THE EVIL GENIUS.

Auckland Star, Volume XX, Issue 66, 19 March 1889, Page 6

THE EVIL GENIUS.

BYELIZA A.ADUPUY,

Author of " The White Terror," " Warning

Voice," "Tho Secret .Chamber," &c, &c.-

CHAPTER XXVIII (Continued.)

Mrs Langley was ten years older than Fenton. She was the niece of his steplather, had married most unhappily, and was divorced from her husband on bhe ground of incompabibiliby of temper. A high-spirited and brilliant woman, sho would nob submib to the yoke a mean and tyrannical spirib soughb bo impose upon her, and thus ib will be seen that her own bitter experience in the matrimonial lottery dictated the advice she had so lately given to Fenton.

. Ib had been bhe habib of his life to confide his difficulties to her, and he now frankly confessed the exact position in which he sbood bo the bwo who claimed his troth. She listened wibh absorbing interesb, and when she found herself in possession of all he had bo bell, she said : . I,think thab you are bound in honour to release Opal from a tie thab can only make you bobh miserable. If I understand you aright, your heart has been irrevocably given to this young Cuban ?' ' True ; I adore Inez. * 1 never loved any other woman as I love her. Bub it her aunb disinherits her, how am I to marry her ? She will have a mere pittance, and I have, as you know, very little independent of my mother. She would never forgive me for disappointing her' in an affair on which her heart has so long been set, and she would cub me off without a dollar."

Mrs Langley looked grave, but she presently said: 'I'begin to tako the deepest interest in Miss Lopez. Thab will musb be recovered, for it will secure her aunt's fortune to her. You shall then marry her, Godfrey, and the way will be clear for somebody that will suit Opal far better than you could. I will give you confidence for confidence, and tell you bhat my brother has loved Opal since she was a little girl in short frocks and pantelettes. Guy has been too honourable to betray his passion, knowing as he did the family' arrangement thab existed between my amub and her father ; bub now it is different.'

A disagreeaWe sensation struck on the heart- of'the listener. He mie;ht resign Opal Hastings if .it suited him to do so, bub thab she should readily find another to fill the place in her fancy he believed he had so long occupied, inflicted a wound upon his all-absorbing vanity. Fenton had long thought of her as one seb apart for his own peculiar self whenever he should condescend i-o speak the word which would bring her to his arms as the sweet minister of happinoss to his future life, and the thought thab young Denham of all men should^win her heart, was displeasing to him. In a constrained tone, he replied: 'It seems ungenerous to object to the course you indicate, Anna ; but until my fate is 'definitely settled here, t must not offend my mother by breaking vvith Opal. It would ruin me at once.'

' Oh, set your heart at resb on th.ib score, for Opal alone shall know that she is free. The denouement can ba deferred so far as my aunt is concerned, as it is not expected that you shall marry for a year yet. .Opal is too young, and her father intends to employ an accomplished governess for her this fall.' Thero was something in her tone thab silenced ITenfcon's objections though a 9a*sh of annoyance burned ou his cheeks as he replied: 'I will leave ib to-yeur own discretion, then, to reveal to Opal or to withhold from her what I have confided to you, as you may think best. The night air grows chilly. Had yon nob better go in ? I am afraid to detain you longer lesb your health should suffer from it.'

' Which hint means that you are tired of my prosing,' she replied, laughing-: 'so let us"go, if you please. Be sure that I shall do nothing to compromise you with your mother, Godfrey. And if I can aid you in any way in your efforts to serve the cause of Miss Lopez, you may command me.' ' Thanks. I shall remember, and perhaps I shall call upon you for assistance. Here is G' jy coming to meet U3 ; so I will surrender you to his protection.'

With a"nod and a smile, Mrs Langley took the arm."of her brother, and bidding Fenton good night, they entered tho house tog-ether. . Wot a word was spoken between them till Mrs Langley's apartment was gained and the door closed. She then took his hand in hers, and looking into his dark,.expressive face, said:

' The way to happiness ia at last openbefore you, Guy. There can now be nothing wrong in your seeking the love you have so long regained as the sweetest boon that life can bestow upon you. You have heard what Godfrey said ?'

