districts of London. Suddenly, however, this man,who was one of the elders of the cult of Satan in Paris, found me inLondon, and a branch having been established here, he compelled me underthreats of exposure to you of my association with this abominable sect,to return to them and become their priestess. Thus, powerless beneathhis influence, I loved you and worshipped at your church, yet on eachSunday night compelled to come here and assist at the Black Mass of theEvil One. Can you imagine what my feelings have been? Can you fullyrealise the awful pangs of conscience when, fearing God as I do, I haveknelt upon yonder cushion compelled to profane His name, because of mylove for you and the fear that if you knew the truth you would cast measide? Yes," she cried wildly, her face blanched and haggard, "I lovedyou, Jack!" and staggering forward she fell upon her knees before him inpenitence.
"It is astounding!" he exclaimed. "Satan himself has sent you into mylife, for you are his priestess."
"But tell me," I cried, addressing the kneeling woman. "Explain yourobject in so mystifying me, and how it was that at your touch any holyemblems were reduced to ashes?"
"It is part of our creed," she answered. "Each Diabolist on placingupon himself the Bond of Black takes an oath to steal crucifixes,Bibles, prayer-books, communion-cups, sacramental wine, or anythingsacred to the worship of God, in order that they may be defiled ordestroyed in the Temple of Satan. You have already seen the holy water,and the consecrated host, defiled, and each of the crucifixes burned inthis brazier have been stolen by those who had destroyed them asofferings to the King of Evil."
"But mine was destroyed by fire--as was also the chalice at StPeter's," I observed.
"No; in order to mystify those who follow Christianity the Diabolistshave established a system by which the ashes of various objects burnedin the brazier are afterwards supplied to the votaries of Satan, andwhen any sacred objects are stolen the ashes are substituted. Beingcarried in a bag of chamois-leather, they are warmed by the heat of thebody, and hence, increased mystery is added by the ashes, whendiscovered, being warm."
"Then you stole my crucifix in order that it should be burnt here!" Iexclaimed, amazed.
"Yes. The chalice, too, was melted in that brazier, as well as objectsfrom the rooms of your poor friend Morgan."
"Morgan!" I cried, interrupting. "He was murdered! Tell us thetruth."
"Yes," answered the unhappy woman, hoarsely. "He was murdered."
"Who was the assassin?" I inquired quickly.
"I do not know," she answered, looking boldly at me. "I myself havetried to discover, but cannot."
"But how do you reconcile your assertion that he died at Monte Carlowith the fact that he was assassinated in London?" I demanded.
"I felt assured that he committed suicide there, for I saw him carriedout of the rooms dying. But, from further information which I havesince obtained from the Administration there, I have found that he layill for some weeks in a hospital at Nice, and afterwards recoveredsufficiently to be able to return to London. The Administration arealways reticent upon the subject of suicides, and it was their refusalto give me any information when I applied on the day following thetragic affair that led me to believe that your friend had died and beenburied in a nameless grave in the suicides' cemetery at La Turbie."
"Why did you so deceive me regarding your address at Hampstead?" Iinquired. "Surely there could have been no necessity for doing that?"
"Yes, there was," she replied. "I was compelled to act as I did. Inthe house of Mrs Popejoy was a valuable ring belonging to the Popewhich he had given to the Ambassador of France together with hisblessing. This ring had been traced by the cult of Satan to this lady'spossession, and it was arranged that I should enter the house as hercompanion and secure it. I did so on the night when you escorted me tothat house, and the ring is now upon the hand of the chief of theorder--the man yonder who personifies the King of Evil."
"Extraordinary!" I exclaimed when I had heard her explanation. "Youringenuity at deception was truly marvellous."
"Yes," she answered, "but my actions were not my own voluntary ones.They were directed by the leader of the sect in whose power I have beenheld, unable to extricate myself for fear of exposure and a terribledenunciation. But it is all at an end now," she added in despair. "Youhave all of you witnessed my awful degradation, and how I have committedthe deadly sins. For me what forgiveness can there be; for what may Ihope?"
