Why should all this misfortune fall upon her, to wreck her young life?  Other girls were gay, careless, and happy.  They visited and motored and flirted and danced, and went to theatres in town and to suppers afterwards at the Carlton or Savoy, and had what they termed “a ripping good time.”  But to her poor little self all pleasure was debarred.  Only the grim shadows of life were hers.

Her mind had become filled with despair.  Why had this great calamity befallen her?  Why had she, by her own action in writing to her lover, placed herself in that terrible position from which there was no escape—­save by death?

The recollection of the Whispers—­those fatal Whispers of Glencardine—­flashed through her distressed mind.  Was it actually true, as the countryfolk declared, that death overtook all those who overheard the counsels of the Evil One?  It really seemed as though there actually was more in the weird belief than she had acknowledged.  Her father had scouted the idea, yet old Stewart, who had personally known instances, had declared that evil and disaster fell inevitably upon any one who chanced to hear those voices of the night.

The recollection of that moonlight hour among the ruins, and the distinct voices whispering, caused a shudder to run through her.  She had heard them with her own ears, and ever since that moment nothing but catastrophe upon catastrophe had fallen upon her.

Yes, she had heard the Whispers, and she could not escape their evil influence any more than those other unfortunate persons to whom death had come so unexpectedly and swiftly.

A shadow passed the window, causing her to start.  The figure was that of a man.  She rose from the piano with a cry, and stood erect, motionless, statuesque.

CHAPTER XXXIII

IS ABOUT THE MAISON LENARD

The big, rather severely but well-furnished room overlooked the busy Boulevard des Capucines in Paris.  In front lay the great white facade of the Grand Hotel; below was all the bustle, life, and movement of Paris on a bright sunny afternoon.  Within the room, at a large mahogany table, sat four grave-faced men, while a fifth stood at one of the long windows, his back turned to his companions.

The short, broad-shouldered man looking forth into the street, in expectancy, was Monsieur Goslin.  He had been speaking, and his words had evidently caused some surprise, even alarm, among his companions, for they now exchanged glances in silence.

Three of the men were well-dressed and prosperous-looking; while the fourth, a shrivelled old fellow, in faded clothes which seemed several sizes too large for him, looked needy and ill-fed as he nervously chafed his thin bony hands.

Next moment they all began chatting in French, though from their countenances it was plain that they were of various nationalities—­one being German, the other Italian, and the third, a sallow-faced man, had the appearance of a Levantine.