Page:Tales of Today.djvu/136

120 Madama Lucrezia, and soon I found myself in front of the house No. 13.

The little street was in its usual deserted condition and there was no sound to break the silence that reigned throughout the neighborhood save my footsteps. I halted and raised my eyes toward a window that was well known to me. This time I could not be mistaken: the shutter was thrown back.

There was the window wide open.

I thought that I could descry a human form drawn in relief against the dark background of the apartment.

"Lucrèce, is that you?" I said in a low voice.

There was no answer, but I heard a clicking sound of which I did not at first understand the cause.

"Is that you, Lucrèce?" I repeated, a little louder this time.

At the same moment I received a terrible blow in the chest, a loud report was heard and I found myself lying prone upon the pavement. A hoarse voice cried to me:

"Take that from the Signora Lucrèce!"

And the shutter was closed noiselessly.

I arose immediately, reeling as I did so, and the first thing that I did was to make an inspection of myself, fully expecting to find a great hole in the middle of my stomach. The cloak was perforated, and my coat as well, but the thick folds of heavy cloth had served to deaden the force of the ball and I escaped with a severe contusion. The idea entered my head that a second shot might not be long in coming, so I forthwith dragged myself away from that inhospitable