A rude chorus that was being sung, or rather shouted by several coarse and desperate-looking men, who were seated around a table in a back room of a very low cabaret, and which was never visited only by the most depraved persons who resided in, or resorted to the neighborhood. They were thieves, and if anything could be judged from their countenances, they were capable of doing the most desperate deeds. The table was covered with glasses containing gin, rum, and brandy, and of which they had all been evidently partaking very freely, and they were smoking as hard as they were able.

There was a large wood fire upon the hearth; and the red glare it cast upon their features, gave them almost a supernatural appearance, and altogether the scene was as effective as one of those that are often represented in a melodrama. Obscene jokes and songs had been freely indulged in, and it did not seem as if they were inclined to leave off for some time. It was night, and the wind blew boisterous without, but the ruffians were making such a riot, that they heeded it not; and they were evidently determined to enjoy themselves to the most unlimited extent.

‘Drink away, my lads,’ said one Mike, raising the glass to his lips as he spoke;—‘drink away; we ought to be merry, for Fortune never smiled more brightly upon us than she has done for some time past.’

‘Ay, you say right, Mike,’ observed a tall, dark whiskered man, whom the thieves called Joe; ‘but leave us alone for doing business, and for availing themselves of fortune’s favors when they are to be obtained. Cap’n a toast!’

‘Ay, a toast; a toast;’ responded the others.

Mike raised a large glass, filled to the brim in his hand, and said;—

‘Well, my lads, I will give you a toast, and that shall be, Success to our dare-devil gang!’

‘Bravo! bravo!’ shouted the thieves. ‘Here’s to the dare-devil gang!’

‘A capital toast,’ said Mike; ‘and well responded to. With your leave, I will propose another.’

‘Ay, ay, a toast from Mike,’ shouted two or three of the thieves, amongst whom he was a particular favorite; ‘a toast from Mike.’

‘Fill your glasses then, my boys,’ said Mike; ‘bumpers! bumpers!’

The thieves needed no second invitation to do as Mike desired, and the glasses were very quickly replenished.

‘Here’s confusion to the Vigilance Committee!’ was Mike’s toast; and it was followed by loud shouts from every one in the room; the landlord of the house at that moment entering, and joining loudly in acclamation of it.

‘Ah!’ observed Joe,—‘they have found us rather troublesome customers to deal with, and will again if they should venture to attack us.’

‘I don’t think that there is much fear of that,’ returned Mike; ‘for we keep too well out of their clutches, and have met with such a career of success, that we may set them at defiance!’

‘Ay, ay,’ answered Mike; ‘and may we be always able to do so; and all those daring fellows, who will run the risk to live a free life.’

‘But Jenkins,’ asked Mike, ‘do you not think that it was a very foolish thing for us to loose so much time in affecting the accomplishment of this plot of Blodget’s?’

‘Certainly not,’ returned Jenkins; ‘Blodget has well rewarded us, and it will ultimately pay us much better than a trip to the mines would have done.’

‘How?’ demanded Mike.

‘Why, Blodget must continue to do the thing that’s liberal, or else his game will be up,’ replied Jenkins. ‘The lady is in our power, and we must continue to keep her so; if Blodget does not come to our terms, why, Old de Castro, no doubt, will, and, therefore, we are sure of a reward one way or the other.’

‘Yes, the gallows!’ observed one of the thieves, who had been sitting apart from the rest, and smoking his cigar heartily, did not seem to feel any particular interest in what was passing.

‘There’s Ben at his croaking again,’ said Mike; ‘he seems to take a delight in—’

‘Speaking the truth,’ added Ben, in a quiet tone; ‘it is very unpleasant to hear it sometimes.’

‘Pshaw! don’t make yourself a fool, Ben,’ exclaimed Jenkins; ‘any one would suppose, to hear you talk, that you had become tired of a thief’s life. But what think ye of my determination, my lads?’

‘It is a famous one,’ answered Mike, ‘and cannot fail to work us good.’

‘It must add much to our coffers one way or another,’ resumed Jenkins; ‘and I take no small credit to myself for the thought; besides, you know that we have the fellow, Blodget, entirely in our power, that murder, which—’

‘Right, right,’ interrupted Mike; ‘if that were known, it would not be long before Mr. Blodget would swing upon a gallows.’

‘Indeed it would not,’ returned Jenkins; ‘and he knows that, and dreads us. The lady is a beautiful woman, and I almost envy him his prize; but something may yet happen to place her in my possession instead of his, and I do not know that I should be over nice about availing myself of such an opportunity.’