"Hope for the forgiveness of the man who loves you," I answered,glancing at Yelverton, who remained rigid and silent, his face white asdeath.
But she only burst into tears, and grasping her lover's hand pressed itto her lips, murmuring some broken words imploring pity.
"And you, Muriel?" I asked, turning to my beloved who was standing atmy side shielded from the wrath of these angry people by my revolver."How is it that you have been enabled to expose this most extraordinarystate of affairs?"
"But for one thing I should never have dared to bring you here," sheanswered, looking at me openly. "I was jealous of Aline, because Ithought you loved her, and was therefore content that she should sufferall the tortures of the mind which she has suffered, being compelled tobow before Satan and ridicule the Faith. I refused your offer ofmarriage because I believed you loved her, and in pique I allowed thisman Hibbert to admire me. I--"
"Then you are a Diabolist yourself?" I gasped, dismayed.
"Yes. It was Hibbert who induced me to allow myself to becomeinitiated. Truth to tell, I was curious to witness the strange rites ofwhich he told me, but as soon as I found myself fettered by the Bond ofBlack I repented, and wished to come out of the terrible cult whosefaith is in profanity and whose deeds are wickedness. Like Aline, Ihave been compelled to steal prayer-books, Bibles, and sacred objects,all of which have been defiled and consumed. I dared not tell you of myassociation with these Satanists, hence my constant silence regardingmatters upon which you have desired explanation."
"But what caused you to so suddenly abandon Hibbert and return to me?"I asked, recollecting my curious compact with Aline.
"A discovery which I made--a revelation which, by Aline's instigation,was made to me," she answered. "I know full well how she bought yoursilence by promising that I should return to you. I came, and youbelieved, because of that, she was possessed of power supernatural. Itis the object of every worshipper of Satan to cause the outside world tobelieve that he or she is endowed with a miraculous power by the EvilOne, hence the manner in which ashes are substituted for the holyobjects stolen. Aline, like myself, was compelled by the oath she hadtaken to impose upon you, upon Roddy Morgan, upon her lover, nay, uponevery one about her, until they believed her endowed with power notpossessed by any other living being."
"Yes," Aline interrupted, "what Muriel tells you is the truth. At mywill this man Hibbert forsook her, and she returned to you because shewas no longer jealous of me. And you believed that I committed thecrime!" she said reproachfully. "You suspected that I killed the manwho had been so kind to me."
"I certainly did believe so. All the evidence seemed to point to thefact that Roddy was killed by some secret means, and that the person whovisited him was yourself. I found the button of one of your glovesthere."
Slowly she rose to her feet, and seeing how grave was her lover's faceshe turned again to me, saying, in a tremulous voice--
"Yes, I know, it is useless for me to now conceal the truth. On leavingyou that morning I went there and saw him. He opened the door himself,and I remained about a quarter of an hour. We had not met since I hadseen him carried out of the rooms at Monte Carlo, and the reason of myvisit was to ascertain whether what you alleged, namely, that he wasstill alive, was true. I fully expected to find that this man who waspassing as Roddy Morgan was an impostor, but discovered that he was nodoubt the same person with whom I had been acquainted at Monte Carlo.My aunt, with whom I was on the Riviera, liked him very much, and Iconfess that only by his attempted suicide was a match between usprevented
. In that brief space, while I remained there, he again toldme that he loved me, but I explained that I had now formed anotherattachment, a statement which threw him into a fit of deep despondency.His man was out, therefore he went himself into an adjoining room to getme a glass of wine, and while he was absent I stole a rosary from acasket, depositing ashes in its place. Then I drank the wine, and lefthim, promising to call soon, but giving him plainly to understand thatalthough we might be friends, we could never again be lovers."
"And then?" I asked gravely.
"Ah! I have no knowledge of what occurred after that," she said. "Ihave