These were the words that flashed across the mind of the guilty girl,
whenever her eyes rested upon Carl. They seemed to be graven on her
mind in letters of flame. To be near him in the taking of his dictation
was one of the uncertain pleasures of her daily life. She knew that
Carl had been deeply in love with Sana, but she knew too that he
believed Sana was dead. At the same time that she feared, she also
was angered by the fact that Carl’s affection even now seemed to be
inevitably riveted upon a thing which for him Death had long since
claimed. She, Grace, was still young and comely, yet he passed her by
in his worship at a shrine wherein the image lay crumbling to the dust.
This thought alone caused the girl to pursue the course, which even to
herself was no source of joy, but a hideous curse, and insidious menace
that seemed to follow her as a shadow even on the brightest day and
as a blighting curse even in moments that should have given a small
measure of joy and happiness.
To use the effect of the Mann Act as a stepping stone, to gain her
desires often occurred to her, but, although she did not mind the
notoriety attached to it she did not know how to go about it other than
to openly accuse Carl. At this she balked. She would bide her time. He
did not know Sana was alive and if she could help it, he would never
know. And who could tell but what with the passing of the days Carl
might turn to Grace for friendship.
The change in Grace became so obvious, that even Carl was forced to
take notice of it, but he could not account for it.
Grace watched every incoming mail very closely, for the cablegram had
stated, a letter would follow. That letter must never reach Carl, as
that would mean the failure of all her plans. No amount of watching, no
amount of worry, would be too great a price, Grace reasoned, to pay for
the opportunity of getting that letter in her possession.
Then, at last, came the long watched-for missive!
There it lay on the desk before her, with its African stamp and
postmark. The woman’s hand with which it had been addressed spoke
plainly that this letter was from Sana, Carl’s true love.
What should she do with it? Should she play the game squarely and
place the letter on Carl’s desk for him to read? The good in her made
a vain effort to fight down the evil. She would keep it. Carl must not
have it. No, a thousand times no!
All that day she kept the letter hidden at her bosom. How it seemed to
burn her flesh one moment and freeze her very blood the next! It seemed
to Grace that it would shriek out its message to the man from whom she
was hiding it. But she did not falter in her evil purpose. Although
heart sick and weary at the realization of her wrong, she clung to it
with grim resolve.
At last the day, the longest she had ever lived, came to an end and
she hurried home eager to read that letter, but weighed down with a
nameless fear, with strange foreboding.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account