At this moment, between the pauses of the blast, they heard a loud knocking at the door, and they looked at each other suspiciously, and starting involuntarily to their feet, placed their hands upon their revolvers, and prepared for action in case they should be surprised.

‘Who is there?’ demanded the landlord.

‘It is only I, Blodget,’ was the answer, and being satisfied that it was his voice, the door was cautiously opened, and the villain entered. He greeted them all heartily, and then, by the invitation of Jenkins, having taken his seat at the table, the mirth of the gang was resumed, and carried on with increased spirit, Blodget joining in with as much freedom as if he had been one of the gang.

‘Well, Mr. Blodget,’ asked Jenkins, ‘and don’t you think I managed this business very well for you?’

‘Aye, Jenkins,’ answered Blodget; ‘you did everything that I could wish; but think you she will be safe where she is?’

‘Safe!’ repeated Jenkins; ‘as safe as when she was buried deep in the bowels of the earth. Gordon is just the man who will take care of her.’

‘That is well,’ replied Blodget; ‘but it is not unlikely that I shall not have any occasion to trouble him long.’

‘Why, you would never be such a fool as to attempt to remove her from a place of security?’ demanded Jenkins.

‘Circumstances may compel me so to do.’

‘I understand you; but we must see about the best means of preventing all chance of that,’ said Jenkins; ‘you have been a lucky fellow, Blodget, to get the lady in your power and at your mercy; it is glorious revenge.’

‘It is, it is!’ answered Blodget; ‘but not sufficient to gratify me.’

‘No?’

‘No!’

‘What would you, then?’

‘I would have the life of Monteagle.’

‘Ah! would you, then, again commit murder?’

‘Hold!’ said Blodget; ‘mention not my former crime; I cannot think of it without horror.’

‘And yet you can contemplate another deed equally as sanguinary?’

‘Yes, the death of the detested Monteagle I can contemplate, coolly contemplate; and I shall never rest satisfied until it is accomplished.’

‘And would you dare to perpetrate it yourself?’ asked Jenkins.

‘I dare,’ answered Blodget; ‘were he to cross my path; but were I to follow him to the Mission, or wherever he may be, I should in all probability be discovered, and taken prisoner, and then all my schemes would at once be frustrated. If any one would undertake to commit the crime, I would not fail to reward them handsomely.’

‘I see,’ said Jenkins; ‘you would have me or one of my men perpetrate the deed of blood!’

‘I care not who it is, so that it is a man on whom I can depend.’

‘And the reward?’

‘A thousand dollars!’

‘It shall be done.’

‘Ah! say you so? when?’

‘Come, come, you are in too much of a hurry; and there is never anything done well where so much precipitation is used. We must first ascertain where Monteagle is.’

‘And that we may have some difficulty at present in finding out,’ said Blodget, ‘for, doubtless, he has gone in search of Inez. My heart throbs impatiently for the accomplishment of the deed, and I shall not rest until I am sure that Monteagle is no more.’

‘On your promise of the reward you have mentioned, the deed shall, by some means or other, be despatched,’ replied Jenkins; ‘but you must wait with patience, and we will not lose any time or opportunity to discover where he is, and to put our plans into execution.’

‘This assurance gratifies me, and I am satisfied that you will not deceive me!’

‘You have had no reason to doubt me hitherto,’ returned Jenkins; ‘and, therefore, there is no occasion to do so now, I believe.’

‘But have you any idea how to proceed?’ asked Blodget.

‘In the first place,’ returned Jenkins—‘It will be the best plan to send one of the gang to the Mission, in disguise. He may be able to learn the proceedings of Monteagle, and probably find out where he is.’

‘I agree with your design,’ said Blodget, in reply; ‘and should it meet with success, I shall not be very particular in giving a few additional dollars to the sum already promised. But Inez, for whom I have run such a risk, still remains obstinate; and I do not think I shall be able to conquer her aversion in a hurry.’

‘And of what consequence will that be as she is in your power, she must yield to your wishes, or you can gain your desires by force.’

‘Force! but I would rather that persuasion would prevail; as notwithstanding my passion, I cannot bear the idea of violence.’

‘Why, true, it would be much better if it were avoided,’ observed Jenkins, ‘but come, drink!’

‘Here’s success to all our undertakings,’ said Blodget; and he quaffed off the contents of his glass.

