<p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[45]</SPAN></span></p>
<div class="break">
<h2 class="p4">CHAPTER V</h2>
<p class="pch">A REVELATION</p>
<p class="drop-cap05"><span class="beg">JOY GARGRAVE</span> did not begin her story immediately.
For a full two minutes they walked
on, environed by the solemn pinewoods, and
enveloped in the strange, white silence of the North.
The corporal waited, and at last the girl spoke.</p>
<p>“You wonder why I was sitting on the bank,
crying?”</p>
<p>“Yes,” he replied frankly. “I am wondering
why you should do that, though I may tell you
that I already have an idea.”</p>
<p>“You already have an idea?” the girl’s tones,
as she echoed his question, betrayed surprise.</p>
<p>“Yes,” he answered, and thrusting a hand inside
his fur parka, he produced the note which he had
found, and held it towards her. He saw from
her face that she recognized it, and he continued
slowly: “You see, I found this last night—not
far from the place where Koona Dick was lying.
I did not know to whom it had been written; and
if I had known, I am afraid duty would have
compelled me to read it. If I am not mistaken,
it was written to you; at any rate it bears your
Christian name.”</p>
<p>“It was written to me,” answered the girl quickly.
“It is mine.”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[46]</SPAN></span></p>
<p>“And the writer of it? Was he Koona Dick?”</p>
<p>“Yes,” was the reply.</p>
<p>Corporal Bracknell glanced at the note, and his
eyes were fixed upon the half-erased signature.
“Tell me,” he said, “what is Koona Dick’s name?—I
mean the second half of his name which he
had begun to write apparently from force of habit,
and then crossed out?”</p>
<p>“I am afraid it will be something of a surprise
to you,” said the girl.</p>
<p>“Perhaps not so great a surprise as you think,”
was the reply. “I think I have already guessed.”</p>
<p>“His name is the same as your own, Corporal.
It is Bracknell!”</p>
<p>“Ah!” said the corporal in the tone of a man
who had found his thoughts confirmed. “Richard
Ascham Bracknell, of course.”</p>
<p>“You have the name perfect,” answered Joy
quietly.</p>
<p>“Of Harrow Fell, Westmorland, England?” inquired
the corporal.</p>
<p>“He was born there,” replied the girl, “and Sir
James is his father, as you are his cousin.”</p>
<p>The corporal walked on a few paces without
speaking, his eyes staring at a distant hill, and from
the vacancy of their gaze it was evident that he
was lost in thought. Joy Gargrave watched him
curiously, and, after a little time, she spoke again.</p>
<p>“You did not know—you did not guess until you
saw that note?”</p>
<p>“I had not the slightest idea. I knew that Koona
Dick was an Englishman—that was all. But when
I read the note last night, and recalled your acknowledged<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[47]</SPAN></span>
acquaintance with Harrow Fell and Sir James,
I suspected.”</p>
<p>“If you had known you would not have undertaken
to follow him—to take him prisoner, I mean?”</p>
<p>“I could not very well have refused, without resigning
from the force. Perhaps you know how
the oath of allegiance runs?”</p>
<p>Joy shook her head, and he quoted—”And will
well and truly obey and perform all lawful orders
and instructions, which I shall receive as such,
without fear, favour or affection of or towards any
person. So help me, God!”</p>
<p>The girl shivered a little. “It is a hard service,
yours,” she said. “And you would have arrested
your cousin?”</p>
<p>“My cousin, or any other man—or woman. I
have no choice in the matter. Duty, after all, is
the greatest word in the language.”</p>
<p>Joy considered him thoughtfully. His lean face
was stern, and there was a hard light in the unwavering
grey eyes. It was clear to her that he meant
just what he said, and that he would do whatever
duty dictated without fear or favour.</p>
<p>“It is not every one who would agree with you,”
she replied. “Your cousin, for instance, he—”</p>
<p>“Tell me,” he interrupted. “What was Dick
Bracknell to you? This letter suggests an intimacy
beyond that of mere acquaintance or friendship.”</p>
<p>“You are right,” the girl answered quickly. “He
was my husband.”</p>
<p>“Good God!”</p>
<p>As that expression of extreme amazement broke
from him, Corporal Bracknell halted abruptly,<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[48]</SPAN></span>
looking at the beautiful girl by his side, with incredulous
eyes.</p>
<p>“It is quite true,” she said. “I am Koona Dick’s
wife—or widow.”</p>
<p>Still he did not speak, and watching him the girl
saw a flash of something like horror come into his
eyes.</p>
<p>“And you went to meet him—last night?” he
said, at last, in a shaking voice.</p>
<p>“I have not said so,” answered the girl quickly.
