Her Faithful Knight — page 196: what you’re looking at

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

192 - The Truth at Last. You never asked me if I were Sergius Trevelyan; you wouldn’t have married me if you had known; and I had to marry you—I couldn’t live without you! From the mo- ment when I first savy your portrait, nearly a year ago, I knew, I felt, that you would belong to me some day; that you were the one woman in the world for me, and must be mine. Ah, don’t look at me in that hard, stony way! What was that other woman that she should come between us? All I cared for in her was her resemblance to you. I used to sit and stare-at your picture, and hang over it and kiss and fondle it hour after hour, and I would kiss her, too, because her mouth was like yours, though not half so beautiful. She was as moonlight com- pared unto sunlight, and water unto wine, compared with you. She was dying for love of me, and lonely and miser- able, and I took pity upon her; but I have forgotten her long ago, as a man forgets a partner with whom he has danced away a stray half hour. Dorothy, you have never loved yet; you don’t know what love means. We must both forget the past; it has nothing to do with us or with our future life. You are mine now; it is Fate; you were meant for me from the beginning, you and your shining eyes and sunny hair and rose-pink skin and sweet, white neck—what wouldn’t I have done to gain you? For telling a few paltry, little lies you must forgive me— why, I would risk death itself in any dreadful form to have you mine for half an hour. And now you are mine for life!’ He sprang to his feet as he spoke and tried to fold her in his arms where she sat, white and rigid with horror which seemed to turn her dumb. But as she felt his em- brace about her, disgust at his touch brought her back to life, and with all her strength, which was considerable for a woman, she flung off his enfolding arms. “You are mad!” she whispered, staring at him under COMME DOOKES (E()