'Yes,' he bitterly replied, 'I heard the vain coxcomb give an account of his flirtation with that young girl, and allude to his attachment to another, while he still holds a'third one bound to him in such a way as to prevent others from interfering- with claims on which he evidently sets no value. To think that Opal— my Opal—the darling of my life, should be his to accept or reject as may suit his capricious fancy. Oh !it is too humiliating ! Yet I thank him for bis fickleness: for, as you say, it opens a glimpse of heaven to me. I can win her love—l know that I can, for she trusts me —she has confidence in my truth -and honour, and, so help me Heaven! thoy shall never fail her.'

His face grew luminous, his lips trembled, and his sister laid hor hand on his burning one. and said :

' Don't be too hard on Godfrey, brother. I will tell you enough to enable yon to see the position you occupy toward each other.'

Denham sat down and listened with vivid interest. At the close of the conference he arose, and decisively said :

' Whatever ending Fenton's affair may come to with Miss Lopez, all is over between him and Opal Hastings. He shall not have the opportunity to play fast and loose with her as he pleases. I shall take care of thiit.'

'Of course. You are free to act now, regardless of what Aunt- Gertrude may think. Well may Godfrey dread, her anger ; for it will be something terrible when the conviction comes to her that, tho cherished dream of her life is to meet with no fruition. We cannot leave Newport as soon as we intended, Guy. I must see the play out here.'

. 'There is no necessity for an immediate return. We can remain a month longer if you find it best to do so. I shall be glad myself to kno a' something* positive as to Fenton's future prospects before I go away. I intend to make tbe acquaintance of that Miss Gordon, and something shall come of it ; so good-night.'

CHAPTER XXIX

MISS LOPEZ AND HER LOVER

On the following morning Fenton breakfasted with Denham and his sister, and after approving of the change in their plans, he set but to visit Inez, and learn all the facts concerning her prospective loss of the inheritance he had believed certain to fall ,- to her on the death of Mrs Hawks. He rode swiftly till he came in flight of the old place, and then slackening his rein he permitted his horse to move leisurely

toward, the. entrance, while the .rider scanned the door and windows, hoping to obtain a glimpse of the Egeria of the spot. Fenton was familiar with tho habits of Mr Lopez, and he felt sure bhat he had arrived ab boo early an hour bo find him awake, so he should have Inez to himself for a long tete-a-tete. As he drew near the' portico, he saw a- whibe-robed figuro sitting in the hall, with a brindled cab reposing near her feeb in bhe sunshine bhat fell through the open door. Inez held a book in her hand, bub she was nob reading, for her head was thrown back, and her large, melancholy eyes were fixed on vacancy. She did nob. hear tho sound of bhe horse's hoofs upon bhe soft turf, and Fenfcon had dismounted and gained the door before she was aware of his approach. He sbretched forbh his arms, bis face growing wibh love and rapbure, as bis lips unclosed to say : ' Inez, my angel—my life !—come to my heart! Oh ! blessed hour of reunion, this repays me for all the weary days of absence from the li^ht of my soul !' In the bewildering impulse of the moment Inez forgot all fjhe had been told, and she threw herself upon his breast wibh a glad cry of welcome. 'Oh, Godfrey, my love—my own—how glad I am to see you again !' For a brief moment she was lost in the trance of happiness thab held her spellbound as he clasped her in his arms, and kissed, her again and again, as he had never

before been permitted to do. But.suddenly she recalled her scattered senses ; she remembered the wretched days of doubt and suspense through Avhich she had lately passed, and the flush his ardent caresses had brought to her cheeks faded to a death-like paleness ; she sbrnjrrrled to release herself from his embrace as she faltered: ' This musb not be, Mr Fenton. I was foolish — weak to forget bhab you can have no righb bo approach me bhns while a doubt of your truth is in my heart. Remove your arm from my waist, if you please; you have nob replied bo my lasb lebter, and until you have removed painful doubts from my mind, I musb- treat you as a

stranger.'