“You have read that note, but you must not surmise—”</p>
<p>“I saw you,” broke in the corporal quickly.</p>
<p>“You saw me?” It was Joy Gargrave’s turn
to be astonished, and as he looked at her it seemed
to him that fear was shining in her eyes.</p>
<p>“Yes, I saw you,” he answered mechanically.</p>
<p>“Where?” she demanded.</p>
<p>“You were coming out of the path between the
woods. You had a rifle in your hand. There was
a strange look upon your face. I was standing
with my dogs in the shadow of a spruce and you
passed me without seeing me. I was about to speak
to you, but the sight of your face kept me silent.
It was that, and the thought of two shots which
I had heard, which sent me along the path you
had just left to investigate. At the end of it, I
found Koona Dick!”</p>
<p>“Dead?” asked the girl sharply.</p>
<p>“He seemed so to me!” was the reply. “Indeed,
I was quite sure that there was no life left in him,
or I should have done my best to revive him, and
not have left him lying there in the snow.”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[49]</SPAN></span></p>
<p>“If he were dead, where is he now?” came the
swift question.</p>
<p>“I do not know,” replied the corporal. “The
thing is a mystery to me. When I returned to the
place with Mr. Rayner last night the body had
already disappeared.”</p>
<p>“But how could it do that, if he were really
dead?” objected his companion.</p>
<p>“Some one must have removed—” Corporal
Bracknell stopped suddenly.</p>
<p>It was clear to Joy that some new thought had
just occurred to him. She saw that he was looking
at her thoughtfully, and she wondered what was in
his mind.</p>
<p>“What is it?” she asked quickly. “What are
you thinking?”</p>
<p>“Tell me,” he countered, “did you see your
husband last night?”</p>
<p>“I did,” she answered frankly.</p>
<p>“And when I had said that Koona Dick was
lying dead in the snow, you left the table. You
went out of the room, and you did not return.”</p>
<p>He spoke like a man pursuing a thought which
seemed to him almost incredible, but which was
thrust upon him by force of circumstances, and the
girl divined what that thought was.</p>
<p>“You do not think that I went back?” she cried.
“You cannot think that I am responsible for the
disappearance?”</p>
<p>“It is a natural thought,” he answered, “though
I am loathe to believe it. You must remember that
I saw your face as you came out of the path; and
that the man was your husband, though apparently<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[50]</SPAN></span>
your friends do not know it. My cousin—your
husband—”</p>
<p>“Oh! but you do not understand!” cried the
girl quickly. “You do not realize that I would
give all I have to know that the body of the man
who was my husband was still where you first saw
it. It is the uncertainty of the fact which troubles
and worries me, and not his death.”</p>
<p>“Not his death!”</p>
<p>“No!” was the almost appalling reply. “The
certainty of that would be like a deliverance.”</p>
<p>For a little time Corporal Bracknell stared at her,
too much amazed for speech. It was clear to him
that she was in deadly earnest and that she meant
every word she said. He wondered what marital
tragedy was behind her attitude, and was still wondering,
when she spoke again in a hard voice.</p>
<p>“You seem surprised,” she said; “you know
your cousin fairly well?”</p>
<p>“Yes,” he answered, nodding his head.</p>
<p>“Then you cannot suppose that I loved him,
even though he was my husband! No girl could
love Dick Bracknell when she knew him for what
he was, and any woman, married as I was, would
almost rejoice to know that—that she was released.”</p>
<p>“You do not know what you are saying,” protested
the corporal quickly. “You cannot realize
what implication your words may have to any one
who knows what I know. It would almost seem
that you had wished for Dick Bracknell’s death, and
that fact in view of the circumstances in which I
found him last night might assume a terrible significance.”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[51]</SPAN></span></p>
<p>“You mean that people might think I shot my
husband?”</p>
<p>“Yes,” was the reply. “At least many people
would ask that question.”</p>
<p>“And you?” inquired the girl. “You have asked
yourself that question?”</p>
<p>“Naturally,” replied Bracknell. “You must remember
that I saw you coming from the place where
he was lying.”</p>
<p>“I wonder what conclusion you have reached,”
said Joy, looking at him keenly.</p>
<p>“None,” was the prompt reply.</p>
<p>“You are in doubt, then?”</p>
