The Secret Of The Night(Fiscle Part 3) by Gaston Leroux (readera ebook reader txt) 📕

Of The Young Man Who Had Presided At The Trial And Who,  At This

Upreme Moment,  Happened To Be Face To Face With Rouletabille.

"Koupriane's Police,  By Killing That Man,  Ridded Us Of A Traitor."

Rouletabille Uttered A Cry,  A Cry Of Joy,  And While He Had Some

Reason For Believing That At The Point He Had Reached Now Of His

Too-Short Career Only Misfortune Could Befall Him,  Yet Here

Providence,  In His Infinite Grace,  Sent Him Before He Died This

Ineffable Consolation: The Certainty That He Had Not Been Mistaken.

"Pardon,  Pardon," He Murmured,  In An Excess Of Joy Which Stifled

Him Almost As Much As The Wretched Rope Would Shortly Do That They

Were Getting Ready Behind Him.  "Pardon.  One Second Yet,  One Little

Second.  Then,  Messieurs,  Then,  We Are Agreed In That,  Are We?

This Michael,  Michael Nikolaievitch Was The The Last Of Traitors."

"The First," Said The Heavy Voice.

"It Is The Same Thing,  My Dear Monsieur.  A Traitor,  A Wretched

Traitor," Continued Rouletabille.

"A Poisoner," Replied The Voice.

"A Vulgar Poisoner!   Is That Not So?  But,  Tell Me How - A Vulgar

Poisoner Who,  Under Cover Of Nihilism,  Worked For His Own Petty

Ends,  Worked For Himself And Betrayed You All!"

Now Rouletabille's Voice Rose Like A Fanfare.  Someone Said:

"He Did Not Deceive Us Long; Our Enemies Themselves Undertook His

Punishment."

"It Was I," Cried Rouletabille,  Radiant Again.  "It Was I Who Wound

Up That Career.  I Tell You That Was Managed Right.  It Was I Who

Rid You Of Him.  Ah,  I Knew Well Enough,  Messieurs,  In The Bottom

Of My Heart I Knew That I Could Not Be Mistaken.  Two And Two Make

Four Always,  Don't They?  And Rouletabille Is Always Rouletabille.

Messieurs,  It Is All Right,  After All."

But It Was Probable That It Was Also All Wrong,  For The Gentleman

Of The Neva Came Up To Him Hat In Hand And Said:

"Monsieur,  You Know Now Why The Witnesses At Your Trial Did Not

Raise A Fact Against You That,  On The Contrary,  Was Entirely In

Your Favor.  Now It Only Remains For Us To Execute The Sentence

Which Is Entirely Justified On Other Grounds."

"Ah,  But - Wait A Little.  What The Devil!   Now That I Am Sure I

Have Not Been Mistaken And That I Have Been Myself,  Rouletabille,

All The Time I Cling To Life A Little - Oh,  Very Much!"

A Hostile Murmur Showed The Condemned Man That The Patience Of His

Judges Was Getting Near Its Limit.

"Monsieur," Interposed The President,  "We Know That You Do Not

Belong To The Orthodox Religion; Nevertheless,  We Will Bring A

Priest If You Wish It."

"Yes,  Yes,  That Is It,  Go For The Priest," Cried Rouletabille.

And He Said To Himself,  "It Is So Much Time Gained."

One Of The Revolutionaries Started Over To A Little Cabin That Had

Been Transformed Into A Chapel,  While The Rest Of Them Looked At

The Reporter With A Good Deal Less Sympathy Than They Had Been

Showing.  If His Bravado Had Impressed Them Agreeably In The Trial

Room,  They Were Beginning To Be Rather Disgusted By His Cries,  His

Protestations And All The Maneuvers By Which He So Apparently Was

Trying To Hold Off The Hour Of His Death.

But All At Once Rouletabille Jumped Up Onto The Fatal Stool.  They

Believed He Had Decided Finally To Make An End Of The Comedy And

Die With Dignity; But He Had Mounted There Only To Give Them A

Discourse.

"Messieurs,  Understand Me Now.  If It Is True That You Are Not

Suppressing Me In Order To Avenge Michael Nikolaievitch,  Then Why

Do You Hang Me?  Why Do You Inflict This Odious Punishment On Me?

Because You Accuse Me Of Causing Natacha Feodorovna's Arrest?  Truly

I Have Been Awkward.  Of That,  And That Alone,  I Accuse Myself."

"It Was You,  With Your Revolver,  Who Gave The Signal To Koupriane's

Agents!   You Have Done The Dirty Work For The Police."

Rouletabille Tried Vainly To Protest,  To Explain,  To Say That His

Revolver Shot,  On The Contrary,  Had Saved The Revolutionaries.  But

No One Cared To Listen And No One Believed Him.

"Here Is The Priest,  Monsieur," Said The Gentleman Of The Neva.

"One Second!   These Are My Last Words,  And I Swear To You That

After This I Will Pass The Rope About My Neck Myself!   But Listen

To Me!   Listen To Me Closely!  Natacha Feodorovna Was The Most

Precious Recruit You Had,  Was She Not?"