'Mr Fenton!' he repeated. 'What, does this mean, Inez? Am I not your own Godfrey, as your are my plighted wife ? I liave received no letter from you that I have nob immediately replied to. Who has been slandering me to you while I was away and could not defend myself?' By this time Fenton had relaxed his hold upon her, and she slid from iris embrace panting and ashamed, but still as pale as a statue of snow. He saw thab she had suffered much—that she had grown thin and wan-looking, and he comprehended thab a blow had been struck to her heart of which he was the

cause. Fenton ground his teeth together as he mentally exclaimed : ']S rina Gordon has been here ! This is her work, bub I will yeb repay her, the incarnate mischief thab she is.' fie gently placed Inez on the seat from which she had sprung on his entrance, and drawing another beside ib, sab down and looked searchingly in her face. Inez was trembling with excitement, and for a few moments she was incapable of speaking. Fenton took hor hand in his own, kissed it with respectful tenderness ajjain and again, and she had no power to withdraw ib from his clasp. At length he spoke in that deep, musical voice which he believed would have power to recall her from the verge of the grave itself :

' Inez, darling, best beloved, why do I find you thus when I anticipated nothing bub joy in our meeting ? Speak to me, love. Tell me what has occurred to dim your trust in me? What was in thab letter of which you spoke ? I have travelled rapidly to get near you again, aud it has failed to reach me. Tell me now, faco to face, and see how easily I can scatter every cloud from your mind.' She eagerly drank in his words; the old spoil v/as upon her, and life and lighb seemed to return with his beloved presence. A faint flush tinged her cheeks, and her lips unclosed at his bidding : 'Oh, Godfrey, I have been so unhappy ! Bub, now yon are here, I half forget tbe

cause of my wretchedness. It seems to sink away from me at the mere sound of your voice. Yet —yet it must be told. You are accused of having sought me while bound

to another. Are you not betrothed to a young girl in your far distant home ? Such is the story I have heard, and, I am afraid, believe.' \

' So my precious little wife (for you are pledged to become such, you know, Inez) has been listening to some treacherous tongue which has poisoned her mind against me. Tell me the whole story, love, and see how quickly I will remove every doubt from your mind. lam not, with my own concent, betrothed to anyone save your own sweet self, and I never intend to marry any other woman. My mother has had some absurd plans to unite me with a young favourite of her own, but I have no intention of sacrificing myself to a whim of hers. As to being bound to Opal Hastings, I assure you that we arc-both free to choose whom wo please, for she is scarcely more than a child yet, and cares no more for me than I do for her.'

' Can you forgive me, Godfrey ? I should have cast this foul'- slander from me, and treated it with the scorn it merited ; but oh ! where much love is given the heart is jealous and exacting,, and I—l—oh, Godfrey ! I did not know how much you are to me till that cruel girl came hither and told me, with such an air of truth, that you were false—that your exacting conceit led you to woo and win every foolish girl that pleased your vanity, although you were not free to give your hand to any one of them.'

' And to whom am I indebted for this fine character, Inez ?' he asked, smiling down into the eloquent eyes lilted to his face, now without a cloud of fear or mistrust. 'To one who has done me another wrong, Godfrey, for she has won upon my aunt- till she has induced her to make her will in her favour, leaving me but a small annual sum from her large fortune. Nina Gordon told me what I have repeated to you, and she accuses you of having been her lover ; she declares that she had from your own lips the assurance that you would have preferred her to all the women in the world if she had only been endowed with wealth.'

