Too late now for nonsense. What are
you afraid of? Silly child!"
As he spoke he was striking a light in a little French box containing a
cube of jade, and with very little noise he lit two candles standing on
the high oak desk. Dolly drew a curtain across the window, and then
went softly to the door, which opened opposite the corner of a narrow
passage, and made pretence to bolt it, but shot the bolt outside the
socket.
"Come and let me look at you," said Carne, for he knew that he had
been rough with her, and she was not of the kind that submits to that.
"Beauty, how pale you look, and yet how perfectly lovely in this evening
gown! I should like to kill the two gentlemen who sat next to you at
dinner. Darling, you know that whatever I do is only for your own sweet
sake."
"If you please not to touch me, it will be better," said the lady,
not in a whisper, but a firm and quiet voice, although her hands were
trembling; "you are come upon business, and you should do it."
If Carne had but caught her in his arms, and held her to his heart, and
vowed that all business might go to the devil while he held his angel
so, possibly the glow of nobler feelings might have been lost in
the fire of passion. But he kept his selfish end alone in view, and
neglected the womanly road to it.
"A despatch from London arrived today; I must see it," he said, shortly;
"as well as the copy of the answer sent. And then my beauty must insert
a NOT in the order to be issued in the morning, or otherwise invert its
meaning, simply to save useless bloodshed.
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