<p>“I am very loath to believe what the circumstances
would seem to indicate,” answered the corporal
quietly. “As you must see, they are terribly
against you, and your visit to the place this morning—”</p>
<p>“You know of that?”</p>
<p>“I saw you and Miss La Farge come in whilst
Mr. Rayner and I were at breakfast, and whilst
you were supposed to be still in your rooms. I
found your tracks in the snow.”</p>
<p>“And you cannot guess why I—why we went?”</p>
<p>“No.”</p>
<p>“We went to look for that note which you showed
me just now. I had meant to destroy it, and
missed it this morning. Then I remembered that
I had put it in my pocket last night, and naturally
concluded that I had lost it outside. That is the
explanation of the journey this morning. No one
here but Miss La Farge has any idea that Dick
Bracknell is my husband, and I did not want any
of them to know.”</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[52]</SPAN></span></p>
<p>Corporal Bracknell was conscious of a sense of
relief. The explanation was so simple that he felt
it to be altogether true. But there were questions
that still required answering, and he proceeded to
ask them.</p>
<p>“I can well believe, that,” he answered slowly.
“I suppose Mr. Rayner was among them from
whom you wished to keep this knowledge?”</p>
<p>“Yes,” was the reply, given frankly. “I
did not wish him to know how foolish I had been.”</p>
<p>The corporal remembered what Rayner had
hinted as to his hopes of making Joy Gargrave his
wife, and the girl’s answer started fresh questions in
his mind. Did she love Rayner and favour his
aspirations, and knowing herself to be already a
wife, had she deliberately removed the barrier
which lay between them, but of which Rayner had
no knowledge? He could not tell, and looking
steadily at the girl he proceeded to ask his next
question.</p>
<p>“Miss Gargrave—I mean Mrs. Brack—”</p>
<p>“No! No!” interrupted the girl. “Do not give
me that name. I do not want it. I hate it.
Call me Gargrave.”</p>
<p>He bowed. “As you please, Miss Gargrave.
There is a question I wish to ask you. Tell
me, did you have speech with Dick Bracknell last
night?”</p>
<p>“Not a word.”</p>
<p>“But you saw him?”</p>
<p>“Yes,” she agreed quietly. “I saw him.”</p>
<p>“You stood in the shadow of the trees at a point
which would give you a clear view of the place<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[53]</SPAN></span>
where you knew your husband would be waiting
for you, and you took a rifle with you. Why did
you take that rifle, Miss Gargrave?”</p>
<p>As he asked that question he saw the pallor of
the beautiful face grow more pronounced. The
frank blue eyes wavered, and for a second or two
he thought she was going to faint. Then she drew
a quick, gasping breath.</p>
<p>“You know these woods,” she said unsteadily.
“There are wolves and—and bears. To carry a
rifle is the merest prudence.”</p>
<p>A frown came on the corporal’s face. He knew
that the answer was a mere evasion, and he was
not pleased. But he did not challenge the answer
directly.</p>
<p>“Miss Gargrave,” he asked, “were you afraid of
Dick Bracknell?”</p>
<p>“Not afraid, exactly,” was the reply candidly
given, “but I loathed him, and hated the thought
of his coming into my life again.”</p>
<p>The corporal considered for a few seconds, and
then asked his next question bluntly.</p>
<p>“Tell me, did you fire your rifle at all whilst you
were out, or whilst you were waiting for your
husband?”</p>
<p>As he made the inquiry the girl came to a sudden
standstill, her lips trembling, her pale face working
strangely, the blue eyes expressive of awful fear.
He waited in far more distress than his impassive
face indicated, and at last the answer came in a
shaking whisper.</p>
<p>“Yes, I did. But, oh, believe me, I—I did not
know that I had done so till afterwards. I do not<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[54]</SPAN></span>
know what happened.... I saw him fall in the
snow, and I waited. Then I went up to him. He
seemed to be dead—and after that I must have fled
homeward.”</p>
<p>As he listened the corporal visioned the tragedy
of the night before, and as he looked into her
troubled face, his heart smote him. His voice was
almost sympathetic as he asked the next question.</p>
<p>“You say you saw your husband fall? Was it
after your rifle was discharged or before?”</p>
<p>“I—do not know,” the girl replied. “This
morning the whole thing is like a disordered nightmare
dimly remembered. I know there was a
moment when I was tempted to wickedness.