‘Success to all our undertakings,’ responded the thieves and the toast was drank tumultuously.

‘You have been a fortunate fellow, Blodget, throughout your whole career, and have, no doubt, accumulated some money.’

‘Why,’ returned Blodget, with a self-satisfied grin; ‘I have not much cause to grumble. But then I have had to depend upon my own wit and ingenuity.’

‘Well, certainly, Blodget, you are a most perfect villain.’

‘I believe I may lay some slight claim to the character.’

‘Not a very slight one either,’ remarked Jenkins.

‘You pay me a very high compliment.’

‘Ha! ha! ha!’

‘But who among your gang will undertake the murder?’

Jenkins looked round upon his fellows, but in not one of their countenances, reckless and determined as they were, did he notice any signs of a desire to undertake the sanguinary deed.

‘Who among ye is willing to earn this reward?’ he asked.

There was no answer. Blodget became impatient.

‘What! are ye all silent?’ asked Jenkins.

No one offered to speak.

‘What say you Mike?’

‘I like not the shedding of human blood when it can be avoided,’ he answered; ‘if, however, Jenkins, you order me to perpetrate this crime, although it is against my inclination, I will obey you: if I am permitted to use my own free will, I say I will not commit the crime. Will that answer suffice?’

‘It will,’ said Jenkins; ‘but Joe, you will not refuse the thousand dollars?’

‘I would not stain my hands with innocent blood for twenty times one thousand dollars, unless it was by your command,’ was the answer.

‘And Ben, what say you?’

‘I am a robber, ready to defend myself and my comrades from an attack; but I am not a cold-blooded deliberate murderer;’ replied Ben.

‘Damnation!’ cried Blodget, fiercely; and he arose from his seat and hastily traversed the room.

‘Be patient,’ said Jenkins; ‘this matter will be arranged, quicker than you could possibly expect. You see, Blodget, although they are desperate men, they are not quite such atrocious monsters as they have been thought by many.’

‘They are cowards if they shrink from the—’

Before he could finish the sentence, the thieves were all upon their feet, and by their menacing looks, threatened vengeance.

‘Hold!’ cried Blodget, and they all immediately resumed their seats, although it was very evident that the observations of Blodget had greatly enraged them, and there were many scowling brows, which convinced the villain that he had proceeded almost too far.

‘Blodget,’ continued Jenkins, after a pause; ‘you should be cautious in what you say, my men are not used to hearing such terms applied to them, nor do they merit it.’ If Jenkins thought he had a coward amongst his gang, he would hang him up to the first tree he came to.

‘I was wrong; I was wrong;’ hastily apologized Blodget; ‘and I hope they will pardon me.’

‘That is enough,’ observed Jenkins; then turning again towards his men, he demanded—

‘And, so you all refuse to do this deed?’

‘We do;’ was the answer from them all; ‘we shed not human blood only in our own defence.’

‘One amongst ye shall do the deed, since I have promised this man, and will not recall my word;’ said Jenkins peremptorily.

There was a discontented murmuring arose from among the thieves.

‘What means this murmuring?’ demanded Jenkins, and his eyes glanced fiercely upon them; ‘is there one among ye who would dare to disobey my commands?’

‘I will answer for all my comrades, and say, no,’ said Ben; ‘but we would avoid an unnecessary deed of blood, and especially under the circumstances.’

‘I have given my word, and it shall be kept;’ said Jenkins firmly; ‘you must cast lots!’

The thieves still looked dissatisfied at this determination, and glanced significantly at each other, but they did not say a word. They scowled upon Blodget, who, however, did not take much heed of them, certain as he was, that while the captain of the gang was on his side, he had nothing to fear from any act of violence they might otherwise contemplate towards him.

Reluctantly they were about to cast lots, when there was the well-known signal heard at the room door, which being opened, Gordon was admitted.

‘Ah!’ exclaimed Blodget, ‘you have just come in time, Gordon; I have a proposition to make to you.’

‘Name it,’ answered the ruffian.

Jenkins repeated the question he had put to the others. Gordon appeared to catch at the idea, and the thieves eagerly awaited his reply, anxious to be released from the perpetration of a crime, from which they all revolted.

Gordon did not make any immediate answer, and he appeared to be meditating upon the proposal.

‘Do you also hesitate, Gordon?’ inquired the captain;—‘you were not always so particular.’

‘I do not hesitate, only for one reason;’ returned the miscreant.

‘Name it!’ said Blodget.

