A Servant of Satan: Romantic Career of Prado the Assassin — page 40: what you’re looking at

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

32 4A SERVANT OF SATAN. that it might induce his majesty to regard with greater leniency the lad’s misconduct. He was just in the act of entering his library for this purpose when he happened to catch sight of one of the Italian servants coming down stairs from Frederick’s room with a bulky envelope in his hand. On perceiving the general the man attempted to conceal it, but the old count was too quick, and, ordering him into the library, exacted the surrender of the letter. ‘‘ Where are you going, and what is this?” demanded he of the frightened Neapolitan. ‘The latter’s eyes lowered before his master’s stern gaze, and he confessed in faltering tones that the ‘‘young count” had told him to go and post the letter immediately and without letting any one know about it. “You need not trouble yourself any further about the matter,” remarked the general, ‘“‘ Franz will attend to it, and see here, if you breathe a word about this either to Count Frederick or to any one else you will be turned out of the house at an hour’s notice. Do you understand?” «Si eccellenza, si eccellenza,” murmured the badly scared Italian, as with many low bows he backed out of the general’s presence. As soon as the door was closed the old count raised his glasses to his eyes for the purpose of discovering the desti- nation of hisson’s letter. It was addressed to Rose Hart- mann, at Biala, and judging by its bulk certainly contained something besides ordinary note-paper. Suddenly aterrible suspicion flashed through his mind. He remembered Frederick’s urgent appeal for money on the previous day. But no! The idea was too horrible. It was impossible. ‘The boy was certainly a thorough scape- grace, but not that! No, not that! The unhappy father dashed the letter down on the table and began pacing up and. down the room in an agony of incertitude and doubt. Could his son be guilty? The solution of the mystery was Eomicbooks com —