Her Royal Lover: A Novel — page 110: what you’re looking at

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

102 HER ROYAL LOVER. CHAPTER XII. “OH, INFAMOUS CREATURE!” As soon as he had seized the paper snatched from his wife, without thinking of her terror, the prince, trembling with fury, descended to his room. Arrived in his chamber, he locked and bolted his door and in great haste he opened the note. It con- tained only these words in a disguised hand: ‘‘When will you grant me, then, the rendezvous which you have promised me? I cannot, I will not wait much longer.” A date, that of the morning before the murder, but no signature. It was after this letter that the assassin had entered. Mineleko, his eyes riveted upon these few lines, was asif magnetized. The concentration of his re- gard seemed to desire to draw from this inanimate object the name of him who had traced them. Like those of a tiger athirst for blood, they all appeared by the fire alone which escaped from their orbits, ready to annihilate this accusing paper which his contracted hands were crushing. Suddenly, a fright- ful spasm disfigured his countenance. “One does not burn the proofs of the culpability of his wife!” cried he, with rage. “Oh! infamous creature, who has played comedy so excellently to me this morning! How thou deceivest me! and wherefore? For ambition, for venality to become the mistress of a king! Wretch! wretch! and per- haps a homicide.” And like an intoxicated man who essays vainly to stand up, at each of those exclamations, he made Eeom G JOO Ss (E(o)