‘Let Blodget give two thousand dollars, and the deed shall be accomplished,’ was the villain’s answer.

‘It shall be yours,’ ejaculated Blodget.

‘Enough!’ said Gordon, ‘I have your word that the money shall be paid, and Jenkins, no doubt, will be answerable that you do not fly from your agreement?’

‘I will,’ returned the captain.

‘There is no occasion for it,’ observed Blodget, ‘if you do not deceive me, I will not deceive you.’

‘You had better not,’ said Gordon, with a sinister look.

‘You have good security for my keeping my promise,’ added Blodget; ‘let the deed be done, and the money shall immediately be yours.’

‘But if I should fail?’

‘If you do not wilfully fail, then one half the money shall be your reward for your trouble,’ said Blodget.

‘Enough,’ replied Gordon, ‘then the bargain is sealed; I will undertake the hazardous deed.’

‘Thanks, thanks!’ said the blood-thirsty Blodget; ‘perform your task well, and you will have my eternal gratitude.’

‘Pshaw!’ cried the ruffian, with a sardonic grin; ‘of what use is gratitude to me? It is not a marketable commodity. But what about the care of Inez?’

‘Blodget will reside in the house during your absence, and I will leave Joe to assist him in his charge,’ replied the captain.

‘That arrangement will do,’ said Gordon, after a pause.

‘When will you start on your expedition?’ inquired Blodget.

‘Immediately. There is no necessity for delay,’ answered Gordon.

‘’Tis well,’ observed Blodget; ‘but you will go disguised?’

‘Oh, leave me alone for that,’ returned Gordon. ‘I have more reasons than one not to wish to be known; or the first news that you heard of me would, in all probability be, that I was the inmate of a prison. I will so disguise myself that it must be a penetrating eye, indeed which could recognize me.’

‘To-morrow, then?’

‘I quit this place, and make my way for the Mission,’ rejoined Gordon.

‘True; and to meet with success, I trust.’

‘It shall not be my fault, if I do not.’

‘You will forward us intelligence when you arrive there; for I shall be all impatience till I hear from you;’ said Blodget.

‘I will,’ replied Gordon, ‘unless I see that there would be any danger in so doing.’

‘Certainly.’

‘And now that this business is settled,’ observed Jenkins, ‘let us proceed to enjoy ourselves—come, my lads, replenish your glasses.’

The thieves obeyed this order with hilarity, and the villain Blodget being satisfied with the inhuman design he had formed, and the atrocious wretch who had undertaken to accomplish it, joined heartily with them in their revelry, which they kept up for more than an hour afterwards, when Blodget, Gordon, and Joe returned to the house, and the captain and the rest of the thieves departed.

Blodget felt a savage sensation of delight fill his bosom, at the prospect of the full consummation of his most diabolical hatred and revenge against Monteagle; and he entertained the most sanguine anticipations of the success of his plot. Gordon was a deep, designing, and determined villain, and he had no doubt but that the reward which he had promised him, would induce him to exert himself to the uttermost.

‘Yes,’ he soliloquized, when he was alone in his chamber, after parting with Gordon and Joe for the night; ‘I feel confident that Gordon will not fail, and, that ere many weeks have elapsed, my hated foe will be no more. Oh, this will be goodly revenge. Inez, too, will then be securely mine, and nothing will release her from my power!’

The wretch paced his chamber, as he thus spoke, and his eyes sparkled with exultation. He pictured to himself in imagination, the unbounded bliss that was in store for him in the gratification of his sensual and disgusting passions, and he determined that but a short time should elapse, ere he would have the full accomplishment of all his wishes. He slept but little that night, for thinking upon his villainous stratagems, and when he reflected that he was beneath the same roof with the unfortunate Inez, and had it in his power to force her to an immediate compliance with his wishes, he could with difficulty keep his ecstasy within the bounds of reason.

In the morning Gordon, after having so disguised himself that no person could by any possibility recognize him, and having received some fresh instructions and injunctions from Blodget, took his departure on his inhuman errand, and Blodget and Joe, with an old woman, were left alone in the house.

We need not inform the reader of the distracting hours of misery Inez had undergone since her incarceration in the house. Her sufferings were almost too powerful for human endurance, and it was wonderful how she could retain her senses. Her agonizing thoughts were divided between her own situation and that of her father, and her disordered imagination pictured them, if possible, more dreadful than they actually were.