There was a terrible hatred in my heart for my
husband, and as I saw him standing there, it flashed
on me how easy it would be to free myself from
him for ever. It was only a moment—like a sudden
madness, and then I saw him drop in the snow....
I do not know what happened, but this morning I
examined my rifle.”</p>
<p>Her voice quivered and failed, and suddenly she
bent her face in her mittened hand and broke into
a storm of weeping. The corporal himself was
greatly moved by her distress, but the sight of it
somehow relieved his worst fears.</p>
<p>“Miss Gargrave,” he said hopefully, “you examined
your rifle this morning. Tell me what
you found?”</p>
<p>“An empty shell in the chamber,” said the girl,
sobbing bitterly.</p>
<p>“Yes,” he said quickly, a touch of excitement in<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[55]</SPAN></span>
his manner, “and in the magazine? Tell me,
quick.”</p>
<p>“There was a full clip—but for the shell which
had been fired.”</p>
<p>“Ah!” said Bracknell with a sigh of relief. “I
thought so. Now think carefully, and tell me, did
you hear another shot fired?”</p>
<p>The trouble in the girl’s face cleared suddenly,
and a light of hope flashed in her eyes. “Why do
you ask?” she cried. “I thought I did, but this
morning I could not be sure. I thought it might
be the echo of my own rifle—”</p>
<p>“It was not an echo,” interrupted the corporal
quickly. “It was the discharge of a rifle. I was
a little distance away, and I distinctly heard the
reports, one so close on the heels of the other that
the two seemed almost like one.”</p>
<p>Wonder mingled with the hope in the girl’s face.</p>
<p>“You are sure,” she cried. “Yes! Then there
must have been some one else, some one who fired
at my husband, and perhaps I did not kill him after
all. Oh! thank God! Thank God! I hated him,
and though I was tempted, it was only a flaming
moment of madness, from which I was saved. You
think that? Say you think that, Mr. Bracknell?”</p>
<p>“Indeed I do,” answered the corporal reassuringly,
“I feel convinced of it. At first, I was doubtful,
and will own I suspected you. But your frankness
in the matter has set the whole affair in a new
light.”</p>
<p>A thoughtful look came on his face. For a full
minute he stood there without speaking, and the<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[56]</SPAN></span>
girl watched him, wondering what was in his mind.
Then he spoke again.</p>
<p>“The affair is very mysterious. There certainly
were two reports and one only came from your
rifle. It is evident to me that a third person was
in the neighbourhood when your husband was shot.
I have found the place where he stood, and I was
following the track of a sled, when I came upon
you just now. The track is a fairly recent one,
made, I should say, no later than last night.”</p>
<p>“Possibly it was my husband’s team,” suggested
the girl.</p>
<p>The corporal nodded. “That of course is just
possible, but the man who took it away cannot
have been Dick Bracknell. If he were not dead—and
I am sure he was—he certainly was in no
condition to walk away. And the team did not
go away of itself, for there is the track of a man’s
feet, both going and returning.”</p>
<p>“If he should not be dead—” faltered the
girl. The corporal looked at her, and the sight
of her distress moved him to a deeper sympathy.
He knew his cousin, and Koona Dick’s record in
the territory was not an attractive one. He wondered
how this beautiful girl had been induced to
marry Dick Bracknell, and frowned at the thought
that if he were not dead, she was still his wife. The
girl noticed the frown.</p>
<p>“What are you thinking, Mr. Bracknell?”</p>
<p>“I was wondering however you came to marry
such a scally-wag as I know Dick Bracknell to have
been.”</p>
<p>Joy Gargrave flushed and then grew pale. “I<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[57]</SPAN></span>
am not surprised that you should wonder....
If you will walk on I will tell you how—how it
happened.”</p>
<p>Without speaking he fell into step by her side,
and waited for her to begin.</p>
<hr class="chap" /></div>
<div style="break-after:column;"></div><br />