"A Veritable Treasure," Declared The President,  His Voice More And

More Impatient.

"It Was A Terrible Blow,  Then," Continued The Reporter,  "A Terrible

Blow For You,  This Arrest?"

"Terrible," Some Of Them Ejaculated.

"Do Not Interrupt Me!   Very Well,  Then,  I Am Going To Say This To

You: 'If I Ward Off This Blow - If,  After Having Been The

Unintentional Cause Of Natacha's Arrest,  I Have The Daughter Of

General Trebassof Set At Liberty,  And That Within Twenty-Four

Hours,  - What Do You Say?  Would You Still Hang Me?'"

The President,  He Who Had The Christ-Like Countenance,  Said:

"Messieurs,  Natacha Feodorovna Has Fallen The Victim Of Terrible

Machinations Whose Mystery We So Far Have Not Been Able To Penetrate.

She Is Accused Of Trying To Poison Her Father And Her Step-Mother,

And Under Such Conditions That It Seems Impossible For Human Reason

To Demonstrate The Contrary.  Natacha Feodorovna Herself,  Crushed

By The Tragic Occurrence,  Was Not Able To Answer Her Accusers At

All,  And Her Silence Has Been Taken For A Confession Of Guilt.

Messieurs,  Natacha Feodorovna Will Be Started For Siberia To-Morrow.

We Can Do Nothing For Her.  Natacha Feodorovna Is Lost To Us."

Then,  With A Gesture To Those Who Surrounded Rouletabille:

"Do Your Duty,  Messieurs."

"Pardon,  Pardon.  But If I Do Prove The Innocence Of Natacha?

Just Wait,  Messieurs.  There Is Only I Who Can Prove That Innocence!

You Lose Natacha By Killing Me!"

"If You Had Been Able To Prove That Innocence,  Monsicur,  The Thing

Would Already Be Done.  You Would Not Have Waited."

"Pardon,  Pardon.  It Is Only At This Moment That I Have Become Able

To Do It."

"How Is That?"

"It Is Because I Was Sick,  You See - Very Seriously Sick.  That

Affair Of Michael Nikolaievitch And The Poison That Still Continued

After He Was Dead Simply Robbed Me Of All My Powers.  Now That I

Am Sure I Have Not Been The Means Of Killing An Innocent Man - I Am

Rouletabille Again!  It Is Not Possible That I Shall Not Find The

Way,  That I Shall Not See Through This Mystery."

The Terrible Voice Of The Christ-Like Figure Said Monotonously:

"Do Your Duty,  Messieurs."

"Pardon,  Pardon.  This Is Of Great Importance To You - And The

Proof Is That You Have Not Yet Hanged Me.  You Were Not So

Procrastinating With My Predecessor,  Were You?  You Have Listened

To Me Because You Have Hoped!  Very Well,  Let Me Think,  Let Me

Consider.  Oh,  The Devil!  I Was There Myself At The Fatal Luncheon,

And I Know Better Than Anyone Else All That Happened There.  Five

Minutes!  I Demand Five Minutes Of You; It Is Not Much.  Five

Little Minutes!"

These Last Words Of The Condemned Man Seemed To Singularly Influence

The Revolutionaries.  They Looked At One Another In Silence.

Then The President Took Out His Watch And Said:

"Five Minutes.  We Grant Them To You."

"Put Your Watch Here.  Here On This Nail.  It Is Five Minutes To

Seven,  Eh?  You Will Give Me Until The Hour?"

"Yes,  Until The Hour.  The Watch Itself Will Strike When The Hour

Has Come."

"Ah,  It Strikes!   Like The General's Watch,  Then.  Very Well,  Here

We Are."

Then There Was The Curious Spectacle Of Rouletabille Standing On

The Hangman's Stool,  The Fatal Rope Hanging Above His Head,  His

Legs Crossed,  His Elbow On His Knees In That Eternal Attitude Which

Art Has Always Given To Human Thought,  His Fists Under His Jaws,

His Eyes Fixed - All Around Him,  All Those Young Men Intent On His

Silence,  Not Moving A Muscle,  Turned Into Statues Themselves That

They Might Not Disturb The Statue Which Thought And Thought.

Hour's Seven Strokes.  Did It Sound The Death Of Rouletabille?

Perhaps Not!  For At The First Silver Tinkle They Saw Rouletabille

Shake Himself,  And Raise His Head,  With His Face Alight And His

Eyes Shining.  They Saw Him Stand Up,  Spread Out His Arms And Cry:

"I Have Found It!"

Such Joy Shone In His Countenance That There Seemed To Be An Aureole

Around Him,  And None Of Those There Doubted That He Had The Solution

Of The Impossible Problem.

"I Have Found It!  I Have Found It!"

They Gathered Around Him.  He Waved Them Away As In A Waking Dream.

"Give Me Room.  I Have Found It,  If My Experiment Works Out.  One,

Two,  Three,  Four,  Five..."

What Was He Doing?  He Counted His Steps Now,  In Long Paces,  As In

Dueling Preliminaries.  And The Others,  All Of Them,  Followed Him