‘I shall never behold him again,’ she sighed, and scalding tears chased each other down her pale cheeks; ‘alas! I am torn from them forever. Or, if we should be again destined to meet, under what circumstances may it not be? Myself, perhaps, dishonored—heart-broken; my poor father a raving maniac. Oh, Heavens! the picture that arises upon my imagination is too horrible for contemplation.’

She wrung her hands, and traversed her gloomy chamber with a trembling step.

‘To be beneath the same roof with a murderer, too,’ she added, ‘and that, too, a murderer of the blackest dye! Oh, God! have I not good reason to be distracted? That terrible night when I overheard the wretches conversing upon the monstrous crime of which they had been guilty—when I saw them inter the mangled body of the poor white-haired old man, their unfortunate victim, comes fresh upon my memory as if it had only been just enacted. My heart seems chilled to ice; oh, surely the misfortunes that have since attended me have been a curse upon me for not having given such information of the circumstance as might have led to the apprehension of the assassins. The unfortunate old man’s bones moulder in unhallowed ground, and his blood calls to Heaven for retribution.’

She trembled violently, and almost imagined that she heard a melancholy sigh breathed close to her ear. She staggered to a chair and leant upon it for support, fearing to look around her, lest she should encounter the ghastly and blood-stained face of the murdered man.

All was profoundly still in the house, and the miscreants who inhabited it seemed to be locked in the arms of sleep. Sleep! how could wretches whose consciences were burthened with such a heavy weight of crime, sleep?

The light in the lamp burnt dim, and imparted a still more gloomy appearance to the chamber; and the wind howled dismally without, increasing the horrors of that solemn hour. Inez seated herself by the side of her bed, and, after a pause, did once more venture to look around the room, but nothing but of an ordinary description met her observation.

‘What dreadful crimes may they not have perpetrated in this house! in this very chamber!’ She once more reflected, and again her terrors arose to a pitch almost insupportable.

The light in her lamp, which had for some time only been faintly glimmering, now suddenly died away, and our heroine was left in utter darkness. How she longed for the morning, and that she had some female companion near her in that dismal place, if it was only the repulsive old woman; some one to whom she could speak; but silent and dreary was everything around her, it was like being confined in a tomb. She had kept the embers of the fire together as long as she could, but that had also become extinguished, and the room felt cold as it was dismal and cheerless.

At length she crept into the bed with her clothes on, and covered her head with the counterpane, filled with a sensation of terror, she found it utterly impossible to conquer. She endeavored to sleep; but her mind was too much distressed to suffer her to succeed, and she tossed to and fro in a state of agitation, which no one but those who have been placed in a similar situation, can form an adequate idea of. The interview she had had with Blodget, rushed upon her memory, and she recollected every word that he had spoken, and which had given her every reason to apprehend the worse consequences from his determination. Even the sight of that inhuman man inspired her with a feeling of horror no language can do justice to, and she dreaded a meeting with him as much as she would have done the most fearful calamity which could have befallen her.

‘But I will be firm,’ she reflected; ‘I will muster up all my woman’s fortitude, strong in the defence of her honor, to meet him, and oppose his importunities in a manner that shall deter him from proceeding to violence. Providence surely will not forsake me in this moment of bitter trial, but will throw its protecting shield over me, and defeat the brutal designs of the libertine and the miscreant! Yes, I will put my trust in Heaven, and prepare to meet my heavy trials with a firmness and resolution becoming of me!’

These thoughts somewhat composed her spirits, and after a short time spent in further rumination, she did at last sink into a disturbed slumber, in which she remained until the sun had risen in the eastern horizon.

She arose, not in the least refreshed, and had not been up many minutes when she heard the key turning in the lock, and soon afterwards the old woman entered with the breakfast.

She placed them on the table, and then fixed upon our heroine a scrutinizing look, and shook her head.

‘Well,’ said she, in her usual disagreeable tones;—‘pale cheeks and red eyes; no sleep again, I suppose, it puzzles me how you young women can live without rest? when I was your age, nothing could ever prevent my sleeping.’

‘When the mind is oppressed with such unprecedented and heavy sorrows as those that disturb mine,’ answered Inez—‘if it is not entirely insensible, sleep may be courted in vain.’

‘Pho! how very melancholy and dismal you do look, to be sure,’ answered the old woman; ‘any one would imagine that you had experienced all the troubles in the world; but stop till you become my age, and then you may have cause to complain.’

