For a moment he knelt gasping beside the shapeless being, his great hands
spasmodically feeling the pulseless breast.
Soon afterwards in the blacksmith's house the two girls nestled in each
other's arms, and Valmond, shaken and weak, returned to the smithy.
In the dull glare of the forge fire knelt Parpon, rocking back and forth
beside the body. Hearing Valmond, he got to his feet.
"You have killed him," he said, pointing.
"No, no, not I," answered Valmond. "Some one threw a hammer."
"There were two hammers."
"It was Elise?" asked Valmond, with a shudder. "No, not Elise; it was
you," said the dwarf, with a strange insistence.
"I tell you no," said Valmond. "It was you, Parpon."
"By God, it is a lie!" cried the dwarf, with a groan. Then he came close
to Valmond. "He was--my brother! Do you not see?" he demanded fiercely,
his eyes full of misery. "Do you not see that it was you? Yes, yes, it
was you."
Stooping, Valmond caught the little man in an embrace. "It was I that
killed him, Parpon. It was I, comrade. You saved my life," he added
significantly. "The girl threw, but missed," said Parpon. "She does not
know but that she struck him.
Pages:
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126