The Secret Of The Night(Fiscle Part 3) by Gaston Leroux (best business books of all time txt) 📖
- Author: Gaston Leroux
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Strange Thoughts, She Replaced The Pin In Her Hat And Went To Hang
It In The Veranda, Which Served Also As Vestibule. Rouletabille
Never Quitted Her Eyes. Matrena Watched The Reporter With A Stupid
Glance. Natacha Crossed The Drawing-Room And Entered Her Chamber
By Passing Through Her Little Sitting-Room, Through Which All
Entrance To Her Chamber Had To Be Made. That Little Room, Though,
Had Three Doors. One Opened Into Natacha's Chamber, One Into The
Drawing-Room, And The Third Into The Little Passage In A Corner Of
The House Where Was The Stairway By Which The Servants Passed From
The Kitchens To The Ground-Floor And The Upper Floor. This Passage
Had Also A Door Giving Directly Upon The Drawing-Room. It Was
Certainly A Poor Arrangement For Serving The Dining-Room, Which Was
On The Other Side Of The Drawing-Room And Behind The Veranda, Such
A Chance Laying-Out Of A House As One Often Sees In The Off-Hand
Planning Of Many Places In The Country.
Part 1 Chapter 6 (The Mysterious Hand) Pg 64
Alone Again With Rouletabille, Matrena Noticed That He Had Not Lost
Sight Of The Corner Of The Veranda Where Natacha Had Hung Her Hat.
Beside This Hat There Was A Toque That Ermolai Had Brought In. The
Old Servant Had Found It In Some Corner Of The Garden Or The
Conservatory Where He Had Been. A Hat-Pin Stuck Out Of That Toque
Also.
"Whose Toque Is That?" Asked Rouletabille. "I Haven't Seen It On
The Head Of Anyone Here."
"It Is Natacha's," Replied Matrena.
She Moved Toward It, But The Young Man Held Her Back, Went Into The
Veranda Himself, And, Without Touching It, Standing On Tiptoe, He
Examined The Pin. He Sank Back On His Heels And Turned Toward
Matrena. She Caught A Glimpse Of Fleeting Emotion On The Face Of
Her Little Friend.
"Explain To Me," She Said.
But Be Gave Her A Glance That Frightened Her, And Said Low:
"Go And Give Orders Right Away That Dinner Be Served In The Veranda.
All Through Dinner It Is Absolutely Necessary That The Door Of
Natacha's Sitting-Room, And That Of The Stairway Passage, And That
Of The Veranda Giving On The Drawing-Room Remain Open All The Time.
Do You Understand Me? As Soon As You Have Given Your Orders Go To
The General's Chamber And Do Not Quit The General's Bedside, Keep
It In View. Come Down To Dinner When It Is Announced, And Do Not
Bother Yourself About Anything Further."
So Saying, He Filled His Pipe, Lighted It With A Sort Of Sigh Of
Relief, And, After A Final Order To Matrena, "Go," He Went Into
The Garden, Puffing Great Clouds. Anyone Would Have Said He Hadn't
Smoked In A Week. He Appeared Not To Be Thinking But Just Idly
Enjoying Himself. In Fact, He Played Like A Child With Milinki,
Matrena's Pet Cat, Which He Pursued Behind The Shrubs, Up Into The
Little Kiosque Which, Raised On Piles, Lifted Its Steep Thatched
Roof Above The Panorama Of The Isles That Rouletabille Settled Down
To Contemplate Like An Artist With Ample Leisure.
The Dinner, Where Matrena, Natacha And Rouletabille Were Together
Again, Was Lively. The Young Man Having Declared That He Was More
And More Convinced That The Mystery Of The Bomb In The Bouquet Was
Simply A Play Of The Police, Natacha Reinforced His Opinion, And
Following That They Found Themselves In Agreement On About
Everything Else. For Himself, The Reporter During That Conversation
Hid A Real Horror Which Had Seized Him At The Cynical And
Inappropriate Tranquillity With Which The Young Lady Received All
Suggestions That Accused The Police Or That Assumed The General No
Longer Ran Any Immediate Danger. In Short, He Worked, Or At Least
Believed He Worked, To Clear Natacha As He Had Cleared Matrena, So
That There Would Develop The Absolute Necessity Of Assuming A Third
Person's Intervention In The Facts Disclosed So Clearly By Koupriane
Part 1 Chapter 6 (The Mysterious Hand) Pg 65Where Matrena Or Natacha Seemed Alone To Be Possible Agents. As He
Listened To Natacha Rouletabille Commenced To Doubt And Quake Just
As He Had Seen Matrena Do. The More He Looked Into The Nature Of
Natacha The Dizzier He Grew. What Abysmal Obscurities Were There
In Her Nature!
Nothing Interesting Happened During Dinner. Several Times, In
Spite Of Rouletabille's Obvious Impatience With Her For Doing It,
Matrena Went Up To The General. She Returned Saying, "He Is Quiet.
He Doesn't Sleep. He Doesn't Wish Anything. He Has Asked Me To
Prepare His Narcotic. It Is Too Bad. He Has Tried In Vain, He
Cannot Get Along Without It."
"You, Too, Mamma, Ought To Take Something To Make You Sleep. They
Say Morphine Is Very Good."
