my sister’s face; sh stood unrolling her music, absently, while her deep, ques- tioning eyes fixed themselves upon the flickering coals, with an expression almost of fierce despair. The stream of inward emotion was conquered in & mo- ment; she turned almost sadly to us, and began criticising Miss Meredith’s dress, with anxious care. “IT am pieased with your appearance,” she said. “I never saw you more becomingly attired. Now, go down to Mr. Beaumont, and try to make him forget his foolish in- constancy.” | ‘“ What must I say?” responded the girl, helplessly. “If. he should be in one of his darkest moods, I will be too frightened to say a word to him. Oh, do come with me.” *©7? No; I have to look over this chorus,” said Isolina, shrinking back. ‘Iva, do you go.” So Miss Meredith and I went down together, and I drew the little trembling creature into the drawing-room, where the loved of her heart was pacing back and forward with a deep, introverted light in his eyes. comicbooks:¢o