The Golden Scorpion

suddenly he perceived the open drawer. He stopped. His expression changed to one of surprise and anger, and the girl's slim fingers

y-"I returned none to

nd shrank from him as

case would have been much more easy if I had associated your symptoms with the presence in my table drawer of"-he hesitated-"o

explanation of his romance; here was his disguised

ried. "Oh, let me go! P

seless. What h

ld ornament on the table. "I look at

his acquaintance in order to steal the fragment of the golden scorpion was impossible, for he had

n the drawer?" h

e table and naively exhibited that which fitted

u obtain this

embling and her eyes wells of sorrow

you-will yo

a lie-and now, by another lie, you seem to think that you can induce me to overlook a deliberate attemp

blow and regarded him pitifu

" she whispered. "At firs

d n

ll you th

are a pe

e-one of your Englishwomen. Perhaps I cannot help what I do.

a remote one. There is Eastern blood in your veins, no doubt, but you are educated, you a

ecognize, but

a gesture of

om the shock of finding you to be-what you are, I am utterly mystified as to your object. I am a poor man. The entire contents of my house would fet

of colour was returning to her cheeks. Stuart studied her attentively-even delightedly, for all her shortcomings, and knew in his heart that he could never give her

you another question: have you attempted t

y, and her cheeks, which had

," she confessed, "

someone els

d again, and she stared

lse?" she

. A man … wearing

ands in entreaty. "Do not ask me of

nt was creeping upon him and supplanting the contemptuous anger which the discovery

ad been no dream but an almost incredible reality. He now saw before him an agent of the man in the cowl; he perc

nything to do with the mat

She flinched again as she had done when he had taunted her wi

in the death of Sir F

ly, and her widely opened eyes were

aking, biting her lip which

d Stuart, feeling himself to sta

of him-this Sir

ughed unm

of sharing the fate of that di

enly rested her jewelled hands upon his shoulders, and he fou

ou believe me?" she whispered, and her fin

sence was intoxicating. "Pe

tell you true! I tell you for your own sake. Do with me what you please. I do not care. It does not matter. You ask me

y there. Had the fire been actually burning, it must long ago have been destroyed. More than ever mystified, for the si

d bag and ran from the room. Stuart heard the door close, and racing back to the table he p

!" he

ed the key on the outside. He

ain, throwing open the French windows. Brilliant moonlight bathed the little lawn with its bordering of high privet hedges. Stuart ran out as the sound of the receding car reached his ears. By the time that he had

go out with Miss

, Mrs. M'Gregor, but s

d ye or did ye no' hear the

uart patiently. "I feel sure you must be very tired and you can jus

and ill at ease, Mrs

, Mr. Keppe

curtains over the window recess, but without troubling to close the window which he had opened. Then he returned to the writing-table and took up the seal

ntably, he hitherto had failed to recall: that fearful wailing in the night-whic

orpion's tail. Finally, his hands resting upon the table, he found that almost unconsciously he had b

danger. Before,

in this at least surely she had been si

ntel-piece had ch