‘Some person’s troubles,’ returned Inez; ‘are brought on them by themselves; by their own vices, and—’

‘Ah!’ interrupted the old woman, snappishly; ‘no doubt you think that a very pointed and sarcastic observation, but, as the cap don’t happen to fit me, I shall not wear it. Mr. Blodget will pay you a visit presently, and perhaps you may deem it prudent to behave a little more civil to him.’

Inez shuddered.

‘Oh, tell me,’ she said; ‘is he in the house?’

‘Oh, yes, to be sure he is,’ answered the old woman; ‘for he has taken up his quarters here altogether now, and therefore you will have plenty of his company.’

‘Living in the same house,’ muttered our heroine to herself, and she trembled more violently than before; ‘alas! what will become of me?’

‘Oh, no doubt he will take plenty of care of you, young lady,’ answered the old woman, with a bitter sneer.

‘He shall find,’ said Inez, mustering up sudden firmness, and speaking in a tone that astonished and abashed the old woman, ‘he shall find that I have both the spirit and the virtue to resist his importunities, and Heaven will aid me to defeat his design. The guilty wretch; surely for his many crimes a terrible retribution must be now pending o’er his head.’

‘The spirit you boast of, young lady,’ said the old woman, ‘I have no doubt will be very quickly turned, or Mr. Blodget is not half so accomplished as I take him to be.’

Inez darted upon her a look of disgust and indignation, but she could not make her any reply, and after making two or three observations of a similar description, the old woman quitted the room.

We need not attempt to describe the feelings of our heroine when the old woman had gone: the disgusting observations of the old woman, and the fearful prospects which was before her, filled her bosom with the utmost consternation, and although she tried very hard to rally her spirits, and prepare to meet Blodget with fortitude, it was some considerable time before she had it in her power to succeed. To know that Blodget was an inmate of the same house with her, was sufficient of itself to excite the greatest agony in her bosom; and when she reflected that it was not probable that he would longer be able to restrain his wild, unbridled passions, and that any resistance on her part, would be completely futile, she became almost distracted.—Alas! she thought, how much more preferable would death have been to the state of agony in which she was thus constantly kept. It was only for the sake of Monteagle and her father, whom she could not entirely despair of beholding again, that she clung to life, and had she not had them to occupy her thoughts, and her heart’s warmest affections, she would have met death with fortitude, nay, even pleasure. What had been the last few days of her life, but of misery? All mankind had seemed arrayed in enmity against her, and few indeed were the real friends she had found. Her tears flowed fast at these thoughts, and they gave relief to her overcharged bosom.

At length she struggled with her emotions, and so far regained her composure, that she was enabled to partake of the repast which the old woman brought her, and to prepare to meet Blodget, whom she had no doubt, and indeed the old woman had said he would, visit her in a short time.

She had but just risen from her knees having implored the protection of the Holy Virgin, when she heard footsteps ascending the stairs, and directly afterwards, her room door was unlocked, and the object of her fears and detestation entered.

He stood in the doorway for a minute or two, and it was hard to perceive whether he was awed and abashed by the calm dignity and firmness of her demeanor, or lost in admiration of her superlative beauty—still most exquisite, although her once blooming cheeks were pale and wan with heavy care.

Inez had mustered up uncommon fortitude, and, as Blodget entered, she fixed upon him a look which was sufficient to penetrate the most insensible breast. It was one of the most cutting reproach, while resentment, and a firm reliance upon the strength of her own virtue, and the protection of heaven, shown predominant in the general expression of her resistance, and approaching her with a look of admiration which could create no other sentiment than one of hatred in her breast, he attempted to take her hand and press her lips, but she hastily withdrew it and, spurning him scornfully away from her, exclaimed—

‘Begone, sir, your presence is disgusting to me. Dare not thus to insult the victim of your guilt.’

‘Who’s the master, now, fair Inez?’ demanded the villain, and a look of exultation overspread his features; ‘who triumphs now?’

‘Oh, villain—heartless villain!’ cried Inez, her bosom swelling with agony, ‘can you stand there and talk to me thus? Are you not afraid that the vengeance of the Almighty will immediately descend upon your head, and render you powerless to do further harm?’

‘I scorn it.’

Inez shuddered with horror at the words of the wretch; who, however, presently altered his tone, and once more endeavoring to take her hand, which she successfully resisted, he assumed an insinuating smile, and in a voice of gentle persuasion, said—

‘Pray pardon me, beauteous Inez, if I have been led into the expression of words that have caused anguish to your feelings; but the injuries I have received from Monteagle—’

‘’Tis false!’ scornfully replied our heroine, and her brilliant eyes appeared to flash fire; ‘Monteagle never injured you, but you was ever the serpent in his bosom, waiting an opportunity to destroy his peace, and you have yourself acknowledged the same, and expressed your inhuman exultation at the misery which you have caused him.’

