"Because this is the house in which Barnes killed his wife and child, in a fit of insane jealousy; and the place has the terrible reputation of being haunted."
"Oh!"
"Yes; it is said that the ghost of a weeping woman, carrying a weeping child in her arms, is seen to wander through garden and orchard at all hours of the night, or to come in and look over the beds of the sleepers in the house, if any are found courageous enough to sleep there."
"Oh! And that is the reason, I suppose, that the house remains untenanted?" said Craven Kyte.
"Yes, that is the reason why the house, pleasant and attractive as it looks, remains untenanted; and why the garden and orchard, with their wealth of flowers and fruit, remain untouched by trespa.s.sers," said Mrs.
Grey.
"It is a pity such a pretty place should be so abandoned," mused the young man.
"It is. But, you see, family after family took it and tried to live in it in vain. No family could stay longer than a week. It has now been untenanted for more than a year. I have heard that the owner offers to rent it for the paltry sum of fifty dollars a year."
"For this delightful house!"
"For this haunted house, you mean!" said Mrs. Grey.
"Oh, nonsense! I beg your forgiveness, my dearest, I did not mean that for you, but for the gabies that believe in ghosts!" said Craven Kyte.
"Then you do not believe in ghosts?"
"I!"
"Well, I thought you did not. In fact, I knew you did not. Now I want you to do something to please me," said the siren, laying her soft hand upon his shoulder.
"Anything in this world, you know, I will do to please you."
CHAPTER XXVII.
WHAT SHE WANTED HIM TO DO.
"Well, I want you to rent this house."
Craven Kyte started with surprise and looked at the speaker.
She went on, however, regardless of his astonishment.
"And I want you to purchase furniture enough to fit up one room for yourself; and I want you to do that the first thing to-morrow. And I want you to lodge here alone, while you remain in Richmond."
He still stared at her in amazement, but with no sign of a wish to disobey her strange commands.
She went on with her instructions.
"You can walk into the city, and take your meals at any restaurant you please; but you must lodge here alone while you stay in the city."
"I will do so," he answered, earnestly, as he recovered the use of his tongue--"I will do anything you tell me. I am entirely under your orders."
"You are the best fellow in the whole world, and I love the very ground you walk on!" exclaimed the traitress, warmly.
He grasped her hand convulsively and pressed it to his lips, and then waited her further directions.
"To reward you I will come out here every morning and spend the whole day with you."
"Oh, that will be heavenly! I should be willing to live in a cave on such delightful conditions!"
"But mind, my dearest one, you must not come to see me at my boarding-house, or try to meet me, or to speak to me, after to-day, anywhere where I am known," added Mrs. Grey, gravely.
"Oh, that seems very hard!" sighed the victim, with a look of grief, almost of suspicion.
"Why should it seem hard, when I tell you that I will come out here every morning to spend the whole day with you?" inquired Mrs. Grey.
"But why, then, can I not go home with you and spend the whole evening in your company at your boarding-house?" pleaded the poor fellow.
"Because we should have no comfort at all in a whole parlor full of company, as there is at the Misses Cranes" every evening. And because we should be talked about in that gossiping boarding-house circle. And, finally, because I should much rather stay with you alone here in this house, where there is no one to criticise us, as late every evening as I possibly can, and let you walk home with me and leave me at the door at bed-time. Now don"t you think mine the better plan?"
"Oh, yes, indeed, if you really will spend the evenings with me also!"
"Why, certainly I will! And now let us walk on to church. And mind, you must leave me at the church door and find a seat for yourself, while I go to mine. After church I will come out here with you again and sit with you all the evening. I have no doubt the good woman at the rustic inn down the road will give us tea, as she gave us dinner," said the beauty, as she arose and slipped her hand within her companion"s arm.
They left the house together and walked on to the church.
And the programme for the afternoon and evening was carried on according to the beautiful schemer"s arrangement.
After the services were concluded they walked out to the suburban inn, where the simple-minded hostess willingly agreed to furnish tea for such a pious church-going brother and sister.
And when they had had this tea, Mary Grey, to beguile the landlady, took her willing captive for a walk further out toward the country; and then returning by a roundabout route, came to the vacant road-side cottage, where, as the September evening was very warm, they sat under the vine-clad porch until ten o"clock.
Then they walked back to the town together.
Craven Kyte took Mary Grey to the gate of her boarding-house, where, as the place was silent and deserted, they paused for a few last words.
"Mind, the first thing you do to-morrow morning will be to go and find the owner of the haunted house and rent it from him," said the widow.
"Yes," answered her white slave.
"And the next thing you do will be to go and buy the furniture necessary to fit up one room for yourself, and have it taken out there and arranged."
"Yes," he answered again, very submissively.
"That will take you nearly all day, I think."
"I will hurry through the business as fast as I can, so that I may see you the sooner. When can I see you to-morrow?" he pleaded.