Fenton's lips curled scornfully, and he defiantly replied :

! 'So that scorpion has tried to infuse'her vonom into your heart, my precious dar- [ ling; but her sting shall recoil on herself. I will tell. you the truth, Inez, and you shall judge me by it. I knew Nina Gordon when I was in college; I admired her beauty, was interested by her conversational powers. She thought me wealthy ; and, when she discovered her mistake, she grew bitter towards me. Our flirtation ended in a quarrel, and she vowed then to avenge herself upon me, should the opportunity ever arrive. She has availed herself of the first one, regardless of truth. I did speak to her of the slight tie that binds me to Opal Hastings, because I wished her to understand that I had no serious intentions toward herself. As to the assertion of my preference for her, I am ready to disprove it by marrying you, although she holds in her own grasp the fortune that should have been yours. Look me clearly in the eyes, Inez, and tell me that you believe me.' She lifted tho snowy lids which had fallen beneath his ardent gaze, returned his look'of passionate love, and the happy smile of perfect trust trembled on her lips as they murmured :

'I believe you, Godfrey, as I believe in the perfect peace that Heaven can bestow, and I love yon more dearly than ever.'

The ruby lips were sealed with a kiss, and Inez drew herself back, blushing rosy red ab lasb, for tho chilling spell was lifted from her heart and again her yOung\ blood bounded through her veins with all its old buoyancy. Fenton, possessed, himself of her hand, and, after a pause to allow her bo recover her composure, he sofbly said : ' And now, having made my peace wibh the fair arbiter of my iate, I must entreat that she will give me a precise account of all bhab has happened since Miss Gordon invaded bhe sanctuary of her family, bringing with hor discord and sowing dissensions where peace had formerly dwelt.' Thus entreated, Inez commenced with bho introduction of Nina to her aunb through bhe agency of bhe Bates family, and gave Fcnbon an exacb account of all bhab had since happened, including her own visib to Oakland, and the singular confirmation ber father's vision had received —though it had resulted in no benefit to her own fortunes.

Her lover listened with eager interesb, and, when she finished, ho thoughtfully Said : ' There was a will, Inez. Manly, the lawyer of your grandfather, says so ; bub, through some carelessness on his part, ib has been lost. Your father's advertisement i has brought no result as yet ?' ' No; there has hardly been time. Ib only appeared in the paper a few days ago ; but I hope very little from ib. I shall have a thousand a year, Godfrey—this place belongs to papa—so we shall not be absolutely poor.' Fenton could have smiled ab their differenb estimates of life. To him, with his magnificent tastes, his habitual self-indul-gence, the sum seemed almost contemptible. His mother allowed him threa times the amounb, and, at bho end of the year he was always in arrears. Bub he did not stop to weigh these things now. He was passionately in love with Inez ; the chances still remained to her of becoming the eventual possessor of her grandfather's estate; and Fenton was will ing to risk something on them. He thought bhab he would extort a compromise from Nina Gordon, if Mrs Hawks persisted in her infatuation to the last; though it should be his care to show thab deluded old lady of whab metal Nina was really made before deabh placed its irrevocable seal on her un jusbacb.

So he glanced cheerfully around the desolate-looking hall, and on the neglected lawn spread before the door, looking even more forlorn than usual in the gorgeous light of the summer morning and smilingly replied :

' No, we shall not be poor, Inez. We shall be rich in love and entertainment; and I have a few hundreds of my own to add to our material income—enough, at least, to lift me above dependence on my wife. What a charming Eden we can make of this place, love ; and, for my part, I know that I shah be so happy here wibh you thab I would nob be willing to exchange my Eve for any other woman on the whole earth.'

' And I know that my Adam will be as much to mo as the first man was to the companion thab God created expressly for him.'

' As I believe he created you for me,' replied the happy lover, forgetful in that moment of everything in heaven or earth but the fair creature who hung on his words entranced, and showed in every expression of her speaking face how utterly her hopes of earthly happiness were bound up in him.

Fenton would nob look to future possibilities ; he hup-ged to his heart the present joy in all its fulness :ho loved—he was beloved. Thab should sullice for the passing hour ; let future eveuts mould themselves as they would.

. So the moments fled away in the most delicious interchange of thoughts and feelings, and Inez brightened into new life beneath his inspiring words and glances. In those golden moments she was crowned wibh a halo of perfecb happiness, a queen over all earth holds that is most sweet and enchanting to the human heart.

(To be Continued.)