‘Well,’ returned Blodget, with the utmost coolness, and the boldness of his manner increasing, ‘I will not deny it, because there is no necessity for my so doing, as the power is now mine. I have already had a terrible revenge, but still it is not complete, and never will I rest until it is wholly accomplished.’

‘Oh, Blodget!’ ejaculated Inez, her fortitude failing her when she saw the villain’s recklessness and determination, and reflected that she was entirely in his power, and left solely to his mercy, or the interposition of Providence, ‘will nothing induce you to relent in your cruelty?’

‘Nothing,’ answered Blodget, ‘until I have gained the full gratification of my wishes, and the consummation of all my hopes. Then only shall I be satisfied.’

‘What mean you?’

‘You will behold Monteagle no more.’

‘Oh, God!’ ejaculated Inez, and her heart throbbed heavily against her side, her cheeks turned ashy pale, and her limbs trembled violently as a dread of something terrible about to take place, through the guilty machinations of the wretch who stood before her, darted upon her brain; ‘cruel as you are, surely you would not seek his life?’

A grim and sardonic smile passed over the features of Blodget as she gave utterance to these words, but he returned no answer; his looks spoke more than words, and had a thunderbolt at that moment descended upon her head, Inez could not have felt more paralyzed and awe-struck than she did at that time. With distended eye-lids, she fixed upon him a look which was sufficient to have penetrated even the most obdurate heart, and to carry awe to the guilty soul; her features became stern and fixed; her lips parted but she uttered no sound, and, suddenly approaching the astonished Blodget, she grasped his arm vehemently, and looked full upon him. Blodget could not help, in spite of all his hardihood, shuddering beneath her gaze, and the singularity of her behavior, but he was not a minute before he completely recovered himself, and looking coolly and indifferently upon her, awaited what she had got to say without first offering any observation of his own.

‘Blodget!’ at length ejaculated our heroine, in a solemn tone of voice, and with her brilliant and expressive eyes still fixed with the same earnestness of expression upon his countenance; ‘Blodget, in the name of that Almighty power who guides all our actions, and before whose dread tribunal you must some time or the other appear, however much at present you may despise His name—by all your hopes of forgiveness for the many and heinous crimes you have committed, I charge you tell me—solemnly tell me, what are your wicked designs?’

‘Psha!’ cried Blodget, and a fearful smile again overspread his countenance.

‘Nay, I command you, in the name of the most High, to set my horrible fears at rest, and tell me,’ demanded Inez, and her heart throbbed more violently than ever, and her whole soul seemed to be wrapped up in the answer which Blodget would return to her; and she appeared as if she would drag the secret from his heart with her eyes.

‘Enough of this,’ at last said Blodget, ‘I came not here to talk upon a subject like this, and—’

‘Heartless miscreant!’ interrupted Inez, ‘too well can I read in your dark and portentous looks the base design you have in contemplation. But Heaven will interpose to prevent the execution of your infamous intention, and to save Monteagle from your monstrous machinations.’

‘We shall see,’ returned Blodget, with the same consummate coolness he had before evinced; ‘we shall see. But hear me, Inez—’

‘I will not listen to you, until you have answered my question,’ observed Inez ‘your very words are as poison to my soul.’

‘But you must and shall hear me,’ exclaimed the other, with a determined air, and once more endeavoring to take our heroine’s hand; ‘you are securely in my power, and think you that I will be frightened from my purpose by an obstinate woman’s heroics. I come to offer you my love; you reject it, but that shall not avail you, for force shall make you comply with my wishes. As for Monteagle, I tell you once again you will see him no more.’

The courage of Inez completely failed her, tears gushed to her eyes, and, sinking upon her knees, with clasped hands, she supplicated the ruffian’s forbearance; but she pleaded to a heart callous to every sense of feeling: he gazed upon her emotion with indifference, and he exulted at the manner in which he had subdued her spirit, and flattered himself that, in time, she would be entirely conquered, and made to yield subserviently to his will. However, he endeavored to disguise his real feelings, and, assuming as mild an expression as he could, he raised Inez from the posture in which she had been kneeling, and affected to smile kindly upon her. For the moment she was deceived by his looks, and hope suddenly darted upon her mind.

