The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 393: what you’re looking at

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THE MYSTERIES OF THE COURT. 387 Andrews ceased; and Sir John Steward, greedily snatching up a pen, exclaimed, “ Now—now I will do that which is the first step towards cutting you, Edgar, off for ever—and then shall follow the sig- nature of my will! You have got that deed also, Mr, Andrews—eh ?” Searcely had the attorney answered the question in the affirmative, when the door was burst open, and Laura rushed into the room. The poor girl was like one demented: her hair was floating all dishevelled over her shoulders—her apparel was in disorder—it was even torn in two or three places: in a word, her whole appearance indicated the desperate struggle which she had made to escape from her sister and the negress. And Mrs. Oxenden herself showed signs of her frenzied efforts to hold the persecuted girl back: for she came rushing in with her own hair all disar- ranged, her toilet in disorder, and with fury flash- ing from her large dark eyes. All was confusion in a moment: the horrible negress followed Mrs. Oxenden into the room—some of the servants, hkewise, from the landing—the butler and the other domestic who had been called as witnesses, sprang up from their seats—the lawyer seemed stricken with dismay—and Sir John Steward gave vent to a terrible imprecation. But Edgar Beverley, bounding forward, received Laura in his arms. “Save me! save me!” she wildly shrieked forth: “for heaven’s sake save me!”—and as she clung in frantic terror with her arms thrown round her lover’s neck, she flung frightened glances over her shoulder at her sister and the negress, “Give her up, Mr. Beverley!” cried Mrs, Oxenden, seizing upon her sister, * No—never, never to you, vile profligate wretch that you are!” thundered forth the lieu- tenant, snatching the maiden violently from Mrs, Oxenden’s grasp ;—and holding the former as it were on one side, with his upraised right arm he protected her from another attack. ‘“ Dare not to lay a finger upon her!” he cried: “for I will strike indiscriminately ! Yes, by heaven! I will strike you down, woman though you be !” “Seize upon her! seize upon that obstinate girl!’ vociferated Sir John Steward, thus ad- dressing himself to his dependants, and stamping his feet with rage. “ A hundred guineas to be divided amongst you if you do my bidding!” “No, no!” wildly shrieked forth Laura, as there was a general rush towards the spot where she clung so tenaciously to Edgar. “Really my dear Sir John,” interposed Mr, Andrews, “ I am afraid a Silence, sir!” thundered the Baronet: “ it is my will that rules here !” And so it did indeed too fatally seem: for what was Beverley’s strength, encumbered as he was too by the very being he sought to defend, against the overwhelming power of numbers? LBesides, he was constrained to limit his resistance within cer- tain bounds for fear of injuring the now almost fainting girl; so that in less than a couple of minutes after the order had gone forth from the infuriate Sir John’s lips, the iovers were sepa- rated—Beyerley was again in the grasp of the domestics—Laura in the power of her sister and the negress, The scene in that drawing-room was now fraught with a vivid and most varied interest. There stood the lieutenant, his garments torn—his coun- tenance pale as death—his lips white and quivering —his chest heaving and falling with rapid pant- ings after the violence of the struggle and in the continued excitement of his own agitated feelings. On the other side of the same extremity of the apartment was Laura in the grasp of Mrs. Oxen- den and the negress: the poor girl had not abso- lutely swooned — but half dead with mingled distress and terror, she had sunk upon her knees, and her eyes were fixed in a sort of despairing bewilderment upon her lover. At the table Sir John Steward, with a diabolic expression of coun- tenance, resumed the seat from which he had started; and the lawyer, bending over towards him, whispered, “ For heaven’s sake, do not carry all this too far !” “Now,” exclaimed the Baronet, not heeding the attorney’s well-meant remonstrance, but giving free vent to his vindictive rage and his feelings of ferocious triumph, “instead of having a couple of witnesses to this document which disinherits my nephew, we will haveadozen. Look, Edgar! the pen is in my hand—the ink is in the pen—the deed is before me! At this instant you are my heir—the next moment, when my name is signed, you will have no more claim upon my property at my decease than the veriest stranger !” “Do your worst!” ejaculated Beverley. “TI call every one to witness that I care not the value of the very pen which you hold, for all the estates you possess! But it is the safety and happiness of this injured, outraged young lady ‘Ah, but she shall become my bride in spite of you!” vociferated Sir John, who was perfectly mad with rage: “and this hand which is about to write the words that will leave you a beggar, shall hold her’s at the nuptial ceremony !” “Remember, Sir John,” exclaimed Edgar, “ that heaven at any moment can paralyze and wither the hand which is stretched forth to do injustice or mischief.” “Silence, wretch! I defy you!” vociferated the furious Baronet: and again dipping the pen deep down into the ink-stand, he was about to apply it to the foot of the disinheriting dceument. But all in a moment, as he half raised himself up from his chair to lean the more conveniently over the table, he was seen to give a quick spasmodic start—the pen dropped from his hand, blotting the paper with ink—but in the twinkling of an eye the sable stains were mingled with san- guine ones: for the blood gushed forth from Sir John Steward’s mouth—his head fell heavily for an instant upon the table—then his balance was lost—and he sank backward into the arm-chair. Cries of horror burst forth: the attorney and the butler hastened to his assistance—but he was past all human aid—in the madness of his fury he had broken a blood vessel—and it was a corpse that lay back in that chair! Thus all in an instant the poor and humble lieutenant who was about to be disinherited—cast off—persecuted—and robbed of the maiden of his devoted love, became Sir Edgar Beverley and the possessor of immense wealth. (C(O) nn) (C 6)(0)(0) (Ss (c©)