"As For Me," Said Rouletabille, Whose Head For Some Few Minutes
Had Been Dropping Now Toward One Shoulder And Now Toward Another,
"I Have No Need Of Any Narcotic To Make Me Sleep. If You Will
Permit Me, I Will Get To Bed At Once."
"Eh, My Little Domovoi Doukh, I Am Going To Carry You There In My
Arms."
Matrena Extended Her Large Round Arms Ready To Take Rouletabille
As Though He Had Been A Baby.
"No, No. I Will Get Up There All Right Alone," Said Rouletabille,
Rising Stupidly And Appearing Ashamed Of His Excessive Sleepiness.
"Oh, Well, Let Us Both Accompany Him To His Chamber," Said Natacha,
"And I Will Wish Papa Good-Night. I'm Eager For Bed Myself. We Will
All Make A Good Night Of It. Ermolai And Gniagnia Will Watch With
The Schwitzar In The Lodge. Things Are Reasonably Arranged Now."
They All Ascended The Stairs. Rouletabille Did Not Even Go To See
The General, But Threw Himself On His Bed. Natacha Got Onto The
Bed Beside Her Father, Embraced Him A Dozen Times, And Went
Downstairs Again. Matrena Followed Behind Her, Closed Doors And
Windows, Went Upstairs Again To Close The Door Of The Landing-Place
And Found Rouletabille Seated On His Bed, His Arms Crossed, Not
Appearing To Have Any Desire For Sleep At All. His Face Was So
Strangely Pensive Also That The Anxiety Of Matrena, Who Had Been
Able To Make Nothing Out Of His Acts And Looks All Day, Came Back
Upon Her Instantly In Greater Force Than Ever. She Touched His Arm
In Order To Be Sure That He Knew She Was There.
"My Little Friend," She Said, "Will You Tell Me Now?"
"Yes, Madame," He Replied At Once. "Sit In That Chair And Listen
To Me. There Are Things You Must Know At Once, Because We Have
Reached A Dangerous Hour."
"The Hat-Pins First. The Hat-Pins!"
Part 1 Chapter 6 (The Mysterious Hand) Pg 66Rouletabille Rose Lightly From The Bed And, Facing Her, But Watching
Something Besides Her, Said:
"It Is Necessary You Should Know That Someone Almost Immediately
Is Going To Renew The Attempt Of The Bouquet."
Matrena Sprang To Her Feet As Quickly As Though She Had Been Told
There Was A Bomb In The Seat Of Her Chair. She Made Herself Sit
Down Again, However, In Obedience To Rouletabile's Urgent Look
Commanding Absolute Quiet.
"Renew The Attempt Of The Bouquet!" She Murmured In A Stifled Voice.
"But There Is Not A Flower In The General's Chamber."
"Be Calm, Madame. Understand Me And Answer Me: You Heard The
Tick-Tack From The Bouquet While You Were In Your Own Chamber?"
"Yes, With The Doors Open, Naturally."
"You Told Me The Persons Who Came To Say Good-Night To The General.
At That Time There Was No Noise Of Tick-Tack?"
"No, No."
"Do You Think That If There Had Been Any Tick-Tack Then You Would
Have Heard It, With All Those Persons Talking In The Room?"
"I Hear Everything. I Hear Everything."
"Did You Go Downstairs At The Same Time Those People Did?"
"No, No; I Remained Near The General For Some Time, Until He Was
Sound Asleep."
"And You Heard Nothing?"
"Nothing."
"You Closed The Doors Behind Those Persons?"
"Yes, The Door To The Great Staircase. The Door Of The Servants'
Stairway Was Condemned A Long Time Ago; It Has Been Locked By Me,
I Alone Have The Key And On The Inside Of The Door Opening Into The
General's Chamber There Is Also A Bolt Which Is Always Shot. All
The Other Doors Of The Chambers Have Been Condemned By Me. In Order
To Enter Any Of The Four Rooms On This Floor It Is Necessary Now To
Pass By The Door Of My Chamber, Which Gives On The Main Staircase."
"Perfect. Then, No One Has Been Able To Enter The Apartment. No
One Had Been In The Apartment For At Least Two Hours Excepting You
And The General, When You Heard The Clockwork. From That The Only
Conclusion Is That Only The General And You Could Have Started It
Going."
Part 1 Chapter 6 (The Mysterious Hand) Pg 67
"What Are You Trying To Say?" Matrena Demanded, Astounded.
"I Wish To Prove To You By This Absurd Conclusion, Madame, That It
Is Necessary Never - Never, You Understand? Never - To Reason
Solely Upon Even The Most Evident External Evidence When Those
Seemingly-Conclusive Appearances Are In Conflict With Certain Moral
Truths That Also Are Clear As The Light Of Day. The Light Of Day
For Me, Madame, Is That The General Does Not Desire To Commit
Suicide And, Above All, That He Would Not Choose The Strange Method
Of Suicide By Clockwork. The Light Of Day For Me Is That You Adore
Your Husband And That You Are Ready To Sacrifice Your Life For His."
"Now! Exclaimed Matrena, Whose Tears, Always Ready In Emotional
Moments, Flowed Freely. "But, Holy Mary, Why Do You Speak To Me
Without Looking At Me? What Is It? What Is It?"
"Don't Turn! Don't Make A Movement! You Hear - Not A Move! And
Speak Low, Very Low. And Don't Cry, For The Love
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