‘You will relent,’ she ejaculated, ‘that smile assures me that you will. You cannot, surely, be so cruel as to seek the life of Monteagle. Has not the anguish you have already caused him, and the miseries he is at present undergoing, all through you, been the means of sufficiently appeasing your vengeance? Oh, Blodget! repent ere it is too late, and restore me to my friends, and again I promise you that you shall receive my pardon and that of those who are dear to me, although the injury you have inflicted on them and me is almost irreparable. If there is one spark of humanity in your breast, if there is the smallest portion of that feeling remaining in your heart, towards that sex who claims protection from every man, I shall not supplicate in vain; you will accede to my request, and once more open to me the doors of liberty; and suffer me to fly once more to the arms of my father—my poor bereaved parent!’

‘Beauteous Inez,’ returned the wretch; ‘this is madness, and a silly waste of time. Think you, then, that after all the trouble I have taken, the risks I have run, and the plans I have laid down to get you in my power, that I will now quietly resign you? Think you that I would place myself at the mercy of my enemies? No, no! you must give up all idea of such a thing, and, henceforth, look upon me in the same light as your husband, for you and I must not again easily separate! You must yield to my wishes, and that speedily; I would have you do so of your own free will; but if, after a given time you still remain foolishly obstinate, then must I, however much it may be against my wishes, use force. Resistance, you perceive, will be in vain, and therefore, I advise you to make up your mind to assent without it; then shall you receive every attention from me, and I will behave in a manner that shall leave you no cause to regret your separation from your father.’

‘Fiend in human shape,’ ejaculated Inez, ‘leave me! My soul freezes with horror as I listen to you! But I will not entirely despair, although you have bid me to do so; Heaven will interpose to prevent the execution of your base threats.’

‘Did Heaven interpose to prevent my getting you in my power?’ inquired Blodget, with a sardonic grin. ‘Once more I tell you, you shall be mine, and nothing shall save you!’

‘Never, villain!’ cried Inez.

‘Be cautions what you say, lady, lest you exasperate me,’ returned Blodget, with a threatening frown, which made our heroine tremble; ‘you forget that I could this day—this very moment—force you to a compliance with my wishes, and where is there one near at hand who could come to save you?’

‘By Heavens I would die first!’

‘Bah!’ sneered Blodget; ‘but I am tired of this useless contest of words; you know my determination, and rest assured that I will only await a very few days for your answer, and then, if you do not consent, you know the consequences.’

‘Once more I pray your mercy,’ said the distracted Inez, with clasped hands, and looks of earnest supplication; ‘beware! oh, beware! ere you proceed to extremities.’

‘You have it in your power to move me to pity and love, fair Inez,’ returned Blodget; ‘one smile from you, one word of affection from those ruby lips would act with the influence of magic upon me and make me quite a different man. Blodget would then live alone for love and you; and there should not be a pleasure which it should not be my constant endeavor to procure you.’

Inez turned from the villain with a look of the utmost disgust, and she groaned aloud in the intensity of her anguished feelings. Blodget advanced nearer to her, and sought to put his arms around her waist, but the action immediately aroused her, and retreating to the further end of the room, she fixed upon him such a look as awed him into immediate forbearance.

‘Still madly obstinate!’ he exclaimed; ‘but time must alter this proud beauty, and you must yield to the desires of Blodget, however repugnant it may be to your feelings. At present I leave you, but shortly you will behold me again, and then I trust that you will see the policy of giving me a more favorable reception than you have done this morning.’

As he spoke, Blodget fixed one glance of expressive meaning, and then quitting the room, he securely fastened the door after him.

‘The perverse woman,’ he soliloquized, as he walked away; ‘but she must be subdued;—she must be subdued; Blodget cannot much longer endure her resistance. Oh, did she but know the plot I have formed against the life of Monteagle—but I said quite enough to arouse her fears, although I now wish that I had not done so, as it would be sure not to promote my wishes. I wish not to have to use violence, or I could do so directly; no, my greater triumph would be to prevail upon her to give her own free consent, and that would add to the gratification of my revenge. Blodget, if you fail in this, it will be the first time that you have failed in any of your undertakings.’

The villain walked away, and after giving strict injunctions to Joe to keep safe watch over his charge, he bent his footsteps towards the cabaret, at which he and the thieves had been the night before carousing, and where, in a back room, he could commune with his own thoughts, without any fear of interruption.