The Soldier's Wife — page 169: what you’re looking at

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

148 before-—until at length the zuide turned into one which was almost completely dark, and Beemed to be a court having no egress at the other extremity. Suddenly the man stopped near the door of a house, the lov er shutters of which were closed; but througi. the loopholes, as well as trom a window above, lights were fiickering feebly forth—the only ones that res- cued the place from utter gloom. ‘One word, Mr. Lonsdale,” said the stranger, placing his back towards those beams of light in such & manner as to keep his countenance still as much as possible in the shade. ‘TI need hardly tell you that you will have to act with boldness and promptitude. You will knock at that door: in reply to your question, if you stop to put any, the woman of the house is certain to tell you that no person answering the description of your wife is within her We alls, Don’t believe it. Rush straight up stairs. You see that light in the room on the first-Aoor—you Will be « able vo Judge were it is situated—burst in there—kick down the door, if you find it locked—and it may be that you won't have csme too late.” Having thus spoken in a low whispering voice, but which was still evidently discuised, the man turned away. In so doing his coun- tenance caught the rays streaming through the holes in the ground-floor shutters. Lonsdale, though fearfully excited, andabout torush at the door of that den ofinfamy, was for an instant strick- en with horror and dismay: for it assuredly | t was the ecourtenance of a monster and not of a iauman bemg of which he had just caught a glimpse. «ver was there such a spectacle of loathsome ‘orror. But we need not describe the face again: it has already been depicted to our reade™4s, The mva hurried away: andthe next instant Lonsdals. forgetttag’ al! about him,—having now on'r one idea predominant over his actions, —rushead up to the fromt door, at which he knock«d violently. Doubtless the woman of the b«use thought it was one of her usual pa-. trona; and she hastened to answer the sum- mov. As the door tnus opened, Frederick per- ceived, by a light burning in the passage, that the female was an elderly one of respectable appearance, though with a very red face. She louked both astonished and frightened on per- ceiving that it was a private soldier; and doubt- sess judging by the wild rage of his looks, she instantaneously suspected who he really was. Speedily however assuming an angry air, she exclaimed, ‘ And pray who are you, coming to a respectable house in this unceremonious man- ner ?” Lonsdale was rushing past her, when she caught him by the tails of his coat, crying out, “Help! help!” He dashed her violently away, Bo that she fell heavily against the side of the passige and was stunned by the blow. A coupie Of females, whose immodest looks denot- ed what they were, issued from an adjoining room; but Lonsdale was already more than half way up the staircase. He reached tlie landing—he tried the handle of the door of that apartinen* which had been pointed out to him. He fzuud that the door itself was locked; he nn ee ooo ee ee THE SOLDIER’S WIFE. ’ burst it open—and with a wild ery of joy, his wife sprang into his arms. A glance showed Lonsdale that Gerald Redburn was likewise in that chamber; and tearing himself away from Lucy, Frederick sprang towards him like an in furiate tiger. Gerald drew his sword fron ita sheath, crying out, “ Keep off—or I will kill you !”—but Frederick, snatching away the wea- pon from him with as much ease as if it were a conflict between a giant and a dwarf, broke it inhalves; andthe next moment, with a blow of his clenched fist, he streched Redburn sense less upon the floor. “Come Lucy—come!” he said, not pausing to ascertain whether he had killed the young officer or merely stunned him: and he hurried his wildly excited wife down the staircase. The two young females below were at the moment bearing the woman of the house into the room whence they had issued; and at the next instant our hero and Lucy had crossed the threshold of that den of infamy. For some minutes they were both unable to give utter- ance to a word; but the wife clung to her husband as they threaded their way in the di- rection of the lodging. He felt her bosora palpitating and throbbing violently ayainst the arm to which she thus clung With such confid- ing tenaciousness. <At length they reached the house where Lucy dwelt. They ascended to the chamber, in which the landlady waa sit- ting, while little Freddy still slept soundly ; and then Lucy, throwing herselt into her husband’ 8 arms, wept and sobbed convulsively. The wo- man of the house knew not what to understand from this scene; and Frederick, perceiving that she lingered, bade her somewhat impatiently to withdraw. It was sometime before mutual explanations could be given. At length Lucy grew suffi- ciently calm to enter upon hers. She told Fre- derick, how the elderly woman had come and beguiled her away —and how, thinking ouly of her father, she had followed unsuspiciously into the house whither she was conducted. She had been led up-stairs to the room whence she was rescued; and there the woman had abrupt- ly lett her. Not immediately noticing this hurried departure, Lucy had flown to the bed which was in that room and was surrounded by curtuins—expecting to fiud her sire stretched in iulness there. But the couch was empty. Then a suspicion of treachery flashed to her mind: she turned round—and for the first time perceived that she was alone’ She tried the door—but it was locked: her worst suspicions w@re confirmed. She shrieked for assistance ; but none came. Half frenzied, she had tried to beat down the door: but she couldnot. Exe hausted with her efforts, and well nigh overs powered by the harrowed state of her feelings, she had sunk upon a seat in a half-stupor. Ten minutes had probably thus elapsed, when she heard sootsteps ascending the stairs. The door opened—and Gerald Redburn made his appear- ance. His countenance was flushed with wine; and instantaneously locking the door, to which Lucy had flown in the hope of anticipating this mnovement on his part, he at once addressed her in terms that armed her with the fortitude of e* GEomiecbooks col _ j * i pare 5 | ss ad eet